Tutorials on Digital Tools and Resources

The Visual Resources Collection staff will be conducting informal training on the ARTstor image database, PowerPoint, and bspace for UC Berkeley History of Art faculty and graduate students. Click here or on the image to the right for the sign-up form. Please provide your name and e-mail address in the space provided on the form to sign-up for a session.

The sessions will cover the following:

Getting Started with ARTstor
--registering for an account
--features overview
--searching
--downloading individual images
--batch downloading to PowerPoint

Introduction to Powerpoint
--creating proper image file sizes for importing to PPT
--creating basic image presentations
--image resizing and layout
--adding text to presentations

Loading lectures to bspace
--setting up a bspace course
--configuring additional log-ins for GSIs
--preparing your lectures for upload
--uploading your lectures

I am open to additional times or training topics. Please contact me at lynncunningham@berkeley.edu to share your suggestions.

VPN Service is Changing

The UC Berkeley campus is changing its VPN software. All current VPN users will need to switch to the new version before August 12, 2009. VPN software is used to access article databases, electronic journals, and other licensed resources found through the Library website and catalogs. Some programs require VPN for off-campus use: Luna Insight, MDL Crossfire Beilstein and Gmelin, SciFinder Scholar (client version only), the java client in UC Image Service, and the Connect function in EndNote. VPN will work with all web browsers and most types of Internet connection, except AOL. See this link for detailed instructions for downloading and installing the new version.

News from campus ETS

Our campus ETS is in the process of phasing out slide 
projectors in the classrooms. It looks as though all 
projectors will be removed from the classrooms as of 
Spring 2010.

Below is the e-mail they are distributing
announcing their plans for the art history classrooms.
You can also view this PDF for more information
about the changes in their equipment loan program.

Starting in Fall 2009 ETS will no longer loan slide projectors. This
includes the checkout equipment in DW 44 and the ETS closets.

We will also be phasing out slide projectors in classrooms. Here is a list
of rooms that will have slide projection for Fall 2009.

Moffitt 101, 102, 103, 106
Kroeber 160, 155
VLSB 2050
Dwinelle 155
Wheeler Aud (150)
Tan 180
LSA 101
PFA/Hearst Annex 1

Each room should have two working projectors, one dual wireless
remote and signage stating as of January 2010 we will no longer be
supporting slide projection in classrooms. Over the winter break we
will remove them from the above rooms.

Clients can contact ETS to have equipment transferred to their
department if they choose to continue to use this media. 

Loading presentations to bspace

Would you like to load your class lectures up to bspace for student review? If the lectures were created with PowerPoint, it is preferable to convert the files to PDF format first. PDF files are easily readable by using the free Adobe Reader application, whereas PPT files usually require the (not free) PowerPoint application for viewing.

Follow these instructions to convert a PPT file to PDF. If you are using a Mac, the PDF file is not automatically compressed and can be too large for bspace to accept. Follow these additional instructions to compress PDF files if you are on the Mac platform.

The end of Kodachrome film

The news from Kodak this week is that they will be discontinuing their Kodachrome slide film. Here is a New York Times article for more information.

Cooliris

For a faster and more dynamic way to view image search results in your web browser, try the plug-in from Cooliris. With a simple click, Cooliris converts a static web page of images into a '3-d wall' for quick viewing and selection. The Cooliris plug-in is compatible with Safari, Firefox, or IE and works on lots of different sites such as Google image search, YouTube, Flickr, Hulu, Facebook, Picasa and more.

Loading image groups into PowerPoint

PowerPoint 2004 and 2007 for Windows has a feature called 'photo album' which allows you to load in groups or folders of images, and resize them to screen-size all in one step. This fantastic feature is not included in Mac versions of Powerpoint, but a plug-in exists which will do the same.

If you have PP 2004 for Mac, download and unzip this plug-in.
If you have PP 2008 for Mac, download and unzip this plug-in.

Please contact me if you have questions or need help, because these do not work with all operating systems.

Also, available for a small fee, you may download similar scripts for Macs running PPT 2001, 2004, and 2008 from this site: http://www.agentjim.com/MVP/PowerPoint/PPTHome.html