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View OUCS service level descriptions
The OUCS Help Centre is the initial point of contact for all of our front-line user support services. The Help Centre is located on the ground floor at 13 Banbury Road, Oxford, OX2 6NN. Click here for travel instructions and a map.
Help Centre opening hours are: 8:30am - 20:30pm Monday to Friday
Please note: There are open access computers available for users to check their email and to surf the Internet. However, if you need to use computers for other tasks such as word processing, self teaching of courses or scanning, you will need to register for a free Help Centre account.
The Help Centre has a variety of resources including computers running a wide range of software, scanners, printers, video-playback, etc.
The Help Centre currently has 16 PCs running Windows XP, and 4 iMacs running MacOS/X. All the machines can read and write CDs and DVDs. The computers all have accessible USB sockets for the connection of memory sticks etc.
All the PCs have access to a range of standard Windows applications including:
Some more specialised software is available on specific machines:
The machines with scanners are bookable via a diary adjacent to each machine.
All the Macs have access to a range of standard applications including:
Two Intel iMacs are reserved for video editing work. These machines have iLife and Final Cut Express HD installed and are connected to a Digital/VHS video recorder. The video-editing machines are bookable via a diary adjacent to each machine. A wider range of video facilities, e.g. Tape-to-CD transfer, is available at the Media Production Unit in Wellington Square.
Three short-use (up to 15 minutes) email terminals are available in the Help Centre.
3.4. Connection of Users' Own Machines
Users' own machines can be connected in two ways:
3.5. Printers and Photocopiers
Self-service A4 laser-printing is available in both black-and-white (5p per sheet) and colour (25p per sheet). Self-service A4 photocopying is also available at 5p per sheet. Printing and photocopying require the purchase of a Paycard from either the vending machine near the printers, or from the OUCS Shop (which can also supply a receipt if required).
A3 printing (both colour and black and white) and also colour photocopying are available via the operations staff at the Job Reception window.
Three Epson 2400-dpi flatbed scanners with 35mm film and transparency capability are available, two attached to Windows PCs, and one attached to a Mac. The scanning machines are bookable via a diary adjacent to each machine. Brief information on image and text scanning is given on a wall-poster near the scanners. More detailed information can be found in two separate web pages:
4. Using Help Centre Facilities
Only current university members are eligible to use the Help Centre. You should carry your University Card with when when visiting the Help Centre as a means of identification. Admission to the building after 5.30pm requires the production of your University Card.
Before you can use the Help Centre PCs or Macintoshes (other than the email terminals) you need to register for a Help Centre account. You do this via a self-registration terminal at the bottom of the entrance ramp in the Help Centre.
Logging into Help Centre computers is now done using your Oxford username and password - i.e. the same one you use for Nexus and Weblearn. If you do not know, or have forgotten, your Oxford username or password, please go to the main helpdesk in the Help Centre.
Staff for the Help Centre are drawn from all parts of OUCS. The training they receive for their work in the Help Centre aims to enable all staff to deal with a wide range of common problems. Different staff can also share some of their own specialist expertise with the rest of the team so that the Help Centre can solve a high proportion of requests and problems at the initial stage.
Katherine Craddock is the manager of the Help Centre, assisted by her deputy manager, Stuart Robeson. You can contact the Help Centre managers with any comments or suggestions you have about the service. Please DO NOT email your IT problems to the managers - use the Help Request Form linked from the bottom of the OUCS Help Page for this.