July 2009 Archives

Notes on Collaborating with Web-Based Tools offered by the UTTC.

Use web-based tools for organizing, authoring, sharing, and creating community.

Delicious

Google Docs

• Starting the end of September.
• Don't require it for student work.
• There are some accessibility issues.
• For god's sake don't put private data there.
• Even though you can all collaborate at the same time, it doesn't negate the need for team communication.
• Not fully-featured compared to desktop app. So, for formal presentations, pull it down and finalize in Word.

MyU

• Has a checkout feature
• Take the class on collaborating with MyU
• Underutilized tool

When entering text in a wysiwyg field, draft it in another application in case you get disconnected. If you do it in Word however, do a Save as text... to flush out all those nasty Word document codes.

All assignments are between students and instructor. If you're assigning group work, forums work better than assignments.

Quizzes not so intuitive. You must save before moving among pages. Any unsaved work is lost. And you don't want to submit until you're finished. The timer tends to stress students out but you can't make it go away.

Recommendation is to keep the size of your entire course to 100MB. Grading file uploads, you must save your text before uploading the file otherwise, your text isn't saved.

• Assignments don't play well with groups.
• Creating the questions and creating the quizzes is a separate activity.
• Shuffle the choices but make the correct one number one.
• Use the wild card symbol to accept alternate spellings of answers, like penn*a for Pennsylvania
• You can modify the quiz until the first student takes it

1. Change "Eligibility" to "Diversity Criteria"
2. Change "Subject" to "Academic Subject"
3. Change "Type" to "Type of Experience"
4. Change "Region" to "Geographic Region"
5. Remove introductory text
6. Thuy will decide what fields should go on list view
7. Remove pagination and show all results on same page
8. Allow users to page through detail views of results list
9. Add a way to return to the results list
10. Make deadline info stand out visually
11. Add the award amount
12. Add a term field
13. Try to solve for term and deadline relative to when the user is searching

What do you do?

Improve the nation's capacity to teach and learn foreign languages effectively.

Who's my point person?

Marlene is my main contact but I'm free to work directly with others on specific projects.

What skills does your staff have or want to develop?

CARLA staff has extensive FileMaker skills. They've build their own databases and published them to the web using CDML. They would like to keep their hands in FileMaker and learn PHP.

What databases do you use?

CARLA has 15 databases, all of which have a web front end. They weened themselves from working with FileMaker client because it was unstable. That was several years ago and what was once necessity is now habit. Because their databases are shared with the public they need to keep the web component, but they themselves are not opposed to trying FileMaker client again.

What plans or ideas do you have to create or improve databases?

All the database are running version 6 and sitting on a server that Christopher would like to decommission. The environment is unstable and needs to be monitored and slapped on occasion.

OIP Tech wants to upgrade the files and move them onto the main server. That's complicated because they're all using CDML which is no longer supported in version 10. Essentially, they all have to be rewritten in order to make the move. We'll need to develop a strategy for this. What we learn converting the LCTL database will inform how we tackle the rest.

I spoke briefly about the FileMaker Style Manual. I would like to adopt this for all future development, but there's no need to refit existing databases.

How I work

I bring a project management rigor to my work. Expect a formal gathering of requirements followed by a written statement of work and timeline.

I work closely with Christopher to maintain a manageable work load. This allows me to dedicate myself to quality and meeting deadlines. My goal is to develop solutions that meet business objectives thoroughly and completely. I favor solutions that are sustainable — they work now and in the future — and advance our skills, improve our techniques and expand our knowledge of the technology.

How I communicate (in order of preference)

1. Blog - This is where I keep notes and report my progress. I'll show you how to filter for posts that relate to your project. I encourage you to use the comment feature to respond and react. In some cases, I may ask you to seal your approval of a decision or milestone by submitting a comment.
2. Email - Still a great way to communicate.
3. Instant Messaging (iChat, Skype, AOL Instant Messenger) - IM is a great way to resolve easy questions quickly. I'm exploring video capabilities as well. We may conduct a meeting as a video conference rather than crossing the river to meet in person.
4. Screen Sharing (iChat, UMConnect) - These tools are great for instruction and trouble-shooting.
5. Document Sharing (NetFiles, Google Docs) - Why take up space on OIP servers when there's room on NetFiles? Plus, NetFiles allows you to control access and is easy to reach when you're working off campus.
6. Telephone - Still a trusty communication tool.
7. In Person - Technology is no substitute for good ol' face-to-face but work schedules, project load and distance make this the hardest to achieve.

What I expect from you

• Hold me accountable for meeting deadlines and objectives.
• Be understanding if your project is delayed or put on hold for the sake of other projects of higher priority.
• Willingness to explore technology as a means to communicate.
• Contact me when you have concerns about your project.
• Contact Christopher for everything else.

Check if you can add a blog-like character to the wiki. Or some way to draw frequent interest that directs people to the curriculum deeper in the site.

You can't. At least using the Basic-level package. All you can do is continually edit the FrontPage file. I suppose you could add to it, pushing the older content further down the page. This, however, seems unsustainable.

Learn how the discussion forum works. Do you get alerts?

PBworks does not have a discussion forum. A true discussion forum is independent of the main content. It's a place where users can post questions or comments and get short bursts of replies.

It's a poor substitute, but in place of a discussion board, you could leverage the comment and notification features. A user can comment on any page and so long as they have notifications turned on, they'll get an email when the page changes or when another comment is submitted. Notifications can be customized to come as frequently as right away or as few as once a week. Premium users can select which pages they want notifications about. Basic users get notifications about each and every page.

Check on the exportability in case we jump to a different tool.

There's no provision to export a page or group of pages. The Backup feature allows you to download a zip file of your site but it's only available to premium subscribers.

Ask Christopher if there are reasons to move to Google? Where's the University at on that agreement?

Christopher says,

Still too little information on the University's agreement with Google to say whether would be a good solution for this project. We currently don't have an implementation date for the Google Suite. Info about the U of M Google Initiative is on this OIT page.

What about the University Wiki? Besides University branding, are there other reasons to use it?

I'll have an answer after my class on Thursday, Wikis: Collaborative Content Development

 Build single suite of databases and populate with data we submitted for testing.

 Take LAC database offline for scrubbing and validation.

 Have EA Centers log into database, validate historical data and add recent data.

 Write automated scripts and prepare for data collection.

 Submit data for ENT.

Crookston, Morris, Duluth, Carlson

1. Create a single suite of databases to hold data for all EA Centers. This suite will be very similar to the databases Christopher put up for data collection with these changes:
• It will be stripped-down to meet the basic needs of this round of collection. (Ask about checklists and housing options... are those needed?)
• All EA Centers will use the same suite. Based on their login, the database will know what data to show and what value lists to enforce.
2. Populate the database with the same data we collected for testing.
3. Ask each EA Center to audit and add to the data.
• The database will have printable reports to make auditing easier.
4. Work with OIT to design Peoplesoft-friendly Excel files.
• Files will be organized not by EA Center but by the needs of the upload.
• Establish field order and field names.
• Make sure all values are valid.
• Make sure serial IDs don't conflict.
5. Write automated routines to generate the Excel files.
• Reduce the potential for human error and omission.
• Reduce time by making data submission a click of a button.

LAC

We need a different process for the Learning Abroad Center. They already have a database they've been using for years and will continue to depend upon until Fall 2010. On this database we'll:

• Make small changes to prep for data collection.
• Write similar automated routines to generate Excel files.
• Take offline for one week (Aug 10-14) for scrubbing and validation.
• Make sure serial IDs don't conflict with other EA Centers.

We've been through one round of data collection and it wasn't pretty. The goal next time 'round:

• Reduce the time and effort Soni spent pulling data together.
• Reduce the time and effort Travis and OIT spent manipulting data.
• Make sure all data is valid and accurate.
• Give EA Centers an easy way to scrub their historical data.
• Give EA Centers a place to input their active data so it's ready for upload.
• Create an easy way to track progress as the data collection deadline approaches.

The user must authenticate and be on a short list of x500 IDs (maintained in a PHP array in the header) in order to land on any page in this series.

1. All the info about a course is searchable. The search does not separate courses by new and old requirements.
2. The results page displays matching courses with links to a corresponding...
3. Detail page which displays all the info about the course. There's also a link to...
4. Edit the information. The user will be able to edit any value including old requirements and new requirements. No validations or transformations are performed on the data. It's assumed anyone with Admin-level access knows what she's doing.
5. The user gets a confirmation page with a link back to the search page (#1).

1. The submitter receives an email indicating action has been taken on the course she submitted for review. She clicks the link in the email, or
2. She clicks a link in the list of courses she's submitted.
3. In either case, she lands on a detail page displaying the info she submitted and the action taken by the reviewer.
4. If the reviewer requested more information, the same fields are editable as when she first submitted the course and again, she has the option to submit for review or save for later.
5. The user gets a confirmation message appropriate to whether she saved or submitted. Also on this page are links to likely next steps, including #2.
6. If the user submits for approval, she gets a confirmation email.
7. If the user submits for approval, an email alert is sent to the reviewer.

1. The reviewer gets an email when a course is submitted for review. She clicks the link in the email, or...
2. She clicks a link from her bookmarked page of courses pending review.
3. In either case, she lands on a detail page displaying all the info submitted about the course. The only editable fields are:
• Core Requirement: Select one of the following:
• Biological Science with Lab
• Physical Science with Lab
• Historical Perspectives
• Social Sciences
• Literature
• Arts & Humanities
• Mathematical Thinking
• Theme Requirement: Select one of the following:
• Civic Life and Ethics
• Diversity and Social Justice in the United States
• Global Perspectives
• Environment
• Technology and Society
• Writing Intensive: A single checkbox labeled "Yes"
• Notes to the submitter: Optional
• Notes for internal use: Optional
• Notes for the public: Optional
• Status: Required, select one of the following:
4. Approve: Must have selected a core or a theme or checked writing intensive.
5. Deny: Course is not approved.
6. Cancel: When no other status applies. Might be used when it's clearly a duplicate for bogus entry.
7. Exception: Approved for this instance but the course will not be among the results when searching for approved courses.
8. Do Nothing: No action performed on the record. The course stays in the list of courses pending review.
9. Need More Information: Ideally, the reviewer uses the Notes to submitter field to indicate what information is needed.
10. The reviewer gets a confirmation message and a link back to the list of pending courses (#2).
11. Unless the status is Do Nothing or Cancel, an email is sent to the submitter informing her of the action taken. If there's a value in the Notes to submitter field, that value is included in the email.

I completed the Statement of Work and updated the project plan. Both are stored on NetFiles. Let me know if you have trouble accessing them.

Conference call with Emily, Joan and Yunli and Michael. Yunli has been working on a pbwiki and has a lot of data input already. Next, follow up on these and report back on the afternoon of July 14th.

• Check if you can add a blog-like character to the wiki. Or some way to draw frequent interest that directs people to the curriculum deeper in the site.
• Learn how the discussion forum works. Do you get alerts?
• Check on the exportability in case we jump to a different tool.
• Ask Christopher if there are reasons to move to Google? Where's the University at on that agreement?
• What about the University Wiki? Besides University branding, are there other reasons to use it?

Part of our effort to "internationalize the campus" includes experiences right here at home. Engaging our local Somali population for example. How elegantly can the system capture that?

Deployment. Is it better to do a hosted solution where the servers reside at another facility and we subscribe to the service? Or is it better to implement the software on our own hardware? Each scenario triggers a host of questions. Not the least of which is...

FERPA. UC is very careful to only present student data in the aggregate. Still, if we go with a hosted service, won't the security folks be justifiably concerned opening a data channel to an external server?

Open source is not a panacea. Say a member institution expends great effort and time enhancing the system. Is that open source too? It may be easy to start as open source but is it a sustainable model?

UC built their system on Microsoft's .net platform. Maybe we don't have a stable of .net developers or whatever platform we choose to build it on.

Adoption. This model is only powerful if it's widely adopted. There's lots of interest but who's buying?

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS)

The work conducted by the University of Cincinnati to develop UCosmic serves as solid proof of concept. Based on this and the ideas from our meeting, TCS can create an open source application available to all institutions. In exchange, TCS seeks good will, recruitment opportunities and potential paid work including onsite implementation and module development.

The Consortium

Institutions are encouraged to pay a modest fee to join a consortium. The consortium defines a common vocabulary and set of standards. Adopting a common set of standards will allow data-sharing across institutions. In addition, the consortium:

• maintains a table of thousands of institution names
• tests and approves code for new releases
• supports at least one FTE to manage consortium business and arrange conferences

Next Steps

In the next month, TCS will:

• produce and distribute notes from the session
• draft a high-level architecture for a UCosmic solution
• prepare a blueprint defining the product and features
• present a variety of technology choices
• make recommendations
• overall, plan for the sustainability of UCosmic going forward

The problem

Institutions across the country lack good mechanisms for tracking global activity. There's lots going on but no single person or system knows it all. As a result, institutions miss opportunities to collaborate, build relationships, create synergies, and bargain for lower costs.

What is UCosmic?

UCosmic is an online data warehouse of who is doing what, where. Half its information is fed from other campus systems while the other half is manually entered by professors and staff.

At its core are three entities - countries, institutions, people - and the activities that unite them. "Professor Metcalf studied disease in Gabon funded by The DoGoode Foundation." Customizable "parts" provide a deeper level of granularity about a country or institution. For example, the Burgundy region of France or the Center of Race and Poverty at the Carlson School of Business. Likewise, customizable "groups" unite entities that share a common attribute. NATO countries for example, or Big Ten schools.

UCosmic presents a very simple front-end. Users conduct simple searches by entity or keyword. Results are a smattering of engagements. A search by institution may yield counts of students who participated in sponsored programs, names of faculty who recieved a degree, links to institutional agreements, mentions of formal visits, etc.

UCosmic does not try to capture all information about an activity but rather the gist of the thing. Matches are intended to be jumping off points for further investigation. When a simple who-what-where is insufficient, the system supports additional modules to capture detailed information about specific activities.