WML Tech Updates

Grab a cup of’ coffee. This is another long one. :)

1. Rachel attended the monthly Technology Training Coordinators meeting over in Baker. The group has been looking at usage statistics for New Horizons, the online, self-paced training modules, and doing research on other various training tools and opportunities. Additionally, Rachel is working with Julie Loder to develop a website to aid library staff in adjusting accessibility features in Windows XP . The group hasn’t been doing much as of late due to the anticipation of the Heard Library Strategic Plan, and the hope that it will give the group more direction.
2. The monthly Technology Support Coordinators meeting was also held:
   • There have been many problems with the campus-wide email system, so be glad we are on Owen’s network! Jody is working close with VU IT Services to remedy this major problem.
   • An announcement: If you need to send an email to the entire Library Staff, you must have approval from any LMC member before doing so.
   • The Print Management Project (Pay-for-Print) is coming along. All the libraries, the deans of all the schools, student government, the VU card office, and others have been consulted regarding the implementation of the pay-for-print system. At this time, Rachel is is unaware if there was a final decision made on Owen students paying for print jobs. Nevertheless, Implementation will begin in May, and we should have about 2 months to “work out the kinks” before anyone on campus starts charging.
   • Malware and phishing has been on the rise, and the spam that you are getting is getting better at coming in disguised. For example, someone in LITS received an email that was localized (talked about Nashville and the TN Titans) and had his name on the attached .zip file. There was also a message and a McAfee logo within the email saying that the email had been run through your virus scanner and was clean. All in all, this attachment was a worm that would wreck your computer and find its way into the network. This “phish” would only be “caught” if your virus software was up-to-date.
   • LITS already has a pool of candidates and will begin interviewing soon for Mill’s position.
   • Jason Battles, one of LITS’s newest members, will be doing a lot more of the proxy server set-up and maintenance, as well as working closely with Dale on other projects. He has server, programming, and system admin experience. He also used to work for Sirsi, and since he’s from Alabama, he gets a “Roll Tide!“
3. On March 3, Rachel attended a presentation from SIRSI on some new products the Heard system will be investigating for possible purchase. One is an Electronic Resources Management System (ERMS) tool, and the other is their Director’s Station product (which would collect tons of statistics and data for management). Both sound very promising!
4. On March 10, Rachel attended the first program of ACRL’s virtual 12th National Conference. Lynch and Keller discussed issues like googlization, digital repositories, distance education, and privacy. Clifford Lynch was very insightful as usual, but this audio only program had lots of room for improvement.
5. On March 18, Rachel and Amia attended the Library as Place: Where People Want to Be Webcast. Very informative, and Rachel and Amia took great notes and got some good ideas.
6. Also on Friday, March 18, Rachel, Amia, Deborah, and Dale Poulter met to discuss new proxy configurations, database management issues, and answer many access and proxy questions. Many things have evolved as a result of this meeting:
   • We are beginning to migrate some databases that used a special proxy server over to the same one that the rest of campus uses, making it easier for Dale to manage.
   • We are confirming which databases are indeed Owen only, and which are not. Deb is assisting in this process as well.
   • We are trying to get the same configurations of databases on both the Heard page and the Walker page so there are no discrepancies and it’s easier for the students.
7. We subscribe to many print journals and magazines, and some give free online access to the electronic version via a username and password. Dale is trying to make it accessible to the Owen community with an automatic login so users don’t have to stop by the Reference desk and ask for login information.
8. Jody Combs reported that LITS is seeing an increase in staff members bringing service requests and problem reports directly to LITS staff members or reporting them through LITS email addresses rather than through NetFix. As you know, this causes several problems for LITS and for the Library. Follow up reporting can be done through email, phone, or in person–but if the request doesn’t initially get into the NetFix system, they cannot track or manage it efficiently.
9. Rachel and Amia taught a workshop on Thursday, March 24 in collaboration with the Business & Technology Club on Electronic Networking and Job Search Resources.
10. LITS is now participating in The LOCKSS Program , (for “Lots of Copies Keep Stuff Safe”). What is it, and why is it important?
    • The evolution of web technology is disrupting the critical library role of libraries as one of society’s most important memory organizations. Libraries without collections have no memory; they are not libraries. LOCKSS restores to libraries the ability to collect, to preserve, and to provide access to web-based materials.
    • The software provides libraries with a tool they can use to ensure that current and future generations have access to scholarly content.
    • The system is an open-source, peer-to-peer persistent access preservation system for web-based information.
    • Through the LOCKSS Program, libraries can own content they currently lease or access on the Web. Each library instructs its LOCKSS machine to preserve the content it considers important to its collection; the LOCKSS then machine collects and preserves an authoritative copy. Publishers grant libraries’ institutional users the right to access the preserved content in perpetuity. Readers see the publishers’ content, unless it is unavailable for any reason (canceled subscription, network outage, etc.) in which case they see the preserved content.
    • This is very good indeed!
11. Rachel attended a live Webcast: Teaching, Learning, & Research: Libraries and Their Role in the Academic Institution on Tuesday, March 1 from 2:00 to 3:30 pm in the Central Library Classroom . Very good webcast.
12. Through March and April, Rachel and Marie worked with Jim Toplin and Dale Poulter to get Illiad up and running on the main circulation computer. Marie will announce when we are ready for training and or launch!
13. Rachel has also been working with Mills (before he left) and Jim Toplin to figure out why Ariel wasn’t connecting with the Ariel server. Additionally, Rahn is talking with copyright experts regarding posting scanned articles to the web in a secure, password protected location. Rachel and Laura are meeting again next week to get Ariel up and running.
14. On Tuesday, April 5, Rachel and Laura attended a panel discussion on Open Access. Roberta Winjum spoke about the VU e-Archive , Vanderbilt’s institutional repository, and the other 2 panelists were faculty and editors of journals, one of which was not open access, and the other being AmeriQuests, Vanderbilt’s first online peer-reviewed Open Access journal. Laura always takes excellent notes, so if you are interested in this, please see her.
15. Rachel is working on the Staffweb and incorporating your ideas and documents to be linked. She’ll have something to show by next week’s Staff Meeting.
16. Rachel is also working on a wiki for us to use eventually. She originally wanted a wiki for the Staffweb, but she’s got a lot to learn about wikis and is not ready to show a URL for that one yet.
17. Implementation of the new Pay-for Print system should begin in May, and we will have the summer to work the kinks out. We will not begin charging until the start of classes in Fall 2005. Rachel will keep you (and Danny) updated.
18. Databases. Just the typical breaks, fixes, and horrible customer service from Ebsco. Rachel typically updates the Info Services Staff of the changes at the Tuesday Reference Meetings, which are also put in the minutes.
19. Password Management is a good thing. Hilary and Rachel are leading up the effort to gather all the usernames and passwords used within the library (not personal usernames and passwords) for things like database, workstation, and software access.
20. The new WML Website is coming along slowly. Hopefully next week, Rachel will schedule and meet with the Website Planning & Implementation Team (Rachel, Amia, Marie) and plan the goals for the site for the rest of the summe r and for August implementation. Also, the Information Services team is working hard at sprucing up and developing more comprehensive Research Guides for the new site. It’ll be exciting when they are done!
21. Public workstations. You may have noticed some changes.
    • Seven of the eight computers have been ghosted and Deep Frozen. This is good. But DataStream and SDC are not working properly on all of them, due to restrictions Danny and I put on the computer to not let the normal wmlpublic login have administrative rights. This is bad. Rachel is working hard to fix the problem and will keep the librarians informed of her progress.
    • They shouldn’t be turned off at night as that is when they will run Windows updates. Marie will be noting this in the opening/closing procedures in due time.
    • Rachel will create a list of all the programs/resources on the public workstations.

Have a good weekend, everyone! Thanks for your attention and time!