Advanced Office Applications for Business
Fall 2008 Syllabus

CIS351-01, Wednesday 6:00p-8:50p in Alger 101

Instructor: Richard W Evans
Campus Office: Alger 229, phone 401-456-9592
Home Office 401-946-6900 (9:00a - 6:00p)

Messages can be left at the voice number. If you get my voice mail, please leave your message or question. I will be available in my office during my posted office hours, and before class to answer questions or lend assistance. See www.ric.edu/revans for current schedule of available hours. In case of bad weather call 456-9500 for a recorded message.

Text:
Advanced Office 2007 a Working Textbook  (revised August 2008)
by Dick Evans
(Click above to order textbook online if you want an early copy. They will be available in class.)

Course Overview:
The purpose of the course is to provide students an opportunity for advanced study of the MS Office software suite. Since Office 2007 may be a new application for many in this class, the time will be spent transitioning to the new application by practicing what was covered in CIS251. After getting familiar with Office 2007, the course will be devoted to an overview of advanced topics in word processing, spreadsheet, and presentation graphics software.

An intermediate understanding of computers and the Microsoft Office applications as taught in the CIS251 course is assumed. As such, the material covered in class is more of an advanced nature. We will not be covering the basics of the applications, but rather how to get more out of them.

Course Format:
Expect a lecture on new material each session as outlined in the calendar below. Since assignments may have to be completed outside of the regular weekly classes, students should expect to spend from four to eight hours per week using the computer labs or their own computer at home. This includes the time needed for study, reading of suggest material, and review of notes taken during class.

Goals:
Students will be able to analyze, design and develop solutions to business problems using Microsoft Office 2007 and the Internet. 
Students will have a basic understanding of computer hardware and software and their interrelationship.
Students will have a basic understanding of Web 1.0 and Web 2.0 technologies and be able to access the Internet using Internet Explorer.
Students will be able to develop technical solutions using Microsoft Office 2007 for information systems users and communicate these effectively, in both oral and written form. 
Students will have a basic level of competency in logic skills. 

Lecture/Labs will be held in Alger 101. You are expected to procure a copy of Office 2007 Professional from the College Bookstore for your use at home. In addition, you might want to obtain SharePoint Designer. (At last check Office and SharePoint are available to RIC students for $13 each. Check with the bookstore for the current pricing.)

When using labs outside of class time, you will find that Lab Monitors are employed in the labs to control usage of the equipment. In general, they do not know how to run the software with which you will be working. In that regard, they will not be in a position to answer technical questions. If I am not available to answer questions, there are consultants available during the day in Horace Mann, User Services. There are no open labs in Alger; use Horace Mann and Whipple 102 labs.

Be aware that both Office 2003 and Office 2007 are installed in the walk-in labs on campus. Because of this dual situation, you MUST open the application first, then open your file. Double-clicking will either not work or may not open the file in the expected application. Neither does right-clicking to Open With always work. Also, ALWAYS use Save As when saving files and change the Save As File Type to the Office 2007 file format (docx, xlsx, etc) or your file may be saved by default in the 97-2003 format and you WILL LOSE the ability to modify any of the new graphic images created with 2007.

Attendance in the classroom will be critical for you to learn these applications. Some of the learning experience however will entail your concentrated effort with the computer -- learning by trying, and by making mistakes. Class meetings will involve presentation of new materials and discussion of prior work. For each of the applications, there will be assignments to be completed by you. Some of these assignments are to be completed outside of the regular class times, although the Computer Lab is allocated for you to do much of the work with the instructor in attendance to provide assistance.

I encourage the tendency for "group study". However; to make sure that each of you does in fact get familiar with the materials, I plan to give two exams. The exams will be on the computers and "open book". Your answers will be turned in through WebCT and/or a removable media.

Writing Requirement
The School of Management is committed to the enhancement of writing skills as a means to equip its business graduates. Therefore, all assignments will be graded on spelling and grammar. I will take up to 10 points off for spelling errors and poor grammar on all assignments. If you have difficulty in this area, I suggest having someone else proofread your work before handing it in. OASIS can help in this area -- http://www2.ric.edu/oasis/

WebCT by Blackboard
You will be expected to access Blackboard's WebCT Learning Management System at RIC. Lecture material will be posted on the WebCT site after each lecture is given. Exams, quizzes, and assignments will be found on WebCT. An FAQ page and a number of White Papers will answer many of your questions about the course and using WebCT. You are expected to check into WebCT daily to retrieve emails and access the information I will make available to you. Failure to receive an email or know about a change in the calendar or an assignment/that is due because of not checking in to WebCT daily is not an excuse for missing the work. The following links may be useful to get to know WebCT:

Technical Requirements http://www2.ric.edu/uss/webct_techRequirements.php 
Logging in Issues http://www2.ric.edu/uss/webct_logonTrouble.php 
WebCT FAQs http://www2.ric.edu/uss/webct_studentFaq.php

The Student Toolbox is a great source of WebCT material and other information about technology and other RIC information. http://www.ric.edu/studenttoolbox

The URL to access WebCT directly is http://webct.ric.edu:8900 OR you can open http://www.ric.edu > Online Services > WebCT. I suggest you bookmark the link for easy access on your computer.

To use WebCT, be sure to have pop-up blockers turned off. The browser you use is important and IE6 or better works well. There is an option on WebCT to check your browser for compatibility and I suggest you do the check before using it. We will be using IE7 in class.

Quizzes:
A hands on quiz will be given in class on material covered in the lectures weekly. This will be taken in class using WebCT and used to assess your progress in the class. Quizzes count for 10% of your overall grade.

Grading Policy:
I plan to assign a number of in class lab assignments which will be considered in your grade. Each carries a weight of 100 points.

All assignments are due before class on the due date. Turning in an assignment during class may result in an automatic zero. If a late submission date is assigned to an assignment (as noted on the bottom of the assignment), it is due at 11:00 pm on that date. In general, any assignment will either be done correctly or not (100 or 0 points). However, the following might occur for the reasons given.

Deduct up to 5 points for each mistake made, including spelling, grammar, etc.  If the assignment is passed in after the beginning of class, even though the same day, it is considered as late. Late assignments will receive a maximum of 70 points if turned in no later than the late date listed on the assignment. Work received after the late date will receive a grade of 0.  Of course, failure to turn in an assignment will produce a 0.

It is up to you to check the grade comments on each assignment to determine why you received the grade you did, even if the grade is 100. Comments may offer  suggestions to improve your work or instructions on what to do to increase the grade. Failure to read the grade comments is not an excuse for missing a chance to fix an assignment. (See the FAQ page on WebCT for  instructions on how to access the grade comments and how to re-submit an assignment)

I may elect to return an assignment to you with a RESUBMIT or FIX request. I expect you to correct the problems and return the assignment as an email attachment by 11:00 pm on the requested date for an increased grade, otherwise your grade on the assignment will be as given. If I have not requested for you to fix the assignment you will not be re-graded even if you do so on your own. Usually a grade of 90 or better will not result in a fix request. Failure to show up at class because you are working on your assignment in the Lab or working on and submitting during class will result in a 0 for the assignment -- easily determined by the time you submit your work.

All grades are posted weekly on WebCT. This will be explained in class.  

I plan to give no less than two exams during the semester, each with a value of 100 points. Relative to exams, my make-up policy is that you may make-up only one missed exam; and the arrangements for that make-up must be made no later than the next class meeting. The last exam cannot be made up.

There will not be a final, all inclusive exam.  However you will be expected to use everything you have learned in prior lessons both in homework and quizzes.

Additional points may be taken away or added at my discretion, perhaps to react to issues of attitude and tardiness. The sum total of all homework plus extra credit work will not exceed 100 points. (Note: Decimals are rounded down--ie: 79.6 will be treated as 79.0) Grading is:

D-	D	D+	C-	C	C+	B-	B	B+	A-	A
60-62	63-66	67-69	70-72	73-76	77-79	80-82	83-86	87-89	90-92	93-100

The grade of A is awarded to those individuals who have demonstrated excellence in all regular assignments and have participated in class and in any extra credit assignments that may be handed out.

Class Participation:
Participation is expected in each class, therefore your attendance in each class is also expected. If you do not make a particular class, you are expected to email me and let me know your plans for acquiring the notes, handouts, and assignments for the next week. Each absence that is not excused by receipt of an email note from you may affect your final grade. No more than 2 excused absences will be accepted during the course. Other items included in the participation grade are 1 credit assignments and practice quizzes. Late 1 credit assignments will receive .7 points.

Late Registrations:
New students will be accepted into the class up to the final add date, if there is room in the class. However, all work assigned since the first class period is due on the assigned due dates. Exceptions will not be made for late arrivals. Any quizzes or exams given during the missed classes may not be made up. The responsibility is on the student to find out what was missed and catch up by getting the lecture material from anther student or from files that might be posted on WebCT.

Withdrawals:
Requests to withdraw from this class after the drop period has ended will not be granted

Anticipated Topics to be Covered:  This is a recap of what is planned. As much time as necessary will be spent covering the transition to Office 2007 and reinforcing what you took away from CIS251. Therefore, we might not get through all of the new material. However, learning Office 2007 will be coupled with new material in every class. We will build each session on what you already know.

Transitioning to Office 2007
The Ribbon
What's new in Word 2007, Excel 2007, and PowerPoint 2007

Reviewing What was Covered in CIS251

Microsoft Word 2007:
Tables, and Tables of Contents
Form Letters and Mailing Labels
Collaborating with Others
Creating Web Pages
and more

Microsoft Excel 2007:
Excel Tables
Multiple Worksheets and Workbooks
Excel's Editing and Web Tools
Developing an Excel Application
Logical Functions
Database Functions
Advanced Filtering
and more

If time permits...

Microsoft PowerPoint 2007:
Presenting a Slide Show
Integrating PowerPoint with Other Programs
Collaborating with Workgroups

Microsoft Access 2007:
Enhancing a Table's Design
Creating Advanced Queries
Creating Custom Forms
Creating Custom Reports

Microsoft SharePoint Designer:
Creating a Web Site

Typically, the first half of class each day will consist of a hands on lecture. The other half will be a graded lab session to practice the material. Participation is required in both the lecture and lab portions of each class. On exam days, the entire three hours will be devoted to the exam.

Semester:
The semester begins Tuesday, September 2nd and ends Friday, December 12th

Holidays:
9/1 Labor Day
10/13 Columbus Day (Monday classes meet on Wednesday)
11/11 Veterans' Day
11/27 and 11/28 Thanksgiving

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