Information Technology News Archive

1996 - 2017

New Zotmail System

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ZotmailAdministrative Policies and Records, working with OIT, has developed and released a new edition of Zotmail, the campus system for sending email announcements to faculty and staff.

Features

Among the many features of the new Zotmail system are an easy-to-use interface (senders can more easily create and customize messages; everyone else can more easily control which Zotmail messages they receive) and a searchable archive for looking up past Zotmail releases.

Zotmail Lists

All employees are added to the Zotmail system as soon as their payroll records are created and the employee has selected an email service (“delivery point”).  Employees are automatically enrolled in a core set of official communications channels related to their affiliation (e.g., faculty, staff, main campus, School of Medicine), lists for Schools and other campus units, and certain other informative lists including:

  • Staff Assembly
  • UCI Brief
  • UCI in the News
  • UC Irvine Magazine

Employees can then use the Zotmail system to modify the lists they receive messages from.  There are certain lists (emergency communications and mandatory information relating to employment at the university) from which you cannot unsubscribe.

Mailman Lists

Many of the lists that were part of the old Zotmail system are now supported by the Mailman service, which is better suited to special-interest forums such as:

For more information on Zotmail and campus mailing lists, contact oit@uci.edu or call x42222.

In Brief November 2013

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latest news

  • Microsoft is retiring support for Windows XP in April 2014.  After that date, XP systems will be increasingly vulnerable to malware.  Users of XP systems should consult with their local support regarding replacement, upgrade, or strategic management in the absence of security patches.
  • EEE is offering a new workshop, Working Safe and Smart in the Wild Web, in which you’ll learn strategies to protect your information while leveraging the power of the internet.  The workshop will be held at 2pm November 25.  Interested people can register at https://eee.uci.edu/workshop/cf .
  • Sponsored and Group UCInetIDs are now eligible for UCI Google accounts.  Instructions for setting up a UCI Google account can be found on the UCI Google setup page.

Print Anywhere with Mobile Printing

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printer

OIT has recently extended the printing service in the OIT computing labs to support “mobile printing.”   Mobile Printing allows UCI students, faculty and staff to send printouts (documents or web pages) to printers in the computer labs from mobile devices such as laptops, tablets and cell phones.  Mobile printing supports a range of common document formats, including Word, PDF, and various image formats.

Printers for this service are available in the following locations:

  • Student Center C138 [OIT]
  • Social & Behavioral Sciences Gateway G200 & G240 & G241 [OIT]
  • Social Science Tower 107 [OIT]
  • Natural Sciences 1 2144 & 3116 [OIT]
  • Multipurpose Science & Technology Building 210 & 226 [OIT]
  • Humanities Hall 269 [HIRC]
  • Engineering Hall 1151 [HSSoE]
  • Engineering Computing Trailer 123 [HSSoE]
  • Multipurpose Science & Technology Building 224 [HSSoE]

Printing a document involves a few simple steps:

  • You must connect to UCInet, either by using an existing connected system, the VPN, or UCInet Mobile Access (campus Wi-Fi).
  • Start the Mobile Printing service.
  • Identify the location you wish to print to.
  • Identify the document or web page you wish to print.
  • Go to the chosen printer and use your UCI ID card to authorize the printout.  (You will need to have pre-loaded value on your card at a Regenerator station.)

More detailed instructions with screenshots can be found on the mobile printing instructions page.

Conferencing with ReadyTalk

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ReadyTalk

OIT offers a versatile teleconferencing solution, ReadyTalk, to faculty and staff.   ReadyTalk is much more than a telephone conference service.  Some of the ways you can use ReadyTalk are described below.

Quick Launcher – Enables conference leaders to initiate an audio conference or a web conference with just 2 mouse clicks. More information and a link to the download are located here http://www.readytalk.com/products-services/integrations/productivity/quick-launcher.

Outlook Scheduler – Meeting organizers can add their ReadyTalk conference login to an Outlook meeting request with a single mouse click.  This is convenient for organizers and the invitation makes it convenient for participants to join a meeting.  Participants can choose to dial into the conference or they can click on a ‘Call Me’ link and have ReadyTalk call and connect them to their meeting. Check out more information and a link to the download here http://www.readytalk.com/products-services/integrations/productivity/outlook-scheduler.

ReadyTalk for Google – Meeting organizers can add their ReadyTalk conference login to Google Calendar meeting request with a single mouse click.  You can download the Google Scheduler here http://www.readytalk.com/products-services/integrations/productivity/google-calendar.

ReadyTalk for Lync – ReadyTalk’s integration with Lync makes it easy to connect with individuals directly from your active directory of contacts.  Right click on any contact to send them a link to join an instant meeting.  For more information: http://www.readytalk.com/products-services/integrations/productivity/microsoft-lync.

Other features of ReadyTalk include:

  • Chairperson dial me:  Conference leaders can choose to dial their conference phone number, access code and passcode in order to access their conference call OR they can choose to have the bridge call out to their phone and connect them to their meeting.  Chairperson dial me is available through the Quick Launcher and within the web conference interface so that you can choose the entry point that is most convenient for you when you host your meetings.
  • Video Conferencing:  Build stronger connections with the individuals you meet with by using ReadyTalk’s video conferencing service for your meetings.  The video conferencing service is offered as a complement to web conferences where attendees need the ability to see each other.  Up to 25 people can attend and see the video streams of up to 4 attendees at any one time. The  video streams can be swapped out so that you can share the video of different individuals throughout your meeting. The service is designed to help IT organizations manage bandwidth utilization across their organization where our service is concerned and to provide adequate real estate for the individuals to review a slide desk, document and other visual content during a meeting.
  • VoIP: In addition to accessing a conference call via telephone, ReadyTalk now offers the option for hosts and attendees to join a conference call via VoIP (using their computer).  Meetings may have a blend of access methods across the spectrum of attendees.  Some individuals may call in by phone and others may use VoIP for the same call.  The chairperson opens a web conference in order to make VoIP available and then individuals can select the access method that is appropriate for themselves. A headset is recommended for our service to ensure the best audio quality experience.

Questions about ReadyTalk can be directed to ReadyTalk Customer Care.

OIT Data Center

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Data Center

During October, OIT, Facilities Management, and Design and Construction Services completed the process of expanding the OIT Data Center (OITDC) facility in Engineering Gateway.  The OITDC consolidates systems from the Law Building Data Center (LBDC) and saves the campus energy and money.  It also allows the space formerly occupied by the LBDC to be used to meet the needs of the Law School.

Focus has now turned to improving engineering aspects of the data center (power, cooling, and control systems).

OIT is also redesigning housing and planning expanded capacity for the cluster systems hosted in the OITDC (HPC and GreenPlanet).  These projects are expected to continue into 2014.