Q. I
have a computer problem. When will it be fixed?
A. If you have reported your IT-related problem
to the Cy-Fair Service Desk, a work-order has been
created and assigned to a technician. The technician
will be out as soon as possible to fix your problem.
Remember, if the IT Department is not informed
of the problem, we don’t know about it and
are not able to fix it. Please do not assume that
we know of computers that won’t start in
classrooms, printing problems, or any other difficulties
you may run into. The problem will remain a problem
until someone reports it to the Cy-Fair Service Desk.
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Q. How
do Adjuncts get a voicemail account?
A. Adjunct faculty must have an email account
set up before they can apply for voicemail. Then
the Adjunct
Voicemail request form can be filled out by
the department chair and emailed to the CFC Service Desk.
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Q. A
very friendly technician helped me out with a
problem last week and I’d like the same
technician to come fix the problem I have today.
Is there any way for me to request a particular
technician?
A. All IT
requests should be made through the Cy-Fair
Service Desk; please do not contact technicians directly.
After a request is submitted, a work order is
made and assigned to an available technician.
Assignments are given to technicians based on
availability, technician specialty, and urgency.
Because of this process, requests for particular
technicians cannot be granted.
If there is a reoccurring problem or work order,
we will attempt to assign the technician who worked
on the problem originally.
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Q. I
need a piece of software installed on a computer.
What should I do?
Students (personal and classroom software installs)
A. Students (personal and
classroom software installs) - Students
can install most book software upstairs in the
library. However, when the computer is restarted,
the software installation (and any work saved
on the computer) will be erased. We ask that students
not attempt software installs on any other computers
at Cy-Fair College. If a student needs software
installed in a lab for course reasons, their instructor
will need to contact the adjacent Service Desk (Cy-Fair
Service Desk at the Barker-Cypress Campus and Fairbanks
Helpdesk at the Fairbanks Center) regarding the
software installation. Software that has already
been requested properly by faculty and adjunct
faculty will be installed in associated classrooms
and open labs.
Faculty (classroom software
installs) – There will be a deadline
every semester for classroom and open lab software
installation requests. If your request for software
installation is received by the Service Desk past
this deadline, your software will not be installed.
Remember, other classes are being held in the
classroom your class is using, and there is most
likely a special image used for that classroom;
adding one piece of software means rebuilding
and re-imaging an entire lab full of computers.
If there is an emergency situation and you were
not able to send in your software request before
the cutoff date, the IT Department will do it’s
best to accommodate your needs.
Full-Time Faculty and Staff (personal
software installs) – For licensing,
security, and hardware/software compatibility
reasons, all software installations on Cy-Fair
College laptop or desktop computers must be approved
and administered through the Cy-Fair College Service Desk.
Disregarding a few exceptions, full-time faculty
and staff are not given permissions on their laptops
or desktops to install software, so any attempt
to do so will result in failure. If you have a
piece of software you wish to install, please
contact the Service Desk. Software installations are
approved on a case-by-case basis.
If you are CIT faculty and require administrative
rights on your computer in order to run specialized
software, please contact the Service Desk and we will
process your request as soon as possible.
Part-time staff (personal software installs)
– Please contact your supervisor
with your suggestion for a software installation.
If your supervisor feels the software is necessary,
they should then contact the Service Desk with the
software request. Software installations of this
sort are approved on a case-by-case basis.
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Q. I
need to save a file that I’ve worked on
at the Barker-Cypress Campus and I have a zip
disk, but you don’t have any Zip drives.
A. At this point in time, there are no concrete
plans to purchase and install Zip drives in the
computers on campus. However, you do have several
options if you are stuck in this situation:
• Use your locker!
– Each student, faculty, and staff
member has an eCampus locker that is created
when they come onboard at Cy-Fair College (or
anywhere in the NHMCC District). Lockers are
located at http://lockers.nhmccd.edu
and can be accessed from any computer with an
Internet connection. In addition, eLockers provide
50mb of space for users, a more than adequate
amount of storage for assignments and projects.
eLockers are emptied at the end of every semester.
• Email it to yourself –
Many students opt to create an email account
and email homework and project assignments to
their email accounts. Most email servers (including
Hotmail and Yahoo) allow 4mb of storage space
for email accounts. NHMCCD also provides email
accounts for students through CampusCruiser.
To access this email account, simply visit http://prod.campuscruiser.com/nhmccd/.
• Use your floppies – All
computers on campus are equipped with floppy
disk drives. If floppy disks are maintained
correctly, they can reliably supply up to 1.4mb
of storage. Remember, floppies should not be
kept in extreme heat or cold, nor should they
be stored around metal or magnetic objects.
It is best to format your floppy on first use
(even if the box it came in says it is formatted)
and then reformat at regular intervals.
• Get a USB Flash Drive –
Approved USB flash drives can be purchased at
the Cy-Fair College Bookstore. They offer varying
amounts of storage space and can be plugged
into the USB port under the gray cover on the
front of any Dell computer on campus. The pre-approved
flash drives offered in the Cy-Fair College
bookstore should require no installation on
the part of the user. However, if you purchase
a non-approved flash drive, you will not be
able to install drivers if the flash drive prompts
you to do so upon insertion.
Instructions for Storing and Retrieving
Student Work on the Barker Cypress Campus:
INSTRUCTORS:
1. If you are logged into a classroom computer
, you will see a “T”
drive under My Computer, Network Drives. You
will need to create a folder on this drive for
the class to save their work.
a. Go to My Computer, Network Drives, and Select
the “T” drive.
b. Select File, New, Folder, and create a new
folder using the naming convention of instructor
name and date (ex. JSmith11_24_2005).
c. Have the students save their work to this
location.
2. Please Note: there is a limited amount of
space on this drive. It is recommended that
when you get back to your office, you copy the
contents of the folder somewhere else for longer-term
storage if required. There is no way to secure
this data in this location - everyone can see
it. NOTE: This drive is not accessible from the
Library for students. This drive will be
cleared out on Sunday nights, NO EXCEPTIONS.
THIS IS A TEMPORARY STORAGE AREA.
3. Instructions for retrieving the files from
your office were distributed at orientation.
STUDENTS: If you are logged into a classroom
computer as cyfair-student, you should see a
“T” drive under My Computer, Network
Drives. Your instructor will inform you of the
folder name on the “T” drive in
which to store your work. NOTE: This drive
is NOT accessible from the Library.
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Q.
How do I log on to the computers?
A. Students: Ask your instructor
how to login. Logins are posted at the front desk
in each classroom.
Adjunct Faculty: Please contact
the Cy-Fair Service Desk at x3948 to receive the
instructor login for classrooms and workrooms.
Full-Time Faculty and Staff:
A windows login was created for you at the start
of your employment. Please contact the Cy-Fair
Service Desk at x3948 if you are having difficulties
logging on to your computer.
Part-Time Staff: Please contact
your supervisor for log on instructions. If your
supervisor does not have this information, then
he or she needs to contact the Cy-Fair Service Desk.
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Q.
I’m a supervisor and I have a new full-time
employee starting today. What do I need to do
to get him/her set up with a computer and phone?
A. Please fill out the
New Employee Set Up form and send it to the
Cy-Fair Service Desk at cfservicedesk@nhmccd.edu.
Please note: the Service Desk will not process this
form until the employee receives a District email
account.
If you have any questions about the form, please
call the Cy-Fair Service Desk at x3948.
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Q. I’m
adjunct faculty and I need voicemail set up. What
should I do?
A. Please email or call the Cy-Fair Service Desk.
We will send you an Adjunct Faculty Voicemail
Form to fill out and return to us. We then forward
this form on to the District Helpdesk, which handles
all phone and voicemail requests. When the voicemail
is set up, District Helpdesk will send you instructions
regarding voicemail access and greeting creation.
Please note: voicemail cannot be set up until
District email is acquired.
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Why do
I need District email?
District email is an essential part of working
at Cy-Fair College or in the NHMCC District. Much
communication is completed through District email
and distribution lists for NHMCCD, all Cy-Fair
College employees, Cy-Fair College Faculty, and
Cy-Fair College staff require District email.
In addition, if you are a full-time employee,
you will not be granted a Windows login or phone
setup, your personal folder on the server, or
access to public folders on the server until you
receive District email. Adjunct faculty will not
be granted voicemail setup until they receive
District email.
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Q. How
do I receive District email?
A. To receive District email, you must be an employee
of the NHMCC District. Students receive email
through CampusCruiser rather than through the
District.
Once you have been hired, you need to apply for
email. The application form can be reached through
any computer with an Internet connection at http://owa.nhmccd.edu.
Simply click the “Apply” button and
follow the instructions.
If you are having difficulty with the email application
form or need a computer to complete the application
form, please come by the Cy-Fair Service Desk in
TECH 120.
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Q. I’m
a student. How do I get CampusCruiser email?
A. Your CampusCruiser account is automatically
created when you register for classes. To access
your account, you first need to find your PIN
at http://www.nhmccd.edu/pin.cfm.
(Please note: this page will also provide you
with your StarGazer PIN).
Once you have successfully acquired your CampusCruiser
PIN, go to CampusCruiser and log in. If you run
into any difficulties with this process, please
call or drop by the Cy-Fair Service Desk.
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Q. I’m
in a computer lab classroom and the printer won’t
work.
A. Before you call the Service Desk, you can do a
little troubleshooting of your own. First, make
sure you are logged into the computer correctly.
Students should be using the cyfair-student login
in computer lab classrooms. If you are not logged
into the computer correctly, you will not be able
to print.
Once you are logged in correctly, if you are still
not able to print, check the printer for power
connectivity. If the printer is on, make sure
there is paper in the paper tray (the LCD screen
on the printer will tell you if a tray is out
of paper).
If go through these troubleshooting steps but
are still unable to print, please call or come
by the Cy-Fair College Service Desk.
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Q. I’m
an instructor and I went through the process to
have software installed in a lab. You installed
it, but I don’t know how to use it. Can
you show me?
A. Unfortunately, no.
If the software was ordered through your department
or came with a textbook you are teaching from,
it is your responsibility to learn how to use
the software. If there is something wrong with
the software installation that we can fix, we
will be more than happy to do so. However, because
of the superfluous amount of software we install
every semester, constantly evolving software,
and need in other areas, we are not able to support
every software application we install on computers.
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Q. I’m
having trouble in a CIT course I’m taking
this semester. If I come by the Service Desk, can
you tutor me?
A. The IT Department does not provide tutoring
for CIT credit or continuing education courses.
If you are having difficulty in a course, please
contact your instructor. He or she will be able
to provide more information regarding tutoring.
If you are an employee and you feel you need extra
computer training, please contact your supervisor
for further courses of action.
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Q. I
need to get a door on campus opened. You have
keys, right? Will you come open the door for me?
A. We are not able to unlock doors unless we are
visiting rooms for IT purposes. If you need a
room unlocked:
Students – Classrooms will
not be opened until instructors are present. Your
instructor should have a key to the classroom
and will open it when he or she arrives for class.
When class is over, please vacate the room. If
you still need the use of a computer, please visit
the library or open lab.
Faculty / Adjunct Faculty / Staff
– Dennis Winchell, Facilities Coordinator,
provides keys for locks; he can be reached at
281-290-3949. The Chief of Police provides
key cards for computer lab classrooms. If you have not yet
received your key or key card, please contact
the Campus Police at 281-290-5911 to open your
door.
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Q. I’m
a new employee and someone from your department
just set me up with a phone and computer. This
phone looks really difficult to use. Can you give
me some pointers?
A. The entire campus of Cy-Fair College is equipped
with Cisco Voice Over IP phones. They may appear
difficult to use at first, but once you become
familiar with them, you’ll find that you
appreciate the functionality offered. There is
an online
tutorial available. If you are still having
problems with your phone after visiting this tutorial,
please call the Service Desk and we will be happy
to assist you.
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Q: I’ve
heard that Cy-Fair College has an open wireless
network. Is this true?
A: Yes! Cy-Fair College has a fully-functional
wireless network that spreads campus wide. You
are welcome to bring your own laptop and receive
a network connection through the wireless network,
check out a laptop from the Library, or use our
Cy-ber Café.
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Q: I brought my own laptop,
but I can’t pick up a wireless signal from
your network. Help!
A: You should be able to pick up a connection
from any point on campus. If you’re not
able to connect to the Internet, please first
check and make sure that your laptop has a wireless
card. Next, if you are utilizing a Windows OS,
click Start, Settings, and Network Connections.
Under Network Connections, a wireless network
connection should be available. Choose this connection.
Our wireless network is named NHMCCD. You must
first enable this connection before utilizing
the network.
If you are positive your laptop is wireless enabled
and you are not able to pick up a wireless connection
on campus, please contact the Cy-Fair Service Desk.
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Q.
I decided to move my phone, so I unplugged it
and now I can’t get to the Internet!
A. Your computer receives its network
connectivity through your Cisco Voice Over IP
phone, which plugs directly into the network port.
If you unplugged your phone, you have also effectively
removed your network connection. You need to plug
your phone back in and let it reboot completely,
then restart your computer. On the back of the
phone, the network cable from the wall to the
phone should be plugged into the “10/100
SW” port; the connection from the phone
to the PC should be plugged into the “10/100
PC” port. If these cables are plugged in
incorrectly, the phone will not boot into production.
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Q. I
have a problem with my phone and I heard about
a form online that I can submit. Will this get
my phone problem fixed faster?
A. Please contact the Cy-Fair IT Service Desk
before filling out the phone form online. The
form online goes directly to District and they
prefer that the Cy-Fair IT Department fill it
out on behalf of the user and send it in. This
allows us to perform necessary troubleshooting
and gather required information from the phone.
If the phone is showing symptoms of a server-side
problem, we will contact District for you.
Note: If you do fill out the form online, District
Helpdesk will contact the Cy-Fair Service Desk
and ask us to go take a look at the problem before
they begin troubleshooting. However, because of
the work load at District Helpdesk, this process
can take several days. Your problem will be fixed
more expediently if you contact the Cy-Fair Service Desk
directly.
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Q. I
need a Colleague account. Can you do that?
A. Colleague accounts are created at District.
You can fill out a form to request a Colleague
account at http://www.nhmccd.edu/forms.
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Q. I
don’t know how to use Colleague. Do you
offer training sessions?
A. Colleague training sessions
are offered through the Cy-Fair Corporate and
College Training and Development Center. Emails
are sent periodically to employees announcing
these sessions. Training sessions are also posted
on the CCTDC website. Note: You must have a Colleague
account to attend a Colleague training session.
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Q. I’m
having a problem in Colleague. I think my account
is locked out.
A. If you are having difficulties in Colleague,
please contact the Cy-Fair Service Desk first.
We will troubleshoot the problem to the best of
our abilities and then contact District Helpdesk
if the need arises.
If you are an advanced Colleague user and are
sure your account is locked out, or if you have
forgotten your login name or password, please
contact the District Helpdesk.
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Q. I
am an employee and I need to check my District
email from home. Is this possible?
A. NHMCCD offers a web version of Outlook
that allows users to access their District email
from any computer with an Internet connection.
It is located at http://owa.nhmccd.edu.
You must log in with your email user name and
password to gain access to your email. If you
are using a public computer, it is very important
that you log out of email when you are done, or
the next person who uses the computer may be able
to access it.
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Q. I
don’t have an Internet connection at home.
How do I check my email?
A. NHMCCD will provide a dial-in account for full-time
employees if necessary. The form to apply for
a dial-in account can be found at http://www.nhmccd.edu/forms.
If you need to access files on the Cy-Fair network
from home, please make sure to request VPN access
as well.
Note: the number of VPN accounts is limited, so
please only request a VPN account if it is necessary
to complete your work.
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Q. The
printer is out of paper or toner.
A. Please contact the Cy-Fair Service Desk and
we will refill the paper or printer toner as required.
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Q. Can
I bring in a personal deskjet printer from home
and hook it up to my computer?
A. We ask that employees not bring printers
from home to use at work. Remember, if you do
hook up a printer from home, it will require driver
(and maybe additional software) installation which
you will not have the permissions on the computer
to install.
There are printers available in every office suite
breakroom in addition to printers in every computer
lab and computer lab classroom on campus. If you
fill your printing needs are not being met, please
contact the Cy-Fair Service Desk.
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Q. I
have a personal computer that I use for work-related
or school-related reasons, but I’m having
problems with it. If I bring it to you, will you
fix it?
A. Unfortunately, we are not able
to troubleshoot computers that are not issued
or owned by the college.
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Q. I
have a palm pilot that I would like to sync with
my Outlook. Can you set this up?
A. We do have the software available
to set up your Palm Pilot. Please call the Cy-Fair
Service Desk and we will create a work order and
send a technician out to complete this task.
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Q. My
department is planning on purchasing a new software
package through a vendor for courses next semester.
What questions do I need to ask the vendor?
A. If you are planning on purchasing
software for campus use, please contact Doug Caesar,
Manager of the IT Department. There are certain
questions regarding compatibility, licensing,
and permissions about which a representative from
the IT Department will need to contact to the
vendor. Because of the nature of our installation
policies and network structure, we do ask to be
a part of the purchasing decision in order to
avoid future problems with the software.
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