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Quick Notes
Congratulations to the following people for their years of service at Syracuse University:
Peter Giovinazzo, Information Technology Analyst - 10 years
Donal Little, Instructional Technology Manager - 20 years
Eric Patten, Information Technology Manager - 20 years
Staff News
Please welcome Amanda Barber to SU. She started April 19 as a Support Analyst and hit the ground running! While her primary focus will be helping with the supervision of the student support staff in the Service Centers, Amanda has already made herself a key player in the Orange Tracker ticketing rollout, and will be a key player in the Opening of School project this summer and fall. Amanda comes to SU from Fairmont State University in Fairmont, WV, where for six years she was responsible for resolving technology issues for
students, faculty, and staff , as well as managing the representatives of the Solution Center. Prior to her experiences in higher education she worked as a CATI programmer for a market research firm in Princeton, NJ. Amanda has a BS in Mathematics with a minor in Women's Studies from Fairmont State University. She looks forward to being a productive member of the ITS team and an active participant in the community both on and off campus. Amanda is open to suggestions regarding community organizations that are looking for volunteers. She also provides countless hours of entertainment to a very mouthy Siamese cat named Tawny Kitaen. Her office is in 1-205 CST and you can reach her at ambarber@syr.edu and x5657. Please don't hesitate to get in touch and say hello! |
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IT Professional Development
Staff on the cutting edge
Publications
Lee Badman authored a review of Bluesocket Controllers for Network Computing, and a report entitled "Tools To Tap The Power Of 802.11n" for the March edition of InformationWeek.
Conferences & Forums
Colleen Van Camp attended the Association of Contingency Planners (ACP) Annual Tabletop Exercise on April 14th in Albany, NY. This exercise was attended by disaster recovery and business continuity professionals from various organizations, including Banking, Higher Education, State and Local Government and Utilities. The exercise was focused on how an organization communicates during an emergency.
Colleen was also able to spend time at the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) that was set up at SU for the NCAA finals. The purpose of the EOC is to create a central command and control facility able to react quickly in the chance of an emergency.
Stephen Wowelko attended the Xplor Global Conference March 17-19 in Tampa Bay, Florida. While at the conference he taught a 2-credit CEU course, AFP 101: Advanced Function Presentation. Xplor International is a worldwide electronic document systems association. The 70 session, 5 track event was made up of a combination of panel discussions and conference sessions featuring industry experts, analysts, and leading edge end users to share information, experiences and solutions.
On March 25th Mike Currie, Mark Grimm, Christopher Fox and John Craddock from VPA, Michael Clarke and Thomas Bunn from the iSchool, and Don Kilts, Dave Tiedemann, and Dave Williams from LEMP attended the 20th Annual Educational Technology Day at Ithaca College, a regional event that attracts over 1,600 people from the upstate New York region. It focuses on how today's technology can be used by students, faculty, and staff and features vendors such as Adobe, Apple Computer, Blackboard, Dell, Hewlett Packard, Microsoft, SunGard SCT and many others. In addition to facility tours, a number of useful vendor contacts were made regarding existing issues and new products. Sessions covered topics that included newer instructional technologies; Microsoft remote desktop services and application virtualization; Instructional Use of Video Podcasts; private cloud computing; blogging and podcasting; Windows 7; open source software; and Building e-learning projects with Adobe Captivate 4. Among their findings were that most schools are using Gmail, and several use Yahoo, for outsourcing student email; A few schools are running pilot programs to virtualize desktops, but not applications; and while some schools are increasing the number of computer lab stations, others reported reductions, based in one case on mandatory student laptops.
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IT Out and About
Connecting with the campus and beyond
At SU's 3rd Annual Department of Public Safety Awards & Recognition Ceremony on April 28, Raymond Kopp and Lee Badman each were bestowed a 2010 DPS Recognition Award for their outstanding contributions to the safety and security of the Syracuse campus community.
The awards carried (in part) the following citation from Chief Anthony Callisto, Jr., Director of Public Safety:
"You have always proven eager to help our department investigate incidents where computers have been stolen, often staying late and working after hours.
Most recently, your efforts in tracking Mac addresses on the University network proved instrumental in solving a number of burglaries and larcenies. In one case, the DPS was able to make an arrest on a larceny of a computer from the Goldstein Student Center- solely due to your efforts.
Our department received information from your office that the stolen laptop had been online in several South Campus apartments, and we were able to target a student who had been a suspect in numerous residential burglaries. The student was removed from University housing and the thefts ceased.
Law enforcement efforts are only successful when they exist in partnership with the community it serves. It is an essential part of the mission of this department. Your willingness to help and your efforts at making a difference exemplify the concept of service and community. Thank you for your commitment to making Syracuse University a safer place. You have set a fine example for others to follow, and it is my pleasure to award you this 2010 Recognition Award."
Congratulations, Ray and Lee! Thanks for your diligence and dedication. SUNews has the complete story.
Lauren Newman |
A big shout out to Lauren Newman, who used to work as a Senior Consultant in the ITS Service Center. Lauren, a graduating senior in the iSchool, has been selected as a 2010 Engagement Fellow, benefiting from a yearlong program supported by the Kauffman Foundation that contributes to paid employment locally, offers remitted tuition for courses at SU, and arranges for professional and faculty mentors. She was also a key member of the capstone project team that produced the seminal IT4SU student survey for ITS in 2009. Lauren has chosen Michael Wunderlich, ITS staff member and iSchool Adjunct Professor, as her mentor for the program. On Wednesday April 7th Syracuse University Project Advance held its annual Professional Development Seminar for IST 195, "Info Tech" instructors. Michael Fudge was the guest presenter highlighting features of the iSchool's student hosting environment. Participants learned about the iSchool's cPanel infrastructure. Michael also demonstrated cPanel's effectiveness by creating a dynamic hosted website in a matter of minutes. Participants were also introduced to other academic technology including Panopto Course Cast and Ensemble video. The seminar concluded with a question and answer lunch session where instructional needs and current technology trends were discussed. Stephen Wowelko was inducted into the New York State Outdoorsmen Hall of Fame on Saturday, April 24 at the organization's annual banquet. The event recognizes individuals from various regions of New York State who have in common a lifetime of dedication to conservation and improving participation in outdoor sports. Steve was cited for his essential activities on behalf of many organizations, including Friends of Carpenters Brook, Family Fish Days, Camp Hinckley Fishing Program, the Region 7 Fish and Wildlife Management Board, and the fight to save the Carpenters Brook Hatchery.
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Tech Updates
Keeping current with software, systems, issues and devices
 Syracuse University named to 2010 InfoWorld Green 15 for its new Green Data Center
Syracuse University has been named one of the 2010 Green 15 by GDC's InfoWorld for the University's innovative Green Data Center. The annual Green 15 award recognizes the 15 most innovative IT initiatives of organizations around the world that have embraced green technology to drive projects and develop products aimed at boosting energy efficiency, trimming waste, and reducing or eliminating the use or the production of harmful substances. For the complete Inside SU article, visit http://insidesu.syr.edu/2010/04/22/green-15/.
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Save Time & Cell Minutes with NameConnector
SU's interactive telephone attendant simplifies calls to campus
Since last October, Name Connector, SU's voice-activated telephone directory service, has allowed you to dial "0" or 3-1870 on any University phone, say the name of the person or the department you wish to call and get connected. You don't have to look up or even dial the phone number, just say the name and get connected. If Name Connector cannot find the name you want, or if you say "Operator," your call will be transferred to a University operator..
Add a contact for SU (315-443-1870) to your speed-dial list and calling into campus becomes easier than ever. If your cell phone account has a "calling circle" or "favorites" list, you can set up your account to make free calls to SU. Add the University's main number (315-443-1870) to your list (Verizon Friends and Family; AT&T's A-List and T-Mobile's myFaves are three examples), and cell calls to campus use no minutes and are cost free.
For more information, please visit Telecommunications website at http://its.syr.edu/telecom/service/nameconnector.cfm for hints and FAQs. You may also contact Telecommunications at 443-2330 or send an email to telecom@syr.edu.
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Active Directory Training a Big Hit
Two-day session builds technical skill, fosters staff networking
For the first time since AD was rolled out more than three years ago, ITS conducted comprehensive Active Directory Training for all Distributed Computing and other SU and ESF technical staff. The training program was held March 16 and 17, coordinated and conducted by ITS's Core Infrastructure Services group. Principal trainers were Eric Sedore, Andrew Joncas and Tim Jorgensen. Steve Bonomo was the event coordinator, having spent weeks pulling together content areas, registering attendees and handling general logistics with help from Heather Ketcham. Mike Wunderlich created the AD training space on SharePoint where he uploaded the videos, PowerPoint presentations and other related material. Sessions were held in the Maxwell School's Global Collaboratory. "Stan Ziemba and his staff were very helpful," said Steve. "Stan assisted with facilities scheduling, Matt Coulter provided help with using their Survey Tool, and Tom Fazio recorded all of the sessions." "We set this up conference style. Both days began with a two-hour presentation, followed by lunch and panel discussion," said Steve. "During the afternoon we conducted shorter breakout sessions". The eighty attendees were generally glad to participate in the training. "Well done and useful" said one evaluation. "This offered a lot of bang for the buck. There was information that is readily usable" said another. The sessions brimmed with information, and more than one attendee said they "learned a few things I didn't even know existed." In addition to building technical prowess the two-day program helped IT teambuilding at SU. "It's good to meet and spend time with IT folks from around campus and put names with faces" commented one attendee. As one evaluator summed it up, "The training was great and was very worthwhile. Thanks very much!" AD Training session videos and other materials from the program are available at https://sp.syr.edu/its/ad/Training/Forms/AllItems.aspx. The Active Directory Technical Team is evaluating future sessions. |
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SU Hosts Northeast ResNet Conference
Higher education IT staff meets to share insights and best practices
The Inn Complete |
The Spring 2010 Northeast Regional ResNet conference was held at the Inn Complete on Friday, April 23. Twenty-six IT professionals came from 15 institutions in New York State, Massachusetts and Pennsylvania, and from as far away as New York City, Long Island and Toronto, to spend the day together. Northeast ResNet is a regional organization of people who support residential information technologies at schools in the Northeastern United States. It is related to The ResNet Symposium, an international organization dedicated to the advancement and research of student technology support, focusing entirely on student technologies and their integration with the academic mission. "These conferences are a great way for us to learn from our colleagues at other institutions," said Peter Morrissey, who coordinated the conference. "They're also very helpful to our understanding of where we stand relative to our peers and the services we provide faculty and students." Several folks from Syracuse made presentations, including Randy Grimshaw, Lee Badman, Jenny Gluck and Jim Sahm from ESF. Sessions dealt with a variety of topics, with highlights including close looks at SU's SafeConnect, wireless troubleshooting, Orange Tracker Ticketing and Help Desk Support, as well as a tour of the Green Data Center. "Everyone from Syracuse University was so welcoming," commented an attendee in a follow up note, "it was wonderful of you to host this event." |
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AirOrangeGuest Coming Soon
New wireless guest access service will have more bandwidth, greater accountability
AirOrangeGuest, SU's new wireless guest access service, will soon be in place and provide a good balance between security, hospitality, and accountability for guest users. "The new service has more bandwidth, and provides anyone with a NetID the ability to sponsor guests," said Peter Morrissey, "and it eliminates the anonymous guests that were present under the old system." AirOrangeGuest has two points of entry; a guest can self-sponsor and get a specific set of privileges, or be sponsored by anyone with a NetID for yet another class of service. (Specific limitations for both groups are being finalized.) New to this generation of guest service is the use of mobile phone numbers as guest IDs. For sponsored guests, any NetID holder will point their web browser to the server, authenticate and authorize a guest account, and supply either a valid email or an SMS-capable phone number for their guest. In the case of sponsored guests, AirOrangeGuest sends log-on credentials via text messaging to the number specified, or to a valid email account when text messaging is not available. The guest account setup experience is much easier than the old system. When guests self-sponsor, an SMS capable phone number is mandatory, as the self-creation of a guest account culminates with the texting of the guest password to the guest's mobile device. The higher per-user bandwidth, easy self-sponsoring, and the added capture of a functional phone number enhance both the user experience and SU's network security in comparison to the legacy AirOrange visitor system New self-serve wireless guest accounts are issued for 5 days per month, per user. If more days are needed the guest should take steps to set up a sponsored account. Students, faculty, and staff will be able to log in to the new service, but will be rate limited to 128 kbps, which has proven satisfactory for hand-held devices that can't easily be configured for AirOrangeX. Further constraints on NetID holder access through the service may be considered as we evaluate usage patterns. AirOrangeGuest is expected to be fully operational this summer and uses Bluesocket's Guest Access Services. Lee Badman of SU's Networking group worked with them to develop the SMS feature, which Networking beta tested before Bluesocket made it a part of the feature set. Bluesocket is working on a case study of our deployment. For more information about AirOrangeGuest, contact Peter Morrissey (x4111 or ppmorriss@syr.edu). |
IT Connections is published monthly by Information Technology and Services at Syracuse University. Please submit story ideas and news items to Chris Finkle. |
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