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iPad Program

As technology continues to change and advance, it is important to stay abreast of these changes and more closely examine those technologies that may be beneficial to teaching and learning. The goal of this program is to provide continued support to those courses that have built their curriculum around this handheld device.

If you have questions about the iPad Program, please contact the ITS Help Desk (413-774-1444).

Best Practices for Apple TV

The following tips have been found helpful in creating a positive experience when using an Apple TV.

  • Turn Wi-Fi Off and On
    When arriving in a room to use Apple TV, turn Wi-Fi on iPad off, wait a few seconds, and turn Wi-Fi on.  This ensures iPad grabs strongest signal in room.
    • To turn Wi-Fi off/on (iOS 10 and up):
      • Slide one finger up from bottom of screen
      • Select Wi-Fi button to turn off Wi-Fi
      • Count to 5
      • Select Wi-Fi button to turn on Wi-Fi
      • Slide one finger down from top of pop out menu to bottom of screen
  • Install GreenDoor Mobile Profile
    This profile expedites and improves connectivity between iPad and network thereby improving connection to Apple TV.
    • Follow directions found here to install profile
  • Set Auto-Lock to at least 15 Minutes (recommend Never)
    This will prevent iPad from going to sleep too quickly and causing a drop in signal to Apple TV.
    • To change Auto-Lock:
      • Go to Settings
      • Select General
      • Scroll down and select Auto-Lock
      • Select 15 Minutes or Never
      • Click Home button to return to main screen
  • Forget Wi-Fi network DA-Wireless
    This will prevent iPad from trying to jump to DA-Wireless.
    • To forget DA-Wireless:
      • Go to Settings
      • Select Wi-Fi
      • Select the i to the right of DA-Wireless
      • Select Forget This Network
      • When confirmation dialog box appears, select Forget
      • Select Wi-Fi
      • If it is not already selected, select GreenDoor and wait for iPad to confirm connection via check appearing on screen
      • Click Home button to return to main screen
  • Turn off Bluetooth
    It is recommended that Bluetooth be turned off on iPad if not regularly using a Bluetooth device (e.g., keyboard, speakers).  This cuts down on potential wireless conflicts.
    • To turn off Bluetooth:
      • Got to Settings
      • Select Bluetooth
      • Slide Bluetooth slider to the left to turn off
      • Click Home button to return to main screen
  • Turn Wi-Fi Off and On
    When arriving in a room to use Apple TV, turn Wi-Fi on MacBook off, wait a few seconds, and turn Wi-Fi on.  This ensures strongest signal in room.
    • To turn Wi-Fi off/on:
      • Click on Wi-Fi icon in menu bar at top of screen
      • Select Turn Wi-Fi Off
      • Count to 5
      • Click on Wi-Fi icon in menu bar at top of screen
      • Select Turn Wi-Fi On
      • Wait until Wi-Fi connection is complete (bars fill in on Wi-Fi icon) before connecting to Apple TV
  • Install GreenDoor Mobile Config Profile
    This profile expedites and improves connectivity between MacBook and network thereby improving connection to Apple TV.
    • Follow directions found here to install profile
  • Change Energy Saver settings to 1 hour or longer
    This will prevent MacBook from going to sleep too quickly and causing a drop in signal to Apple TV.
    • To change Energy Saver:
      • Go to Apple menu and select System Preferences
      • Select Energy Saver (second item in second row)
      • Click on Battery
      • Change Computer Sleep and Display Sleep to 1 hour or longer
      • Click on Power Supply
      • Change Computer Sleep and Display Sleep to 1 hour or longer
      • Click on red X in upper left corner to close window
  • Prioritize GreenDoor wireless network
    This will ensure that MacBook connects to GreenDoor wireless network first every time thereby reducing chance of connecting to DA-Wireless and dropping Apple TV connection
    • To prioritize GreenDoor:
      • Go to Apple menu and select System Preferences
      • Select Network (third item in third row)
      • Select Wi-Fi from list on left
      • Click Advanced in lower right corner
      • Click on Wi-Fi tab
      • A list of wireless networks will appear.  Order of networks indicates priority for connection.  Order should be as follows:
        • Your Home Network
        • GreenDoor
        • DA-Wireless

NOTE: If you do not have a home wireless network, GreenDoor should be at top of list.

    • If the list does not appear as shown above, click on the network that needs to be moved and drag it to its correct position.  For example, click on GreenDoor and drag it up to second/first position in list.
    • Click OK in lower right corner
    • Click Apply in lower right corner
    • Click on red X in upper left corner to close window
  • Turn off Bluetooth
    It is recommended that Bluetooth be turned off on MacBook if not regularly using a Bluetooth device (e.g., keyboard, speakers).  This cuts down on potential wireless conflicts.
    • To turn off Bluetooth:
      • Click on Bluetooth icon in menu at top of screen
        • If Bluetooth does not appear in menu at top of screen:
          • Go to Apple menu and select System Preferences
          • Click on Bluetooth (fifth item in third row)
      • Select Turn Bluetooth Off

 

iPad Resources

iPad Tutorials

iPad App Reviews/Recommendations

Faculty who have been participating in the iPad Program were asked to recommend the apps they found most useful in a variety of categories.  Below are the most highly recommended apps from that survey.
If you open this page on your iPad and click on a link, you will be brought directly to the App Store page where you can read more about the app and download it.

Annotation

Screencasting

Presentations

Web Browser (besides Safari)

Notetaking

Writing

Cloud Storage

iBooks Author

iBooks Author is software developed by Apple to create electronic books (eBooks).  iBooks Author is uniquely designed to create interactive eBooks that take advantage of the functionality and portability of the iOS and Mac OS X devices.  While the software is designed for creating interactive books, it is also possible to export your eBooks in PDF and text formats so they can be viewed on other devices (e.g., Android tablets/phones, laptops).  Unfortunately the interactive pieces will not function in these formats.
For more information about iBooks Author, click here.
For tutorials on using iBooks Author, please use the links below:

If you would like to setup a one-on-one session on using iBooks Author, please contact the ITS Help Desk (413-774-1444).

Notability - Change Backup Location

Due to the limited availability of space in iCloud (5 Gb unless more is purchased), we highly recommend setting up Notability to backup to Google Drive.  Following are instructions for setting the backup location on both versions of Notability (iOS, Mac OS X).

  • Open Notability
  • Click on <gear> icon in lower left corner of screen
  • Select Auto-backup
  • Select Google Drive
  • When prompted to login to Google, enter your Deerfield e-mail address and click Sign in
  • Login to your Deerfield Google Drive account (Deerfield Network UserID & Password) and click Login
  • Click Allow when prompted for access permissions
  • Click OK to acknowledge everything is setup to backup to Google Drive
  • Click on <gear> icon next to Google Drive
  • Leave Destination Folder alone (should read /Notability/)
  • Set File Format to Note
    • This will save all content in Notability format.  Other options exist, but have their limitations for re-use with Notability
  • Select the Subjects you want backed up.  Select them all unless you know for sure you won’t need a particular Subject
  • Click Settings (upper left corner)
  • Click on iCloud
  • Unless you are using Notability on both your iPad and a MacBook, turn this Off.  This will save space in your iCloud account and on both devices.  All data is still being backed up to Google Drive.
  • Click Close
  • Open Notability
  • Click on Notability menu and select Preferences
  • From AutoBackup Destination drop down menu, select Google Drive
  • When prompted to login to Google, enter your Deerfield e-mail address and click Sign in
  • Login to your Deerfield Google Drive account (Deerfield Network UserID & Password) and click Login
  • Click Allow when prompted for access permissions
  • If you are not using Notability with an iPad, select Off next to iCloud
  • Close the window

 

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