FAQs:

Here are some of the more frequently asked questions of the Help Desk. They may answer a question for you. What questions would you like to ask us? Let us know for possible inclusion in our next newsletter!

Can I check to see who is a member of an email group? If so, how is it done?

Yes, it is easy to check a group's membership. If you are using MS Outlook, simply go to the address book, select All OFFICE Groups from the Show Names drop-down list, and double-click the group about which you want to know. Doing so will bring up a small display window that shows the names of users who are members of the email group. You may also double-click the group's name after you have added it to the TO line when composing an email message. Outlook Web Access (OWA) does not have a built-in feature for checking on email group membership.

By the way, each group's membership is managed by a group owner, who is usually the individual most interested in making sure the group is accurate. That person can add and remove email group members without going through the Help Desk. The group owner is also listed on the display window as described above. If you want to be added to an email group and you aren't sure who the owner is or the owner is not shown on the display window, you may contact the Help Desk, and we will determine the group's owner so we can get permission before adding you.

What is your policy on printer repairs?

The procedure for printer repairs always starts with the Help Desk. If you suspect a printer problem where repair may be needed, give us a call and we will come take a look at it. We have troubleshooting procedures in place that allow us to determine the nature of the problem. If it is something we can fix, we address it directly. If we determine that a hardware repair is required, we will ask you for a budget code before contacting our outside repair vendor, Laser Solutions. A service call will run a minimum of $40, and, depending on the repair, additional charges may apply. We can work within budget limits, if you wish to apply them, and will always evaluate the cost-effectiveness of a repair before proceeding with one.

How is software purchased at the college (can I download something from the Internet)?

All software used on college-owned equipment needs to go through Information Technology for evaluation, purchase and installation. This helps guarantee compatibility with our systems as well as inclusion in the college's software inventory for auditing purposes (a state requirement). If you have some software that you want to use, simply contact the Help Desk to initiate the process. We will generate a work order for tracking purposes.

We use the term software rather loosely, since it comes packaged in such a variety of forms these days. Here are some of the types of software that we consider would apply to the policy:

CDs and DVDs that come packaged in traditional shrink wrap boxes

CDs and DVDs that are included in the back of a text book

CDs and DVDs that are included with hardware, such as cameras and other devices that connect to computers

Downloads from Web-sites (Generally, if you run an install process, you should consider it software, whether it was free or paid for.)

Web-based subscriptions

If you are not sure whether an application that you want to use is considered software, then feel free to give us a call so we can advise you.

Up to 10 megabyte attachments are allowed through the system. If you have a file larger than this that needs to come through (sent by someone else or by you), please give us a call so we can help get the file sent to (or by) you.

Individual mailboxes standardly hold up to 100 megabytes worth of stored items. These items include email, file attachments, calendar items, contacts, notes and journal items basically anything that you build in to your Outlook functions. If you have ten, 10 megabyte attachments, your mailbox will fill up. On the other hand, email messages are generally very small in size (electronically speaking), and your mailbox can hold thousands of messages before showing any signs of filling up. Just remember that it is a combination of all the items mentioned above that adds to the total size of your mailbox.

You can easily check to see how much of your mailbox you are using by right-clicking on the mailbox folder in your folder list in Outlook and selecting properties. From the screen that comes up, click the folder size button to see the total amount of space you are using in your mailbox. This feature does not apply to Outlook Web Access. Generally, the server begins to warn you of a full mailbox when it is about 75% full. At some point (if you ignore the messages), it will prevent new messages from coming in and will eventually also prevent you from sending anything new. So, it's a good idea to pay attention to the warning messages.

Undesirable (bad) messages are those that are considered SPAM or unsolicited, commercial email (UCE). By clicking the link to the left you can find out about SPAM in greater detail, so please refer to that for more information on SPAM. We also attempt to filter out all known viruses that most often come in the form of attachments. Some of these include Joke programs (executables that do funny things to your computer like opening the CD-ROM tray automatically), and suspicious programs, like password crackers and software that allows taking remote control of your machine.

Filtering SPAM is usually done by checking key words on the subject line of email messages. Messages are compared against a list of commonly-used SPAM key words. Those that meet the criteria are filtered out and not delivered to the user's mailbox. Viruses, on the other hand, must be evaluated based on the three letter extension of the file attachment (every file is defined by a file name and a three letter file extension, which appears after the period following the file name). Certain file attachments are notorious for carrying viruses. In other words, the virus creators out there will build their little trojans, worms and other malicious instructions inside a specific type of file that when opened launches them on your machine. Some file types that may surprise you include MS Access (.mdb) and Visual Basic (.vbs). Of course, there are others as well, but these two are more commonly used for legitimate work, which makes it problematic for filtering.

Filtering bad email can create what is called a false positive . This term refers to email that is filtered out (not delivered to recipients' mailboxes), but was legitimate and should have been allowed through. Our goal is to maximize the filtering of positive SPAM and viruses while creating zero false positives. Doing so is complex, since it involves adjusting security levels on the server that work in tandem to find the SPAM and viruses. We continually monitor the filtering queue to evaluate how the messages are filtering from the server in order to minimize false positives.

We have filtered out 123,426 messages that were observed to be SPAM or virus-laden during the last three months.

We mentioned that we filter on key words in the subject line and file attachments, but we also filter on Internet domains. These are generally a word followed by .com and are known sites for distributing SPAM, spyware and viruses (generally all known as malware). These things change periodically, so the list of filtering options is adjusted to reflect current trends.

Try out our top 10 favorite Windows XP keyboard shortcuts!

Most of these keyboard shortcuts use the Windows Key on your keyboard. This is the key next to the Alt key that looks like a flying window:

1. Windows Key + E = Opens a new Explorer Window
2. Windows Key + F = Displays the Find (or Search) dialogue box
3. Windows Key + M = Minimizes all windows and shows the Desktop
4. Windows Key + Shift + M = Restores all windows to how they were
5. Windows Key + D + Minimizes or opens all windows at once.
6. Windows Key + F1 = Displays the Windows Help menu   
7. Windows Key + Tab = Cycles through the buttons on the Task Bar
8. Windows Key (all by itself) = Displays the Start Menu
9. Alt + Tab = switches between open windows
10. Windows Key + L = Locks your Windows XP computer

We think these keyboard shortcuts are worth using, since they can make you more efficient with navigating through open windows you don't have to reach for the mouse as much. Give them a try and see how fun they can be. Pretty soon you'll be an expert!