Indiana University: IT Training Tips Blog » Macintosh Skills

PHP Workshops: Install and Use PHP Locally

Tom Mason — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 20:51:57 +0000

To develop database-driven PHP applications, we need three things, the Apache web server, the PHP processor, and MySQL. This tutorial will walk you through all of the installation and setup that you need to do on your own machine to have a local instance of a Apache/MySQL/PHP (AMP) environment.

The instructions below will walk you through the setup you need for each of our PHP workshops, starting with PHP: The Basics.

At the time of writing, PHP: The Basics is the only PHP workshop offered by IT Training.

PHP: The Basics

The following links contain step-by-step instructions on configuring XAMP for the PHP: The Basics workshop.

Understanding Mac Keyboard Shortcuts

Tom Mason — Tue, 14 Aug 2012 14:19:00 +0000

Apple has made a lot of changes to the behavior of their keyboard shortcuts over the last several operating systems. In the days before Exposé, things were pretty straightforward; the function keys worked the same regardless of how the operating system was configured.

Today, with Mission Control and Exposé, things aren’t so easy. Apple keyboards now have fancy little icons on some of the F-keys, and by default, they don’t function like a windows F-key. This can be confusing and it makes it difficult for us to keep our materials accurate for Macintosh systems.

For example, In Dreamweaver, when you would like to preview a page in the default web browser, the keyboard shortcut listed under File -> Preview in Browser is Option + F12. The only problem is, when you press Option + F12, by default, you are taken to the System Sound Preferences panel. In order to get the function (F-) keys to work like function keys and not volume/brightness/Exposé/Mission Control keys, you need to press the Function Key (fn). This is located in two different places on Apple keyboards:

Bottom Left (Apple Bluetooth Keyboard)

Home Keys (Apple USB Keyboard)

So, the keyboard shortcut for previewing in the default browser in Dreamweaver isn’t just Option + F12, it’s Option + fn + F12.

Now, keep in mind, your Mac may not be configured to work this way. In fact, on your Mac, the keyboard shortcut might be Option + F12. How do you know? Take a trip to System Preferences -> Keyboard. There is a checkbox there that determines the functionality of the F-keys:

If the checkbox is unchecked, then you must use the fn key.

If the checkbox is checked, then you don’t need to use the fn key.

If you’re interested, here are some other Mac keyboard shortcuts.

Hopefully this post helps clarify some things!

You want fries with that MacRibbon?

Greg — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 23:12:46 +0000

So it’s official now, a ribbon is coming to the upcoming Office for Mac 2011.

This ribbon will combine features located in the Formatting Palette and the Elements Gallery. But don’t freak out, because the menu bar and the standard toolbar will still exist.

Wanna catch a glimpse of the new interface? See the rest of this post…

New Word 2011 interface showing the MacRibbon

Extending STEPS with lynda.com – Use Photoshop blend modes for color and contrast correction

Carol Rhodes — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 20:25:37 +0000

You may already know that Photoshop blend modes can immeasurably enhance your creativity and playfulness. You may be familiar with the artful aspects of blend modes; however, most Photoshop users don’t know they are corrective, too. Understanding how they work is a key to using them to your best advantage.

Now, we must say here that everyone who works with Photoshop should know how to work with Levels and Curves to correct color and contrast, because they are the very best tools for the most challenging jobs. IT Training & Education offers three STEPS workshops that show you how to use these amazing tools. First, sign up for Photoshop: The Basics, then take Photoshop: Restoration and Retouching. Armed with all that knowledge, you’ll thank us for your skills.

With that very important public service message out of the way, we would like to offer some more nourishing knowledge for the advanced Photoshop user. With blend modes, you can quickly improve areas of an image that have faulty contrast or color without even messing with Levels and Curves. Michael Ninness, through his lynda.com workshop, “Photoshop CS4: Blend Mode Magic,” can show you how to do a very thorough and speedy job of correcting brightness and contrast using various Photoshop blend modes. (He will include a lot of art, too.)

To find the course, log into lynda.com. In the Software field, search for “Photoshop CS4,” or in the Author field, search for “Ninness, Michael.” You can also use the type-in search field for “Blend Mode Magic.”

Indiana University users may log into lynda.com with their network username and password by going to http://ittraining.iu.edu/lynda, and clicking “Go to Lynda.com.”

Extending STEPS with lynda.com – Illustrator CS4 Essential Training

Carol Rhodes — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 19:19:03 +0000

You may have attended the IT Training & Education STEPS workshop, “Adobe Illustrator CS4: The Basics,” and would like to learn more. Make lynda.com your personal trainer! If you would like a little review of Illustrator followed by more advanced concepts, see Mordy Golding’s Illustrator CS4 Essential Training.

This workshop is for beginners and intermediate users alike. Using a surfing theme throughout, Mordy begins by explaining elements that make up vector graphics—paths, strokes, and fills—and shows how to use each of Illustrator’s drawing tools. Then, he demonstrates how to combine and clean up paths, and organize them into groups and layers. Mordy also covers text editing, working with color, expressive brush drawing, creating compound shapes and complex strokes, adding 3-D effects, and much more. You must be logged into lynda.com before you click the link to “Adobe Illustrator CS4: The Basics”: http://www.lynda.com/home/DisplayCourse.aspx?lpk2=718

Do you have a specific project in mind to which Illustrator would be suited? Go to lynda.com, and in the Software search field, search for Illustrator CS4. There, among a list of offerings, you’ll find links to courses that show you how to design a newsletter, design a magazine layout, design an event Poster, and use Illustrator for the Web.

(Indiana University users may use their IU network usernames to log into lynda.com. Click the “Go to Lynda.com” link at http://ittraining.iu.edu/lynda.)

Extending STEPS with lynda.com – PowerPoint 2008 for Mac Essential Training

Donna K. Jones — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 04:15:56 +0000

In an earlier blog post, Veronica discusses the lynda.com training that is available for Office for the Macintosh. I was happy to see that she was sharing this information, because participants who attend the IT Training & Education PowerPoint workshops almost always have questions about PowerPoint for Mac versus PowerPoint for Windows. Is the interface exactly the same in the two applications? Do they use the same filename extensions? Can I open up and edit a Mac presentation with the Windows version? Etc., etc…

Since IU students, staff, and faculty can now access lynda.com for free, it is a great time to learn more about PowerPoint for the Mac. In David Rivers’ tutorial called PowerPoint 2008 for Mac Essential Training, you can find out everything there is to know about the Mac version of this application, including how to:

create, edit, and share professional slideshows and presentations
efficiently navigate presentations
apply custom themes
place and edit text, images, and multimedia files
publish a self-running or manual slideshow

Mac users can watch all of the modules included in this comprehensive tutorial, or they can just watch the sections they are most interested in. If you have already attended our STEPS PowerPoint workshops, you may just want to view the section called Understanding the Interface.

If you haven’t yet taken any of the STEPS workshops in this series, consider attending one of the following:

This is the last official blog article in the lynda.com series, but you can bet that there will be more information about this fantastic learning resource in upcoming posts.