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From: "HelpDesk" <helpdesk@nicc.edu>
Organization: Northeast Iowa Community College
To: NICC Students
Date: Tue, 19 Aug 20042 12:52:25 -0500
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Subject: Important information about your account
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<bold><color><param>0100,0100,0100</param>Fall 2004 Edition - Update 8/19/2004</bold>


<bold><color><param>0100,0100,0100</param>Dear Student,</bold>


This message contains important information about your NICC
computer account. It is divided into topics that students need to
know about, so read it carefully and keep it for reference. <color><param>FF00,0000,0000</param>This message will continue to
appear whenever your email starts for about a month. You cannot
permanently delete it until it stops appearing as new mail. 
Note the update date at the start of the message, as it may
contain new information you need to know.<color><param>0100,0100,0100</param>


<bold><italic><color><param>FF00,0000,0000</param>COMPUTER USE POLICY:</italic><color><param>0100,0100,0100</param>


</bold>By logging in you agree to abide by the NICC Computer
Acceptable Use Policy. This policy is posted in each lab. To see a
copy of what it says double-click this link:


http://web.nicc.edu/policies/compuse.htm


Whether you read it or not, you are bound by what it says, so our
suggestion is that you read it! You will be held accountable for
violating it.


<bold><italic><color><param>FF00,0000,0000</param>WEB BROWSERS: </italic></bold><color><param>0100,0100,0100</param>


You will find icons on your desktop for two browsers -- Mozilla and
Internet Explorer. In July, 2004 CERT (the Computer Emergency Response
Team, a federally funded service provided by Cargegie Mellon University
-- http://www.cert.org) recommended that, because of continuing security
vulnerabilities in Internet Explorer, users consider switching to an
alternative browser, such as Mozilla. NICC urges you to use Mozilla, not
IE. Besides being more secure, it provides pop-up ad control and tabbed
windows for multiple web sites. You can download Mozilla for home use at
http://www.mozilla.org. 


<bold><italic><color><param>FF00,0000,0000</param>GAMING, CHAT, DOWNLOADS AND OTHER FUN (BUT
HOGGISH) THINGS:</italic></bold><color><param>0100,0100,0100</param>


You may not install software on NICC's computers. Our computers
are for use by NICC students to accomplish their educational
tasks. Software is tested so that it works in the combinations that
are used in the labs. Adding other software may break existing
working systems. This is unacceptable.


The entire college shares a connection to the Internet. Some
Internet software is hoggish and deprives others of access by using
all the available Internet connection bandwidth. Examples of nasty
software are many Internet chat and games (such as Yahoo Pool,
etc.) because they use all the bandwidth they can get and can often
contain spyware and other code that can compromise security. When this
software is in use the rest of the college is denied reliable Internet
access when needed. Music downloads are another example of an
activity that robs bandwidth from the rest of the college. PLEASE
AVOID THESE ACTIVITIES.


<bold><italic><color><param>FF00,0000,0000</param>EMAIL:</italic></bold><color><param>0100,0100,0100</param>


<bold>WHAT IS MY EMAIL ADDRESS?


</bold>Your NICC email address is yourNetworkLoginID@nicc.edu.
People from anywhere in the world can send you email at this
address. Your account is only active while you are a student at
NICC and ONLY AFTER YOU FIRST LOGIN. During any semester you are
not a student your account is disabled.


NOTE: Users "cstu" (Calmar) and "pstu" (Peosta) are temporary logins
used for the first couple weeks of a semester for students who's
accounts did not get created in time because of late registrations.
Email to or from these accounts is disabled.


<bold>WHY DOES NICC USE PEGASUS EMAIL INSTEAD OF
MICROSOFT OUTLOOK EXPRESS?</bold>


Pegasus is a full function, 100% Internet standards compliant
email client that does not spread viruses. Microsoft Outlook, on the
other hand, is the internationally recognized spreader of viruses
worldwide. We will not permit its operation on our network and we
urge you to remove it from your home computer and install
Pegasus to prevent yourself from inadvertently sending viruses to
people in your home address book (which is how most viruses
spread.) If you would like to find out how to download and install
Pegasus click the link below. (This link will open the message
composer. Type "help" in the Subject line. No actual message is
necessary. You will receive a message telling you how to use
Pegasus at home.)


	peghelp@nicc.edu


<bold>NOTICEBOARDS: NICC ANNOUNCEMENTS, HELP, AND BUY/SELL/TRADE</bold>


Check for Announcements, various types of Help, and "unclassified" ads
using the Pegasus Noticeboards. You can also post announcements and ads
here. Remember that if you post anything here, everyone can read it and
know who sent it, so use good judgment. To see the Noticeboards, click
the 8th button from the left just below the menu bar or pull down the File
menu and choose Noticeboards. Check them often. You never know what will
appear.


<bold>CAN I ACCESS MY NICC EMAIL FROM HOME?</bold>


Yes. There are two ways to do this: 1) Using email software
installed on your computer, or 2) Using a web browser.


From your home computer you can use any POP3 or IMAP4 email client
that supports SSL/TLS secure connections (again we recommend Pegasus).
For an example of how to do this in Pegasus, follow the instructions
you receive by sending the "peghelp" message discussed above.


If you want to access your NICC email through a web browser, go
to http://www.mail2web.com. (Never use mail2web when you have Pegasus
open on campus.) Within mail2web you can use either POP3 or IMAP4
to retrieve your email. Always choose the "Secure Login" link in mail2web.


If you want to use POP3 to check your new mail enter your NICC
email address (yourNetworkLoginID@nicc.edu) and password in the
appropriate fields and click "Check Mail".


If you want to use IMAP4 to check your entire mailbox you must choose
the "Advanced Login" link. In this case you have three fields to fill
in. "UserID" and "Password" are your NICC login ID (don't include
"@nicc.edu"). The "Server Name or IP Address" field is different for
Calmar and Peosta users.


If you are registered at the Calmar campus or its Centers, type
"mail.nicc.edu" (w/o quotes) as the server name.


If you are registered at the Peosta campus or its Centers, type
"mail2.nicc.edu" (w/o quotes).


Then click the IMAP4 button and "Check Mail". Your "Inbox" is shown,
but a drop-down list allows you to see all your mailbox folders. Logout
from mail2web when you are finished.


<bold>POP3 AND IMAP4 -- WHAT ARE THEY?</bold>


POP3 means Post Office Protocol (version 3) and is used to
retrieve NEW messages from an email box. IMAP4 means Internet
Mail Access Protocol (version 4) and it allows you COMPLETE
ACCESS TO YOUR EMAIL BOX, including existing messages in
folders, as well as new messages. You can fully manipulate your
NICC email box remotely using IMAP4.


<bold><italic><color><param>FF00,0000,0000</param>FILE STORAGE:</italic><color><param>0100,0100,0100</param>


WHERE DO I STORE MY FILES FOR CLASS?</bold>


1) You can store your files on diskettes, available in the book
store. This is known as drive A: on the computer.


2) You can store your files on re-writable CDs (CD-RW). This is
usually known as drive D: on the computer. All college computers
have CD writers. The CD writing software will either be EasyCD
Creator or Nero, depending on the model. Because of the unreliability
of CDs we urge you to use them only as necessary.


WARNING: If you use diskettes or CDs, you should USE THEM
AS STORGE MEDIA, NOT WORKING MEDIA. This means that you should open
and edit the files from another area (network or drive C:\USER) and,
when done, copy the file to diskette or CD for storage. While this
may seem cumbersome, it will reduce the chances of loosing data due
to media failure. (With diskettes and CDs, it is usually a question
of WHEN they will fail, not IF!) You can temporarily save files to
C:\USER on the hard drive of the lab computer you are working on.
After you are done editing the file, copy it to diskette or CD and
DELETE it from C:\USER (so no one else gets it.)


3) Every user has a network "home". This home is known as drive
H: when you login. You can store up to 100 MB on your H: drive.
(More is available for certain classes.) We suggest you organize
your files by class in the "My Documents" folder. This keeps your
H: drive neat and consolidates your class work into a master folder
(My Documents).


4) You may use USB Mass Storage Devices, sometimes known as FlashKeys
or PenDrives. Our testing suggests that most will work, but we cannot
guarantee that all will. If they do, they do. If they don't, they don't.


<bold>IF I SAVE MY WORK ON MY NETWORK H: DRIVE HOW DO I
TAKE IT HOME?</bold>


If you have an Internet connection at home, you can download software
called "NetDrive" that will allow you to map a drive on your home PC
to your network home. Then, since your network home appears as a drive
letter on your home computer, you can then have direct access to your
drive H: as if it was on your computer. (Of course, the speed of access
is limited by your Internet connection.)


To get instructions on how to download, install, and use NetDrive,
double-click this link:


http://web.nicc.edu/files/netdrive/remoteaccess.htm


<bold><italic><color><param>FF00,0000,0000</param>HELP:</italic></bold><color><param>0100,0100,0100</param>


<bold>HOW DO I GET HELP ON COMPUTER PROBLEMS?</bold>


If you need help with software that is used specifically for a class,
ask your instructor for assistance. Lab Assistants may be able to
help you too, but they can't know everything about every piece of
software.


If you need help logging in, using email, or to report a problem, call
extension 555 (the computer Help Desk) or ask a Lab Assistant. You can
email questions or report problems to the Help Desk by sending a
message to helpdesk@nicc.edu.


The Help Desk is available from 7:30 AM to 7:00 PM M-F.


We hope you enjoy your computing experience at NICC.


The Help Desk