insrvEducation IT Training Course Schedule

The current schedule of IT training courses offered by insrvEducation is shown below. Course content has been updated to the latest supported versions of applications with all Microsoft Office applications now being taught using the Office 2010 interface.

Booking costs indicated below are specifically the internal charges for Cardiff University attendees.  External attendees are welcome on our courses but are charged at a different rate, refer to the insrvEducation web pages at http://www.cf.ac.uk/insrveducation for external charges as well as booking instructions, further details of course content and prerequisites set for our courses.  please note that due to licensing restrictions some courses are only available members of staff and students of Cardiff University.

Microsoft Access 2007	Microsoft Excel 2007	Microsoft PowerPoint 2007	Microsoft Word 2007
Rhythmyx (RX)	Business Objects (BO)	SPSS	Microsoft Publisher

ECDL daily security codes

When you start an ECDL diagnostic test (sometimes referred to as a "pre-test") you will be prompted for a security code. This is sometimes called a daily code. Select, and enter, the relevant daily code from the table below to be able to start the diagnostic assessment ...

 MAY

insrvEducation IT Induction Information

Download the insrvEducation Student IT Induction Handout slides

Useful links and information to help you

Cardiff Portal  http://portal.cf.ac.uk

For access to:
 
• University Email (CardiffMail)
    remember to check your @cardiff.ac.uk email address regularly for important correspondence.

• Learning Central (Blackboard)

• My Files

• SIMS

• My Print

• Library resources
    find books and ebooks

Need some help - speak to the IT advisors in any of the INSRV libraries or the Julian Hodge Study Centre.  Further support available from the Service Desk, contact insrvconnect@cardiff.ac.uk or telephone 029 20 874 487

Locations of libraries  http://www.cardiff.ac.uk/insrv/libraries/locations/
 
Opening times of IT rooms  http://www.cardiff.ac.uk/insrv/it/itrooms/

Virtual Librarian (talk to a librarian online between 9-5 Monday to Friday)  http://www.cardiff.ac.uk/insrv/news/virtuallibrarian.html

Using our printers  http://www.cardiff.ac.uk/insrv/graphicsandmedia/printing/

Connecting to the Cardiff University wireless network  http://www.cardiff.ac.uk/insrv/it/network/wireless/connect.html

Cardiff University iPhone & Android Apps  http://www.cf.ac.uk/mobile

Julian Hodge Study Centre (for laptop and smartphone wifi registration)  http://www.cardiff.ac.uk/insrv/it/itrooms/jhsc/

PC repairs  http://theitshop.cardiffstudents.com

and because you'll be using our services, don't forget the rules and regulations of computer usage  http://www.cardiff.ac.uk/insrv/aboutus/regulations/

Check your knowledge before you take an ECDL test !

Diagnostic tests are available to anyone registered with us to let you check your competence in any of the ECDL modules to make sure you are ready for an invigilated test.  The real tests cost money and if you fail there will be a resit fee so have a go at a diagnostic before taking a real test.

If you score 80% or higher in a diagnostic test then you should be okay in an invigilated test, if you score lower then you may wish to review your understanding of the topics covered by that module.

Rather than needing you to attend one of our advertised testing session to take diagnostic tests we have allocated a diagnostic test for each module to everyone so that you can check when you are ready.

To take a diagnostic test:

Login with the ECDL ID and password supplied to you at http://central.thirdforce.com.

You will be prompted for a security code which changes on a daily basis.

Enter the relevant daily code to start the assessment. Refer to this blog entry for the daily codes.

Having problems accessing the ECDL online training materials ?

If you get this error message ...

Missing Authorware Web Player

The resource you are launching requires that AuthorWare Web Player 7 is installed. It was not possible to detect this software installed on your machine

Please contact your test supervisor for assistance.

when you try to use the ECDL online training materials you need to install Authorware components required for the online content to be displayed correctly in the Internet Explorer web browser.

I've taken an ECDL diagnostic test but I can't try again ?

As we can only allocate a single diagnostic test to each person, you need to contact insrveducation@cf.ac.uk with your BCS ID number and the diagnostic test you wish to have another attempt at so we can allocate an additional test for you.

There is no charge for multiple attempts at these pre-tests and, in fact, it is quite sensible to make sure you are ready for your real tests so please let us know if you need any additional tests.

How do I take an ECDL diagnostic test ?

If you think you are ready to take an ECDL unit test it is worth checking your knowledge first by taking a diagnostic test first.

Because of the requirements of these interactive tests we recommend that you use one of the open-access workstations on campus for diagnostic tests as you need to install additional Authorware components for the testing software to run correctly.

ECDL testing sessions across the summer vacation period

Please note that during the summer vacation period our open ECDL testing sessions will only be available on Wednesdays from 2pm - 4.30pm.

From the start of the autumn term we will reintroduce additional testing sessions. We'll announce these as soon as the schedule is confirmed.

Booking onto insrvEducation training courses

With booking numbers looking on the low side for most courses we are offering at the moment please note that we do need to provide a weeks notice if we need to cancel a course.

This has caught a few people out when they have tried booking late as they have found that the course they wanted is already cancelled due to the notice period.

So, if you will be booking onto any courses could we ask that you book sooner rather than later as then we may have sufficient numbers to continue with a scheduled course and not have ro rearrange bookings for later presentations.

Thanks
insrvEducation Team

Error message when starting an ECDL diagnostic test

We have received a few reports of the following error message when attempting to take an ECDL diagnostic test ...

This error is generated when a computer doesn't have the necessary Authorware elements installed and repeated, failed, attempts are made to run a diagnostic test.

To clear the error restart your web browser and install Authorware as described in this blog post.

Can I use the ECDL training materials on an Apple Mac computer ?

The ECDL training materials available at http://central.thirdforce.com are specifically designed for use with Internet Explorer on a Windows based PC.  But, with the proviso that other browsers are not officially supported, we have tested the training materials and some components do work with either Safari or Firefox on an Apple Mac.

If you are an Apple Mac user and make use of the instructional training materials, please note that the content is designed specifically to demonstrate use of Windows applications which will show different interfaces to what you might have on your own Apple computer.

Internal payments for attending insrvEducation courses

Please make sure you have authorisation and that funds are available for you to attend a course before making a booking.[Read More]

Welcome to the insrvEducation blog

Brief thoughts about this insrvEducation blog and how we will be using it as a means of diseminating information.  The collaboration tools provided by the Modern Working Environment now allow us to distribute information in a controlled and timely fashion, much more useful than simply relying on email as we have done in the past.