OIT Computer Lab Updates


By Walt Pasquini


This summer, OIT made some changes to its services in the OIT Computer Labs. The labs in A.V. Williams and the Engineering and Physical Sciences Library were closed due to low usage. Additionally, Linux PC services in the OIT Computer Labs were phased out. If you need to use UNIX, you can still do so on the labs’ Macintosh computers.


These changes have allowed us to consolidate services and focus resources on the facilities that students use the most. The remaining OIT Computer Labs in McKeldin Library, Regents Drive Parking Garage (PG2), Worcester Hall, and the Computer and Space Sciences Building continue to offer both Windows and Macintosh workstations, numerous software programs, and printing capabilities.


If you’d like to print in the OIT Computer Labs, the Pay-for-Print system allows you to pay for your prints using your Terrapin Express account. To activate or add money to your Terrapin Express account, visit http://dining.umd.edu/terrapin/activate.


Once you have money in a Terrapin Express account, you’ll only need your Directory ID and password to print from computers in the OIT labs.


Please visit www.oit.umd.edu/wheretogo for information on university computer labs and www.oit.umd.edu/print for more info on the Pay-for-Print system.


 


Computer questions?
Phone, network, wireless,
or voice mail problems?


Call the OIT Help Desk!
301.405.1400 (or just 51400 from an on-campus phone)

 

The Word is Out!


By Tyece Wilkins and
Megan Speakes


The word is out about the Terrapin Technology Store, the physical location that supports the ACT computer discount program and the university’s other IT discount programs.


This summer was particularly busy as hundreds of students and their parents visited the store while on campus for orientation programs. To better accommodate this level of traffic, the store temporarily relocated to the Patuxent Building. Between June 1 and August 1, 2009, university community members purchased 1,300 IT products and saved more than $81,000. That’s a lot of sales and savings in a two-month period!


“We had ten times more space to set up our demonstration units,” said Barbara Bullock, manager of the Terrapin Technology Store. The store’s temporary location also allowed the store to increase the amount of stock on hand and provided space for more registers.


For the academic year, the store is back in its regular location on the Ground Floor of the Stamp Student Union. Stop by to take advantage of the discounted prices and extended warranties available on Apple and Dell computers. The store also has selected software available at discount prices and offers a convenient location to get new IT accessories, such as iPods and iTunes gift cards.


For more information on the Terrapin Technology Store or the ACT Program, visit www.oit.umd.edu/techstore or www.act.umd.edu.

OIT Creates a Network Operations Center


By Tania Faulkner

OIT is creating a Network Operations Center (NOC) to proactively monitor the university computer network. The NOC is currently under construction and should be fully functional during the fall 2009 semester. The NOC’s primary function will be to monitor critical network components such as routers and Ethernet switches to detect failures and degraded performance and to perform initial troubleshooting to determine the reason for any abnormalities.

 

The new NOC will be the first formal NOC structure within OIT with display monitors and a commercial network management system. As the NOC expands in the future, it will take on additional monitoring and network services management responsibilities.


Even after the NOC is fully functional, there will be no change in the way you contact OIT for service — you should continue to contact the OIT Help Desk for all service-related inquiries and issues.
Dr. Jeffrey C. Huskamp, Vice President and Chief Information Officer

Executive Editor
Phyllis Dickerson Johnson

Editor
Megan Speakes

Design and Layout
Cheryl White
Office of Information Technology TechKnow is the Information Technology Newsletter for University of Maryland students, published by the Office of Information Technology. Letters to the editor and story suggestions are welcome. Please send correspondence to TechKnow@umd.edu.
© 2009 University of Maryland.