Filling the Hunger for Tech Tips

For Michelle Jones designing digital signs that pop up on screens all over campus wasn’t the problem. Figuring out how to easily navigate the system Duke adopted early last year to upload them was the trickiest part.

So last year, Jones joined several other Duke community members in a Learn IT @ Lunch session, “Design Cool Digital Signs & Promote Campus-wide through DukeFlyer.” Jones quickly became a fan of both the DukeFlyer system and the Learn IT @ Lunch series. “I liked it because it was casual,” said Jones, program coordinator with Duke’s Learning and Organization Development. “It was over lunch so I didn’t feel as though I was missing work. I was taking a lunch break anyway, but on this particular lunch break, I’m actually learning something.”

Duke’s Office of Information Technology (OIT) kicks off the first of six free seminars through the Fall on Sept. 6 with “Getting the Most Out of WebEx (and Saving Money).” Each session includes a presentation followed by a Q&A. Registration is not required; however, seats are available on a first come, first served basis.

Devised as a way for Duke’s computing and technology professionals to share what they know and meet the people that use their services, the Learn IT @ Lunch series has been going strong for a decade.

Christine Vucinich, Duke OIT’s training and education practitioner, has been running the program since its 2007 debut. With potential topics coming from fellow IT professionals and from the members of the Duke community who show up for the events, Vucinich said there’s never a shortage of ideas.

This fall, the series will have sessions on making explainer videos, cybersecurity and using smart devices.

“I do try to have a variety of topics every semester,” Vucinich said. “And even now, when I talk to people, I keep a little list on my computer of ideas. It’s basically about how we’re using technology at Duke to be more efficient and to share what we’re learned.”

Vucinich said the idea for “Getting the Most out of WebEx (and Saving Money)” came when Chuck Rodgers, a training specialist with Duke Health System, mentioned he’d been teaching his colleagues about WebEx, an online communication tool, and ways it can save money.

“I said ‘Boy, that sounds like a great Learn IT @ Lunch topic, is there any way I could talk you into doing it?’” Vucinich said. “He said yes, he’d be happy to do that session.”

And, in case Jones or anyone else who makes digital signs wants to learn about new features available with DukeFlyer 2.0, there will be a session on the system on Nov. 29.