MC Computer Labs

Notice: The information on this page is being updated; please talk to CSCF Teaching Support if you have any questions.

The following table provides the location, contents, and hours of operation of the CSCF-operated computer labs. The labs are mostly located on the third floor of the M&C building, with a few of them on the second floor.

People using the labs are expected to leave the lab in at least as good a condition as they found it. When garbage is left behind, furniture is damaged or removed, or computing equipment is dismantled, someone needs to make things right. Time and money spent keeping the labs in a usable state are resources we can't use to improve the student computing environment.

Please also see the corresponding list of MFCF computer labs, and the rules for use of the computer labs.

To use the lab machines requires either being registered in a CS course, or registered as a Math Faculty undergraduate student. Others will not be able to use the machines. The labs do not use Nexus.

Note: Lab operating schedules may vary due to maintenance and special events.

Mac Labs

These are Apple macOS workstations, typically used for lower year courses.

Nettop Stations

These are lightweight Linux (Ubuntu) workstations intended to access either the linux.student.cs servers, or the windows.student.cs servers for any resource intensive computing.

Specialty Labs

Laptop Use

To facilitate the use of personal laptops in the labs, many have accessible power and networking. The power is available from power bars on the desks, usually shared with the workstations and displays. The networking in some is an RJ45 ethernet cable. In others it's an RJ45 port on the desktop; you have to bring your own cable. One lab has a video cable for the large monitors. And some have USB cables to the workstations.

General Access

Specialty

Automatic Closure of Computer Labs

Many of the CSCF computing labs are equipped with an automatic lockdown mechanism which allows them to be closed automatically at scheduled times. The purpose of this mechanism is to reduce our vulnerability to theft and vandalism by reducing the number of labs that are open when demand is low. The lockdown mechanism includes motion detectors to ensure that closed labs are empty, and locking mechanisms to ensure that the lab doors are secure. The systems are linked to the UW Police.

A warning alarm, which consists of a high-pitched tone accompanied by a warble every ten seconds, will sound in a lab approximately ten minutes before that lab's scheduled closing time. If you are in a lab when the alarm sounds, please log out of the system and leave the room immediately, taking your belongings with you. As you leave, please ensure that the lab door is closed behind you.

The automatic lockdown systems allow us to leave labs open longer than we would otherwise be able to, since we do not have to rely on staff to close the labs. Please observe the lab closing schedules. Ideally, you should leave a lab in advance of its closing time, but if you are in the lab when the alarm sounds, please follow the procedure described above and leave the lab quickly.

Holiday Lab Closures

The DC and MC buildings are usually locked for the holiday between the fall and winter terms. The labs are locked then as well, usually the day before the building closures.