Public computer labs

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LITS offers computer labs, which can also be used for study, group work, relaxing, sipping a cup of tea, enjoying the company of friends or reading a good book. Located across campus in various academic buildings and in each residence hall we: manage, service, and support over 400 computers available for open use. Our labs have both Macintosh and Windows computers available, with the full complement of academic and standard software.

Computers in public labs require users to log in. Mount Holyoke students, faculty, staff, and Five College students taking a Mount Holyoke class can log in with their MHC credentials. If you run into issues, contact the LITS Technology Help Desk for support.

If you are an MHC Community member, just enter your MHC username and password (the same one you use for your email). Five College students taking a Mount Holyoke class will also be able to use their MHC credentials to log in to these computers.

Guests without MHC credentials cannot currently use lab computers.

Trouble logging in?

If you changed your MHC password recently, this can sometimes mean you'll have challenges logging into lab or classroom Mac computers that you previously logged into with your old password. Try logging in with your old password and, if you can get in, then update your password in Nomad (located in the top bar). Or simply use a different computer that you didn't log into previously.

In public labs, you will be automatically logged out of a computer after 30 minutes of inactivity. To protect your privacy, it is critical to log out of a computer before leaving it unattended. Forgetting to logout will put your privacy at risk.

How to log out of a Mac

To log out of a Mac computer select the Apple icon in the top left corner and choose Log Out [your name] from the drop down.

How to log out of a PC

To log out of a PC computer select the Start menu in the bottom left (the slanted white rectangle). In the menu that opens, choose your name and then choose Sign out.

Start menu of a PC computer with the sign out option visible

If you log in using your MHC credentials, lab computers will create a user account for you that saves all your local files and settings. This local user account information will be deleted after 30 days of not logging in to the same machine.

If you login as a guest (not currently available), you will be served a fresh computer session. Any local user account information will be deleted when you log out.

If you log in using your MHC credentials, you’ll automatically be logged into Papercut, MHC’s printing management software. That means your files will be sent to the printer automatically without needing to provide your credentials a second time. For more information on how to print on campus, head to the LITS printing page.

** IMPORTANT: Because the computer will keep you logged in for 30-60 minutes beyond your last keystroke or mouse click depending on your location, it is vital that you log out of any lab computer you are using as soon as you are done with it to protect your privacy. **

If you log in as a guest (not currently available), you’ll need to create or log into your Papercut account to print. Contact the Technology Help Desk for assistance creating a printing account.

Public computer labs

Where are public computer labs located?

How can I log into a lab computer?

What happens if I forget to logout? Is my privacy at risk?

Will lab computers save my information?

How does logging into lab computers affect printing?