Checking In on Changes for 2008
In January, we posted a list of top 10 information technology changes we were planning for 2008. It’s now June…what have we done thus far?
Here’s an update:
Microsoft Windows Vista: We’re continuing to struggle with Vista in the campus environment. Our tools now enable us to provide support for Windows Vista, but we have not seen much of a demand for it from the campus community. There are still some University applications that do not work with Vista, and overall you need a relatively powerful computer run it smoothly. That being said, we do have several supported users running Vista and they have reported few issues with the operating system, though access to the residence hall and University wireless networks with Vista computers can be a frustrating experience.
Apple OS X 10.5 (Leopard): A large portion of our supported Mac users have made the jump to OS X 10.5 this year. Apple has released three major updates thus far for 10.5, and a couple of the updates have introduced some problems in a small number of computers. 10.5.2 caused some computers to freeze after the initial update, and 10.5.3 caused some problems with Adobe CS3 application files becoming unusable when modified on remote servers.
The next version of OS X, Snow Leopard, is on track for a rumored release early next year and will focus on stability and multi-processor support rather than introducing a host of new features.
Microsoft Office: Department computers continue to upgrade to Office 2007 for Windows one by one, and the results have been positive. There is a learning curve with Office 2007, but taking a ride on that curve is worth the effort.
Office 2008 for Mac was released in January. The learning curve isn’t quite as steep as with the Office 2007 for Windows update, but all of the great features of Office 2007 for Windows (and more) appear in Office 2008 for Mac
Microsoft Site License: The University finalized a Microsoft Site License earlier this year. This license covers installations of Microsoft Windows operating systems, as well as Microsoft Office applications. The Site License allows us to buy Windows Vista, yet keep a computer licensed with Windows XP; we can also upgrade computers with newer versions of Microsoft Windows.
The Site License provides for enterprise editions of Microsoft Office installed on all University-owned computers.
As part of the Site License project, we are eliminating Windows 2000 computers in many areas of campus, and upgrading all versions of Microsoft Office to at least version 2003.
Google Apps for Education: The student transition to BroncoMail powered by Google was successful. By the end of Spring semester over 14,000 students had tried out the new system. We’re continuing to assess the transition for faculty and staff. There are still a couple of key features the system does not have that prevent Google Apps from replacing GroupWise at this point in time. No timeline has been established, but we’ll keep you informed.
PeopleSoft: OIT and PeopleSoft functional teams continue to work on upgrading PeopleSoft HRLS. We should be seeing the results of this project in the Fall.
Help Desk Knowledgebase: We have completed the bulk of our knowledgebase software implementation, and are currently testing the system with faculty and staff. Right now we are preparing communications and training on how to use the knowledgebase, and tying up a few loose ends based on feedback from our testers. We will have this new system ready to go before the start of the Fall term.
Novell ZENworks Configuration Management: This is an internal tool that allows the Help Desk to push out patches, install software and image computers. A new version required for us to be able to support Windows Vista has been implemented. Over the next 6 months we will be working on updating existing computers to use this new version.
Symantec AntiVirus: We had originally planned to upgrade Symantec this past Spring, but circumstances have arisen forcing us to put off the upgrade until late Fall.
Hardware: We’ve setup and delivered hundreds of computers so far this year, and we expect to order and deliver many more later this Fall.
Dell will release their new Latitude E series notebooks later this Summer, which look terrific based on what we’ve seen. Dell’s OptiPlex desktop series will also get a facelift later this year. On the Mac side, Apple is expected to launch new versions of the MacBook Pro and MacBook with new looks and new features.
Stay up to date throughout the year with BroncoBytes!
Does that mean that faculty won’t be switching to GoogleApps over the summer as originally planned? I was looking forward to the change…
The change is coming. We just don’t want to roll it out to everyone until Google adds a couple of features to make the transition smoother. We’re hoping those features will be added later this year. We’re also spending a lot of time researching and planning for how we’re going to convert each individual from GroupWise to Google Apps. When you tally the time involved to convert contacts, calendar items, move archived data, etc., the time involved is a bit daunting. Having been involved in an email migration at another university in the past, I know how important it is to spend time ironing out every detail of our migration plan, and to prepare for any contingencies.
I’m a happy user of Vista SP1 on both my office desktop and on my personal laptop. No problems with either one. Same with Office 2007 on both, and with Office 2007 on my wife’s XP laptop at home. I’ve been strictly on gmail for campus email since January, and like it a lot. Like anything, it isn’t perfect, but I understand that others can move to it if they wish. That being said, I wouldn’t be happy with the change if I had lots of contacts or shared a calendar with others. But it works fine.
Maybe you too could join the ranks of early adopters?
dan
It is reassuring to know that OIT is figuring out how those of us who do share calendars and many contacts will use Google mail.
Thank you