Introduction
The computer laboratory has been a very important facility for institution and organizations alike. As I have had a chance to work in this facility I will explore the various responsibilities and the various sections of the computer laboratory which is typical of any computer laboratory. The sections are categorized according to the work that is done by the technicians in these various sections.
User account management
- The user account management section is concerned with managing the various users who have been created in the system. One of the responsibilities of staff working in this area includes creating and managing accounts of the current users of the system. Since most of the computer laboratories are found in learning institutions, they manage the students who are currently in the institution or manage accounts of the alumni.
- They are also tasked with unlocking accounts which has already been blocked due a breach in the security policy in the institution. This will depend on the discretion of the staff to look into it that the rules that have been set in the system are followed dully.
- They manage passwords for the uses. With computer fraud on the increase, there are many cases where computer fraud has been done due to the fact that users have carelessly left the passwords. The laboratory staffs in this section also have the mandate of making sure that the passwords are in safe custody. One of the key elements that networks still lack is the framework/infrastructure that we will use to manage the network. For this to be achieved there is need to have in place at least one management workstation, one tftp servers, and at least one syslog servers. This is the work of the staff in this section to manage these servers. It is evident that the organization and the institution also need to have password management servers that will be used to manage the passwords that will be used for authentication purposes. These servers will be used to manage the security of the organization. The staff will be required to manage the authenticity of this (Tichy, & McGill, 2003).
Printing management
- With large networks being installed, there is a high increase in network printers so that there is need to have staff to manage the printers because they are under heavy use by the network. They help the students, users, and faculty to manage and preview their printing statements. In this case, they also help the users of the lab to understand the changes that may be experienced in their printing statements. There is also the coming up of online applications. With this in the offing, there is an increase in organizations who store their employee data in the network. The lab staffs are therefore responsible for resetting the PIN numbers of the users online.
- They also help the users into depositing funds into their printing account. There are some instances where the printing is done online.
- They also add and edit print jobs on the network. This will include tasks like changing and status of print jobs during printer downtime like when testing plotter paper. They also diagnose problems that are based on copier/printers.
- They also assist students to print on special types of papers like embossed papers, and using different types of color combinations like inkjet papers, transparencies, labels and stick-backs. There are many requirements that the printer will need to be able to print the required material on the network. It is upon the staff working in the laboratory to make sure that the clients get the best out of the system.
Equipment maintenance
The laboratory staff is also concerned with maintenance of the equipment which is in the institution in which they are attached. The maintenance of the computers and their accessories can be something which is ongoing or something which is done seasonally. They can be subdivided into equipment maintenance, and supervisor assistance. In the issue of equipment maintenance, the staff are tasked with the installation, configuration and troubleshooting of all the information systems which are working in the institution. With the hacking going hi-tech of late, it is imperative that the people concerned with maintaining the computer laboratory staff are well versed with the systems and all the holes that might be a source of attacks to the institution system.
They are also tasked with making sure that the supervisors have images which will enable them to do computer configuration. They make ease for the maintenance of security within the system because of the fact a central management of the system is achieved. With systems being controlled from one point, it is easy to track the various points that act as points of intrusion to the system. They also do imaging on working stations. Apart from these tasks, they also do make sure that the computers are installed at the various locations in which they are defined to be and also make sure that these computers which are installed are also secured. They do so in the process to fulfill what the users of the system want to be done at a particular time.
They also make sure that the network is working and that all the points are functioning in the network. If there is a point which is not getting network connectivity, they will always report it to the network manager who will make sure that that point is troubleshoot (Tichy, & McGill, 2003). They have all the port numbers and their status in the network. Any port which fails to function as is expected will be attended to according to the flow of the network in the system.
Projector management
They also make sure that the equipment that is used for making presentation like projectors are in good condition always (Belli & Radermacher, 2002). An example is situations where the projectors have light which are burnt, it will be the work of the laboratory staff to make sure that the lamps are replaced and that the focus is clear enough for the viewers.
Audio/Visual
Computer laboratory users are to make sure that the projectors that used in the laboratory are functional and that the speakers are in good condition. This should be done immediately the laboratory is opened. The will, in line with this, make sure that the computers and the computers communicate well with each other so that the users and the presenters can have a smooth session. Students and instructors/presenters that do not know how to use laboratory projectors and scanners are supposed to be assisted by the laboratory staff. The A/V staff and users who have scanty knowledge on the use of A/V equipment should be assisted in the laboratory. This work squarely lies with the computer laboratory staff that should make sure that they are all comfortable with this equipment (Futrell, Shafer, & Shafer, 2002).
Problem reports
They are also tasked wit making sure that all the laboratory assessment reports are clearly documented. All the issues that are associated with the laboratory should be well documented. This will help in making sure that error logs and solving of problems is made easier. With the problem logs available, the people solving the problem will find it easy to diagnose the problem.
There should be a system where they report all the issues that deal with computer laboratory. They also make sure that the issues which are reported on the open list on the network are well monitored so that the problems which are persistent are well taken care of. All the problems are to be documented on a daily basis on the network portal.
Technical support
The laboratory staff is also supposed to assist the users of the organization to do their work but they should not help them do their work. They should only make sure that they have a good working environment. There has been a vague distinction of roles when it comes to this issue of assisting workers. There has been overstepping of mandate by the users who feel that the laboratory staff is supposed to do the donkey work like printing. This is not possible because they are only supposed to make sure their systems and machines are in good working conditions.
Knowledge sharing
Computer laboratory staff is also tasked with making sure that the users are trained to use the various information systems in the organization. This is done so that the users have the basic knowledge of how the systems work (Futrell, Shafer, & Shafer, 2002). Another reason for this is that all the laboratory technicians will be at the same even level.
Conclusion
It is good to conclude by giving the areas where the laboratory technicians are not supposed to work. They include not supposed to help students and laboratory users do their work. They are not supposed to help students make drawing models to fit into scale. They should also not install software on personal laptops and computers. This not only breaches the working policy of the organization but also breaks the license agreement with the software company. They should make sure that all the works they do are for the organization they work for.
References
Belli, F., & Radermacher, F. (2002). Managing computer houses. Springer.
Futrell, R., Shafer, D., & Shafer, L. (2002). Quality computer management. Prentice Hall.
Tichy, M., & McGill, A. (2003). The ethical challenge: how to lead in unyielding ethical practices in computer management. John Wiley and sons.