Introduction

The enclosed information is required reading by the end of the first day of class. Hopefully it will answer your questions and get you on the right track for successfully completing the course. After reading this document you will need to take the Orientation Quiz in TalonNet. The quiz must be taken by the end of the first day of class. The first day of class/deadline is:

• January 30, 2012,  by 11:45 PM Pacific Standard Time

Important Note: The quiz will be available in TalonNet one week before the above deadline. But… sometimes the Information Technology department applies updates to TalonNet right before the term starts. So if you cannot access TalonNet or the quiz before the first day of the term, then please wait until 01/28 sometime after 10:00 am. If you cannot access the quiz after 10:00 am on 01/28, then please email me.

• This class is very full with a waiting list. Students that do not take the orientation quiz by the above date may be marked as a “no show” and dropped, allowing students on the waiting list to be moved onto the roster
• Students on the wait list must also take the quiz by the due date. If you are a new student or not a continuing student from the previous term, then you will have to wait until I add you to the class on 01/28  before you can log in to TalonNet and take the quiz. Please try to log in. If you can’t log in, then please wait until I add you on 01/28.
• If you click the links in this document or on the class website and get a logon screen:

Just click the Cancel button. The document or Web page will open up on your screen. Sometimes you will have to click the Cancel button more than once.

Also, if you have problems with the links in this document you can access the links to the documents and Web pages directly from the class website.

Class Website – the class website is located on TalonNet. Follow these steps to log in to TalonNet and find the course.

1. Go to www.cerritos.edu and click on the TalonNet graphic icon hyperlink located under the Students heading on the left side of the page.
2. Log in using your student number and birth date. The birth date should be in the MMDDYY format. For example, if your birth date is July 7, 1979, then you would enter 070779.

3. Once logged in, you will see the My Workspace, courses, and My Sites tabs

4. Next click the CIS 101 course tab. If you do not see the CIS 101 course tab, then click the My Sites tab and then click the CIS 101 course link.

Please note that while viewing pages on the TalonNet website you should set your monitor resolution to 1024 X 768 or higher. The steps are:

1. Display the Windows desktop
2. Right-click the desktop to get the shortcut menu:

3. Select the Properties menu option
4. Click on the Settings tab on the Display Properties dialogue box

5. Set the resolution to 1024 X 768 or higher
6. Click the OK button

After you have logged in and have found the class website your screen should look similar to the following screen shot.

On the class website you will find important information, resources and links for completing the class. The first thing you should review is the course syllabus which is located on the Syllabus page. Click the Syllabus link to view this important information.

If this is the first time using TalonNet, then you will want to go through the Student Tutorials that are located on the My Workspace page. The steps are:

1. Click the My Workspace tab (upper left corner)
2. Click the Student Tutorials link on the menu at the left of the page, to see the available tutorials
3. You will only need to go through the tutorials that we will be using in the class.

To get started you should review the following tutorials:

• Home
• Syllabus – which contains the course outline with important information such as the textbooks, materials, office hours, and the class schedule
• Assignments
• Gradebook
• Announcements – very important to read the announcements every time you log in
• Tests & Quizzes

• Prerequisites: technically none
• Be self-disciplined – meaning you need to read and do your assignments weekly and read the announcements and your email everyday
• Be proactive --- it is your job to check the class website on a weekly basis for the class work due each week. Don’t rely on me to remind you/tell you each week what to do. I will send out reminders to get you started and for the exams. But it is your job to get in to the class website and do the work.
• What you should know:
  • Windows
    • How to name and save files
    • File Explorer – file management: find, save, copy, rename, and delete files, etc.
  • Email
    • Compose a simple email
    • Attach a file to the email
  • Internet – I.E. or FireFox or other browser
    • Used to access the class website on TalonNet

• An Internet connection – high speed is preferred such as DSL or Cable
• Windows operating system
• Microsoft Office Professional 2010, or Enterprise Edition. The user interface/navigation is very different in the 2010 version.
• A web browser such as Internet Explorer or Firefox or some other browser

• The directions for getting the data files are part of the first assignment

• Preferably a Hotmail or Gmail account
• Or, you may use your current email account
• Suggestion – create a new account just for this class
• Important reminder: please be sure to enter your email address in to your MyCerritos student account and in TalonNet as well. They should match in order for consistent communications from me. The steps in TalonNet: MyWorkspace, Account, Modify Details button, make corrections, and then click the Update Details button.

• The CIS computer labs in the Liberal Arts building, LA3 – LA6• The Learning Center (Library) in the Computer Aided Instruction lab, LC 137
• Plan ahead and work ahead if at all possible. If you have problems with your computer you can come to campus and use the computers here. My response to your computer problems will typically be “Use the computers on campus.”

Reading the textbook:

• The course bundle comes with an access code for the publisher's website. There is a huge amount of supporting material available to you on this site.

Lab Assignments:

• The instructions and deadlines for each lab assignment will be posted to the class website in TalonNet on the Assignments page.

• You will do your lab assignment and then upload the required file(s) for the specific lab assignment to TalonNet.

• The assignments have strict deadlines. The assignments must be submitted on the due date before 11:45 PM Pacific Standard Time.

• Assignments may be accepted late, but no later than one week o Note: No assignments will be accepted after the final exam date.

• Grading process --- after the assignment has been graded please check your score in the specific assignment from the Assignments page. Make sure you scroll down to read any Instructor’s Comments I may have written to give you feedback. Near the end of the course please be sure to check all of the scores in the Gradebook. I try to do the grading at least once a day, but I too have meetings, other classes and family obligations. So, don’t panic if I have not graded your assignment right away. Please give it a couple of days before you email me about a missing grade.

Important Note: Please buy the books before the class starts. This is especially important if you are buying the books from an Internet store. The bookstores on the Internet are notorious for promising the books in time and then they arrive late. Also, please buy the software ahead of time as well. It usually takes 2 weeks to get the software. While waiting for the software, you may have to plan on coming to campus to do your work in the computer labs.

Tests:

•       There will be fourteen (14) 15-question quizzes throughout the semester. Each quiz will be open for 30 minutes. You will have a week to take each quiz. Once you start a quiz, the clock will start, and it will close the quiz at the end of the 30 minutes. You will not have time to look up all the answers. The tests will appear on the Tests and Quizzes section of TalonNet. It is quite probable that no two students will see the exact same test questions for each test, as the test generator randomly selects the 15 questions each time a test is launched. There will be no back button on the quizzes. Once you have finished a question, you will not be able to return to it.

Submitting Assignments:

• You will be uploading files to each assignment in TalonNet. You will NOT be emailing me your assignments. Please go through the Assignments tutorial found on the Welcome page on TalonNet to learn how to submit assignments.
• Important note:
  • When naming your files be sure to use the filenames in the lab assignments
    • For example, don’t send me a file named “Project 1 – 2.xlsx” if the filename in the lab book says “Financial Analysis.xlsx”
  • In this example you would name your file “Financial Analysis.xlsx”
  • You may type the name in uppercase or lowercase
  • Don’t include the “ ” quotation marks
• Checking Your Lab Assignments:
  • Thoroughly check your lab assignments before submitting them to me.

Academic Honesty/Dishonesty Policy
Please be sure to read the college’s Academic Honesty/Dishonesty Policy found in the catalogue. A copy of the catalogue is located at www.cerritos.edu . How does it apply to this class? Well first off make sure you are taking the tests and not someone else. Secondly, for the homework assignments make sure you create your own files from scratch and do your own typing. I know some of you work together, share books and computers. That’s OK. What is not OK is having one person type up the assignment and then submitting that file for multiple students. Trust me I have ways of figuring it out if you are cheating in this manner. Statistically, no two assignments will have the same keystrokes, even if the tutorial instructions in the lab book are followed precisely. If I determine that you are cheating, then I will take one of the following actions as stated in the college’s honesty/dishonesty policy:
One or more of the following actions are available to the faculty member who suspects a student has been cheating or plagiarizing:

1. Review-no action.
2. An oral reprimand with emphasis on counseling toward prevention of further occurrences.
3. A requirement that work be repeated.
4. A reduction of the grade earned on the specific work in question, including the possibility of no credit for the work.
5. A reduction of the course grade as a result of item 4 above, including the possibility of a failing grade for the course.
6. Referral to the Office of Judicial Affairs for further administrative action, such as suspension or expulsion.

Announcements
Please check the class website everyday for announcements. Recent announcements will show on the right-side of the home page. Announcements are time sensitive. They typically are available for about a week.

Email Communication

• Please check your email everyday.
• I may send you an email that is time sensitive and so you must check your emails daily to be sure you don’t miss an important message.
• It is your responsibility to keep up with the emails.
• Don’t worry;  I don’t send out that many emails, but when I do my expectation is that you have read them.
• When sending an email to me:
  • On the Subject Line be sure to put CIS 102 Online and class number with a brief description of your question.
  • Make sure you put your name as it appears on the class roster your student ID in the email message.
  • If the question is about an assignment please attach your assignment file to the email.
  • Be sure to CC (courtesy copy) yourself on every email.

   

• VERY IMPORTANT: if you do not receive email from me on a regular basis, then there is a problem. Important messages will also be in the Announcements on the class website. Be sure to read the Announcements daily if you are not getting email from me. Email problems could be due to the following:
  • The email address is incorrect. Verify that the email address is correct in your MyCerritos account and in TalonNet.
  • Your email system thinks my email is spam and it is filtering it out.
    • Check your settings and put my email address in your address book as a “safe” address.
    • Check your Junk email folder. Sometimes your email system will think my email is junk mail.

First Day’s Homework

• Make sure your MyCerritos account and TalonNet account has your current email address
• Go through the Student Tutorials mentioned earlier, especially the Assignments tutorial and the Test & Quizzes tutorial
• Take the Orientation Quiz via TalonNet. Login to TalonNet, go to our class site, click the Tests & Quizzes link, and then click the Orientation Quiz link to start the quiz.
• The quiz is due:
  • January 30, 2012, by 11:45 PM Pacific Standard Time

Questions or need help?

• If you are having technical problems or need assistance with TalonNet, then please contact the Academic Support Center at:
• During business hours: (562) 860-2451 x2404
• Monday – Thursday, 7:30 AM – 9:00 PM, Friday, 7:30 AM – 3:00 PM
• Email: TNStudentHelp@cerritos.edu
• cc me as well at nance@cerritos.edu

• Also, I suggest that you put the above email addresses in your list of contacts.
• If you are having problems specific to an assignment, then you may email me your questions. Please include the file with the question by attaching it to the email. I read my email daily and will try to get back to you within 24 – 48 hours.
  
Contact Information:
• Email me at nance@cerritos.edu
• Face-to-face is by appointment only
• My website is at www.cerritos.edu/nance. It contains information about me,  contact information, and my other classes.