The fall issue of the Technology Services newsletter, TechNews, is out!

Topics include Admission’s pending move to PeopleSoft, Professor Terry Beck’s use of podcasts in his Schools in American Society course, recent improvements in the campus network, and exciting updates from Collins Memorial Library on their scheduled migration to a new Integrated Library System and the recent debut of the online version of the University Archives.

The next issue of TechNews is scheduled for distribution during the spring semester. Please send ideas for articles and other suggestions to technews@pugetsound.edu.

As we approach the end of fall semester, hours for the Tech Center in the lower level of Collins Memorial Library will be as follows:

Monday-Thursday, December 9-12, 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Friday, December 13, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Saturday, December 14, noon to 4:00 p.m.
Sunday, December 15, noon to 10:00 p.m.
Monday-Thursday, December 16-19, 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.
Friday, December 20, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

The Tech Center, including the Technology Service Desk, will be closed for winter break from December 21, 2013, through January 1, 2014. The hours between January 2-20 will be 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday.  Regular hours will resume with the start of spring semester on Tuesday, January 21. Good luck with finals, and enjoy the break!

Technology Services is pleased to announce we have doubled the bandwidth of the Internet connection for campus residences from 250 Mbps to 500 Mbps. In recent months, we’ve seen this connection approach and, in some cases, hit the bandwidth limit at certain times of day, often resulting in degradation of service and poor performance.The increased bandwidth means we are no longer hitting the limit, so campus residents should see faster service and improved speed when connecting to the Internet. As always, though, if you experience any issues, please contact the Technology Service Desk at 253.879.8585 or servicedesk@pugetsound.edu for assistance.

Puget Sound CIO William Morse has a new blog, aptly titled Morse Musing. His first post focuses on the rapid pace of change, both in the greater world of technology and closer to home. You can check out the blog and/or subscribe to receive notification of future posts.

Remember when the Optimize wall was bare? Campus members are invited to gather Thursday, November 7, from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. in the Wheelock Rotunda to celebrate all that’s been accomplished in this endeavor over the past two years. The event will feature music, refreshments, and remarks from President Ron Thomas and Academic Vice President and Dean of the University Kris Bartanen. This is a major milestone for campus, so everyone is encouraged to come join the celebration!

See the Optimize page for more information on this important project.

TS is pleased to announce that William Morse, Chief Information Officer and Associate Vice President for Technology Services, has been elected to the board of directors for the Northwest Academic Computing Consortium (NWACC). According to the Consortium’s website, “NWACC is comprised of colleges, universities, and other non-profit organizations in the Pacific Northwest and nearby areas. Founded in 1987, NWACC’s mission is to foster communication and collaboration among its member institutions on the development and use of advanced technology for instruction, research, and administrative operations.”

In sharing the news with TS colleagues, Morse wrote, “I am deeply grateful and humbled to be recognized by my peers in this way. I believe my election was in large part due to your hard work and efforts. Many people have commented to me that they are absolutely amazed at how much we have accomplished together here at Puget Sound. Incredibly, we have done it all in less than four years. It is nothing short of amazing. Just imagine what the future holds!”

For more information, see www.nwacc.org.

Technology Services appreciates everyone’s patience as we’ve grappled in recent weeks with performance issues on the wireless network in many residence halls and in high-traffic areas such as Collins Memorial Library, Oppenheimer Café, and Wheelock Student Center (including Diversions Café). We’ve seen a rapid rise in the number of mobile devices on campus, including laptops, tablets, smart phones, printers, and game consoles, many of which are being used to access, download, or stream a wide variety of data that sometimes includes large media files. This trend, known as Bring Your Own Device (BYOD), is not unique to Puget Sound, as universities all across the country are struggling to meet the ever-increasing demand on campuses for wireless access that is robust and fast.

To improve Puget Sound’s wireless coverage, Technology Services will take the following steps in coming weeks:

1. We will upgrade access points in some residence halls and high-traffic areas on campus to “AC,” the very latest technology in wireless connectivity. This new hardware will allow more users to connect at one time than the older “N” and “G” access points previously allowed.
2. In other areas, we will add more access points as needed to boost coverage.
3. We will implement new software to identify and disable “rogue” access points and routers connected to the university network. Such devices greatly impair network service for everyone and are prohibited by the Network Use Policy.

Please contact the Technology Service Desk at servicedesk@pugetsound.edu or 253.879.8585 if you experience any issues with wireless or other technology on campus. We also welcome your feedback and questions!

The Tech Center in Collins Memorial Library will close for fall break Saturday, October 19, and Sunday, October 20. The Tech Center, including the Technology Service Desk, will be open from 8:00 a.m to 5:00 p.m. Monday, October 21, and Tuesday, October 22. Regular hours will resume Wednesday, October 23. Have a great break!

Technology Services is pleased to be installing a new standard desktop computer on campus that features the 4th generation of Intel’s Core processor series, code named “Haswell.” When Intel released the quad core processor in June, the company touted it as offering improved performance with significantly reduced power consumption. This means the new computers fit well with Puget Sound’s efforts to promote the sustainable use of university resources.

TS has installed the new desktops, which are distinguishable from previous campus computers by their more compact size, in many of the university’s computer labs. These new machines are also being issued to faculty and staff whose university-owned computers running Windows are scheduled for replacement. See the Technology Purchasing and Replacement Policy.

You can read more about the benefits of Intel’s Haswell processor. For questions or feedback, please contact the Technology Service Desk at 253.879.8585 or servicedesk@pugetsound.edu.

Technology Services is pleased to welcome Jared Hoover as our new Systems Server Manager. Jared has extensive experience working in technology, including his most recent position as Integration Analyst in Technical Services for the Peninsula School District. In his spare time Jared enjoys skiing, exploring the Pacific Northwest, and working on cars. He says he “always enjoys the challenge of fixing something that’s broken.”

Welcome to the team, Jared!