Frequently Asked Questions

If you have a question that is not addressed here but you think it should be, or if you would like to contribute an item, or suggest a change to an answer that is given, please contact B. Harbourne at bharbour@math.unl.edu.

Student FAQs

Advice:
- I need some advice concerning the math department. Whom should I talk to?
  - Gordon Woodward, undergraduate advisor: academic programs gwoodwar@math.unl.edu.
  - Lori Mueller: room assignments, Math Day, etc lmueller@math.unl.edu.
  - Jamie Radcliffe, Vice Chair: TA assigments, teaching assignments, etc jradclif@math.unl.edu.
  - David Pitts, Graduate Committee Chair: graduate student academic programs gc@math.unl.edu or dpitts@math.unl.edu.
  - John Meakin, Department Chair: the buck stops here jmeakin@math.unl.edu.
Classes Offered:
- What math courses are being offered next semester, who's teaching them, and when will they be offered?
Degree Requirements:
- What are the requirements for a degree?
Math Resource Center:
- I'm having trouble in a 100 level math course. Is there some place I can go for help?
Placement Exam:
- What is the Math Placement Exam all about?
Testing Lab:
- I'm supposed to take a math test in the lab.
  - What do I need to do?
  - What are the lab hours? Are there orientation sessions?

Faculty FAQs

Administrative support:
- An issue has come up. Whom should I talk to? (Click here for the list of which office staff handle which duties.)
  - Lori Mueller: room scheduling, Math Day, etc lmueller@math.unl.edu.
  - Jamie Radcliffe, Vice Chair: TA assigments, teaching assignments, etc jradclif@math.unl.edu.
  - David Pitts, Graduate Committee Chair: graduate faculty issues dpitts@math.unl.edu.
  - Sylvia Wiegand, Colloquium Chair: scheduling colloquia swiegand@math.unl.edu.
  - Marilyn Johnson: grant proposal submission mjohnson2@math.unl.edu.
  - Liz Youroukos: travel and visitor arrangements, seminar announcements eyouroukos1@math.unl.edu.
  - Computer Problems: specific problems Request Tracker, policy issues Tom Shores.
  - John Meakin, Department Chair: the buck stops here jmeakin@math.unl.edu.
Archive of email from Departmental computer administrator:
Blackboard:
- A student asked me about our class blackboard account. What is blackboard?
Classrooms: I need help with the technology in a classroom.
- Homepage for classroom support.
- Information on classroom clicker system (PRS - Personal Response System).
- Information on classroom computers. (Also check here.)
Computer Security:
- I'm worried about the security of my computer. Where can I learn more about possible problems? Is there a web site that can check my system for security problems?
- Is there an on-campus source for information? (Visit Information Services newsletter.)
Departmental Committee List:
- I'm a faculty member. What Departmental committees am I on?
Email Aliases:
- I'm a member of the Math Department. I want to use an email alias but I can't remember what aliases we have.
- I need to send a message to one of the groups we have an alias for, but I'm not a member of that group. How can I get permission to use an alias for a group I'm not a member of? I just want to send to the group, not receive posts.
Email Options:
- What options are available for doing email?
Is there an on-line Departmental floorplan? Yes!
Grant Proposals:
- External Proposals
  - What is needed in the Dean's Office when I submit a proposal?
  - I need budget information; for example, what are the current NSF cost rates for UNL?
  - Does UNL's Office of Research (formerly known as the Office of Sponsored Programs) have a page? How about an FAQ?
  - Where can I find UNL internal proposal submission forms?
  - I need to write a final report for an NSF grant; what information needs to be addressed in a final report?
  - What information is there about uploading files to FastLane?
    - FastLane help page
    - FastLane FAQ page
    - FastLane pdf creation instructions page
    - FastLane TeX support page
  - My NSF proposal is one big TeX file, but I need to create dvi files for certain page ranges for uploading to various categories in FastLane. Is there an easy way to do this?
  - My NSF proposal is done in TeX, but it includes some graphs in separate files, and I'm having trouble getting FastLane's procedure for uploading such separate files to work. Is there a way to include the graphs as part of the dvi file, so I need only upload a single dvi file?
- Internal Proposals
  - The Research Council web site.
  - What are the deadlines for applying for Research Council support?
  - Big 12 Fellowships (2 week minimum visits)
Laptops, projectors, student accounts:
- I know that to request a laptop for the coming semester, I need to make my request at least two weeks before classes start in order to have my request filled by the first day of class, but to whom do I make the request?
Logon and Web Access Problems:
- Sometimes I can't seem to reach math.unl.edu from offsite, even though I can reach other sites on campus. What can I do? [Try different individual machines, such as the servers www.math.unl.edu, math.unl.edu or individual office machines (for example, math-008.unl.edu, etc.) or try going through another on-campus site. For example, for terminal access, use ssh to log on to unlserve.unl.edu (assuming you have an account), and then ssh from there to math.unl.edu.]
- I can access some web sites from campus but not from off campus. How can I access these (from home, say)? [You'll need a UNL ID to do this off campus. For example, to access MathSciNet, go through the UNL Libraries link to MathSciNet web site. If you are presently on campus but would like to see what will happen when you try this off campus, click here . The old proxy server which required configuring your browser is now obsolete. To access JStor, likewise you can go through the UNL Libraries JStor link.]
Password Protect a web page:
- How can I make a web page available only to my class? Can it be password protected?
Preprints, Reprints, Books, and Quotes:
- What sites are there for full text math articles?
- Is there a site giving math related quotations ?
TeX Stuff:
- How do you create a dvi file for a specified page range? (This can be useful when you want to upload dvi files for given parts of a proposal to FastLane.)
- What about including graphs in a TeX document?
- Are there macros for doing exams? (plainTeX macro) (LaTeX: Ned's macros, Phil's macros)
- I have to fill out a form, but I only have a pdf file for it. How can I fill it out?
Travel:
- I have a visitor coming. Is it possible for my visitor to obtain wireless access on campus? Yes!
- I have a visitor coming. Are there web sites for where he/she can stay? How can he/she get back and forth from Omaha?
- What are the current mileage reimbursement rates?
- What are current local weather conditions like? Are there web cams that show me current conditions in Lincoln? Yes.
- I need to request travel funds from the Department. What form do I need? Here are three versions of the form:
- I need to request travel funds from the Dean. What form do I need?
- I need to turn in my expenses for reimbursement. What form do I need? Here are two versions of the form:
  - Excel Spreadsheet
  - pdf
- I am hosting a visitor who needs reimbursement forms. How do I get them?
UNIX Commands and packages:
- What commands and packages are available on our Linux system?
Web Forms:
- How can I make a web form?