Merry Christmas from AIS

top row, left to right: Dean Nakamura, Gail Garrett, Sheila Pallotta
bottom row, left to right: Lisa Ciccone, Scott Nebinger

We will be observing the College holidays, and will be closed the week of December 20 - 24, 2010. 

 

Get Ready for an INFORMER upgrade

What is INFORMER? Informer is a web-based reporting tool that reports directly from the Colleague database. We have a new upgrade, Informer 4,  in the works, which provides an even cooler look and feel than before. Take a look at the new product on You Tube at  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5zSvZGcHfTY
or on the Informer website itself ("Download Webinar" link): http://www.entrinsik.com/solutions/informer/webinar.php?series=57 (If you watch the Informer video, fast-forward to the 19:30 minute mark, where the demo actually begins).

AIS will be working with departments with their existing reports, which will be converted when we go live with Informer 4. Watch for announcements of live demos and training in January.

 

Do you want to implement Informer in your department? or enhance your usage of Informer? Call AIS (X4375) - we can help!

DUG 2011 Conference & Expo Website is Live!

Register Online Now for Special Early Bird Pricing

The DUG 2011 website is now live, and online registration is open. That means our annual Conference is right around the corner, and it's time to start planning your schedule and itinerary.

March 6–9, 2011
Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center
National Harbor, MD. 

Registering online for the conference is quick and easy — and you can make your hotel arrangements at the same time. If you register and submit payment by January 31, 2011, you can lock in Early Bird registration rates and the lower hotel rates at the Gaylord National Resort or the Marriott Residence Inn National Harbor. The Residence Inn, which is offering the lowest room rate, likely will be sold out within the next few weeks — so register and make your reservations accordingly.
Register for DUG 2011 at http://conference.datatel-users.org and please take a few minutes to peruse the Conference website. It is loaded with valuable information — including registration fees, hotel pricing, and lots more.


Just like those before it, the upcoming DUG Conference promises to be a truly inspirational experience.

 

How the SMC Email address is updated in Colleague

Hint:  It's MAGIC!!!

Email accounts are generated for faculty, staff and students automatically on a twice-daily basis. Twice daily, a file with all current accounts is delivered to Colleague, and twice daily Colleague updates student, faculty and staff records with the Saint Mary's email address. New addresses are added, and any addresses that are no longer valid are removed.

The Saint Mary's College email address is flagged in Colleague with a type of "LO" = "Local". The account name (the part before "@stmarys-ca.edu") can be seen in the header of most person-related forms in Colleague.

Because Colleague is updated directly from the email system, no one should ever add or remove an email address with a type of "LO".  This is reserved for automatic processes.

REGISTRATION arrives AGAIN

Believe it or not, next week (November 15-18, 2010) is another week of Undergraduate Online Registration. You will receive emails with reminders, but for now, here are the three guidelines for Good Digital Citizens:

1.  Limit your login time - log out if you aren't actively using Colleague
2.  Restrict reporting - save large queries for times when resources are not at a premium
3.  Release records - remember that students need to be able to access their records to register.

The most critical times for student registration are around 1:00PM and after 3:45PM 

SAVEDLISTS and HOLD files

AIS, with input from some of our Power Users, has established guidelines for deletion and retention of SAVEDLISTS and HOLD files.

SAVEDLISTS:  retained for 45 days. Any SAVEDLIST over 45 days old will be deleted on the 6th of each month, with exception of any savedlist that begins with "XSMC". 

HOLD files:  retained for 100 days, any HOLD file over 100 days old will be deleted on the 6th of each month. If you need to keep a file longer than 100 days, you may save to your PC, or contact AIS to have it moved to an archived Colleague folder. (HOLD files are created when you send a report to "HOLD" instead of a printer or email.)

How YOU Can Help Make Registration Easier for Students

October 18-21 is Jan Term registration for undergraduates

Students register for classes through GaelXpress, which connects them directly to the Colleague database. Because you, at your desktop, are also connecting to Colleague, the way that you work in Colleague can affect the student experience, either negatively or positively.

How can you help students register with fewer problems?

1.  Log out when you are not actively using Colleague. This is absolutely critical in the hours between 12:30 and 2:00PM, and again from 3:30 to the end of the work day. All  desktop logins use software licenses, and students registering also use software licenses. If administrative staff use up all the licenses, there won't be enough for students.  PLEASE LOG OUT. 

2.  Keep out of student records as much as possible. Adding information or changing a record actually locks up the records, so that others cannot change the record at the same time. When you lock the record of a student, the student cannot register (because the record is locked!).  If you need to work on a record, open it, do your work quickly, and finish out. While you are in the record, what the student sees is an hourglass, and they think "the system is down", when really, it is just that their record is in use.

These two modifications to the way you use Colleague during registration week can have a huge impact on how quickly students are able to register.



Questions?  Email AIS@stmarys-ca.edu