Technology Newsletter
March 2008

Printer Changes

All of Ferris' network printers will be migrated to a new service called iPrint. While the old service has performed well, like most things technology related, it has gotten old and is being replaced with a new product. What does that mean for you? Well, a Team Beta technician will show up at your computer and will need a few minutes of your time to remove the old printer shortcuts and make sure the new ones are present. We do this so you don't accidentally send print jobs to a printer that doesn't exist anymore. The whole process should be pretty fast and painless. Thank you for your patience and understanding while we do this.

Off Campus Access

If you used to access the campus network from your home via the Novell Client or some other method, you may have noticed that you can not do that anymore. As a result of our efforts to digitally secure the campus, the ITS group has blocked many of the unsecure ways of accessing on campus data. Do not worry though, as they have a solution to allow you to access your data, it is call a VPN (Virtual Private Network). All you have to do is put in a work order to get your name on an access list and install the VPN client on your home computer. When you log in, you will be able to access the virtual world as though you were sitting on campus!

Office 2007 Is Here

Team Beta is installing Office 2007 on all new PC's and when ever we completely reload a computer. Office 2007 looks very different than previous Office versions. If you have problems navigating around or just can't find the function or feature that you normally use, call the TAC at X4822 and put in a request to get some training on Office 2007. Most people find Office 2007 easier to use once they have been shown how it works and how to find things in the new layout.

If your computer is one of the few that can't run Office 2007 or you have to have Office 2003 for Banner reasons then you should have the Office 2007 File Converter. The converter allows Office 2003 users to open Office 2007 documents. The converter is available through the ZENWorks Application window. Please call the TAC at X4822 and place a work order for Team Beta if you need assistance installing the converter.

Computer Support Requests

All support requests for desktop or network support should be called into the TAC at X4822. Please give as much detail to the TAC as possible (building, room number, equipment or software issue, your name, etc.). Please do not call Team Beta technicians directly, unless asked to do so. We don't want any support requests to be missed because a technician is on vacation or the message gets lost.

Thank you and have a great semester!