Computers at the Institute

The Institute has more than one computing department to serve different needs of different administrative departments and Schools of the Institute. The computer department that serves scholars in the School of Historical Studies is called the Information Technology Group, or ITG, for short. Staff who work in ITG are available to assist anyone in the School of Historical Studies with a variety of needs related to computing at the Institute.

The Administrative Officer of the School of Historical Studies will provide arriving scholars with account information and instructions that are needed to open a new computer account. At the time this information is provided scholars will be required to sign a statement indicating awareness of the existence and basic expectations of the Institute's Computer Use Policy. Office computers will not open or operate until these initial processes have been completed.

If you have been assigned an office with an Institute-provided computer, it is generally best to try opening your Institute computer account for the first time on yourt office computer. Steps for doing so depend somewhat on the type of operating system requested. You can find step-by-step instructions for the various types of operating systems offered on the web here.

If you are planning to use your account primarily from your own personal laptop, there are separate instrctions for getting started using a laptop.

Initial meeting: We suggest that arriving scholars arrange an initial meeting with the head of ITG, Jonathan Peele, to review potential computer needs and available services. During this meeting you may want to give a brief explanation of your research, so Jonathan can consider what technical resources are available at the Institute that might be useful to you. To arrange your initial meeting please contact Jonathan Peele directly at jmpeele@ias.edu

Some of the most frequently used computing-related resources include:

Help Desk - telephone extension 8044, email askitg@ias.edu

Staff at the Help Desk can be reached Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. to answer questions and to help resolve computer problems that you may encounter while working on the Institute campus, including in Institute housing. The Help Desk can be reached by telephone (ext. 8044) or by email (askitg@ias.edu).

If your question relates to computer equipment provided by the Institute a staff memember may come to you to work directly on the computer to resolve the problem. If you are using equipment that does not belong to the Institute ITG staff still may be able to help, but please understand that it is Institute policy that ITG staff may not work directly on equipment that is not owned by the Institute. They can, however, answer questions, provide guidance, and help you find further assistance elsewhere. If you need computer help, the quickest method is to contact the Help Desk by dialing 8044 from the nearest campus phone. If someone does not pick up the phone you will be transferred to voicemail. In that case the fastest way to get help is to leave a message, including the extension number where someone can call you back, and a short description of your computing problem. The Help Desk staff will call you back as quickly as possible.

Please note that it is always best, if you have a computing problem, to call the Help Desk line, not the direct extension of any individual staff member. ITG staff have other responsibilities, and they share the task of monitoring the Help Desk on rotation. If you call a staff member directly, that person may not be available to help you. If you leave voicemail for a specific individual, you may have to wait a long time for a response since that person could be away from the office, on vacation, in a meeting, or otherwise occupied. The Help Desk line, 8044, is monitored regularly throughout the day. There is always a staff member assigned to the Help Desk during regular working hours, and the best way to reach that person is to dial 8044. If the person that you reach is unable to resolve your concern he or she will know who else to contact for assistance, or where to seek other available resources.

Email - ITG provides email services as needed for the School of Historical Studies. The following links contain additional information related to your Institute email account.

Internet in Housing - WIFI access is available to anyone living in Institute housing. For further information on connecting to WIFI in housing, or elsewhere on campus, click here.

Printing - Office computers provided by the Institute are linked to network printers located nearby.

Printing on letterhead paper: This link will lead to written instructions for printing on letterhead stationary.
ITG (the Institute Technology Group) provides support for Institute printers as well as computers. If a network printer fails to print properly please call the ITG Help Desk, extension 8044, for assistance. If ITG staff are not immediately available to assist with a printing problem the staff of the School of Historical Studies may be able to help resolve some basic printing concerns. To request help from School Staff call Terrie Bramley at extension 8320, or send an email requesting assistance to the School's Staff Pool at: hspool@ias.edu.

Training - A number of training courses designed to help you become familiar with various pieces of software and equipment are offered at the start of each term. A list of available training sessions is posted on the IAS Computer Training page.

Online Access to Princeton's Electronic Resources - The Computing department helps to facilitate the links to Princeton University's online resources. For further information click here.

Much more information about computing at the Institute can be found on the ITG web page.