JEREMY LAPHAM,RN, FNP-BC
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Technology Advice for Students

General Advice

Work on getting smarter as a computer user:

  • "Top 10 simple things every computer user should know how to do," by Whitson Gordon | Lifehacker
  • "Tech support cheat sheet," by Randall Munroe | xkcd
Don't use technology as an excuse

I will not grant you an extension based on problems you may be having with the devices or services you're using.

Technological problems are a fact of life, and so you should develop work habits that take them into account. Start early and save often. Always keep a backup copy of your work saved somewhere secure. (Hint: as part of your UM  you have 50 gigabytes (!) of free online storage space in a M+Box account.  http://www.itcs.umich.edu/storage/box/. Use it!)

Inkless printers, computer virus infections, lost flash drives, corrupted files, incompatible formats, a malfunctioning WiFi access point. . . None of these unfortunate events should be considered an emergency. Take the proper steps to make sure your work will not be lost irretrievably. Learn the locations and operating hours of all the computer labs on campus.

For technical assistance using campus-based hardware, software, and services, contact the UM Office of Information Technology Services (ITS). They are available to help you, Monday–Friday: 7 a.m.–6 p.m. Sunday: 1 p.m.–5 p.m.(email only). Do not wait until the night before an assignment is due to work on it; if you run into problems ITS will be unavailable to help you.

  • Email: 4HELP@umich.edu
  • Telephone: 734-764-HELP (43577)
Stay secure by maintaining a backup of your files

I will not grant you an extension based on lost files. You have 50 GB of free online storage space as part of your UM M+Box.com account. You should use it (or a similar free service, like the introductory version of Dropbox.)

What does it mean to have a backup? It means that you have an identical copy of all of your files saved in at least 2 different locations, as in the following examples:

  • your M+Box and your flash drive; or
  • your computer's hard drive and your flash drive; or
  • your M+Box and your computer’s hard drive; or
  • some other combination of at least 2 different locations where you save identical copies of all of your files.
Relevant links

  • "How to back up your computer", by Whitson Gordon | Lifehacker
  • "The Dropbox Tour," by Dropbox
  • Check out these Box.com apps for various computers and devices:
    • Box.com app for iPhone
    • Box.com app for iPad
    • Box.com app for Windows
    • Box.com app for Mac
    • Box.com app for Android devices
Stay secure by choosing good passwords

A good password protects your data and your privacy. A good password can be hard to remember, which is why you might consider using a password manager. A good password has the following characteristics:

  • as many characters as are allowed, and
  • a combination of uppercase and lowercase letters, and
  • a combination of numbers, symbols, and punctuation.
Do not use the same password for every account you have.

Relevant links

  • "Choosing a Good Password," by Joe Sanjour, Andrew Arensburger, Anne Brink | University of Maryland
  • "Maintaining Sanity and Security: Why Use a Password Manager?," by Amy Cavender | ProfHacker
Save time by using keyboard shortcuts

This might sound like trivial advice, but you'll become a much more proficient computer user if you take advantage of common keyboard shortcuts instead of using the mouse to point and click every time you want to do something.

  • "Six keyboard shortcuts every computer user should know," by Adam Dachis | Lifehacker
  • "Back to basics: learn to use keyboard shortcuts like a ninja," by Thoron Klosowski | Lifehacker
  • "Keyboard shortcuts for Windows," by Microsoft
  • "OS X keyboard shortcuts," by Apple
  • "Keyboard shortcuts for Google documents," by Google
originally by George H. Williams


adapted by Jeremy Lapham

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License.

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