MONDAY.AUG.20.2001
NEWS
Technology goes beyond e-mail
Campus resources provide services to aid communication research ability
By Brandy Straw
Kansan staff writer
Even though students at the University of Kansas still stand in line to enroll, they can research term papers or access grades at any time of day on the Internet with the touch of a button or click of a mouse.
Marilu Goodyear, vice chancellor for information services, said the University was ahead of many other schools in its use of some technology, especially its Web site.
She said the Web site's organization and easy navigation made it more user-friendly than other university sites.
She said students were mostly interested in technology offered in residence halls, libraries and services offered by Academic Computing Services.
Through ACS, students can get Internet access, e-mail accounts, personal Web pages, computer lab resources and attend computer classes.
Kathy Pribbenow, documentation and training specialist for ACS, said the classes were free for students, faculty and staff. Classes range from one-hour demonstrations to two- or three-hour workshops.
The computer classes include Internet and Outlook services, Web site authoring, publishing and management, graphics, multimedia, Windows and Mac OS 10, office and data analysis software and operating systems.
Pribbenow said ACS would be offering computer training classes online this fall. The classes would cover the same material as ACS' other classes, but students could use the tutorials at their own convenience.
The classes are set up like a
workbook, Pribbenow said. Students do the exercises and then take a test. There is also a pretest students can take to see how much they already know about a certain subject to determine whether they need to complete the workbook exercises.
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN = 11A
"I think everybody benefits from training no matter what their skill level is," Pribbenow said.
She said it was important that students register an e-mail account with the University because the e-mail address is used to create an online ID, which students can use to check their grades.
KU students who want a free e-mail account can go to wwwku.edu/computing/services and follow the directions on the site. All e-mail accounts are Exchange accounts and can be accessed through Outlook or on the Web at wwwmailku.edu.
Goodyear said having a KU email account was a great way to communicate with faculty and other students.
Another resource available to students via the KU Web site is research for term papers. The KU Libraries homepage, www.lib.ukans.edu, has links to the KU online catalog, databases to search journal articles, electronic journals and full-text article databases, including Lexis-Nexis, one of the most extensive databases available.
Richard Fyffle, interim associate dean of libraries, said the online catalog should link directly to 4,300 books in electronic form by September. The books can be read by using Net Library. Students are able to search the table of contents, search the book without using an index, go directly to a certain chapter or read the book from beginning to end. Also, the program would allow students to download the book onto their computers for a set number of days, he said.
"If the library is closed, there is still a collection of books students will have access to and be able to read online," Fyffe said.
He said the collection consisted of books that had been published within the past five years.
Another new feature, which Pyfe said he hoped to have finished this fall, is a direct link from the citation to the actual article, if available in electronic form.
Fyffe said he thought having these different resources would help students see how library research works.
"In this kind of environment students continue to search and explore without getting discouraged."Fyffe said.
He said in an online environment students could immediately determine if the information was important for their research without tracking down the journal in the library. He said he hoped this would keep students excited about learning.
Watson Library offers workshops for students who want help using the KU online catalog or searching the Web, said Mary Miller, Watson reference technology coordinator. Assistance is also available on the reference desk Web site, www.lib.ukans.edu/watsonref. Students working from home can e-mail reference questions to librarians from a link on this page.
In addition to library resources, technology in the residence halls is also important to students.
Ann Ermey, ResNet coordinator, said the halls offered ethernet connections, cable TV and telephones with long distance and caller ID, which is new this fall.
She said because more and more students were arriving on campus with computers, the residence hall rooms were equipped with hub technology. This technology, also new this fall, allows more than one computer to be hooked up to the ethernet connection simultaneously. Now,
Anshutz Science Library, main floor
Watson Library, first and second floors
E-mail kiosks
Kansas Union, 3rd floor next to Hawk's Nest
Burge Union, main floor lobby
Spencer Museum of Art and Architecture Library bottom floor of Spencer Museum
Computer Center, main floor lobby
Computer Labs open to
Herb Harris Student Computing Lab, Kansas Union room 452
Budig Hall Compter Lab, room 10
Mallott Hall, room 1090
Mallott Hail, room 10
Nunemaker Honors
Center room 100
Nunemaker Honors Center, room 100
Gate Sayers microcomputer lab, room 104 Joseph R. Pearson Hall
students sharing a room can do online research at the same time. Hubs can be purchased through ResNet for $45, Ermey said.
She said she thought KU was ahead of some schools and behind others in its technology offered in the residence halls.
"I think we do pretty well and get better every year," Ermey said.
She said she hoped to provide new technology as it comes available in the future, but she said coordinators are more focused on providing current technology in the best way possible.
Goodyear said the amount of technology on campus for student use was adequate, but said there's always room for improvement.
Straw can be reached at 864-4810 or writer@kansan.com
By Karen Lucas Kansan staff writer
Faculty fashion choices range from ties to sandals
When suiting up for the classroom, Robert Rowland and Mark Joslyn couldn't be less alike.
On a Friday morning during summer classes in Wescoe Hall, Rowland, chairman of the department of communication studies, taught his introductory rhetoric class wearing a blazer, khaki slacks, a sport shirt and oxford shoes. Meanwhile, Joslyn, assistant professor of political science, showed up for class in Blake Hall sporting a casual button-down shirt, khaki shorts and sandals.
Even though Rowland is not required to dress up as he would be in some other professions, he is still a stickler for conventional dress.
"I'm about as formal as anybody gets on this campus," said Rowland, who also likes to wear sport jackets with dress shirts and ties — especially bow ties. "It just seems professional."
Unlike Rowland, Joslyn never wears ties when he teaches. And when it's too cold for shorts, he puts on jeans.
Joslyn also sees his casual attire as going hand in hand with his informal classroom approach.
"The nice thing about being a professor is you can reveal your personality through your dress" he said.
Corrie Madill, who took Joslyn's Introduction to U.S. Politics class, said her professor's dressed-down look had a positive effect.
One of Joslyn's colleagues,
Not all untenured faculty are comfortable dressing informally for class.
"I think it's cool," said Madill, Lawrence sophomore. "It kind of gives the atmosphere a more laid-back feeling."
Lorraine Bayard de Volo, said she did not wear jeans to class. Instead, she opts for dressy slacks and a coordinating top and jacket.
"If I dress nonprofessionally, then I think — particularly because of my younger age and gender — that students are more likely to second-guess my authority," said Bayard de Volo, assistant professor of political science and women's studies.
Ann Cudd, a professor of philosophy who has been at the University since 1988, said that before she got tenure she wore more skirts and dresses.
Although Cudd now likes to wear casual clothes—sometimes even jeans—when she teaches a smaller class like a seminar, but prefers to dress up more when lecturing to a large group.
Faculty attire has not always ranged from formal to casual.
Linda Trueb, who has taught biology as a faculty member since the early 1970s and was a graduate student at the University before that, said that at one time female professors wore skirts or dresses while male professors wore coats and ties.
But Glenn Hudspeth's dressed-down look shows how much things have changed. For a recent class, the GTA in German showed up in cargo shorts, a plaid shirt and athletic shoes.
Hudspeth does not plan to don more conservative duds when he becomes a professor.
"I intend to always dress casually because formality stifles communication and creativity between students and teachers," he said. "One of the reasons I've chosen this career path is so that I don't have to wear a suit and work in a gray cubicle."
Lucas can be reached at 864- 4810 or writer@kansan.com
Student Jobs at the Computer Center
Learn more about information technology and computers while you earn $6.50 to $8.50 to start and get great experience for your future in a flexible, fun environment.
Current openings:
Student Consultant/Programmer Documentation Library Assistant Student Computer Trainer/Consultant Student Lab Assistants Student Operators
Training Flexible Hours Full-time summer and holiday options
Contact: Lawanna Huslig 785.864.0493 lhuslig@ku.edu