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By Anita Warren
It’s the stuff of nightmares. A student downloads what purports to be
anti-spyware but is, in fact, malware. And what’s worse, she paid for it in the
belief it was legitimate. Her plea for help, when the inevitable happened, was
just one of the 2,989 requests for assistance the Student Computing Help Desk
handled in the past year. Most of them have happy endings.
“When you come to the Computing Help Desk, there’s a very good
likelihood that you can walk away happy,” says Ellen Young, Manager of
Consulting Services.
Located in Baker Library, the Student Computing Help Desk is one of three
help desks on campus. The other two support faculty and staff in the arts and
sciences, and staff in administrative departments. Until 2000, the three were
one; now each serves students, staff, and faculty separately. Student Computing
Help Desk Manager Derek Hoffman and Academic Consulting Manager Jeffrey Hawkins
oversee the 15–16 tech-savvy students who work the Student Computing Help Desk
each term.
The group has seen it all and become expert at transforming tears and fears
into joy and jubilation. A typical day might include rescuing a student’s
coursework from a computer that crashed during mid-terms, cleaning up a machine
that has been compromised, and providing instructions about how to use
GreenPrint or e-tokens. Staff members also answer countless questions each day:
How do I do this? Is there a way to do that? Is there a resource available? In
other words, they help. And most of this help is provided on the spot while the
student users wait. The goal is to get students back on track as soon as
possible.
The most common problems brought to the Student Computing Help Desk are
viruses and malware that students have unwittingly downloaded onto their
computers. Young and Hoffman note the best defense — for everyone, not just
students — is a good offense: Don’t open e-mail enclosures you are not
expecting to receive, even if the sender is someone you know. And make sure
your computer is well equipped to do battle before, rather than after,
encountering a threat. Computers purchased from Dartmouth’s Computer Store can
be set up to be equipped with all the right goodies — firewalls, anti-spyware,
anti-virus programs — to keep the nightmares at bay. Students who purchase
their computers off campus are urged to bring them to the Computing Help Desk
where they can be loaded up with protective programs.
If the worst happens, the important thing is not to wait, says Hoffman,
“because it’s only going to get worse. If students are suspicious in any way or
have any questions, they shouldn’t be afraid at all to ask us for help.”
Adds Young, “That’s why we’re here.”
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