OUSA runs a huge suite of student moderated conferences on the Open University's FirstClass conferencing system. Our conferences span interest, hobbies and lifestyle issues ranging from the serious and sensitive to the frivolous and purely for fun. We also have study rooms so that you can meet up socially with other students doing the same course or programme. If you haven't explored our conferences yet, you don't know what you're missing! From your desktop find us at Open University/O U Student Association.
Please Note: By using FirstClass you agree to abide by the Student Computing Guide of Conduct and online Systems guidelines. For more information about the University's Computing Code of Conduct please follow the link below.
Summary of O U Computing Code of Conduct
The FirstClass client software runs on your computer. It connects to a FirstClass server and provides the interface (such as menu commands) that lets you work with FirstClass objects. You can use any of the following clients to connect to a server; FirstClass client software, a web browser, a handheld device.
The FirstClass Servers store all your messages and documents, the Mailbox, conferences and folder structure that contains these items. It also contains information about all the users known to the server. When you log into FirstClass, you connect to a server. The Open University has several servers and you may be able to connect to more than one of these servers depending on which courses you are studying. On each server, you will see the objects that the administrator for that server has given you permission to see. The server to which you normally connect is considered your home server.
With FirstClass you can:
Depending on the level of permissions assigned to your user account, you may not be able to use all of the FirstClass features. For example, you may be able to read messages in certain areas, but not delete them.
Users can access FirstClass via two options:
Through your web browser
Click on the following link to www.open.ac.uk/students/ and click on the FirstClass desktop link (your course computing service for FirstClass conferencing). Select the option Login to the Server for your course.
If you are unsure of the server you should login to check the details on the Student Home page.
You will see an authentication box appear on the screen.
Type your O U Student Username (this is available on the letter sent to you from the O U confirming your registration) in the Username box. Then enter your password (you would have changed this when you set your security information on your first visit to the Student Home page) into the Password box. Click on the ‘O K’ button. Your FirstClass desktop should now appear.
Through your client based software
The client based FirstClass is provided on the Online Applications disk sent to you when you begin your course. Alternatively this client based version can be downloaded from the following link www.open.ac.uk/lts/software/
Your Desktop
Users will see the following icons on their FirstClass desktop. Those students using screenreaders will hear a description of the icon. Each icon is a link to a Conference, Address Book or Calendar. To open any of them simply double click on the icon or use the appropriate keyboard command. Your Mailbox is your personal area. It is the storage place for all of your personal electronic mail (email or mail). It contains copies of everything you have received and sent. These messages may be addressed to individuals, a group of people or to a conference, but they all appear in the Mailbox.
Your Address Book
Your Address Book gives you the ability to create a shorthand name for addressing outgoing messages. It also allows you to store personal information and contact details for the people you choose to include in your address book.
Your Calendar
Your FirstClass Calendar can be used in the same way as a paper calendar or a personal diary/organiser. You can also share your calendar with other users on the FirstClass system.
O U Service News
This conference is used to announce important User information such as new facilities and server downtimes - please check this conference regularly.
The O U Service News conference will auto open if there are any messages that you have not read inside the conference to prompt you to read them.
Inside the O U Service News conference are some subconferences, including:
i. Missing Conferences - allows you to restore the Open University and Practice Conference conferences if you have deleted them in error
ii. Disk Quota Viewer - allows you to check how much disk space you have used
Open University
Open University is the 'virtual campus'. It contains a wide variety of generally accessible conferences. Within the campus are conferences for the different faculties. OUSA's suite of public social FirstClass conferences sit within this area.
You will not see course specific conferences within this area, as these are private to students and staff on a particular course. You will however find OUSA's course-based conferences, which are open to all interested parties to discuss, for example, the components of a particular course, the merits of studying it and difficulties encountered along the way.
Practice Conference
The Practice Conference is an area provided for learning to use FirstClass; it is not for general discussion. Please read the message 'What this conference is for' before use.
For Course-related conferences, users may also see a conference(s) specifically for the course(s) they are associated with. Course-related conferences will have the appropriate course code in their name.
Many conferences will have a 'Welcome', a 'Spirit of Conference' or 'About this Conference' message in them explaining their purpose. It will probably be the first message in the conference, so you may have to scroll down the list of messages to find it.
The Virus Support area is now housed in the Technology Building, behind the blue O U shield (it was previously within the LTS Helpdesk conference) and contains the Virus Support conferences, including 'Virus Chat' and 'Virus F A Qs (Frequently Asked Questions). There are several of these subconferences, so that queries on similar topics can be grouped together.
Contacting the Helpdesk
For technical queries, lost passwords, etc. you can contact the O U's Computing Helpdesk as follows:
Tel: +44 (0) 1908 653972.
Email: OU-Computing-Helpdesk@open.ac.uk
Please have your O U personal identifier (i.e. student number) and course code available for any telephone correspondance and also include these on any email correspondance.
You can find more information about the O U Computing Helpdesk, their opening hours and the support available, at: www.open.ac.uk/students/helpdesk/
We hope you enjoy using FirstClass and find it an enjoyable and useful experience.