Tips, FAQs and good practice

Some useful online tutorials - aimed at the complete novice - which staff may choose to direct new users towards..

Not just joke advice from The IT Crowd, but a trick that can solve up to 80% of computer problems...

FAQ - CD-Roms (even the ones the library lends out) will not run on our public computers.

Yahoo users cannot access any attachments to emails within the libraries. It has been like that for years now, and ICT cannot fix it.

Clarifying the difference between the powerful Outlook, which has to be installed on the PC you are using - and webmail, which you can use from home, on holiday, etc.

NetLoan has a different database of user names from the one on WorkFlows - so the first time a card is used to create a booking it must be logged in as the user (staff will not be able to reserve a session until the card has been used once - and NetLoan has stored the ID).

Monitors have their own controls, and you don't need them attached to a computer to re-adjust them.  Worth familiarising yourself with how the local ones work.

Changing the appearance of a browsing window, using the controls in Internet Explorer.

A simple move, which can reduce typing, copying errors, and such - a very useful basic skill - Copying and Pasting, or Cutting and Pasting.

New users often worry about getting lost, or doing something stupid - it is worth knowing about the Undo Button, and the Back Button.

Hyperlinks to websites should work on public PCs, but hyperlinks to email addresses cannot open a 'default email client' on a public PC.

Brief guidelines to effective searching...

Right-click functions can be very useful (especially for staff) but some of their functions are disabled on the public PCs.

Advice on marking public PCs broken (using NetLoan) and letting ICT know.

A useful tweak for staff performing certain tasks on WorkFlows, where they want to change the default (say searching for Title instead of Barcode).

For people who don't realise they can move 'windows' around, resize them, etc.

You don't always need to use the mouse - some keyboard shortcuts can make it easier than breaking the flow, and switching tools...

Some shortcuts for use in Word documents...

Members of the public often want to see the 'safely remove USB' gizmo, but we don't use it on the public PCs.

When you can't get to the Google web page...

Simplifying the joining process.

When the public resist the idea of self-service using RFID kiosks.

Members of the public bring files in to work on which may or may not prove compatible with our machines or software.

Here are some guidelines of what may or may not work - and what to do...

The public can use the Desktop for temporary storage, but need to use the Delete key to remove any sensitive files before their session ends, as files remain on the Desktop until the next reboot. They will be visible to the next session user.

Here's one example of a simple, free, online resource which can solve file format problems...not necessarily the best, and not the only one...

Users of the public internet access still tend to roam around looking for an available PC, rather than using the booking system, to check for available PCs (either now or in the near future) and reserving it for themselves.

Innovations training

Embervision consultancy website