Program resources
Passwords
Click through the slides below for tips on how to choose a strong password that meets ASL requirements.
How secure are your passwords?
Passwords:
- should never be written down
- should not be shared with anyone (apart from your parents)
- should be changed once a year
To keep your accounts safe, ASL students and faculty should generally have three different online passwords:
- one for all ASL accounts
- one for personal email account(s)
- one for other personal online account(s)
This is so that if someone manages to gain access to one of your accounts, they won't automatically be able to gain access to all of your other accounts.
Password FAQs
- Do I have to change my password?
- Can I change my password more than once a year?
- Can I use one of my old passwords?
- Can my ASL password be the same as the password I use for other accounts?
- What if I forget my password?
Do I have to change my password?
Can I change my password more than once a year?
Can I use one of my old passwords?
Can my ASL password be the same as the password I use for other accounts?
There is nothing to stop you from using one of your other passwords for your ASL accounts. However, it is better if you have separate passwords for your ASL account, your personal email account(s), and your personal web accounts. In the event that someone gains access to one account, having separate passwords will mean that they won't automatically have access to your other accounts.
What if I forget my password?
Glossary of terms
The following will help to explain some of the terms parents might hear students and faculty using when talking about technology at ASL.
ASL sites
| www.asl.org | The school's main webpage which offers access to public and password-protected information. |
| Veracross | A password-protected database that allows families to access the school directory as well as attendance and report card information. |
| Schoology | The name for ASL's Learning Management System (LMS) where all academic classes have their own page. |
| G-Suite | G-Suite is a group of web-based platforms from Google. All students are given an ASL email address that uses the Gmail system, and they also have their own space on GoogleDrive that allows them to create and share GoogleDocs, Slides, Sheets, and Forms. |
General laptop terms
| Finder | The user environment in Apple's operating system that allows users to navigate to files and folders as well as launch applications. |
| Apple menu | A selection of system options accessed by clicking on the Apple logo in the upper left-hand corner of the Finder. |
| Spinning beach ball | When an application or the system takes longer than a few seconds to process a command or operation, a Spinning Beach Ball will appear to indicate that the system is processing. A spinning beach ball that appears for more than 30 seconds often means that the user needs to Force Quit the application that is experiencing the problem. |
| Force quit | A command to force an application to quit when it has stopped responding to normal commands. To Force Quit an application, the user can either use the keyboard shortcut "alt+cmd+esc" or the user can go to the Apple Menu and choose "Force Quit..." |
| Chrome | A web browser from Google, currently the default browser on school computers. |
| Firefox | A web browser from Mozilla. |
| Safari | A web browser from Apple. |
| Cookies | Small files sent by web sites which get stored locally on the user's computer. Cookies allow a site to know whether a user has visited the site before and can store user preferences for that site. |
| Garageband | An application from Apple which allows users to record their own music, create podcasts, or add a soundtrack to movies. |
| Quizlet | A flash-card website that students can use to create their own study aides. ASL students sign in using their ASL GoogleApps account information. |
| iMovie | A movie-making application from Apple. |
| Coggle | A mind-mapping website. ASL students sign-in using their ASL GoogleApps account information. |
| Time Machine | An application built-in to the Apple operating system which allows for quick and automatic backing-up of a user's hard drive to an external hard drive. |
General internet terms
| Digital Citizenship | Teaching users the rules of good citizenship online; this usually includes email ettiquette, protecting private information, staying safe online, and how to deal with bullying, whether you're a target or a bystander. |
| Hacking | A process by which someone gets access to your account through electronic means (a program which decodes your password or breaks into your account). |
| Phishing | A process by which someone gets access to your account by tricking you into giving up your personal information (whether that's your password or the security information for them to gain access to your password). |
Social terms
| A social networking site where users can have their own profile pages; users can also create public and private group pages. Originally designed for university students, FB was opened to everyone in 2008; currently, users are meant to be 13 or older to create a profile. | |
| A photo sharing site (owned by Facebook) that is most often accessed via an app on mobile devices but can also be accessed via the web. In addition to publishing photos to followers, Instagram users can also Direct Message single or groups of other users, which means they share an image and then can comment on that image. Currently, users are meant to be 13 or older to create an account. | |
| A micro-blogging service which allows users to post messages no longer than 280 characters in length. Users can send and view Tweets via the web or via dedicated Twitter applications. Currently, users are meant to be 13 or older to create an account. | |
| YouTube | A website where users can upload and share videos. Currently, users are meant to be 13 or older in order to create an account. |
| Messages / Skype / WhatsApp | Instant message services which allow text, audio, and video chatting to happen in real-time. These are both computer-based and can be accessed from smart phones.These are often more popular than the built-in text messaging (SMS or MMS) services that all phones allow because the built-in text messages only allow 1-1 messaging and often incur network charges. These applications allow unlimited free private group messages that only count against your data plan (or are free if used on wifi). One benefit of WhatsApp and Skype over Apple's Messages is that they can be used to easily have group chats between users of Apple and Android phones. |
| kik | Instant message services which allow texts and attachments via smart phones (but have no version for computers).These are often more popular than the built-in text messaging (SMS or MMS) services that all phones allow because the built-in text messages only allow 1-1 messaging and often incur network charges. These applications allow unlimited free private group messages that only count against your data plan (or are free if used on wifi). |
| Snapchat | A variation of the instant messaging service with a twist. Photos or videos will only be visible for between 1-10 seconds depending on how long the sender has specified. The image or video is then deleted. Users can also drawn and write on their photos and videos before sending them. Currently, users are meant to be 13 or older in order to create an account. |