Steve Sloan, SJSU Tech on a mission

Government system vulnerability and threats

2009-11-19T08:21:00.000-08:00

According to Michael Cooney of Network World, "the Government Accountability Office today took yet another critical look at the US federal security systems and found most of them lacking." He said:

Within today's report, the GAO broadly outline the groups and types of individuals considered to be what it called key sources of cyber threats to our nation's information systems and cyber infrastructures. [Read More]

As a government entity we at this state university need to be mindful of such threats and be vigilant in our ability to respond to them.

Top Eight Ways Students Cheat

2009-11-18T09:46:00.000-08:00

What are the top eight ways students cheat? Carin Ford wrote this post for Higher Ed morning:

Not so long ago, students relied on crib sheets and word of mouth to cheat. And while some of those methods live on, cheating today has taken a new twist. [Read More]

The comments to this post are also very good reading.

Union Meeting Photos

2009-11-16T16:16:00.000-08:00

Last weekend I went to the California State University Employees Union (CSUEU) Board of Director's Meeting in Sacramento. It was a huge even and I took many photographs. Here is just a small subset of those photos:

[Event Photos on Flickr]

Making Money with Journalism Skills

2009-11-06T09:33:00.000-08:00

Shawn Smith, a Web promotion and Internet marketing scientist, wrote this post on How to Make Money with Your J-Skills:

In this post, I’ll give you an 8-step plan for getting started with skills monetization outside of newspapers and a few excellent examples for putting your skills to work. Let’s get started (which is often the hardest part).

There are some good ideas here.

Do Furloughs Work?

2009-11-01T12:05:00.000-08:00

By Steve Sloan

All of us who work for the state know the hardships imposed by furloughs on our families. We’re also aware of the impact on students of furloughs, reduced class sessions and increased fees. But, do furloughs work?

Furloughs are designed to save money and reduce layoffs. Furloughs may save some jobs, do they really save money? According to some recent studies and articles, it is possible state furloughs do not save much money.

David Greenwald of the UC Berkeley Labor Center, in a California Progress Report, said state furloughs save the general fund only 12 cents for every dollar cut in wages. Greenwald and others look at our state government furloughs in general. In addition to university employees our sister union, the Service Employees International Union Local 1000, represents 95,000 of the 193,000 state workers covered under the furlough program. Many of these workers are getting three furlough days a month, a 14 percent pay cut.

Ken Jacobs of the UC Berkeley Center for Labor Research and Education, in the policy brief The High Cost Of Furloughs wrote, "Whether imposed on employees paid from state, federal, or special funds, furloughs impact the broader economy in multiple ways. First, any reduction in pay is a reduction in spending in the local economy and will have a multiplier effect, resulting in private sector job loss and subsequent loss of tax revenues."

Jacobs said, "It is poorly designed, if the goal is to provide savings to the general fund." Jacobs, also the chair of the Labor Center said, "Key design problems include furloughing state workers in revenue-generating positions, continued accumulation of pension and benefit debt and inclusion of workers whose salaries are paid by the federal government and other special funds, in addition to the general fund."

Even some conservatives question furloughs. Dr. John Sullivan in the employee-recruiting forum ERE.net wrote the post Employee Furloughs Can Be a Bad Alternative to Layoffs. He said, "While the tool may be popular and widely used, that doesn’t make it effective or the best choice."

Sullivan cites many reasons for this conclusion including productivity loss, morale decline over loss of income and increased workload, increased employee stress, higher error rates, angry customers, possible lawsuits over furloughs, loss of good employees who react to furloughs by leaving and a general decrease in innovation.

Sullivan said, "It’s hard to plan ahead and think of innovations when your job security is up in the air."

SJSU Wireless Network Conversion

2009-10-29T08:46:00.000-07:00

An e-mail message has been distributed by the Campus Communication System to all SJSU faculty and staff. The message says:

On Sunday, November 1, 2009, we will implement major changes to the campus wireless network. The wireless network, currently managed by Comcast, will now be managed by SJSU. This means all support and equipment will be local to this campus.

This move will reduce SJSU’s cost of maintaining the wireless network.

The cut-over will begin Friday, October 30th at 8:00 a.m. and will last through Sunday evening, November 1st. Services may not be available during this time. Services will be restored by Monday morning, November 2nd.

You will continue to use your SJSUOne login and password to access the wireless network.

All wireless support calls will go to the ITSS Help Desk at 4-2377 ((408) 924-2377.) Help desk support hours for wireless support are as follows:

Monday through Thursday: 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Friday: 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Calls received outside of these hours will be handled on an emergency basis and will be resolved on the next business day.

Coverage areas will be the same. There are no adjustments to the physical network. All wireless devices that support a browser will continue to work on the wireless network.

Wireless Guest
Current wireless guest login names and passwords will be unaffected by the move.

MLK Library
The library’s wireless access will be available for SJSU students and faculty using their SJSUOne login and passwords. However, Non SJSU patrons using their library card barcode WILL NOT BE ABLE TO LOGIN.

We apologize for this inconvenience, but it was not possible to recreate this custom feature in the timeline allocated. We will continue to work through this issue and endeavor to bring the library patrons on-line as soon as possible.

For questions or concerns please e-mail UTS (link to send email.) We will gladly respond to your messages.

Our San Jose State University Help Desk will be the first point of contact for supporting the wireless network after the conversion.

Call us at (408) 924-2377 during our normal business hours. Our business hours are the only times we are open and/or are able to address issues. Our business hours are here. Or, go to our ticket portal and submit an incident ticket into our ticketing system. Our ticket portal is here.

The Help Desk Blog is here with more information

E-Mail Alert

2009-10-23T11:43:00.000-07:00

If you have ever responded to an e-mail with your username and password, please contact the help desk and change your password immediately.

Recently, a small number of e-mails have been received at SJSU requesting the recipient to send their User Name, password or other information, by e-mail. These messages, are scams from outsiders attempting to gain access to your information.

If you suspect a phishing scam, please follow these two steps:

Never e-mail your password:
If a message asks you to send your password via e-mail, it is a scam. You should never need to e-mail your password for a legitimate support matter. If you sent your password, change it immediately.
Contact your Support Technician or the University Help Desk to register an e-mail support ticket:
Contact your IT Support Technician or the University Help Desk if you have questions or concerns about your e-mail account. The University Help desk will create and route a support ticket to the proper team for response.

Actual SJSU e-mail account process:
Your e-mail accounts are created and deleted based on information in CMS/MySJSU and connected to SJSUOne. We use your CMS data to determine if your account should be deactivated.

The Systems department never sends e-mails asking for your password. Any e-mail asking for your SJSU e-mail password is a scam.

Learn more about avoiding Phishing Scams.

IBM Launching an OS to compete with Windows

2009-10-21T16:45:00.000-07:00

According to a Network World post by Jon Brodkin, "IBM Tuesday said it is teaming up with Canonical to provide cloud- and Linux-based desktop packages in the United States at half the cost of upgrading to Windows 7. It's called the IBM Client for Smart Work package, which was initially launched last month in Africa, as it was designed for emerging markets."

I suggest they call it Warp Two.

Snow Leopard Bug Deleting Entire User Accounts

2009-10-13T06:13:00.000-07:00

Thanks to a tip from Paul Puri.

ITWire is reporting that even accidental logging into the Guest account can cause severe data loss for the user who logs into the Guest account. This is also reported on Life Hacker.

According to multiple topics on the Apple Support discussion boards, the problem can occur when a user logs into their Mac's Guest account — whether by accident or on purpose — and then tries to log back into their regular account.

In some cases, users have reported finding their regular account empty of data, as though it were a brand new account.

Unexpected problems do sometimes prop up on new versions of operating systems. I am sure this will be fixed in the next revision. Dealing with unexpected glitches is the price of early adoption.

Technorati Tags: Apple, ssloansjca

IBM sent letter regarding purchase of SPSS

2009-10-10T12:34:00.000-07:00

Dear SPSS Customer:
We are pleased to announce that IBM has completed the acquisition of SPSS Inc. As we mark this milestone, we would like to confirm our continued commitment to your success, and to highlight the benefits resulting from this acquisition.

SPSS will become part of IBM’s Business Analytics and Process Optimization organization. Your current SPSS account and support teams will continue to serve you. SPSS business partners will also continue to serve your needs through consultation, implementation, fulfillment and support, and will be invited to join the IBM Business Partner program.

For decades, IBM has been focused on providing the underlying information infrastructure to support business intelligence and performance management solutions. This includes databases and data warehouses to manage data, information integration and master data management to establish accurate and trusted information, as well as various analytic capabilities. With the addition of SPSS, IBM intends to further help customers solve new business challenges and meet the demand for more sophisticated, real-time uses of information.

SPSS provides a comprehensive predictive analytics portfolio that includes data collection, text and data mining, and advanced statistical analysis and predictive solutions, helping customers predict future events and proactively act upon insight to drive better business outcomes.

IBM intends to support your investments in SPSS by leveraging IBM’s world-class technology resources to deliver innovative solutions and expanded value. Building on a tradition of client success and satisfaction, IBM plans to leverage its extensive global resources to enhance and expand your service and support offerings, both directly and through business partners.

We’re very excited about the future of this important new relationship, and we look forward to continuing to provide innovative products and services for your business. For more information, please visit IBM online.

Sincerely,

Jack Noonan, CEO, SPSS Inc.

Deepak Advani, Vice President, Predictive Analytics, IBM Business Analytics & Process Optimization

I got my flu shot!

2009-10-09T12:23:00.001-07:00

Did you?

Windows Seven Review

2009-10-06T09:25:00.000-07:00

Network World has posted a good Windows 7 Review by Harry Mccracken, PC World. Mccracken said:

Windows 7 is hardly flawless. Some features feel unfinished; others won't realize their potential without heavy lifting by third parties. And some long-standing annoyances remain intact. But overall, the final shipping version I test-drove appears to be the worthy successor to Windows XP that Vista never was.

Faculty and staff who are on the SJSU wired network and who are interested in trying Microsoft Windows 7 should contact their desktop support team. If you do not know how to do that create a ticket and we will give you information at the San Jose State University Help Desk.

Chronicle of Higher Ed looks at SJSU Budget issue

2009-10-06T09:00:00.000-07:00

According to a post by Josh Keller of the Chronicle of Higher Education, "Some 40,000 students will be unable to attend the California State University system in the next year and a half because of enrollment cutbacks." Keller's post goes on to explore the specific situation at San Jose State:

For the first time in memory, the roughly 1,300 community-college students who expected to transfer to San Jose State next spring are having to make other plans.

In my opinion the cutbacks in higher education are the economic equivalent of being a farmer and eating your seed corn in a drought. When the economic weather improves we will have nothing, nobody, to plant in the jobs that would otherwise be created. It is hard to see any good coming from any of this.

My son Jeff at SJSU

2009-10-01T16:35:00.000-07:00

Window Washer

2009-10-01T15:27:00.000-07:00

Are students hurt by social media?

2009-10-01T09:52:00.000-07:00

Is Twitter hurting students? According to a post by Carin Ford of Higher Ed Morning.

Dr. Tracy Alloway of Scotland’s University of Stirling, says her study shows using Facebook stretches our “working memory” (our short-term or recent memory), while Twitter, YouTube and text messages tend to weaken it.

The study Ford cited focused on younger students. Ford went on to say, "prospective college students are increasingly using Facebook for more than just social interaction. According to a new Kaplan Test Prep and Admissions study, more than 70% of college admissions officials have received “friend requests” from students using Facebook and MySpace."

This brings up other questions, what are the ethical considerations of teachers friending students on social media sites, like Facebook? Since these sites may not be as accessible as university provided media outlets; are faculty members putting disabled students at a competitive disadvantage by "friending" non-disabled students on social media sites?

Technorati Tags: twitter, Social Media, ssloansjca

Is Apple poised to redefine print?

2009-10-01T09:36:00.001-07:00

There is more discussions on Gizmodo on the often discussed but never delivered Apple Tablet computer. It was once proposed as a MacTablet, but now it looks more and more like a MacKindle. This could be an intriguing tool for paperless newspaper delivery. According to Brian Lam of Gizmodo:

"Apple is in talks with several media companies rooted in print, negotiating content for a "new device." And they're not just going for e-books and mags. They're aiming to redefine print."

I hope if such a product is released, they work will cell carriers like AT&T to bundle data delivery over Edge and 3G networks so if such a device comes out it is able to deliver content without being restricted to often locked down WiFi networks.

They have a huge distribution engine in the iTunes Store. PDF podcasts would be a wonderful way to distribute print content, both paid and free.

Technorati Tags: Apple, ssloansjca

The problem continues

2009-09-30T11:17:00.001-07:00

The problem with HPV's at SJSU
I am not against bicyclists, or bicycling, but I am seriously against very dangerous use of them. I am an avid cyclist. I know that cycling, even done carefully, can result in serious injury or death. I am not against anything that involves a risk, but I am against unnecessary risk. I am against what I feel is a grossly dangerous situation. That is why I have been complaining for years about how bicycles and other human powered vehicles are being used at SJSU. In my opinion, so far the university has done nothing to manage what I feel is a real risk on our campus. More on this topic can be found here.

[More photos here]

Technorati Tags: San Jose State University, SJSU, CSU, California State University, San Jose, ssloansjca

Campus Movie Fest 2009

2009-09-29T18:47:00.000-07:00

Today SJSU students are turning in their movies and the equpment they borrowed to make their productions. There is a line outside here at Clark Hall. This is one of our most fun events at SJSU.

[More photos here on Flickr]

How I remove hot spots on shiny skin in Photoshop

2009-09-24T08:45:00.000-07:00

This works very well. One of the best and easiest ways to fix hot spots, like flash reflections on shiny skin, on a photograph is this:

Make a duplicate layer, choose that layer and work from that layer.
Choose the healing brush tool and in the options bar, for mode choose "DARKEN" and check the option "SAMPLE ALL LAYERS".
Set your healing brush tool hardness to 0% (this is a soft brush) and size of the brush (use a brush size slightly bigger than the hot spot) and with OPTION+click (MAC) or ALT+click (PC) choose a skin tone you like. Then, paint on the shiny areas with the healing brush tool. Painting, as used here, means clicking and dragging on, or over, the areas where you want to cover the hot spot(s).
Apply slight a slight Gaussian Blur (Filter>Blur) and lower the opacity of the layer.

What is great about this technique is you have cloned pixels on a separate layer and you can apply the slight Gaussian Blur filter and lower the opacity of the layer to blend your adjustments in and achieve a great end result.

Here is where I learned this technique.

I do not recommend leaping to Snow Leopard yet

2009-09-23T13:58:00.000-07:00

Tech Guy Leo Laporte says:

(Mac OS X 10.6) should be renamed “Snow JOB.” Cause he doesn’t see any difference and is more a “service pack” that should’ve been a free upgrade, not an insane $29. It also breaks a few applications. Sure, you have a little more hard drive space, but only because it doesn’t install all the unnecessary drivers.

Jeremy Horwitz, Editor-in-Chief of iLounge said, "multiple machines upgraded, all with serious, awful stability problems of some sort. Safari’s crashing. Photoshop’s crashing. Apps you didn’t even know could crash (like TextEdit) are crashing. They’re crashing when we save files, crashing randomly when we’re not saving files, and so on."

We do not support Snow Leopard at the SJSU Help Desk. The SPSS software we provide does not work with it. Unless you have a serious business need that requires Mac OS X 10.6 (and I know of ~~none~~ very few for most users) there is no reason to switch yet.

The university offers faculty training on the same day it requires they do not work!

2009-09-22T15:22:00.000-07:00

How can the university on one hand offer events to faculty on furlough days, like this one, when The CSU/CFA Faculty Furlough Agreement requires that prior to the start of their assignment for any term, faculty must certify in writing that they will not work on the assigned furlough day?

Did Apple iPhone Compromise Enterprise Security?

2009-09-18T07:24:00.000-07:00

According to a recent post in Network World by Galen Gruman:

Thousands of users have been accessing e-mail, calendars, and contacts over Exchange connections through their iPhones or iPod Touches, not knowing they were compromising their corporate security. During that entire time, Apple has extolled its support of Exchange and convinced many businesses that the iPhone was a corporate-class device they should embrace or, at least, tolerate.

[Read More]

SPSS not currently supported on Snow Leapord

2009-09-01T09:08:00.000-07:00

Mac OS X 10.6 "Snow Leopard" (the just released current version) does not support SPSS 17.1 (the current version we have at SJSU.) SPSS has been renamed PASW Statistics. Reportedly, SPSS/PASW Statistics is not scheduled to be supported in Snow Leopard until PASW Statistics 18 is released. I don't anticipate we will have PASW Statistics 18 until sometime in Spring 2010, if past precedent holds. SPSS/PASW Statistics system requirements are pretty well spelled out. We get new versions of SPSS/PASW Statistics well after they are released. SPSS shipped SPSS 17 to SJSU less than 6 months ago.

We do ask our customers to check the system requirements of the software, which we show them in writing, before we sell them install media. We will try to be even more vigilant about doing this.

This is not unusual. SPSS/PASW Statistics is not usually quick to support new operating systems, and PASW Statistics is not big enough for Apple to tailor its OS software to work with it.

We do not currently support Snow Leopard at the SJSU help desk. We do not even have it yet. I anticipate we will be (officially) supporting Mac OS X 10.6 and Windows 7 in the Spring. But, that is not my decision to make!

BTW - I suggest folks not install new operating systems on production computers until they are at least 10.x.3 for Macs or SP 1 for Windows OS versions. Then, they should only install a new OS if they have a business need to, and they are sure their applications are compatible. IMHO the main use of an OS is to allow users to access applications and applications to efficiently access system resources, the rest is fluff. The best thing an OS can do, in my opinion, is to get out of my way! (But then, I liked the spartan Windows 2000 interface.)

BTW #2 - I am going to be out of the office until September 8. If help desk clients want issues addressed as quickly as possible, please do one of the following:

Call us at (408) 924-2377 during our normal business hours. Our business hours are the only times we are open and/or are able to address issues. Our business hours are here.
Or, go to our ticket portal and submit an incident ticket into our ticketing system. Our ticket portal is here.

Have a great holiday weekend:
~Steve

Technorati Tags: Apple, SPSS, ssloansjca

Furloughs must be implimented with respect

2009-08-07T12:17:00.000-07:00

Commentary

The California State University system is a union shop. Most non-manager employees in the CSU system are covered by one of several collective bargaining agreements. When CSU wanted to make cuts in its overall employee compensation it only had one option under the agreements, that option was layoffs.

When the CSU decided instead that it wanted to furlough university employees it had to go to the unions and negotiate a side agreement to do so. Employees who were in their unions then had an opportunity to vote to ratify that agreement and almost all the CSU unions voted to accept furloughs for one year.

At this time it appears the budget problems may go on beyond a year. You may see the unions and CSU negotiating again on this topic. Any tentative agreement that may come out of a future agreement would most likely have to again go through a ratification process.

Under the agreement currently in place, management is apparently being given a great deal of discretion in how they are dealing with furlough days. For example, at SJSU, President Whitmore has decided to not close the campus on at least some furlough days. Some university employees are being asked to work on some furlough days and to take other non-furlough days off instead.

This is not the understanding some employees had who voted for furloughs of how furloughs would be implemented. Many employees expected the campus to be closed on furlough days. These employees made other plans on these days (for example for daycare) and some resent that it is not being closed and resent the possibility that they could possibly be asked to work and to take other days off instead. These employees are sometimes feeling taken advantage of.

If employees do not feel that the university is respecting the spirit of the furlough agreement it may be a lot harder for CSU to get a second agreement ratified, if that becomes necessary. It is important for the universities to remember that university employees have made a sacrifice here and if that sacrifice is not respected, it may not ever be repeated.