Tech Briefings
Timely Info for Power Users and Stanford's Technology Community
On this page:
Overview
Tech Briefing Videos
Streaming video now available for select Tech Briefings
On this page:
Tech Briefing Videos
Streaming video now available for select Tech Briefings
Held Friday afternoons in Turing Auditorium, Tech Briefings are informal, interactive seminars on computer-related topics of interest to the Stanford community. These sessions are open to everyone - faculty, staff, and students - and no registration required. Your opportunity to get technology updates from and ask questions of subject-matter experts.
The Tech Briefings, led by knowledgeable IT Services staff or other IT professionals, run from 2:00 to 3:30 P.M. No registration is required - just come on by and learn something new. No fees. No fuss.
Turing Auditorium is Room 111 of Polya Hall. See this map to Polya Hall.
The success of these sessions depends on you! Questions from attendees are strongly encouraged. Topics are announced in advance through the techbriefings mailing list and on this web page.
Because we are presenting emerging technical topics, please feel free to contact the Tech Briefing coordinator with any questions, comments, suggestions, or concerns. Call 723-4391 or send email to techbriefings-owner@lists.stanford.edu.
Upcoming Tech Briefings
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Drupal Workshop: Introduction to Content Types, Fields (CCK), and Views Why Use a Content Management System (CMS) Shopping with Stanford's SmartMart Windows 7 for Techies
Special 2-Hour Tech Briefing (2 - 4 p.m.)New Features in Stanford Email and Calendar Drupal Workshop: Menus, Blocks, and Books (oh my!) Google Search at Stanford iStanford App Development Google Search at Stanford May 28:No Tech Briefing - Memorial Day Weekend Power Googling: Getting What You Want From Google June 11:No Tech Briefing - Graduation SU Web Site Stats:
Using AWStats Locally or External Service Offerings like Google AnalyticsMulti-Media on the Stanford Web (Panel)
| Date | Topic | Presenter(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Mar 26 | Drupal Workshop: Introduction to Content Types, Fields (CCK), and Views This is one in a series of hands-on workshops covering Drupal installation and development at Stanford. Bring a laptop and follow along! Introduction to Content Types, Fields (CCK), and Views will go step-by-step through creating a To Do List and Change Log for your site. To Do Lists and Change Logs are very useful for site development, and making them will involve:
|
Sharon Krossa, IT Services |
| April 2 | Why Use a Content Management System (CMS)? Confused about what a CMS (Content Management System) is? Heard of Drupal, WordPress, or MediaWiki, but don't really understand what the big deal is? Come to this Tech Briefing to find out! Mark Branom, instructor for IT Services Technology Training, will cover:
|
Mark Branom, IT Services |
| April 9 | Shopping with Stanford's SmartMart Please join us for this introduction to shopping with Stanford's SmartMart. SmartMart is a one-stop shop for all your buying needs, be it office or lab supplies, computers, oligonucleotides, and so much more...over two and half million items are available online. The presentation will include search tips, creating favorites, and assigning shopping carts. |
Cheryl Penn, Purchasing and Contracts |
| April 16 | Windows 7 for Techies Special 2-Hour Tech Briefing (2 - 4 p.m.) Download Slides (PDF) This session provides a look into the technical aspects of Windows 7, and is for those who support clients planning to make the move to Windows 7. Topics (Click for full list) |
Toby Dechant, Microsoft |
New Features in Stanford Email and Calendar Presentation (PDF) On April 30, Stanford Email and Calendar is scheduled to move to a new version of Zimbra. This upgrade from version 5 to version 6 retains the familiar look we know for webmail, but adds a cornucopia of new features, including:
Join Ammy Hill as she provides a demo of the new features, and answers your questions about what's new and improved. For an overview, see What's New and Different on the Email and Calendar web site. |
Ammy Hill, IT Services |
|
| April 30 | Drupal Workshop: Menus, Blocks, and Books (oh my!) This is one in a series of hands-on workshops covering Drupal installation and development at Stanford. Bring a laptop and follow along! Menus, Blocks, and Books (oh my!) will go step-by-step through these topics:
There will be pre-configured Drupal sites available for use by those who would like to follow along on a laptop during the workshop. (No advance registration required!) |
Sharon Krossa, IT Services |
| May 7 | Google Search at Stanford The license for the Google Search Appliance (ask.stanford.edu), which provides Stanford's internal web search results, will expire in June. Google Custom Search is selected as the replacement solution. This briefing will cover the upcoming changes to Stanford Web Search and provide instructions for migrating to the new Google Custom Search solution while maintaining search functionality. The presentation will also include tips for updating the Stanford search box in web sites that use the Stanford Modern theme. |
Brian Young, IT Services |
| May 14 | iStanford App Development Come learn more about iStanford from its founders! Aaron Wasserman, Director of Blackboard Mobile and Stanford Senior, and Pablo Jablonski, Blackboard Engineer and Stanford senior -- both founding members of the Blackboard Mobile Division -- will team up to discuss the iStanford architecture, talk about what makes a good mobile app, and present components of the Blackboard SDK which allows anyone to develop content for iStanford. Tim Flood, of the Student Affairs division, will present plans to develop new functionality and discuss the general development methodology and planning process. |
Tim Flood, Director of Student Affairs Information Systems Aaron Wasserman, Director of Blackboard Mobile, and Stanford senior Pablo Jablonski, Blackboard Engineer, and Stanford senior
|
| May 21 | Google Search at Stanford The license for the Google Search Appliance (ask.stanford.edu), which provides Stanford's internal web search results, will expire in June. Google Custom Search is selected as the replacement solution. This briefing will cover the upcoming changes to Stanford Web Search and provide instructions for migrating to the new Google Custom Search solution while maintaining search functionality. The presentation will also include tips for updating the Stanford search box in web sites that use the Stanford Modern theme. |
Brian Young, IT Services |
| May 28 | No Tech Briefing - Memorial Day Weekend |
|
| June 4 | Power Googling: Getting What You Want From Google Google is easy to use, but the more you know about how it works, its features, its capabilities, and how it displays results, the better it can serve your needs. Learn how to go beyond Google’s deceptively plain interface and take advantage of underutilized capabilities and shortcuts. In this presentation, Nancy Blachman and Tasha Bergson-Michelson will show
Review from David Pogue, New York Times technical specialist blog, June 2005: "There are a lot of cool Google tips and hacks floating around, some of which I’ve mentioned in my weekly e-column. (For example, you can use Google as a dictionary by typing “define:ersatz,” or whatever.) But here’s a nice, tidy list of all of them in one place (www.googleguide.com/advanced_operators_reference.html), some of which are new to me. Bookmark this baby!" |
Nancy Blachman and Tasha Bergson-Michelson, Google Guide |
| June 11 | No Tech Briefing - Graduation |
|
| June 18 | SU Web Site Stats: An overview of ways of assessing logged statistics about your SU web site, looking in particular at the pros and cons of using a local program like AWStats versus using a third-party system like Google's Analytics offering. This presentation will include a couple of basic real world examples from each of these services. |
Tim Torgenrud, IT Services |
| June 25 | Multi-Media on the Stanford Web (Panel)
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Links to Previous Quarters
Click on these links to previous quarters to see the Tech Briefings/TGIF topics we have presented in the past. Links to handouts for most presentations are also available at these sites.
- Current Quarter - Spring 2010
- Winter 2010
- Fall 2009
- Summer 2009
- Spring 2009
- Winter 2009
- Fall 2008
- Summer 2008
- Spring 2008
- Winter 2008
- Fall 2007
- Summer 2007
- Spring 2007
- Winter 2007
- Fall 2006
- Summer 2006
- Spring 2006
- Winter 2006
- Fall 2005
- Summer 2005
- Spring 2005
- Winter 2005
- Fall 2004
- Summer 2004
- Spring 2004
- Winter 2004
- Fall 2003
- Summer 2003
- Spring 2003
- Winter 2003
- Fall 2002
- Summer 2002
- Spring 2002
- Winter 2002
- Fall 2001
Subscribe to the Tech Briefings Mailing List
To subscribe to the Tech Briefings Mailing List, either:
- Visit https://mailman.stanford.edu/mailman/listinfo/techbriefings and enter your email address in the Subscribing to techbriefings section
- Or, send email to techbriefings-join@lists.stanford.edu
Tips for Presenters
So, you're going to give a presentation at an upcoming Tech Briefing. Find out what services we provide and what's expected of you. Refer to this PowerPoint document Tips for Presenters for guidelines on preparing for your presentation. You will find templates, as well as other useful information regarding timelines, marketing, and resources.
