Printing Double Sided Behind the Desk with Specialty Paper

Hey guys!

Today a patron came up to the desk asking if she could print her resume on card stock and have it double sided since she had two pages in her document. When printing specialty paper, procedure says to use the Bypass Tray located on the side of the print. However while going through the instructions, Greg, Eve and I realized that automatic double sided printing was not available. In the print properties dialog box, the option to have double sided printing was faded out. It was only available with the automatic trays. In our situation luckily, the patron decided to print with the resume paper that we can provide,which we were able to run through the normal tray. However this work around we figured out for right now.

One Copy

• Feed the single sheet through the side
• Once the paper has come out you will see that the writing is face down , flip the sheet so that the freshly printed side is now facing up
• Now feed the paper again through the Bypass Tray with the bottom of the page entering first

Multiple Copies

• In the print options dialog box, select how many copies you want
• Change the "page range" option from all to only page 1
• Load the paper into the Bypass Tray and hit print
• Once all of the papers have printed, take the stack and flip it so the wording is facing up and the bottom of the page is entering the tray first
• Now go back to the computer, and open the print dialog box
• Select the number of copies you want and change the "page range" option to now only print page 2
• Now hit print and again and you should now have a stack of double sided specialty paper

This method is fairly manual, so if there is a better way to go about this, please comment!! :)

Laptops and Tablets

Hey everyone,

so I wanted to promote some speculation about the utility of laptops over tablets and vice cersa. Additionally looking at the Apple and Microsoft devices.

We recently put this iPad Air units in circulation to joining the regular iPads already in place. You all know about the Dell laptops we have in circulation. The main advantages that the iPads have over the laptops is their portability, touch screen, lower price point, the wide range of app support, and depending on what operating system you prefer the MacOS on the iPad itself. Whereas the Dell laptops do have a solid keyboard which some may find more useful than it's touch screen opponent, the ability to run software incompatible with the MacOS, greater processing power, and more.

Seeing as the iPads also have the advantage of being a more recent acquisition, is it time that we get new laptops operating on windows 7 or 8? Would anyone use a Microsoft Surface tablet if the SMDC invested in one. Do you think that as we acquire more, the iPads will see a lot more use than the laptops? Finally, should the laptops have an increased loan time like the iPads?

Thanks,
Brandon

Resolution and scan size options in the Student Multimedia Design Center

During the semester, many people head for the scanners to scan documents, articles, or book chapters without much thought as to the size or quality of the output.  The clustered scanners offer many options that people can use to create better and more usable images.

Most people scan using the default resolution of 300 dpi (dots per inch) which is fairly basic for text.  If file size isn't a major consideration, I often recommend that they look at 400 dpi, which makes for smoother, easier-to-read text.  For finer detail, such as a passport or driver license, scanning at the full 600 dpi makes a better image, although the file size and time per scan also increases.

This week, there was a request for a lower resolution scan.  A government agency required the user to supply a scan of a signed and initialed eight page document at under 256 kb.  The document was the agency's legalese -- apparently the agency only wanted to record the person's initials and signature as acknowledgment of terms.  300 dpi created a large file but reducing the value to 100 dpi and compressing the file in Adobe Acrobat Professional brought it in at the low resolution/file size required.

Scanning sizes can also be adjusted as needed.  A person scanning pages of a book that opens to 11" x 19" won't capture the content by mashing the book down and scanning 11" x 17"!!  Scanning the individual pages using custom scan settings for a landscape orientation of 9.5" x 11" greatly improves the capture.  If this doesn't make sense, be sure to ask a staff member to demonstrate this.  A good scan will be easier to read and helps prevent paper jams when users print the images.

Dry Erase Markers

Nick Rogers and I made a bet this week that the third question we encountered on the desk during our shift is the topic I have to write about for my blog entry.  Looks like we're all learning about dry erase markers this time.  Also, I'm shamelessly ripping off his format.

We're not going into the origin story of dry erase markers, though undoubtedly we'd all be riveted.

Like this, only with more wonderment, smudges, and physics drawn on dorm lounge windows.

There's an actual relevant question here, that being, are the dry erase markers in the study rooms our responsibility?  My first instinct is no, gross, more responsibility.  My second is, yeah, maybe.  My third is that I should ask a staff member.  Turns out my third was correct.

I couldn't find any pictures of the staff, so just imagine this is them.  They love what you're doing, keep up the good work.

 

A patron came up asking for a replacement marker for the whiteboards in the study rooms.  His, tragically, had come to the end of their squeaking but robust existence.  Mike gave him a replacement, though we weren't 100 percent on the protocol for the situation.

Diana told me later we do replace them and the extra markers are in the drawer under the cash register and in the cabinet in the back, on the second shelf from the top.  There's like thirty boxes in there.

Studio mic kits available for loan!!!

As many of you now know, the studio mic kits are available for loan from the Student Multimedia Design Center as of today! They are four hour loans to be used in the library.
So, you might be wondering, how do we use them now? Basically...

• There are 2 jacks in Studio Four under the window glass that are good for connecting to Studio 6. You can hook up one or both of the mics and they are directly connected to the mixer in Studio 6.
• In Studio 6, you mute the mic that is already there. Turn the level of channel 2 off.
• Turn up the microphones from channels 3 and 4 three quarters of the way so you can manipulate each track from each mic. Turning these knobs for each channel allows you to control the volume from each.
• The pan knob for each level allows you to do side-to-side effects.

This explains the basics, but for more info...don't forget to read the instructions! Thanks to Diana for helping to explain!

FujiFilm HS25EXR Now Availabe!

Since I have been working here, the beginning of the semester usually means new equipment. One of the new items we have this semester is the FujiFilm FinePix HS25EXR digital camera. Not a name that exactly rolls off the tongue but if you haven't spent some time getting familiar with this camera you should! The HS25EXR has great picture quality, manual zoom, bright screen, excellent low or existing light capability, panorama capture, different film types can be used (Astia, B&W, sepia,etc.), easy to use controls and menus, and fast auto focus. It's not quite as advanced as our DSLRs so take that in consideration when recommending a camera to a user.

We currently have two in circulation and one that we keep in the back so feel free to have fun with this user-friendly camera!

Finalize Feature in iMovie

Today, a user came to the desk asking why it was taking so long to save his iMovie project.  He was attempting to use the "Finalize" feature.  Diana explained that when attempting to share an iMovie project, the "Finalize" feature actually saves the project in 5 different formats so that it is ready to share in multiple sizes.  The video is rendered as mobile, medium, large, HD 720p, and HD 1080p. If a user only needs to share the video to one source, it is quicker to use the "Share" feature.  Here, the user can select the source and size they want, and the project will be prepared in this format only.