Tag Archives: email

Shared iPads: Saving Notability files and emailing them

On the Middle School Shared iPads, you cannot use the Mail app. So how do you email your teacher?

Here’s how – open this webpage:

webmail.mountdesales.net

You can attach files, forward, reply – all the standard stuff.

So how do you save a file from Notability so that you can email it?

In Notability, be looking at the file you want to email.

  • Click the Export icon [the square with the arrow pointing out].
  • Select SHARE TO…..,
  • Click the SHARE NOTE button,
  • Click “Save to Files“.
    • You then select a location – “On my iPad” or “iCloud Drive”
      • I suggest selecting a location “On my iPad”, especially for grades 6 and 7 students.

        The document will automatically be copied up to iCloud anyway in due course, and local storage will save much faster.

At that point you can start a new email and attach the file.

The export icon

Top Tips for staying secure online

Top tips for staying secure online, borrowed from https://www.ncsc.gov.uk/collection/top-tips-for-staying-secure-online

While you can find a TON of articles explaining how to stay safe online, many are either too wordy, take too long to get to the point, or are annoying in other ways.

Here, borrowed from https://www.ncsc.gov.uk/collection/top-tips-for-staying-secure-online, are some pretty easily do-able things you can do to stay safe online.


  • Use a strong AND SEPARATE password for your email
    • After all, you probably stash a LOT of personal information in your mailboxes. Don’t reuse that password – that is just asking for trouble.
  • Install the latest app updates and software
    • Yes, there are a LOT of them, and they are constant [especially if you use a lot of software]. But update anyway – MDS Tech suggests starting updates before you go to sleep, so you are not aware of how long it takes.
    • Seriously – update. You’ll save headaches!
  • Turn on MFA/2FA – i.e. that thing where you get a text with a code when trying to login to an account.
    • Turn that on where you can – no, it is not perfect, but it is a bit like adding another lock on the door so the “bad guys” can’t get in.
  • Use Password Managers
    • This way you can have all of your passwords stored in one [VERY secure] place…. but make sure you have that one password stashed somewhere safe. There are lots of options out there.
  • Back up your data
    • Your computer WILL die [just like your car or refrigerator]. It is inevitable [see Murphy’s Law] that it will happen at the worst possible time. SO make sure you have backups of your data.
    • The hard part is figuring out how – and that is well beyond the scope of this article. Do a web search – something like ‘how backup [your operating system]”. For example – “how backup mac”.
  • Three Random Words
    • This is some advice that has changed over the years. Using three random words is FAR more secure than using just a few letters or numbers, and MUCH harder to guess. Some examples of decent passwords:
      • threerandomvehicles
      • FredGeorgeLIzrds [note the deliberate misspelling!]
      • IhaveNOidea!
    • Some website will require numbers, special characters like a period or an exclamation point, etc. The common theme here is to mix up type [upper case, lower case, number, characters] and make it as long as practical. 12 characters is far more secure than 8. 24 characters might be too aggravating to type in!

Thanks to Britain’s Nation Cyber Security Centre for posting the article serving as the source for this posting.

HOW TO: Get an assignment from PS LMS to Notability on your iPad

… and then email it to your teacher.

 Find and tap on the PS (PowerSchool app)

  1.  PowerSchool should load and log you into your account.
  1.  Find the apple icon (picture) on the left and tap on it to find a list of your classes.
  1.  Find the class you need and tap on “Go to class” in blue on the right side of the screen.
  1.  Go to the homework area – this may vary by teacher, but is found on the left side of the screen.
  1.  Find your specific assignment.  Tap on it to open.
  1.  See the worksheet on the screen?  Look at the bottom right of the screen.  You will see a square with an arrow pointing straight up.  You will see it later on, but the box part will be larger.  This is the SHARE icon.  Tap on it to share this document with Notability.
  1.  Tap on the Notability icon –
See the source image
Notability
  1.  Create a NEW NOTE.
  1.  Find Note Title  on the screen and tap on it.  Change the name of this document to a good name for this file – something so you know how to find it in Notability.
  1.  Click the blue DONE button on the right side of the keyboard. 
  1.  Click on BACK (found at the upper left).
  1.  You have prepared the document to go to Notability.  Tap Import on the upper right of the screen.  You will see the comment “1 file sent to Notability”.  Click Done.
  1.  Go to Notability, open the folder for your class.
    Find the file, open the file and you can then write or type the information on the screen. 
    Continue to work until your assignment is complete. 
    When the assignment is complete, continue to the next steps.

WOW!  Your assignment is done!!

  1.  You are in 

Notability

and your Assignment is open (you can see the work you completed).

Be sure your assignment is open.

  1.  Look at the upper left. Find that box with the arrow pointing straight up out of the box.  Remember that is the share icon–only the box is larger. Tap on this icon.
See the source image
The Share icon
  1.  Tap on email.
  1.  Format should be PDF (top line of this screen).
  1.  Email Notes.
  1.  Enter your teacher’s email address in the To: section of the email – you may see her name pop up as you start to type and you can just tap on it.
  1.  Click on the blue circle with white arrow in the upper right corner of this screen to send an email to the teacher.
  1.  Email with assignment SENT! 

    Remember that your completed assignment is under the folder with the class name if you need to look at it. 

    Changing the file name is very important in locating your work to study for a test.