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CSM Trailhead, Campus Portal

Trailhead Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Content, Channels and Tabs

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General

Question: What is Trailhead?
Answer: Trailhead is the Colorado School of Mines' web portal that provides personalized access to web services. You can customize Trailhead so that the information and tools you need and want are available when you log in. All registered students, faculty and staff have access to course information, group tools, campus life, work life, personal calendars, email, and more -- anytime, anywhere.  Trailhead will be a work in progress for the next several years; watch for the addition of new services, functionality and information.

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Question: How do I login to Trailhead?
Answer: Point your web browser to http://trailhead.mines.edu and login using your portal username and password.

If you have not logged into Trailhead before, you must first activate your Trailhead account. See the Login FAQ for more information.

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Question: Is Trailhead available off-campus?
Answer: Yes, when you are off-campus you may access Trailhead. Note however that some web services will not be available to you unless you are using the CSM VPN (Virtual Private Network).

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Question: What is my portal username and password?
Answer: Trailhead uses your campus username. For students this is printed on the left side of your EKey mailing.

Employees typically are given their campus username along with an EKey card when they first inquire about activating a campus email account. (Previous names for the EKey are Computing Center PINs or Computing Center PICs.)

Using your username and EKey you can activate your Trailhead account and set your password by opening a web browser to http://newuser.mines.edu/trailhead/.

For additional infomation see the Login FAQ web page. If you have questions or problems logging in, contact the Mines Help Center.

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Question: Is my information secure? Why don't I see the key lock security symbol at the bottom of the screen?

Answer: Security for Trailhead is provided by Verisign.  Because most pages are actually frames within a page you may not see the key icon that indicates a secure page; however, the pages are still secure.

Your personal information on Trailhead is protected through your login. Only by logging on with your Name and Password can your information be accessed. For this reason, it is very important that you do not share your password with anyone. No one, including support staff, needs to know your password for any reason. For your protection, it is essential that you log out of Trailhead and close the browser window whenever you leave your computer so that your personal information is not exposed.

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Question: When is Trailhead available and how long is the time-out for inactivity?
Answer:The portal is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Some channels rely on data from systems that are down for backup and maintenance during the evening. These channels may not be available in the portal during that time.

If you forget to log out of Trailhead, the portal will automatically time out after a set amount of inactivity. This is a security feature that helps prevent others from gaining access to your private information (student records, financial information, your online coursework, etc.), particularly when you are using a public computer. Warning: This is not a substitute for logging out. The only way to absolutely ensure that your information remains secure is to LOG OUT before you leave the computer.

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Question: How do I get help with Trailhead?

Answer: For general help with Trailhead click the Help icon in the upper right corner of the Trailhead screen. If you have questions or problems, contact the Mines Help Center.

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Question: Who can I contact to make comments or suggestions for the portal?
Answer: Your comments and suggestions are most welcome at the Mines Help Center.

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Question: How can I get training on Trailhead?
Answer: Trailhead has excellent on-line help and that should be your first resource. Click the Help icon in the upper right corner of the Trailhead screen to view the on-line help pages. You can also sign up for training: http://www.is.mines.edu/link/training.asp.

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Question: Can retirees use Trailhead?
Answer: No, not currently.

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Question: Can alumni use Trailhead?
Answer: No, not currently.

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Question: Why does Trailhead log me out without letting me know first?
Answer: Trailhead is equipped with a security feature to automatically log you out in order to protect your personal data and privacy.

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Question: Why don't my browser's "back" and "forward" buttons work properly in the portal?
Answer: The best way to navigate through the portal is to use the tabs and the links within Trailhead. The "back" and "forward" buttons in your browser may move from tab to tab or channel to channel, but if changes have been made or other logins have been made, using the browser's navigation buttons may not have the desired effect.

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Question: What is Campus Pipeline?
Answer: You may see the term Campus Pipeline on various portal pages. Campus Pipeline is the previous name of the portal software that is now called Trailhead.

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Content, Channels, and Tabs

Question: Why does Trailhead appear the way it does?
Answer: Trailhead's interface is based on a tabs-and-columns structure. Each of the tabs consists of one or more columns, each column contains one or more channels of information (channels are differentiated from each other by a bold rule). You are allowed to add additional tabs and/or reconfigure the existing tabs and columns. You may also add, delete, or move channels. The tab and channel layout is similar to many other portals such as MyYahoo.

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Question: What web services can be accessed through Trailhead portal as "Single Sign-On" (requires no additional user authentication) services?
Answer: Current Single Sign-On services are

  • SSB (Self Service Banner)
  • ePrint
  • Web for Employees Vacation/Sick leave
  • Information Services Exchange email (also known as Admin Email)
  • EHS Chemical Search

    • In order to activate the single sign-on service to the following: ePrint, I.S. Exchange Email, Vacation/Sick Leave, and EHS Chemical Search, you must first login to these services as you normally do. After this is completed once, your user authentication will occur automatically for these services each time that you login to the Trailhead portal.

    You may also access Webmail and Blackboard through the web portal, however "single sign-on" is not yet available for these services and you will be prompted to login to those services each time as you normally do. We do have plans to make those available as a single sign-on services in the near future.

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    Question: Do faculty, staff, and students all see the same view of Trailhead?
    Answer: No. Faculty and staff see a different default view of Trailhead than students see. The content that an individual sees is determined by their role at the School. Currently the possible roles are student, faculty and staff. Individuals are presented with a different set of tabs and channels containing the default content for their role.

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    Question: How do I customize Trailhead?
    Answer: You can easily customize Trailhead by adding new channels and tabs and removing those that are not useful to you. To customize your view of the portal, click the Content/Layout link in the upper left hand portion of the screen. click the tab you want to change. You can then add, modify, or delete columns and channels on that tab. When you are finished click the back to link to return to Trailhead. If you cannot figure out how to do something on a tab, click the Help icon in the upper right corner of the Trailhead screen. Under the Portal Help Menu select How Do I... to get help on adding, modifying, or deleting columns, channels, and tabs. If you have questions contact the Mines Help Center.

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    Question: How can I get back to the original look (default view) of the portal?
    Answer: To reset your Trailhead profile send email to the Mines Help Center.
    NOTE: When your layout is re-created you will lose your bookmark settings and ALL customizations made to ALL TABS, COLUMNS and CHANNELS. Your Calendar data will not be affected.

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    Question: Can I import bookmarks into Trailhead?
    Answer: Bookmarks cannot be imported into Trailhead at this time. You can add links to your favorite web sites using the Trailhead "Bookmarks" Channel which is located on the My Tab tab (in the portal's default view). If you add the Bookmarks Channel to other tabs, your bookmarks will be the same on each tab.

    You can also add the "Bookmarks Plus" Channel to any of your portal tabs. With Bookmarks Plus you are able to have different bookmarks in different instances of the channel. For example, if you add a Bookmarks Plus Channel on your My Tab tab, you can add personal bookmarks and also have a Bookmarks Plus Channel with different bookmarks on your Research tab.

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    Question: How will I know when new channels are added?
    Answer: New channels will be added regularly. Watch for a notice on the Home tab showing Trailhead News that will describe a new channel and its location.

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    Question: How can I see a list of channels that are already available?

    Answer: There are two ways to view available channels. After logging into the portal:

    (1) Click on the "Content/Layout" link in the upper left hand corner of the Trailhead window, and proceed through the steps for adding a channel. When you get to the step to "Select a Category" for the channel you wish to add, use the "Select All" option and click the "Go" button. A list of all channels available to you will be displayed.

    (2) Using the method mentioned in #1 above, add the "Channel Preview Tool" Channel to one of your tabs. With the Channel Preview Tool you can preview all of the channels that are available to you to help you decide if you'd like to "subscribe" to or add it to one of your portal tabs.

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    Question: I have a great idea for a new channel. How can I contribute a channel to Trailhead?
    Answer: Departments are encouraged to develop their own channels and other portal information resources. To create a consistent look and feel, channel developers should link to the portal default style sheet (http://www.mines.edu/trailhead/styles/stylesheet-portal.css), and avoid overriding these styles whenever possible. The default style sheet sets font colors, font sizes, margins, borders, and more for almost all HTML tags. Written permission must be obtained for use of copyrighted materials such as text, logos, images, etc.

    Contact the Mines Help Center.

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    Question: How can I recommend that an externally generated RSS feed or other information source be added to Trailhead?

    Answer: Fill out the recommend a new channel form.

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    Courses & CSM Groups

    Question: What course communication tools are available in Trailhead?
    Answer: Through Trailhead, instructors can:

  • Send personal announcements to students in their courses.
  • Use the campus Blackboard (course management) services. Single Sign-On access to Blackboard services is planned for Fall 2006. See the CSM Blackboard web pages for additional information about Blackboard features.
  • Use the portal Groups Tool, called CSM Groups. CSM Groups is not designed as a course management tool, but may be useful for some instructors. See more information below in the Groups section of this document.

    • It is up to the instructor to determine which of the available campus tools best fits his/her course needs. For example, an instructor may choose to use the portal tools, Blackboard, or a standard web site.

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    Question: What is "CSM Groups"?
    Answer: The portal's Group Tools (called "CSM Groups" in Trailhead) gives students, faculty, and employees the ability to create and manage group homepages for committees, clubs or other affiliations and interests. To solicit membership, each group will have two homepages: a guest view and a member view. The guest view provides general information about the group and an option for non-members to join. The member view provides many different ways to share information such as message boards, chat rooms, and common resources such as files, photos and news.

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    Question: How do the CSM Groups tools differ from Blackboard?
    Answer: The portal's CSM Groups tools are primarily for communicating with students through a group home page, message board, calendar, and filesharing. Blackboard offers a more robust set of course tools, including automated tools for assignments, quizzes, tests, and grades.

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    Question: Where can I learn more about "CSM Groups"?
    Answer: You can read about "CSM Groups" by clicking on the Help icon in the upper right corner of your Trailhead screen. Select Groups under the Help Topics Index to access the Groups Help Menu.

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    Question: How do I request a CSM Group?
    Answer: Please see the CSM Groups Policy [http://www.mines.edu/academic/computer/policies/trailhead/CSMgroupspolicy.pdf].

    Faculty/Staff: Follow the General Instructions below. Your request will be sent to the Trailhead Groups Administrators for approval. As soon as your request has been reviewed, you will receive an email notification.

    Students: If a student organization would like to use CSM Groups, the group must be registered with the Student Activities Office. Student groups that are already registered with the Student Activities Office, can follow the General Instructions below. Your request will be sent to the CSM Groups/Student Activities Office for approval. You (the requester) and your School Representative will be notified via email upon final approval of your request.

    Student groups that are not yet registered with the Student Activities Office should contact the Student Activities before requesting a Trailhead/CSM Group.

    Study Groups: If the course for which you want to form a study group is already using the Blackboard system, please ask the instructor(s) to create a group for you within the Blackboard course. If your course does not use the Blackboard system, you can ask the instructor(s) or another faculty or staff member to be your group's School Representative. Include the representative/sponsor name(s) in the Request Comment field of the Request form. You (requester) and your school Representative will be notified via email upon final approval of your request.

    NOTE: The processing of student group requests that do not include a School Representative may be delayed.

    General Instructions:
    - Select the CSM Groups icon (upper right corner of your Trailhead screen).
    - All requesting groups must have a School Representative (a Faculty or Staff member) who will be one of the group leaders. Student groups, please include the name(s) of the Faculty/Staff representative/sponsor in the Request Comment field of the form.
    - If you need help filling out the form, you can use the Trailhead Help (icon in the upper right), refer to the CSM Groups Policy (linked above) or submit a Mines Help Center support request.

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    Question: How do I join a group?
    Answer: Select the Groups icon in the upper right corner of the Trailhead screen, then select the Groups Index tab to browse the list of available on-line groups and request membership.

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    Calendar

    Question: Where do I find information on using the portal calendar?
    Answer: To find information on the portal calendar, click the Help icon in the upper right corner of the Trailhead screen. You will see a pop-up window titled Help Center. Select Calendar under the Help Topics Index to see the Calendar Help Menu.

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    Question: Can I have more than one calendar in the portal?
    Answer: Portal users may have multiple calendars. You will have a personal calendar, and you may have multiple group or other calendars.

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    Question: I have multiple portal calendars. Can I combine them?
    Answer: Yes, your portal calendars may be combined by creating a Calendar Set. To create a Calendar Set, click the Portal Calendar icon in the upper right corner of the Trailhead screen. Select the Calendar Sets tab and click the New Set icon. Calendar Sets have more limitations than normal portal calendars. For more help on Calendar Sets, click the Help icon in the upper right corner of the Trailhead screen. Select Calendar, and then click the Calendar Sets Tab folder.

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    Question: Can I import my Corporate Time calendar data into the portal calendar?
    Answer: Yes. To import your Corporate Time calendar data into a portal calendar:

    - Export your Corporate Time calendar data to vCal format
    - Using the exported vCal file, import it into your portal calendar, but select iCal for the import format.
    For additional help or specific questions, please submit a Support Request via the Mines Help Center.

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    Question: Can I merge or import calendar data from other calendar software (eg, Microsoft Office Outlook calendar) into the portal calendar?
    Answer: If your other calendar software allows you to export data to iCal or xml format, you should be able to import the data into a portal calendar. For additional help or specific questions, please submit a Support Request via the Mines Help Center.

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    Question: Can I synchronize my PDA calendar with the portal calendar?
    Answer: Contact the Mines Help Center for assistance.

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    Email

    Question: How do I read my email in Trailhead?
    Answer: You can check your email via the Web using Webmail by clicking on the "CSM Webmail" icon in the upper right corner of the Trailhead screen. At the Webmail login screen, enter your email login name and password. Eventually we hope to provide Single Sign-On capabilities that will automatically log you into Webmail when you are logged into the portal.

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    Question: Can I access my Exchange email account?
    Answer: Employees who have an Information Services Exchange email account may use the "Admin Email" icon in the upper right corner of the Trailhead screen. Single Sign-On capabilities are included with "Admin Email": you will be asked to enter your Exchange login and password only once and thereafter the portal will automatically authenticate you.

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