Do you need to reserve a room in the iSchool for a meeting, interview, or other event? Go to go.ischool.illinois.edu/roomrequest, or scan the QR code above, to access our reservation form and schedule one! Reservations should be made at least one business day in advance, and the form will prompt you to add the following information:
Zoom’s latest update caught many people by surprise when it began right as they were trying to join a class or meeting. Zoom does not send reminders about new updates, so it’s good to get in the practice of checking for updates so you aren’t caught unawares. Let’s go over how to check Zoom for updates.
Checking for Updates
To check Zoom for updates, open the application on your computer. Once Zoom is open, click on your profile picture in the top right corner.
Scroll down the pop-up menu that appears underneath your profile picture. Find and select the option “Check for Updates”.
If Zoom has an update available, it will prompt you to begin the update process. If it does not have an update available, you will receive a pop-up saying “You are up to date”.
And that’s it! The Help Desk recommends checking Zoom for new updates right at the beginning of each semester so you will be ready for meetings, online courses, and other online events.
Welcome new (and returning) students! We’re happy to have you on campus, and we hope you’re well rested and prepared for the semester. As you prepare for classes and settle in for the semester, you may need tech support to help set up accounts or manage computer settings, to borrow a piece of equipment, or you might just need a piece of candy. That’s what we’re here to help you with!
The Help Desk provides tech support for the iSchool community. You’ll probably see us show up at the beginning of an in-person or online course to offer tech support to your professors! You can also find us on the 4th floor of the new iSchool building at 614 E. Daniels St if you ever need in-person support (we also always have bowls of candy, if you just want a snack). In addition, we also loan out technology like computers, chargers, keyboards and mice to iSchool students, staff, and faculty.
Lastly, if you aren’t able to meet us in person, never fear! You can email us at ischool-support@illinois.edu, call us at 217-244-4903 or 800-377-1892, or message us using TechChat. We’re extremely friendly and would love to help you however we can.
One last time: welcome, new students! We’re excited to have you here.
As finals wrap up and the fall semester comes to an end, some of you are getting ready to graduate. With graduation comes a bunch of important questions, including ones like: will I lose access to my university account? If so, when? How do I save files linked to my Outlook email? My Box account? My Canvas courses?
Never fear! The Help Desk has a Knowledge Base article all about how long you keep your access to university accounts, as well as information about how to save important files and emails. You can find it at answers.uillinois.edu/ischool/128272.
If you still have more questions about graduation and what login information and tech services you can access, please reach out to us! The Help Desk is happy to help answer your questions and concerns. You can contact us at 217-244-4903 or ischool-support@illinois.edu. You can also visit us in-person at 614 E Daniel Street. We’re located on the 4th floor, and will be open for the next two weeks from 9am-5pm Monday through Friday.
As you work on finals, you may need to write citations and create a bibliography for various final projects and essays. Never fear! ZoteroBib is a free to access, ad-free bibliography generator that you can use without creating an account or installing any software. If you need to quickly create a short bibliography for a project, this is the tool for you.
When you first go to ZoteroBib, this is what you will find.
ZoteroBib is pretty simple to use. You can either enter a URL, ISBN, DOI, title, or other identifier into the search bar, or you can click “Manual entry” and fill out the related fields. (The Help Desk recommends using an ISBN, DOI, or other unique identifier over entering a title or URL – ISBNs and DOIs tend to work more reliably than the latter). Click “Cite” when you’re ready, and ZoteroBib will quickly generate a citation and start creating a bibliography. This bibliography will save to your browser’s local storage, so you can exit ZoteroBib and come back to add more to the bibliography whenever.
ZoteroBib quickly and easily creates citations, like the one shown above.
Additionally, ZoteroBib supports over 10,000 citation styles, and you can easily pick the one you need from the dropdown menu in the bibliography section. Once you have all your citations, you can either copy the bibliography to your clipboard so you can copy/paste it into your project, or you can download it in a variety of formats.
Welcome back after break! We’re near the end of the semester, and finals are ramping up. Never fear: the Help Desk has a variety of tips and tricks to help you get through the next few weeks.
First, the Help Desk has a wide variety of equipment to loan out to iSchool students, staff, and faculty, from computers and chargers to white noise machines, ring lights, chrome casts, and more. Stop by and borrow a white noise machine to get the added rest you need for finals, or borrow a Chromecast for some well-needed distraction and rest.
Is your phone a constant distraction while you’re studying? Flora is a free-to-use app that helps you create a to-do list and block distracting apps, and it’s a great way to get away from your phone for a bit so you can focus on completing your work.
If you’re the kind of person who needs background noise while you’re studying, try listening to lo-fi music or study videos to help put yourself in the right headspace to work. Lofi Girl on Youtube is a popular channel for study videos, but other Help Desk favorites include this video of ambient music in a bookstore setting.
Lastly, the Pomodoro technique is a way to manage your time while studying while also making sure you give yourself well-needed breaks. There are many free Pomodoro timers available online, like Tomato Timers and Pomofocus.
That’s it for now! Good luck on finals (and make sure to rest and drink plenty of water)!
Great news from the Help Desk! We now have a new, fast and easy way to install printers on both Macbooks and Windows. To learn more, go to answers.uillinois.edu/ischool/129440 to learn how to add printers on Windows, OR go to answers.uillinois.edu/ischool/129422 to add printers on Macbooks. If you have any questions or concerns, please reach out to us at ischool-support@illinois.edu, or visit us in-person for help.
Course registration has started! As you register, you might want to take a course for more or less credits, but not know how to change them. Luckily, the registrar has a page on how to change credits. Access it at go.illinois.edu/credithours. If you need additional help, you can also reach out to the Help Desk at ischool-support@illinois.edu, or stop by in-person! Our GAs are always happy to help.
Do you need to reserve a room in the iSchool for a meeting, interview, or other event? Go to go.ischool.illinois.edu/roomrequest, or scan the QR code above, to access our reservation form and schedule one! Reservations should be made at least one business day in advance, and the form will prompt you to add the following information:
When you’re meeting over Zoom, there’s a variety of reasons you may need to use and share notes: collaborating with other students during an online class, working on a shared document for a group activity, taking notes and creating agendas during online meetings, and more. Now, Zoom has released a brand new feature allowing you to take notes before, during, and after meetings, as well as share and collaborate on them with other participants.
