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September 11, 1997

Information Technology

Voice mail

It's been a busy summer with a number of major changes in the computing, networking, and telecommunications resources on campus. A new voice mail system was implemented beginning in the spring of 1997. Voice mail has been established for all faculty and staff, and the new system has already been configured to accommodate all students living on campus for the fall 1997 semester. Plans are in development for extending this service to non-resident students as well. This new system provides greater flexibility in communication between students and instructors.

Wiring

Information Technology has completed implementation of a new campus-wide network for voice and data communications. This network, employing over five miles of fiber optic cable and over 1.2 million feet of high­speed copper wire, establishes state-of-the-art network connections at more than 2,400 locations throughout the main and Broadway campuses. Individual users are provided network connections which can sustain transmissions of 10 million bits of information per second across a backbone which can sustain transmission throughput of over 300 million bits per second. New redundant backbone connections-both between Loyola's main and Broadway campuses and between Loyola and other sites on the internet-will support transmissions at up to 45 million bits per second. This enhancement not only improves the speed with which users can exchange information, it opens up the possibility of exchanging information in new ways employing real-time video and audio transmissions.

New Servicer-

To exploit the new network communications infrastructure, Informa-tion Technology has acquired a new IBM SP2 Server complex. This computer system will provide the computing power to host new network services offered to faculty, staff and students. The system is specifically designed to support client-server based administrative applications and network accesses software. Not only does this simplify the user's connection to computing resources by allowing for graphical "point and click" operations, the system utilizes multiple processors and disk drives which automatically "shadow" operations. System maintenance operations such as conducting daily backups of data may now be completed without interfering with the on-line operations of users. Further, if one of the computer's components fails due to an accident or mechanical failure, the other "shadowing" components take over automatically with no interruption to the user.

Network Completion

As installation of the campus-wide network proceeded, Information Technology began a simultaneous effort to provide upgraded computer equipment to faculty in order for them to exploit the new resources. All faculty machines which are viable as a networked computer are receiving simple memory, network interface, and software upgrades. The process is on track to have all viable faculty machines connected to the network by mid-October. An on-going effort to replace out-dated computer equipment is on track to ensure that all full-time faculty have an up-to-date computer connected to the network on their desktops by the end of the 1997 calendar year.

The educational environment for students has been enhanced by major upgrades to public access computer labs. New furnishings, up-to-date software, and over 100 new microcomputers have been provided for open access labs in Miller Hall, Monroe Hall, and the Writing Across the Curriculum (WAC) center in Bobet Hall. This includes the creation of a new student access lab in Bobet providing access to course­specific instructional materials in history and classics.

Service

In May 1997, Client Services established a new Call Service Center (865-2255) to serve as a single point of contact for all requests for technical assistance. The center is in operation 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Requests for assistance are formally logged, and a response team member is dispatched to assist with any difficulty which can not be resolved over the phone. This system will provide an efficient, easily recognized source for help to any student, faculty, or staff member experiencing difficulty with their computer or telephone service.

Training

Additionally, short training courses and hands-on workshops in the use of computers and network resources are scheduled for the fall. These short courses, free and open to any member of the Loyola community, have received very positive responses from their participants over the last several years. The courses are staffed by a team of professional staff members from both Information Technology and the university libraries. Over the summer, these courses and associated documentation have been revised to reflect changes in the computing environment occasioned by the campus-wide network. The courses are being expanded to cover new services offered through Information Technology which include: POP mail (an easier to use client-server based electronic mail system); World-wide web access; Listserv's for creating and sending information to entire groups within the Loyola community with a shared special interest; chat servers which permit users to join in on-line electronic "discussions;" and news servers which provide up-to-the-minute news reports from national and international services.

-William Cahill, Assistant Provost of Information Technology

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