SYSTEMS STAFF MONTHLY UPDATE - NOVEMBER 2004

WREQ Problem Reporting Tool
Email work requests and problem reports are now being entered into the WREQ problem reporting tool. You should submit all requests directly to WREQ and not to ntadmin or individual staff members. You can do this by posting a request through the web interface at: http://www.cs.sunysb.edu/~wreq or simply by sending your email request to WREQ AT cs dot sunysb dot edu.

WREQ Problem Reporting Tool for Administrative Requests
There is now a WREQ Problem Reporting Tool for work requests directed to the department secretarial and administrative staff. You should use secwreq for requests such as requisitions, course room changes, office supplies, grade changes, room reservations, payroll issues, tuition issues, reimbursements and building management needs. This tool can be found at http://www.cs.sunysb.edu/~secwreq or you can send mail to SECWREQ AT cs dot sunysb dot edu.

Reminders
Please remember that it is not permitted to attach a personal wireless access point to the department network. If you need resources to complete your research or coursework that are presently not available, let us know and we will work with you to provide what you need.

Please remember that there is no eating or drinking permitted in any of the computer labs, including the wireless/laptop room 1203. All of the equipment, including room furnishings, belong to all of us, and replacements must be paid for from valuable research dollars. The
Graduate Student Lounge is available for eating, drinking and socializing.

New/Upgraded Software for Solaris
Acroread, the pdf file reader, has been upgraded to version 5.0.9 on Solaris.

Translabs
The SolidView Lite version 2004.3 STL viewer from ProtoCAM has been installed in room 2129 (the Programming Techniques Teaching Lab).

The package can be run from the Programs menu, and some sample files are located in c:\Program Files\Solid Concepts Inc\SolidView\Samples directory, for you to try out the various features.

Grad NT Lab
There should no longer be a problem accessing any remote websites from the Graduate PC Lab. If you encounter such a problem please submit a wreq job with the details.

On the Web
The Alumni site is presently under development. Alums will be able to register themselves with the department and provide us with contact information. Other services will be added in the future.

Dr. Myung Oh, the Deputy Prime Minister of South Korea, a Stony Brook alumnus, visited Stony Brook on October 27. As part of his visit he attended demos given by some research labs in the Computer Science Department. A slide show of his visit is available on the department website: http://www.cs.sunysb.edu/people/alumni/korea_visitor.html

A new link has been added to the department's home page advertising our open faculty positions. See http://www.cs.sunysb.edu/welcome/joinus/faculty.html.

Abstracts for the next two upcoming Distinguished Lecture Series talks have been added to the website. See http://www.cs.sunysb.edu/events/DLseries/index.html.

Wireless
A reminder that wireless connection information is available in the following file on any of the department Unix systems: /var/adm/sysinfo/info/wireless.connect. In addition that FAQ at http://www.cs.sunysb.edu/~faq/InternetWireless.html has links to related topics such as using ssh and configuring an ssh tunnel.

Upgrades
Student quotas on the Unix network have been increased to 200 Megs.

Future plans
A duplex printer is planned for printing in room 2440.

HOW TO REPORT A PROBLEM or MAKE A WORK REQUEST

First you should check the FAQ pages at:

http://www.cs.sunysb.edu/~faq

There is also a link to an index of FAQs.

If the answer to your question is not in the faq's you should use wreq to report the problem or make a work request.

There is a short blurb on wreq in the faq area (search by index).

Wreq lives at: http://www.cs.sunysb.edu/~wreq/

You can also send email to:WREQ AT cs dot sunysb dot edu from your dept account, or campus account. The subject line should cover what is wrong or what you need. The body of the email can supply any details.

Your problem report must include the following information for us to be able to help you promptly:

  1. The room you are working in, either room number or lab name.
  2. The name of the host you are working on (hostname command in Unix, machine number in 1239, the number written on the bookshelf by your desk in the student offices).
  3. The sequence of things you did just prior to having the problem as best you recollect.
  4. The exact text of any error message you see on the screen, or a complete description of the problem that occured. 
        Please report problems promptly as they occur so they can be
        investigated under the same set of conditions as far as possible.

When in doubt, feel free to send email to:

  • Unix and network problems:ROOT AT cs dot sunysb
  • PC problems:NTADMIN AT cs dot sunysb

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