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Montana universities lead effort to connect Northern Tier to national network

UM’s network bandwidth capacity to the outside world will jump dramatically this summer, from 300 megabits to 10 gigabits.

In planetary terms, that’s like a leap from Mercury to Jupiter.

“We’re talking about an orders of magnitude increase in Internet bandwidth at a modest cost increase,” says UM CITO Ray Ford. “Everybody at every UM network port going to the outside world will see advantages.”

The Northern Tier Network, depicted by the dashed line on the map, will tie UM and MSU into the national research network, and provide new research, educational and economic development opportunities.

“We’ve made a capital investment to light and maintain our own fiber, giving us bandwidth at the level of a ‘bandwidth wholesaler’ rather than having to buy bandwidth in large quantities but at ‘retail prices,’” Ford says. “Buying at wholesale prices rather than retail prices allows us to increase quality and quantity, yet lower costs.”

“We’re taking some risks,” Ford admits. “For example, will we need all of this bandwidth? We think we will. In fact, we think we’ll need not just a little more bandwidth, but orders of magnitude more bandwidth to support applications we don’t currently use-either because we can’t or because the applications haven’t yet been invented. That’s what has happened in the last 20 years, and we think that will continue to happen over at least the next 10 years.

“Ford sees the increased network capacity being used for high-quality video conferencing that begins to approximate true “remote presence.” It will also aid researchers connecting to remote super computers, and provide new learning opportunities for students, like the ability to operate equipment in a remote lab through the Internet.

For more on the Northern Tier Network Consortium, go to:  www.ntnc.org.

The key feature which attracted me to ooVoo is the capability to connect to multiple parties simultaneously. Other video chat programs I have used have only provided a video conference between two parties. While they serve their purpose, and provide face-to-face contact, they do not provide a way to gather a team, a group of friends, or a larger audience. ooVoo now gives the option to video conference as a group!

The audio/video quality was excellent, and while the product is now in a beta phase, it is worth checking out for multi-site connections!

Devices that support WPA2 Enterprise (Wi-Fi Protected Access 2) will be able to connect to the UM wireless network when the three-month upgrade process is completed. Each of the approximately 100 wireless access points (WAPs) on campus will require upgrades. The cost of the WAP upgrades will be covered centrally, even if a unit originally purchased the WAPs.

A detailed release about the wireless upgrade from CITO Ray Ford is available at http://www.umt.edu/it/news/wirelessupgrade.htm.

I had been on FaceBook and MySpace for some time, but it wasn’t until I started Twittering in July that my Social Media group took shape. Twitter is a website where all you do is post “What are you doing?”. At first I did not think much good could come out of simply posting to the ether my travels, daily tasks, and other ramblings. These posts can be interesting to friends at times, but do little to expand one’s network. The true jewel of Twitter is the connections made. Once I realized this I quickly expanded my network to follow (a Twitter term for adding people to one’s network) to a very diverse group. My group includes a NBC cameraman from Washington DC, a college webmaster from Ohio, new technology designers from several countries, and friends from the UM campus, some of whom I know only by our connection on Twitter.

The key component to these connections is sharing! By posting what we are working on, our projects, interests, and our stumbling blocks we find others whom are willing to offer suggestions to solve or improve our work. In a time when it is impossible to keep up with all the new technology on and off the net, this group shares it’s findings and ideas to all. Feedback is given in a positive manner, new technologies are tested and reviewed, and friendships are formed.

My Twitter connections have lead me to websites for on-line video streaming, provided me with podcasts on multimedia applications, shared in conferences and training, and been a listening board when I needed to rant about a challenging situation.

Twitter has been an great asset to me. I have been exposed to many ideas and applications I would not have found alone. The power of being connected to a group of individuals who constantly share and collaborate via the web is an unlimited resource which grows daily.

Twitter is not the only site which I have used to expand my Social Media Network. LinkedIn is another useful site for connection with professionals and colleagues. The contrast between Twitter and LinkedIn is the connection process. While Twitter seeks to expand one’s network by new connections, LinkedIn focuses on one’s existing contacts. LinkedIn asks that you know the person before adding them to your network. While this seems limiting at first, I have found it useful in connecting to individuals from my past. Former coworkers and college classmates have been found and connected with via LinkedIn, many of whom I have not communicated with in several years. By reconnecting with this group I have rekindled friendships, while gaining information on their work and interests. Another valuable tool for expanding my knowledge in many areas.

Other interesting finds in this realm include Utterz and Seesmic, which take communication from text to audio and video feeds from either a cell phone or computer.

I look forward to 2008 as I know these connections will grow, new contacts will be made, and new technologies will be added for communication. I ask of all to join in, share your ideas, seek new solutions, and expand your network.

As we say on Twitter… tweat ya later, and Happy New Year!