KSU Math and Computer Science Systems

The simplest way is to place a .forward file in one's home directory. Inside the file, simply specify the email address to which the email should be forwarded. e.g. nobody@aol.com

To view a current list of supported software, click here.

There are plenty of fine webpages out there for Windows tips. You can access these by just typing "windows tips" in a search engine. One site systems recommends is: Tech Republic.

LAPACK and NAG are Fortran libraries which contain a bunch of mathematical software that can be called upon. Find out more here.

GNUplot is a interactive plotting package. Find out more here.

You can view our policies by clicking here.

Please go here to request a new account. One must provide a valid @kent.edu email address and verify it before their account will be created.

You can configure Mozilla Thunderbird yourself by following this simple tutorial.

Where can I learn the basics of HTML?

How can I create my own webpage?

How can I install my own cgi scripts?

What is .htaccess and how does this affect my webpages?

How do I use the blackboard bold symbols for the real numbers, the integers, the rationals, and so forth in a LaTeX document?

What are the available LaTeX styles for thesis and dissertation?

How can I change the appearance of the "References" heading in a LaTeX document?

How can I include a copy of an X window in a LaTeX document?

How can I include a Postscript item in a LaTeX document?

Why doesn't my favorite style file work any more?

Much of the work that you do on the computer will involve editing files at one point or another. There are many editors provided, emacs, GNU Emacs, Lucid Emacs, and vi. Each editor has its own strengths and weaknesses, and each has developed a loyal following. Take the time to try them all and decide which one best suits your needs.

vi

vi has many attractive features. It has extremely powerful searching and global replacement capabilities. It is also "standard" in the sense that it is supplied with the Unix operating system; once you learn vi you will know how to use it on any platform. vi also provides a way to recover files lost when a system crash occurs during editing.

On the other hand, vi is strictly a one-file, one-window editor. It also has two modes: edit and command. Some users find this distracting.

emacs

emacs allows you to view multiple files (or different parts of the same file) in separate windows. You can also cut and paste text between windows in emacs.

On the downside, emacs is not as standardized as vi; you may find the key bindings at one site completely different from those at another site.

In order to use the fax machines, you must be faculty and have an account to which the charge for the fax can be billed. A list of fax machines are available here.

You can troubleshoot your problems, and get some questions answered by clicking here.

• Question: What is a security certificate?
• Answer: The information used to establish a secure connection by SSL protocol. In order for an SSL connection to be created, both sides must have a valid Security Certificate.

• Question: I am getting a "Secure Connection Failed" page.
• Answer: This is normal. Just click the link on the bottom saying "Or you can add an exception..." A dialog box will come up. Click 'Get Certificate' and then confirm. This will store the certificate.

• Question: Do invalid certificates indicate fraud?
• Answer: Sometimes they do. If a warning comes up about an invalid certificate, it is for your protection. Only accept certificates if you are 100% sure the site can be trusted. Ours is a self-signed certificate, and is okay to be trusted.

• Question: Why do OUR certificates come up 'invalid'?>
• Answer: Web browsers do not accept self-signed certificates by default. They expect a published certificate with the Certificate Authority that costs a lot of money. Unfortunately, we do not have a budget for that.

You can configure Mozilla Thunderbird yourself by following this simple tutorial.

HTAccess is a means of providing password-protection for HTML documents and directories on a web server. Once implemented, HTAccess will prompt a user (through the browser) to enter a username and password. The user will only be allowed to view the requested web page if a valid username and password is entered.

HTAccess can be implemented by any user on the system on any directory in the user's public_html directory. Implementation requires only two simple steps:

1. Creation of a .htaccess file in the directory you wish to protect.
2. Creation of a .htpasswd file.

The .htaccess file is the control file for the HTAccess interface. It specifies the path to the .htgroup and .htpasswd files, as well as the access instruction (which determines who is allowed to access the web pages in the directory).

The .htgroup files can be used to define groups of people (such as students in a class or other instructors), so that access can be allowed for entire groups instead of by individual user.

The .htpasswd file contains the list of valid user name and encrypted password pairs for use by the .htaccess file.

• Question: What is a security certificate?
• Answer: The information used to establish a secure connection by SSL protocol. In order for an SSL connection to be created, both sides must have a valid Security Certificate.
• Question: I am getting a "Secure Connection Failed" page.
• Answer: This is normal. Just click the link on the bottom saying "Or you can add an exception..." A dialog box will come up. Click 'Get Certificate' and then confirm. This will store the certificate.
• Question: Do invalid certficates indicate fraud?
• Answer: Sometimes they do. If a warning comes up about an invalid certificate, it is for your protection. Only accept certificates if you are 100% sure the site can be trusted. Ours is a self-signed certificate, and is okay to be trusted.
• Question: Why do OUR certificates come up 'invalid'?
• Answer: Web browsers do not accept self-signed certificates by default. They expect a published certificate with the Certificate Authority that costs a lot of money. Unfortunately, we do not have a budget for that.

The reason for this warning is due to the certificate we use is not registered with the Certificate Authority. If we were to register it with them, the problem would go away. Unfortunately, this costs a lot of money, and we do not have a budget for that.

The Math Department has Magma available for use on the server excalibur.math.kent.edu. To run Magma, type 'magma' (no quotes) at the shell prompt. For more information, click here.

The LAPACK and NAG Fortran Libraries contain a wealth of mathematical software and can be called by (user-written) C or Fortran programs. For more information, click here.

GNUPLOT is an easy-to-use interactive plotting package. For more information, click here.

Matlab is a scientific computing and visualization system. For more information, click here.

The Maple Symbolic Computation System is a powerful tool for the analysis of mathematical and scientific problems. For more information, click here.

Operating Systems - HPUX, RedHat Linux, SUN Solaris, Microsoft Windows

Web Browsers - Microsoft Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox

Email Clients - Mozilla Thunderbird, Mutt, Pine*

Software Packages - Microsoft Software

* = In the process of being phased out.