Each U of I campus provides limited technical support and a variety of computer-related services for online students. In addition, several online programs have dedicated technical staff who can assist with program-program specific technical issues. Campus-level services are summarized below.

Chicago
UIC Online offers several levels of student support. In most of the cases, your course instructor or the designated teaching assistant will help you resolve course-related technology problems. Some programs also provide technical help through college-based centers.

For advanced technical problems, students can contact the Academic Computing and Communications Center's Client Services Office by phone (312-413-0003) or email (consult@uic.edu). You can also find additional technical support information from ACCC's Online Support Page.

Online students are issued Network IDs and may request an account on a UIC UNIX server. The UNIX account can be used for sending and receiving e-mail, publishing Web personal pages, reading network news groups, and much more. More information about computer accounts at UIC is available on the ACCC's Accounts, Machines, Passwords page.

Online students living in the Chicagoland area can take advantage of UIC's free dial-up Internet access services. The service itself is free and available to all UIC faculty, staff, and students. However, if you live outside the local UIC calling area, you will incur standard long-distance charges. Therefore, unless you live within the local calling area, you should probably consider an alternative Internet Service Provider. The ACCC Web site offers some good advice on Finding and Selecting an Internet Service Provider.

The ACCC has created a collection of software called the Network Services Kit containing most of the software necessary to access online course materials and various ACCC services. The NSKit is available for both Macs and PCs and and can be downloaded via FTP or purchased on a CD-ROM from the EpiCenter Book Shop or Micro/Station. The cost of the NSKit is $15 plus tax and shipping. To order, call the EpiCenter Bookshop at (312) 413-5540 between 8:30 a.m. and 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, or 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. CST Saturday.

Springfield
UIS students needing assistance may call the UIS Tech Support Hotline toll-free (in Illinois) at (877) 847-0443. Outside Illinois, please call (217) 206-7357. When classes are in session, telephone assistance is available Monday through Friday 8:00 a.m. to midnight, Saturday from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and Sunday from 3:30 p.m. to midnight. All times are Central Standard Time. You may also e-mail otel@uis.edu or techsupport@uis.edu for after-hours assistance.

All online students are issued Network IDs and an e-mail account on a Microsoft Exchange server which can be accessed via a standard Web browser. Students who already have an e-mail account through an Internet Service Provider do not need to use the Exchange account. Additional information about these services is available on the UIS Network Services Student Information page.

Urbana-Champaign
Students in online courses offered by UIUC can contact the online help desk provided by the Division of Academic Outreach. This live chat space is usually monitored by members of the Web Technology Group from 9:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M., Monday through Friday. If no one is available in the chat space, send e-mail to helpdesk@talon.outreach.uiuc.edu. A staff member will respond to your e-mail request as soon as possible.

Off-campus students are eligible for a student computer account (which can be used for e-mail, web publishing, etc.), provided they have an Internet Service Provider (ISP) and are currently enrolled in an off-campus course. To request an account, contact Darla Long in the Division of Academic Outreach at 1 (800)-252-0360, extension 3-9806, or locally at (217) 333-9806. After a Network ID has been assigned, usually within a week, the student will be sent a form with a login and instructions on how to create and submit a password. Once established, the account is active only during semesters when the student is enrolled in a course. Occasionally, an instructor will arrange computer accounts for an entire class.