Faculty Chair: Janet Whitaker, MCC Co-Chair: Vance Williams, DIST Julie Bertch, RSCC Sharon Blanton, SCC Robert Carrigan, DIST John Chavez, PVCC Phil Cram, PVCC Georgia Dillard, PC Michael Farabee, EMCCC Betsy Frank, RSCC Gilbert Gonzales, MCC Billie Hughes, PC Bruce Huston, DIST Eric Johnson, DIST Deborah Krumtinger, DIST Alan Levine, DIST Kathy Lynch, GWCC Tom McCann, DIST David McCurdy, GCC Catherine Osborn, DIST Jim Rassi, PVCC Melinda Rudibaugh, CGCC Karen Schwalm, GCC Russ Sears, GCC Randi Sher, DIST Sue Thomas, GCC Philip Tompkins, EMCCC Emma Walters, SCC Jim Walters, PC Richard Young, DIST Chris Zagar, DIST
External network issues have moved from the fringe of academic pursuits to the national spotlight in a few short years. Many of the same technical issues that confronted the group in the late '80's are still with us. Now there are additional items ranging from equal access to free speech issues. There are committees within the district that exist solely to examine technical and resource issues. ENUG has moved towards the role of user advocacy. It is our belief that external network access, and computer access in general, will soon be as fundamental to education as a well stocked library is today.
One benefit of the expansion into an Ocotillo committee is a widening of the participation in this group and an increase in the frequency of meetings.
Several threads have run through most of the meetings this academic year. These vary from specific technical topics to general policy and ethical issues. Each of these will be covered in a separate section. Each section will have a brief statement of the issue and a summary of the discussions that occurred during the year. Most of these discussions are ongoing, but where appropriate, a conclusion or statement of future directions is also included.
Discussion--As users become more dependent on external network connections for the conduct of their endeavors, the need for timely notification of disruptions becomes critical. A number of options were examined. Some of the options that were considered and rejected included A-1 and VAX mail distribution lists. The maintenance of these would present a problem. Using an "All Users" approach would result in notification of many unconcerned users and could be perceived as an increase in electronic junk mail.
Resolution--A listserv has been established that allows appropriate personnel to post notices of network difficulties. This solution was proposed to computer operations personnel. They identified the individuals who would be best at identifying problems and posting notices. The listserv method allows subscription of interested parties and places the responsibility of membership on the user. To simplify access, the output of this listserv is fed to the Electronic Forum (EF) and a VAX notes conference. These three access points, direct subscription, EF and VAX notes,insure access to all interested users.
Recommendation--This system has been well tested to this point and needs to be continued and expanded. Possible areas to be addressed in the future are expansion of the type of information transmitted, use of alternative paths (dial-out and dial-in modems to communicate microwave problems), and improved user to operator information paths.
Discussion--The constant change in network activities causes special problems in providing documentation and support. Some of the solutions discussed were the use of Gopher as a repository of information. This would allow rapid updating of information without the costs and delays associated with printed materials.
One deterrent to network usage appears to be the hesitance on the part of some users to expose themselves to the possibility of making mistakes or asking "silly" questions in the environment of the open network. Several possibilities were discussed regarding the use of "practice" areas. These would be special electronic discussion groups formed for the sole purpose of practice.
Resolution/Current Status--Gopher areas have been made available for the storage of user training and information materials. To assist in the access to these materials, Training Services and several college training resources are now offering classes in Gopher to facilitate its use.
A practice listserv located at ASU is available for new users. Its use is encouraged and several of the listserv "experts" from Maricopa monitor the list to provide assistance. Some ASU classes have recently started using this list causing some confusion. As the activity level increases a Maricopa practice list may be formed.
Recommendation--Proceed with the establishment of a Maricopa practice list. This should also be the first step in taking Maricopa to an intermediate level of network activity. Areas of practice are needed not only for listserv subscribers but also for potential list managers and owners.
Related activity--The rate of change in network matters has brought about the unusual situation where an expert is anyone who learns about something a day or two before someone else. Training issues are normally associated with one group (experts) conveying information to another group (users). Increasingly, this schema is inappropriate in computer activities. Collaboration and experience sharing are better models. To this end, ENUG has established information exchange as a regular part of its meetings. In some cases there have been formal training or demonstration sessions scheduled as parts of meetings.
Discussion--The primary difficulty in providing Netnews access is a hardware resource issue. Netnews requires approximately 100 megabytes of disk space per day of news received and stored. This space is required to store the roughly 2400 discussions that make up Netnews.
Resolution--Netnews is now available on an experimental basis with a four day archive. Evaluation of supporting software and expanded implementation is continuing.
Issue--Are formalized, published policies needed for various areas of network usage?
Discussion--These are all continuing discussions. Some actions have been taken to facilitate the exchange of information.
Issues of ethics, ownership, and freedom of speech may differ in our academic setting from the publicized court cases in the business community. Dialogues should be established among interested parties to explore these areas. To this end EF and VAX notes have been utilized to share experiences and ideas. Several video conferences and events containing discussions in these areas have been attended by committee members to broaden our information and opinion base.
ENUG also sees part of its mission as addressing the need for a reflective area of discussion regarding network and communications issues. This is the area where issues of why can be addressed as well as the how and when questions. The changes in technology do not occur in a social vacuum. A safe harbor and a platform for discussion are needed for those who may have questions or concerns about the implications of technology.
ENUG is a group that is available for discussion. We are interested in listening to the people who are exploring new methods of communicating and teaching. We see the need for the construction of a body of experience in this complex environment. This groundwork in communication issues is needed particularly in light of the growing interest and evolution of the National Information Infrastructure.
Network reliability--The alignment of user expectations and operational realities is needed. One possibility that is being investigated is the implementation of regularly scheduled down times. This would allow the maintenance required by the systems and allow users to schedule their activities in light of system availability.
Next generation mail--As the e-mail industry evolves we will continue to seek out and review new products.
Access points--The explosion in usage of our systems requires the continuous monitoring of access points and methods. Options for on-college and dial-in access need to be evaluated and shared on a regular basis.
The growth of network uses and users is continuing. The types of discussions held by ENUG ranging from the practical to the ethical need to continue and expand with this growth.
Apart from the recommendations detailed in the body of this report, there are two general suggestions:
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c 1994, Maricopa Center for Learning and Instruction (MCLI)
Maricopa County Community College District, Arizona