Plymouth State University Blogs » Uncategorized http://blogs.plymouth.edu Connection and Collaboration for the Campus Community Tue, 14 Jul 2009 20:46:05 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 en hourly 1 Getting Started With Your PSU Blog http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2009/07/14/getting-started-with-your-psu-blog/ http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2009/07/14/getting-started-with-your-psu-blog/#comments Tue, 14 Jul 2009 20:46:05 +0000 Casey http://blogs.plymouth.edu/?p=61 Okay, you’ve signed up for your new blog already, how do you get started?

Click here to view the embedded video.

Most of the tasks of managing your blog require that you log in to your Dashboard. From there you can write new content, switch your theme, and add widgets to the layout.

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]]> http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2009/07/14/getting-started-with-your-psu-blog/feed/ 0 Now Running WordPress 2.8.1 http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2009/07/14/now-running-wordpress-2-8-1/ http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2009/07/14/now-running-wordpress-2-8-1/#comments Tue, 14 Jul 2009 20:33:45 +0000 Casey http://blogs.plymouth.edu/?p=55 Today we upgraded the blogs to WordPress 2.8.1. There are relatively few changes that affect our blogs, but widget management has gotten a lot easier.

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]]> http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2009/07/14/now-running-wordpress-2-8-1/feed/ 0 Blogs Upgrade Scheduled For Sunday May 24th http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2008/12/11/wordpress-27-blog-upgrade-coming-soon/ http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2008/12/11/wordpress-27-blog-upgrade-coming-soon/#comments Fri, 01 May 2009 19:48:47 +0000 Casey http://blogs.plymouth.edu/?p=44 The new version looks very different inside. Why not take a moment to get aquainted?

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]]> http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2008/12/11/wordpress-27-blog-upgrade-coming-soon/feed/ 0 WordPress 2.7 Blog Upgrade Sunday, May 24th http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2008/12/11/wordpress-27-blog-upgrade-coming-soon/ http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2008/12/11/wordpress-27-blog-upgrade-coming-soon/#comments Thu, 11 Dec 2008 15:43:56 +0000 Casey http://blogs.plymouth.edu/?p=30 Update: the upgrade is now scheduled for Sunday, May 24th.

The new version of WordPress is out, and we’ll be upgrading these blogs soon. The new version looks very different inside; Matt Mullenweg introduces it like this: “we’ve listened to your feedback and thought deeply about the design and the result is a WordPress that’s just plain faster. Nearly every task you do on your blog will take fewer clicks and be faster in 2.7 than it did in a previous version.” Here’s the official video to introduce it:

You can read a detailed list of changes here, but you’ll notice features subtly sprinkled throughout the new interface:

If you would like to view some great tutorials on how to get around in the new version, check out Neil Hokanson’s work available here: http://nhokanson.wordpress.com/2009/01/07/wordpress-27-tutorials/

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]]> http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2008/12/11/wordpress-27-blog-upgrade-coming-soon/feed/ 0 New Plugins, New Feautures http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2008/12/01/new-plugins-new-feautures/ http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2008/12/01/new-plugins-new-feautures/#comments Mon, 01 Dec 2008 18:42:05 +0000 Casey http://blogs.plymouth.edu/?p=26 Since the start of PSU blogs we’ve used the Akismet anti-spam plugin, but we’ve recently implemented a few other plugins offering new features:

  • bSuite gives you stats about how many hits your blog has received and what stories are most popular. Available widgets allow you to put a list of those popular posts in your sidebar, and shortcodes make it easier to manage your pages.
  • Video Quicktags makes it easy to embed videos from YouTube, Facebook, and other sites. To embed a YouTube video click the YouTube button and follow the simple instructions. Other sites are just as easy. video quicktags toolbar
  • Syntax Highlighter allows you to paste programming code in PHP, C++, and other languages with convenient highlighting. Simply wrap your code with shorttags like this: [sourcecode language='css']code here[/sourcecode]
  • Latex is a strange name for a very useful little plugin. Useful if you’re into mathematics, physics, or engineering, anyway. It allows you to display sophisticated formulae in your blog using LaTeX syntax. Here’s an example:
    \Large f(x)=\int_{-\infty}^x e^{-t^2}dt

These plugins are all active and available for you to use now.

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]]> http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2008/12/01/new-plugins-new-feautures/feed/ 0 picture-4 \Large f(x)=\int_{-\infty}^x e^{-t^2}dt Even Newer and More Improved PSU Blogs (yes, we upgraded again) http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2008/08/27/even-newer-and-more-improved-psu-blogs-yes-we-upgraded-again/ http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2008/08/27/even-newer-and-more-improved-psu-blogs-yes-we-upgraded-again/#comments Wed, 27 Aug 2008 17:21:28 +0000 Casey http://blogs.plymouth.edu/?p=14 A new year means another bunch of upgrades. You may have already seen the news about “dial 5” and password expiration, but this upgrade should be a little easier to make sense of. The most exciting part may be the new features. We’re now using WordPress 2.6, which allows you to track your changes in posts and go back to previous versions. We also have a bundle of new themes, and you can now preview them before going live with the change. While you’re looking at the themes, don’t miss the widgets — that’s how you can customize your sidebars and other areas of the pages. Some themes also allow you to change the header image, take some time to explore.

In addition to the track changes feature, you’ll see a number of other new features when you’re writing posts. The WYSIWYG editor is better and easier to use. The buttons on this version really work as simply as those on your favorite word processor (though, hopefully this becomes your new favorite word processor). And adding images to your posts is now, perhaps, even easier than it is with your desktop word processor. Click the link above the editor to “add media,” and upload your image. And you can easily wrap text around the image, or add a caption. The video below demonstrates a number of the new features, including PressThis:

Other changes include hugely easier and faster blog creation. If you don’t have a blog you should try it now. Your blog will be ready in the blink of an eye. Also in the “we should have done it long ago” category is how you sign in to your blog’s dashboard: it’s now integrated with myPlymouth and more secure. Go ahead, sign in and take a look.

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]]> http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2008/08/27/even-newer-and-more-improved-psu-blogs-yes-we-upgraded-again/feed/ 0 Blogs Upgrade http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2008/06/03/blogs-upgrade/ http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2008/06/03/blogs-upgrade/#comments Tue, 03 Jun 2008 19:29:38 +0000 John Martin http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2008/06/03/blogs-upgrade/ Please be aware that we will be upgrading Plymouth Blogs tomorrow morning, Wednesday, June 4th. This is a significant upgrade which brings with it many security and user features that many of us have been waiting for. Although the user interface is quite different, it is far more intuitive than the old interface and should actually be easier to use.

Just remember the three basic functions: Write, Manage and Comment

A detailed user manual will be forthcoming, but in the meantime, please direct any questions to me. For those interested, I’ve included a screenshot of the new dashboard below.

Happy Blogging!

02-Dashboard-Partial.jpg

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]]> http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2008/06/03/blogs-upgrade/feed/ 0 02-Dashboard-Partial.jpg The new and improved Plymouth Blogs http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2008/02/11/the-new-and-improved-plymouth-blogs/ http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2008/02/11/the-new-and-improved-plymouth-blogs/#comments Mon, 11 Feb 2008 14:49:57 +0000 John Martin http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2008/02/11/the-new-and-improved-plymouth-blogs/ As the world of blogging keeps on evolving, we’ve made a lot of changes recently which will make our blogs far more useful to our campus community.

New features include:

  • New themes – We’ve added a ton of new themes, all of which provide support for widgets. What are widgets you ask? Read on!
  • Widgets! – Widgets are a means for you to add new features to your blog such as RSS Feeds, Flickr pics, del.icio.us bookmarks and so much more. Now that our themes support widgets, you have the flexibility to move things around to suit your needs and goals.
  • Content restricted to myPlymouth users – If you have a group or community that could use a blog, but don’t need or wish to share your work with those off-campus, this feature allows you to specify by role (any PSU user, staff, faculty) who will be allowed to view your content.
  • SVN support – This doesn’t mean much to you, but to us in the back room, this will allow us to ensure that all of our themes and widgets get updated automatically thereby ensuring the highest level of security and reliability for you.

If you are interested in blogging but would like more information on how to use WordPress, check out this great tutorial by Kary Boan, a technology specialist for Landrum Middle School in Houston Texas.

If you’ve created a blog, but haven’t seen it in a while, come on back and check it out. If you’ve thought about blogging but haven’t been too sure about what it can do for you, contact John Martin at jemartin AT plymouth DOT edu or at x2926, or better yet start your own blog now!

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]]> http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2008/02/11/the-new-and-improved-plymouth-blogs/feed/ 2 Blog Pilot Reopened! http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2006/09/14/blog-pilot-reopened/ http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2006/09/14/blog-pilot-reopened/#comments Thu, 14 Sep 2006 21:04:28 +0000 Blog Admin http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2006/09/14/blog-pilot-reopened/ After a TAG meeting yesterday, it was determined that the blog pilot should be reopened. This is good news for any of you who are interested in trying out blogging at Plymouth State University. Simply click here to create your blog.

At the moment the signup process is not as smooth as we would like it. When you click the link it will ask you to authenticate with myPlymouth. After you do this, your blog will be created and then you will be redirected to the login page for the blog server (sorry no single sign-on yet). Once you’ve logged in here with your regular username and password you are ready to start blogging.

Keep in mind, this is a pilot project so you may experience some bugs or difficulty. Please report any problems you are having to the Help Desk and they should be able to provide limited support. Remember, this is a pilot project, we are all still learning!

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]]> http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2006/09/14/blog-pilot-reopened/feed/ 3 Blog Pilot Capped http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2006/08/16/blog-pilot-capped/ http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2006/08/16/blog-pilot-capped/#comments Wed, 16 Aug 2006 13:20:15 +0000 Blog Admin http://blogs.plymouth.edu/2006/08/16/blog-pilot-capped/ The blog pilot project, previously referred to as alpha testing, has been capped to only include the currently existing blogs and users. This means if you want a Plymouth State blog… you’ll have to wait…

We are now determining the best course of action moving forward. Does this mean PSU will never have blogs? Absolutely not! Many people are working now to determine policy and support structure around blogs. There is the possibility that research will determine blogs to be more trouble than they are worth, but we think this is the unlikely edge case.

Over the course of this fall semester, blogging is intended to be a high priority topic for TAG. Out of these discussions, a clear direction for blogging will be established. If you want your input heard on this, let someone know. Good people to talk to include: your favorite IT person, the help desk, a faculty member, a friendly staff member, or leave a comment,. The person you talk to may not have influence on the process, but they can pass your words along to the right places.

blogging, plymouth state university

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