Staff Happenings

Comings and Goings

The following people have joined Information Technology Services. Welcome.

Jonathan Parungao (Kim Seidler)

Terry Smith (Bob Moya)

its in bits welcomes more detailed employee news submissions from all staff. Please submit to itsinbits-submissions@lists.stanford.edu

Tech Briefings

Tech Briefings

Fridays
2:00–3:30 p.m.
Turing Auditorium

Friday, August 7

Apple Presents — Wyn Davies, Apple. Come hear Stanford's Apple rep Wyn Davies talk about exciting new Apple products, along with the fallout from the Worldwide Developers Conference 2009.

Friday, August 14

Google: Search Engine Optimization — Stephan Spencer, NetConcepts. During this rich presentation, spanning SEO (Search Engine Optimization) fundamentals as well as advanced tricks and tactics that only the elite SEO experts know. Learn how to check your "Google Pulse," estimate missed opportunity costs, ensure Google crawls 100% of your site, including dynamic pages, design your pages to dominate rankings, avoid getting banned by Google, wield invaluable SEO tools, build high-quality links from trusted sites, and boost your PageRank along with your rankings, prepare for changes to come… and so much more!

Check the Tech Briefings home page for future sessions and to subscribe to the mailing list. Also see the Tech Express home page for information on upcoming presentations.

Technology Training Courses

IT Professional Development:

NEW! Javascript Advanced: AJAX (ITS-2561), Thurs, Aug 13, 9:00–4:00, $325

SQL Basics (ITS-2521), Thurs, Aug 20, 9:00–4:00, $325

TechPort: Online Technology Training for Stanford — techport.stanford.edu (ITS-0611), through Aug 31, $195

Upcoming Tech Training classes of interest to IT Services staff:

Excel Transition from 2003 to 2007 (ITS-1137), Mon, Aug 10, 8:30–12:00, $195

Word Transition from 2003 to 2007 (ITS-0927), Mon, Aug 10, 1:00–4:30, $195

Excel 2007: Advanced Pivot Tables (ITS-1156), Tues, Aug 11, 9:00–4:00, $325

PowerPoint 2007 Level 1 (ITS-1331), Tues, Aug 11, 9:00–4:00, $325

Adobe Acrobat & PDFs: Creating Forms and Automating Tasks (Beyond the Basics) (ITS-1403), Tues, Aug 11, 9:00–12:00, $195

ReportMart1 Introduction (ITS-8401), Tues, Aug 11, 1:30–4:30, Free

Excel 2007: What? You Don't Know Excel Yet? (ITS-1141), Wed, Aug 12, 9:00–4:00, $325

OrderIT Site Training (ITS-8301), Wed, Aug 12, 1:00–4:30, Free

*NEW Web Design: Forms Using PHP and HTML (ITS-2504), (choose one of two sessions), Thurs, Aug 13 OR Fri, Aug 14, 9:00–12:00, $195

Word 2007: Building Creative and Professional Documents (Level 2) (ITS-0932), Thurs, Aug 13, 9:00–4:00, $325

Excel 2007: Tables, Functions and Linking (Level 2) (ITS-1142), Fri, Aug 14, 9:00–4:00, $325

FileMaker Pro Scripting v9.0 (ITS-1808), Mon, Aug 17, 9:00–4:00, $325

Project 2007 Level 2 (ITS-2022), Mon, Aug 17, 9:00–4:00, $325

Excel 2007: Advanced Macros (ITS-1155), Tues, Aug 18, 9:00–4:00, $325

Word 2007: Seven Essential Time-saving Skills (ITS-0936), Tues, Aug 18, 8:30–12:00, $195

*Dreamweaver Level 2 (ITS-2611) Wed, Aug 19, 9:00–4:00, $325

Excel 2007 for Finance Level 2 (ITS-1134) Wed, Aug 19, 9:00–4:00, $325

FileMaker Pro Tips and Tricks v.9.0 (ITS-1807) Fri, Aug 21, 8:30–12:00, $195

Excel Transition from 2003 to 2007 (ITS-1137) Fri, Aug 21, 1:00–4:30, $195

* Class is a recommended prerequisite to help prepare for:
Certification Workshop: Web Professional in the Stanford Environment (ITS-2606), Wed, Sept 30, 9:00–4:00, $325
More information at webcertificate.stanford.edu.

Upcoming Techie Festival classes from Aug 17-21:

For the complete schedule, visit techiefestival.stanford.edu

Office 2007: What's New? (ITS-0305), Mon, Aug 17, 9:00–12:00, $125

Excel 2007 Pivot Tables (Lecture) (ITS-1151), Mon, Aug 17, 1:00–4:00, $125

Overview of Web Languages: Putting it all Together (Lecture) (ITS-2542), Tues, Aug 18, 9:00–12:00, $125

Demystifying Web 2.0 — Collaboration Tools (Lecture) (ITS-2543), Tues, Aug 18, 1:00–4:00, $125

Searching the Web: It's not just Google (Lecture) (ITS-2545) Wed, Aug 19, 9:00–12:00, $125

Word 2007 Power Tools (Lecture) (ITS-0938) Wed, Aug 19, 1:00–4:00, $125

Networking for Normal People: How Computers Talk to Each Other (Lecture) (ITS-0302), Thurs, Aug 20, 9:00–12:00, $125

PowerPoint 2007 Power Tools (Lecture) (ITS-1335), Thurs, Aug 20, 1:00–4:00, $125

iPhone Apps (Lecture) (ITS-2662) Fri, Aug 21, 9:00–12:00, $125

Free Upcoming Email / Calendar Training:

Full schedule available at emailcalendartraining.stanford.edu

Stanford Email (Webmail) (ITS-2110)

Stanford Calendar (ITS-2300)

Introduction to the New Stanford Email and Calendar (ITS-2115)

Moving from Sundial to Stanford Calendar (ITS-2116)

Cool Tips and Tricks for Stanford Email and Calendar (ITS-2117)

Advanced Stanford Calendar: Managing Executive Calendars, Resources and Events (ITS-2119)

Outlook 2007 Mail (ITS-2111)

Outlook 2007 Calendar (ITS-2118)

Apple Mail (ITS-2113)

Apple iCal (ITS-2114)

Thunderbird Mail (ITS-2112)

The full listing of Current Courses is available on the Tech Training web site.

Sign up at http://axess.stanford.edu.

Classes with low enrollment may be cancelled one week in advance. More information on courses, registration, and training is available at the Technology Training Services site.

- Nancy Baumann
Technology Training Services

IT Employment Opportunities

There was one new job posting for IT Services this week.

Req. #35299, Internally only, Unix Systems Administrator, 100% FTE, 4P3, Jon Pilat, hiring manager. This job will post externally on 8/6.

The Unix Systems & Applications group runs three different types of systems: systems and applications that support the central computing infrastructure for the University, systems for University groups and departments to run their own applications on, and High Performance Computing Systems for Stanford’s research and academic community. We provide systems administration, monitoring, security scanning and patching, configuration management, and some application administration for these types of systems.

To view the complete listings or to apply for a position, visit the StanfordJobs web site at: jobs.stanford.edu.

There are other open Information Technology positions at Stanford. To see what other opportunities exist on campus, link to the full list of all open IT positions at Stanford.

Quote of the Week

“Life is a great big canvas, and you should throw all the paint on it you can.”

- Danny Kaye

News

A Note From Bill...

Ah, summer! Beautiful weather, vacations, strategic planning! Each year at this time, we pull together data from several sources that helps us update the IT Services Strategic Plan to ensure it remains aligned with our clients' needs and the University's mission. In March, we conducted the annual Client Satisfaction Survey, which was incredibly helpful in understanding our clients' needs, particularly during these times of financial difficulties; in April and May, we completed the initial phase of our technical strategies; and concurrently, we, along with the various distributed IT groups, completed a C-ACIS-approved set of IT Principles that can help coordinate and govern IT efforts across all of the University.

Using this information, we spent June developing a very rough first draft of our Strategic Plan for the next three years: FY10 through FY12. This included an initial proposed Three Year Roadmap. We have asked Directors and Managers to share these with their workgroups, and to get your input on any changes or thoughts you may have. I hope that you have already started participating in these discussions. After we incorporate staff input in August, we will begin seeking feedback from key clients in September. Our date for completing the Strategic Plan is early October.

This year we are doing a more complete Strategic Plan than in the past. In addition to providing the Three Year Roadmap, we are being much more specific about our technical, process, staff, and client strategies. We are working on summarizing these, and will be asking for feedback on them in September.

Please feel free to share opinions outside of your workgroup also. All of us working on the plan are definitely interested in your observations. It is only by vetting this throughout the organization that we will come up with the best possible plan. Thank you yet again for your help.

- Bill Clebsch
IT Services

Update on Forsythe Office Reconfiguration

In the March 4 itsinbits, we updated you on the planned Forsythe space changes due to the Forsythe Data Center Phase II expansion.

Work is scheduled to begin the week of August 3 in Forsythe 145 to reconfigure that space for use by both the IT Operations Center staff (currently upstairs in Forsythe 247) and the computing Service Desk staff (Help Desk Level 1) in Acacia. Upon completion of the work, Order Processing staff currently in Forsythe 165 will be relocated to Acacia with the ordering and billing Service Desk staff.

While Forsythe 145 is undergoing construction, the kitchen in that area will be off-limits, as well as the conference room (Forsythe 135). The construction is estimated to take approximately six weeks, and occupancy may be possible mid-to-late September. The exact timeline will be clearer as the work progresses.

- Chris Lundin
Help Desk Services

SEIU Contract Negotiations

SEIU Local 2007 represents Stanford University staff. The University's contract with its bargaining unit staff expires on August 31, 2009. A negotiation team comprised of University management and union representatives is meeting regularly to negotiate a new contract.

The University has a strong tradition of mutual respect in collective bargaining negotiations with its labor partners. Stanford is committed to working with its local to reach agreements that are competitive for our employees and that provide the operational flexibility and financial stewardship needed to provide continuing services to the University community. The negotiation team is hopeful that agreements will be reached by the end of August.

SEIU bargaining unit staff at Stanford Hospital and Clinics (SEIU Local 715) have been working without a contract for a number of months already. A team representing the Hospital and its unionized workers is also in the process of negotiation.

Both of these negotiations are of interest to IT Services because 1) we have unionized staff in the Installation & Maintenance group of Communications Services and in the Operator Services Center, and 2) the Hospital is a significant business partner with us. Recognizing that bargaining unit staff have a legal right to participate in labor actions when their contracts expire, IT Services is making preparations to assure that services to our clients are not interrupted in the event of such an action either here or at the Hospital. We dusted off the plans we used three years ago when we faced a similar situation, and we've made changes as needed. We believe that we will be ready to respond appropriately should a walk-out occur. If you are interested in details of our plans or would like to volunteer to assist, please contact Carolyn Kane.

- Jan Cicero and Carolyn Kane
Client Support

Cell Phone Flat Rate

To improve customer service experience, IT Services will leverage a new cell phone pooling option to share minutes across the University. This new program will allow our clients to count on consistent monthly billing charges, without worrying about the call details, overages, and other billing/reporting questions and issues. This new flat rate service will also save costs by lessening call and ticket volume.

Currently, monthly billing/usage charges from each carrier, for each user, are imported into Pinnacle to charge back these exact usage costs to each department/PTA. However, we are not able to implement pooling if we continue to push the actual costs through to the end user per our existing business model. The only way to level out the costs for each unit is to flatten the rates across the board so that overages are not "seen" and IT Services manages the pool and user-assigned plans for cost optimization behind the scenes.

As is our method, we will try this service out on IT Services first. Athletics and SULAIR are also interested in this program.

If you use a cell phone for business, your manager will be signing you up for one of the below plans, at the associated rate. Over the next year, we will monitor our pooling situation as we add more and more clients into this program.

Flat Rates
Voice Only Plan = $35/mo
Voice Plan plus unlimited text = $55/mo
Voice Plan, no text, but unlimited data = $80/mo
Voice Plan, unlimited text, unlimited data = $95/mo

If you have any questions, please contact me .

- Suzanne Schiessler
Order Management

Change to Stanford West Cable Modem Internet Service

On Friday, July 24, we sent a letter to Stanford West Cable Modem subscribers notifying them of a change to the Stanford West cable modem Internet service. The letter explains both a change in the uplink speed (which had been of concern to many new cable modem users), as well as an explanation for the reasons IT Services made this technology change.

Effective July 30, the uplink speed will be increased from 512 kbs to 5 Mbps.

The full text of the letter is here.

- Michelle Collette
Service Management

Use of 5-HELP as Your Out-of-Office Contact

We've noticed that some IT Services staff are beginning to list 725-4357 (5-HELP) as their "I'm out of the office today" alternate contact number.

For example: "If you require immediate attention, please call (650) 725-4357."

While the IT Service Desk and IT Operations Center are always willing to try to assist, often your callers are expecting more specific help, like a colleague in your workgroup. Remember that when callers reach 5-HELP, they are presented with a standard set of selection options, and often they're immediately confused as to which to select.

For out-of-office listings, please list your manager, director, or a co-worker as your principal vacation backup. You can then list 5-HELP as an emergency backup, e.g.: "If you cannot reach the listed contact, you may call 5-HELP and the staff there will try to assist you."

- Chris Lundin
Help Desk Services

International Travel Tips for Using Your Cell Phone

If you are planning a trip to another country, make sure that “Cell Phone Plan Coverage” is on your checklist of things to take care of before you travel. International Voice and Data charges can cost tens of thousands of dollars if you do not take action to add the appropriate international roaming and data usage plans before you leave the country! Also, be sure to wait 60 days to remove this feature when you return, to allow for billing cycles to complete. To add international voice and data plans, call the Cell support Desk at 5-HELP, option 4.

For more information go to International Travel Tips for Using Your Cell Phone.

- Vicki Hallett
Order Processing

Green IT Services Project Kicks Off

The Green IT Services Project kicked off in July, with 25 people from across IT Services leading their buildings to reduce energy usage, increase recycling, and reduce waste. You may see them peeking into your office to see if they can replace your power strip with an energy-efficient Smart Strip, moving recycling bins to make them more easily accessible, taking note of where to swap out standard light-switches for motion-sensing ones, or putting timers on the copiers to eliminate the phantom power.

Starting very soon, Windows users will see their BigFix settings change — we'll be putting monitors to sleep after five minutes (currently 15), and putting your computer to sleep after ten minutes (currently never), which will go a long way toward helping IT Services reach the goal of reducing electricity use by 10%.

Learn more at the DocuShare site for the Green IT Services Project. If you don't know who's leading your building Green Team, you can find out from your building admin.

- Joyce Dickerson
Sustainable IT

Status of GO Pass and Eco Pass for Stanford Employees in 2010

This excerpt from Parking & Transportation Services Commute Club email might be of interest to IT Services Commuters (emphasis mine):

"The Caltrain board of directors voted on July 2 to implement an increase to the cost of the GO Pass to close a budget gap for fiscal year 2010. The VTA also increased the price of the Eco Pass. Despite these increases, Stanford intends to purchase the 2010 GO Pass and Eco Pass for eligible university employees."

For more information, see:

- Chris Lundin
Help Desk Services

IT Services Golf Tournament

The 2nd Annual ITS Golf Tournament was held on Saturday, July 25, at the Moffett Field Golf Club. Forty-four participants enjoyed 18 rounds of golf followed by a BBQ dinner.

The tournament was played with a two-player team best ball format, with a shotgun start at 11:30 a.m. It was a beautiful day for a round of golf, with clear skies and moderate wind conditions. Prizes were given to teams with low net scores in 1st through 5th place.

Christine Soldahl, Director of Finance, won a prize for the Longest Drive. Frances Reba (Locke), one of last year’s tournament organizers and a recent Stanford IT Services retiree, made the trip from San Diego to participate in the tournament and took home a prize for hitting Closest to the Pin. Check out the complete tournament results [DOC].

This year's tournament was organized by Dave Delia and Roland Acoba. On behalf of IT Services, Dave and Roland would like to thank the following sponsors for their support and generosity: Pimentel Communications, Inc., WBE Incorporated, Anixter, Cupertino Electric, Graybar, and Moffett Field Golf Club. See all the event photos.

Next year's event is already in the works. We hope to see you there.

- Al Roa
IT Services Human Resources

About its in bits

A regular summary of IT business, news about personnel, and pointers to other information of interest to IT Services staff. Coordinated, compiled, and published by the Communication Strategy and Standards Team. its in bits is published on the first and third Wednesday of the month.

Submissions are due by Noon on the Friday before the scheduled issue, to itsinbits-submissions@lists.stanford.edu for consideration. its in bits is distributed via email to its-all-staff@lists.stanford.edu and the subscription list itsinbits-subscribers@lists.stanford.edu People outside of IT Services can self-subscribe via mailman.

The next its in bits will be published on Wednesday, August 19, 2009.