EDUCAUSE | Collaboration

Cyberinfrastructure and the Evolution of Higher Education

ckeller — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 09:01:00 -0500

This ECAR research bulletin discusses the role cyberinfrastructure will play as higher education evolves. Changes in the job markets, in higher education research and teaching, and in emerging academic disciplines are having a direct impact on, and will be directly impacted by, information technologies. As high-level national councils acknowledge, higher education has an enormous stake in these crucial and sweeping changes.

Citation for this work: Dede, Chris. “Cyberinfrastructure and the Evolution of Higher Education” (Research Bulletin, Issue 18). Boulder, CO: EDUCAUSE Center for Applied Research, 2008, available from http://www.educause.edu/ecar.

Information Sharing for IT Security Professionals

vvogel — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 14:44:50 -0500

Learn how to develop a network of professional contacts in order to create an effective support system for information sharing within the IT Security community. Read the article "Information Sharing for IT Security Professionals" by EDUCAUSE Security Task Force Coordinator, Rodney Petersen in the latest EDUCAUSE Quarterly.

Latest EDUCAUSE Quarterly Now Available Online

cluckett — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 14:49:59 -0500

The latest EDUCAUSE Quarterly is now available, with feature articles about an institutional survey assessing learning and scholarly techniques, a faculty development survey for teaching online, collaborative development at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, and lessons learned from adopting an open source learning management system at Royal Roads University.

EDUCAUSE Quarterly is also available via RSS feed. Click the orange RSS icon on the EDUCAUSE Quarterly home page to access the XML required to subscribe.

August 1: Free Web Seminar on The Gutenberg-e Project

pkurkowski — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 16:10:16 -0500

The Gutenberg-e project was created as a bold experiment to explore whether peer-reviewed, born-digital monographs would alter the way historical scholarship is presented, whether scholars would receive the same professional credit for these publications as they would from work published in print, and whether the project would enable the publication of monographs that would otherwise be turned down for financial reasons by university presses.

In this free August 1 EDUCAUSE Live! web seminar, The Gutenberg-e Project: Opportunities and Challenges in Publishing Born-Digital Monographs, presenter Kate Wittenberg, consultant, scholarly communication and e-publishing, Columbia University, will discuss the project’s findings and cover both the breakthroughs and obstacles encountered during the course of the project’s development.

Those unable to attend may wish to visit the archives after the event or browse related EDUCAUSE resources on Electronic Publishing and Scholarly Communication.

Happy Families, Good Fences, and Winning IT Collaborations

ckeller — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 10:12:46 -0500

This ECAR research bulletin introduces the Amherst H. Wilder Foundation research on successful collaborative practices in the context of higher education. It details 20 collaborative success factors and maps them to relevant examples gleaned from research on IT collaboration conducted by ECAR.

Citation for this work: Pirani, Judith A., and Toby D. Sitko. “Happy Families, Good Fences, and Winning IT Collaborations” (Research Bulletin, Issue 15). Boulder, CO: EDUCAUSE Center for Applied Research, 2008, available from http://www.educause.edu/ecar.

7 Things You Should Know About Wii

ckeller — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 10:53:36 -0500

The Wii is a video game system that uses a wireless controller capable of sensing position and motion, allowing users to interact with the game applications through physical movements. The controller has captured the interest of academic researchers and hackers, who have used the technology to create applications such as a collaborative choreography tool and an inexpensive, interactive whiteboard. Wii technology is used as an input device in virtual worlds and as a training tool that allows learners to perform physical tasks in a digital, risk-free environment.

The "7 Things You Should Know About..." series from the EDUCAUSE Learning Initiative (ELI) provides concise information on emerging learning technologies. Each brief focuses on a single technology and describes what it is, where it is going, and why it matters to teaching and learning. Use these briefs for a no-jargon, quick overview of a topic and share them with time-pressed colleagues.

In addition to the "7 Things You Should Know About…" briefs, you may find other ELI resources useful in addressing teaching, learning, and technology issues at your institution. To learn more, please visit the ELI Resources page.

Information Sharing for IT Security Professionals

ckeller — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 14:32:29 -0500

Developing a network of professional contacts creates an effective support system for information sharing.

Collaborative Development: A New Culture Affects an Old Organization

ckeller — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 14:09:34 -0500

Using a collaborative model for developing IT projects delivered high-quality results with collateral benefits to the organization .

Intellectual Fusion

elilly — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 11:50:22 -0500

Things to Do While Waiting for the Future to Happen: Building Cyberinfrastructure for the Liberal Arts

elilly — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 11:29:26 -0500

What is the current thinking about cyberinfrastructure for the liberal arts, what models for transinstitutional collaboration and institution building are emerging, and what steps can campuses take to move this agenda forward?

Beyond Being There: A Blueprint for Advancing the Design, Development, and Evaluation of Virtual Organizations

ckeller — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 17:01:37 -0500

This report is based primarily on a workshop involving 42 people from academia and industry.
The goal of the workshop was to share systematic knowledge about the components, characteristics,
practices, and transformative impact of effective VOs; identify topics for future research that will
inform the ongoing design, development, and analysis of VOs for science and engineering research
and education; and create a new cross-disciplinary VO research community to conduct research across
a range of important topics. A subsequent workshop brought together more than 200 practitioners and
VO researchers to discuss how to build effective virtual organizations, and some of the material from
that workshop is represented here.

ELI In Conversation: The Fear 2.0 Group

gbayne — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 18:06:22 -0500

Web 2.0 tools have the power to transform education. Such a transformation requires that faculty, students, and institutions take risks. With those risks comes fear, which is often unarticulated. How do you tackle this fear and make real change?

In this 43 minute podcast we feature a conversation from the ELI 2008 Annual Meeting. Our particpants consist of a group of five higher ed professionals who co-presented the session, "Who's Afraid of Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and the Big Bad CMS? A Digi-Drama About Fear 2.0."

They include:

Laura Blankenship, Senior Instructional Technologist, Bryn Mawr College
Martha Burtis, Director, Teaching and Learning Technologies, University of Mary Washington
Barbara Ganley, Lecturer in English and Writing Program, Middlebury College
Leslie Madsen-Brooks, Teaching Resources Center, University of California, Davis
Barbara Sawhill, Director Cooper International Learning Center, Oberlin College

Addressing Shared and Diverse Needs Through Collaboration

drupal — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 12:37:31 -0500

This poster will present an approach to designing a program and an enterprise-wide implementation that met disparate needs and goals. The defined processes and the role of each school, the instructional technology unit, and the office of associate provost in achieving shared and diverse goals will be showcased.

Australia's Digital Education Revolution

catherine — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 08:16:49 -0500

Check out this innovative series of multi-site symposia, organised by the Australian Council for Educational Research and education.au, which runs until 12 June. Mark Pesce's key note, 'Those Whacky Kids', will raise your eyebrows and make you think.

The symposia theme is "to explore and illuminate the possibilities and the realities of the implementation of the Digital Education revolution (DER)." Now, I think I get it with regards to the digital revolution, but I have to say, "DER" strikes me as a somewhat pointless acronym, and an unintentionally humorous one at that. More creative thinking hats, and more collaborative events like this one, please -- and less acronyms.

ExitReality: Is Web3.D Here?

joeclark — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 09:14:25 -0500

Posted more about this on my personal blog (be sure to see the posts about EduPunk and Tag Galaxy as well).
The new ExitReality plugin extrudes every webpage into 3D, and page owners can customize the 3D elements. Visitors appear as customizable avatars and can chat with each other. Certain services have preset "room" designs, such as the nightclub look for MySpace profiles or the art gallery design for Flickr pages.
Worth a look! So far, it's Windows-only.

Large-Scale Open Source E-Learning Systems at Open University UK

gdobbin — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 08:25:04 -0500

This ECAR research bulletin examines the factors leading to the selection of the open source learning management system at the Open University, details the many aspects of development work that had to be undertaken, and describes the issues involved for institutions participating in an open source community. It also looks at some of the many business and cultural challenges the institution has faced, and at how faculty are being encouraged to move toward a model of education incorporating increasing amounts of e-learning content and activity.
Ccitation for this work: Sclater, Niall. “Large-Scale Open Source E-Learning Systems at Open University UK” (Research Bulletin, Issue 12). Boulder, CO: EDUCAUSE Center for Applied Research, 2008, available from http://www.educause.edu/ecar.

Higher Education IT and Cyberinfrastructure: Integrating Technologies for Scholarship Roadmap

elilly — Fri, 30 May 2008 11:36:51 -0500

This ECAR roadmap synthesizes the important issues and recommended actions drawn from the 2008 study, Higher Education IT and Cyberinfrastructure: Integrating Technologies for Scholarship , by Mark C. Sheehan. The ECAR research study explores higher education’s involvement in five areas of research-related information technologies: high-performance computing resources, cyberinfrastructure applications and tools, data storage and management resources, advanced network infrastructure resources, and resources for collaboration within virtual communities. The report, which is based on results of a quantitative survey of 369 U.S. and Canadian colleges and universities and consultation with cyberinfrastructure experts and 12 university executives and technical staff members, discusses who uses, who provides, and who funds cyberinfrastructure resources as well as how important each technology is and will be to research and teaching.
Citation for this work: Pirani, Judith A. and Mark C. Sheehan, “Higher Education IT and Cyberinfrastructure: Integrating Technologies for Scholarship Roadmap” (Roadmap). Boulder, CO: EDUCAUSE Center for Applied Research, 2005, available from http://www.educause.edu/ecar .

Dynamics of Supporting Sakai Through Local and Global Collaboration

gdobbin — Tue, 27 May 2008 09:06:36 -0500

This ECAR research bulletin discusses the adjustments that the Indiana University information technology organization made, and continues to make, in order to support membership in Sakai. It has been said that supporting Sakai can seem like trying to change a tire on a moving car. As co-founder of and active participant in the Sakai collaboration, the effects of IU’s decision—the unexpected, the challenging, and the delightful—are discussed in terms of the intra- and interuniversity realities of highly collaborative efforts.
Citation for this work: Goodrum, David, Jan R. Holloway, Anastasia S. Morrone, Lance Speelmon, and Elizabeth A. Van Gordon. “Dynamics of Supporting Sakai Through Local and Global Collaboration” (Research Bulletin, Issue 11). Boulder, CO: EDUCAUSE Center for Applied Research, 2008, available from http://www.educause.edu/ecar.

CNI Podcast: Bamboo - Community-Defined Shared Services and Cyberinfrastructure for the Arts & Humanities

gbayne — Tue, 13 May 2008 15:51:36 -0500

This 18 minute podcast features an interview with Chad Kainz, Senior Director of NSIT Academic Technologies at the University of Chicago and David A. Greenbaum, Director of Data Services at the University of California, Berkely. It was recorded at the CNI 2008 Spring Task Force Meeting in Minneapolis, Minnesota where they presented a session entitled, "Bamboo - Community-Defined Shared Services and Cyberinfrastructure for the Arts & Humanities".
Bamboo is a multi-institutional, interdisciplinary, and inter-organizational effort to bring together researchers in arts and humanities, computer and information scientists, librarians, and campus information technologists to collectively tackle this question:
How can we enhance arts and humanities research through the development of shared technology services?
This interview is provided courtesy of CNI and was recorded at their 2008 Spring Task Force Meeting. The Coalition for Networked Information (CNI) is an organization dedicated to supporting the transformative promise of networked information technology for the advancement of scholarly communication and the enrichment of intellectual productivity. You can learn more about CNI at their web site, http://www.cni.org

May 19: Free Web Seminar on MCommunity to Improve IT Service Provisioning at the University of Michigan

cluckett — Mon, 12 May 2008 12:34:49 -0500

The EDUCAUSE Live! Spotlight on Identity Management series is a six-month series that will feature one or two speakers from a campus that have analyzed or solved a problem in a way that many people will find instructive.
MCommunity is a new enterprise directory and identity management system under development at the University of Michigan, a large, decentralized institution. MCommunity will provide a central infrastructure that can be used not only for central IT service provisioning but also for service provisioning within units. Planning for and development of MCommunity is a collaborative effort across both U-M IT units and the many units that will use the new system. In this free seminar on May 19, MCommunity to Improve IT Service Provisioning at the University of Michigan, presenters Elizabeth A. Salley, product manager, and Luke Tracy, MCommunity co-technical lead, both from the University of Michigan, will discuss the issues and concepts surrounding the development of this new system.
The event is free, but registration is required and virtual seating is limited. Register now.

CNI Podcast: Research Cyberinfrastructure Needs at the University of Minnesota - An Interview with Ann Hill Duin

gbayne — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 17:36:15 -0500

This 17 minute podcast features an interview with Ann Hill Duin, Associate Vice President & Deputy CIO at the University of Minnesota. Our conversation was recorded at the CNI 2008 Spring Task Force Meeting in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Dr. Ann Hill Duin is Associate Vice President and Deputy CIO at the University of Minnesota where she provides direct oversight of two large units within the Office of Information Technology--Academic & Distributed Computing Services (ADCS) and Networking & Telecommunications Services (NTS). Dr. Hill Duin serves as a catalyst for innovatively leveraging technology to advance and support extraordinary education, breakthrough research, and dynamic public engagement. She provides leadership for establishing a long-term vision and innovative IT strategic plan that is consistent with the mission, vision, and action strategies for the University.
This interview is provided courtesy of CNI and was recorded at their 2008 Fall Task Force Meeting. The Coalition for Networked Information (CNI) is an organization dedicated to supporting the transformative promise of networked information technology for the advancement of scholarly communication and the enrichment of intellectual productivity. You can learn more about CNI at their web site, http://www.cni.org

2008 EDUCAUSE Midwest Regional Closing Session: Leading Ahead of the Curves by Brad Wheeler

llarsen — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 13:50:27 -0500

Leading Ahead of the Curves
Brad Wheeler, Vice President for IT and CIO, Dean, & Professor, Indiana University
[EDUCAUSE Midwest Regional Conference Closing General Session, March 19, 2008]
The slides for this keynote are available at http://www.educause.edu/upload/presentations/MWRC08/GS02/Leading-Ahead-of-the-Curves-Wheeler20080319_inked.ppt
A podcast of the session is available at http://connect.educause.edu/blog/gbayne/podcastleadingaheadofthec/46500
NOTES
Brad Wheeler began his talk on technology leadership with reminisces beginning in 1993 when he was an associate professor at the University of Maryland and Mosaic was the hot new tool and the Web took off.
Adapting the well-known “and then a miracle occurs” cartoon, he changed the text on the blackboard to show a sketch of “Campus Cyberinfrastructure” -> “then a miracle occurs” -> ”Cloud Computing Nirvana” and said that we can be the miracle in leading ahead of the curves but we need more explicit information in the miraculous step 2.
The Curves we must lead ahead of and balance are:

Technical possibility is where coolness is the key factor. Investors for innovations keep the frontier moving forward. However, for a CIO, technical possibility is not the question but rather technical maturity. When charted against time you end up with a set of steps up rather than a smooth curve.

Social desirability is where “Gotta have it” is the key factor. Social expectation is now a flat line at the top of the chart. Millennials want new technologies immediately. When academic organizations say that you can only upgrade and make changes every few years there are questions to answer for when you can test and when you can deploy - we can’t always wait those few years before implementing. The curve is really a set of steps again. The CIO needs to decide where and when it’s right to buy-in to the new technology.

Economic Feasibility is a matter of dollars where, over time, a product becomes less expensive so you do have a downward curve.
Wheeler has a box where he keeps prognostications and quoted an article in Campus Technology (Oct 23 2007) about five factors they said will have a synergistic effect. There are many who provide these predictions but because of the fog factor we begin to dismiss them. He described how CIOs feel as Edvard Munch’s 1893 painting The Scream.
Wheeler said the main question is:
“Can our actions substantively affect the shape of the curves or do we just adapt as they are revealed?” and asked are we only an industry that reacts to the curves or do we have the wisdom and ability to shape the curves?
His Curve bending examples were

open educational resources/scholarship

search of certitude

community source

licensing terms
Leading ahead of the curve loops us back to Scholarship 2.0 and the rise of IT, digital repositories, and electronic collaboration in achieving and improving the quality of the scholarly endeavors of research, teaching, learning, and service.
He closed by saying that we need to come together and collectively be the miracle to lead ahead of the curve.
In the Q&A, Wheeler answered questions on

supporting those who still want face-to-face

how to leverage across campuses (higher education) so everyone benefits including less wealthy institutions

outsourcing email and integration of applications

open vs commercialization of courses.
=======================
The slides are available at http://www.educause.edu/upload/presentations/MWRC08/GS02/Leading-Ahead-of-the-Curves-Wheeler20080319_inked.ppt
The podcast is available at http://connect.educause.edu/blog/gbayne/podcastleadingaheadofthec/46500

Higher Education IT and Cyberinfrastructure: Integrating Technologies for Scholarship

elilly — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 11:24:44 -0500

This 2008 ECAR research study explores higher education’s involvement in five areas of research-related information technologies: high-performance computing resources, cyberinfrastructure applications and tools, data storage and management resources, advanced network infrastructure resources, and resources for collaboration within virtual communities. The report, which is based on results of a quantitative survey of 369 U.S. and Canadian colleges and universities and consultation with cyberinfrastructure experts and 12 university executives and technical staff members, discusses who uses, who provides, and who funds cyberinfrastructure resources as well as how important each technology is and will be to research and teaching.
Citation for this work: Sheehan, Mark C. Higher Education IT and Cyberinfrastructure: Integrating Technologies for Scholarship (Research Study, Volume 3). Boulder, CO: EDUCAUSE Center for Applied Research, 2008, available from http://www.educause.edu/ecar.

The Virtual Burnham Initiative as a Collaborative Project of, by, and for the Community

drupal — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 11:55:04 -0500

Led by Lake Forest College, Chicago-area academic, cultural, and civic institutions are developing VBI, the Virtual Burnham Initiative, with 3D models re-creating the 1909 Plan of Chicago housed on a project website. VBI is a project about the Chicagoland community that builds community between academic institutions, area organizations, and the greater public through technology.

When The Whole Is Greater Than the Sum of Its Part(ner)s: Partnering for Success

drupal — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 10:00:13 -0500

This session will use the InfoCommons at Northwestern Library as a case study to examine a very successful partnership in technology application and space planning between two high-profile campus entities.

The Duluth Area CIOs Consortium: Collaborating with Regional IT Organizations

drupal — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 10:00:12 -0500

Academic IT leaders have much to learn from IT leaders in other businesses and organizations. The Duluth Area CIOs Consortium has members from local business, health care, government, and education. This session will describe the consortium's establishment, goals, and meeting structure, as well as the benefits of membership.

InCommon and the Committee on Institutional Cooperation

drupal — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 10:35:40 -0500

All dozen institutions comprising the CIC recently decided to join the InCommon Federation. This session will describe the motivation for and experience of joining InCommon. We'll also describe some of the use cases, including interactions with the federal government, interinstitutional access, and community source development projects.

Collaborative Development: The Human Side of Project Management

drupal — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 10:29:57 -0500

UW–Madison successfully managed a large IT project using a new collaborative development methodology. The goal was to bring the product to life quickly with fewer bugs and greater input from both functional and technical people. This methodology impacted our organization in unexpected ways. We'll share successes and lessons learned.

Partnering Effectively with Cross-Campus Groups and Organizations

drupal — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 10:29:57 -0500

Institutions of higher education are complex, decentralized organization that benefit from the individual expertise of their members. Institutional decentralization, however, can hamper cross-campus collaborations. This presentation will focus on understanding how institutional frameworks unknowingly sidetrack collaborations and the steps that can be taken to minimize these barriers.

Using Wikis for Collaborative Group Work

drupal — Mon, 17 Mar 2008 10:15:01 -0500

Discover how Bridgewater State College's new wiki web tool provides collaborative group space for academic and administrative group projects, as well as how this tool was implemented using the Mediawiki open source platform.

Developing and Extending a Cyberinfrastructure Model

gdobbin — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 08:34:45 -0600

This research bulletin explores how to develop, deploy, and extend cyberinfrastructure assets within higher education—both within and across institutions. As research becomes increasingly computational, data-intensive, and interdisciplinary, innovative approaches for functional cyberinfrastructure models become ever more important. This bulletin describes a model that was developed at one institution and then deployed across institutions, with the goal of addressing issues as diverse as the need for simulation systems rather than wet labs, insufficient computational research support to help an institution compete for top-notch faculty, and astronomical spikes in power and cooling demands.
Citation for this work: Alvarez, Rosio. “Developing and Extending a Cyberinfrastructure Model” (Research Bulletin, Issue 5). Boulder, CO: EDUCAUSE Center for Applied Research, 2008, available from http://www.educause.edu/ecar.

Conference Connections: Rewiring the Circuit

elilly — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 12:37:46 -0600

Increased openness, two-way dialogue, and blurred distinctions between experts and amateurs have combined with numerous technology tools for dialogue, personal expression, networking, and community formation to “remake” conferences, influencing not only how attendees participate in but also how organizers host conferences today.

NJVid - A Statewide Video-on-Demand Repository

drupal — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 11:38:31 -0600

The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) has awarded a 3-year grant for nearly a million dollars to a partnership between William Paterson University, Rutgers University Libraries and NJEDge.Net to develop and deploy a statewide academic video-on-demand repository. The digital video repository (Fedora Commons-based) will he housed in the core of the NJEDge network and will provide "lectures-on-demand", licensed commercial videos, and locally owned videos. A Video Commons collection will be publically available including history, lectures from notables, and video documenting research and scientific advances. NJVid is notable for providing a statewide video strategy to accommodate any type of organization-higher education, K12, public libraries, museums and archives. A substantial part of this project will provide the resources to develop a statewide Shibboleth-based Identity management infrastructure, supporting statewide network authentication and authorization that can be used for many content resources. This presentation will describe the open source architecture and middleware applications that are under development. Much effort will be expended for an extensible approach that can be implemented by other statewide or consortial video initiatives.

Cyberinfrastructure and Emerging Scientific Data and Knowledge Systems

drupal — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 11:38:31 -0600

Scientific progress and discovery increasingly hinge upon analysis of a wide variety of data sources. With these datasets growing ever larger and more complex, we are increasingly challenged in the areas of management, preservation, integration, and access to high-level services that facilitate inquiry and hypothesis testing. We are also seeing an increase in geographically distributed resources. For science to advance, we must develop new knowledge-based environments that allow researchers to easily query and analyze vast holdings of diverse, distributed data. NCAR has joined a number of collaborations aimed at addressing critical science and societal challenges, ranging from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the International Polar Year, regional climate modeling, solar-terrestrial science, digital preservation, and more. We will survey these areas, discuss some of the challenges we face in developing effective cyberinfrastructure, and briefly touch on the important migration towards "science gateways" and knowledge-based environments.

When Authorship Isn't Enough: Lessons from CERN on the Implications of Formal and Informal Credit Attribution Mechanisms in Collaborative Research

elilly — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 10:48:53 -0600

As research collaborations grow in size, scope, and time horizon, they increasingly resemble organizations in and of themselves. The traditional institutional structure of science, however, is fundamentally focused on individual scientists. Reconciling these novel research organizations with traditional structures has proven a difficult challenge for the high energy physics community, which has a longstanding tradition of large collaborations. In this paper I draw on interview data gathered in this community to explore the issues of authorship and credit attribution, with an eye toward extrapolating lessons for those in other disciplines. Results suggest that authorship practices in physics are fundamentally problematic in several respects, and that this stems in part from a need to recognize multiple types of contributions.

7 Things You Should Know About Flickr

ckeller — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 09:50:19 -0600

Flickr is a photo-sharing website where anyone can upload and tag photos, browse others' photos, and add comments and annotations. Users can create photo sets and collections to manage content and participate in topical groups to cultivate a sense of community. Although Flickr is ostensibly for photos, the site might more aptly be described as a venue for sharing experiences and building relationships. The site provides the tools, but the value derives from the contributions of the user community -- photos, comments, ratings, and organization -- and the connections that the site facilitates between individuals. In this way, Flickr embodies what has come to be known as Web 2.0 technology.
The "7 Things You Should Know About..." series from the EDUCAUSE Learning Initiative (ELI) provides concise information on emerging learning technologies. Each brief focuses on a single technology and describes what it is, where it is going, and why it matters to teaching and learning. Use these briefs for a no-jargon, quick overview of a topic and share them with time-pressed colleagues.
In addition to the "7 Things You Should Know About..." briefs, you may find other ELI resources useful in addressing teaching, learning, and technology issues at your institution. To learn more, please visit the ELI Resources page.

ELI In Conversation: Web 2.0 and Digital Storytelling

gbayne — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 14:12:13 -0600

In this podcast we feature a conversation with Bryan Alexander, Director for Research at the National Institute for Technology and Liberal Education (NITLE) , and Gail Matthews-DeNatale, Associate Director for Academic Technology at Simmons College . This discussion was recorded at the ELI 2008 Annual Meeting in San Antonio, Texas.
Digital storytelling merges leading-edge technology with age-old storytelling processes. Digital stories are typically in video format but can also include Web pages, digital maps, and other emerging technology mashups. With the addition of a Web 2.0 focus, audience also becomes co-author. How do these concepts apply to pedagogy and how can instructors evaluate and assess the process and final product?
Gail Matthews-DeNatale presented a session at ELI 2008 entitled, "Digital Story Making: Understanding the Learner's Perspective".
Bryan Alexander presented a workship at ELI 2008 entitled, "Web 2.0 Storytelling".

The 2008 Horizon Report

drupal — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 12:07:25 -0600

The annual Horizon Report, a joint publication of the NMC and the ELI, highlights new technologies for teaching, learning, and creative expression. This session will review the research and process behind the report. The 2008 Horizon Report and its findings will be officially released at this session.

Supporting Knowledge Creation: Using Wikis for Group Collaboration

ckeller — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 09:59:51 -0600

This research bulletin examines the wiki philosophy and how it fits within the Web 2.0 context. While wikis offer a number of benefits for supporting knowledge creation in collaborative groups, the literature suggests a strong need to establish conventions to enable long-term success. Based on an extensive literature review, the results of a research project into blog and wiki use in Australian libraries, and evaluations of the wiki installation of the RUBRIC Project sponsored by the Australian Commonwealth Department of Education, Science, and Training, the bulletin also examines how wiki technology can enable the online collaborative process.
Citation for this work: Watson, Kate, and Chelsea Harper. "Supporting Knowledge Creation: Using Wikis for Group Collaboration" (Research Bulletin, Issue 3). Boulder, CO: EDUCAUSE Center for Applied Research, 2008, available from http://www.educause.edu/ecar.

CNI Podcast: An Interview with Kim Milford, Special Assistant to the CIO at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis

gbayne — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 04:00:50 -0600

In this 12 minute podcast, we feature an interview with Kim Milford, Special Assistant to the CIO at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis . She spoke to us at the Coalition for Neworked Information Fall 2007 Task Force Meeting, where she .co-presented a session entitled, "IU ChaCha Search: Research Development, and Services".
Kim Milford recently joined Indiana University as Special Assistant to the Vice President for Information Technology. In this role, Ms. Milford is leading initiatives that cross IT and university domains, such as the development of strategic alliances, enhancing online search and identity management. Prior to joining Indiana University, Ms. Milford served as the Director and Information Security Officer at the University of Rochester, where she successfully incorporated security planning and operations into strategic IT initiatives. Additionally, she developed and led an information security program that included disaster recovery planning, identity management, incident response and user awareness.
This interview is provided courtesy of CNI and was recorded at their 2007 Fall Task Force Meeting. The Coalition for Networked Information (CNI) is an organization dedicated to supporting the transformative promise of networked information technology for the advancement of scholarly communication and the enrichment of intellectual productivity. You can learn more about CNI at their web site, http://www.cni.org

Enhancing Graduate Education: A Fresh Look at Library Engagement

ckeller — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 16:02:14 -0600

Over 100 librarians, administrators, faculty, and other members of the academic community concerned about issues relating to graduate education convened in Washington DC on October 12, 2007, to participate in the forum "Enhancing Graduate Education: A Fresh Look at Library Engagement."2 Sponsored by the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) and the Coalition for Networked Information (CNI), the event promoted engagement in conceptualizing the library's evolving role in graduate education, and it encouraged academic libraries to begin considering new ways to partner with the broader graduate studies community. The forum was inspired by the Council of Graduate Schools 2007 report, Graduate Education: The Backbone of American Competitiveness and Innovation,3 which examines the current state of graduate education and how it influences the positioning of the United States in the global economy. Asserting the need for cooperation across education, business, and policy sectors, the report emphasizes the need to strengthen and promote an educational model that will "enhance US innovation and national security in the 21st century."4 The report's authors emphasized essential cooperation across sectors, enhanced flexibility within institutions of higher education, and focus on interdisciplinarity and globalization, themes that were equally dominant throughout the daylong
forum.

Midwest Regional 2008: The Evolving Challenges Facing IT in Higher Ed

cluckett — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 11:20:02 -0600

The 2008 Midwest Regional Conference, "New Directions in Higher Ed IT: Navigating the Course While Still Drawing the Map," will be held March 17–19 in Chicago. View the program and register by February 19 to save money with low early-bird rates.

The conference will focus on these topic areas:

Collaborate from Where You Are

IT Agility for a Constantly Changing Environment

IT Infrastructure: Adding Value and Helping Organizations Achieve Their Strategic Objectives

Technology to Support Learning

Libraries, Information Resources, and Literacy (New!)

Corporate and Campus Solutions
Keynote Speakers

Susan E. Metros, Deputy CIO & Associate Vice Provost, University of Southern California, Challenging IT Leaders to Mashup, Twitter, Tag, and Poke: New IT Strategies for a Digital Society

Bradley Wheeler, Vice President for Information Technology & CIO and Professor of Information Systems, Kelley School of Business (Topic TBA)
Half-day preconference seminars will offer a close look at important current issues, such as essential privacy practices, rendering animations and images for more dynamic courses, and using communication as an effective leadership strategy.

IT Engagement in Research: A View of Medical School Practice - Corporate Edition

ckeller — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 16:55:01 -0600

This ECAR research study was designed in collaboration with the Association of American Medical Colleges to analyze the practices and perspectives of IT organizations that support the academic research enterprise in medical schools and colleges. As the potential of biotechnology, proteomics, informatics, computational genomics, and other IT-intensive disciplines continue to offer breakthroughs in medicine, research in these fields requires greater and higher-level technology resources for infrastructure as well as IT support and services. The study is based on the results of a web-based survey sent to 125 medical schools and colleges in the United States, as well as qualitative interviews with leaders at 10 institutions. Respondents to the survey were predominantly chief information officers or other top administrators from 50 medical institutions, yielding a response rate of 39.7 percent. The findings contained in this report echo the results of the ECAR 2006 study, IT Engagement in Research: A Baseline Study, illustrating that the role and importance of IT in research is growing, while funding and budget decisions remain difficult. A non-profit edition is available here.
Citation for this work: Nelson, Mark R. IT Engagement in Research: A View of Medical School Practice (Research Study, Vol. 1). Boulder, CO: EDUCAUSE Center for Applied Research, 2008, available from http://www.educause.edu/ecar.

IT Engagement in Research: A View of Medical School Practice Roadmap

ckeller — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 16:27:19 -0600

This ECAR roadmap synthesizes the important issues and recommended actions drawn from the 2008 study, IT Engagement in Research: A View of Medical School Practice, by Mark R. Nelson. This ECAR research study was designed in collaboration with the Association of American Medical Colleges to analyze the practices and perspectives of IT organizations that support the academic research enterprise in medical schools and colleges. As the potential of biotechnology, proteomics, informatics, computational genomics, and other IT-intensive disciplines continue to offer breakthroughs in medicine, research in these fields requires greater and higher-level technology resources for infrastructure as well as IT support and services. The study is based on the results of a January 2007 web-based survey sent to 125 medical schools and colleges in the United States, as well as qualitative interviews with leaders at 10 institutions.
Citation for this work: Albrecht, Bob, and Judith A. Pirani. "IT Engagement in Research: A View of Medical School Practice Roadmap" (Roadmap). Boulder, CO: EDUCAUSE Center for Applied Research, 2005, available from http://www.educause.edu/ecar.

Tune in Jan. 18 for New EDUCAUSE Live! Spotlight on Identity Management Series Seminar on Collaborative Identity Management

pkurkowski — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:48:47 -0600

The EDUCAUSE Live! Spotlight on Identity Management series is a new, six-month series that will feature one or two speakers from a campus that have analyzed or solved a problem in a way that many people will find instructive.
In the series' first seminar on January 18, A Case for Collaborative Identity Management in a Complex Decentralized Environment, presenters Andrea Beesing, Assistant Director, IT Security, and David S. Yeh, Assistant Vice President and University Registrar, Cornell University, will use the identity life cycle of the Cornell student as a use case and discuss the value of approaching identity management as a collective responsibility. The business and IT sides of the house must partner to meet rising expectations for streamlined access to information in a world where services are distributed not only across multiple campus units but also across multiple institutions.
The event is free, but registration is required and virtual seating is limited. REGISTER NOW.

IT Engagement in Research: A View of Medical School Practice

ckeller — Fri, 11 Jan 2008 11:11:35 -0600

This ECAR research study was designed in collaboration with the Association of American Medical Colleges to analyze the practices and perspectives of IT organizations that support the academic research enterprise in medical schools and colleges. As the potential of biotechnology, proteomics, informatics, computational genomics, and other IT-intensive disciplines continue to offer breakthroughs in medicine, research in these fields requires greater and higher-level technology resources for infrastructure as well as IT support and services. The study is based on the results of a web-based survey sent to 125 medical schools and colleges in the United States, as well as qualitative interviews with leaders at 10 institutions. Respondents to the survey were predominantly chief information officers or other top administrators from 50 medical institutions, yielding a response rate of 39.7 percent. The findings contained in this report echo the results of the ECAR 2006 study, IT Engagement in Research: A Baseline Study, illustrating that the role and importance of IT in research is growing, while funding and budget decisions remain difficult. A corporate edition is available here.
Citation for this work: Nelson, Mark R. IT Engagement in Research: A View of Medical School Practice (Research Study, Vol. 1). Boulder, CO: EDUCAUSE Center for Applied Research, 2008, available from http://www.educause.edu/ecar.

Large Scale Collection and Sanitization of Network Security Data: Risks and Challenges

ckeller — Thu, 13 Dec 2007 15:11:16 -0600

"Over the last several years, there has been an emerging interest in the development of wide-area data collection and analysis centers to help identify, track, and formulate responses to the ever-growing number of coordinated attacks and malware infections that plague computer networks worldwide. As large-scale network threats continue to evolve in sophistication and extend to widely deployed applications, we expect that interest in collaborative security monitoring infrastructures will continue to grow, because such attacks may not be easily diagnosed from a single point in the network. The intent of this position paper is not to argue the necessity of Internet-scale security data sharing infrastructures, as there is ample research [13, 48, 51, 54, 41, 47, 42] and operational examples [43, 17, 32, 53] that already make this case. Instead, we observe that these well-intended activities raise a unique set of risks and challenges.
We outline some of the most salient issues faced by global network security centers, survey proposed defense mechanisms, and pose several research challenges to the computer security community. We hope that this position paper will serve as a stimulus to spur groundbreaking new research in protection and analysis technologies that can facilitate the collaborative sharing of network security data while keeping data contributors safe and secure."

New EDUCAUSE Constituent Groups Form: IT Communications and Virtual Worlds

cluckett — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 11:16:58 -0600

EDUCAUSE invites subscribers to join two new constituent groups: IT Communications, led by Mur Muchane and Lisa Trubitt, and Virtual Worlds, led by AJ Kelton. Browse the full list of constituent and discussion groups at EDUCAUSE.

7 Things You Should Know About Skype

ckeller — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 16:45:39 -0600

Skype is a voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) application that lets users make free phone calls between Skype-equipped computers and inexpensive calls between Skype computers and landline or cell phones. Skype functions on a P2P model rather than as a centralized application, and it offers features such as voicemail, call forwarding, conference calling, and video chat. In most circumstances, Skype provides access to voice and video communication for a fraction of what other options cost. It allows more frequent contact between colleagues, collaborators, and friends and permits connections with those not likely to be in touch through conventional phone systems.
The "7 Things You Should Know About..." series from the EDUCAUSE Learning Initiative (ELI) provides concise information on emerging learning technologies. Each brief focuses on a single technology and describes what it is, where it is going, and why it matters to teaching and learning. Use these briefs for a no-jargon, quick overview of a topic and share them with time-pressed colleagues.
In addition to the "7 Things You Should Know About..." briefs, you may find other ELI resources useful in addressing teaching, learning, and technology issues at your institution. To learn more, please visit the ELI Resources page.

FBI-.edu security partnership trying to overcome decades of mistrust

ckeller — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 10:41:35 -0600

"Two weeks ago, we described a report from the National Research Council on the challenges of balancing an open academic research environment with the risks that the fruits of the research could be adopted by terrorists. One of the report's recommendations was the formation of a standing committee comprised of academics and members of the national security agencies. It turns out that the FBI had already heeded similar advice—back in 2005."