Getting an account

Account application forms, which are available in room 424A, should be completed and returned to Robin Hill. Though Unix and Windows accounts can be requested at the same time and usually use the same username, they have separate passwords and server file space.

Your email account will be:

USERNAME@stat.psu.edu

where USERNAME is the username that you requested on your application form (if it is available).

If you anticipate any special needs — such as, large amounts of disk space or heavy use of a specific machine — please specify them on your account application form.

Logging in and out

You can use your username and password to log into any system in the department. Typically, you will be presented with a graphical login screen asking for username and password.

The first time you log into the Unix systems locally, you will be asked to select either the Common Desktop Environment (CDE) or Openwindows. Because Openwindows is an older user interface that is lagging behind in features, it is recommended that new users select CDE unless they have specific reasons to do otherwise.

After logging in using CDE, you will be presented with a toolbar on the bottom of your screen. By clicking the icons on this toolbar you will launch the most frequently used tools, and by clicking the triangular buttons above the icons you will bring up a menu of additional tools.

The most important icons for a new user are the Help Manager (a picture of a bookshelf with a question mark overlaid) and the File Manager (a picture of a filing cabinet drawer). A shell prompt can be brought up by right clicking on the background of the screen, selecting the "Tools" submenu and then "Terminal."

You can log out at any time by clicking the small "EXIT" button on the lower middle section of the toolbar. Your session will be saved and any windows that you have open will be restored on your next login.

The Unix systems can be logged into remotely from both PCs within the department and outside by means of the SSH (Secure Shell) protocol. There are several free programs for Windows that can log in using this protocol, the one we have standardized in the Statistics Department is called TeraTerm.

Computer Support Staff

Hill, Robin L. S.
Network Support Specialist
424 Thomas Building
(814) 865-5623
rhill@stat.psu.edu

Stahl, Christopher
Manager of Network and Information Technology
424 Thomas Building
(814) 865-5623
stahlee@stat.psu.edu