• General Lab Use
• Working with Applications and Email
• Saving Files and User Settings
• Printing in a Unity Lab

General Lab Use

Locations
OIT provides Mac OS X workstations in all of its Unity computer labs.  In addition, many college and departmental computer labs are based on Unity lab software.

Availability
Workstations and the other resources in Unity labs are open to all NC State students, faculty, and staff who have active Unity accounts.

Logging In
To log in, you will need your Unity ID and your Unity password.

Using the Workstation
When you log in on a Mac OS X workstation, an Admin Launcher window will appear, with icons for many programs.  You can open programs from here, or you can use one of the icons on the Desktop to work with your files.  Additionally, you can access applications from the Applications folder, located in the Macintosh HD.

Logging Out
Use either the Log Out icon on the desktop or the Log Out item in the Apple menu.  It is extremely important that you log out when you finish using the workstation.  If you don't, anyone else who uses that workstation will have full access to your account and your computing resources, including all of your files.  It is your responsibility to keep your account secure.  Please see Safe Computing at NC State for more information.

Working with Applications and Email

Application Programs
Applications on a Unity Mac OS X workstation are available in the Admin Launcher window, which opens after you log in.  If this launcher window is closed, you can open it by clicking on its icon in the Dock.

Running an Application
The Admin Launcher window shows the icons for the applications available at your workstation.  To run an application, click its icon.  If you cannot find a particular icon, try looking in one of the other tabs in the window.

Checking Email
As a student, you can gain access to your NC State Gmail via a Web browser - go to gmail.ncsu.edu.  For more information, see the google.ncsu.edu.

Email Programs Available
OIT provides Apple Mail, Mozilla and Thunderbird on Unity workstations.

Saving Files and User Settings

Saving Files
You should always save your files into your Unity (AFS) home directory (your MyAFS icon), which you can access from any lab workstation.  Clicking on the MyAFS folder will take you there.
NOTE: Any file you save on a workstation desktop stays there.  It is not copied to your AFS home directory, and you WILL NOT be able to use it on another workstation.  Instead of leaving files on the workstation desktop, be sure to copy them to your AFS home directory or to a removable medium (e.g., external hard drive, USB memory disk, CD, DVD).

Saving Account Settings
When you use a Unity Mac OS X workstation, your settings are saved only on that individual workstation.  Like files stored on the desktop, those settings are not accessible from another computer.

Printing in a Unity Lab

You can print from a Unity workstation to the printer in the lab. See Printing on the "Workstations in Unity Labs" page for details.