ENCS Lab Policies

ENCS Account

Please note that only people associated with the ENCS Faculty have access to the computer facilities. This includes people employed by ENCS and students who are enrolled in a program offered by ENCS.

Students who are not enrolled in an ENCS program may take courses offered by ENCS. If so, they will be given access only to the appropriate teaching labs and for that term only. Other people should contact IITS (Instructional & Information Technology Services) for access to computer facilities.

Some Rules

Each user of ENCS agrees that the use of the computer account assigned to him or her is subject to the following conditions:

• The password of the ENCS computer account is strictly confidential.
  
• The computer account should be used for:
  • Fulfilling his/her academic requirements
  • Teaching and research activities for the sole benefit of Concordia University.
    
• Any unauthorized use of the computer account may result in its suspension.
  
• ENCS Faculty may acquire any or all programs or data developed or stored in the computer account and may use it as it sees fit.
  
• ENCS Faculty may destroy, at the end of the term, any or all data in the account.
  
• The user agrees to comply with the rules of operation of the ENCS Faculty.
  
• The user understands that the use of the computer account is subject to the Copyright Act.
  
• The user also understands that fraud, embezzlement, theft, deliberate physical damage to hardware or any of these related to software, including modification of information stored in a computer could give rise to the sanctions under the disciplinary regulations of the University, or under the appropriate provincial or federal laws.

The primary purpose of ENCS teaching equipment is to support certain specific courses offered in ENCS. Students taking "supported courses" may use their accounts to work on projects or assignments required for those courses.

When you are not working on assignments or if you are not registered in a "supported course", you may use the general access labs (H962 and H966) or general access host (i.e., login.encs.concordia.ca) for electronic mail, reading network news, and doing a little UNIX/Linux exploration. You must obtain the approval of a ENCS Department faculty member before using your account for any significant project. You are welcome to use your account to advance your education, and even to explore the Internet.

Some DON'Ts

• DON'T EVER let anyone else use your account in any way.
  
• DON'T EVER give out your PASSWORD.
  
• DON'T store your password (or any other person's password) in a file anywhere on the system.
  
• DON'T attempt to compromise the security, integrity or usefulness of any computer system, account or data, whether at Concordia University or elsewhere. Anyone caught in such an attempt will certainly lose his/her account, and may also be subject to administrative, civil and/or criminal penalties.
  
• DON'T use commands unless you have a fairly clear understanding of what they will do. DO "man COMMAND_NAME" before using a command that you have never used before.
  
• DON'T store files in writable areas of the file system other than your home directory or any other area that may be explicitly assigned to you (or to a group to which you belong). You may, however, use the /tmp directory in unix or drive H: in Windows to store files temporarily. Those files may be purged at any time when you are not using them and will be removed if the system is rebooted. That is why /tmp is named that way.
  
• DON'T leave any processes alive when you are not logged in (except on the specific hosts, which are dedicated to such processes). Any such process will be killed by an analyst.
  
• DON'T interfere with other users' work by writing to their screens in any way without their permission. This includes unwanted "talk" requests.
  
• DON'T occupy any console or terminal in a teaching lab unless you are using it to do work required for a "supported course" in which you are registered.
  
• DON'T turn off the power, or interrupt the operating system on any computer, without the explicit permission of an analyst. For greater clarity, it is NOT an acceptable excuse that the machine was not responding.
  
• DON'T eat or drink in any of the labs.
  
• DON'T leave garbage in the labs. Take your papers and old listings with you when you leave the room.
  
• DON'T use any machines in any ENCS lab for IRC or MUD or any other game playing.
  

Policy for Food and Beverage in Lab

Please be aware that any eating/drinking in the labs is strictly forbidden. Items such as bottles, cups or plates are not allowed on the desks, since they are likely evidence of eating/drinking in the labs. While you may not be eating/drinking at the time, it is still prohibited.

If you are discovered eating/drinking, or there is such evidence, your account will be blocked for at least one week.