Some brief reminders and procedural changes:

* Reserve the CTC Tomanek Hall Computer Labs by submitting a Request for Computing Services through Lotus Notes. Check the schedule of our labs on the LN calendar.

* New faculty are not required to attend Lotus Notes training in order to use it. They may use LN E-mail and Calendar functions immediately upon receiving an LN ID, logging on, and clicking on the appropriate button(s) or following the menu-driven commands.

* You can purchase a license for Microsoft Office, Windows 95, and Windows NT Client through the CTC at our cost -- a better price than through the State Contract.

* The CTC has a Telnet 3270 client (the software that enables your computer to communicate with the IBM mainframe over the Ethernet or dialup services) free of charge to you.

* You can purchase Ethernet cards from the CTC at our cost (we are developing some experience configuring the cards for a variety of machines).

* Voice mail is a useful way to interact with persons wishing to contact you by phone. Contact Tom Webb for information about this system.

New faculty and staff will notice a difference in PCs and connectivity to the desktop. Some faculty and staff are connected by Ethernet and others are connected by a different network, the ISN; at one time everyone was connected to the ISN.

The University is working to upgrade machines to have access to the Ethernet, but we are in a transition period in which some still use the ISN to connect to the mainframe for E-mail, SAS, SPSS, text-based Gopher, and text-based World Wide Web. It takes time and money to purchase the hubs, the Ethernet cards, and upgrade PCs to enable users to have an Ethernet connection. The following are some comparisons:

Desktop Connectivity

ISN:

* Serial Port at 9600 baud.

* Accommodates both low-end and above machines (early Mac, 8086 pc).

* ProComm communication software.

* DOS, Windows, or pre-System 7 Mac software.

* Access to the mainframe system; including OfficeVision, Vita, SPSS, SAS, Mail, Topcat and UNIX.

Ethernet:

* Ethernet card - 10 Base T.

* To use Netscape Navigator and other features: 486 with 8 MB RAM (Windows for Workgroups, Windows 95) System 7.

* Similar access to UNIX and mainframe using telnet 3270. Browser access to WWW, other Internet access.

Dial-Up Access - Progress Report

Most of the major pieces are in place for dialup (by modem) access to the campus system. We have purchased a DEC Alpha Internet server, Netscape Enterprise Server software (for web pages, mail, newsgroups, etc.), unlimited licensing, a T1 connection to the Internet provider, and other components.

We have hired a Dial-Up HelpDesk person, Nancy Cunningham. Nancy has several student workers to assist with her area.

We are awaiting the delivery of the Cisco terminal server-modem access box. Since the Cisco system has 48 modems, we will be able to handle 48 concurrent users.

As you might imagine, there are a myriad of administrative details and setup options to work through. We need to set up accounts on the Unix system to handle security, enable the communication links between the Cisco box and the Alpha system, and work out the telecommunications options. We will work hard to get the system up and running rather quickly after all of the pieces arrive.

A Plea for Patience

This is the second year I have had to request patience from all of you who have requested service from the CTC. I believe that we have done a good job completing many requests; however, we have been flooded with requests and some of the requests take longer to complete than others.

We have numerous requests and a limited number of staff to help complete those requests. We know from experience how frustrating it is when your pc does not work. It is small comfort to you even when you know that we are trying our best to take care of your request. Be assured that we are doing our best and are trying to find ways to meet the demand.