Graduate Student Technology News

Welcome to the fall semester! Here are reminders about the services and resources available to you from the Office of Information Technology (OIT). We are proud to support Rice’s mission and goals related to research, teaching, learning and scholarship as your technology partner.

Remote Learning

While each student may have different needs, there is a Preparing for Remote Learning checklist with considerations to prepare for and enhance your remote learning experience. You may also want to view the Student Guidelines for Remote Learning for suggestions and guidelines on participating in online events.

Online meetings and interactions can be an excellent way to stay engaged, get help when you need it, and feel supported. Zoom License accounts are available to all Rice faculty, staff, and students. You can also use it to schedule meetings or study sessions with other students. If you use Zoom, keep it updated so you will have the latest security fixes to prevent Zoombombing and other potential privacy issues. Google Meet is an alternate tool for virtual meetings and is accessible through the GSuite platform.

More: Rice University Guide to Remote Learning

Instructor Resources

If you teach, the Learning Environments (LE) group offers a variety of resources to help you learn to use instructional tools. Workshops and one-on-one training for Canvas (Learning Management System), Kaltura (digital media sharing), Zoom (video conferencing) and other educational technology tools can be found at the Training Center.

Classrooms and teaching studios are equipped with multimedia and audio/visual equipment. Find information about teaching equipment at Fall 2020 Technology Planning. Introductory and advanced training is available upon request.

If you encounter technical issues while teaching in a classroom, there are Tech TAs stationed throughout the academic buildings that are available to come assist your class. Each classroom has an information card that lists the location of the nearest Tech TA station. You can also call 713-348-4989.

For non-urgent questions, please email teaching@rice.edu. To subscribe to our monthly newsletter, go to LE-News and click Join Group.

More: Teaching and Learning Tools

Research Computing

The Center for Research Computing offers resources and services that can help you to scale and accelerate your own research and that which you do for your advisor.

Services:
•    One-on-one consulting (email help@rice.edu with subject: crc-facilitation)
•    Workshops and classes
•    On-boarding onto our resources

Resources:
•    Cloud computing (at Rice and beyond)
•    Data storage and data transfer
•    Supercomputing (at Rice and beyond)
•    Remote access to research computing resources

When your data is too big for your laptop, contact the Center for Research Computing! We’re here to hook you up with powerful tools and show you how to use them.

More: Research Computing

Technology Security

Everyone in the Rice community is responsible for protecting the electronic assets of the university. Follow security precautions at your remote working locations and be aware of email scams from hackers trying to take advantage of uncertainty during the pandemic.

More: Information Security Office

Software

A number of software products are available for free or at a discounted rate to current students. Check out the list of Software Available to Students. Free products that can be installed on a personal computer include Microsoft 365, Matlab, SAS, SPSS, Mathematica and more. Discounted prices are available for Adobe Creative Cloud, Maple, and others.

Houston: If you are living and studying in Houston, please either download the software to your own computer or use a computer on campus.

Outside Houston: If you are fully remote outside Houston and are unable to download the software to your computer and need to access software for your class, please have your professor email teaching@rice.edu. We have a limited pool of VDI (virtual desktop infrastructure) computers that will be available to students studying fully remote that can’t download software to their computer.  (Note: The VMWare Horizon access to computer lab software from the spring has been deactivated.)

More: Software Availability Locations

Storage: Data storage, file sharing and collaboration spaces include U:drive, Rice Box, Microsoft One Drive, and Google Drive.

Voice and videoconferencing: Rice telephone system (Cisco VoIP services) and Zoom Videoconferencing.

Getting Help

OIT’s Help Desk is the central point of contact for computing help and support. Help Desk staff answer technical questions and route service requests to other OIT professionals. You can submit requests any time via the web site or email. You can also call during office hours.

Rice OIT Help Desk

OIT is currently providing contactless technical support only. Walk-in services and office visits have been suspended.

Telephone support:
713-348-4357 (HELP)
Monday – Friday: 8:00 a.m – 5:00 p.m.
(excluding holidays)

Request help electronically:
• complete online form
• email helpdesk@rice.edu

Online resources:
IT Status: Subscribe to email or text notifications about incidents or maintenance
Rice KnowledgeBase: Online how-to documentation and announcements

More: Help Desk Services