Union Technologist #35
February 1999

HeightsNET 1999
Frequently Asked Questions Part 1

What is HeightsNET?

HeightsNET refers to CH-UH City Schools' Internet/Web services. HeightsNET was established in 1995 by Dr. Ackerman to expand Internet services already at Heights High to the entire district. Because HeightsNET began as a high school and library resource, you will still see remnants of that organizational structure. There are three services commonly associated with HeightsNET.:

Dial-in connections to the Internet for all employees.
E-mail services provided to staff and students.
The CH-UH School's public and internal web pages.

What are the plans for upgrading and improving HeightsNET?

Dial-In: We currently have 9 phone lines and 33K modems. The HeightsNET dial-in number, 371-6534, will automatically connect to one of the available phone lines. Since we fixed a problem with the system in November, busy signals do not seem to be a major problem. If necessary, our current equipment can support 7 more phone lines. Let support@staff.chuh.org know if you are regularly getting a busy signal at specific times of day.
E-mail: All employees have an e-mail account created for them. We currently support the most common Internet standard: POP3 and SMTP. We may eventually add IMAP and Web Browser based access to your e-mail account. These would allow easier access from multiple locations.
Web Pages: HeightsNET relies largely on users to create and maintain web page content. That is why not all schools, departments or groups have a web page and why some are not kept up-to-date. If you would like help creating a school related web page, you can contact the webmaster, Steve Titchenal.

New and updated pages on HeightsNET have a new look designed by Heights High student Bram Lambrecht. This will provide more consistency and easier navigation of HeightsNET. Some newly created or updated areas include:

The online version of the district Technology Acceptable Use Policy and Guidelines includes links to related Board Policies.
Staff Development's Spring Instructional Institute offerings and upcoming meetings of the Technology Users Group (TUG).
Educational Resources has an expanded search of its Video Collection and Professional Resources including the full text of many educational journals.
The Staff Directory can be searched by position (i.e. find all first grade teachers or all science teachers in the district). A few staff have even created their own web pages.
An online Help Desk includes commonly asked questions about HeightsNET, computer troubleshooting and classroom uses to help you solve problems yourself.

What do I need dial-in to HeightsNET from my home computer?

New computers usually come with everything you need pre-installed. You will need to connect your computer's modem to your phone line and configure the computer's software to dial into HeightsNET. Instructions are available for both Mac and Windows computers. When you request an account, include your operating system version (Mac 7.5 or 8.0; Windows 3.1, 95 or 98). Once you have connected via your modem, you can use any browser to surf the web. Your computer probably came with Netscape Communicator or Internet Explorer pre-installed. Both programs are currently at version 4.5. To check e-mail you can use Netscape Communicator's built-in Messenger module or Microsoft's Outlook software. Most computers at school use Netscape Communicator version 4.0x. There is a HeightsNET CD you can borrow with installers for many versions of these browsers and e-mail clients.

Why is there a 1 hour limit on home access to the Internet?

HeightsNET dial-in is intended to provide staff the opportunity to do work at home and learn more about Internet based educational resources. The one hour limit more fairly distributes our limited phone capacity. If HeightsNET is not busy, you can re-connect immediately. HeightsNET is not intended for extended personal or family use. If you are a heavy user or want to provide access to your family members, consider a commercial Internet provider. The costs are around $20 a month for unlimited access. You can find a list of providers at (www.celestin.com/pocia/index.html)

You can use HeightsNET's Web site and your email account no matter how you connect to the Internet. If you have another email account, your school mail can be forwarded to that account. Then you will have to check only one place for your new mail.