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Governance Minutes ArchiveOctober 5, 1988
MINUTES Computer Committee Burruss 4th Floor Board Room October 5, 1988 3 PM PRESENT: Jim Thomas, Don Allison, Jeffrey Birch, Jan Cardamone, Katherine Johnston, Harry Kriz, Fred Medley, Harlan Miller, Jim Montgomery, Jeff Nelson, Augustin Reynameglone (for Vernon Shanholtz), Patrick Shelor, Richard Sorensen, Ernest Stout, Michael Williams ABSENT: John Burton, Randy Crockett, David Goodyear, Bob Heterick, Jim Hicks, Dennis Jones, Tom McAnge, Jeffrey Wilcke VISITOR(S): Rosie Higdon Introductions. Each committee member was introduced. A list of the members will be sent to each member. The Chairman reviewed the charge of the Committee, contained in policy memorandum No. 55. There are four charges given to the Committee for recommending policy for effective utilization of computing for extension, research, instruction and adminis- tration. The four charges are: o identify and make recommendations on issues of University- wide interest in the area of computing o review plans for computing for all areas o access the effectiveness of existing computing facilities o prepare recommendations on appropriateness of new or expanded computing facilities. The Committee reports to the University Council. The minutes from each meeting and an annual report are sent to each member of the University Council. AGENDA ITEM 1: MINUTES OF THE MAY MEETING Motion made, seconded and passed to approve the minutes of the May meeting. AGENDA ITEM 2: COMPUTING CENTER REPORT (WILLIAMS) o The DEC 8800 was installed and became operational the first of June. The reactions to and the performance of the new system have been been outstanding. The DEC system is inte- grated into the network, including, in particular, a TCP/IP connection to the Internet. o Construction has begun of the new Information Systems build- ing in the CRC. The move is scheduled for August of 1989. However, there is some indication that delays in the con- struction of the power substation may impact the completion date of the new building. The next window available for the move would then not be until Christmas vacation, 1989. Of the outstanding technical concerns, support of the CADCAM laboratory is the principal one. Current technology does not permit channel extensions of the necessary distance. Another concern is the conversion of 3270-type terminals (coax con- nected IBM 3277s, Memorex 1377s, etc.) to asynchronous ASCII terminals. Coax-connected terminals cannot be supported over the distance to the CRC. While the conversions will require some effort, the coax connections are more expensive, and moreover, the yearly maintenance costs of the old 3270-type terminals approximate the cost of a new asynchronous terminal (about $350) which now come with three year warranties. Current expectations are that there will be no more than a weekend of down time to accomplish the move. The IBM 3800 page printers will be moved to the Research Park. Output pickup areas like the one in Hutcheson will be established around campus with a similar level of service. The IBM 3812 page printers will work as they do now. A consulting office will remain in Burruss Hall. Services, such as tape check-in/pickup, which require direct user con- tact with Computing Center personnel, will be accommodated at this office. o The acquisition of a general access UNIX system has been de- layed, but it is expected that an RFP will be released soon. o There have been some organizational changes within the Infor- mation Systems area. Systems Development now reports to the Director of the Computing Center. The Print Shop and Copy Centers now report to the Director of Communications Network Services. o Growth in computing consumption continues at a substantial rate. There are throughput problems with evening batch loads. The VM3 (CAD/CAM) system is fully saturated. The Com- puting Center is investigating an upgrade for the IBM 3090 system which would probably include an added processor in the current frame, additional memory and additional disk space. If these upgrades are taken together, it is likely that sig- nificant savings can be achieved from IBM. o The function of making disk space allocations previously done by Data Administration for administrative users will be moved to the Computing Center. o The idea of moving the function of purchasing computer re- lated hardware and software to the Computing Center is cur- rently under consideration for feasibility. Approximately 95% of all requisitions for computing related purchases re- ceived at the Computing Center for APR approval have errors and must be corrected. Twenty five percent of the requests have major deficiencies. If the Computing Center assumes the function of purchasing for hardware and software, a technical support office will be integrated into the operation to streamline the process. It is intended that this be a support function rather than a controlling function. AGENDA ITEM 3: SUBCOMMITTEES FOR 88/89 (THOMAS) A listing of suggested topics for the subcommittees was distrib- uted. Each committee member should look over the handout and of- fer suggestions for topics to be covered and volunteer to serve on a subcommittee. Some members will be appointed to subcommit- tees. The subcommittees should be recommending policy changes and providing feedback to the Vice President of Information Sys- tems and the Director of the Computing Center, through the full Committee. There was a discussion of the effect of the new phone system on costs compared to the current phone system and data connections. It was stated that some departments are experiencing increases because their use of certain free services would no longer be available after the cutover. Erv Blythe will be invited to a future committee meeting to dis- cuss the new phone system and data connections. AGENDA ITEM 4: ADDITIONS TO THE AGENDA None. The next Committee meeting will be held November 2, 1988 at 3:00 pm in Burruss 400. The meeting adjourned at 4:04 pm.
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