Millersville University, Faculty Senate
Attachment E
Faculty Senate Minutes
7 February 1995
Report of the
Academic Computing Advisory Committee
February 7, 1995
The Academic Computing Advisory Committee (ACAC) met twice during the Fall
1994 semester with Dr. James Stager as Chair. The following is a summary
of topics discussed during the two meetings. The Committee plans to meet
two to three times during the spring 1995 semester.
Computing Budget: A total of $159,000 was allocated for upgrades to
the Ganser and Stayer Labs. This represents 75 percent of the budget
request for those labs.
Networking Needs Assessment Survey: A survey of networking needs
was conducted by Academic Computing Services. Of the 126 respondents, only
18% of faculty report having adequate microcomputers. Greater than 70%
have home computers and desire access to the network. Survey results
should be available through department chairs.
Networking Connectivity and related Issues: Marauder, a SUN
Sparc 20 account server, is operational, and accouns are readily being
generated for faculty and students. Traffic has been increasing steadily
on the sixteen high-speed modems currently in operation. Text-based access
to the Internet is available via Gopher and Lynx (a text-based WWW
browser). Censorship issues were discussed. Usenet news can be obtained
from East Stroudsburg University. An electronic mail freeware program
PINE, has been tested and is easy to use. MUNIC (MU Network
Implementation Committee; Dr. Russel DeSouza, Chair) hopes to have a
campus-wide email solution proposed by January 1995. A major concern is
how to accomplish uniformity across different platforms. Access points to
the Internet on campus were discussed. Some exist and others proposed
include the SMC, Gordinier, and possibly Ganser Library.
Development of MU Gopher and WWW Server: Information is already
being posted to the campus network but there is a question as to who
should be making decisions regarding this information. MUNIC is
considering a broad-based committee to organize this information. The
Computing Policy Council met in December in part to consider the
coordination of campus information and quality control of this
information.
Academic Computing - Administrative Structure: The structure of
Academic Computing Services has been realigned to provide a range of
support for microcomputers, local area networks (LANs) and multimedia by
four members of the ACS staff, and support for wide area networks (WANs),
UNIX, VMS, CMS, and associated software by two staff members. The Director
of ACS will conduct a year-end evaluation of the realignment.
Connectivity of PA School Districts to SSHEnet: The Chancellor's
Office is proceeding with plans to procide connectivity for K-12 schools
to SSHEnet. Working with Bell Atlantic, the connectivity could be provided
at a very reasonable cost. School representatives should contact the
Chancellor's Office to request connectivity. The nearest SSHE university
would provide assistance to the local school.
Development of a Vision for the 21st Century: Dean's Council has
discussed the need for an evaluation of campus information technology and
development of a vision for the 21st century. Some factors that will need
to be considered are: the issues of upgrades to computers, campus-wide
information systems, the fate of the mainframes, and policies and
guidelines for information on the network. A task force is being
recommended to develop plans for the future, and would consist of
representatives from various committees currently charged with these
decisions.
Respectfully submitted,
Richard D. Clark
Faculty Senate Representative to ACAC
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