Information Technology and the Department of Materials

Complete newcomers should see http://welcometoit.ox.ac.uk for introductory information. Especially note that you are unable to register to use Oxford University IT Services and Facilities until you have obtained a University Card which can be obtained from your college if you are a student or from the Department Administrator if you are not a student.

This website has an A-Z Guide about IT in the Department of Materials which summarizes the computer and IT Facilities in the Department in accordance with the Department IT Strategy and the Department IT Support Policy. Please take the time to look at these.

Introduction: Many IT facilities are provided centrally by Oxford University Computing Services, however there are additional department facilities tailored to the requirements of their own staff and students.

Rules: All members of the Department, including academic visitors, are requested to read and agree to both the University's and the Deparment's Rules for Computer Use.

Electronic Mail: All members of department are required to have and to use their university email account so that they may be contacted via the department maillists. The university email system operated by Oxford University Computing Services is called Nexus.

Network connection: The Department wired ethernet network links into the univeristy backbone and is part of the national joint academic network (JANET). The department network is the responsibility of the department IT staff who provide instructions and help on connecting to the Department of Materials network. In addition the University runs a wireless network available in many locations around the department and the university. For users working away from Oxford the university provides a secure Virtual Private Network service, often used for accessing on-line journals remotely.

Help and Advice: OUCS provides an extensive range of services for all members of the University and OUCS webpages (http://www.oucs.ox.ac.uk) are a VERY good source of IT help and advice. Additional help and advice is available from the Department IT staff.