Working in the SoHE Computer Lab
Welcome to the School of Human Ecology computer lab. This lab exists primarily as a classroom for teaching School of Human Ecology courses. SoHE students may use this lab when classes are not in session. Here are the policies and procedures for use of the lab:
DOs:
• DO clean up after yourselves. Especially in the printing and cutting areas. Take your materials with you when leaving the lab. Any items left lying around may be disposed of.
• NOTE: The lab table is not to be used as a dumping area for items left behind. It needs to be kept open for others to use.
• Do turn off the lights, and close the door when room is not in use. If you are the last one to leave this is your responsibility.
• ALWAYS take a copy of your work with you before leaving the lab. It is not guaranteed to be there when you return. You will not be able to store/save data on the C: drive on the lab computers in the SoHE computer lab. You will be able to save data to the D: drive. Files stored on a lab computer drive are not secure and may be edited or deleted by others. In addition, the computer you were previously using may not be available when you return. See additional information on storing/saving information.
• DO vacate/leave the lab immediately if a SCHEDULED class enters. All SCHEDULED courses take priority and are listed on the calendar schedule posted outside of the lab room (updated weekly). During a scheduled class, the teacher may turn off the plotter in the classroom for the duration of the class to avoid class disruption.
• Please respect others when working in the lab. The lab is for the use of ALL SoHE students.
DO NOTs:
• DO NOT bring food or beverages into the lab at ANYTIME. Repeat offenders may have lab access revoked for an unspecified time. *NOTE: If eating or drinking is necessary, SoHE Room 33, if not being used, is available for use. Please check the calendar schedule posted outside the room for upcoming use (updated weekly).
• DO NOT install any software on the lab computers.
• DO NOT move lab computers. Lab computers should not be placed on desks or chairs.
• DO NOT Print to the HP 500 Plotter unless you are printing coursework for a class in Design Studies.
FOR FACULTY TEACHING IN ROOM 38:
• Remember to reserve the room 38 lab with Jonie Bonfield if you are need the lab at any time other than your normal time. The schedules are printed on Monday morning, so make your reservation early if you want to be on the printed schedule.
• Please let your students know the lab rules and encourage them to follow them.
• Report any equipment problems so that they can be fixed before the next class period.
Computer Problems and Getting Help
If there is a problem in the lab, or you need general computer help, call The DoIT Help Desk at 264-HELP. They should be able to talk you through any simple computer problems. They will also report any problems they cannot handle over the phone to the SoHE computer support staff. The help desk is available 24 hours per day, but the SoHE staff will only be available between 8 AM and 5 PM. If you are teaching in the lab, and there is a problem that will affect your class, you can call the Academic technology pager at 657-2041. After the beep enter the number where you can be reached or the room number you are in (38) as a message and press the # key. If you hear a repeated beeping, the page has been sent. If it is between 8AM and 5PM someone should be there shortly.
To get training on standard windows software, go to www.wisc.edu/sts for information about free software.
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR SAVING/STORING YOUR DATA:
• USB Flash Drives (also known as Pen, jump or thumb drives):
*NOTE: We are no longer supporting Zip disks in the lab. There are two machines in the lab with zip disks that can be used to copy data from a zip disk. You should no longer use Zip disks for normal work in the lab.
Flash drives work much like Zip or floppy drives, but are smaller and carry much more data. The keyboards in the lab have USB connectors on the back that will work with low energy flash drives (like the Sandisk ones). There is an extension cable next to each computer that will take any kind of flash drive.
• DVDRW/CDRW Drives:
On each lab computer, these are the lower of the two CD drives. These can be used to save your data to a CD-R, CD-RW, or DVD+R.
USING CDs IN THE COMPUTER LAB:
• “BURNING” CDs:
This can be done in two ways. The first way is with the software included in Windows XP. When a blank CD is placed into the drive, a window may appear. You should select “Open writable CD Folder using Windows Explorer” and hit “OK". Copy data on the CD the same way data is copied to a floppy or flash drive. When done selecting all the data to be put onto the CD, then right-click the CD window and select “write to disk”. *NOTE: Until this is done, the data is still on the computer and not the CD.
Roxio Data EZ CD Creator is another way to copy files onto a CD. It allows you to more accurately plan and control what goes onto the CD. The top of the screen is a window that allows you to browse for the files you want to copy to the CD. The lower window shows what you plan to copy to the CD. Nothing is done to the CD until you are finished and press the red Record button. This allows you to play around with what files will fit onto a CD or organize the files before burning. Once you have what you want to burn in the lower window you press the Record button. A window pops up that gives you several options. You can select how many copies of the CD you want to make. There is a button to copy all of the files to the local Hard disk first which can help prevent CD burning problems if you have files on the network or on zip disks or other CDs. You can also decide whether to leave the CD open for further copying later or to finalize the CD.
