OPINION

IT in Review 2004: From the Biggest Non-Story to the Biggest Real Story

Terry Calhoun, IT Trends Commentator
Society for College and University Planning (SCUP)
University of Michigan

Well, the biggest “non-news” item of 2004 was that we did not have a major repeat of the August-September 2003 worm/virus disasters on campus! I think that many on campus still look back to August/September of 2003 and consider that one of the toughest times they’ve ever had dealing with the flood of infected machines that students brought back to campus just as a couple of particularly nasty worms were released. But apparently we’ve learned. There were some problems on every campus and large problems on a few, but network procedures and student education, plus help-desk routines and preparations kept the nasty micro-beasts at bay in 2004.

But there was plenty of real news. 2004 proved that we have once again only scratched the surface of the IT/knowledge revolution. And it proved that higher education is central to that revolution--partly because it is getting clearer that colleges and universities are the economic hearts of their regions and communities. Here’s more from 2004…

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IT NEWS

High Tech “Way Finding” for the Blind

The University of Florida and Oregon State University may work together to install computer chips in “way-finding bumps.” A blind person can wave their cane over the bump and receive information on the intersection they may be about to cross. Now that it’s happening it seems like an obvious solution, d'esn’t it? (Corvallis Gazette-Times)
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North Dakota to Go Live with New Enterprise Software

Despite some concerns about whether campus staffers have enough training, the three biggest universities in North Dakota are moving ahead full steam to implement PeopleSoft in January 2005. (Grand Forks Herald)
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Animated Nanobots Will Move Virtual Earth

There will be no shovels at Johnson College’s groundbreaking ceremony for its Carlsen Center, instead “[a]nimated nanobots activated by laser-pointer sabers will move virtual earth at an indoor ceremony[.]” (KansasCity.com)
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Small College Tests Big Corporation’s New Server

Thomas College has once again been presented as a case study by Microsoft for getting maximum use out of an Internet server. (Morning Sentinel online)
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Grinnell IT Staff Grilled for Cutting Back Labs

Plans for some modest cutbacks and to move some machines on the Grinnell campus have met strong student resistance; 94 percent of the 68 percent of students who voted, voted for retaining current labs and adding more. (The Scarlet & Black online)
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Could It Be? Outsourcing to Arkansas is Next?

A new company, Rural Sourcing, is trying to convince businesses that we might have a little bit of the third world here in the US. At least in terms of highly-qualified people who will work cheap. (MSN Money)
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RESOURCES

Beyond the Bar Code

If you’ve always wanted to see one of the new “electronic product codes” that RFIDs transmit, check out this article. (Technology Review)
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“Instant Messaging--Collaborative Tool or Educator’s Nightmare!”

This well-researched white paper by Robert Farmer, posted on the University of New Brunswick Web site, examines the pros and cons.
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DEALS, CONTRACTS, AWARDS

Google/U-M Project Opens Access to Information

Google announced last week several deals with major universities. Perhaps the most extensive is with Michigan: Google will scan and produce searchable digital copies of practically every book on the Ann Arbor campus. (The University Record Online)
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$4M for New Mexico State University-Alamagordo

The plan is to put enough courses online to let students get full associates degrees completely virtually via the Internet. (Alamagordo Daily News)
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Acacia Grows by Purchasing Global Patent Holdings

Acacia “will continue to acquire additional portfolios, as [it] moves towards its goal of becoming the leading technology licensing company.” (CNET News.com)
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