intouch the termly newsletter produced by RSC East Midlands
Summer 2010 Volume 8: Issue 3
Contents 1 Cloud computing overview 2 Regional News 2 Communication survey results 3 Brief guide to web 2.0
Looking to the heavens As purse strings become tighter, organisations need to be thinking of many different ways to save money but at the same time improve efficiency in their working practices. For many years businesses have been carefully doing this by outsourcing some of what they do to reputable companies. Historically, many organisations have always kept their electronic files and programs that they use close at hand by having them stored away safely and securely on their own computers and network servers. Perhaps the definition of “close at hand” has now changed though. With Internet connections being so fast and reliable nowadays across the globe, that “close at hand” probably means being able to download and be working on your document within a few seconds. Do we care where our documents are stored, as long as it is safe and secure and we can get to them quickly and easily? A number of universities and colleges have started the trend and now outsource their student email accounts to GoogleMail, some are also using GoogleDocs or Microsoft Live@Edu to create, store and share their documents, spreadsheets, presentations and other work. As well as email and workspace storage, facilities offered by The Cloud include software to collaborate and share, graphic/photo editors, project management tools and programs similar to the Office suite of programs. So it all sounds great doesn’t it? Reduced costs of hardware/software installation and maintenance, plus you
can access all your emails, documents and other programs from anywhere in the world with an internet-connected computer or mobile device. However, this cloud doesn’t always have a silver lining as any savings in manpower may not be significant because these extra facilities still need to be set up and administered by your IT team. A main concern, though, is the risk of going over to a system that relies on a safe, secure connection to the Internet. You’ve experienced it yourself no doubt when your Internet or email goes down, how many of you feel as though your hands have been cut off? What will your students do in class now? And what about those deadlines? Strategies therefore have to be in place in your organisation to cope with the possibility of internet access not being available for short or longer periods of time.
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Software in The Cloud Using Google Docs Best practice in the UK Resource Corner Hints & Tips Celebrating e-learning in the region Scholarly activity Focus On: Sustainability JISC news Forthcoming Events Changes at the RSC Technical training needs
Cloud computing In this edition of intouch we take a delve into cloud computing. It’s the latest buzz phrase of 2010 but what does it mean? And how will it change the way in which you work and your learners learn? We look at some of the drivers for this change, offer some advice on how to start using it in your organisation and give you some resources and examples to draw on.
So does cloud computing sound scary or does it sound sensible? If working in The Cloud is good enough for universities, colleges and countless other organisations across the globe, then you seriously have to consider whether you should use it for your “software as a service”.
Stimulating and supporting innovation in learning
Regional News Technology Exemplar Network
What’s in your
Several East Midlands based learning providers have been named as developing providers as part of the Becta organised Technology Exemplar Network (TEN). • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Acorn Training Consultants Ltd Boston College Castle College Nottingham Chesterfield College Derbyshire Adult Community Grantham College Homefield College Leicester College Lincoln College Linkage Community Trust New College Nottingham Northampton College South Leicestershire College Stephenson College Stubbing Court Training Ltd
They join ISIS Training which was named last year as one of the exemplar organisations in the network, who is holding an Open Day on 23rd July in Lincoln to showcase how they use technology with their learners.
Regional Awards Jane Eaton at Loughborough College was the first winner of an RSC East Midlands Learning Technology Award for her work on development of the College’s learning platform, LearnZone.
At the end of 2009 we carried out a communications survey in the region to find out how people were keeping up-to-date and finding out information. The results overall showed that people in the sector were generally relying on more traditional methods and usage rates of newer technologies were quite low. The communications survey had a very good response rate with 175 completed questionnaires and a good spread of respondents by sector, department and level of responsibility, as well as a representative sample of the contacts the RSC holds for the region. Traditional methods Respondents were asked about the number of emails that they received on a daily basis. The pie chart below (Figure 1) shows their responses – a fairly even spread overall, but still high levels. Only a handful of respondents had less than 10 emails coming into their inbox every day!
Jane Eaton being presented with her Learning Technology Award by Audrey Traynor, one of the governors at Loughborough College.
Jane was selected for demonstrating innovative use of ILT in her teaching and learning practice in the Hair, Beauty and Complimentary Therapies Team, the quality of which had been recognised through internal Performance Standards and Review panel meetings. She developed the department’s Moodle area into a very attractive learning environment, as well as an effective means for communicating with learners about news items, course matters, and developments. Staff in her own and other teams have asked to work with Jane to improve their own work using ILT. 2
Receiving SMS messages wasn’t just restricted to the 40% of respondents who possessed a work mobile phone. Almost half of the sample received workrelated communications direct to the phone, although the majority didn’t receive many messages, as shown in the pie chart below (Figure 2).
Figure 2 – Volume of SMS received weekly
Figure 1 – Volume of email received daily
17% of respondents had more than one work email address. Did you know that you can set up a universal email account (e.g. gmail) so email is forwarded from your different accounts into one place and then you can reply out of the account using any of the addresses? A tip that’s worth bearing in mind if you do need to manage multiple email addresses. The level of postal mail was, not surprisingly, much lower than email. Only a quarter of respondents received more than ten items a week, but 84% still had at least one item being sent to them a week.
Newer technologies In the last few years there has been an explosion of new technologies that have made e-mail look “old school”. If you are unsure of what any of the following are then check out the handy little guide on the far right. In our survey the overall picture was that there was a fairly low take-up of the newer technologies. Respondents were asked whether they used communication channels such as podcasting and vodcasting for work; whether they had tried virtual worlds (such as Second Life) for teaching; or used what are commonly referred to as Web 2.0 tools (such as blogs, wikis and social networks) with their learners.
inbox today?
A very brief guide to web 2.0 tools If you’re unsure what some of these newer technologies do, then this quick guide will hopefully help.
RSS feeds RSS stands for ‘Really Simple Syndication’ but many people describe it as a ‘web feed’ or ‘news feed’ that you subscribe to. The subscription is dynamic, not periodic, with new information delivered to you every time there’s an update on a website you’ve subscribed to rather than you having to visit it yourself. You can also set RSS feeds up in some email clients e.g. Microsoft Outlook. One to try out: Our news feed Figure 3 – Use of new technologies (by percentage of respondents)
The usage rates for these tools surveyed ranged from 1% to 37% as seen in the chart above (Figure 3). Those using any of these individual Web 2.0 tools were more likely to be also using other tools. So usage is concentrated in a relatively small group and has potential implications for anyone wanting to adopt these methods. Events In light of the current climate being experienced by many learning providers it may come as no surprise to hear that respondents had limited opportunities to get out of their organisation and attend events, with only a third of respondents getting to more than one face-to-face event a month. However, generally, there was more faceto-face event activity rather than online, showing that this virtual method of delivery is still fairly fresh to many people, with almost half of respondents having never attended an online event. See the chart below (Figure 4) for full details.
RSC Communications The final part of our survey asked more specifically about the way in which we communicate with you. The response was very positive with over threequarters of people rating our efforts as good or excellent (Figure 5).
A blog (a contraction of the term “web log”) is a type of website, usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. One to try out: www.stephenfry.com/blog
Microblogging Figure 5 – Rating of RSC communications
We try to target our information as much as possible to make sure that you don’t get irrelevant emails, mailings or publications. A small handful (12%) wanted more contact, an even smaller proportion (7%) thought there was too much contact, leaving the vast majority happy with the current level of contact. Respondents said that they found our e-bulletins or e-newsletters that go out to the ILT, Learning Resources and Accessibility & Inclusion email lists (JISCmail) helpful. Likewise our “intouch” newsletter was beneficial with 99% of those receiving it finding it useful to them. A full version of the results of how different communication methods are used by people working in the post-16 education and training sector in the region is available via our website at www.rsc-em.ac.uk/communications.asp. You can also get intouch with our Information Officer, Kevin Spencer on kevin.spencer@rsc-em.ac.uk or 01509 618112 if you have any further queries.
Figure 4 – Attendance at events/forums/networks
Blogs
Users write a message on their mobile phones to create ‘posts’, or ‘tweets’ if using Twitter, and send them so that they are uploaded on to the internet. The posts can be about any topic and are available to be read by anyone. One to try out: www.twitter.com/JISC
Podcasts In its simplest form, a podcast is an audio file that is broadcast through the internet. You can therefore listen anywhere, anytime, either at a computer or when “on the move” using a mobile media player. One to try out: Digital Planet from the BBC
Vodcasts Similar to a podcast but this time filmbased rather than just audio. One to try out: MoLeTV … and that still leaves other tools such as wikis (e.g. Wikipedia), social networking (e.g. FaceBook), and social bookmarking (e.g. Delicious). You can find out more about some of these communication tools in the Learner Voice hub at our e-fair on 22nd June in Leicester. 3
Software available in “The Cloud”
Documents in “The Cloud”
This software in “The Cloud” is usually free to use and can be used for your own productivity and by students in the classroom. Whilst these may not have all the functionality of the more traditional and more expensive products, you might well find that they provide all the facilities that you and your students need. PIXLR available at www.pixlr.com is an online photo editor and drawing tool, with a similar look and feel to Adobe Photoshop. It even uses layers for more complex editing. TitanPad available at www.titanpad.com is an online collaboration tool, for holding online discussions for meetings. Consider using it for discussions and thoughts with students in the classroom. The messages can all be saved for later use, perhaps as evidence for coursework.
ProjectBubble available at www.projectbubble.com is a simple project management tool. The free version allows you to create projects, tasks and deadlines for 3 “clients”. Whilst this is a useful tool for use in the workplace, it could also be used by students to plan out their assignments, projects and targets. You can also invite other members of the team in to collaborate on tasks. Dropbox available at www.dropbox.com is a file-sharing, collaboration, online back-up and file syncing facility all-in-one, but this program makes it all so easy. Saving documents into your dropbox automatically sends it also to your web-based dropbox and any computers where you have it installed, resulting in perfect synchronisation of files between computers.
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Many commercial organisations are moving their software use to The Cloud including their emails, document creation and storage. However, educational organisations have been a little more cautious. So far some educational organisations might have outsourced only their student email systems, but perhaps now is the time when we should at least consider outsourcing more to The Cloud with the advent of document creation and storage solutions out on the internet, all connected back to your organisation through JANET or a broadband connection. GoogleDocs and Microsoft Live@Edu seem to be the key players in online document generation and storage. Both offer word-processing, spreadsheet, presentation and other facilities to create most office-based documents. Google doesn’t offer as much storage space as Microsoft (1GB as opposed to 25GB) but both offer the user the creation of a portable document that can follow them wherever they have internet access. And in the era of a lifelong learner, that could be an important consideration. The learner now has a storage space that could last them a lifetime, moving from school to college to university to job after job after job. To use these facilities the user doesn’t need to have the software installed on their local computer, they only require a web browser connected to the internet. In today’s era of server virtualisation and thin clients on desks, the PC provided for the user need not be so powerful and hence will be cheaper. So whilst there could be savings on IT equipment and running costs, some of that may be negated by the cost of increased bandwidth use. So why is it that only the students in these organisations have made the transition into The Cloud so far and not
the staff? Perhaps for one or more of the following reasons: • the fear of a security and/or confidentiality breach with data (e.g. from the MIS, the HR system, students marks); • the potential of losing that data; • the possibility of losing the internet connection during the working day; • the required change in working practices. It is important, therefore, to undertake a risk management exercise to quantify the effect of a move to more use of The Cloud so you can outline strategies that should be incorporated to minimise the risk. In your risk analysis, you must also consider what might be happening in your organisation at present – are USB data sticks, laptops or insecure emails being used to move personal/critical information from place to place? Whilst having an additional separate internet connection for business critical use might also be an option to maintain a connection, this is an additional expense. If you were hoping for an answer as to whether you should move to GoogleDocs or Microsoft Live@Edu for your document creation and storage then I’m sorry to disappoint. All I can do at this stage is outline some of the issues that need to be considered. If you would like more information and guidance then please contact me. Gordon Millner Technical Infrastructure Advisor 01509 618120 gordon.millner@rsc-em.ac.uk
Best practice in the UK
Resource Corner Tools for helping accessibility
In this edition of intouch our example of best practice follows the theme of cloud computing by showcasing a case study from Moulton College in which they’ve integrated cloud-based Googlemail into some of their other IT systems for learners. The Challenge Moulton College was in a position that many learning providers find themselves at, where a series of systems integral to learning in the College had developed over time, but they didn’t talk to each other. The learners therefore had to remember multiple usernames and passwords, and to log in to the different systems individually. This led to frustration for both learners and staff. It also caused a higher rate of abandonment in trying to access the various systems. The drive was therefore for simplification and automation in order to improve the student experience, and cut down on the amount of technical resource that was required to support the learners initially and on an on-going basis in regard to re-setting passwords and managing the accounts. The Activity Giles Batchelor, Network Development and Services Manager, and Andrew Bailey, Learning Technologies Manager, made a plan to start integrating the different systems. They decided to use the College’s Virtual Learning Platform, Moodle, as the focal point of the learner experience and by implementing single sign-on with Shibboleth this allowed students an ease of access into other systems such as email. As well as support from the RSC and regional Heads of IT forum, the College brought in external consultants, Kidderminster College’s VLE Middleware, to assist with installation and set-up. The integration was set up so that when a student logs on to the College network, three things happen automatically: • Logs into Moodle which is set as the homepage on all machines; • Logs into Google Mail account; • Logs into learner’s shared network area.
The College’s Management Information System (MIS), Unit-E, provides information to the Active Directory for user accounts through a custom script and to Moodle to allow students only to see course/modules in Moodle they are enrolled on. The Celcat timetabling software provides tutor information which is used to allow editing rights on their respective courses within Moodle. The single sign-on also authenticates the link to the initial diagnostic test that each student does as part of their induction, using the BKSB package, as well as giving automated access to Turnitin, a software tool for checking originality.
We have developed a new set of guides in pdf format for a series of open source and free tools, many of which can be downloaded at www.eduapps.org. These tools provide technology for personalisation and reasonable adjustment; give learners the opportunity for greater control of their learning; and help providers better meet the Disability Equality Duty. The guides are on our Moodle site at http://moodle.rsc-em.ac.uk in the “Events, Resources and Activities” section.
A second version of MyStudyBar is now available to download from www.eduapps.org. MyStudyBar is a free alternative to similar commercial programs which uses a floating toolbar to support literacy. The latest version is available for Windows XP and/or Windows Vista/7. New applications include: • Balabolka – converts text into individual audio files (MP3) • Orato – an easy to use text-to-speech application • Stamina – a touch typing tutor
The College has taken the student email into “The Cloud” by opting to use Google Mail, with email addresses being in the form of studentnumber@students.moulton.ac.uk.
Good e-practice case studies
Google Mail uses a sync tool overnight to export from the Microsoft Windows Active Directory to create and update email accounts. During the enrolment period this was set to an hourly basis to ensure a quick and smooth process.
The Regional Support Centres have been helping to develop case studies of good e-practice from around England for the Excellence Gateway website over the last two years. With over 200 case studies now available on the site we thought it was time for a helping hand in finding the examples that were most relevant to you.
The Outcomes The new integration and systems were all installed for student use prior to September 2009, so that when students arrived the induction process was all set up.
A new easier way of searching case studies of good e-practice is now available through a series of bookmarks on the social bookmarking tool, Delicious.
Since the adoption of the system there has been no downtime from Google that has prevented access to Google Mail. Meanwhile statistics show that the College’s Moodle usage is four times that of the previous academic year and still climbing. It is felt that this is in part due to the integration making the user experience much more streamlined. We hope that this will have given you some inspiration for your organisation and the full version of this case study will shortly be available at www.excellencegateway.org.uk.
All the case studies have now been tagged using the social bookmarking tool Delicious at http://delicious.com/elearningcasestudies. So you can quickly search through all the case studies using lots of different “tags” or categories, such as accessibility, mobile learning, LRC or numerous others. 5
Hints & Tips: Pixlr The free software program, Pixlr (www.pixlr.com), is a great tool for both novices and experienced photo editors, particularly if you don’t have access to Photoshop or a similar editor on the computer you are using at the time. As long as you have internet access, you can use Pixlr. Pixlr has two versions available online in “The Cloud”, the express version for beginners and for carrying out quick fixes on a photo; the full editor version is more complex, ideal if you want to be more creative as it uses layers and other tools and is very similar in layout and menus to Photoshop. However, we’ve only got space to have a look at doing some very quick typical editing techniques on a photograph. A quick word of warning though, always make a back up of your photos first so you keep a copy of the original.
Quick fixes using Pixlr Express Open your photograph either from your computer or from a photo on the internet. You will need the URL (web address) for that. Once loaded, there are 3 sections on the left-hand side of your screen: • Basic – to crop, re-size and rotate/flip; • Adjustments – to adjust colour, brightness, contrast, red-eye removal, sharpen and blur; • Photo Effects – if you want to get a bit more “arty”. When you’ve finished, click Done, then Save to your own computer with a different filename to the original. Simple!!! This program is perfect for most students that require access to a photo editor for their courses.
The main Pixlr Editor If you are familiar with Adobe Photoshop then you will soon find your way around the main Pixlr editor. Definitely something to consider using for Art students without the price-tag of Photoshop, as there are many transferable editing skills to be learnt here. 6
Celebration of e-learning prize draw
Following on from the success of our first celebration of e-learning prize draw that ran last summer, we’ve decided to repeat it. So to recognise the e-learning progress in the East Midlands region we are collecting details of pieces of e-learning that have taken place within the last year. Is there something that you are proud to be involved with? Is there something that you’ve done that would be of interest to others? If so then please take a few moments to let us know what you’ve been up to. To enter the prize draw simply go to www.rsc-em.ac.uk and fill in the following details: • • • •
Name Organisation What have you done? How has it improved learning?
This prize draw is open to all parts of the post-16 education and training sector that we support and can cover any practice relating to e-learning. For example it could be based in learning and teaching; strategic planning;
technical; staff development; quality; learning resources; or teacher training. The prizes for the draw are: • an iPod Nano (sponsored by ProQuest) • a Vado USB Camcorder • a 320GB portable hard-drive All entries will be entered into a prize draw that will take place at the end of the RSC East Midlands e-fair on 22nd June at the Walkers Stadium in Leicester. If you have any queries then please get intouch with Kevin Spencer, Information Officer at the RSC, on kevin.spencer@rsc-em.ac.uk or 01509 618112. Full details of this prize draw are available at www.rsc-em.ac.uk/prizedraw.asp.
Scholarly activity In January this year, all relevant colleges had to submit their Higher Education (HE) strategies. A statement on scholarly activity needed to be included, but what is scholarly activity and how can it be implemented? Many people think that it involves only subject-specific research, but it is more than that. Scholarly activity embraces all continuing and professional development including pedagogic and institution-specific training. So how does your HE strategy reflect this? Is there a clear link between policy and staff reviews and course action plans? How does the HE strategy influence the
training needs or your institution? How do you monitor the subject-specific research your staff partake in? Are there simple solutions to improving academic communication and sharing? The RSC can help you embed scholarly activity into working practice. Technologies such as web 2.0 and e-portfolios are great tools for collecting, analysing and disseminating new knowledge and skills. Please get intouch with Steve Saffhill at steve.saffhill@rsc-em.ac.uk or 01509 618117 to find out how the RSC can help you implement your strategic intentions.
Focus On: Sustainability
JISC news New resources on Business and Community Engagement (BCE) JISC Legal has released a set of new resources on Business and Community Engagement (BCE). These resources provide comprehensive guidance on the legal implications of BCE through examination related laws and recommendations for action. Guidance Documents: 1) BCE – How to Play Fair – A User’s Guide 2) Competition and State Aid – What is the Law? 3 Providing Funds for Business and Community Engagement
Sustainability, quite rightly, has made it onto just about everyone’s agenda, both from a business and from a personal perspective. We can’t be wasteful of the planet’s resources and should use them thoughtfully, safely and without doing further harm to people and the environment. In a previous newsletter we advised you that we were undertaking a project to help determine the extent of the support you thought you would need on sustainability issues and how that could be matched to the support we would be able to give. Since that newsletter, it has also been confirmed that all RSCs across the UK will be providing support on sustainability to their regional learning providers. So perhaps now might be a good time to see how we can support you and to also point you in the direction of other resources that may help guide you in determining the “green” strategy for your organisation. Until now the RSCs have supported learning providers with their development of Information Communications Technology (ICT) and Integrated Learning Technologies (ILT), and we will of course continue to do so. Many of the RSCs over the last year have also started to implement green initiatives by holding events and forums on sustainability and on providing advice on being green for new build and refurbishment projects. Additionally, there have been other JISC initiatives, in particular the work of the Sustainable Information Technology In Tertiary Education (SUSTE-IT) team, their website is www.susteit.org.uk. They have held events and provided useful tools to identify the power consumption of typical servers, computers and other IT-based equipment, whilst also suggesting strategies that organisations can adopt to reduce their IT energy bills. The identification of savings in the order of tens of thousands of pounds has been achieved in some universities and colleges through the use of these tools and in implementing strategies they recommend. Not to mention the effect
overall on reducing their carbon footprint to help comply with the Government’s agenda and legislation. Whilst financial savings and carbon reduction are an obvious focus for organisations, an ever-increasing force is social conscience and our public face. Our students and staff are becoming increasingly aware of green issues and are beginning to put pressure on organisations to do the right thing, confirming their commitment to a legacy of how they would want to leave the state of the planet to their children and their children’s children.
The content of our sustainability website, temporarily hosted at http://cms.loucoll.ac.uk/joomla, is growing almost on a daily basis and provides information and links on sustainability topics including technological solutions, legislation, policies and many other resources. Sustainability is also one of the key themes of JISC Advance (see right). Through our forums, newsletters and mailing lists run by ourselves and the other RSCs, we can provide you with much information and suitable contacts to help guide your organisation to be green and sustainable. For more information please get intouch with Gordon Millner on 01509 618120 or gordon.millner@rsc-em.ac.uk.
Guidance Videos: 1) Data Sharing and Research 2) Creating Intellectual Property Together 3) Using Intellectual Property Together 4) Keeping Confidential 5) e-Marketing They are available from the BCE theme page of JISC Legal’s website at www.jisclegal.ac.uk.
JISC Advance Event Series During the first half of this year we ran a series of events in conjunction with various organisations that make up JISC Advance. Take-up of places for the events was extremely high and we had more interest than space available for most of them. If you were unable to attend and want to find out more about any of the topics then come along to the e-fair on 22nd June in Leicester, where representatives from JISC Advance will be on hand to answer any queries you may have.
JISC Advance has also outlined its support for the sector in 5 themed areas: • • • • •
Organisational efficiency Enhancing learning and teaching External engagement Sustainability Research
Further information is available on the JISC Advance website at www.jiscadvance.ac.uk or, alternatively, get intouch with us and we can send you the relevant leaflet(s) in the post.
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Forthcoming Events
Change is normal!
June 8th (am) 9th (am)
Moodle Users Group Learning Resources Forum: Sharing Good Practice 9th (pm) East Midlands Information Skills (EMIS) meeting 15th (am) SharePoint Forum 22nd (full day) RSC East Midlands e-Fair 2010 24th (am) Webinar – Approaches to LRC and library induction
e-fair 2010 The biggest regional e-learning event in the East Midlands returns for its 6th year. There will be the usual wealth of content in relation to e-learning and the event is free to all supported learning providers. • • • • • •
Learner Voice Keynote 12 Workshops Try It For Yourself area Exhibition area Learner Voice hub Networking opportunities
March 2011 14th-15th (full day)
JISC Conference 2011 BT Conference Centre Liverpool
For further details please visit www.rsc-em.ac.uk where you can also sign up to our Events RSS feed. All our events and forums can be counted for CPD hours. Previous newsletters are available via our website at www.rsc-em.ac.uk
Get intouch JISC RSC East Midlands Loughborough College Radmoor Road Loughborough Leicestershire LE11 3BT Tel: 01509 618110 Email: support@rsc-em.ac.uk Web: www.rsc-em.ac.uk VLE: http://moodle.rsc-em.ac.uk
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For all its ten years of life the JISC Regional Support Centre in the East Midlands has been primarily funded by the Learning and Skills Council (LSC), with additional support from HEFCE, the Higher Education Funding Council for England. Funding has been provided in three year agreements, enabling the RSC to build consistent support over several years and giving greater security to RSC staff – the RSC’s key asset – who did not have to worry whether they would have a job each August. The current agreement ends on July 31st this year.
In the next few months, the Department for Business, Innovation & Skills (DBIS) will decide how it wants to organise the entire support framework for the use of technology. There will not be a formal announcement about ongoing funding for RSCs until all the funding bodies in the four UK nations confirm their support.
However, with the machinery of government changes, the disappearance of the LSC, the May election and the forthcoming Spending Review, there has been a period of uncertainty – not so much over whether the RSCs should be funded but what the mechanism for providing the money should be.
Re-organisation within JISC means that, from the 1st August, RSCs are becoming part of JISC Advance, bringing together many of the front-line JISC services and enabling us to provide more effective support more efficiently.
It is widely agreed, and evidenced in various reports, that RSCs do an excellent job, and that support is essential if providers are to get maximum benefit from investment in technology.
Everyone knows that technology keeps changing. That’s the easy bit! Whilst all this settles down it’s business as usual at the RSC. We will have a review of the last ten years in the Autumn edition of intouch.
Turning virtualisation into a reality Back in February we were pleased to host a JANET virtualisation course here in the East Midlands. We invited technical staff from across the region who were considering virtualising, or had just virtualised, their server systems. Take-up on the course was fast, particularly as we were able to totally fund it ourselves, thus making it available free for the delegates. The request to hold such an event came from the regional Heads of IT forum that the RSC facilitates. We felt it important to stage this for two significant reasons. Firstly, virtualisation fits in with the sustainable agenda with reductions in the need for physical servers, less heat output with subsequent reduced air-conditioning requirement. This leads to reduced electrical running costs. In addition virtualisation is a technology that is increasing being installed in organisations as there are many efficiencies
to be had in testing, installation and deployment of software systems. More information on virtualisation can be found in various case studies on the Excellence Gateway, including an example from Chesterfield College, at www.excellencegateway.org.uk/cc. If technical staff consider that they have a specific need for training, please get intouch with Gordon Millner by email on gordon.millner@rsc-em.ac.uk or call 01509 618120 to discuss your requirements. We can then assess interest across the region and consider putting on a future event to meet the need.
This publication is printed on paper from sustainable sources. In the interests of the environment, please pass on to a colleague when you’ve finished with it or recycle it. It is also available online at www.rsc-em.ac.uk.