Office of Information Technology

Technology Appropriations Board
Minutes of the meeting November 19, 1997

Location: AHT 4th Floor Conference Room
Time: 2:00 - 3:00PM

In attendance:

Minutes of October 10, 1997 were reviewed and approved with one spelling correction.

Joe Gipson reported that Faye Muly announced in the Infrastructure Team of TAB meeting on 11/12/97 that Casper, the CBT and the software distribution server would be upgraded to Netware 4.11 by January 2, 1998. This will provide IP access for the student dorms, allowing both CBT and F-Prot to be accessed from the dorms by Spring semester. Rob Power thought this plan for expanded software access (IP) on the dorm network would be acceptable to the student body if carried out in the announced time frame.

The issue of providing students living in the dorms who are Macintosh users with access to Appletalk/Ethertalk servers was discussed at length. Currently TNS has this service turned off and Mac users are required to connect using IP, prohibiting access to these servers. Security, support and usage issues were debated. Joe Gipson commented that eventually all campus networking would be migrated to IP but it would be difficult and costly to upgrade all the Appletalk/Ethertalk servers on campus to comply with IP protocol at this time. He also was concerned that once you have provided a service it was nearly impossible to turn it off. The group recommended that TNS turn on Appletalk/Ethertalk on a stated trial basis and revisit issues of usage, security and support in the Spring. Gipson said he would inform his LAN Managers and announce that this service will be available to the user base. Danny Sehr voiced concern over the security risks associated with opening up the network by providing Appletalk/Ethertalk access to dorm residents. Susan Metros commented that the CAS labs, many department labs and numerous faculty currently access the network using the Appletalk/Ethertalk protocol and this has not compromised security. Rob Power stated the UTK computing environment would be much safer if dorm residents had direct access to virus software located on Appletalk/Ethertalk connected servers.

Sue Mettlen noted that DII would be releasing a Proper Use of Information Resources Policy Document within a few weeks, and that she was going to request the University hire a Security Officer to oversee compliance. Surya Singh asked that she elaborate on the role of this position, and she explained the responsibilities would entail protecting UTK's valuable information resources.

Under new business, Ken Walker commented that graduate students were not always aware of how the STF is supporting their specific needs. The group discussed various ways to communicate the accomplishments supported by the Fee. Suggestions included articles in the Beacon and the Graduate School Newsletter and developing a targeted Website. The group speculated that possibly the faculty were not always aware of what the STF had funded and as a result, their students were uninformed. This led to discussion on how TAB could recommend a better way for academic units to request STF Funding. Sue Mettlen stated the next cycle of requests will take place in early spring. The group thought it would be a good idea to clearly define procedures and design a form that streamlined the request process. Metros volunteered the ITC to design an on-line form, if appropriate. They discussed ways to advertise the request cycle and agreed it would be best if faculty had an opportunity to prepare proposals to submit to their department heads, who in turn could consolidate requests and then submit to their Deans for prioritizing.

Sue Mettlen commented that a financial update would be available at the next meeting and the group would be able to review the budget.

Sue Mettlen also reported that the bids had been returned on upgrading networking for Perkins Hall, Dougherty Engineering and the University Center and DII will be able to complete all three projects. The group recommended several agenda items for the next TAB meeting. They are as follows:

1. Discuss ways in which TAB can investigate, respond and act on new directions in IT in order to keep pace with the changing face of technology.
2. Devise a plan to expand upon DII's existing services to loan equipment (laptops, projectors, etc.).
3. Consider the possibility of working collaboratively with Academic Affairs to fund some IT projects using a match of Tuition Funding and STF.
4. Discuss ways to improve the level of expertise and training for DII (and departmental) lab staff.

The next meeting originally scheduled for December 17 was changed to December 10, 2 to 3 p.m. to accommodate Final Exams. It will be held in the 4th Floor conference room in AHT unless members are otherwise informed

The meeting was adjourned at 3:10 p.m.

Minutes submitted by: Susan E. Metros