Greenfield Community College

Welcome to the Greenfield Community College Computer Network—GCCNET—your local access to the information superhighway. Your ability to send and receive electronic mail and your access to the Internet will open up vast new worlds of information to you. You can make everyone's journey easier and more pleasurable by reading and following a few simple rules that are listed below. Happy travels!

PRIMARY GOALS: GCCNET is connected to a data communications network managed by the University of Massachusetts Information Technology Systems (ITS) for Massachusetts state colleges, community colleges, and universities in Massachusetts. Our goal is to support and enhance instruction and research activities in and among educational institutions by providing access to computer mediated communication resources, shared resources, unique resources, and the opportunity for collaborative work.  In addition to access to intra-network shared resources, GCCNET, through ITS membership, provides access to regional, national, and international resources.

AVAILABILITY:
Students may have access to Internet during any semester in which they are enrolled in courses at GCC.
Faculty and staff will have permanent accounts during the time of their employment at GCC.
Community service workshop participants will have access up to two weeks after the ending date of the workshop.

SUBSCRIPTION ISSUES: Users who wish to join the various lists and groups available on Internet are free to do so provided they unsubscribe by the end of the semester.

CONNECTION FROM HOME:  Faculty, staff and students may access their GCC email at home if they have an Internet Service Provider (ISP).  GCC does not provide Internet access.

PROCEDURE FOR OBTAINING AN E-MAIL ACCOUNT (students):
1. Student email accounts are created automatically for registered students.
2. Visit GCC's web site or contact the Academic Computing Office in E137A for login instructions.
http://www.gcc.mass.edu/resources/computing/email.html

PROCEDURE FOR OBTAINING AN E-MAIL ACCOUNT (faculty and staff):
1. Forms are available in the Human Resource Office, from your department, or on the Information Technology website:  http://www.gcc.mass.edu/offices/it/forms/networkapp.doc
2. Fill out the GCC Computer Network Application with Access Policy form and submit to the Director of Human Resources for processing.
3. User names must consist of last name except where this would result in a duplicate name and ones first initial would be added to the end of the last name.
4. New individual accounts typically require a minimum of two days to process and activate.


ACCEPTABLE USE POLICIES

ENCOURAGED USES:
1. Communication with researchers and educators in connection with research, curriculum development or enrichment, or instruction.
2. Communication and exchange for professional development, to maintain currency, or to debate issues in a field or subfield of knowledge.
3. Use for disciplinary, society, university, association, government, advisory, or standards activities related to the user's research and instructional activities.
4. Use in applying for or administering grants or contracts for research, instruction, or any valid educational activity.
5. Any other administrative communications or activities in direct support of research, instruction and administration.
6. Announcements of new products or services for use in research or instruction, but not advertising of any kind.
7. Any traffic originating from a network of another member agency of the Federal Networking Council if the traffic meets the acceptable use policy of that agency.
8. Communication incidental to otherwise acceptable use.
9. Use as part of a class studying networking or using the network on a regular basis as part of class assignments.
10. Threaded discussions may take place only if students are completing web-based course assignments with WebCT or Blackboard, (or with whatever process GCC is formally using), or if they are using web-based course enhancements developed by faculty.

LIMITATIONS:
1. GCC's computer resources are available only to currently enrolled students and full and part time faculty and staff of GCC. Access is not available to the general public, although visitors from other Massachusetts Public Colleges may use the labs (space permitting).
2. All users are responsible for deleting files which are no longer needed.
3. All use of the GCC Computer Network must comply with GCC Acceptable Use Policy and applicable state and federal laws. These policies are available online, in the GCC Library and in the Academic Computing Lab policy file.
4. The GCC Academic Computing Lab manager is responsible for supervising all use of the lab and its network facilities as well as ensuring compliance with all acceptable use policies and applicable state and federal laws.
5. All use of the GCC Computer Network must be consistent with the goals set forth in our Primary Goal statement.
6. The GCC Computer Network must not be used for private or commercial business activities or personal computing not connected with the college. Game playing is also strictly forbidden.
7. Individual accounts and passwords are not transferable. Usage is limited to the person to whom access was issued. Use of another person's account or providing unauthorized access to your account constitute grounds for termination of your access privileges.
8. Profanity, harassing, obscene, or sexually explicit materials may not be sent through, downloaded to or transmitted from the GCC system. Such use will result in immediate termination of all access privileges and possible legal action.
9. Any attempt to disrupt, interfere with, modify, or damage the operation of the GCC Computer network through access granted by this account will result in immediate termination of this access as well as appropriate legal action. Disruptions include, but are not limited to, distribution of unsolicited advertising, propagation of computer worms and viruses, and using the network to make unauthorized entry to any other machine accessible via the network.
10. Any attempt to acquire information stored on the GCC Computer system other than public information and the user's own files constitute a violation of the Commonwealth's Confidentiality laws and will be subject to legal action.