Desktop Computing Team Meeting

3/16/98

Last department meeting: 3/11/98            Next meeting: 3/20/98  

 

AGENDA:

1. Review progress on:

• web editing/publishing (Bob)
  • The DCTM web-strategy team is about to make a recommendation on the basis of their discussions.
• Cross-platform calendar/scheduling project (see FMPro item)
  • Eudora Planner is now in beta for the Mac and released for Windows. We will test it out amongst the Desktop Computing Team members to see if this is the product we want to continue working with.
• TCP/IP-based conferencing service project (see FMPro item)
  • No progress on this to date. Members of BearFacts are looking at "conferencing/chat" programs on the Web to see which ones we would like to adopt as a campus.
• Faculty-oriented facilty project (see FMPro item)
  • There has been an offer from Tektronix to provide us with a "free" color laser printer. It had been suggested that if we had a faculty facility, that would be a place to put such a printer. However, there are many more questions about the "free" printer that need answers. Doug will talk to the School of Education about whether they want to pursue this or not.

2. Timeline/strategies for Life-cycle project

• Review last week's notes (3/2/98)
  • Doug distributed a list of tasks that will need to be considered in this project as it is implemented. Everyone was asked to review the list for the next meeting.

3. Software to be included in lifecycle budget

• Review "budget" created in 2/17/98 meeting
• Complete the "budgeting" of $100,000 for this part of the lifecycle project 
  • will look at servers and #4 below at next meeting

4. What to do with "old" computers

• Feedback from Peter Brouwer: He asked us to remember that,
  • trade-ins will provide some revenue to offset the cost of the life-cycle program
  • if we don't remove old equipment that has been replaced we will get bogged down into negotiations of what a dept can keep and what we can support.
  • if a department needs another computer (assuming that is why they want to keep their old equipment), they should propose acquiring another one (new) as we do with all requests.
• What to do with old computers:
  • We should hang onto 486 Wintel machines and 040 Macintosh machines for use on campus
  • We should hang onto keyboards, mice, floppies of older equipment if they are usable
  • Would 386s, IIci's, IIsi's be valuable for special needs throughout the year? (campus, special events?)
    • Would the library have a need for email/telnet stations?
    • Would email stations in the Student Union make sense?
    • If we do any of the above, it should be acknowledged that this will be an experiment. Equipment failure and support problems may make this project unworkable.
  • We will keep all Mac IIsi's and Wintel 386's ONLY to consider using as above. We will "scrap" (surplus) ALL Mac IIci's, II's, Plus, SE, SE30, LC, LCII's, 8088's, 8086's, 286's.
    • "Scrap" means to completely erase all HDs, or remove it if not accessible, inform Len Paige and free up the TCP/IP addresses these machines were assigned.
    • Paula, Justin and Bob will coordinate this. Justin will lead this effort.

   

• NEW ISSUE: What to do with the 13 Zenith Pentiums being replaced in the Res. Hall Centers

Around the table

Next meeting: 3/20/98

References:

• Our Department mission 
• Departmental priorities
• Departmental policies/processes/procedures
• 97-98 Planning (interview reports, etc)

Contact: R. Jewett (Email: jewettrj@potsdam.edu)