Priorities & Policies Related to the Use of the Sun Workstations in Room 404 EMRO-
the Synoptic Laboratory
The purpose of the following is to minimize the hassle involved
in managing the use of the workstations in the Synoptic Laboratory. All
students with accounts on the Sun workstations in Room 404
must read and agree to abide by these policies.
Updates may be issued on a quarterly basis.
It is your responsibility to review this page at least
once a quarter.
Please e-mail to the course
instructor your intention to abide by these policies no later than the
second week of the quarter or your account will be disabled.
Priorities
The Sun workstations in the Synoptic Laboratory
will be used heavily this year in many
different ways. The following summarizes the priority
of use of the workstations.
(1) The automated procedures that retrieve
via the Internet over 200 Mbytes of data per day. These data are then processed
into Gempak format and graphic files are created for display on the
workstations and over the network via Mosaic.
The Utah LAM is run on the workstations and the output
is transferred to the SLC WSFO via internet.
If the workstations are used improperly, these automated procedures will
fail and considerable effort will be required to retrieve and process
the information interactively.
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(2) Interactive use for course assignments.
Students in Meteo 341, 553, and 581 all require access to these workstations
during some class periods and at other hours.
Students in other courses will need the workstations on an occasional
basis as well. Students enrolled in these courses have highest priority
during class time, if that time is to be used for computer based instruction.
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(3) Interactive use for software development and research.
Graduate students and staff use the workstations for development of the
tools used in the courses and in research. In addition, graphical
display of research results requires the use of the workstations frequently.
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(4) Research numerical simulations with the Utah LAM and MM4.
Research is underway in the department that relies on simulations
that require considerable numerical computation. This use will grow
with time.
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(5)
Interactive use for Mosaic and News browsing.
Unrestricted access to Mosaic and News allows
students considerable latitude regarding what information they seek.
Remember, however, that these workstations are intended for meteorological
applications and that at no time should surfing the net deny a
higher priorty use of the workstations.
Access to the Synoptic Laboratory
Students enrolled in Meteo 553-555 and 581
may obtain
keys to Room 404 and the EMRO building.
Inappropriate use of the access to the building or lab will require
you to have to return them.
You are strongly encouraged to use the workstations at non-peak times.
Students enrolled in Meteo 341-511-512 may not obtain keys.
The lab is open usually by 8:00AM M-F and is closed around 6:00PM.
The building is locked usually by 8:00PM.
Access after hours is encouraged and can be accomplished
by arriving before 5-6 PM and notifying John Horel or Lloyd Staley
of your intention to stay in the lab after hours.
An afternoon period may be established during which students in this
course may have high priority.
Never leave the lab unlocked after hours!
After hour access to the lab is intended
for students enrolled in Meteorology courses
only.
Other Issues
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Never give your password to another individual. All students
have access to weather information through the computer labs
on campus and the department's mosaic server.
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Computer resources for students are finite. It is your responsibility
to manage your computer usage. Disk usage should be minimized.
Printing should be for course assignments only.
Read your mail promptly and save it to files; never leave mail in the
new mail folder.
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As mentioned before,
unrestricted access to Mosaic and News allows
students considerable latitude regarding what information they seek.
However, these workstations do not belong to you, they belong to the
department and university.
For this reason, you do not have a right to use these workstations in a manner
that is deemed inappropriate by the department or university.
At this time, the following is deemed inappropriate by the department.
(1)
You are not permitted to download and keep in your directory graphic files
or animations that require disk space in excess of a couple of mbytes.
(2) Any graphics, animations, or large text files
stored on disk should pertain to meteorology or related fields.
(3)
Subscription to mail-lists and newsgroups
related to personal interests, whether legos/kayaking/skiing,
is permitted as long as it does not impact the computer
resources in the department or college.
All activities related to these subscriptions must be dealt with electronically.You may not use the department's printers for personal use.
The policies set by the university for electronic information are not defined
clearly at the present time.
If you agree with the preceding policies, send email to jhorel@met.utah.edu