Simmons Connection is just around the corner

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In recent months, the Simmons Technology team has been hard at work on a new centralized platform that integrates many of the technology services offered at Simmons. This new product, called Simmons Connection, will be available to everyone at Simmons on June 4th.

We’ve kept the best of what the existing portal (My.Simmons) had to offer and added new services like email and event management. We’re most excited about two brand new features: Planga and Mox. Planga is a new event and group management tool that will make keeping track of your upcoming events easier than ever. Mox is a mobile app that will give you one-touch access to many Simmons Connection features. You can use it to view announcements, search the directory, and quickly navigate to upcoming events on Planga.

We also want you to know that, while email will look different for students, they will still have Simmons email addresses and the changes to email will not affect how students interact with professors or staff members.

While many technology services are already available in this first iteration of Simmons Connection, we do want you to know that it is a living, evolving platform that we will continue to refine and improve by making incremental changes over time. Like many of our projects, the creation and rollout of Simmons Connection has been rooted in a philosophy of continuous changes to functionality and usability based on your feedback. Accordingly, there is a prominent feedback link within Simmons Connection and we hope that you will use it to provide your thoughts and, in turn, help guide the decisions and changes we make.

We will be working this summer to include new features and improve the overall functionality of Simmons Connection. To keep you up to date on new developments, we have created a project website where you can find out more information about Simmons Connection and get access to some of the most common questions about how to use it. You can find it at project-connection.simmons.edu.

Change Management: Improving service, managing risk

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While many exciting changes are occurring right now in Simmons Technology, we also want to give some insight into a less glamorous but very important aspect of what we do. It’s called change management and it’s at the heart of everything that happens behind the scenes.

At its core, change management is a set of practices that determines how we go about making changes to our services and assessing the risks inherent in those changes. Changes can cause big problems if they’re not managed effectively. In 2008, a study by the consulting firm Gartner found that 80% of technology downtime is caused by problems with changes to services.

Conversely, change is inevitable. We know that you want new products and access to the most up-to-date versions of products you already use. This is why we have a process for managing change and creating an environment where downtime is minimized or, when possible, avoided all together.

The first step in managing change is working with our customers (that’s you!) to determine what your needs are and how changes will impact business decisions and your day-to-day work and scholarship. For example, we have been working with faculty, staff, and students while planning and testing Simmons Connection. We need to know that the changes we plan will benefit you and improve service without negatively impacting existing services.

Next, we test changes by implementing them in a development environment. This allows us to discuss and provide feedback on a potential change before deploying it to everyone.

After that, we seek approval for the change, both internally and from customers, and schedule the change to occur during a time when there will be minimal impact (for example, early in the morning or over a weekend).

In the end, all of this planning pays great dividends. On average, we make 50-75 changes per month and we have fewer service interruptions than other comparable institutions.

So, the next time you see a change, whether it’s logging into Simmons Connection for the first time or noticing a new printer in the library, you’ll know that it was the result of a process that seeks to provide the best possible service to you with the fewest interruptions.

Celebrating the career of Elena Lander

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While the newsletter is usually filled with information about new or upcoming services, sometimes we need to share something about the people behind those services. This is one of those times.

After 30+ years of service, Elena Lander will be retiring from her position as the Director of Administrative Solutions. Elena began working at Simmons College in October 1980 as a Systems Analyst and progressed through the ranks to become the Director. During her time, she orchestrated the implementation of the College’s current ERP system, Ellucian’s Colleague (formerly Datatel) and its eventual expansion to all administrative departments including Student Financial Services, Human Resources, and the Registrar’s Office.

As Director, Elena’s responsibilities included the overall performance, maintenance, upgrading and enhancement of the Colleague system, using her vast technical prowess and skill.

A celebration will be held in Elena’s honor at the end of June with event details to follow.

The Technology Department extends its best wishes to Elena!

Flipping the classroom: Content capture at Simmons

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It should come as no surprise to faculty and staff that technology changes quickly and making the right choices when selecting and implementing new products is vital to the success of twenty-first century institutions.

One such technology that is currently undergoing a dramatic shift is content capture. Formerly referred to as “lecture capture,” this is a catch-all for the ways in which we record and share content in our courses. In the past, this was mostly accomplished by equipping classrooms with audio and video equipment and then recording lectures, which could be shared online. While this is a very useful method for reaching distance learners and capturing lectures for later viewing, it’s not especially good at incorporating the many ways students and professors interact. It’s also financially disadvantageous because it requires video and audio recording equipment to be installed in every classroom and it can only capture what happens during a class session.

Outside of this basic technology, there has been significant growth in the ability and feasibility of capturing and sharing other aspects of the learning experience. We now use web content, slides, document cameras, conferencing tools, and other non-lecture paths for connecting students and instructors. What’s more, learning itself is becoming an anytime, anywhere activity and more students are learning in blended classrooms or completely online. Because of this, we need a solution that goes far beyond the simple recording of lectures.

Starting this summer, as part of Simmons Moodle (our new learning management system), we will be simultaneously pilot testing two software-based content capture systems for possible long-term use. We have selected two products: Tegrity and Panopto. Both are software-based solutions that take advantage of existing infrastructure at Simmons (screen capture, webcams, document cameras, etc.) and provide simple organization and editing of content. Additionally, it puts the professor in control of their own content. Instructors can decide what content is captured, where and when it appears, and how many times it has been viewed. We want content capture to be respectful of students’ and faculty members’ time and intellectual property. This solution will minimize the time spent organizing and maximize control of the content you have created.

Perhaps the biggest advantage to these content capture systems is the ability to directly integrate what you’ve captured into Simmons Moodle. There will be no need to upload videos or other content to a personal or external site. You will be able to use one interface to upload, edit, organize, and share what you’ve created.

Our goal is to begin testing Tegrity and Panopto during the second summer session. Once the pilot sessions are up and running, we will update everyone on our progress and seek your input so we can make the best choice for faculty and students. Please keep an eye on future issues of TechNews for information on how you can get involved with this exciting initiative.

NVivo is now available

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Way back in the November newsletter, we mentioned that we were debuting a qualitative research tool called NVivo. This month, we’re happy to announce that NVivo is now available.

If you are working on a project that requires a way to organize and analyze documents, spreadsheets, PDFs, and other research materials, NVivo might be just the thing you’re looking for.

NVivo is a powerful research tool that you can use to organize all of your data when writing a thesis or preparing a research paper for publication. It supports various file types including documents, PDFs, spreadsheets, images, audio, and video. It also works well with other software you might already use, like Excel, Word, SPSS, EndNote, and Evernote.

NVivo is, unfortunately, only available for Windows. If you have a Mac, SPSS is an option, along with other tools, including Dedoose and Hyperresearch. If you are interested in qualitative analysis solutions for Mac, please contact the Service Desk.

If you’re interested in having NVivo installed on your computer, please submit a General Support Ticket. Once you have NVivo, you can find support resources and more information on the Service Desk website.

Viruses and malware: Not just for Windows anymore

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We know that many people on campus make Macs their first choice when purchasing a new laptop. We also know that Apple has long had a reputation for being impervious to viruses, malware, and other malicious code, and that people sometimes think only computers with Windows become infected with viruses. Unfortunately, that’s just not true.

In the last few weeks, Apple has been at the center of a security controversy because of a piece of malicious software called the Flashback Trojan. This software was installed without people’s knowledge, on an estimated 600,000 Macs via a security defect. This was the largest known infection of Macs to date, and a good reminder that everyone should be aware of the importance of security, no matter what brand of computer you own.

Luckily, Apple has responded quickly to develop a tool to remove Flashback and there is also a website (created by antivirus software maker Kaspersky Lab) where you can check to see if your Mac has been infected.

These are great solutions to this particular outbreak, but there are a couple of things you can do to keep your Mac safe all the time. First, make sure that your Mac’s software is up to date (Click the Apple logo in the upper left corner of your screen, and then click “Software Update”). Frequently, Apple releases security updates and other important improvements to software, and letting the Software Update tool download and install these updates makes your computer safer. Secondly, you should have up-to-date antivirus software running on your Mac. Simmons offers a free download of Sophos antivirus for all students, staff, and faculty.

Remember, computer security is important no matter what kind of computer you have. If you take simple steps now to protect your computer, it will save you time, effort, and money in the long run.

Keep it secure with Xfer

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A quick reminder from Simmons Technology: When you need to send confidential information, don’t use email, use Xfer, the Simmons Secure File Transfer service.

Xfer allows confidential information to be uploaded and downloaded from an encrypted website here at Simmons. You upload a file, enter the recipient’s email address, and then they receive a link to download the file. You can even send information securely to non-Simmons recipients.

Xfer is the perfect way to send files that contain sensitive personal or financial information and it conforms to the Simmons Security of Sensitive Information Policy.

To get started, go to xfer.simmons.edu and enter your Simmons user name and password. There is also a “Getting Started” link with information on how to use Xfer.

Gmail and Google Apps for Students are on the Way!

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At Simmons Technology, we are always looking for ways to provide our customers with the best technology and to do so in ways that increase efficiency and value. As part of these efforts, we are constantly assessing our current services and upgrading them when it is clear that we can improve performance and customer satisfaction. This is one of those moments.

In late May, following the conclusion of spring semester and graduation, we will be introducing Google Apps for Education (including Gmail) to all students as part of our Simmons Connection project. At that time, all student email will be migrated from Webmail to Gmail, including any email you have stored in Webmail. We recognize that this will be a big change and we want to take this opportunity to let you know what will happen, when it will happen, and how it will impact and improve your use of technology.

First, we’d like to tell you why we are making this important change. We’re aware that many students at Simmons already use Gmail for personal email and that many also forward their Simmons email to Gmail. This alone presents a distinct advantage over our current Webmail client. In addition, Gmail includes services like integrated chat, voice, and video conferencing, as well as simple syncing with mobile devices (iPhone, iPad, Android, Blackberry, etc.). These are all significant upgrades to our current service. Google also provides a range of other services beyond Gmail, which will be useful to students, including Google Calendar and Google Docs.

On top of the direct benefits to students, moving to Google Apps represents an important organizational and budgetary improvement. Google Apps for Education is free and it is hosted and supported by Google. This means that we will be able to free up resources at Simmons for other significant technology initiatives and to refocus the work of our support staff on other services important to you. A practical example of the savings is reflected in the storage quota that will be included with Gmail. Students will soon have a 25 gigabyte storage quota. This is more than one-hundred times the amount of storage we are currently able to provide based on our budget and server capacity.

We do recognize that there will be many questions about this change and how it will work. To help answer those questions, we will be including more information in the April and May newsletters, creating an informative website that will help you navigate Google Apps, providing training sessions in April, June, and September, and having technology staff host information sessions on both the Academic Campus and the Residence Campus. Of course, you are always welcome to call or email the Service Desk to get answers to your questions directly.

Right now, we are in the process of testing Google Apps and we are looking for students to use the service and provide feedback. Clicking this link will take you to a sign-up form where you can volunteer to be an early adopter. Based on your availability in the coming months, we will choose volunteers from this list and help you switch to Gmail and begin using other Google Apps. It is very important to us that we get feedback from students before we open this new service to the entire student body. Your questions and comments will help guide us as we move forward. If you currently have a Gmail account for personal use, your new Simmons Gmail account will work alongside it and you can switch between accounts at any time without having to log out of one account and log in to the other.

Our goal is to make the transition to Google Apps on May 25th. Making this change between semesters will minimize any disruption in email services and allow students time to adjust before a new semester begins.

We hope you will also read the other two articles in this month’s TechNews. They will address data security and privacy concerns at Google and our plans for faculty and staff email and calendaring.

Online Privacy: How to Keep Control of Your Data

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In recent months, the changing privacy policies of popular websites have been making news. From Facebook to Google, there has been much warranted concern among users of these popular online services about how their data is being used. We’d like to address the value of privacy and data security for all Simmons users as well as privacy concerns during our transition to Google Apps for Education.

On March 1, Google implemented a new privacy policy that allows the company to collect and combine user data across their many services (Google.com, Gmail, and YouTube, among others). While Google has stated that the policy is a logical step and will create a more unified and targeted user experience, including better search results, watchdogs have expressed concern with an increased lack of privacy when using online services.

As we increasingly rely on commercial services as part of our everyday, online lives, it is important to remember to be vigilant about your data and how it is used. Services frequently change how they collect data, so it is important to be aware of this and to update your settings as necessary. If you are interested in checking your privacy settings on Google and Facebook, you can get started with the links below.

Google Dashboard – On this site, you can view and change your settings for all Google services.

Search History Personalization – Here, you can get answers to questions about how Google tracks your search history and personalizes its results.

Ads Preferences Manager – You can choose to opt-out of personalized ads, and learn more about how Google collects data to display relevant ads, by going to this site.

Facebook Privacy Settings – From here, you can manage who sees what you share when you’re on Facebook.

Lastly, you always have the option to not sign in to certain services when using them. For example, you do not need to be signed in to run searches on Google or to view videos on YouTube. You can also clear your cookies regularly so that stored data is purged before the next time you use these services. These steps require the most work (logging into and out of accounts) but will track the least amount of data.

We would also like to take this opportunity to address Google’s privacy policy and data collection in relation to our upcoming switch to Google Apps for students. Fortunately, the policies that apply to Google’s commercial services are superseded by the individual contracts signed with colleges and universities that use Google Apps for Education. These policies stipulate that we own our own data and that Google cannot use it for any commercial purposes.

Other schools (including Brown University, Yale University, University of Pennsylvania, and University of Delaware) that are currently using or implementing Google Apps for Education have also reviewed their contracts to ensure that their data is secure and unaffected by Google’s commercial policy changes. If you would like to learn more about Google Apps for Education and its privacy policies, you can read this guide provided by Google.

The Simmons Technology staff will continue to monitor all services and we will be proactive in making sure our data is safe.

Faculty and Staff Email Changes

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As you have probably noticed in the articles above, the switch to Google Apps for Education is happening for students only at this time. While we recognize that Google’s products, especially Gmail, are immensely popular, we also recognize that different users have different needs.

Because faculty and staff at Simmons require smooth integration of calendaring with meeting and project planning tools, we are still working to assess what products will best meet these needs.

Currently, we are considering moving faculty and staff email and calendars to Microsoft Exchange (including Outlook for email). As we continue to get feedback from you and assess your needs, we will work with you toward an appropriate upgrade solution.

For the time being, we will continue to fully support our existing email services for faculty and staff. Thank you for your patience as we conduct due diligence on this very important and complex service change.