If you need to include a screen-recording in your PowerPoint presentation, you can do this directly in PowerPoint without having to use any other software! Open PowerPoint and then watch the video below or follow these instructions:
Select Record
Select Screen Recording
Open the page that you want to record
Click on Select Area and choose the exact part of the screen that you want to record
Select Audio if you want to record audio with your video
Select Record (you should see a countdown before your recording starts) and complete your recording
Once youâve finished your recording, hover your mouse over the top of the screen and select Stop
Your screen-recording will be automatically pasted into your PowerPoint presentation
You can edit your recording by clicking on your recording and selecting Playback
There may be many different reasons why you want to learn to code. It may be a skill that you want to practice for your degree; it could be a hobby of yours; or your may be interested in developing this skill to enhance your employability.
Knowing how to code is an incredibly valuable skill, but it if youâre new to coding, it may be difficult to know how to make a start. Luckily, LinkedIn Learning, an online learning platform which all students and staff at AU have free access to (learn how to get started), have launched a new partnership with CoderPad.
They have launched an array of new Code Challenge courses on Python, Java, SQL, JavaScript, C#, and Go, designed to help beginner to advanced learners develop their coding skills through interactive exercises and real-time feedback.
Take a look at the video below to learn more about these challenges:
There are currently 33 Code Challenges (but this is continually increasing), and you can also learn how to code and practice your skills with additional GitHub programming courses in LinkedIn Learnings.
Here are a couple of Code Challenge courses for you to get started with!
If you have any queries about any of the content mentioned in this blogpost, or if you have any general queries about LinkedIn Learning, please contact the Digital Skills Team (digi@aber.ac.uk).
Sometimes, you may need to set some time aside to concentrate on a particular piece of work, but how can you show other people who are also online that youâre busy? Microsoft Teams allows you to set your status to Do not disturb, meaning that you wonât be interrupted by Teams notifications or calls (unless you choose to receive these from specific people), but it can be too easy to forget to turn this status off once youâre finished.
Luckily, Teams allows you to set your status for a set duration. Take a look at the video below or follow these instructions:
Open MS Teams and click on your profile picture
Click on your current status
Select Duration
Choose Do not Disturb (or whichever status you want to appear)
Choose for how long you want this status to appear
A member of the team will be available each week to support both students and staff at one of our weekly Digital Skills drop-ins.
We can help you find resources that you can use to develop your digital skills; give you general advice about developing your digital skills; and we are also very happy to discuss your Digital Discovery Tool reports.
đ We’ll be at the Skills Hub (indicated by the star on the image below) on Level D of the Hugh Owen library on the below Tuesdays and Wednesdays throughout Semester 1. If you have any questions, please email digi@aber.ac.uk.
A warm welcome to our Student Digital Champions who joined the Digital Skills Team at the start of September! They will be working with us throughout the academic year to encourage students across the university to develop their digital skills and to provide valuable insights into what support students want.
Noel Czempik
“Hi! I’m Noel, Iâm an undergraduate Genetics student with a particular interest in personalised medicine. I’m also a musician and enjoy being creative at work, whether in a lab or a recording studio. My hobbies include painting, interior design, live music, road trips, nature walks, foraging and cooking. I also collect records and ghost figurines.
I applied for the Student Digital Champion role to engage in creative and meaningful work and further develop my digital skills. I’m passionate about the student experience at university and curious about the health and social implications of digital living. I look forward to supporting the Digital Skills Team, particularly in advocating for digital wellbeing.”
Joel Williams
âHi, Iâm Joel Williams, I am a 3rd year student studying geography. My areas of interest are volcanology and the impacts of climate change, focussing on how both impact people. I applied to become a Student Digital Champion because it gave me the opportunity to build upon my own digital skills, whilst also improving the student experience at Aberystwyth University for others.
Since my second year I have been an Academic Rep for my department. I have really enjoyed this role as it enabled me and my peers to voice our opinions to University and then see the tangible results of this. My hobbies include, photographing landscapes and wildlife, Swimming (normally in a pool), and until recently I played American Football for the University.â
Laurie Stevenson
âHi, I am Laurie and I am in my fourth year of a Wildlife Conservation degree. I am looking forward to working with the Digital Skills Team again this year as a returning Student Digital Champion. I really enjoyed the role last year and how it helped me to develop skills in communication and digital creativity as well as pushing me out of my comfort zone in leading focus groups and conducting interviews. I am hoping to continue to learn new skills this year and I am very excited to be working alongside two new champions!â
đ Follow our Student Digital Champion category to keep up-to-date with all the exciting content that the champions will be publishing on our blog throughout the year, in addition to across the Information Servicesâ social media channels!
We are pleased to announce the launch of the IS Digital Essentials for teaching, a new Blackboard Learn Ultra site designed to support new teaching staff at Aberystwyth University.Â
This site brings together all of the advice and helpful information from Information Services that new teaching staff will need, ensuring that they are âdigitallyâ prepared for teaching. Whether thatâs guidance on using the OneDrive to store work; how to set up a new module in Blackboard Learn Ultra; or finding guidance on lecture capture. Â
With a helpful checklist and automatic access for all through Blackboard Learn Ultra, we hope that the site will save valuable time for staff, as well as being a helpful resource for all departmental staff.Â
On Wednesday 11 October (2-3pm), we would like to invite new teaching staff to join us for a cup of tea or coffee in D54, Hugh Owen (instructions on how to find the room). This will be an opportunity for new teaching staff to meet each other and to meet colleagues from Information Services. There is no need to bookfor this event.
If you have any questions, or if youâd like to provide any feedback, please contact the Digital Skills Team (digi@aber.ac.uk).Â
From Wednesday 27 September 2023, we will be enabling a new version of the tool which allows staff to embed LinkedIn Learning content within their modules on Blackboard Learn Ultra. There are many advantages to enabling this new version, however it will require staff who have already embedded LinkedIn Learning content within their current modules to follow a few steps before and after this date.
What do I need to do if I have LinkedIn Learning content embedded in my current Blackboard Learn Ultra modules?
Before Wednesday 27 September, you will need to make a note of which LinkedIn Learning courses you have already embedded within your modules.
You can then delete these courses from your module.
From Wednesday 27 September, you will need to re-add these courses using the new version of the tool (how do I do that?)
Please note: Any embedded LinkedIn Learning content that were added using the old version of the tool will appear as broken links to students from 27 September.
What are the advantages of this new version?
Embedding content will save staff time as it will automatically pull through the content title and description for you.
Staff can search for the LinkedIn Learning content they wish to include in their modules directly in Blackboard Learn Ultra.
Previously, staff could only embed LinkedIn Learning courses within their modules. The new version allows other types of content from LinkedIn Learning, including videos, audio files, and Learning Paths, to be embedded.
Students will be able to view the content directly in Blackboard Learn Ultra, without having to login to LinkedIn Learning separately.
From 27 September 2023 all staff can embed LinkedIn Learning content within their Blackboard Learn Ultra modules using the new version of the tool – further instruction is available from this FAQ.
The below video (no audio) demonstrates how easy it will be for students to access LinkedIn Learning content within Blackboard Learn Ultra if they have been embedded using the new tool.
For any queries relating to embedding LinkedIn Learning content in Blackboard Learn Ultra, please contact the Digital Skills Team (digi@aber.ac.uk).
Cysill is part of a language software package called Cysgliad that you can download on your PC, and Cysill will be able to identify and correct Welsh-language errors in your text. You can use the online version of Cysill, but you can check your text much easier if you download the app (how do I do that?).
Once youâve downloaded the Cysill app, take a look at the video below or follow these instructions:
Open the Cysill app and your Word document (or wherever your Welsh-language text is located)
Highlight the text you want Cysill to check
Type Ctrl+Alt+W on your keyboard (this will copy and paste your text directly into Cysill)Â
Check all the errors that the app suggests need changing
Click Cywiro (Correct) if youâre happy with a correction that the app suggests
Once youâve worked through all the suggestions, the app will automatically copy and paste the corrected text back into your Word document
The Digital Skills Team will be delivering training sessions in September for academic staff who will be supporting their students to review their individual Digital Discovery Tool reports, and who will be facilitating conversations about digital skills in general.
Online sessions will be available in Welsh and English on the following dates:
12 September ’23(10:00-11:00): Introduction to the Digital Discovery Tool (Book here)
The Student Digital Champions met with groups of students in March 2023 to gather their opinions on LinkedIn Learning, an online learning platform that all students and staff at AU have free access to.
