Archive for the ‘3. ITS Responds’ Category
Q: What is the progress of the 2nd Datacenter?Update on Information and Instructional Technology Strategic Planning
Posted on October 12th, 2011
Q: What is the latest with the IIT Strategic Planning effort?
New Retiree Email Accounts
Posted on October 25th, 2010
Q: Does MCCCD offer a Retiree email account?
A: As per an approved recommendation from the Chancellor’s Executive Council (CEC) in February 2010, retiring MCCCD employees may retain their institutional email account using the same login ID and password utilized while a full time employee. These are provisioned through MCCCD’s enterprise email system (MEMO) only, i.e., college-provided email accounts do not apply to this program. (Previously-retired employees can request a new account through their college HR department.) Email guidelines have been established and can be accessed by clicking here. Password changes are available through self-service *Personal Administration Tools (PAT) and/or assistance by individual college Helpdesk personnel.
If you are retiring and would like to retain your existing MCCCD (MEMO) email account, please contact your college HR department to assist you with your request.
* Links to Personal Administration Tools (PAT) by location
CGCC, DSSC, EMCC, PVCC, SMCC
GWCC, GCC, PC
MCC, Rio, SCC
Special thanks to Keli Jones of DSSC ITS for contributing this answer
Click here to see an Index of common ITS acronyms
Internet Explorer 8 (IE 8)
Posted on October 25th, 2010
Q: Why doesn’t MCCCD currently support IE 8?
A: MCCCD does not formally support Internet Explorer 8 (IE 8) because not all enterprise applications are certified to work with this version. Some of the applications where certain advanced features are known not to work under IE 8 include CFS, HRMS and SIS. The application managers for these systems are working with the vendors to certify the applications use with newer web browsers as well as to update tools and systems as appropriate.
Special thanks to Rhonda Barger of DSSC ITS for contributing this answer
Click here to see an Index of common ITS acronyms
Gmail vs. In-House Email System
Posted on February 6th, 2010
Q: I heard that ASU and many other universities have moved to using Gmail as opposed to managing an email system in-house. Are we considering this move as well?
A: One of the 21st Century Maricopa projects should help us address this issue. We are currently using Gmail for students and most faculty and staff have Gmail accounts as a result of their involvement with MCCCD as individual students. This is not their official email but they do have Gmail accounts. There are legal, budgetary and technological issues that need to be addressed before MCCCD can make further progress but this direction and others have been considered.
Special thanks to Miguel Corzo of DSSC ITS for contributing this response
Click here to see an Index of common ITS acronyms
Single Signon
Posted on February 5th, 2010
Q: It would be great if students could have one login that they establish one time and it gets them into my.maricopa, their online classes, login for computer lab, authenticated to library databases, etc. and this works no matter which MCCCD campus they are attending or are physically at. Do you see us moving to this plan? How long do you anticipate this taking? Is there anything we can do to help speed up this process?
A: We have deployed common credential technology to three colleges. GWCC, PVCC and MCC are in the process of integrating their college systems with MEID/password. Other schools are scheduled for integration in 2010 depending on the staffing resources. The timing of the final rollout and full integration depends on many factors, from an application’s ability to use this technology to the plans and available resources of each respective college.
Special thanks to Miguel Corzo of DSSC ITS for contributing this response
Click here to see an Index of common ITS acronyms
Technology Standards
Posted on October 5th, 2009
Q: I run a computer lab. Can you elaborate on Maricopa’s Technology Standards as they relate to patrons viewing and printing obscene material from websites and how my staff has to walk the balance of academic freedom and not?
External Assessment Update
Posted on October 5th, 2009
- IT Governance
- IT Security
- Disaster Recovery
- Backup Procedures
- Data Center Physical Security
- Change Control
- Enterprise Applications
Within the seven focus areas, there were 29 observations, resulting in 56 individual recommendations. ITS has been continually working to address these observations. At this point, the status of the recommendations is as follows:
- 15 Completed
- 19 In Process (currently in work)
- 13 In Review (Being evaluated for applicability and best solution for MCCCD)
- 8 Ongoing Activities (Continuous Processes)
For more detailed information regarding these recommendations and their status, please see our ITS Assessment Response document.
Special thanks to Earl Monsour of DSSC ITS for contributing this response
Click here to see an Index of common ITS acronyms
Linking to Important IT Documents
Posted on June 1st, 2009
Q: How do I link to important IT documents?
A: IT document navigation can sometimes be daunting in MCCCD, especially as it relates to District-wide versus College IT services. The answer to this question truly depends on what you are looking for. Important documents can be located on both college-specific web sites as well as the DSSC ITS pages.
Listed below are a few MCCCD-wide examples:
- ITS Documents of Interest - Provides general interest to business practices and guidelines as they relate to MCCCD ITS. Communication, Data Management and Security are just a few of the areas found here.
- Communications - Service Announcements and Maintenance Schedules are contained here. IT Service Bulletins are communicated broadly through email and posted here for quick information on upcoming maintenance.
- MCCCD Colleges and Help Desks - A listing of the various MCCCD college web pages as well as direct links to each of the Help Desk areas. These links are especially useful for MCCCD staff support concerns.
- Priority Projects - Lists the top five projects that DSSC ITS is working on.
- Current Projects - A snapshot view of what the MCCCD colleges are working on. This site also contains documentation to a NEW wireless connectivity document that contains useful wireless information when traveling between campuses.
- ITS Principles - What can be expected from DSSC ITS.
- Points of Pride - A monthly account of what DSSC ITS is proud to have accomplished.
As we continue to bridge gaps in communication with college collaboration, we hope to enhance these areas to offer documents that are easy to find and use. We hope you will continue to provide feedback for improvement in these areas.
Special thanks to Keli Jones of DSSC ITS for contributing this response
Click here to see an Index of common ITS acronyms
Speed of the Student Information System (SIS)
Posted on June 1st, 2009
Q: Why does the new SIS run slower than the old one?
A: There are three main reasons that the new SIS is not as speedy as the system it replaced: size, age and complexity. First, let’s talk about size. Our old SIS was actually composed of 10 or more smaller, college-based systems. When data was updated, the old SIS was only dealing with less than 10% of the current system. We love being able to serve students with a single system, but it does make all of the files larger. The next factor is age. As of this article, our new SIS is a 15-month-old toddler, and the old system had experienced 20 years of tuning for efficiency. MCCCD grew to fit that system, and the system was molded to fit MCCCD. Over time, the new SIS will be streamlined, and MCCCD will also adapt to it for quicker transactions. We know things will improve. Last, there is complexity. The old SIS was designed to take in a little bit of data and process it quickly and reliably. As long as it was in the hands of a trained professional, things moved quickly. The new SIS has a different goal. It is designed to be used by students and faculty directly to accomplish their goals. This means that it serves students directly on the Web, day and night, from anywhere in the world.
Third Party Invoices
Posted on June 1st, 2009
Q: Why can’t the invoices sent to third parties, usually the company the student works at, be organized so it shows the company how much money is spent per person?
A: The third party invoice was revised in January 2009 based on feedback from DSSC Business Services, the MCCCD colleges and MCCCD’s third party agencies. Currently, we are receiving input from MCCCD’s third party agencies to improve the format and layout of the third party invoices.
