Welcome to CSDU
We are thrilled to introduce you to our new collection of on-demand educational resources: CSDU or actually, to the first module of this collection. In this blog you will learn more about the CSDU idea, format (which includes a completion certificate), and the first module, Visualisation 101.
The idea for CSDU was born as we tried to make our CCDC Virtual Workshops more accessible for our community all over the globe. While we tackled this aim by hosting each session at different times of the day (well, our tutors’ day) to be more inclusive of different time zones, we found that this approach still couldn’t reach all our global users. This led us to also work on new on-demand resources, in particular CSDU.
The newly created CSDU area will collect on-demand modules designed to guide your learning and enhance your knowledge of features of the CSD Software with a hands-on approach. CSDU is for everyone who wants to explore how to use CSD tools for their research, teaching, and learning, and do it at their own pace and most convenient time.
Each CSDU module is divided into three parts, using a mix of resources:
- Watch: This part consists of a playlist of videos introducing the CSD Software functionality covered in the section, highlighting its features and demonstrating its use.
- Try: It is now your turn to hands-on try some examples with self-guided exercises.
- Test: The newest part of CSDU is that you have the possibility to earn a completion certificate! Answer the quiz questions based on what you have learnt, and you will get a virtual certificate straight to your inbox.
As for our other educational resources and activities either live or on-demand, each module will specify objectives and entry requirements, so you will be able to decide before starting whether it suits your needs.
Our first module is Visualisation 101 (you can find it here), covering the basics of visualising structures and creating impressive high-resolution images with Mercury. We decided to inaugurate CSDU with this module as being able to navigate Mercury comfortably and being familiar with its visualisation and display options are the foundation to move on to more complex features for structural analysis with more confidence. Moreover, not only visualisation with Mercury is a very popular topic, but also we kept in mind that this module can be completed also using the free version of Mercury, which means it would be accessible to more students, researchers, and educators.
We are looking forward for you to try our first CSDU module and to hearing what you think.
Enjoy CSDU and Visualisation 101!