IT news

Visual Schedule Builder (VSB) shows you all the possible timetables for the courses you ask it to schedule. Try it yourself here or access it on myMcGill.   Once you have some courses in mind from Class Schedule, enter them into VSB. State your preferences (mornings or evenings off, for example) and watch as multiple conflict-free schedules are generated.

IT Services is launching a new Channels system to post and distribute News and Events across the McGill Web Management System (WMS). As of 7:00 am on Monday, September 3, the old McGill Channels system will be closed and all existing Channels listings will be migrated into the new system, which will be available in the WMS on Tuesday, September 4. Read the full announcement for details.

An updated version of TurningPoint, which is the software used to administer the Student Response System (Clickers) in classes, is now available. TurningPoint 5 replaces earlier versions of the TurningPoint software offered on the McGill software site. Faculty and staff can retrieve it by visiting and signing in to www.mcgill.ca/software.

You may lose your Internet service Monday unless you do a quick check of your computer for a DNS Changer malware that could have infected your machine more than a year ago. You may not even know that your computer has been infected, although you may be experiencing slower Web surfing and your antivirus software may be disabled.

An email is currently circulating with the Subject: "Verify Your McGill Webmail Immediately" and sent From: "McGill Helpdesk". If you have received this email please DELETE it - do not click on the link. This is a phishing attempt and does not come from McGill IT Services. Our help desk is called the ICS Service Desk.

There has been an email phishing attempt that purports to be a Moneris message sent to its users. Do not click on any of its links.

If you are still connecting to the McGill Wireless Network using the unencrypted SSID (network name): “mcgill.ca” you should instead configure your laptops, smartphones and other devices to connect using the WPA (Wi-Fi protected Access) protocol: “wpa.mcgill.ca”. Find step-by-step instructions at: http://kb.mcgill.ca/it/wireless

An email is circulating with the Subject: "Abuse. Your email is blacklisted" and a link containing malicious files. Please delete this email without clicking any links.

A non-email form of phishing attack is being launched at education institutions. Victims are sent a physical (snail) mail, not email, indicating a possible security issue they should be aware of. Details are supposedly included on an enclosed DVD. If you receive such a DVD, DO NOT insert it into your computer. Report the incident to infosec@mcgill.ca immediately.

As you may have heard in the news, LinkedIn has confirmed that over 6 million user passwords have been compromised and posted online. While it does not appear that associated email addresses were included in the leaked data, there is still a risk if you use the same password across many sites, including the McGill and your home network.

Starting in early June Visual Schedule Builder (VSB), a web-based application, will be available to help you build your personal class schedule. No more struggling to fit the courses you want into a conflict-free schedule.

Students: Watch video tutorials on the NEW myCourses system, either on your desktop, laptop or mobile devices. Go to www.mcgill.ca/lms.

McGill downloads of EndNote, ProCite and Reference Manager software are available at a new location.

As of Tuesday morning, March 6th, we’re improving the popup that you see when printing to the uPrint Mono [Popup] or uPrint Colour [Popup] queue. Instead of only accepting the McGill Short Username, you’ll have the option to enter your McGill Username instead.

We'll soon be launching a brand new home page for McGill.ca that should make it easier for you to find what you're looking for - and avoid what you aren't. Find out what's changing (and why it's better).