Welcome to Rensselaer!

Here at Rensselaer, computing plays a major role in the everyday educational experience, and students and faculty alike have access to a broad range of computing tools for their coursework. You'll find that many courses use computing extensively in their curricula. You'll also use computing as a tool to access library collections and services for coursework and other information needs.

But there are so many new things to try to remember!

Don't panic! In fact, relax. Academic Computing Services (ACS) has tried to anticipate as many of your questions as we possibly could, and has put together this document in hopes of answering them. **

• The first section of this document will help you start using your recently acquired laptop computer.
• The remaining sections provide general information about computing here at Rensselaer

Therefore, please hang on to this user's guide! We think you'll find it to be a useful source of information to which you can return again and again.

The information in this document was current as of August 13, 1999.

Laptop Adapter Address: ______________________

The laptop computer you've just received is an IBM ThinkPad 600E Model 2645-4AU. As you unpack the box, please take a few minutes to make sure you have -- and hang onto -- the materials listed below. Also make sure you keep the separate sheet you received that has your RCS userID and password.

1. The color LCD screen displays computer output.
2. The brightness control adjusts the brightness of the display. The contrast control adjusts the contrast of the display.
3. The built-in microphone captures sound and voice when it is used with an application program capable of handling audio.
4. The PC Card eject buttons eject the PC Card from the PC Card slots.
5. The PC Card slots accept PC Cards.
6. The infrared port allows the computer to communicate with other devices that have infrared data-transfer capability.
7. The headphone jack, a 3.5mm diameter jack, is where you connect a stereo headphone or external speakers.
8. The microphone/line-in jack, a 3.5mm diameter jack, allows you to connect a stereo microphone or an external audio device.
9. The external diskette drive connector allows you to connect the cable of the external diskette drive.
10. The LCD latch opens the LCD when pressed.
11. The diskette-eject button ejects the diskette from the diskette drive.
12. The diskette-drive is the drive for the UltraslimBay.
13. The TrackPoint buttons work with the TrackPoint stick (17) and provide a function similar to that of a mouse button.
14. The hard disk drive is the computer’s built-in hard disk drive.
15. The Fn key is used with the function keys to activate the Fn key functions.
16. The left and right internal speakers generate stereo sound.
17. The TrackPoint stick is a built-in pointing device that provides a function similar to that of a mouse.
18. The system-status indicators consist of indicators light and their associated symbols.
19. The external diskette drive allows you to use a floppy disk if another device is in the UltraslimBay.
20. The emergency hole allows you to eject the CD-ROM tray if it does not open with the eject button. (22)
21. The CD-ROM eject button ejects the CD-ROM tray.
22. The CD-ROM access indicator is on when data is being read from a CD-ROM in the CD-ROM drive.
23. The CD-ROM drive is the drive for the UltraslimBay.

1. The security keyhole is used with a mechanical lock.
2. The modem connector is used for connecting your computer to a telephone line.
3. The power switch turns the computer on and off.
4. The reset switch is used to turn the computer off if an application hangs or if the computer will not accept any input. Use the tip of a pen to press this switch.
5. The universal serial bus (USB) connector allows you to connect any device that conforms to this new interface. Many recent digital devices comply with this new standard.
6. The power jack allows you to connect the AC Adapter cable.
7. The serial connector allows you to connect a 9-pin, serial device cable.
8. The system-expansion connector (240-pin) allows you to connect the port replicator or docking station.
9. The parallel connector allows you to connect a parallel printer cable.
10. The external-monitor connector allows you to attach an external monitor.
11. The external-input-device connector allows you to attach a mouse, external keyboard, or external numeric keypad to the computer. To use more than one device -- for example a keypad and a mouse -- connect the keypad cable to the computer and the mouse cable to the back of the keypad. You will need to purchase a keyboard/mouse cable if you wish to use both a keyboard and mouse with your laptop.

1. The UltraslimBay device lock is a lock for the device in the UltraslimBay.
2. When the bay LED is on, the system is in use. Do not remove a bay device.
3. The memory-slot cover covers the memory slot.
4. The memory slot accepts an SDRAM (static dynamic random access memory) dual inline memory module (DIMM) option.
5. The battery-pack latch locks or releases the battery pack.
6. Put your name plate here.
7. To remove the hard disk, loosen this hard disk screw. You can use the security screw shipped with your computer as a hard disk screw.
8. The battery pack is a built-in power source for the computer.

There are two small spring-loaded latches (LCD latches, labeled as #10 on the front view on page 4) located on either side toward the front of the machine. Use your index fingers to push these two switches forward (toward you), then, still holding the switches forward, use your thumbs to push up the lid of the laptop.

To connect the floppy disk drive to the laptop, first make sure the wider edge of the external disk drive connector is facing up, then insert the connector to the external disk drive port (labeled as #9 on the front view on page 4) located on the right side of the machine. The connector should click into place. DO NOT FORCE IT. (To remove the connector, squeeze in the two small tabs on either side of the connector head.)

Open the laptop if you have not already done so. To power on the laptop, push the power switch located on the left side of the machine (labeled as #3 on the rear view on page 5) away from you, then release it.

When the laptop has powered up completely, a Windows 98 Setup Wizard window will appear. You must enter your name in the Name: field, but you may leave the Company: field blank. Click the Next button at the bottom of the window.

A License Agreement window will appear. After you have read the terms of the agreement, select the option saying that you accept the terms of the agreement, and click the Next button to accept those terms.

A Product Key window will appear. Enter the product key, exactly as it appears on the cover of your Getting Started with Microsoft Windows 98 User Guide, in the fields provided. (You don't have to use the Tab key; the cursor will automatically move from field to field as you type.) Double-check what you have typed to make sure you have entered the product key correctly, then click the Next button.

A Start Wizard window appears. Click on the Finish button to continue starting Windows 98.

A Supply Rensselaer Credentials window appears. Enter your assigned RCS userID (exactly as it appears on your account sheet) in the top field, and the name of your dorm building as your workgroup name. (The system will require you to enter a workgroup.) Off-campus users should enter offcampus as their workgroup name.

Click the OK button.

THE LAPTOP WILL NOW AUTOMATICALLY SHUT DOWN.

With the words "IBM EtherJet" facing up on the card, and with the small triangular black arrow pointing in toward the machine, insert the network card in the bottom card slot (labeled as #5 on the front view on page 4). Next, with the printed side of the connector facing up, connect the short Ethernet card connector cable to the port located directly on the Ethernet card.

Insert one end of the network cable into the receptacle on the end of the Ethernet card connector cable, and the other end of the network cable into a laptop jack. Check to make sure the small green light on the connector cable is lit to make sure the port is working correctly.

Power on the machine.

When the machine finishes booting, the system will prompt you to enter your RCS userID and password in the appropriate fields. The system will then prompt you to confirm your password by entering it again.

Open the Start Menu in the lower left corner of the screen, and select the Run… option. If the winipcfg command doesn't appear by default in the window that comes up on the screen, type it in to check the machine's window IP configuration, and click OK.

An IP Configuration window appears. If the adapter is listed as PPP Adapter in the top field of the window, click on the small drop-down arrow beside that field and select the IBM 10/100 EtherJet CardBus Adapter option. When you do this, the remaining IP Address, Subnet Mask, and Default Gateway info will appear in the appropriate fields

Write down the machine's adapter address (shown in the Adapter Address field) in the appropriate field provided at the bottom of page 2 of this document, as well as on your Laptop Configuration/Installation Checklist.

You should now be connected to the network.

Your laptop has come pre-loaded with a number of software packages, including:

• Microsoft Office 2000 Professional-- Microsoft's Office suite of Word, Excel, Access, and PowerPoint packages will provide you with word processing, spreadsheet, database, and presentation capabilities, respectively.
• Maple V -- This symbolic algebra package allows you to integrate, differentiate, solve equations, and plot functions.
• SecureCRT -- This package provides a secure connection to the RCS UNIX systems.
• Microsoft Visual C++ -- This package provides a C++ programming/development environment from Microsoft. The rest of the Visual Studio package, including Front Page 2000, J++, FoxPro, and Visual Basic, is available on CD ROM at the VCC Help Desk.
• LabVIEW -- LabVIEW provides data acquisitions and control, data analysis, and data presentation capabilities. Please note that only sub-sets of this package have been pre-installed on your machine; you can obtain the remaining components on CD from the VCC Help Desk.
• Norton Anti-Virus -- This software helps protect your laptop against possible virus contamination and related problems.

Your laptop's disk drive consists of one main partition that is divided into three logical drives, as described below:

Active Window – Refers to the window in which you're currently working. The active window has the color title bar, (not the gray one).

Close Button ( ) Located in the upper right corner of a window on your screen, this icon provides one way to close an application.

Control Menu Box – Provides options to restore, move, size, minimize, maximize, or close an application.

Desktop – Consists of the entire screen. There is only one desktop.

Maximize button ( ) Located in the upper right corner of a window on your screen, this icon maximizes the window to full-screen size.

Menu Bar -- Provides commands applicable for use in the application. A sample menu bar appears below.

Minimize button ( ) – Also located in the upper right corner of a window on your screen, this icon reduces the application to an icon on the Task Bar (the portion of the screen which contains the Start button, and an area that displays buttons for each program you have open and the time).

Restore button ( ) – Restores the window to the size it was prior to using the Maximize button.

• The Vertical scroll bar is located on the right side of the screen and is used to scroll up and down the page.
• The Horizontal scroll bar is located at the bottom of the screen. This allows you to scroll to the right and left of the screen.
• The Scroll box is another way to scroll either vertically or horizontally. Click on the scroll box and drag the box up or down, or left or right, to change your position within the window.

The Task Bar contains the Start button, an area that displays buttons for each program you have open and the time. You can relocate the Task Bar by left clicking on it and dragging it to either the top of the screen or to either the far left or right side of the screen.

Tile – An option that allows you to arrange your active windows either vertically or horizontally, or cascade them by right-clicking on the Task bar and selecting the appropriate option.

Title Bar – Displays the name of the application and the filename. You can maximize/restore the active window by double-clicking the Title Bar.

Wallpaper/Background – Refers to the image that covers the desktop or appears in the center of the desktop.

Window – Refers to one of the large rectangular boxes on the screen in which you can run various applications, etc. You can have several windows open at the same time on your desktop.

Start Button

You can use the Start Button to start a program, open a document, change system settings, get Help, and find files, folders, or another networked computer.

When you click on the Start button, the following menu appears:

The Start Menu consists of the following commands:

The trackpoint consists of the stick on the keyboard and the three click buttons located below the keyboard.

The amount of pressure you apply to the non-slip cap on the stick controls the movement and speed of the cursor on the screen. As you press the stick away from you, the cursor moves toward the top of the screen; similarly, moving the stick toward you moves the cursor toward the bottom of the screen. To move the cursor to the right, press the stick toward the right and vice versa. (Please note that the trackpoint sometimes "drifts". This isn't a defect.)

The left and right click buttons function in the same way as those on a traditional desktop PC mouse. (Of course these functions also depend on the software that you are using.) The center button can be used to scroll, or as a magnifying glass by customizing the trackpoint settings. Please refer to page 44 in your IBM User's Reference manual for instructions on how to customize the trackpoint buttons.

Double-click on this icon to display your computer’s contents, including the available drives and printers, the control panel, and dial-up networking.

When you initially double-click on this icon, the only entry you will see is "Entire Network." When you select that option, you will receive an "Unable to Browse the Network" error message, and this occurs because file and print sharing are not enabled on your laptop by default.

If you wish to enable file and print sharing on your laptop, open the Start menu, select the Settings option, and then select the Control Panel option. In the window that appears, double-click the Network icon, and then click on the File and Print Sharing… button. In the window that appears, click in either (or both) of the file and print sharing options, and click the OK button. Please note that your enabling this feature does not actually share any resources on your laptop; use the Sharing tab on the Properties window to specify the drive or directory you want to share.

Use the Recycle Bin is a temporary "storage" place for deleted files. As long as you haven't emptied your Recycle Bin, you can use it to retrieve files that you accidentally deleted. To completely delete any files you have placed in the Recycle Bin, first right-click on the Recycle Bin icon. From the pop-up sub-menu that appears, select the Empty Recycle Bin option.

Double-click on this icon to access Microsoft's Visual C++ compiler.

Double-click on this icon to access the documentation that Academic Computing Services has assembled for laptop users.

Double-click on this icon for more information about your laptop's specific licensing information.

Double-click on this icon to access Release 5.1 of the Maple V symbolic math package.

Double-click on this icon to access file and print sharing on the RCS UNIX platform. You must double-click on this icon and login using your RCS userID and password to be able to print from a public machine.

Double-click on this icon to access a separate IBM ThinkPad 600 ReadMe window that contains links to using IBM SelectaDock and/or IBM Enhanced Port Replicator, Intellisync 97 for Windows, Mediamatics DVD Express, Norton AntiVirus software, and Ring Central, which mimics a speakerphone.

Double-click on this icon to register your specific laptop information with IBM.

Double-click on this icon to access Microsoft's Excel spreadsheet program.

Double-click on this icon to access Microsoft's Outlook electronic mail program.

Double-click on this icon to access Microsoft's PowerPoint presentation software program.

Double-click on this icon to access Microsoft's Word word-processing program.

You can customize your desktop in several ways. To do this, right-click anywhere on the desktop; from the pop-up sub-menu that appears, select the Active Desktop option, then Customize my Desktop.

Click on the Background tab; you can now specify what image you want to display on your desktop.

You can choose to display the image in the center of your screen or the entire screen. Click on the Apply button to see a ‘preview’ of your selected image. If satisfied with your choice, click on OK.

If you click on the Screen Saver tab, you can select a preexisting screen saver or marquee (which allows you to enter your own screen saver message). You can also choose the amount of time you want to wait before the screen saver is activated when the desktop has been idle.

Clicking on the Appearance tab allows you to customize the color scheme of the desktop, icons, active and inactive title bars, menus, windows, etc.

To move a window, left-click on the application's title bar, as shown below, hold down the left mouse button, and drag the window to a different place on the desktop.

To resize a window, place your mouse button over one of the four corner edges of the window until your cursor turns into a double-ended arrow ( ) as shown in the upper left corner of the title bar below. Once you have the double-ended arrow, click and hold down the left mouse button and drag the window to the desired size.

To move one window in front of another, left-click on any portion of the window that you wish to bring to the front. (You may need to move the windows around a bit in order to see the window you wish to bring forward.)

You can click on the small arrows at the top and bottom of the vertical scroll bar, located on the right side of the screen, to scroll up and down the page.

If your window has a horizontal scroll bar located at the bottom of the screen, you can click on the small arrows on either side of the scroll bar to scroll and see what text may run off the left and/or right side of the screen.

You may also use the scroll bubble located inside the scroll bar to scroll either vertically or horizontally. To do this, click on the scroll bubble and drag it up or down in the vertical scrollbar, or left or right in the horizontal scrollbar, to change your position within the window.

Using shortcuts can save a lot of time and mouse/trackpoint maneuvering. A list of some helpful keystroke shortcuts appears below. (For each of the shortcuts below, hold down either the Ctrl or Fn key while pressing the other key shown.)

There are two ways to adjust the sound:

• Click on the small yellow "horn" icon located in the bottom right corner of the taskbar.
• Simultaneously press the Fn + PgDn keys. As you repeat this process, notice that the bell that sounds on your laptop gets fainter and fainter. To increase the volume, use the Fn + PgUp keys.

First, exit out of all programs you have running. Next, open the Start menu and select the Shut Down… option. The system will prompt you if you are sure you wish to shut down the computer. If so, click Yes. Otherwise, click No, or Help for additional information.

When you purchase new software for your laptop, it may help to know that some applications will automatically start the installation setup once you insert the software CD in the CD drive. Other packages, however, may require you to load the software from floppy disks. (Also, when purchasing software, make sure that the package is labeled for Windows PCs, and not for Macintosh computers.)

To install software, open the Start menu and select the Run option. Type the letter of your CD drive in the window that appears, and click on Browse. Look for the setup.exe file in the list of files that should appear.

To uninstall a piece of software from your laptop, first open the Start menu and select the Settings option. From the pop-up sub-menu that appears, select the Control Panel option. In the Control Panel window that appears, double-click on the Add/Remove Programs icon. An Add/Remove Programs Properties window will appear. If the software you wish to remove appears in the list at the bottom of the window, click on the software you wish to delete to select it, then left-click on the Add/Remove button. Follow the prompts that appear on the screen to finish uninstalling the software.

If the software you wish to uninstall does not appear in the list at the bottom of the Add/Remove Programs Properties window, open the Start menu and select the Programs option. From the pop-up sub-menu that appears, select the name of the software you wish to remove, and see if there's an uninstall option available for that package. If so, click on the uninstall option and follow the prompts to finish uninstalling the software.

While your laptop is designed and tested to hold up to a lot of use, common sense should tell you that you should not misuse your machine. Here are some tips for handling your laptop:

If you'd like to add a little more security to your laptop, one of the easiest ways of doing so is by using a security cable and lock. The Campus Computer Store, located on the main floor of the Voorhees Computing Center, sells locks for $29.00.

Users who take their laptops with them while travelling may want to seriously consider using some of the following tips and tricks to make their machines more secure:

• Never let your laptop out of your sight. Thieves are always watching and waiting for an opportunity. So keep your machine with you at all times, even when talking on the phone, reading, etc. And when going through airport X-ray checkpoints, hand your laptop carrying case to a member of the airport security, rather than putting it down on the X-ray conveyor belt.

• Protect your data by requiring the use of a password.
• Check to see if your insurance company offers a policy that will offer monetary compensation if your notebook is stolen. (Rensselaer's laptop lease program includes theft and damage insurance.)
• Users may also contact the Campus Public Safety office at ext. 2401 and inquire about borrowing the department's engraving tools in order to mark their laptop and make it easier to identify if it is stolen. Those students purchasing their laptops will also receive an identifying security decal that they can put on their machines.

All laptops obtained from Rensselaer have a three-year warranty, and are eligible for on-campus service and repair. The appropriate warranty information should also have been included in the box along with your laptop.

Tempting as it may be, don't ever attempt to repair any hardware portion of your laptop yourself. Instead, take it to Rensselaer Computer Repair, located in the lower level of the Voorhees Computing Center, and let their staff look over your machine and repair it for you. RCR also has a number of loaner laptops available for use in case they can't repair your machine quickly.

Your laptop is equipped with a Lithium Ion (Li-Ion) battery, and, while it has been programmed to save battery power whenever and however possible, chances are good that you'll have to recharge the battery from time to time. Fortunately, plugging your laptop into a standard electrical outlet should restore your laptop's battery back to full capacity in a short time. You can also use the following "power management" techniques to help extend the life of your battery:

• Suspend mode
• Hibernation mode

Suspend mode (Fn+F4) - Although your laptop appears to be powered down when it's in suspend mode, the machine's memory contents are actually kept active at very low power. You can bring your machine out of suspend mode by pressing any key. Your laptop can remain in suspend mode for about three days before the battery is drained.

Hibernation mode - This mode uses no power until you restart your laptop; the machine stores its active memory to the hard disk and then turns off the ThinkPad. Entering a single keystroke should bring back up, without the need to reboot. Your laptop can remain in hibernation mode indefinitely.

Computer viruses pose a constant threat to the security and safety of the data stored on your PC, so you need to use anti-virus software, and keep it up-to-date to provide the best possible protection for which it has been designed. Every month, the virus protection software vendors publish updates to the virus signature databases that the software uses to detect or clean a new virus, should it find its way to your system.

One virus protection product that is currently in wide use on campus is the Norton AntiVirus package, which has also been installed on your laptop. To update this anti-virus software:

1. Make sure you're connected to the network.
2. Open the Start menu and select the Programs option. From the pop-up sub-menu that appears, select the Norton AntiVirus option.
3. Select the Norton AntiVirus option and then click the Live Update button.
4. A Virus Definitions Update window appears. Left-click on the drop-down arrow beside the text box and change the setting from 'Find device automatically' to 'Internet'
5. Click OK to begin downloading the anti-virus software files. A Transfer Completed window will appear when the files have finished loading.
6. Click the Finish button to restart your computer.

Remember, it is your responsibility to keep your PC virus-free. We strongly recommend that you use some anti-virus software and keep it up-to--date for your own security and peace of mind.

Use the following URLs to access software update patches:

Microsoft Office http://officeupdate.microsoft.com

Maple http://maplesoft.com/patches.html

Visual Studio http://msdn.microsoft.com/vstudio/downloads/updates.asp

The VCC Help Desk has a number of 250MB ZIP drives that you can use to back up your critical files. You may also purchase ZIP disks and drives at the Campus Computer Store, located on the main floor of the Voorhees Computing Center.

The following sections provide a brief introduction to these commonly-used applications:

• Maple
• Microsoft Word
• Microsoft PowerPoint
• Microsoft Excel
• SecureCRT
• Web browsers

If you try the exercises in each section, you will get a feel for how each application works. As you become more familiar with the application, use on-line Help to learn more.

On most machines, you will find an icon on the desktop for each of the applications. If it isn't there, click the Start button at the bottom left of the screen, then click on Programs and select the program you wish to use.

To start a program, click on the Start button and scroll up to Programs. A list of the available programs will display. Scroll to the folder to see what programs are available. Once you locate the application you want to start, click on it.

Note: When you see a small arrow next to a folder name, this indicates that if you click on this folder, another menu will appear, displaying more options. Also, you don’t need to keep the mouse button depressed to navigate through the menu.

Once you start a program, a button that represents the program appears on the Task Bar. To switch from one program to another, simply click on the appropriate program button on the Task Bar.

For example, the Task Bar above shows that MS Word and Corel PhotoPaint are both running. To switch between the two programs, left-click on the button to which you want to switch.

There are several ways to close a program:

• You can click on the "X" icon located in the top right-hand corner of the window.
• You can single click on the program's File menu, then select the Exit or Close option.
• You can double-click on the upper left-hand corner program icon. (For example, for MS Word it would be the "W" logo.)

Note: If you haven’t saved your work before closing the program, the system will prompt you to do so.

If you'll be taking Calculus in the fall, it's very likely that a good portion of your coursework will use Maple, a program that performs symbolic, numeric, and graphical mathematical computations. The package's many capabilities include the ability to:

• Calculate
• Manipulate variables
• Solve equations analytically and numerically
• Differentiate and integrate
• Compute limits
• Create two- and three-dimensional graphs

Double-click on the Maple icon on the desktop. Or, if the icon is not visible, open the Start menu, select the Programs option, select Maple V Release 5, then select Maple V Release 5.

When the program starts, an "Untitled" Maple worksheet will appear as a sub-window inside the main Maple window.

Once the window appears, work through the following exercises, entering the commands at the Maple prompt (>). Also remember that all Maple statements must end with a semicolon (;).

Maple can add (+), subtract (-), multiply (*), divide (/), and exponentiate (^) like a calculator.

Maple can manipulate symbols as well as numbers.

You can assign expressions to variables using the assignment (:=) operator.

Maple can plot functions; y is plotted on the vertical axis and x is plotted on the horizontal axis. In the example below, the values of x range from 0 to 10.

The caret (^) denotes exponentiation in the assignment statement below.

You can plot two functions on the same axes. Pi (not PI or pi) is Maple's name for p .

Maple can also find where y and z intersect. Does this solution agree with the plot?

Memo RPI.108, Using Maple on RCS, provides more information about using Maple. The memo also includes a self-paced tutorial that you should work through before your first class in the fall.

Maple also has an extensive on-line help facility. To access it, either click on the Help button at the top of the Maple window, or enter a question mark (?) at the Maple prompt.

To exit Maple, pull down the File menu and select the Exit option. The program will prompt you if you wish to save your work. (Select the No option at this time.) As you become more familiar with Maple, you'll find that you can use other options on the File menu to save and print your Maple worksheet.

To start Word, double-click on the Microsoft Word icon on the desktop. A new blank document, as shown below, will open, ready for you to enter text. Most of the tools and commands you need are on the menus; however, the Standard and Formatting toolbars, displayed just below the menu bar, provide quick access to commonly used commands.

If you need help, click on the Help menu, select "Microsoft Word Help," type your question in the Office Assistant, and then click Search (or press Enter).

The blinking vertical line in the work area of the document, called the insertion point or cursor, is the location in the document where text will be inserted and where certain editing options will take place. To enter text, simply begin typing. You won't have to press Enter at the end of the line, since Word will automatically wrap the text to the next line when you reach the right margin.

As you type, don't worry if you make a mistake. You can correct mistakes by either pressing the Backspace key to erase the characters to the left of the cursor, or by pressing the Delete key to erase the characters to the right of the cursor. The Edit menu provides commands to cut, copy, and paste text.

Before you start typing, you may want to go to the View menu and select Normal. This gives the best all-purpose view for typing, editing, and viewing the text, although page boundaries, headers and footers, and some graphics do not appear. To see the complete page layout, use Print Layout view.

When using Word, it's easiest if you remember the rule: "Select, Then Do." That is, first select the text and then do the command; e.g., bold, copy, delete, etc.

1. Type some text appropriate for a title, such as "A Test Document" and press Enter.
2. Select the text you just typed (by dragging the mouse over it), then:
1. Click on the centered-lines icon ( ) on the toolbar to center it.
2. Click on the font name down-arrow ( ) and select Arial.
3. Click on the down-arrow next to the font size (10) ( ) and select 22 to make it large.
4. Click on the B ( ) on the Formatting toolbar to make it bold.
3. Click outside the title to deselect it. The cursor should now be positioned at the beginning of the next line.
4. Click the font size down-arrow and select font size 12 to change the text of your document to a larger font size.
5. Type a few sentences. Press Enter to start a new paragraph; press Enter twice to get a blank line between paragraphs.
6. Open the File menu and select the Page Setup… option. In the window that appears, change the left and right margins to 1.5.
7. If you don't like the result, press the "undo" icon ( ) on the Formatting toolbar.
8. To make a bulleted list, click on the bulleted list icon ( ) on the Formatting toolbar. Now, each time you press return, you will get a new bullet. Click the icon again to end the bulleted list.

While you're working on a document, it's a good idea to save your work frequently. To do this, pull down the File menu and select the Save option.

• Specify where to save the file. (Word will save the file in the current folder by default, but you can select another disk or folder in the Save In: field.)
• Provide a filename in the File Name: field.
• Specify the file type. Word will save the file as a Word (.doc) file by default, but you may also click on the drop-down arrow in the Save as type: field and select one of the other available options.

Open the File menu and select the Save As… option. Enter the new filename and/or location, respectively, in the File Name: and Save In: fields in the window that appears, and click the Save button. Doing this will save the edited file under the new filename, and will leave the other file as it was, under its original filename.

To start PowerPoint, Microsoft's presentation software, double-click the PowerPoint icon on the desktop. As in Microsoft Word, the Standard and Formatting toolbars appear along the top of the PowerPoint screen just under the menu bar. The Drawing toolbar appears along the bottom of the screen. The toolbar buttons are shortcuts that duplicate menu items.

In the dialog box that appears after you start the program, select Design Template and click OK. PowerPoint provides a variety of templates using different designs and colors. If you click on different designs, you'll see a preview on the right side of the dialog box.

The steps below describe how to create a simple presentation using the Azure template.

1. Select the Azure template and click OK.
2. In the New Slide dialog box that appears, click on the Title Slide AutoLayout and click OK. Your screen should look like the picture below.

Just above the Drawing toolbar, on the bottom left, are five View buttons. As you work, you can select any of the Views and switch between them by clicking on the appropriate icon.

• Normal View appears when you first start using PowerPoint. This Tri-Pane view makes Outline view, Slide view, and Notes view available simultaneously. You can adjust the size of each pane by dragging the pane borders.
• Outline View allows you to work on more than one slide at a time and is an efficient way to organize your presentation; however, you may only insert text.
• Slide View shows how the actual slide looks. You can insert objects in addition to text.
• Slide Sorter View allows you to see all your slides and rearrange them if you wish.
• Slide Show view displays your slides in full-screen size, one at a time. Use this view to give your presentation.

You may prefer to work in Slide view. To try it, click on the third View button (which looks like an empty square) or select Slide View from the View menu.

1. Click in the top text box and type a title; click in the bottom text box and type a subtitle.
2. From the Insert menu, select New Slide.
3. Select the Bulleted List AutoLayout and click OK.
4. Type in a title for the new slide, then type in several items for the list.
5. Insert several more Bulleted List slides and add some text to them.
1. Working in Slide View: Prepare one slide at a time, inserting or changing text using the buttons on the Formatting toolbar (bold, italic, bullets, font changes, etc.). Note the promote and demote arrows near the right end, which change the level of the current heading. And don’t forget the undo button (arrow curving to left) on the Standard toolbar. Add new slides by using the New Slide button or the Insert menu. Move from slide to slide using the up and down double arrows at the bottom of the scroll bar.
2. Working in Outline View: You can type the text of several slides at once. Control the levels of the headings (including whether it’s a new slide) by using the promote and demote arrows on the toolbar.

First, using Slide View, insert a new bulleted-list slide, and type in the title and one or two items for a list. To insert a picture, follow the steps below.

1. From the Insert menu, select Picture and then Clip Art. In the Clip Art Gallery that appears, click on the icon for the desired category.
2. Click on the object you want, then click the Insert Clip icon; PowerPoint will insert the picture in the current slide, "selected" with small white squares. Close the Clip Art window.
3. To resize the object, move the left mouse button over a corner until a diagonal double-ended arrow appears, then drag the mouse to achieve the desired size. To move the object, left-click on it to select it (a four-headed arrow will appear), hold down the left mouse button inside the object, and drag it to the desired location. Click outside the image to deselect it.

To open the Excel spreadsheet program, double-click on the Excel icon on the desktop. A blank worksheet will open, ready for you to enter information. Underneath the menu bar at the top of the page, you will notice the Toolbar for use while opening, editing, and saving a worksheet and the Formula Bar for editing cell entries.

The Excel worksheet contains columns and rows. The place where a column and row intersect is called a cell. Each cell has an address that consists of the column letter and the row number (for example: A1, B4, C6).

To enter data or a formula into a cell, first select the cell and then start typing. Press Tab or Enter to register what you have typed. When you type in a cell, the cell’s address appears in the left corner of the Formula Bar, and what you type appears in the Formula Bar text box. Note that to change the entry you edit the text in the Formula Bar, not in the cell itself.

You can enter many types of data in an Excel worksheet, such as text, numbers, dates, times, formulas and functions. It is easiest to type your data first and format the data (using the Format menu) when it is completed. Therefore, don’t type commas, dollar signs, or percent signs while entering data.

To enter a formula, select a cell and then start by typing an equal sign (=). Use parentheses to force the order of operation: exponentiation (^), multiplication (*), division (/), addition (+), and subtraction (-).

If you need help, click on the Help menu, select "Microsoft Excel Help," type your question in the Office Assistant, and click Search.

To get started with Excel, make a short grocery list with prices for each item and sum the result (including tax) to see what you will owe. The steps below will guide you through one way of doing this. When you are finished, the result should look like the picture shown below.

1. First type in the headings: Click in cell A1 and type Quantity. Type the remaining headings by using the Tab key to move to the next cell. Select the entire first row by clicking on the row heading (the 1 at the left). In the Toolbar, click B (for bold).
2. Leave a blank row after the headings, then click in cell A3 and type the number 1.
3. Press the Tab key to move to the next cell. (Notice that Excel recognizes that you typed a number and right-justifies it.)
4. In cell B3, enter lb; in cell C3 enter apples and in cell D3, enter .99.
5. Do not type anything in column F; Excel will calculate this for you!
6. For the next row, click in cell A4 and enter the remaining rows of data the same way. Row 9 (notebooks) will have an empty cell for Units. In cell E9, type .08; do not type the % sign.

To format column E as a percentage, first select column E; from the Format menu select Cells… and then Percentage. Click OK.

You can display Microsoft Excel data graphically in a chart. To insert a chart, select the cells that contain the relevant data. If you want the column and row labels to appear in the chart, include the cells that contain them in the selection. (If the columns are not adjacent, hold down the Ctrl key to select them both.) From the Insert menu, select Chart, and follow the instructions in the Chart Wizard.

You can use your laptop and public PCs to connect to RCS or other UNIX systems over the network. When you do this, you should use SecureCRT to ensure that all communication with the remote host is automatically encrypted. (This is in contrast to a conventional way of establishing a session using telnet, which transmits your userID, password, and other private information in an easily readable format.) As a result of SecureCRT's greater security, CIS strongly recommends that all PC users use this program.

SecureCRT is installed in the public PC labs, and freshmen who receive laptop computers in the fall should already have SecureCRT automatically installed as part of their machine's image. However, SecureCRT is available to everyone; CIS has purchased enough SecureCRT licenses for the entire Rensselaer community. The software costs $10 per license; this fee will appear as part of the printing charges on your Bursar's bill.

Instructions for obtaining the license are on the Web; click on the Computing & Information Services (CIS) Home link under the "Computing" section of the RPInfo homepage, then select the Computer Labs & Software, Software to download, and SecureCRT links.

Once installed on your PC, SecureCRT is easy to use. Extensive help is available from the Help menu.

To establish a connection to one of the RCS UNIX remote hosts, double-click on the SecureCRT icon on the desktop. A Connect window will appear:

1. Select a host from the Session List (for example, rcs-ibm.rpi.edu) and click OK.
2. The first time you connect to a given host, a dialog box will pop up saying, "The remote host has not been registered." Choose the option Accept & Save.
3. Enter your RCS userID and password at the prompts.
4. A UNIX window will appear. You are now ready to enter UNIX commands at the prompt. (Note that this connection does not give you access to applications that require an
   X-windows display, such as FrameMaker.)

Once you've established your SecureCRT connection, try out some basic UNIX commands by typing the following commands in the UNIX window and then pressing Enter, as shown in the examples below:

• To check how much disk space you have in your UNIX account:
  
  fs lq
  
  This command stands for "filesystem list quota." The amount in the Quota column shows your total disk space (in kilobytes). The percentage in the %Used column tells you how much of your allotted disk space you have used. (The Partition percentage is not relevant to your individual account.)

• To list the names of the files and directories in your home directory:

ls

The names you will see are the subdirectories initially created for you. The directory called public_html is the place to put personal Web information. There are no files in your account unless you create them.

• To check the print queue on the double-sided printer in the VCC machine room:

lpq -Pvclw

The full name of this printer is "VCC LaserWriter." You can check the queue for any of the networked printers by entering the printer name after the -P option.

• Every student is given $12.50 of free printing per semester. To check how much of your printing allocation you have used, enter the command:

• Be sure to exit your UNIX session by entering the command:

logout

Quit SecureCRT by going to the File menu and selecting Exit. (Alternatively, you may click on the Close (X) button on the title bar or press Alt-F4.)

Web browsers allow you to find and view information on the World Wide Web. The public computer labs and the Rensselaer laptops have the two most commonly-used browsers: Netscape and Internet Explorer.

To start either browser, double-click on the appropriate icon on the desktop:

• To start Internet Explorer, double-click on the Internet Explorer icon
• To start Netscape, double-click on the Netscape Communicator icon

If neither icon appears on your desktop, go to the Start menu, then to Programs, and select the appropriate option for the desired browser.

The window displays a default home page, the page you see each time you start the browser. On Rensselaer computers, both browsers are pre-set to display RPInfo, the on-campus home page.

Near the top of the browser window, there's a box that contains the address of the page being viewed. In Netscape, the name of the box is Location; in Internet Explorer it's called Address. This address is called a URL (Universal Resource Locator). Each page on the web has its own unique URL that identifies its location.

Much of the time, especially when you're browsing within RPInfo, you won't need to know a page's URL because you will go to a page by clicking on "active" text called a link. However, if you can't get to the page by clicking a link, you will have to type the specific URL of a page.

Try the following steps by using links to navigate between web pages. Note that to retrace your steps, you click the Back button on the toolbar. To return to the RPInfo home page, click the Home button.

1. Under the main heading Computing, click on the link for Academic Computing Services. (You might have to scroll down using the arrow at the bottom of the right side of the window.)
2. Look for the ACS documentation link and click on it. A page will appear that contains links for Memos and Quick Studies on a variety of topics.
3. Click on the Home button to return to the RPInfo page.

Now try viewing a page by entering its URL. When typing a URL, you must enter the characters exactly as specified. For example, the home pages of individuals at Rensselaer begin with the tilde character (~), which designates a particular home directory on a server.

1. Click in the Location or Address field, type the following URL, and then press the Enter key:
   http://www.unitedmedia.com/comics/dilbert/archive/
2. Read the latest cartoon.
3. Scroll down until you see a calendar and click on a date.
4. Read the cartoon for that date, then click the Back button to return to the main Dilbert page. If you want, look at cartoons for some other dates.
5. If you would like to return to the Dilbert page another time without typing the URL, you can add the page to your Bookmarks (Netscape) or Favorites (Internet Explorer):
1. In Netscape, click on the Bookmarks button from the Location Toolbar, then click on Add Bookmark.
2. In Internet Explorer, click on the Favorites menu, then click on Add to Favorites….
   A dialog box will appear, giving you the opportunity to select a folder. Click on
   Create In<<.
6. When you are tired of Dilbert, click the Home button to return to RPInfo.

Both Netscape and Internet Explorer have extensive help available from the Help menu.

Both browsers also include tools for electronic mail and participating in newsgroups.

• In Netscape, you access these tools from the Communicator menu or by clicking the Tools buttons at the bottom right of the window.
• In Internet Explorer, use the Tools menu.

Quit the browser by going to the File menu;

• Select the Exit option in Netscape
• Select the Close option in Internet Explorer.

Wherever you're working on campus, it's a good idea to save all of your work and quit out of all applications. If you're working at a PC, you should also consider copying any files that you want to save to either a floppy disk or over to your RCS UNIX file space.

To log out from a Windows 95/98 machine: Double-click the Logoff icon, which looks like a door with an arrow, located in the bottom right corner of the desktop. Double-clicking this icon will remove any files you created from the machine, as well as remove any access to files in your RCS UNIX file space, if you accessed them.

To log out from a Windows NT machine: Open the Start menu in the lower left corner of the desktop, and select the Shutdown and Close all programs and log on as a different user options.

You can find plenty of help and useful information from the sources listed below.

Both the Rensselaer Libraries and Academic Computing Services offer Help Desk locations.

• During the school year, ACS has one Help Desk location on the main floor of the Voorhees Computing Center and another in CII 3111. (The CII Help Desk is closed during the summer.) You can contact the student consultants and full-time staff who work at ACS' two Help Desk locations by either stopping in, phoning ext. 7777, or by directing e-mail to consult@rpi.edu.

• In the Folsom Library, you may direct your questions to the library's Reference and Circulation Desk staff or send electronic mail to lib-support@rpi.edu.

Academic Computing Services produces documentation on how to use many campus computing services, facilities, and applications. ACS Quick Studies are one-page, instructional documents; ACS Memos provide much more detailed information.

Printed copies of ACS Quick Studies and Memos are available in the documentation racks outside the VCC Help Desk. They are also available on-line; to access them via RPInfo, select the Academic Computing Services link under the "Computing" section of the RPInfo homepage, then select the ACS documentation link. Alternatively, you may enter the following URL in the Address or Location field at the top of your browser window:

Rensselaer has a diverse and dynamic presence on the Web. Information from all corners of campus can be found on-line, from class schedules and academic programs to Union clubs, library information, computing-related news and documentation, and much more. RPInfo, Rensselaer's information system, aims to bring this all together in an efficient and accessible manner. For instance, you may reach the Student Information System and register for classes on-line by starting at RPInfo, located at the URL http://www.rpi.edu/rpinfo, or you might navigate to the Athletics section of the RPInfo homepage and choose an intramural team to join. You can also navigate to the Academic Computing Services homepage for computing-related help. No matter what your interest, RPInfo will lead you to many valuable on-line resources.

Please refer to the "Using RPInfo" section of this document for more specific information in starting and using this useful information resource.

From time to time during the school year, and sometimes during the summer, both Academic Computing Services and the Libraries offer non-credit short courses; ACS provides instruction on how to use various computing utilities and applications, and the Libraries offer short courses on how to access and use the many databases and other resources that they have available.

Upcoming courses are often announced in The Poly, The Review, and The Kiosk publications, and are also posted on-line via the ACS and Libraries' RensSearch homepages.

The Kiosk, CIS' departmental newsletter, is published at regular intervals during the school year to keep the Rensselaer community informed of news and information from all CIS departments.

The Kiosk is available by subscription free-of-charge. To subscribe and have the newsletter sent to your on- or off-campus address, please send your name, address, and Rensselaer affiliation via electronic mail to kiosk-subscribe@rpi.edu. You may also pick up hardcopies of the newsletter from the VCC Help Desk and in the Folsom Library.

Current and back issues of The Kiosk are available on-line. To access them, select the Academic Computing Services link from the "Computing" section of the RPInfo homepage, then select the The Kiosk link. Alternatively, you may enter the following URL in the Address or Location field at the top of your browser window:

Academic Computing Services recommends that you regularly read the rpi.computing.news Usenet newsgroup to stay up-to-date on all the latest important computing-related information, such as new releases of software, system bulletins (power and server outages, etc.), announcements of short courses, and more.

To learn more about how to read Usenet newsgroups, please see Memo RPI:116, Usenet News, and Quick Study #7, Reading News Groups Using Netscape Communicator.

The Rensselaer Computing System, or RCS, consists of hundreds of networked personal computers, UNIX workstations, and laptop jacks. As a member of the Rensselaer community, you are given an RCS account (known by your RCS userID), which provides access to the campus network, printing facilities, the World Wide Web, and electronic mail, as well as disk space. Using your RCS userID and password, you can sit at any campus workstation or personal computer , or use your laptop, and use public software, access your own or other publicly-available files, or connect to any of several host computers on the network.

Your RCS userID, which is public information, is derived from the first five characters of your last name followed by your first initial and, in some cases, a number to ensure its uniqueness. Your password, however, is private, and it is very important to maintain that privacy in order to safeguard the information and resources in your account. Because the password originally given to you has been seen by a number of people and is also hard to remember, you should change it as soon as you have an opportunity.

It might seem like a very simple thing, but choosing a good RCS password actually takes some careful thought, and it might take you a while to think of an appropriate one. Your password is the key that unlocks your RCS userID and provides access to your files, so you'll need to think of a good password.

So what can be so tough about that? Well, you need to pick a password that you can remember without writing it down, but which others cannot easily guess. That is, don't use a password that might be fairly obvious, especially to anyone who knows you, such as the names of people, cars, months, or rock groups, or any real words that you can find in a dictionary.

Your password must contain exactly eight (8) characters, including at least one digit or punctuation mark. Using these techniques should greatly reduce the chance of anyone guessing your password.

When you think you have chosen a good password, use a web browser to access the password changing program, which you can access via the CIS homepage. (To do this, select the Computing & Information Services (CIS) Home link to get to the CIS homepage, then click on the Accounts, RCS Accounts (Computer), and Changing Your RCS Account Password links.) The system will prompt you to verify your identity by entering your RCS userID and current password. Then follow the instructions on the screen to change your password. (The system also allows you to test your potential password before you actually set it.)

We'd like to take a minute to discuss something that we take very seriously here at Rensselaer, and that is the issue of computing ethics. All students, faculty, and staff members are given a computing account -- known as your RCS userID -- that allows access to the Rensselaer Computing System (RCS) and its many resources. However, ethical principles that apply to everyday academic life also apply to the use of the campus' computing resources -- having many computing privileges means you also have many responsibilities. When you received your computing account userID and password, you were asked to read and sign an agreement to abide by Rensselaer's Conditions of Use statement, and to use your account in an appropriate and responsible manner.

You can find Rensselaer's official policy on electronic citizenship on-line; to access it, select the Computing Etiquette link from the "Computing" section of the "internal" RPInfo homepage, then select the Committee on Electronic Citizenship link. Alternatively, you can specify the following URL in the Address or Location field at the top of your browser window.

http://www.rpi.edu/web/comec/

The Rensselaer Handbook of Student Rights and Responsibilities also outlines your responsibilities to read and understand these guidelines. We've listed some of the appropriate and prohibited uses of your computing account here for you.

• Sending anonymous, harassing, obscene, or forged mail. This behavior can range from "merely" inappropriate to downright illegal. Hey, think about it…you don't want to receive this kind of mail either via the US Postal Service or via computer, so why should anyone else? Sending this kind of mail could result in the loss of your RCS privileges, or even disciplinary or legal action. And if you ever receive electronic mail that is in any way threatening or harassing, or which you feel might be a forgery, forward the message to postmaster@rpi.edu as soon as possible.

• Sending large amounts of mail. As with chain mail and other types of inappropriate mail, sending "mail bombs" irritates people and ties up the system, degrading mail service. Sending such mail could also possibly result in disciplinary and/or legal action.

• For commercial purposes. Rensselaer's licensing agreements prohibits commercial use and using your account for such purposes could jeopardize the Institute's position as a member of the Internet community.
• Displaying offensive materials. It's all too easy to access, view, and copy sexually explicit and other potentially offensive materials on-line, and, by right, Rensselaer cannot forbid users from obtaining these files. However, because it is nearly impossible to avoid seeing large images displayed on other users' computer screens, Rensselaer considers the display of such material within its labs to be public display, which creates a hostile working environment in violation of Rensselaer's policy regarding sexual harassment. In addition, the practice of publicly displaying sexually explicit or similarly offensive material is a Class A misdemeanor under New York Penal Law 245.11. Therefore, view such material elsewhere to avoid offending others.
• Putting Copyrighted Material on Your Homepage. Unless you receive a person's express permission to do so, using any material that appears on their webpage is considered stealing.

Your e-mail address consists of the userID you received with your computer account, such as smithj, appended with @rpi.edu; for example, smithj@rpi.edu.

It's very important to make sure that you provide the correct e-mail address before you send out e-mail to ensure that you send that message to the correct person. When you don't know someone's e-mail address, don't just guess it! Sending e-mail to the wrong person can cause possible embarrassment, or even disciplinary action, depending on the message's content, etc.

You don't need to use the same e-mail program as your friends in order to send or receive mail messages.

Many users send and receive e-mail either via Internet Explorer, Netscape, or Outlook on their PCs. Quick Study #5, Using Netscape Mail in the RCS Environment, explains how to set up your Netscape mail; printed copies of this document are also available in the documentation racks outside the VCC Help Desk. You may also access the document on-line by selecting the Academic Computing Services link from the "Computing" section of the main RPInfo homepage, then selecting the ACS documentation link from the ACS homepage that appears. Alternatively, you may enter the following URL in the Address or Location field at the top of your browser window:

http://www.rpi.edu/Computing/Docs/docs.html

Z-Mail is the default mail package on the UNIX platform. Some users choose to use other mail programs, such as mh or pine, but CIS does not support these packages.

For locating Rensselaer student, faculty, and staff, you can use the campus directories that are available via RPInfo; to access these, select the Campus Directories link under the "People & Places" section of the main RPInfo homepage. You may then enter the person's first and/or last name; if the system finds a personnel match, it will often display that person's e-mail address along with their name, office location, phone number, and department.

Often, the easiest way to find an off-campus friend's e-mail address is to ask them: face-to-face, on the phone, or via the U. S. mail. However, you can also try using an on-line search engine to conduct an on-line search for your friend's school's homepage, and then seeing if you can access some sort of student directory from there. However, please note that this procedure may not always work, since not all universities choose to make their students' e-mail addresses public. In addition, it's possible that new students might not receive their e-mail addresses right away, so you might have better luck looking up someone who's been on campus at their university for a month or two.

Once you know someone's e-mail address, you can create an alias to save the address. This not only allows you to delete the other person's message (rather than save it simply so you have a record of their e-mail address), but lets you enter a single word as the e-mail address, instead of having to enter a longer, complicated address.

Start Netscape Messenger. From the window that appears, open the Edit menu on the menu bar and select the Preferences… option. A Preferences window, as shown below, will appear. Click on Mail & Newsgroups in the Category: field, then Identity. Complete the Your name and Email address fields as shown below, where xxxxxx is your RCS user ID.

Next, click on the Mail Servers option listed in the Category field. Enter mail.rpi.edu in the Outgoing mail (SMTP) server field, as shown on the following page.

Next, click on the Edit… button to edit the Incoming Mail Servers listed in the window above. A separate Mail Server Properties window, shown below, will appear. Click on the General tab, and enter mail.rpi.edu in the Server Name: field. Make sure that the Server Type is POP3 Server. Finally, enter your RCS userID in the User Name: field.

Next, click on the POP tab. Select both options, as shown on the following page. (The Leave messages on server option allows you to pick up your e-mail from multiple computers.)

Start Microsoft Outlook. Open the Tools menu and select the Options… option. A separate Options window, as shown below, will appear.

Click on the Mail Delivery tab, then click on the Accounts… button, shown in the window below.

The window shown below will appear. Click on the Add button, then select Mail.

The following window will appear. Enter your name in the Display name: field and click the Next button.

The following window will appear. Enter your e-mail address in the E-mail address: field and click on the Next button.

The following window will appear. Enter mail.rpi.edu in both the incoming and outgoing mail servers and click the Next button.

The following window will appear. Enter your RCS userID in the Account Name field and click the Next button.

The following window will appear. Select the Connect using my local area network (LAN) option and click the Next button.

While you may already be familiar with Rensselaer's website for visitors and prospective students (located at the URL http://www.rpi.edu), now that you are on campus, you will want to use our internal information system, known as RPInfo (located at http://www.rpi.edu/rpinfo). RPInfo acts as the campus computers' default homepage. You can find information from all corners of campus in RPInfo, from class schedules and academic programs to Union clubs, library information, computing-related news and documentation, and much more.

Users who have questions about webpage authoring, linking, and training may direct electronic mail to rpinfo_support@rpi.edu.

To access RPInfo from either Web browser, double-click on the appropriate icon on the desktop:

• To start Internet Explorer, double-click on the Internet Explorer icon
• To start Netscape, double-click on the Netscape Communicator icon

If neither icon appears on your desktop, go to the Start menu, then to Programs, and select the appropriate option for the desired browser.

The window displays a default home page, the page you see each time you start the browser. On Rensselaer computers, both browsers are pre-set to display RPInfo, the on-campus home page.

Bookmarks provide you with a quick, easy way of accessing those Web sites you know you'll want to visit again and again. The chart below outlines the steps you'll need to add to, and edit, your bookmark list using Netscape Communicator and Internet Explorer.

The Student Information System, or SIS, allows you to:

• Register on-line, view your class schedule, and add and/or drop classes
• View the Registrar's listing of your campus and home address information
• View your grades and the academic calendar
• Retrieve your various balances and account information
• View general information from the Financial Aid Office
• Visit the Academic Advising Site, which provides academic advising information, as well as study tips

To access the Student Information System, click on either the Student Information System or Registration/Add/Drop link under the "academic information" section of the RPInfo homepage. Alternately, you can enter the following URL in the Address or Location field at the top of your browser's window:

http://sis.rpi.edu

Whichever method you use, the Student Information System page will appear. You may access the information that appears under "Important Stuff" and "Class Hour Schedules" without entering a password to authenticate yourself, but you will need to enter your Student Number and PIN (Personal Identification Number) if you select the Student Information or Faculty and Advisor Information links. Please note that your Student Number and PIN are different from your RCS password. The SIS webpages will provide you with a lot of on-line help to guide you through the registration process. If you forget your PIN, go to the Registrar's office for a new one.

It all comes down to keeping your PIN and password confidential. The first time you use the SIS system, you must change your PIN to a six-digit string that only you know. And, as with your RCS password, you should not share this information with anyone.

Web Course Tools (WebCT) is a suite of tools developed by the University of British Columbia to deliver sophisticated Web-based courses. Currently being used by universities and colleges all over the world to deliver on-line learning, WebCT provides a learning management system that allows Rensselaer instructors to make their course materials and activities available to students.

Faculty and students at Rensselaer are finding value and convenience in WebCT's many web-accessible functions, such as threaded discussion groups, the table of course contents, on-line quizzes, and a shared calendar. Staff members in Academic Computing Services (ACS), the Anderson Center for Innovation in Undergraduate Education (CIUE), the Folsom Library, and Continuing and Distance Education are available to assist faculty and students with the use of WebCT.

You can access WebCT course information on-line via RPInfo. To do this, select the WebCT Courses link from the "Academic Information" section of the main RPInfo homepage. The page that appears gives a brief explanation of how WebCT is used in coursework here at Rensselaer, and provides links to a variety of different departments that are using WebCT courses. Other links provide users with access to a quick reference guide and an overview of available WebCT functions.

Please refer to the URLs below for more specific help and information on using WebCT.

http://www.rpi.edu/dept/acs/webct/webct_at_RPI.html

For Course Listings:

http://webct.rpi.edu:8900/

http://www.rpi.edu/dept/acs/webct/qr.html

To access Academic Computing Services' self-study courses on WebCT:

http://www.rpi.edu/dept/acs/workshops/

When you finish using RPInfo, be sure to exit the application properly. To do this:

• From either Netscape on a UNIX workstation or Netscape Communicator on a PC, pull down the File menu and select the Exit option.
• From Internet Explorer on a PC, pull down the File menu and select the Close option.

Alternatively, you may click on the Close (X) button on the title bar or press Alt-F4.

The RCS server, sambasrv, connects Windows machine to the networked campus printers and to the RCS files. Before you can print from Windows 95, Windows 98, or Windows NT systems, you must first authenticate yourself by entering your RCS userID and password, then connect to RCS through sambasrv.

You must also specify a specific printer and have the necessary printer drivers on your PC in order to print.

The sambasrv.rpi.edu server allows you to access UNIX directories and files from your Windows PC by translating between UNIX and Windows to make the files appear as if they're on an additional PC drive.

1. In the "Enter your network password for Microsoft Networking" dialog box, type your RCS userID at the User name: prompt and press the Tab key.
2. Type your RCS password at the Password: prompt and press the Enter or Return key.
3. Double-click on the RCS icon on the desktop; a Connect to RCS window will appear.
4. Enter your RCS userID in the "Enter your RCS username" field and click OK.
5. Enter your RCS password in the "Enter password for userid" field, and click OK.
6. A Connect to Rensselaer Resources window should appear. Click on either (or both) of the check boxes that allow you to connect to your UNIX home directory or to the UNIX public areas, then click the OK button. You must click on one!)

To log in on a Windows NT machine:

1. Enter rcsguest at the User name prompt; do not enter a password at this time.
2. Double-click on the RCS icon on the desktop; a Connect to RCS window will appear.
3. Enter your RCS userID in the "Enter your RCS username" field and click OK.
4. Enter your RCS password in the "Enter password for userid" field, and click OK.
5. A Connect to Rensselaer Resources window should appear. Click on either (or both) of the check boxes that allow you to connect to your UNIX home directory or to the UNIX public areas, then click the OK button.

To map a network drive, right click on either My Computer or the Network Neighborhood icon on the desktop and select the Map Network Drive… option from the sub-menu that appears.

The Map Network Drive window appears, as shown below.

Type in the network path (e.g., \\sambasrv\public) in the Path: field.

The system may prompt you to enter a password in order to connect to either the public space or your RCS space. If so, enter your RCS password and click on the OK button.

If you wish to enable file and print sharing on your laptop, open the Start menu, select the Settings option, and then select the Control Panel option. In the window that appears, double-click the Network icon, and then click on the File and Print Sharing… button. In the window that appears, click in either (or both) of the file and print sharing options, and click the OK button. Please note that your enabling this feature does not actually share any resources on your laptop; you need to configure your laptop further to do that.

Wherever you're working on campus, it's a good idea to save all of your work and quit out of all applications. If you're working at a PC, you should also consider copying any files that you want to save to either a floppy disk or over to your RCS UNIX file space.

To log out from a Windows 95 machine: Double-click the Logoff icon, which looks like a door with an arrow, located in the bottom right corner of the desktop. Double-clicking this icon will remove any files you created from the machine, as well as remove any access to files in your RCS UNIX file space, if you accessed them.

To log out from a Windows 98/NT machine: Open the Start menu in the lower left corner of the desktop, and select the Shutdown and Close all programs and log on as a different user options.