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Tuesday, September 14, 2021 - 1:23pm

Information Technology Services (ITS) offers students a variety of free services and software. Here are some of the most popular technology resources available to you: 

Help Desk support

Students having trouble with any and all devices can get free support from the ITS Help Desk with things like software, security, and wireless. Many Help Desk staff are students too, and they are ready to help you remove viruses, update your operating systems, and more. Contact the ITS Help Desk via phone, email, live chat, and walk-in.

Microsoft Office (five free copies)

As part of your Office 365 account, you can download up to five copies of Microsoft Office on your devices—for free! Microsoft Office includes Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and more. Learn how to download and install Microsoft Office

Duo Mobile app

Protect your identity by downloading the free Duo Mobile app and enrolling in Two-Step Login. Two-Step Login protects you and your data by requiring you to finish logging onto online services (like ICON or MyUI) through an app on your phone. This service will soon be required, so we recommend doing it now.

Already enrolled in Two-Step and receiving phone calls or text messages to complete your logins? Switch to the Duo app! It is easier, faster, and more secure.

Have an Apple Watch? Duo supports login requests from an Apple Watch, making your login even easier.

Outlook app

Use the free Microsoft Outlook app to get email on your phone and laptop. Outlook is the most secure app for email and is recommended over Apple Mail or your native Android mail app. Plus, it’s the only email app compatible with Duo. Use these instructions to install Outlook on your phone.

Wi-Fi

You already know university wireless (eduroam) is free, right? Use it! We’ve noticed that many students are using the UI Guest network instead due to login issues. The UI Guest network is not recommended because it’s inconvenient (requires daily logins), slower, and blocks some sites. 

If you’ve tried to connect to eduroam in the past and had trouble, you may need to “forget” the network and connect again. These handy instructions will walk you through how to forget the network and get you back on eduroam.

If you still have problems connecting to eduroam, contact the ITS Help Desk.    

Zoom

Like eduroam, you already know Zoom is free. However, did you know that we recently introduced the ability to display your pronouns in Zoom? Learn how to display your pronouns in Zoom

If you run into any issues getting signed in, here are instructions on how to log in to Zoom the correct way. 

Microsoft Teams

More and more students are using Microsoft Teams for their collaboration needs. Teams is an online collaboration hub for teamwork integrated with your Office 365 account. This app helps you and your team have real-time conversations using chat or video meetings, securely share and collaborate on files, and work on classwork or projects with others at the University of Iowa.

OneDrive for Business

Similar to Google Drive, OneDrive allows you to easily store and access your files from anywhere, using a web browser or mobile app. To familiarize yourself with OneDrive, please visit the OneDrive hub page.

IT Service Alerts page 

Did you know that ITS maintains a dashboard displaying the current status of major technology tools and services? Check out the IT Service Alerts page to view planned IT activities or disruptions to your most-used tech services. For example, if you can’t access ICON, check out the IT Service Alerts page to see if there is an issue or outage.

LinkedIn Learning

LinkedIn Learning is a free online training library that provides access to thousands of online courses on productivity, web design, graphic design, photography, programming, coding, and more. Log in and take a look at the robust catalog of videos.