I.T. Times
Volume 4. No 2 Information Technology News of the University of California, Davis October 1995

Inside I.T.

October 1995


From Phones to Computers

Jim Burns knows trenches, and he knows communication closets. He knows cable, and he knows connections. Most of all, he knows how all the pieces of the campus communication infrastructure work together.

When Burns joined Communications Resources (then Telecommunications) in 1986, UC Davis was installing a new electronic telephone system that sent rotary dial telephones the way of the dinosaur and paved the way for voice mail and other voice communication applications. Burns worked as supervising construction inspector for the telephone project. As inspector, he saw that new cable was carried to 460 campus buildings and that NAMs (phone jacks) were in place for 7,500 telephone lines.

Now, Burns is at it again. As project manager for Network 21, Burns is working with campus departments, vendors, and contractors to coordinate all aspects of the Network 21 project. When his work on the project is complete, campus users will be able to plug computers into the campus network in much the same way telephone connections are made.

"My job is to make sure that we deliver Network 21 to the campus within cost and on time," says Burns, noting that the project will be completed in four phases.

Construction on the first phase, communication closet renovation, began in July. Other phases include the placement of high-speed fiber optic cable, installation of electronic routers and hubs, and the installation of horizontal wiring in buildings.

While each phase of the Network 21 project has a different start and end date, all are interconnected and interdependent.

"Any change in any one aspect of the project affects everything," says Burns. "Even a very trivial thing could cause a project delay."

To keep the project on track, Burns meets with representatives from other campus departments involved with Network 21 construction (e.g., Architects and Engineers and Facilities and Planning), and he meets weekly with the Communications Resources' Network 21 team.

All the pieces of the project will come together in June 1997, when over 200 campus buildings are connected to Network 21.

Then Burns will be able to ask, what next?


Faculty Bring New Perspectives to Visual Data Analysis

Noting how spatial data analysis is now used by faculty from a variety of disciplines, Associate Vice Chancellor for Information Technology, Carole Barone, kicked off the third annual colloquium on Visual Data Analysis. The event, sponsored by I.T.'s Advanced Networked and Scientific Applications (ANSA), took place Sept. 21, in 1150 Hart Hall.

Barone's remarks were followed by presentations by faculty, graduate students, and staff on topics ranging from "Accessing Spatial Data Analysis on the Internet" to "Forest Elephant Distributions in Relation to the distance from Roads to Gabon." Many of the presenters used the Internet to access data and graphics stored in computers on and off the Davis campus.

Special guest speakers at this year's event included James Catlin from UC Berkeley and Hugh Nicholas from the Pittsburgh Supercomputer Center. Presentations also were given by the following individuals: Glenn Fitzgerald, Agronomy and Range Science; Juri Stratford, Government Documents, Shields Library; Andres Fernandez, Wildlife, Fish and Conservation Biology; Karen Beardsley, Environmental Studies; Hemang Patel, Molecular and Cellular Biology; Tom Moore, Center for Engineering Plants for Resistance Against Pathogens; David A. Oei, Neurobiology/Physiology and Behavior and Medical Pathology; David Bunch, Graduate School of Management; Brian Higgins, Chemical Engineering and Materials Science; Ken Tarboton, Hydrologic Science; Paul Grant, I.T./ANSA.

Richard Plant, Agronomy and Range Science; James Case, California Veterinary Diagnostic Lab; Martina McGloughlin, Biotechnology Program; Grace Rosenquist, Neurobiology/Physiology and Behavior; and Paul Schneeman, I.T./ANSA were session chairs.

Look for more information on the work of those participating in the colloquium in future issues of the I.T. Times.


Guide Wins Award

The 1994-95 Information Technology Faculty Services Guide won first place in a national competition sponsored by the Special Interest Group on University and College Computing Services (SIGUCCS). At a Glance documents took honorable mentions in the competition. SIGUCCS is a special interest group of The First Society in Computing, an organization dedicated to the development of information processing as a discipline, and to the responsible use of computers.

He Keeps Looking Ahead

Faust Gorham takes a lot of test drives. With 1,600 different software programs to choose from and new computers coming in all the time, he has to. After all, Gorham does not work in your typical office. As resource specialist for the Center for Advanced Information Technology (CAIT), Gorham is always looking at new vehicles for processing, transmitting, and compiling information. And he is anxious to share his discoveries with others.

"Deciding what computing hardware and software to buy is not easy," says Gorham. "You are faced with a major expenditure, and you want to be sure your investment is the right one.

"At the CAIT we can help you figure out what you need," he says.

Gorham, who is studying for a degree in computer science and engineering, has maintained an office at the CAIT in the southwest corner of Shields Library for two years. At the CAIT he has a close-up view of what new technologies are coming and how they might be used.

The CAIT staff will assist in your test and evaluation of new hardware and software. And if you are interested in testing a particular computing configuration, the CAIT will work with vendors to locate necessary hardware and software.

In addition to individual consultation, the CAIT coordinates vendor demonstrations and other technology-related events. For the past couple months, Gorham has been hosting demonstrations for faculty interested in using technology in teaching and research. "We also try to find ways to help departments with smaller budgets gain access to new technologies," says Gorham. For example, the CAIT provides a server with access to the World Wide Web to more than 40 departments on campus.

"With our Web server, even departments that don't have network connections or the money to buy necessary hardware can have a home page on the Web," says Gorham.

The CAIT is open Monday - Friday, 8 a.m. - noon and 1 - 4 p.m. Call 752-5711 or send e-mail to advancedit@ucdavis.edu. You can visit the CAIT on the World Wide Web at http://cait.ucdavis.edu/

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