Author Archives: Chase Masters, University Library
This month, I’m sharing an app that I’ve used for many years, but runs so seamlessly in the background that I didn’t think of sharing it until recently: f.lux. F.lux “makes the color of your computer’s display adapt to the time of day, warm at night and like sunlight during the day.” Years ago, an app like this… Read More »
This month’s recommendation is a service that you may have seen referenced in a few of my previous Tech Tips: Mockuuups Studio. The software takes any selected image and inserts it onto the screen of a computer, tablet, or phone within a visually pleasing scene (see examples above). The resulting image is high-resolution, and can be used in… Read More »
This month, I’m sharing a service that I have used off and on for quite a few years to stay up-to-date on my favorite topics: Feedly. It enables you to “Organize and read all your trusted publications and blogs in one place.” I like to use it to keep track of my RSS feeds, but you can also… Read More »
I was recently asked how to add formatting to some of the text fields within the Google Forms editor. The fields do not include a visual editor nor do they accept HTML. How can you bold, italicize, or underline the text? Fortunately, there’s a workaround available. This tool is only one of many, but I like its simplicity.… Read More »
This month, I am sharing a few internet search services that focus on privacy. Yes, Google is a great way to find information on the internet. However, there are quite a few alternatives available that may produce similar/better results, do not store user data, provide identical results for all users (not personalized), and do not track you as… Read More »
This month, I am sharing information on some providers that have extended their services and are offering free upgrades to help users being impacted by COVID-19. As you know, each day is different and companies are doing their best to keep up with demand. This list only covers some services that I am currently aware of, so keep… Read More »
This month’s tip is a tool that I am using right now as I type this paragraph. It is LanguageTool, which I have installed as a browser extension, but it is also available for Microsoft Word, LibreOffice, Thunderbird, Android, as a desktop application, and more. The service is open source and can be used offline (the desktop app)… Read More »
Beginning in 2013, the Taubman Health Sciences Library (THL) has offered a Systematic Reviews: Opportunities for Librarians hybrid course for librarians that includes both online and in-person content delivery. What started as a pilot in Google Sites has since exploded into a highly popular program with a long waiting list that has trained over 270 librarians. A large… Read More »
Project Naptha is a useful Chrome extension that enables users to select, copy, edit, and even translate text that is included within an image. In my experience it works surprisingly well, especially since this kind of tool typically requires special software and conversions. Upon installing, the extension works in the background. If an image with text is displayed… Read More »
For a number of years, I have been looking for a good timeline creator. Unfortunately, most of the options I found were either outdated or looked rather bland. I recently discovered Office Timeline and so far it is quite promising. Full of features like online collaboration and Excel support, Office Timeline looks great and is easy-to-use. They offer… Read More »
Take a Five is a tool that I recently found (Although, it’s been around for a few years.) to help stay productive. As a fellow human, I occasionally need a break. However, it can also be easy to lose track of time while going down a rabbit hole of Wikipedia articles, YouTube videos, or social media feeds. This… Read More »
This month’s Tech Tip is a little different than my previous tips. Rather than sharing a specific tool, I wanted to share some resources created by Karwai Pun on the topic of designing for accessibility. These easy-to-read posters cover designing for many different users: those with low vision, who are hard of hearing, experience dyslexia, and more. In… Read More »
For this month’s Tech Tip, I am sharing a design tool that can come in handy while developing a presentation, designing a newsletter, creating graphics for a project, or making a visualization chart that displays your favorite data. Colors can be tricky and tools like Coolors make it much easier to know that they complement one another. You… Read More »
This month’s tip is a free, online service that enables you to schedule emails to yourself or others. FutureMe can remind you to do something, provide you with a quick confidence boost before a big presentation, be used as a diary, to make predictions on what the next iPhone is going to be named, or even to schedule… Read More »
CloudConvert is an easy-to-use online file conversion tool that has saved me time, frustration, and has eliminated the need to install more software on my computer. Sometimes you have a file that needs to be converted to another format. Perhaps it is an .mp3 audio file that you need in .wav format for video editing. Or maybe it… Read More »
This month’s tip is a simple, online tool that can be quite helpful if you would like to print a web page or download it as a PDF. Many websites include advertisements, menus, comments, and other items that may not be useful or relevant to your needs. Rather than printing/downloading the page in its entirety, this tool automatically… Read More »
Informationists at the U-M Taubman Health Sciences Library recently partnered with Academic Innovation (AI) to develop and launch a new massive open online course (MOOC): Advanced Literature Searching in the Health Sciences. Mark MacEachern, informationist, led the development of the MOOC and worked closely with AI to ensure its success. The online course covers: The components of advanced… Read More »
Check out this free website that offers functionality typically found in paid apps: an interactive teleprompter.
There have been some major changes with the Anatomage Table in the Taubman Health Sciences Library. For those unfamiliar with the tool, the Anatomage Table is the most technologically advanced anatomy visualization system for anatomy education and is being adopted by many of the world’s leading medical schools and institutions. It has been featured in the TEDTalks Conference,… Read More »
Unsplash is a huge online library of completely free-to-use, high-resolution images. Until recently, I found it rather difficult to locate images that did not require some sort of license. Even using Google’s “usage rights” advanced search feature did not give me the best results and sometimes the license information was incorrect. Now, Unsplash has become my primary image… Read More »