The Vice Provost for Information Technology publishes the IT Newsletter each semester to update Rice faculty and staff on IT initiatives and activities.
Cloud
Thirty-six cloud applications and services are in use in various departments across Rice. One-third of the cloud initiatives are available campus-wide. Contact your IT Divisional Support Representative for details: helpdesk@rice.edu. 
- Google Drive – storage, collaboration
- Rice Box – storage, collaboration
- Qualtrics – surveys
- MIR3 Communications – alerts
- Riceworks – jobs, HR
- Cayuse – research proposals
- Backupify – data backup
- Zoom – videoconference
- Concur – travel expenses
- Code42 Crashplan – desktop backup
Mobile
Collaboration, teaching, and learning occur in classes, labs, and meetings as well as over a coffee break or while walking in the same direction. Traditional and new technologies must be accessible by “mobile” participants and devices. Rice students, faculty and staff require mobile software tools and apps to be accessible from anywhere, any time. Three of Rice’s mobile-friendly apps include:
- OWL-Space – collaboration and course management system
- Webmail.rice.edu – used by faculty, staff, grad students and visiting students
- iPhone Rice App for bus routes, directory, etc. – updates including Android app coming this fall.
Big Data
Research and business projects attempting to harness a flood of unstructured and evolving data, from multiple sources, can open the university to a tsunami-like influx of “big data.” From storage to analysis, big data manipulation consumes an unprecedented volume of technology resources and services, resulting in a disruption of traditional allocations between schools and departments.
SPICE can handle big data storage and virtual computer environments for Rice researchers. For more information on managing big data, email either RCSG or K2I.
OnBase
For departments, data can accumulate as paper over time, a result of internal processes. Managing thousands of documents is simplified for offices like Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies that utilize the OnBase document imaging and work flow system. Contact IT Director for Enterprise Applications, Andrea Martin, to learn more.
Data Analytics
Dr. Ric Stoll, the Albert Thomas Professor for Political Science, leads the Provost’s Data Management Working Group, a multi-department database and joint reporting project. The group works with campus data stewards to build data marts and prototype dashboards.
Contact Dr. Ric Stoll or Andrea Martin, IT Director for Enterprise Applications, to learn more about the Provost’s Data Management Working Group.
Storage
Like physical storage and office facilities, many types of e-containers meet faculty storage and collaboration requirements, including cloud solutions such as Rice Box, Rice faculty and staff can choose an appropriate solution from those shown on the IT web site: it.rice.edu/storageoptions. Call the IT Help Desk at 713.348.HELP (4357) to discuss specific storage needs for departments and research groups.
Research
RCSG systems administrators support Rice’s shared cluster systems, including training, data management, and data visualization for faculty, graduate students and postdocs. New HPC resources managed by RCSG this fall include the BlueGene Q and IBM Power 8 clusters. Email RCSG@rice.edu for more information.
Education
IT’s Academic Technology Services (ATS) team collaborates with the Center for Teaching Excellence (CTE) to host pedagogy brown bag workshops like the October 6 event, “Why is Student Feedback a Key to Success in the Classroom?” ATS also co-hosts or provides hands-on training sessions for new teaching tools, evaluations of new pedagogy or instructional technology projects, a weekly reading group on Teaching and Technology topics, and a classroom space where instructors can share their own computer and/or the screens of linked student-use computers.
Incoming Student Expectations
This fall, the IT Marketing & Communications team will work with the Center for Teaching Excellence (CTE) to revise the matriculating students’ IT Expectations Survey questions to provide more relevant results for Rice instructors.
Learning Tools
Rice instructors engage students using video-captured lectures, flipped classrooms, massively open online courses (MOOCs) and many other techniques and technologies. Email academictech@rice.edu to discuss tools for your courses. EduBlogs will replace blogs.rice.edu this fall. See the Thresher story; additional details coming soon.
Security
Intrusion detection and prevention strategies protect the university from many cyber criminal threats, but brute force attacks continue targeting employee and student accounts. Complete the Information Security Training modules for tips on preventing your Rice account from being used to siphon Rice resources and data.
NCSAM – Cybersecurity Awareness
What is Rice doing for National Cybersecurity Awareness Month? Participate in October NCSAM lunch events and desktop activities.
Standardization
Hardware and software standardization results in cost-savings in both procurement and support. On September 15, 2014, President Leebron announced the Campus Laptop / Desktop Standards, which had been finalized earlier this year by the IT Hardware Standards Committee. The committee is comprised of directors and leaders from the offices of the Vice Provost for IT, Administrative Systems, Fondren Library, Jones Graduate School of Business, and Resource Development. Visit the Procurement web site to purchase a computer or for IT Hardware Standards FAQs.
Network
Planning Rice’s future-ready network requires flexible components and ideas that go beyond fibers and switches, as well as a basic foundation that is both robust and adaptable. Starting Fall 2014, Rice’s new network project will be implemented over 18 months with little disruption to campus routines. Contact William Deigaard, IT Director for Networking, Telecom & Data Center Operations, for more information about the new Rice network.
MyNetID.rice.edu
NetID accounts are used to login to campus computers, for internal email and access to systems like OWL-Space, docs.rice.edu, and externally contracted services like Rice Box. The new MyNetID web site works on mobile devices and includes a reset password feature.
New it.rice.edu
The new IT.rice.edu web site was developed with the assistance of a usability expert and customer focus groups. It was streamlined to eliminate extraneous content and follows a responsive design framework suggested by Public Affairs.
Rice Online
IT collaborates with the Office of Strategic Initiatives and Digital Education to help Rice faculty launch MOOCs (massively open, online courses) in Coursera and edX, works with faculty to troubleshoot technology issues, provides storage services for course archives and datamart logs, and consults with the online team regarding video production system specifications and analytics workflows as well as subsequent skill set requirements for new support positions for Rice’s digital learning enterprise. To learn more about IT support for Rice online initiatives, contact Mike Dewey, IT Director for Academic and Research Computing, or Dr. Carlos Solis, Assistant Director for Academic Technologies.
Hardware Disposal
The Office of Procurement, FE&P, and IT formulated an asset disposal process that can be utilized across the university to recycle “end of production life” computing hardware in an environmentally safe manner. The process also helps protect against the loss of sensitive university information.
Fall 2014 Training Events
Training sessions are often repeated upon request. To inquire about future sessions or one-on-one training, email the IT Help Desk: helpdesk@rice.edu.
Researchers
- Research & HPC Code Workshops
- September 9 & 23 – Intro to RCSG Resources
- October 7 – Anatomy of a Cluster Job
- November 11 – Research + Data Management
- October 13-14 – two day Software Carpentry Code Bootcamp
Faculty & Instructors
- Teaching, Learning & Technology lunch workshops, co-hosted with the CTE– Center for Teaching Excellence
- October 6 – Why is Student Feedback a Key to Success in the Classroom?
- October 16 – Student Statistics; hands-on workshop, supplements Oct 6 topic
- OWL-Space Instructor Tips and Training (topics repeated as requested)
- August 11 – What’s New in OWL-Space?
- August 12 & 25 – OWL-Space Basics
- August 13 – OWL-Space LESSONS Tool
- August 14 & 28 – Rediscover OWL-Space
- Classroom Podium Training (topics repeated as requested)
- August 20 & 21 – Using your Podium 4
- August 20 – Using your BRC Podium
Staff & Students
- September 11 – IT Bits & Bytes Study Break
- NCSAM – National Cyber Security Awareness Month; attend lunch events & complete online activities to increase your knowledge of security precautions.
- October 9 – Safe Social Media
- October 17 – Storing Research & HIPPA Data
- October 21 – Safe Web Browsing
- October 30 – Identity Theft Protection