Computing Best Practices

The following list provides some recommendations to help you get the most out of the computing services at Georgetown.

 

Broadcast Communications	Labs and Public Computing
Calendar	NetID
Connecting to the Georgetown Computing Network	Student Telecommunications
E-mail	Training
GUShare	Web Development
Hoya Computing

 

 

 

Broadcast Communications

http://broadcast.georgetown.edu/

• All broadcast e-mail messages must originate from a departmental administrative NetID.

• All messages should be written in plain text. We discourage sending messages that contain HTML, graphics, or images because such messages take up more space in e-mail accounts and take longer to download. Message attachments are discouraged for the same reason.

• All messages should include, in the Subject line, the name of your department followed by a colon, and then followed by the subject of the e-mail.

• Broadcast e-mail messages must be authorized by the Vice President of the organization sending the message or by the Provost.

• Broadcast e-mail messages should clearly state the name of your organization and its contact information.

• After your message is authorized and submitted, it should reach its intended audience within one business day. Be sure to submit your message with this timeframe in mind.

 

 

Calendar

http://uis.georgetown.edu/calendars/index.html

• Using the Daily Note feature in GUCalendar is a good way to let people know you'll be out of the office or unavailable.

• Calendar can help you schedule a meeting with multiple persons:

  • In the GUCalendar desktop, select Group View from the File menu to view multiple calendars simultaneously.

  • In the GUCalendar web client, use the Scheduler feature to view multiple calendars simultaneously.

• If you use the GUCalendar web client on a public computer (e.g., in an Internet cafe or library), be sure to:

  • Log out of the GUCalendar web client.

  • Clear the browser's cache (its stored list of web sites you've visited) to prevent spammers from obtaining a list of web sites, especially secure web sites, you've visited.

 

 

Connecting to the Georgetown Computing Network

http://uis.georgetown.edu/connecting/index.html

• Always use up-to-date antivirus software when connecting to the Internet. Symantec Antivirus is available free of charge to all current students, faculty, and staff.

• Set your computer to download and install critical system updates automatically.

• Never connect wireless routers, hubs, wireless access points, or other networking devices to university network jacks.

• Print from your computer to UIS computer labs and printing rooms over the wired or wireless networks.

 

 

E-mail

http://uis.georgetown.edu/email/

• Never share your password with anyone, even someone you trust. Sharing passwords severely weakens the system and can potentially ruin your personal or even professional reputation if someone untrustworthy obtains your password.

• Sending sensitive or confidential information through uncrypted mail is not a safe practice. For more information about security policies and related information, see the UIS Information Security web site.

• Save yourself the potential embarrassment of e-mail sent to the wrong person(s). Fill in the recipients' e-mail addresses only AFTER you've finished composing your message. This will prevent premature delivery, or incomplete or unreviewed messages.

• If you use GUWebMail on a public computer (e.g., in an Internet cafe or library), be sure to:

1. Log out of GUWebMail.

2. Clear your browser's web site history (its stored list of web sites you've visited) to prevent spammers from obtaining the list of web sites, especially secure web sites, that you've visited. 

3. When replying to group e-mail (message sent to a group), decide whether it's appropriate to reply either to the whole group or to just the sender.

• You should not use the Trash folder as a filing cabinet. Even though doing this might seem easier than setting up separate folders, you will lose valuable messages forever when you empty your Trash folder (doing this deletes those mail messages permanently). As an alternate solution, you may want to create a folder, such as "Read", in which you can move mail you've already read but still want to keep.

 

 

GUShare

http://uis.georgetown.edu/sharing/gushare/index.html

• Don't access your files in GUShare from a computer you're not familiar with, such as those in Internet cafes, coffee shops, libraries, or other public locations. These computers may not have the latest security updates and may not be running an antivirus program such as Symantec Antivirus.

• To keep your quota from getting too large, empty your trash folder regularly and delete any old versions of documents (if you have versioning turned on for any given document).

• Use links to share documents with GUShare users, and use tickets to share documents with anyone who doesn't have a GUShare account.

• If you set up a password for a ticket, don't include the password in the same e-mail in which you're sending the ticket; don't even send the password in a separate e-mail. Call the person(s) with the pasword.

• Set up strong passwords for ticket passwords.

• When sharing files, do not use the options "users with accounts" and "public." These will share your file or folder with all GUShare users and everyone on the Internet, respectively.

• Use Web Folder to upload a large number of files and folders to your GUShare account. (Note: Web Folder is currently available only in Internet Explorer for Windows.) If you need to upload a large number of items into GUShare from a Mac, you can use the Connect to Server feature.

• If you share documents with the same people regularly, and those persons are GUShare users, consider adding them as a Contact or Group.

• If your department administrator is leaving your department and that person manages your department's GUShare space, be sure to transfer ownership of the Administrative NetID before that person leaves to ensure that your department will continue to have access to the files on that space.

 

 

Hoya Computing

http://uis.georgetown.edu/hoyacomputing/

• If each student in a class you're taking will need to borrow specific software (e.g., SAS), you may want to first call the Hoya Computing office to reserve a copy or to make sure copies are available.

• Please promptly return any software you borrow.

• If your laptop needs to be repaired and it's still under warranty, you may want to check with the manufacturer to see if the repairs are covered by the warranty. If the necessary repairs aren't covered, then you may want to consider using Hoya Computing's hardware repair service.

• Before you purchase software, check the UIS Software Database to see if the software (e.g., Symantec Antivirus) is available free of charge.

• Before you purchase a computer, check the minimum hardware specifications to make sure the computer you want to buy will meet your computing needs. Also, review the UIS institutional purchase procedures for computers.

• Be sure to first obtain the approval of your department manager or administrator before you proceed to make any institutional purchases.

 

 

Labs and Public Computing

http://uis.georgetown.edu/labs/index.html

• Always log yourself out of computer lab workstations, and reset public kiosks before you walk away.

• For file storage in computer labs, use a flash drive or other portable USB device. Lab computer hard drives are not a safe place to store files.

• If you notice a problem with lab workstations, public kiosks, or the condition of a computer lab, please report it to the UIS Service Desk at 202-687-4577 or techhelp @ georgetown.edu so we can fix it as soon as possible.

 

 

NetID

http://www3.georgetown.edu/uis/netid/index.html

• Create and share e-mail folders or inboxes rather than NetID passwords. This is good for vacations, maternity leaves, and bosses who want to their assistants to see all e-mail messages.

• Check your directory information. Log in to Directory Access+ to view your contact information. The screen also includes the name of your Directory Coordinator (DC). Contact your DC if you need to make any changes to your directory information.

• As part of the account termination process, some accounts are manually created when a person comes to the university. Many accounts must be deleted manually when they leave.

 

 

Student Telecommunications

http://uis.georgetown.edu/telecommunications/index.html

• Make sure your TV is set to receive cable channels. Otherwise, you will only be able to see channels up to the mid-teens.

 

 

Training

http://uis.georgetown.edu/training/index.html

• When working in Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, use the Task Pane (select Task Pane from the View menu). It's great for quickly accessing recently opened documents, viewing and modifying text and document formats and styles, performing searches in the MS Office online help, adding Microsoft clip art, and more.
  

• Prerequisites for training are important. If you have no experience in the software you want to learn, please attend the basic level course (if one is available) before moving to the more advanced level courses.

• After a training class, be sure to log out of all programs you've opened as well as of your computer before you leave the training room.

• Passwords are important and should be secured. Don't share your NetID password with anyone, especially the trainer.

• Practice what you learn in each training course. If you brush up on what you've learned by teaching it to others, you'll be more prepared for advanced level courses.

 

 

Web Development

http://uis.georgetown.edu/web/index.html

• If you're a student leaving Georgetown and you have your own web site, be sure to copy any files before you leave that you want to keep. Otherwise, you won't be able to access those files after you leave.

• If you're a student leaving Georgetown and you manage a group's web site, be sure to transfer ownership of all files related to that web site before you leave.

• Keep in mind that your web site is part of the University's image. Design your site to reflect this.

• Test out your links before you publish your web site. "Broken" links will frustrate users and turn them away from your site.

• Include metadata to make your web pages easier to find.

• Be sure to follow UIS guidelines for setting up secure web pages and for handling confidential and sensitive data properly.