NACS News 2001.5
June 1, 2001
In this Issue:
- COMPUTER SECURITY:
- Simple steps you can take to protect your computer from viruses.
- INSTRUCTIONAL WEB RESOURCES:
- EEE supports faculty using the Web to publish course materials on
line.
- CITRIX METAFRAME:
- Citrix Metaframe is a commercial software product for using Windows
applications when you don't have a fast PC.
-
Computer Security
Computer Viruses and Hoaxes
New computer viruses arrive daily. There are
a few practical steps that everyone can take to help keep computers safe.
First, be sure that your computer has updated
anti-virus software installed. All modern anti-virus software can be configured
for automatic updates. If your computer is using VirusScan, the "About..."
menu item should report a Scan Engine of 4.1.40 and a virus definition
creation date within one week of the current date. Ask your school's computing
help desk for assistance in configuring your software if you need it.
Many computer viruses arrive as e-mail attachments.
Use caution when opening attachments. For example, if your co-worker routinely
sends you Excel spreadsheets which you collaborate on, you would expect
to open those. But if the same associate sends you a Visual Basic script
(a file whose name ends with .vbs), DON'T OPEN IT! It's probably a virus.
Use the good old-fashioned telephone to call and confirm that your co-worker
meant to send you an unusual attachment. In general, never open an email
attachment unless you know what it is -- even if it comes from someone
you know and trust: many viruses exploit innocent users and computers
to spread themselves.
Another problem is virus hoaxes. Whenever
you see a message informing you to e-mail "everyone you know",
it's probably a hoax. It may even be carrying a virus. DON'T e-mail everyone
you know. Instead check with your computing support help desk, or check
the Web for hoax reports. Places to check include:
Links on these pages to commercial Web sites do
not represent endorsement by the University of California or its affiliates.
Instructional Web Resources
Did you know UCI faculty can establish a Course Web Site
using EEE?
EEE is UCI's Electronic Educational Environment, a campus
wide collaborative effort among the Division of Undergraduate Education,
Network and Academic Computing Services, the UCI libraries, and the Registrar/SAIS.
EEE offers faculty a variety of services for using the Web in instruction.
The EEE Web site can be found at eee.uci.edu.
It provides a list of UCI course web sites and a variety of communication
and web site administration tools.
Bring your course materials to the Web and your site will
appear on your students' EEE Resource Page. EEE currently provides two
ways for instructors to post course materials to the web.
EZE3 (http://eee.uci.edu/toolbox/eze3/)
Create a Course Web Page the EZ way. A simple form lets
you choose contents, cut-and-paste information and select colors. You
can update this page as often as you wish.
Register (http://eee.uci.edu/toolbox/register/)
Request unlimited space on EEE. Upload web pages you create
on your computer. Get web pages located on another server listed on EEE
or crosslink courses using the same web space.
For any questions about how to use EEE resources please
contact EEE support team at eee@uci.edu
or 824-8505.
Citrix Metaframe
Citrix Metaframe is a commercial product for using remote
computing resources from your desktop. Applications can be set up so that
they appear to run on your computer, but the actual processing is done
on a server somewhere else. All your local machine is doing is providing
a display.
Citrix offers several advantages. First, Citrix allows for
low speed processors to "run" high-end applications that require
a fast new computer. You can get more use out of your older systems, as
long as there is one powerful shared computer on your network.
Second, Citrix provides easy administration. Instead of
upgrading software on many machines in an office, using Citrix makes it
necessary to upgrade only the shared server running Metaframe.
Third, Citrix enables the use of cross-platform applications.
Mac, Unix, and DOS machines can all use Windows applications through the
use of the Citrix client. For example, everyone can use Internet Explorer
for the PC by installing and configuring the Citrix client.
NACS uses Citrix to allow Macintoshes around the office
to connect to the new telephone billing program (called Mysoft.net). Mysoft.net
uses Microsoft's ActiveX system which will not run on Macs. With Citrix,
NACS's Macintoshes have the ability to access the billing system.
For more information on Citrix Metaframe, please refer to
the vendor's web site: http://www.citrix.com/products/
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