Information Technology News Archive

1996 - 2017

Microsoft Software Licensing

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Academic Senior Managers, School Computing Coordinators, and other interested parties on campus are invited to a presentation on the major changes and new programs Microsoft has introduced in its software purchase and licensing offerings. The presentation will be made on Wednesday, August 29, from 2 to 4 p.m. in the McDonnell-Douglas Engineering Auditorium.

Microsoft has made significant changes in the “Select Agreement,” under which the campus purchases Microsoft software at a discount. In the past, it has been possible to decide whether to upgrade a product (such as Word 2000 to Word XP) when the new version is released. Under the new Select Agreement, one must purchase the right to run future upgrades of products in advance of their availability.

This ability to upgrade (called “Software Advantage”) is often not needed or may not make sense given the limitations of particular computers, but having “the upgrade option” now requires more planning than previously. To be able to upgrade your software in the most cost effective way possible, there are certain purchases you must make by September 30th, and additional purchases will have to be made in January, 2002.

In addition, changes to the Campus License Program — which requires annual payment, effectively leasing the software — make it a viable option for some departments, especially those in which there are substantially more computers running Microsoft software than there are faculty and staff (including part-time staff and student employees, each counted as half a full-time staff member).

The presentation will cover both the Microsoft Select Agreement and the Microsoft Campus License Program. Microsoft representatives will be present to help address the finer details and to help provide appropriate follow-up where needed.

For additional information and links about Microsoft licensing as it applies to UCI, please see http://www.nacs.uci.edu/licenses

If you are involved with licensing Microsoft products, please plan to attend the August 29 presentation. RSVPs via http://signup.nacs.uci.edu.edu are appreciated.

Instructional Technology Seminar

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FITI, the Faculty Instructional Technology Institute (formerly known as the Faculty Summer Institute) was held on June 25th-28th, 2001. The Institute is offered by the Division of Undergraduate Education (DUE) with instructional and funding assistance from NACS.

13 faculty and instructional staff representing 9 campus departments were given presentations on the use of instructional technology in the classroom. Skills developed included how to create and enhance course Web pages and Powerpoint presentations, and how to incorporate images and other electronic media into instructional materials.

FITI featured 3 days of training June 25th, 26th and 28th. June 27th was a practice day which gave faculty time to work on specific projects with consultants on hand. The new format was well received by this year’s participants.

Faculty from all academic disciplines are invited to apply for next year’s program. The Institute is designed for faculty and TAs who have little or no direct experience in developing and using instructional technology in their courses. More information is available at IRC’s Web site,http://www.irc.uci.edu/fiti.html

Microsoft Office Classes

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Network and Academic Computing Services is once again offering the popular summer half-day classes for Microsoft Excel, Word and PowerPoint, starting August 10th. These short classes are an effective way to build skills with minimal impact on your budget or your schedule.

This is the ideal time for staff training, in preparation for the coming school year. Moreover, parking is easier to find in summer months for those whose departments are particularly distant.

Each class is just $79 and will be conducted in the Engineering Gateway Building. To view course outlines, or to enroll with your recharge number, please visit http://signup.nacs.uci.edu/

Co-location Service

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Many departments are finding their daily tasks have grown dependent on one or more central computers, called “servers.” Sometimes it is a file server, which stores shared documents and data; other times it is a web server, which is responsible for presenting your department and its mission to the world.

You may find that the responsibility for housing, maintaining, and securing that server is a distraction from your core mission. Hence, NACS has inaugurated a “co-location” service, where we house, secure, and oversee your computer so you can get back to work. Costs vary depending on the combination of services which meets your needs.

NACS has a room ideal for housing computers: it is climate controlled, insulated from electrical fluctuations, and supervised 24 hours a day, seven days a week. If you would like to explore the opportunity to delegate some or all of the responsibility for physically protecting your key servers, ensuring network security, or maintaining the operating system, call NACS.

Computer Security News

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Did you ever wonder if your firewall hardware has known vulnerabilities? Would you like to read an authoritative document on securing Microsoft’s Web Server, IIS? Are you curious about the impact of latest Internet worm?

NACS makes a diligent effort to stay current on issues of network security, to make UCInet the safest infrastructure it can be, consistent with the mission of a public University. We are working with system administrators around campus to upgrade software and close security holes. Nevertheless, an informed community is perhaps our best defense against malicious network attacks.

If you would like an easy way to enhance your knowledge of computer security, do what we at NACS do: subscribe to the weekly newsletter published by the SANS Institute, “SANS NewsBites.” For a free subscription e-mail sans@sans.org with the subject: “Subscribe NewsBites”. Archives of the newsletter can be found at http://archives.neohapsis.com/archives/sans/