General Information About Working in the CCLI


1. SO WHAT MAKES THE CENTER FOR COMPUTER-ASSISTED LANGUAGE INSTRUCTION (CCLI) DIFFERENT FROM ANY OTHER COMPUTER LAB AT MICHIGAN TECH UNIVERSITY?

What you'll notice first when walking into the CCLI is the way the computers are placed in pods rather than rows facing the walls. Promoting creativity and creating a relaxed atmosphere for our users is important. Our volunteer consultants wear kimonos while they are on duty so they are easy to spot. Users are encouraged to reserve specific computers up to two days in advance to avoid the frustration of having to wait for a machine. The CCLI has stuffed animals to talk to, puzzles to procrastinate with, CD-ROM drives to play music on, a refrigerator, microwave, and coffee maker for those late night assignments, as well as the phone numbers for the local pizza deliveries.

2. WHO ARE THE CONSULTANTS, WHAT ARE THEY EXPECTED TO KNOW, AND WHEN ARE THEY AVAILABLE TO HELP ME?

The consultants in the CCLI represent most of the departments on campus and have a wide range of computer use and knowledge. Consultants are available to help you when they are on duty during official open hours. Consultants on duty will be wearing kimonos, name tags, or other obvious artifacts that will identify them as willing and eager to help you. Each consultant goes through weeks of training and should be able to help you through the following software:

If you are having problems with a program and the consultant on duty can not help you, please check the expertise grid, find a consultant that knows the program and plan to come to the CCLI when that consultant is on duty. A list of the current consultants and their e-mail addresses and phone numbers is posted at the consultant desk on the Macintosh side of the CCLI and also on the gilligan.hu.mtu.edu gopher site. An expertise grid, also located at the consultant desk and the gilligan.hu gopher site, lists the skill levels of the consultants in various software packages available in the lab.

3. I'M NOT GOING TO USE THE CCLI THAT MUCH, WHY DO I HAVE TO PAY THE LAB FEE?

According to MTU computing policy, every student will have access to campus computing facilities. If you are a humanities major, regardless as to whether you use the lab or not, you will be assessed the lab fee. If you are enrolled in a computer-intensive class, you will also be charged for use of the CCLI.

4. WHO COMES UP WITH THESE HOURS ANYWAY?

The consultants pick their consulting hours according to their class schedules. The hours that the CCLI is open varies from term to term because of this, but every effort is made to keep the lab open weeknights and during the weekend.

5. WHAT IF I WANT TO WORK IN THE CCLI DURING HOURS THAT ARE NOT LISTED AS OPEN HOURS?

It is possible that your optimum productivity hours do not coincide with times that the CCLI is open. Often times the last consultant on duty for the day will be willing to keep the lab open past the posted hours on the condition that they will not be available to answer questions. If you want to get 24 hour access to the lab, become a consultant.

6. I'M A MONEY-PAYING LAB-USER, WHAT IS WITH ALL THESE CLASSES TAKING UP ALL THE MACHINES DURING CERTAIN HOURS?

Every term, there will be computer intensive classes reserving the machines in half or all the lab. The hours where classes will be using the lab are posted on the entrance doors of the lab. It is the CCLI's policy to grant priority to the classes over individual users; remember the members of these classes are paying extra lab fees and deserve the extra time.

7. ARE THE CCLI OPEN HOURS GOING TO STAY THE SAME ALL TERM?

Yes. The open hours listed for the CCLI will remain constant all term. In the event of an emergency equipment repair that requires the closing of the lab early, notice will be posted on the entrance doors of the lab.

8. I NEED A SPECIFIC COMPUTER FOR A PROJECT I'M WORKING ON, CAN I RESERVE IT?

Yes. You can reserve specific machines up to two days in advance for up to two hours at a time. Sign up sheets are on the bulletin board between the IBM and Macintosh sides of the lab. To sign up, find the correct date and then write the name of the machine you want to use and your name under the time you want the machine.

9. WHAT IF I NEED HELP RUNNING A PROGRAM OR JUST REMEMBERING HOW TO LOG ON?

Don't forget the consultants are in the lab to help you. Those people wearing the kimonos won't make fun of you, just ask. The CCLI has lots of manuals and tutorials available if you would rather work through an application yourself.

10. HOW DO I CHANGE MY PASSWORD?

From IBM side of the lab: Choose "utilities" from the menu. Then choose "change password" from the utilities menu. The computer will prompt you to verify that you want to change your password, and then ask you to type in your current password. Then the computer will ask you to type in your new password two times. That's it.

From the Mac side of the Lab: Open Eudora (e-mail). Select the "special" menu and highlight "change password" command.The computer will prompt you to verify that you want to changeyour password, and then ask you to type in your current password. Then the computer will ask you to type in your new password two times. That's it.

11. HOW OFTEN SHOULD I CHANGE MY PASSWORD?

We recommend you change your password once a term. (See the Notes about privacy on the Hu gopher site.)

12. CAN I BRING MY GROUP MEMBERS OR FRIENDS INTO THE CCLI?

Sure, the more the merrier. We realize that many students have group projects to work on, and the CCLI tries to provide software to accommodate many types of projects. However, we ask that only people with computer accounts in the CCLI use the equipment. (See Question 13.)

13. CAN SOMEONE ELSE USE MY ID AND PASSWORD?

No. According to the MTU Computer use Policy, anyone caught using another student's computer account will have their computer privileges taken away and can be expelled from MTU. The consultants may do ID checks if suspicious behavior is noticed.