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LET'S COMMUNICATE
Agriculture Communication Newsletter
July 2008, No. 151


Contents

August eXtension Professional Development Offerings
MS Office 2007 Now Free for NDSU Computers
University Calendar Being Developed
Write the Right Word
New Publications Available through the Distribution Center
Ag Com Looking for Web Technology Specialist
The Value of Wasted Paper

August eXtension Professional Development Offerings

Each month eXtension offers professional development via webconferencing. August features:

  • Four Generations in the Workplace -- 1:00-2:00 CDT, Aug. 13
  • Avatar Express (Second Life orientation) -- 11:00 - noon CDT, Aug. 18
  • In-MoodleMeet: Gathering Feedback on Moodle by Incorporating Evaluations -- 1:00-2:30 CDT, Aug. 18
  • Virtual Work Arrangements -- 1:30-3:00 CDT, Aug. 20

and 30-minute sessions on:

  • Using SharePoint for Internal Collaboration -- 1:00 CDT, Aug. 7
  • Ask eXtension! Widget -- 1:00 CDT, Aug. 21
  • InstantSurvey: Creating a Survey -- 1:00 CDT, Aug. 26
  • FriendFeed: You Learned to Share in Kindergarten -- 1:00 CDT, Aug. 27

Five minutes before the start time, go to http://connect.extension.iastate.edu/learn. Click on "Enter as Guest," and enter your first name, last name and institution, then click the "Enter Room" button. Enter your call-back number, and your phone will automatically be called. You don't need a headset.

Recordings of past sessions on a wide variety of topics are at http://about.extension.org/wiki/Recordings_of_eXtension_Professional_Development_Sessions.

Becky Koch, (701) 231-7875, becky.koch@ndsu.edu

MS Office 2007 Now Free for NDSU Computers

NDSU has signed a new license agreement with Microsoft that took effect on July 1 for Office 2007 Professional.Faculty and staff can request installation of Office 2007 Pro on any NDSU computer for no charge.NDSU is paying a flat fee based on the number of full-time employees on and off campus. NDSU will no longer have to track individual NDSU-owned computers for licensing purposes.

This agreement pertains only to the Office suite and not to other Microsoft licensed software (i.e. Visio, Expression Web, etc).This arrangement is not for personally owned computers.

If you would like to have Office 2007 installed on your NDSU-owned computer, e-mail or call your departmental software contact for more information.

Research Extension Centers and county Extension offices should contact me.

Blair Johnson, (701) 231-7896, blair.johnson@ndsu.edu

University Calendar Being Developed

A campus-wide team is developing a comprehensive Web-based calendar for NDSU. Agriculture and University Extension, Athletics and the Alumni Association won't be included in the first round since we have so many events. However, the main calendar will have a link to our current public calendar at http://www.ag.ndsu.edu/calendar/.

The new NDSU calendar makes it even more important than ever that Agriculture and University Extension events be entered into the calendar.

Entry is behind the password-protected Ag Info Center at http://info.ag.ndsu.nodak.edu/. Use your old @ndsuext.nodak.edu username and password to login until we're able to transition this to the NDSU login. If you've forgotten your ExtNet login, contact the ITS help desk at 231-8685 or ndsu.helpdesk@ndsu.edu.

If you prefer, you may send calendar entries to Linda McCaw, Ag Com administrative assistant, at linda.mccaw@ndsu.edu for entry. However, only Linda can edit the entry then.

Only enter specific events, not ongoing work, so the current date's events are at the top of the calendar.

Becky Koch, (701) 231-7875, becky.koch@ndsu.edu

Write the Right Word

Commas tend to get scattered throughout the written word way too often. But sometimes they are a must. One of those instances is when referring to someone and that person’s spouse. For example, “John Jones and his wife, Anna, led the trip to Florida.” If you don’t use commas around her name, you would imply that John Jones has more than one wife.

The grammatical reason you put commas around the spouse’s name is it is considered a nonessential phrase. A nonessential phrase is a word or group of words that provides more information about something, but the reader wouldn’t be confused without it. So, in the example above, you could say, “John Jones and his wife led the trip to Florida” and the sentence still would make sense.

On the other hand, you don’t need a comma when you include an essential phrase – that is, a word or group of words critical to the reader’s understanding. For example, “Amy Smith won the blue ribbon on her horse Silver Cloud.” This implies she has more than one horse and provides the reader with information about which horse she was riding in the competition.

Ellen Crawford, (701) 231-5391, ellen.crawford@ndsu.edu

New Publications Available through the Distribution Center

Farmstead Energy Audit - AE1366 - by Carl Pedersen, Ken Hellevang, Tom Scherer and John Nowatzki

This 16-page, four-color publication gives tips on ways to reduce energy costs for farm operations. It shows how by reducing the amount of energy you consume, you will not only be saving money, but also reduce possible pollution and reduce the consumption of nonrenewable resources.

Water Needs and Quality Guidelines for Dairy Cattle - AS1369 - by J.W. Schroeder

Water availability and quality are important to animal health and productivity. This four-page publication covers water intake and requirements for lactating cows, dry cows, calves and heifers; drinking behavior; water quality guidelines; and water sampling and testing.

Row Crop Diseases in Drought Years - PP1371 - by Sam Markell, Mohamed Khan, Gary Secor, Tom Gulya and Art Lamey

Drought impacts many diseases of row crops. This two-page publication in the Plant Disease Management series visits the diseases less and more severe in drought conditions.

Determining Insulation and Air Infiltration Levels Using an Infrared Thermometer - AE1373 - by Carl Pedersen and Kenneth Hellevang

The best ways to reduce heating costs are to add insulation to areas that are below recommended levels and to control air leaks into and out of the home. This four-page color publication describes the procedures to compare the inside temperature of an exterior wall versus an interior wall in the same room using an infrared thermometer.

North Dakota Agriculture 2008 (N.D. Ag Statistics #77)

The combined effort of the ND Ag Statistics Service, ND Dept of Ag, NDSU Extension Service, ND Ag Experiment Station and NDSU VP of Ag and University Extension bring this annual publication. The statistics in this book can be used by producers to make planting and marketing decisions. The publication also provides the necessary information and historical perspective for agribusinesses, investors and policymakers to make decisions that help the agriculture industry more effectively meet future challenges and issues.

Wholesale - $8, Retail - $11

These and many more peer-reviewed publications are available online at http://www.ag.ndsu.edu/pubs/ and in hard copy in the Distribution Center, Morrill 11.

Sharon Lane, (701) 231-7883, sharon.lane@ndsu.edu

Ag Com Looking for Web Technology Specialist

With Dave Rice's retirement, Ag Communication and the Ag IT Advisory Group have reviewed the position, looking toward future Web needs. Rather than updating Web pages, the new person will focus on transitioning many Agriculture and University Extension Web pages to NDSU's content management system, providing training on the CMS and other IT issues, and providing leadership for strategic online collaboration.

The job description is at http://www.ndsu.edu/ndsu/jobs/broadbanded/positions/AgCommWeb00021062.shtml, so please encourage qualified candidates to apply by the Aug. 15 deadline.

Becky Koch, (701) 231-7875, becky.koch@ndsu.edu

The Value of Wasted Paper

The average cost of a wasted page is 6 cents, and the average employee prints 6 wasted pages per day – 1,410 wasted pages per year at a cost of $84 per employee.

Source: Greenprint www.printgreener.com/earthday.html from March/April 2008 Training Magazine

Let's Communicate
Past issues and topics from Let's Communicate are at www.ag.ndsu.edu/agcomm/letscomm/letscomm.htm. If you have questions or comments, or would like to submit information or make a suggestion for Let's Communicate, please contact me.