OIT News
Monthly news briefs, information and announcements
Office of Information Technology, NC State University
Issue 12, October 2008
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For the up-to-the minute reports on OIT systems, see SysNews:
http://sysnews.ncsu.edu
For help with computing problems, contact the NC State University Help Desk:
http://help.ncsu.edu
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01: Dial 7 for off-campus calls – Effective November 1st
02: New SIS course scheduling system went live October 20th
03: WolfWise update
04: Hoit speaks at OIT Expo; invites comments from campus
05: OIT-recommended computer systems on NCSU MarketPlace
06: OIT helps to bring Cisco TelePresence to NC State
07: OIT to sponsor Brown Bag Lunch and Learn session
08: OIT Workshops program has new Web site, registration system, training center
09: ComTech has new office locations
10: Choose a good password
11: System Access Request (SAR) is now live
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01: Dial 7 for off-campus calls – Effective November 1st
Beginning November 1st, 2008, North Carolina State University will be changing its off-campus dialing method. To make an off-campus telephone call (local or long distance), you’ll first need to “Dial 7” instead of “9”. This change is intended to reduce the number of misdialed 911 calls that are routed to campus police. Remember – Dial 7! You should also remember to change your one-touch dialing/speed dialing numbers that use “9” to reach outside lines and to change voicemail options that route calls off campus. For phone help, call 515-7099 and select option 5.
02: New SIS course scheduling system went live October 20th
University Scheduling Officers will be attending SIS Course Scheduling classes through October 24th and workshops October 27th-31st. Release 2 of the Student Information System (SIS), which encompasses Class Scheduling and the Course Catalog, went live on October 20th.
Also, on Friday, October 31st, Registrations and Record will be hosting a SIS Information Booth on the Brickyard and speaking to campus about the new system. These information booths will be popping up in various locations on both Main Campus and Centennial Campus over the next several months.
For more information about upcoming training classes and to view the SIS implementation timeline, visit http://ncsu.edu/sis.
03: WolfWise update
The WolfWise Implementation Team has been meeting frequently over the past several weeks to evaluate the remaining project milestones in detail. The result is that a significant amount of new and updated information has been posted to the WolfWise Web site. In addition to architectural and budgetary information, there is also a new milestones document including the latest rollout dates. A recent development is that current GroupWise customers will be migrated into the new WolfWise environment before Oracle customers. Specifically, GroupWise migrations will begin in early January and continue for approximately six months. Beginning in March, Oracle migrations will occur “all at once” or in a very short window. Please check the Web site frequently for the latest information regarding migration details as well as general project information.
04: Hoit speaks at OIT Expo; invites comments from campus
NC State’s new Vice Chancellor for Information Technology and CIO, Dr. Marc Hoit, gave the keynote address “IT Doesn’t Matter: Creative IT Does” at the OIT Expo 2008 held October 9th in the Talley Student Center. To comment on OIT’s strategic operations planning, mentioned by Dr. Hoit in his talk, login to .
Well over 1,100 faculty, staff, students and other guests attended the expo, which featured 51 exhibit booths and 47 breakout sessions held throughout the day. Presentation materials from Dr. Hoit’s talk and many of the breakout sessions are available on the OIT Expo Web site: . For more information about Dr. Hoit, his strategic planning and other activities, visit his new Web site and blog at http://oit.ncsu.edu/cio.
05: OIT-recommended computer systems on NCSU MarketPlace
The Office of Information Technology and Purchasing have partnered to obtain better pricing for several pre-configured desktop, laptop and tablet computer systems on the NCSU MarketPlace Web site. A current vendor is Dell, with Lenovo to be added in the near future. OIT and Purchasing encourage departments to take advantage of these cost- and time-saving opportunities and welcome feedback on the configurations offered. Users of the MyPack Portal’s MarketPlace can view the Dell offerings under the Financial Systems links or directly by visiting http://dell.com/hied/ncsumarketplace.
If you purchase or provide specifications for computer systems purchases and do not have MarketPlace access, please contact your System Access Request (SAR) administrator to obtain a MarketPlace shopper role. If you have additional questions about the MarketPlace, please contact Eric Shiflett of Purchasing at eric_shiflett@ncsu.edu. For questions or suggestions on the configurations offered, please contact Barry Eriksen of OIT at barry_eriksen@ncsu.edu.
06: OIT helps to bring Cisco TelePresence to NC State
The OIT Communication Technologies (ComTech) unit recently partnered with the departments of Computer Science (CSC) and Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) within the College of Engineering to make NC State one of the first universities in the country to collaborate with Cisco in a new way of conducting face-to-face research.
In a presentation on October 13th, NC State unveiled a Cisco TelePresence room at the College of Engineering. Cisco TelePresence is leading-edge technology for virtual meetings between researchers worldwide. NC State received Cisco TelePresence as part of Cisco’s University Exchange Program, which facilitates research collaboration among select universities.
Under the direction of project lead Matt Valenzisi, ComTech coordinated all network and infrastructure aspects of the project to ensure that the final product was implemented quickly and successfully.
07: OIT to sponsor Brown Bag Lunch and Learn session
The Office of Information Technology is hosting a Brown Bag Lunch and Learn session called “Introduction to iTunes U @ NCSU” from noon to 1 p.m. on October 23rd in 216 Scott Hall. Hal Meeks, OIT new media consultant, will show you what you need to know to begin posting your podcasts to NC State’s iTunes channel, show you how other universities are using this technology and will answer your questions. To register for the class, visit http://webapps.ncsu.edu/classmate/login.
08: OIT Workshops program has new Web site, registration system, training center
The Office of Information Technology Workshops program has received a multi-faceted makeover. As a result of the redesign of the OIT home page, the Web site of the OIT Workshops program has a new look and feel. The new workshop site can be found at http://oit.ncsu.edu/training. Please update your bookmarks.
Campus users can also utilize the program’s new in-house registration system called Classmate. Within Classmate, you can manage your workshop registration, view workshop descriptions, download handouts, get details on OIT’s training locations and evaluate OIT workshops. You can login to Classmate with your Unity ID and password to register for fall workshops now!
Also, due to renovations at the Avent Ferry Complex, the OIT Workshops program will hold most of its classes in its new training facility in the Language and Computer Labs Building (also know as the Laundry Building) at 2341 Stinson Dr. The new Laundry Training Center (LTC) is located in Room 109.
Workshop descriptions and registration are available at http://webapps.ncsu.edu/classmate. You may also contact the OIT Training Program staff via email at classreg@ncsu.edu.
09: ComTech has new office locations
Due to renovations to the Avent Ferry Complex, Communication Technologies (ComTech) has moved to several locations. ComTech’s Engineering and Construction group is now located at 628 Hutton St., Suite 106 (in the Pylon area). Other employees previously housed in the Avent Ferry Complex have moved to 516 Brickhaven Dr. (off Beryl Road). The campus operators will remain in the West Dunn Building until the Avent Ferry Complex construction is complete. ComTech is also in the process of finalizing a location for its warehouse and plans to relocate its warehouse in early November.
For anyone attending or scheduling meetings in either of the ComTech Avent Ferry conference rooms, please note that the GroupWise resource names have changed as follows:
* TEL Avent Ferry Conf Rm is now the TEL Brickhaven Conf Rm (at 516 Brickhaven Dr.).
* TEL AFH-B Small Conference Room is now the TEL Pylon Conference Room (at 628 Hutton St.).
10: Choose a good password
Many computer security incidents on campus could be prevented if stronger passwords were used. To create a good password, choose a combination of at least eight letters, numbers and symbols, mixing uppercase and lowercase characters. You should use at least one of each of an uppercase character, a lowercase character, a number and a special character in your password. Be sure your password doesn’t form (or contain) a real word that can be looked up in a dictionary. You should also avoid numbers or other facts such as your birthday that can be discovered by a hacker performing a simple Internet search. Do choose a combination that makes sense to you so you can remember it. Using a mnemonic phrase can help. Remember, cracking a 12-character password is more difficult for a hacker than cracking an eight-character password.
11: System Access Request (SAR) is now live
On September 30th, the System Access Request (SAR) application went live, culminating a one-year implementation project. Early experience with the new SAR application has been very good. SAR automates the approval process for granting and revoking employees’ access to existing administrative applications. SAR replaces the aging Automated Security Access Process (ASAP) and will also support the complex access controls required by the new Student Information System (SIS). Further, SAR smoothes the workflow associated with approval of authorization requests, and automatically places fully approved requests directly into the PeopleSoft systems (HR, Financial, and SIS), shortening the time it takes to provide changed access to an individual. However, because of this automatic approach, OIT Security and Compliance will no longer review employees’ requests prior to access being granted or revoked. So please be sure to review all requests for accuracy carefully before submitting or approving them. Those who need SAR training can sign up for classes at http://www.fis.ncsu.edu/solutionscenter/Training. As a reminder, SAR users must go through training before being given access to the application.
Concurrent with the launch of the System Access Request (SAR) application on September 30th, the MyPack Portal checks whether an employee has agreed to the Information Security Acknowledgement Form (ISAF). Those who read and click to acknowledge the ISAF understand that they may have access to or may see confidential or sensitive information that is protected under one or more regulations or laws, and that they will not disclose that information outside of the circumstances allowed under those regulations or laws. If there is no record of a signed form, a pop-up on the MyPack Portal will direct employees to the electronic ISAF for the user to accept electronically. Once acknowledged online, the ISAF notice will no longer appear when the user logs on to the portal.
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For help with computing at NC State, contact the NC State Help Desk:
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