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I apologize for using this forum for something that isn't directly
related to the Web, but no other newsgroup (or mailing list that I know
of) is any more appropriate. I also apologize for its length.
When campus computing resources were little isolated islands without high
outside visibility, it was easier to tolerate the lack of communication
channels between the users' community and the central administration.
Now that NIU is going through a networking explosion, such channels are
vital; still, a few recent experiences make me suspect that they don't
exist, or suffer from serious constipation.
Case in point 1. The fact that a mysterious committee published its Web
page requirements without presenting a draft to this group is beyond
me. The entire Internet is based on the process known as REQUEST FOR
COMMENTS, and the administration had better adjust to this novel
concept if it doesn't want to alienate those whom it is supposed to
_serve_.
Case 2. Some time ago I was very surprised to notice that all campus
AppleTalk traffic was suddenly being routed in an out of our network.
I was told that another invisible committee decided to do that, and we
weren't notified because it appeared that Math had no Macs (even though
the $20,000 or so worth of Apple orders for the past 2.5 years all bear
the signatures of Mike Prais and Jim Norris). The AppleTalk traffic has
serious implications for us, including the security of our Unix system.
As I also pointed out in e-mail memos and phone conversations, it
creates a temptation to pirate many commercial applications which are
accessible on unprotected AppleShare servers. More than a month has
passed; guest access to those servers hasn't been blocked, and our
router hasn't been reconfigured to filter AppleTalk.
Case 3. A meeting about student access and a new NetWare version in the
labs was apparently announced only to the instructors who use the labs,
while system managers such as myself were not informed. Those issues
affect many of our users, but I learned about the meeting by accident.
Mike Prais did summarize the discussion on tompaine, but I feel that a
mailing list for such announcements should exist (I'll be happy to add
one to my list processor).
Case 4. A network outage during a recent weekend nearly made me drive
back to DeKalb (120 miles), interrupting a blissful day of flying model
airplanes. Had I known about it in advance, I wouldn't have worried, and
I could have warned my users that the downtime was expected. It appears
that Network Operations department places announcements of maintenance
etc. on their Web server, preferring this to a mailing list (an alias
networks@mp.cs was created by Neil Rickert precisely for such notices).
I think that in this context a mailing list is, again, much better than
a newsgroup or a Web server.
I refuse to serve on committees because I know of many better uses of
my time. This, it seems, prevents me from learning about (not to mention
influencing) important decisions being made on campus. I don't think
this is a healthy state of affairs.
Items 1. and 2. have to do with philosophy and attitudes of those in
charge of NIU computing. I submit them for discussion. Addressing
issues 3. and 4. is very easy, it seems -- a couple of mailing lists such
as "computing@niu.edu" and "sysops@niu.edu" are all that's needed. Here
I'm seeking advice and support from this group. How many of you think
that such lists would be useful?
Thanks for your patience. E.
-- Eric Behr | Northern Illinois University | (815) 753 6727 behr@math.niu.edu | Mathematical Sciences | fax: 753 1112