Reception-desk | Thomas' Work Space

Upgrade to the Moodle 2 on the LRC reception desk computers is overdue…

2013/10/18 plagwitz Leave a comment

It will be fixed eventually – let me know if not.

Categories: audience-is-language-learning-center-staff, audience-is-language-learning-center-temp-staff, Reception-desk Tags: moodle, mozilla-firefox

A checklist for our late hires in the LRC

2013/10/09 plagwitz Leave a comment

With the help of your colleagues at the reception desk, sign up for your work schedule by sending meeting requests from NINERMAIL to lrcassistant@uncc.edu,

Plug any holes/weaknesses in the schedule Reception Staffing
Uf you have $2000 FWS, not more than 10 hours /week even if you start late.
Final approval from LRC coordinator required.

Whenever starting/leaving your shift, log in at the reception desk computer, allow all windows to open, then clock in by entering your code for checkin/out from the spreadsheet checkoutin.xls into the meeting request (series) on your NINERMAIL calendar.
Read/listen to the training materials you received –
1. Word (goo.gl/5hgr7Y) printout : contains a checklist for your responsibilities during your shift.
2. PowerPoint:
  1. Deck (goo.gl/OV45aF) printout explains how to help with booking LRC equipment and rooms using NINERMAIL meeting requests (which will constitute e most of your work at the help desk).
  2. Video of training session: goo.gl/nWDDro.
3. NOTE: After your first 2 weeks at work, there will be a Moodle quiz (TBA) that you need to pass!
Questions?
1. First and foremost, follow the instructions and helpful hints of your more senior colleagues at the reception desk.
2. Bring further questions to the LRC coordinator or director.
3. If no one is available for questions: post questions in the LRC Moodle Forum.

Categories: audience-is-language-learning-center-staff, audience-is-language-learning-center-temp-staff, e-infrastructure, Institution-is-University-of-North-Carolina-Charlotte, Reception-desk, service-is-hr-managing, training

If you cannot log into Windows because of accessibility dialogues offering you help

2013/01/23 plagwitz Leave a comment

Symptom: You cannot log in since accessibility tool dialogues (like above) come up when typing your password
Workaround: Restart the computer (and make sure you have no item sitting on the keyboard while doing so, usual suspects: textbooks, bags). If you do not want to restart, but fix it immediately, you can read more about Windows XP accessibility features and keyboard shortcuts here.
Root cause: You may have activated Windows accessibility features by erroneously depressing for a long time or repeatedly pressing a modifier key while the LRC computer was on the welcome screen. You may not run into this behavior from your personal computer (or read here how to disable Windows 7 Sticky and Filter Keys), but the LRC needs to be ADA compliant. Think of it as another LRC language tool that sometimes may get into your way temporarily if you do not study the language, but that you would not want to miss for the language you do study.

Categories: audience-is-language-learning-center-staff, audience-is-language-learning-center-temp-staff, audience-is-students, e-infrastructure, Listening-Stations, Presenter-Computer, Reception-desk, Student-Computers Tags: accessibility

Phishing warning from Safari on reception desk computers…

2012/11/07 plagwitz Leave a comment

… is a harmless glitch. The root cause is that the computers are sometimes extremely slow to start up. We resolved the issue today by simply restarting (not just logging off and back in).

Categories: audience-is-language-learning-center-temp-staff, Reception-desk Tags: safari

How to view LRC hours&events ….

2012/11/04 plagwitz Leave a comment

…using animated GIFs. Other speed? Click
0.25sec, 0.50sec, 0.75sec, 1sec, 1.5sec, 2sec, 3sec, 4sec, 5sec, 6sec, 7sec, 8sec, 9sec, 10sec.

NOTE: Sorry, there is no way to directly link to a weekly view of the public calendar in OWA/Exchange 2010.

Categories: animated-GIFs, audience-is-students, audience-is-teachers, e-infrastructure, iMacs, Institution-is-University-of-North-Carolina-Charlotte, Listening-Stations, LRCRoomCoed433, LRCRoomCoed434, Reception-desk, small-group-work-spaces, TV-viewing-area Tags: calendaring, FAQs

How the LRC can help you proctoring your computer-based make-up exams

2012/10/15 plagwitz Leave a comment

We are testing
1. whether we can offer proctored make-up exams for students that missed scheduled (publisher website- or Moodle-based) computerized exams that were held in the LRC. We have not been given additional resources for this service, so we have to set it up as smoothly as possible – as you and your students will desire also.
2. Alternatively, you could administer your exam in your office, like you used to, but now using your office computer (where presumably you tested the exam in the first place – the LRC can temporarily borrow you a headset
3. or we could group schedule all remaining students for a make-up in the main LRC classroom maybe during class meeting (likely more secure and quicker, but taking away from contact hours). Both the presence of the teacher and the lrc director may be required.
The teacher gives
1. to the studentthe exam’s
2. to the LRC coordinator the exam password. The LRC coordinator publishes the password in LRC Moodle forum “sticky notes” (to which only LRC staff has access).
The student
1. From her NINERMAILcalendar
  1. prepares a new/meeting request,
    1. “subject: [your course number] make-up exam”,
    2. to “resource:” lrcroomcoed433c @uncc.edu AND lrcroomcoed433d@uncc.edu, our small group rooms,
    3. uses the tab:”scheduling assistant” to find a free (= white, not-blocked) time-slot with the exam duration and before the exam deadline,
    4. and deletes that group room that s/he does not need before actual sending the meeting request (For the quietest experience, s/he should also stir clear of tutoring hours, subject:”up to ####” in the other group room http://mail.uncc.edu/owa/calendar/LRCRoomCOED433c@uncc.edu/Calendar/calendar.html http://mail.uncc.edu/owa/calendar/LRCRoomCOED433d@uncc.edu/Calendar/calendar.html ).
    5. The student can get help withmaking this meeting request at the LRC reception desk, including booking the room on the fly, but no group room may be immediately available for walk-in clients).
  2. cancels the meeting request if s/he changes her mind, to make the room available to other (we record the check-in time to report offenders who prevent other students from taking their make-up exams). Only in our 2 group rooms next to the reception desk the student can be (loosely) monitored by LRC assistants serving as proctors from behind the reception desk. We can test before term start if your website can use additional security features like Sanako controlled web browsing or Respondus Lockdown browser.
2. comes to the LRC shortly before her scheduled time slot,
  1. logs in on the computer in her group room first (to speed things up);
  2. opens her meeting request on the reception desk computer to receive a check-in code from the LRC assistant into the meeting request and “sends update”;
  3. places any personal possession behind the reception desk;
  4. opens the exam instructions (e.g. goo.gl/g8q5g) on the group room computer;
  5. Following instructions therein, goes to the exam website on the group room computer, opens the exam, so that the LRC assistant can type in the password from the LRC Moodle forum “sticky notes” without letting the examinee know the password.
  6. TBA: Will we require students to get a checkout code? The LRC assistants are not in a position to enforce exam deadlines; your testing software likely should be.