New K-State web presence rolled out Sunday
by B. Edwards, Computing and Network Services
published Feb. 21, 2006
Nine months of work culminated early Sunday, Feb. 19, with the
rollout of K-State's new web presence. The star of the show is the
redesigned homepage at www.k-state.edu. The new
design also continues into second-level pages -- those category pages linked directly from the homepage.
This is the first redesign of the K-State homepage since fall 2000,
when the previous "egg" version was implemented. To see some of the
previous versions, visit the Internet Archive's Wayback machine
(www.archive.org) and search for "www.k-state.edu".
The redesign project has been a cooperative effort between Computing
and Network Services, University Publications, and Media Relations and
Marketing. More about the new homepage is in the
spotlight section below.
Comments or questions about the new website can be sent to
webmaster@k-state.edu.
K-State network management moves to Telecommunications
by E. Unger, Vice Provost for Academic Services and Technology
published Feb. 21, 2006
Recognizing the importance of a converged vision for data, voice, and
video services on the campus network, and to give the K-State community
a single organization to address their networking needs,
responsibility for the data network has moved from
Computing and Network Service to Telecommunications effective
Monday, Feb. 20. CNS' Network Technologies staff will move
their offices to East Stadium as soon as office space is ready
later this semester.
Contact information will remain the same. Basic network questions
and issues should be reported to the IT Help Desk, (785) 532-7722,
helpdesk@k-state.edu. Technical
questions can be sent to the network staff at
network@k-state.edu.
Prices drop on USB flash drives due to iPod shuffle
by C. Loehr, K-State Student Union Computer Store, and B. Edwards, Computing and Network Services
published Feb. 21, 2006
Soon after Apple's Feb. 6 announcement of
price drops on iPod shuffles,
many manufacturers rushed to announce price drops on their similarly sized
USB flash drives.
Camera memory like SD, CompactFlash, and so forth also saw some small price drops.
Without those price drops, USB flash drives would have been the same or higher than the iPod shuffle.
And what consumer would buy a USB flash drive when they can
get a similarly priced iPod shuffle that acts as both a USB flash drive and an audio player?
The Union Computer Store is seeing significant price drops on USB flash drives --
ranging from several dollars on 256MB and 512MB models to more than $100 on 4GB models.
Now you can get 2GB for the price of 1GB a few weeks ago, and 4GB for the cost of 2GB.
Examples of new, lower prices through the store:
| USB flash drives |
Old price range |
New price range |
| 256MB models |
$25-$30 |
$20-$25 |
| 512MB models |
$55-$60 |
$35-$40 |
| 1GB models |
$80-$85 |
$55-$60 |
| 2GB models |
$150-$160 |
$80-$85 |
| 4GB models |
more than $300 |
$150-$160 |
IDT Roundtable Feb. 22: Online vs. face-to-face instruction
by S. Mukherjee, Office of Mediated Education
published Feb. 21, 2006
The second session of the spring 2006 series of the Instructional Design &
Technology Roundtable will be 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 22,
in Room 212 of the K-State Student Union. Coffee, tea and
water will be available, and you are welcome to bring your lunch.
"Is it Different? Online vs. Face to Face Instruction" is the scheduled topic.
Join the discussion as we review the research comparing online
to face-to-face instruction. Bring examples from your own teaching and
questions for your colleagues as we cover the trends and
transitions from traditional to digital education.
If you are planning to attend an IDT Roundtable session, please
contact the Center for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning
(catl@k-state.edu, 532-7828).
Audience response system demo March 7
by R. Gould, Information Technology Assistance Center
published Feb. 21, 2006
Cytek, a multimedia firm from Topeka, will be demonstrating an audience
response system 4-5 p.m. March 7 in Leasure 13. Faculty/staff are
invited to come and learn more about the use of these systems for polling
students, for evaluating students' knowledge of a particular subject, for
testing purposes, and more.
It's (computer) patching time again
by the editors, InfoTech Tuesday
published Feb. 21, 2006
It is time to patch your computer software with critical updates. Both
Microsoft and Apple publish security/critical updates for their operating
systems. Use the
Microsoft Windows Update
service and the
Apple Downloads site.
IT by the numbers: K-State's Internet bandwidth
by H. Townsend, Computing and Network Services
published Feb. 21, 2006
Changes in bandwidth (mega bits per second):
- July 1998: 4.5 Mbps Internet service using 3 T1 circuits
- July 2005: 83 Mbps Internet service
How K-State's 83 Mbps is allocated:
- 50 Mbps to campus in general
- 20 Mbps to students in the residence halls
- 7 Mbps to Telecommunications customers
- 6 Mbps to Axio customers
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