UWSP Computers at Home


Policy regarding GPR Funded UWSP owned computers taken to the homes of UWSP Faculty or Staff August 2001, Approved by the Dean Fall 2001

All UWSP computers are property of UWSP

All computers are property of UWSP, not of an individual, a department, or a College. Information Technology, as the central distribution point of computing equipment, is made aware of campus wide needs (see "How to get on the computer waiting list"). When a computer in an office, lab or other area at UWSP is replaced, the "old" computer will be used by UWSP following this priority schedule:

1 - As a "trickle-down" within the same department or college

2 - As a replacement for another computer on campus as determined by the waiting list maintained by Information Technology

3 - As a home machine for UWSP faculty/staff per approval of their supervisor (see "About Home Computers for UWSP Faculty and Staff")

4 - As "University Surplus" (see surplus policy - http://www.uwsp.edu/it/policies/surplus.htm)

About Home Computers for UWSP Faculty and Staff

Normally the primary workstation for UWSP faculty and staff will be located in their on campus work location. Occasional exceptions occur where home is the faculty/staff member's primary work location (e.g. they have an appointment that does not have on-campus office space, they are on temporary leave, etc.). If an employee's primary computer will not be on-campus, the employee must have approval from their supervisor for this arrangement. Departments are responsible for knowing the location of University computers and must keep records of machines taken home. A computer configured for use on Campus will not work away from the Campus network. If a computer will be used off campus, IT will need to reconfigure the computer to work off the network. If the computer will be used at home for Internet access, a modem or cable modem will probably need to be purchased. Usually, these are not already in a University computer.

Sometimes a faculty or staff member can benefit from having a secondary workstation in their home to conduct University business. It must be understood that support for these machines is secondary to campus machines (see "Support for UWSP computers taken home"). See "How to get on the home computer waiting list" to be put in queue for computers available for home use.

How to get on the computer waiting list

A department or lab can often benefit from computers that other departments or labs are no longer using. To get on the waiting list, enter a Faculty/Staff/Office work order for Information Technology at http://www.uwsp.edu/it/workorder including the following information:

Location needing new computer Reason for needing new computer Current model number of computer in that location (if applicable) Any special functions the computers must perform

If computers become available, they will be distributed by Information Technology to the department or lab and will be supported as are other campus computers.

How to get on the home computer waiting list

To get on the waiting list for a computer to take home, your department head or supervisor should enter a Faculty/Staff/Office work order for Information Technology at http://www.uwsp.edu/it/workorder including the following information:

  • Your name
  • Your office phone number

Support for UWSP computers taken home

Computers designated to be taken home by a faculty or staff member will receive the following services from Information Technology:

Initial setup

cleaning of "old" programs and data off the computer installation of an operating system that does not require campus network connection configuration of RAS if requested

Office 2000 CD's can be purchased by the Department from Information Technology for the individual to install on the "home" computer. The UW-System agreement with Microsoft allows this software to be purchased by departments at minimal cost (in August, 2001 the price is $5.80). It must be purchased by a department and not an individual. Remote troubleshooting help from the Help Desk (346-HELP (4357) or 1-877-832-8977) during normal help desk hours. Hands on troubleshooting from Information Technology under the following conditions:

A work order must be entered. The computer must be brought to Information Technology (no house calls). The computer must meet or exceed the "minimum standard of configuration" for the current year.

If a "home" computer requires a repair that will cost UWSP money (replacement part, etc.) or an excessive amount of repair staff time, the machine will be slated for surplus and will not be repaired. If the home computer is no longer useable, UWSP does not have any responsibility to find a suitable replacement for that computer.

Responsibility of the computer user for the "home" computer

At home computer users are responsible for: