FAQs For Teachers
- Do I have to have an account to use the server?
- No, you can login to the server using our "Guest" account. Your username is "guest", and your password is "guest". You can run jobs up that require up to two minutes of computing time. For bigger jobs, you have to apply for a free account!
- How do I get an account?
- Send an email to Bob Gotwals explaining what you plan to do on the server, what classes you teach, or any projects you have planned.
- How do I get an account for my class?
- To get an account, you must fill out the classroom.xls file and save it as "SchoolName.xls" and send it to Bob Gotwals as an email attachment. When filling out this document it is important to remember certain rules as follow:
- Do not remove the header line in Row 1.
- User names in Column 1 should start with the initials of the school, IN ALL LOWERCASE. For example, if you are teaching at Jordan High School, each student username should start with "jhs". You can simply have usernames "jhs1", "jhs2", jhs3", etc. Alternatively, we might recommend the initials of the school, the student's first initial, and the student's last name. For example, Emily Smith from Jordan High School might be "jhsesmith". Usernames are case sensitive and students will have to type it correctly to log in. Usernames should not contain any blank spaces!
- Group name is the name of your school. Every student should have the same group name, such as "jordanhs", all lowercase, no spaces.
- You can use the same password for every student, but keep in mind that this will allow students to kill other students' jobs!. We would suggest that you give each student a unique password, written on an index card or some other method of distribution. Passwords are also case-sensitive, and, again, no blank spaces!
- Email accounts are optional. There is a feature under "Utilities-->Edit Profile" to turn on email notification. This feature sends an email to the student when their job is finished, a potentially useful feature. Students need to turn this feature on manually when they log into the server.
- The last two columns represent per job and total time limits. Do not change these limits!
- You should add yourself if you would like an account! We will be experimenting with giving you a little more per job time and total time so that you can practice with the technology prior to introducing it to your students!
- How does a research student get an account?
- A proposal for the reasearch project must be sent to Bob Gotwals for server time alotment.
- Where can I find lab resources?
- Access the site Learn NC and search for the topic you want. Several of the lessons you find should be computational chemistry labs.
- Are there any restrictions on these accounts?
- For Teacher Accounts: There are no restrictions for individual jobs or for total run time.
- For Student Accounts: These accounts are provided over a limited timeframe, and job limits are set at four (4) minutes for a single run, with 20 minutes of total CPU time per student.
- For Research Accounts: Job limits are set following discussion with the NCHSCCS project managers.
- Is there any cost for using the server?
- This resource is provided free of charge to all students and teachers in the State of North Carolina. Students in public, private, parochial, charter, and home schools are all eligible to use this resource.
- Are there lesson plans available for Computational Chemistry?
- Is there a way to run jobs locally if I cannot access the server?
- For North Carolina students and teachers: Wavefunction, the manufacturer of Spartan, has created a special offer! Students can buy a copy of Spartan for Students for $20 (discounted from its normal price of $60). With Spartan, you can run computational chemistry jobs on your own machine! Visit this link to purchase a copy. Send email to gotwals@ncssm.edu to get a username and password for this page.