• About Us/Policies
• Accounts
• Computing Services
• Computing Sites
• E-Mail
• Enterprise Apps
• Hardware
• Help
• Hosting/File Storage
• ID Cards
• IT Security
• IT Training
• Network Services
• New to MU?
• Printing
• Research Computing
• Software
• Student Phones
• Telecom Services
• Video/TV/Media

The Division of IT Computing Sites Post Holiday Hours

With many MU students anticipating a week away from campus, the Division of IT will continue to offer access to a selection of campus computing sites.

Students seeking an open site on Sundays during the Thanksgiving break should expect to find an available computer in Pershing, Arts & Science, or Engineering Building West.

Pershing, Arts & Science, Engineering Building West, Ellis Library, and Lafferre Hall will have sites available during business hours on Monday through Wednesday. All sites will be closed on Thanksgiving and the following Friday. The site located in Ellis Library will be available on Saturday afternoon.

To locate the site closest to you and confirm holiday hours, please review the online schedule.

President Forsee Speaks on IT

In early October, President Forsee told an Internet2 member meeting that the need for strategic IT could not be greater. IT is expected to play an increasing role in how traditional and nontraditional students are educated.

The need for information technology to be viewed and leveraged as one of higher education's most valuable strategic assets has never been greater. Forsee discussed opportunities afforded by more strategic linkages of IT to academic and research missions — from new sources of revenue and potential economic development to more cost-effective and efficient uses of faculty, staff, and students' time.

Technology deployments, such as Voice over Internet Protocol, TelePresence, the Next Generation Network, and special events such as the 2009 Energy Summit were highlighted as successful IT innovations.

Visit Internet2 and jump to 18:40 minutes to watch President Forsee's complete presentation.

Outlook Live Student E-mail Transition Complete

(October 6, 2009) All student mailboxes have moved to Outlook Live. Out of more than 34,000 accounts, there were only 1,591 stragglers whose accounts were manually provisioned. This completes the move phase of the Outlook Live student e-mail project. The process began in May, with voluntary opt-in so that May graduates could be included in the program.

Starting today, Oct. 6, all new student e-mail messages will be delivered only to Outlook Live. Students can still access their old accounts, so they can move any messages, contacts, etc. that they want to keep to Outlook Live. Nov. 3 is the last day they will be able to access the old accounts.

"The vast majority of students seem to love Outlook Live. It's working well for them. They really like the extra large mailbox and the SkyDrive storage is very popular," said Kevin Bailey, Director of Customer Service and Support at the Division of IT. "We're very excited to be able to provide students with such a robust e-mail environment. The expanded services we now offer through Windows Live should be a huge benefit to them!"

There are a few more things to complete before the project is wrapped up. By Nov. 3, all the old student e-mail accounts will be turned off. After that, we will be cleaning up accounts on the back end. The old system will be gone by mid-November.

"This is a very big project, due mainly to the huge number of student accounts we have at Mizzou. It takes a lot of resources and quite an extensive system to deal with the quantity," said Bailey. The project team includes e-mail administrators, security experts, account managers, a project manager, communications staff, help desk staff, second-tier support, and others. "The result is worth the effort, though — the students will definitely benefit from the expanded services."

Desktop Virtualization is a Reality in Switzler Hall Computing Site

(September 16, 2009) Thin-client desktop virtualization technology is planned to replace desktop computers at all University of Missouri computing sites. The Switzler Hall site will be the first to use this system.

A thin client is a very small computer that lacks moving internal parts such as disk drives. This compact design greatly reduces energy consumption and maintenance while significantly increasing the machine's durability. The hardware life of an average desktop computer is three to five years, but thin clients are typically replaced only every eight to ten years.

Desktop virtualization technology connects thin clients to the processing power of a server over a high-speed network. Multiple thin-client users can access the server to process data with a shared, single installation of software, instead of maintaining an individual copy of each program on each computer.

Following Switzler, seven desktop computers in Cornell will be replaced with thin clients. Kevin Bailey, Division of IT Director of Customer Service and Support, estimates that in 2010, all 1,200 Windows-based desktop computers in the MU computing sites will be thin clients. The Division of IT expects the new technology to return a 10-20 percent savings in manpower, with considerably more cost savings from hardware, electricity, cooling, and software efficiencies.

Tegrity Lecture System Records Voice, Video, Projections, More

(September 4, 2009) Studying is taking a new shape with the Fall 2009 implementation of the Tegrity Lecture Capture System in 62 courses. Using the Tegrity system, faculty members can easily record lectures for upload to Blackboard, allowing students to search and view presentations. The lectures can be reviewed with a Mac, PC, iPod, or other mobile devices at the student's convenience.

The Tegrity system simplifies the recording process. Faculty members only need to clip a microphone to their lapel, click an applet on their laptop, and lecture as normal. Voice, video, projections, and computer displays are all recorded into one presentation.

Although the Division of IT is providing infrastructure for the Tegrity system, ET@MO will implement Tegrity Lecture Capture System on select courses beginning in August. Tegrity Lecture Capture System is funded by student Information Technology Fees (ITF).

SQL and Oracle Database Hosting Changes

(September 3, 2009) Beginning July 1, SQL and Oracle database charges are simplified. All databases are now charged only for storage quota, not per connection. And the rates for SQL and Oracle file storage have been brought into line with each other. In addition, requesting a new database and making changes to an existing one is easier thanks to MyServices.

Owners of existing databases will be contacted by the Division of IT to assist with the transition. Data owners will need to apply and accept the database hosting terms and conditions through MyServices. Fiscal officers will need to verify or supply a MoCode for the monthly storage.

Some benefits of Division of IT hosted databases include:

• database administration
• professional hosting support
• daily backups
• secure storage
• vendor support and escalation
• no hardware costs

Database storage space is $4.50 per 512 MB per month. There is no charge for connections.

Visit the Division of IT's database hosting page for more information.

Student E-mail — Time is Running Out!

(August 19, 2009) 21,000 students have moved to Outlook Live — why haven't you? Your fellow students are already taking advantage of the larger e-mail box, bigger attachments, and secure online storage. And getting their contacts, old mail, and calendars moved to the new system so they will be ready to hit the ground running when classes begin.

If you have not already done so, move to Outlook Live today! Once your new account becomes available, all new mail is delivered to the Outlook Live account. (Remember, you are responsible for moving existing e-mail messages, contacts, and calendar items to your new account.)

For more information, see the MU student e-mail page. Instructions for moving mail, setting up delivery to your mobile device, and other frequently asked questions can be found in the KnowledgeBase at help.missouri.edu.

ImageNow and Save Now!

(August 11, 2009) Every department in the University of Missouri is looking for ways to increase efficiency, reduce travel, and streamline business processes. So, wouldn't it be nice if your file folders would walk themselves across campus for review, share only relevant documents, then return to your office? Welcome to ImageNow 6.3, already implemented in 40 University of Missouri departments.

When originally implemented in 2005, ImageNow was intended merely as a way to link scanned and stored document images with appropriate databases (such as PeopleSoft). Stored document images serve as non-modifiable legal documents, allowing the destruction of the original hardcopy.

The first ImageNow implementation successfully reduced physical storage needs, paper consumption, and document filing time while increasing document security. But the recent upgrade to ImageNow 6.3 greatly increases potential savings and ease of use!

For instance, an ImageNow user needing approval from another department can generate an electronic request to have a file reviewed. The approver is notified by e-mail to log in to ImageNow or the Web application, WebNow. File access rights are determined by department, allowing the approver to open only documents that are relevant to the approval. When the approver is finished, ImageNow notifies the requester that the task is complete. This workflow allows concurrent file access, relieves the time and resource constraints of having documents physically couriered around campus, and greatly increases security.

Additional ImageNow solutions include the automated receipt of electronic documents. Based on the sending fax number or e-mail subject line, electronic documents can bypass the printing process to be stored directly into the appropriate archive.

Each ImageNow implementation is uniquely customized to the needs of its department. Contact the ImageNow Team to discuss ways to save your department time and money.

Student E-Mail Moves to Outlook Live

(July 27, 2009) More than 13,000 students have already moved to Outlook Live, taking advantage of the slower summer pace to discover the advantages of Outlook Live and to move mail, calendar entries, and contacts to the new system.

If you have not already done so, start your move to Outlook Live today! The process takes only a few minutes and, once your new account becomes available, all new mail is delivered to the Outlook Live account. (Remember, you are responsible for moving existing e-mail messages, contacts, and calendar items to your new account.)

For more information, see the MU student e-mail page. Instructions for moving mail, setting up delivery to your mobile device, and other frequently asked questions can be found in the KnowledgeBase at help.missouri.edu.

Remember, students can continue to use their Windows Live accounts and Outlook Live mailboxes after graduation.

First Week of Time and Labor Ends Tomorrow; Remember to Report Your Activity!

(July 17, 2009) As a part of the rolling implementation, an additional 25% of Columbia campus employees are completing their first week using Time and Labor (T&L).

As the first work week since the implementation of T&L draws to a close, both full- and part-time University employees should remember to report their activity on their new electronic timesheet on a daily or weekly basis. Monthly Time Reporters will need to access the system only if they have to report absences. Submissions are only necessary for monthly Time Reporters if absences occurred; there is no longer a need to submit a blank timesheet.

Widely expected to save University money by reducing paper consumption and payroll-processing time, the Web-based application also allows supervisors to manage, review, and approve reported time and absences. T&L ensures that proper business practices are followed, creating additional savings for the University. Training materials and quick start guides are available online. If you experience any complications while using T&L, please notify the T&L Human Resources Work Team.

Last University Mainframe Retired July 1, 2009

(July 13, 2009) Since 1965, mainframe computers have been used to process data critical to the University of Missouri and beyond. The first mainframe on the University of Missouri campus occupied the basement of Middlebush Hall, while the second mainframe filled the entire basement of the Math-Science building. This system allowed the first online connection of the University of Missouri campuses in 1972 and the electronic counting of local election results.

The mainframe was programmed entirely in house, allowing for robust and resilient processing. Programmers would use decks of punch cards to enter programs. One mainframe programmer fondly recalled, "I could program it to do about anything a user could show me how to solve on paper." Depending on the complexity of the application, the programmers would create between 12 and 2,000 punch cards. The computer operator would run the cards through the mainframe before returning the decks and any printed output to the user.

For almost 40 years, mainframe technology computed essential administrative processes, including student records. Early student registration functions required punch cards for each student registering with the university. This generally consisted of 20-25 cases, each holding 10,000 punch cards to be sorted and processed.

Technology has evolved over the years. The mainframe did its job well for more than 40 years, but advances in processing speed and memory capacity, which benefit mainframes, also improved personal computers and servers. Smaller computers have more power and can do more in a fraction of the space the mainframe used to take up. With the University of Missouri's implementation of Oracle's server- based PeopleSoft applications to manage essential campus administrative processes, the large footprint of the mainframe and supporting equipment is no longer needed.

Mainframe technology is now passé for the University of Missouri. The last university mainframe was decommissioned on July 1, 2009. Current and former employees shared moments of reflection on the technology that was their livelihood. Several operators, programmers, and users easily recalled incidents of dropped and scattered decks of punch cards, the physical demands of older devices, and accidental resets. These mainframe veterans were long-ago pioneers of technology and critical parts of our technology past. Ironically, many of these employees can still be found in the Division of IT, forging our technologic future!

Last Chance for Adobe Acrobat 8 and Illustrator Training

(June 9, 2009) IT Training will discontinue Adobe Acrobat 8 Professional and Adobe Illustrator CS3 training courses. Although IT Training courses receive 4,900 - 5,500 enrollments each year, the Acrobat and Illustrator courses consistently receive the lowest enrollments.

Canceling these courses makes way for IT Training to purchase the newest curriculum for the most-attended courses. Beginning this fall, the remaining Adobe courses, including Dreamweaver and Photoshop, will utilize curriculum focused on the CS4 versions.

There are two more opportunities to attend training for Adobe Acrobat 8 to learn about PDF creation from any application, PDF optimizing, password protection, bookmarking, and working with links. Enrollment is still open for both the June 25 and the Aug. 4 courses.

The in-depth Illustrator CS3 series consists of four classes to cover shape and path manipulation, layers, text, color, transformations, filters, effects, and exporting. Limited seating is still available for either offering of the required first class, June 23 and July 30.

All IT Training courses are approximately 3.5 hours long. Courses are free for faculty, staff, and students if you attend. If you cancel within 48 hours of the start of the course, or if you don't show up for the course session, you'll be charged a fee. Please review our enrollment policies before registering.

Other IT Training courses cover Microsoft Office, Web design and programming, and movie and animation production. If you don't have time to attend a scheduled course, web-based training and instructional materials are also available for download.

Students Opt In to Outlook Live E-mail

(June 3, 2009) More than 2,000 students converted to Outlook Live during the first week of availability. Opt in continues throughout the summer, and all students (including May 2009 graduates) are eligible to take advantage of the available features.

Each MU student must initiate his or her own e-mail conversion to Outlook Live. The opt-in process takes only a few seconds, although it may take up to two hours before the new account becomes available and new mail is delivered to the Outlook Live account.

After a student completes the opt-in process, all new incoming e-mail is delivered to the new account (username@mail.mizzou.edu). Students are responsible for moving mail, contacts, and/or calendar items from their pawprint@mizzou.edu accounts to their new accounts.

The immediate advantage to the new e-mail system is vastly expanded storage. Mailbox size will increase to 10 GB, up from 40 MB. That's 250 times more space! Attachment size will also increase to 20 MB.

Outlook Live is one component of Microsoft's Windows Live services. Other components include:

• Windows Live SkyDrive: store up to 25 GB of data online; access it from any computer or share it with friends
• Windows Live Groups: collaborate in a virtual workspace
• Windows Live Messenger: chat with up to 20 friends
• Windows Live Toolbar: sync favorites in Internet Explorer 7 and 8
• Windows Live Photo: share photos
• Microsoft Office Live Workspace: store and share documents online
• Windows Live Spaces: blog and share photos, opinions, and more

Students may continue to use their Windows Live accounts and Outlook Live mailboxes after graduation.

For more information, please refer to the MU student e-mail page.

First Week of Time and Labor Ends Tomorrow; Remember to Report Your Activity!

(May 21, 2009) Time and Labor (T&L) is a Web-based application used by employees to report time and absences. T&L also allows supervisors to manage, review, and approve reported time and absences. Both full- and part-time University employees should record work time and absences on a weekly basis.

As the first work week since the implementation of T&L draws to a close, biweekly Time Reporters should remember to report their activity since May 17 into their new electronic timesheet.

Monthly Time Reporters will need to access the system if they have to report absences since May 16. Submissions are only necessary for monthly Time Reporters if absences occurred; there is no longer a need to submit a blank timesheet.

T&L will save University costs by reducing paper consumption and payroll processing time and ensuring that proper business practices are followed.

Additional training materials and quick start guides are available online. If you experience any complications while using T&L, please notify the T&L Human Resources Work Team.

Get a little greener at Arts and Science 10

(May 4, 2009) Spring is in the air! The air is crisp, the flowers are in bloom, and the general access computing site at Arts and Science (A&S) 10 is going green! In an effort to reduce paper consumption, the Division of IT has installed duplexers for all printers in the largest and busiest computing site on campus.

Duplex printing — the ability to print on both sides of a sheet paper — is one of the easiest and most effective changes you can make to reduce paper consumption. Although duplex printing will reduce paper usage, it is not expected to create a significant cost savings to the University. Due to the expense of toner and hardware maintenance, the current Print Smart quota will still apply.

Remote printing to the sites printers, including A&S 10, is available from any personal computer connected to the campus network using Print Anywhere.

Save paper, and ink!

• Use electronic file storage to avoid printing whenever possible.
• Use smaller margins, decrease font size, and remove extra spaces to fit more onto one page.
• Use spell check before printing.
• Use the electronic preview before printing to catch mistakes.
• Print only the final copy.
• Delete unwanted pages or select page range if you do not need the entire document.
• Print multiple pages per side of paper.
• Print on both sides of the paper.
• Cancel extra or accidental prints before they are printed.

Immerse Yourself in the Newest Generation of Videoconferencing!

(April 29, 2009) Cisco's TelePresence is coming soon to all UM System campuses. TelePresence is a new generation of videoconferencing technology designed to "immerse" distant conferees by mimicking a physical conference room. Using three 65" high-definition (HD) screens, CD-quality audio, prepositioned cameras and microphones, and similar physical environments (furniture layout, lighting, wall colors, and acoustics), you forget you're hundreds or thousands of miles away from the conferees across the virtual table.

TelePresence offers several benefits:

• facilitating collaboration between UM campuses and organizations throughout the world
• saving travel time and money, and thus boosting productivity lost while traveling
• hosting up to 18 conferees at each UM site
• interconnecting with legacy video (coming later this year)
• scheduling via Microsoft Outlook calendar
• initiating a conference by clicking a few buttons on a telephone
• displaying presentation graphics, such as Microsoft PowerPoint, on auxiliary monitors

The Missouri Research and Education Network (MOREnet) and AT&T will provide connectivity to other TelePresence systems in the university and worldwide. Cisco and AT&T will install TelePresence systems at MU, UMSL, and UMKC in May and at S&T in June. Expect to hear more about TelePresence deployment project in the coming weeks.

Finally, thanks to President Forsee for his million-dollar donation, Cisco for donated equipment and labor, and AT&T for donated labor and connectivity discounts.

University of Missouri Enhances Security of Social Security Numbers

The ultimate goal of the initiative is that SSNs will only be collected by authorized areas. Printed materials will be imaged and shredded. When SSNs cannot be removed, they will be physically secured with restricted access.

The University of Missouri Division of Information Technology will work with those offices still needing to collect Social Security numbers to store them in the centralized database. This database generates an Alternate Identification (AltID) number for application use. AltID looks and acts like an SSN, but without the risk of identity theft. AltID is translated back into an SSN to fulfill mandatory reporting requirements.

During this universitywide initiative, faculty and staff are reviewing business practices concerning the collection, use, and storage of SSNs to determine if every instance has a necessary function. Division of IT staff succeeded in securing SSNs and purging those that are unnecessary from several key data repositories, including alumni at all four campuses; Single Sign-On (SSO); the Remedy help desk system; the Vendor Registration application used by Procurement; the Minority Business Development Office; and Design and Construction. SSN use in the PeopleSoft systems is currently under review.

According to Dr. Gary Allen, Vice President for Information Technology, "protecting the personal information of our employees, students, business associates, and friends is a top-most priority for the university. This project will take everyone's cooperation."

Contact your Campus Information Security Officer to register your applications that use SSNs and to discuss strategies to secure your data.

For more information on the SSN Project, please visit the Office of Information Technology page.

University Employees Receive Special Offer from Microsoft

Under HUP, University employees may purchase a single Mac or PC version of any Microsoft titles actively enrolled in Software Assurance coverage on their campus. Currently, Microsoft Office Enterprise 2007 is the only software available systemwide at the discounted price of $19.95, which includes packaging, shipping, and handling.

What's included in Office Enterprise 2007:

• Communicator 2007
• Access 2007
• Excel 2007
• Groove 2007
• InfoPath 2007
• PowerPoint 2007
• Publisher 2007
• Word 2007
• Outlook 2007
• OneNote 2007

Interested employees must use their campus e-mail to validate their eligibility through MyServices. Upon registration with MyServices, employees will receive an e-mail message with a link and authorization code needed to complete the transaction with Microsoft.

Orders shipping to North America typically ship within 15 days and should arrive within four weeks. Software support and HUP frequently asked questions are available through Microsoft online.

Exciting E-mail Evolutions

To prevent the campus from outgrowing the hardware during the system's life span, quotas were set based on expected usage. Because the MS Exchange email system will be replaced this summer, all currently unused storage space will be allocated in the form of additional quotas. David Crain, Division of IT Director of Systems & Operations Support, explained, "For the minimal amount of extra effort required by the Division of IT to expand the quota, the decision was made to increase the convenience and usability for our users."

The upcoming installation of Exchange 2007 offers many benefits. It will allow for significant disaster recovery improvements. Although the current e-mail system may be restored within hours, it could take weeks to recover and repopulate data. The new Exchange 2007 system will cut the restoration time down to minutes by using redundant, off-campus data storage with high-speed access.

Despite the disaster recovery benefits and the increased storage quotas, the new email environment will be five times less expensive to install than the current system.

Student e-mail will undergo its own evolution in April, when students start signing up for Outlook Live accounts. These accounts will increase student quotas from 40 MB to 10 GB and offer file storage, instant messaging, and blogging tools.

Now accepting nominations for Excellence in Teaching with Technology award

Telecommunication Services are now offered through MyServices

Designed as a centralized processing center for products and services offered by the Division of IT, MyServices streamlines the request process for Division of IT customers and staff. Currently in Phase 1, MyServices enables customers to request Telecom Service requests, but will be expanded throughout 2009 to include all products and services offered by the Division of IT.

Previously, a request for a phone line would have been made by e-mail, then manually routed through the process — MyServices streamlines this process, and automates notifications to service technicians and the requestor. Customers can view service schedules, verify work status, and view a service history by revisiting the MyServices Web site.

MyServices also provides up-front validation. When a request is made, a MoCode and an approver must be provided by the requestor. The request is then sent to the designated approver for validation. If the approver is not a PeopleSoft authorized signer for the MoCode listed, the approver must forward the request in MyServices to the authorized signer. After an approval has been submitted by the PeopleSoft authorized signer, MyServices processes the request with the Division of IT and the work is scheduled.

The increased efficiency of MyServices benefits customers and Division of IT employees alike.

Phase 2 of MyServices will give customers the ability to manage existing accounts by requesting changes or cancellations as early as Fall 2009.

The Wonderful World of Virtualization

The Division of IT has embarked on a multiphase plan to virtualize physical servers. The first phase of the plan occurred over the past couple of years and has already saved the University more than $100,000 annually. The next phase of the plan calls for the replacement of 250 physical servers, the vast majority of which belong to the Division of Information Technology. This next phase includes all servers, except for Oracle Database Hosting and some of the email and communications servers.

Virtualization has many benefits. Specifically, virtualization reduces the physical footprint in the data center, increases the productivity of server hardware, reduces electrical usage (including air conditioning), streamlines administration, improves security, facilitates off-site disaster recovery, speeds provisioning, reduces maintenance and downtime, and best of all (in this budget environment) reduces cost. In fact, the Division of IT projects saving $228,000 annually by buying fewer physical servers and related storage devices, approximately $57,000 in electrical usage, and $47,000 in cooling annually. These savings build on the more than $100,000 in annual savings achieved during the first phase. Naturally, virtualization does come with costs, including powerful physical servers, software licenses, and different storage methods. All told, we can pay back virtualization expenses within 16 months.

There are other indirect cost savings as well. Reduced power requirements eliminate the necessity of expanding our uninterrupted power supply (UPS) configuration at an approximate savings of $150,000. We also will save over one million dollars in hardware, electrical usage, and air conditioning costs by not having to mirror hardware at a remote disaster recovery site. Our human costs will decrease as well. We can increase the productivity of system administrators who can manage many more virtual than physical servers, plus have room for virtual server growth without increasing staff. Finally, having fewer physical servers opens up space in the Data Center for future growth.

Departments wanting to take advantage of Windows and Linux virtualized servers instead of buying physical servers should visit the Division of IT's virtual services Web page.

TigerTech and the ID Card Office are Moving!

Uniting the Division of IT's technological support expertise with the retail and student service capabilities of TigerTech means that the best service and price on computers and technology are now collectively available to the MU community. Desktop support technicians will be located at the larger TigerTech Tech Desk, providing a centralized and convenient service center for students, faculty, and staff. These services include:

• Hardware repair
• Operating system service
• File/disk recovery
• Backup and restoration
• Hardware installation or upgrade
• Warranty work
• Software installation
• Troubleshooting

The Mizzou TigerCard is the University of Missouri's official identification card. TigerCard privileges and uses include:

• purchase meals, snacks, and beverages at all Campus Dining locations and vending machines
• cash checks and charge purchases at the University Bookstore in Brady Commons, Tiger Den, and Team Store
• enter the MU Recreation Center
• use the Student Health Center and charge pharmacy purchases
• purchase concert tickets at the MSA ticket window or the Hearnes Center
• charge copying costs at various libraries and Quick Copy Centers
• check out materials from all MU libraries
• pick up paychecks and clock in to campus jobs
• charge laundry costs at a residence hall laundry facility
• purchase ice cream from Buck's Ice Cream Parlor, meat from the MU Meat Lab, or flowers from Tiger Garden
• purchase materials and take classes at the MSA Craft Studio

Please see the student TigerCard or faculty/staff TigerCard pages for more information.

MeetingPlace Conference Call Service Upgrade Completed

• Direct scheduling from Outlook 2007 calendar items. After downloading the required Outlook plugin, you'll see a MeetingPlace folder icon in the Show group on the ribbon. Clicking on the folder takes you straight into MeetingPlace, where you can select a time, conference length, and number of conferees. Saving the appointment places conference call information into the notes area that you share with conferees.
• A new user guide linked from the Division of IT's MeetingPlace page. (Note that references to reservationless meetings and videoconferencing do not apply to our service.)
• A plugin that enables users to share web-based materials during a conference call.

For more information on MeetingPlace and to apply for an account, visit the Division of IT's MeetingPlace page.

Faculty and Staff to Update Emergency Contact Information in myHR

Student Participation in the Emergency Mass Notification System Way Up

• 20,451 cell phone numbers (136% increase)
• 13,126 text messaging numbers (249% increase)
• 10,652 local phone numbers (247% increase)
• 27,965 alternate e-mail addresses (1% increase)

Interestingly, just under 100 students entered numeric pagers — possibly medical and nursing students. Because the university manages its own e-mail system, those numbers were already available to EMNS.

EMNS, hosted by the 3n Company, enables campus authorities to record one message to send to all faculty, staff, and students in the event of a threat to campus health and safety. EMNS rapidly delivers messages to students' wireline or cell phones, text devices (usually their cell phones), e-mail, and pagers, thus increasing the chance of successful notifications.

"It is very important to get a 'critical mass' of MU students, who would be able to spread the word to others who may not have received the message," says Gary Allen, MU's CIO and VP for Information Technology at UM System. "The EMNS system provides that capability."

Since there is considerable churn in our student population, the university will present the new opt-in/opt-out Web page to students the first time they log into myZou beginning every August 1, January 1, and June 1. Students also can update or add their contact information through the same system at other times during the year.

The university purchased the 3N InstaCom Campus Alert System in September 2007 to alert students, faculty, and staff in the event of a natural disaster or technological or human event that could pose danger. Tragic events on college campuses nationwide last year prompted the university to make the investment.

TigerNet 1X Wireless Network to be Retired

Moving to Mizzou Wireless requires reconfiguration of your computer. There are many sources of help to make the move easier. You can start by visiting the IT KnowledgeBase. Alternatively, you can get support from your departmental IT Pro (faculty/staff), ResTech (for residence hall students), or the IT Help Desk at 882-5000. Walk-up help is also available at Brady Commons on October 29, 30, and 31 for those of you with mobile computers. As always, you can use the Tech Desk in the back of TigerTech for assistance as well.

For most computers, no new hardware or software is required. "You should make the transition as soon as possible to ascertain whether any hardware or software changes are needed," states Waage. "The manufacturer of your wireless card may have updated software drivers you can download."

Although our first wireless network, TigerNet, will remain in service for a time after the retirement of TigerNet 1X, it's better to make the move to Mizzou Wireless now rather than using TigerNet. "TigerNet is not as secure as Mizzou Wireless," reports Waage. "Besides, we intend to retire TigerNet in January 2009. It's easier just to make the move to Mizzou Wireless now and save the aggravation of making two changes."

Emergency Mass Notification System Update

In case of emergency or on-campus threat, the University of Missouri can notify you (students, faculty and staff on each campus) by voice and text message as well as e-mail. All you need to do is add your emergency contact information to the Emergency Mass Notification System (EMNS). Individuals are responsible for keeping their own information up to date.

Faculty and staff should add or update their information in myHR.

1. Click Web Applications.
2. Log in using your PawPrint (SSO ID) and password.
3. Click Employee Information.
4. Click University Emergency Info.
5. Enter your contact information.
6. Click Submit Changes.
7. Log out.

Project to Protect Social Security Numbers Underway

The approach is analogous to a coat check service or safety deposit box in a bank vault. Such services accept delivery of an item or object from a customer and securely hold it. In exchange for the item, the service provides the customer with a token in the form of a claim ticket or key. When the customer seeks to recover the item, they present their claim ticket or key; the service retrieves the item and delivers it to the customer or the customer's designee.

In the case of the SSN vault, the item secured is a social security number. The University's SSN vault is more restrictive than the analogies above, in that mere possession of the ticket or key is not sufficient to retrieve an SSN. The business process or person seeking the SSN must also prove who they are, and they must be pre-authorized to retrieve the number.

To make this work, any University business activity or process that acquires an SSN from an employee, student, customer, patient, vendor, etc., must be altered to place the SSN into the vault. The business process must take the value on the "claim ticket" issued by the vault — an alternate ID number — and save it into the recordkeeping system where the business process had previously recorded the true SSN.

Any business process that requires the true SSN thereafter (e.g., tax reporting or foreign student registration) must be altered to submit the alternate ID number to the SSN vault to re-acquire the SSN. In most cases we'll define the security system to limit use of the true SSNs to the government agency requiring the data.

The SSN vault and altered business processes improve our overall security posture by reducing the number of data systems holding SSNs. Instead of storing them in dozens of places as we do today, we will have only one place where we must maintain high security. Additionally, access to the vault must be pre-approved, and the vault software will log and audit all retrievals. The end results are that fewer people will routinely handle SSNs, and derivative documents (such as spreadsheets, email messages, and other electronic records) containing data from our administrative databases will not reveal SSNs.

The SSN Remediation project began last summer. The first systems to be integrated were the alumni databases for each of the four campuses and the Identity Management system used to manage network logon accounts and electronic mailboxes. The next phase will focus on the Financial, HR, Payroll, and Benefits systems.

It is important to note this effort is not solely a technology initiative; it is a complete rethinking of how we use SSNs in our daily business processes. You'll no doubt hear more about the project in the coming months, including in future editions of TechKnowledge.

TigerNet Wireless Network to be Removed from Service

TigerNet uses the WEP protocol for data privacy. WEP has shortcomings:

• WEP is not very secure. The WEP key is easily cracked, making it relatively easy for someone to eavesdrop on your wireless data communications, including web browsing, e-mail, and file transfers. It's also fairly easy for people with no MU affiliation to obtain the WEP key from someone working at MU, allowing them to access the wireless network and use our resources (such as Internet bandwidth).
• The WEP key must be distributed to all wireless network users and configured on every wireless computer. In addition, the key must be changed occasionally to limit, at least for a while, the number of non MU-affiliated users on the wireless network. This is a support problem and is inconvenient for everyone.

TigerNet1x uses the 802.1x protocol to improve data privacy and network access and has the following benefits:

• 802.1x allows wireless network access via PawPrint (SSO ID) authentication. Your PawPrint and password are strongly encrypted to protect them against theft. Only users with an MU affiliation have a PawPrint, thus preventing nonaffiliated persons access to our network.
• There is no key to be distributed, which is much more convenient for users and support staff.
• 802.1x supports several types of data encryption. When properly configured, it provides very strong encryption, making it all but impossible to eavesdrop on wireless communications.

CMS Puts Web Editing Within Reach

• Delegate maintenance responsibilities so that nontechnical staff can update content
• Use the same content in multiple places and/or publish content in multiple formats (HTML, PDF, Word, etc.)
• Control access privileges so that only designated users can change design or structure
• Schedule automatic publishing at specific times or dates
• Remind contributors to review or update content regularly
• Check sites for broken links, spelling errors, or accessibility issues

Setting up a site in the CMS requires a greater initial time investment, but once a site is created, it's easy to allow nontechnical users access to update site content. This can be especially useful for departments or organizations that don't have a designated Web editor with the technical skills to use HTML editors or other Web management tools.

That's why the MU Faculty Council recently moved their site (facultycouncil.missouri.edu) to the CMS. Leah Cohn, Faculty Council Executive Committee member, said, "The ability to maintain a current and accurate website directly impacts not only the ability of the council to communicate to all faculty, but the ability of the Faculty council to function. Previously, we had to rely on the kindness of IT personnel in a number of divisions on campus to update the site as time became available. We will now be able to handle this duty routinely on our own allowing us to post agendas, minutes of meetings, and supporting documentation for discussion items as well as keeping policy handbooks current."

Some of the MU Web sites that are using the CMS include:

• The official MU Web site (www.missouri.edu)
• Admissions (admissions.missouri.edu)
• College of Education (education.missouri.edu)
• Office of the Chancellor (chancellor.missouri.edu)
• Undergraduate Research (undergradresearch.missouri.edu)

MU's Office of Web Communications manages Cascade CMS site deployment. For more information about the CMS or to get a Project Proposal form (required to obtain a CMS site), visit webcom.missouri.edu/tools/cms/.

Web Hosting Migration Project Update

The DWHS Migration Project team is assisting departments with migration of their sites, while simultaneously cleaning up the Bengal Web server environment. Many sites have already migrated.

Benefits of the Departmental Web Hosting Service include minimal site downtime, system monitoring, virtual web hosting, access to technical training, data backup and restore, Web statistics, and more. Linux/Apache, Windows/IIS, and Cascade Content Management System (CMS) configurations are available.

Bengal will continue to host individual student, faculty, and staff data and Web sites.

For more information, visit the Division of IT's Departmental Web Hosting page. To request migration of a Bengal-hosted departmental Web site to the DWHS environment, please submit a Bengal migration request form.

News Bytes

• The Division of Information Technology now offers online departmental ordering for a wide range of Adobe and Microsoft products. Product lists, prices and order forms are available at the Division of IT software sales pages.
• Are you or someone you know using technology at MU to enhance the student learning environment or process? The annual Excellence in Teaching with Technology Awards recognize faculty, staff, graduate instructors, and teaching assistants who use technologies and demonstrate excellence in teaching. MU faculty, staff, and students are eligible to submit nominations prior to March 31, 2008. To find out more and submit nominations online, visit provost.missouri.edu/faculty/awards/technology.html.
• Get ready for Office 2007 by attending one or all of IT Training's primer courses. The courses are shorter than our regular courses and focus on new features, like the ribbon. IT Training is in the process of converting from 2003 to 2007 for our more comprehensive courses as well. You should see them popping up on the schedule after spring break. To sign up for a primer, visit the IT Training page.

Cold-Weather Tips for Laptops

Store carefully. Never leave a laptop in the trunk of your car in cold weather, even if it's in an insulated case. If your laptop freezes, you could lose all your data.

Let your laptop warm up. After bringing a laptop in from the cold, let it warm up to room temperature before starting it. The display is especially vulnerable. Don't use a heating pad to "thaw" a frozen laptop display! Allow it to warm up on its own before you start up.

Use a laptop warmer.... These devices, designed specifically to keep a laptop warm, have been tested for safety and effectiveness and are a good investment.

...but avoid excessive heat buildup. Too much heat is as bad for your laptop as too little. Don't use mug warmers or pocket warmers to heat your laptop! These devices can cause problems if they heat the wrong parts of a laptop and can even melt internal components. Also, don't use your laptop while it's in its bag (or anywhere else that doesn't allow adequate air circulation) — inadequate ventilation can cause the processor to overheat.

Change your laptop's power settings. If your laptop uses the "power save" mode, turn it off. A running laptop will stay warmer than one that's asleep, as it generates its own heat.

OneNote Helps You Collect, Organize, Share Notes

Some of the things you can do with OneNote:

• Share notes with other team members or students via email. In addition to your own notes, OneNote enables you to clip an image from your browser and even places the referenced URL in the notes.
• Record a meeting or lecture for later reference. OneNote associates the audio to the notes you take. As you listen to the audio later, OneNote highlights your notes on your computer screen.
• Tag important notes. With just a click, you can apply a star to an note item to help find it later. The star is just one of many tags you can apply.
• Flag notes to show up in your Outlook Task Pad to remind you of an action item recorded during a meeting or lecture.
• Ink notes with a tablet PC. Instead of typing, you can handwrite notes and later convert them into text. Obviously, your handwriting must be legible!

Don't take notes on paper and tediously type them into your laptop any longer. Do it once and save time. To learn how to use OneNote 2007, sign up for a free course with IT Training.

IT Rates to Change in FY09

If you have questions please contact Nikki Witting at 882-2000 or WittingN@missouri.edu.

Code Analyzer Software Supports Application Security

The policy applies to custom applications developed by MU faculty/staff as well as to those acquired from vendors or other outside providers. All applications that use or store University data are subject to this policy, regardless of where the application is hosted.

The Division of IT now offers licenses for Fortify Source Code Analyzer. This software helps developers identify threats posed by security flaws in their software. Application developers can run Fortify against their programming code to identify and resolve common errors and security vulnerabilities. Also, developers who utilize Fortify to check their code may be able to reduce the amount of time it takes for the Information Security and Account Management team (ISAM) to perform a security audit on their application. Information about the licensing structure and yearly cost is available on the Division of IT's Fortify Source Code Analyzer page.

Direct your questions about the Application Security Policy, the auditing process, or Fortify licensing to isam@missouri.edu.

Computer Purchase Contract Updates

Departments and individuals may go through TigerTech, the Dell and HP web sites, or the new eProcurement system (Show-Me Shop) to configure and purchase computers using these contracts.

The University has also awarded a contract to CDW-G for purchasing computer peripherals (hardware and software). Departments may purchase using the CDW-G web site or the new eProcurement system (Show-Me Shop).

For more information about IT contracts available to the University of Missouri, please refer to the UM Procurement Services VPA site. For details about computer purchasing, please see the Division of IT's Campus Desktop Purchasing Program page.

February 2008 Oracle/PeopleSoft Update

• Completed work for the W-2 and 1099 forms for UM employees.
• Work is underway to load student photos for UMKC and MS&T into the PS Student System to assist Admissions in their work.
• Supporting the rollout of ePro (the eProcurement PeopleSoft-based system) to all UM campuses.
• Finalized plan for upgrade of PS Financial Management to v9.0. This upgrade will start in February with a completion date of November 2008.
• Phase I of Connect EDU is in progress and has been implemented for all UM campuses. Phase II is in its planning stages.

Upcoming projects and goals include:

• Time and Labor implementation (all campuses and UM System)
• Social Security Number theft risk mitigation
• Self-service HR funcitons including eProfile, ePay, and eBenefits
• Student financial aid processing in PeopleSoft for MU
• Pension administration for retirees