On the basic level, Citrix is a way to serve out software to desktops. You can run software without having to install it on your computer. You can also run PC software on a Macintosh, since Citrix creates its own program environment.
There are two ways to access it, depending on whether you're on the Siena network or not. From the network, you can access Citrix applications from the Start Menu; they show up as programs on the "All programs" list. There's also the Program Neighborhood Agent, an icon on the System Tray that's even more convenient (make sure you're set up for Pass-through authentication).
If you're not on Siena's network (this includes the School of Science and the residence halls), you can access Citrix via Citrix Access Gateway (https://cag.siena.edu/). One trick, though: you need to install software to get it to work on your computer. You'll see a yellow bar on Internet Explorer, and you must click on this and install the client (if not, you'll get a nasty little warning message). Once it's installed, shut down Internet Explorer and log on again.
Note that sometimes you get the warning even if you've installed the software. If you see it again, wait. If the programs are displayed on the left, then you're set and don't need to install it again.
You should see something like this (it varies):
Macintosh users need to take further steps to get things to work, of course. See our web page for details.
What programs are available to you? Well, that's a topic for tomorrow.
