Tech Tips – Page 35

Free & Easy Cloud Backup Solutions

As each semester comes to a close, I like to take stock of all of the documents I’ve written over the last few months and make sure they are backed up. There are plenty of options available to backup and sync your data between multiple computers and mobile devices.

You’ve probably seen the commercials on TV or on the radio for paid cloud backup services like Carbonite and BackBlaze. Those services are all well and good, but sometimes the monthly fees can add up, and you may not always need all of the bells and whistles they provide.

Luckily, there are quite a few free solutions that you can use to back up your data as well as have it available from anywhere! Here’s a rundown of some of the most popular choices.

Dropbox

Dropbox is probably the most popular choice out there. The starting package is completely free and gives you 2GB of space. Since the amount of starting space is so small, Dropbox would be best for those essential smaller documents and files that you use frequently or need access to at multiple devices.

Box

Box is quite similar to Dropbox, but with more options once you get into the pay levels of service. The free version includes more space than the free version of Dropbox, but expect to be persuaded into purchasing a plan.

OneDrive

OneDrive is Microsoft’s first big foray into the cloud storage game. If you have a Hotmail, Outlook.com or another type of Microsoft account, you may already have it! You get 7GB as the default for free plans, but you can earn extra space by backing up your cell phone photos, purchasing Office 365 (which is soon to be free for SMU students) or referring friends.

Google Drive

If you’re more of a Gmail kind of person, Google has you covered, too! Google provides 15GB for free to those holding Google accounts, and more is available for a charge. Of course, Google Drive storage seamlessly works with Google Apps, too.

(Faculty & Staff) CrashPlan Pro

The University uses CrashPlan Pro for all primary computers. It makes a complete back up of your profile and file folder structure. The above options are great for personal storage, but make sure you’ve installed CrashPlan Pro on your University machine. It could save you a big headache if your machine ever crashed! For full details, visit http://www.smu.edu/BusinessFinance/OIT/Services/Backup.

Illustrator Image Trace Tutorial

By Moez Janmohammad

Most images come in specific sizes, where the file contains each pixel’s information. This means that when a user scales the image to be larger, the program “fills in” the missing information, often making it look blurred or pixelated. A solution to this is a vector image, which contains mathematical expressions instead of pixel data. It uses those expressions to “build” the image, and since it isn’t pixel-dependent, a user can scale the image to be larger or smaller while keeping the lines clean and crisp. An easy way to convert an image to a vector format is to use Illustrator’s Image Trace. With one button, a user can have a vector image from any source format.

Why is it So Difficult to Play a DVD? (Part 2)

In part one, we explained how to determine if the problems you have playing movies is the result of a faulty disc. Now it’s time to make sense out of the software that you’ll be using to play your movie. All of the computers in the Dedman College classrooms run Windows 7, and most of the time you will play DVDs using a program called Windows Media Player.

Here is the easiest way to start a movie:

1 – Turn on the computer and log in. (Do not put the disc in yet!)

2 – Wait until you are completely logged on and the desktop has finished loading. Now open the DVD tray and put the disc in.

3 – Wait. It can take a few seconds for the computer to respond.

4 – The Windows Media Player will pop up and try to play your disc.

Most of the time, the film starts playing automatically. It may bring up the disc’s main menu and you will have to click on the Play option, just like you would if you were using a DVD player at home.

Sometimes when you put the disc into the computer, you will be given a choice between different programs. Double-click on ‘Windows Media Player’ when this pops up, and you’ll see the movie start in a few seconds.

Windows Media Player

If nothing shows up automatically (or if you put the disc in the drive before you logged in), you can start the movie by clicking on the Windows Media Player icon at the bottom of thescreen. (It’s the orange circle with an arrow in it – like the picture on the right.) When the program opens you should see the name of your disc at the bottom of the left-hand side of the window. Double-click the title, and the movie will start.

If you’d like to see this in more detail, Microsoft has prepared a short video for you. Click here to see it.

The title of the movie will be at the bottom of the list on the left. (Click on this picture for a better view.)

Sounds simple, and most of the time it’s not complicated when you know the right steps. If the movie starts playing right away then the only problem you’ll be likely to run into is that the volume is not turned up. Read this older post to be sure you understand how to deal with that. (We have more calls about volume issues than anything else.)

What if this process doesn’t work? Sometimes, Windows Media Player cannot read certain discs. There are various reasons for this. A DVD of a different region is a common roadblock, and this usually happens when using with discs from other countries. Fortunately, we’ve installed a separate program to deal with these discs.

On the desktop (or in the Faculty Applications folder on the desktop) you’ll see an icon that looks like an orange traffic cone (like the picture on the left) called VLC Media Player. Double-click this icon, and when the program opens navigate to Media in the upper left-hand corner, then click Open Disc. In the next window, click Play. This will start the movie. VLC Media player is not as user-friendly as Windows Media Player, but it will often play discs that have been stubborn and uncooperative in other players.

If you are still concerned about playing your movie, feel free to contact us at help@smu.edu and ask us to help you get it started. We will be happy to show up at the start of your class to make sure the movie starts easily and on time.

Camera RAW

By Moez Janmohammad

Introducing Feature of the Week, where we highlight a feature of a program and give a basic tutorial on how it works. This week we’re focusing on Camera RAW in the Adobe Creative Suite. Camera RAW is one of the single most powerful tools in a photographer’s arsenal, and often one of the most overlooked tools in the Adobe Creative Suite. It gives the user extensive control of the post processing of an image, allowing them to edit exposure and distortion before going into Photoshop to make more advanced edits.

Adobe Bridge CC

By Moez Janmohammad

Adobe Bridge is a digital asset management software that allows a user to organize any kind of media. The name Bridge comes from the idea that Adobe Bridge will be the link between all of the programs in the creative suite. From Bridge a user can drop an Illustrator vector image into Photoshop, or an After Effects video into Premiere. This tutorial covers the basic interface of Adobe Bridge, from selecting images, to the filmstrip view, to reading the metadata of a file.

University owned computers can download any of the Master Collection Adobe Creative products via LANDesk. For more informaiton, visit our service page http://www.smu.edu/BusinessFinance/OIT/Services/Info/Adobe.