Volume 4. No 2
Information Technology News of the University of California, Davis October 1995
Information Technology News of the University of California, Davis October 1995
Alexis Runstadler is a relative newcomer on campus, but she has been handed a formidable challenge - to help the Registrar's office move from a DOS to a Windows environment. Because Windows makes it possible to use another program, like a word processor, while a BANNER session is running, the Registrar's office is changing the way it accesses BANNER - from Clarkson Telnet to Win QVT/Net for Windows. That change makes it logical for the office to start using other Windows applications as well.
Runstadler, a biologist-turned-computer resource specialist in the Registrar's office, arrived on campus in February. Since then she has been helping to ease the transition to Windows by conducting training classes for staff, providing hardware and software support, and what she calls"maximizing computer resources," by making certain, for example, that everyone has as much computer memory as they need, as well as access to a printer.
To enable the office to take full advantage of the Windows environment, Runstadler will be helping staff learn WordPerfect for Windows and other compatible applications.
The move to Windows will prepare staff for the changes that will take place in 1997 when BANNER goes to a graphical user interface.
For e-mail, they are phasing out Oramail, which is part of BANNER, in favor of Eudora, making it simpler to bring e-mail attachments into word processing programs.
"With Oramail we have to write the attachment to a file, then FTP the file to our desktop machine, and then convert it to a word processing format," says Runstadler. "Eudora brings the mail right to your computer."
"Another nice thing about Windows," says Runstadler, "is that the programs are all similar in format - Word and Excel all have the same menu set up. The similarity helps people feel more comfortable and they can learn more quickly."
The transition hasn't always been easy for staff members who have been working for years in DOS, and who are used to typing in number codes. One of Runstadler's adjustment strategies has been to install Netscape on office computers so staff can explore the Internet during breaks and lunch hours - and, in the process, become weaned from using text-based programs and accustomed to using a mouse.
How did Runstadler get herself up to speed to help manage the change to Windows? In addition to taking courses on her own, she got involved early with I.T.'s Technology Support Program, serving on the campus workgroup that designed the program, and participating in the TSP pilot this summer. Runstadler cites one of the courses she took in the TSP pilot - Introduction to Technology Training - as a particular help in teaching her how to conduct training classes. "I had taught biology before," she says, "but I didn't have experience teaching people older than myself, and we discussed the dynamics of that in the class."
"Another course from the pilot project that helped us was the one on departmental technology planning," says Runstadler. "Technology planning is a big issue for us because we're going through tremendous changes with Windows and in the way we access BANNER and replacing our old clunky computers."
The introduction to consulting course was also helpful, Runstadler reports. And her ongoing connection with I.T. as a Technology Support Coordinator continues to be a help. In particular, she cites the networking aspect of the Technology Support Program, which enables participants to get to know one another and to share information, along with the benefit of having direct access to an I.T. representative to get questions answered.
"Just knowing I had someone I could get hold of has been the biggest help," she says. "When I was setting up a listserver for the office, for example, I got a strange message back from the listprocessor program. I couldn't find the answer in the documentation, so I asked Tim (Leehane) and he couldn't figure it out either, so he put me in touch with the postmaster and he worked with me and we figured it out."
"People have nothing to lose and everything to gain from the Technology Support Program," says Runstadler.
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