Computing in Higher Education: a Planning Perspective for Administrators
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
LIWL.VV1L'aVfl il.OUVLJ;J ED 236 974 HE 016 659 AUTHOR Chachra, Vinod; Heterick, Robert C. TITLE Computing in Higher F3ucation: A Planning Perspective for Administrators. CAUSE Monograph Series. INSTITUTION CAUSE, Boulder, Colo. PUB DATE 82 NOTE 201p. AVAILABLE FROM CAUSE Publications, 737 Twenty-Ninth Street, Boulder, CO 80303 ($6.00, members; $10, nonmember colleges; $20, others). PUB TYPE Guides Non-Classroom Use (055) Viewpoints (120) EDRS PRICE MF01 Plus Postage. PC Not Available from EDRS. DESCRIPTORS Administrative Principles; Administrator Guides; *College Administration; College Planning; *Computer Oriented Programs; Computer Program ;Databases; *Data Processing; Economic Climate; Higher Education *Information Networks; *Management Information Systems; Microcomputers; Minicomputers; Program Administration; Technological Advancement; Word Processing ABSTRACT Options for using computers in managing higher education institutions and technological questions are considered in a collection of nine essays developed by the authors for this monograph. An introduction considers historical developments and provides an overview of computing modes and languages. After considering some of the economic and technological influences under which computing centers of the 1980s will have to operate, attention is directed to the following concerns: the question of whether to do different tasks on the same machine, management techniques, the reporting structure of the information systems department, job shop scheduling versus utility operation, development versus maintenance, and evaluation and audits. Topics concerning software development include models and design of data-based management systems, systems development life cycle, and structured techniques. Operations concerns are also covered, including scheduling, critical paths, service charging, job accounting, and queuing and simulation. The role of the user and the system view are considered, along with perspectives on office systems and word processing, and planning for the automated office. Issues concerning networks and sharing are also discussed, including the impact of the micro/mini computers and software sharing. Perspectives on the future of administrative computing are also considered. (SW) *********************************************************************** Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. *********************************************************************** CAUSE MONOGRAPH SERIES Computing In Higher Education: A Planning Perspective For Administrators By Vinod Chachra and Robert C. lieterick U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION PERMISSION TOREPRODUCE HIS NATIONAL. INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION i A -11,1%AI MATERIAL INMICROFICHE ONLY Fil NI °RYA F ION (I VII fli1 RIC I HAS BEEN GRANTEDBY " 1..1.11,1 v. TO THE EDUCATIONALRESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER(ERIC)." The Professional Association for Development. Use, and Management of Information Systems in Higher Education ti Library or Congress Cataloging in PublicationData (. \ ' - I. i01).II t ,c,I),.r.--1),H (y-,!-: I 11}4--P1 (11111 i r1,,111t1,11 (. 1 . Het_ rick ,obi rC., . I I.Ti .C.,. 8')-2 SI) Copies of this monographare availabletcstaff of CAUSE member institutions at$6 per copy, to non-member colleges and universitiesat$10,and to othersat$20. Orders should be pre-paid :aid addressedto: CAUSE Publications 73' Twenty-Ninth Street Boulder, Colorado 80303 (303) 1449-141430 Copyright © 1982Vinod Chachra and Robert C. lieterick Allrights reserved. No part ofthispublication may be reproduced, stored ina retrieval system, or transmitted in any formorbyany means electronic,mechanical, photocopying,recording,orotherwise withoutprior written permission of the authors. ,Printed in the United States of America. Library of Congress Catalog number82-22989. 3 Preface A word of explanation isin order for the reader about to embark upon pursuing the contents herein. The reader will discover aloose collectionof essays dealing with what iscommonly called Administrative Data Processing. The collectionhasresultedfrom theoftexpresseddesireto bring together the management of the College or University to discuss the ways, means and idosyncracies of compOer- aided institutional management. When the opportunitypresenteditselfto conduct a series of professional development seminars dealing with the computer and administrationinhigher education, we drew upon a stock ofpreviousarticlesand positionpapersto construct the nucleus ofthis present work.We both are productsofthe computerrevolution. We have studied, taught and managed educational computing for the entirety ofour-professionalcareers. Our viewpointshavebeen shaped not only by our management experiences (primarily inlargerinstitutionalsettings) but also by our classroom challenges. We have not attempted to produce a -how tomanual, but rather to cast a hostoftechnologicalquestionsin a management perspective. Neitherofusfeelsthereis a -r-rrht way- to conduct administrative data processing, only tl there is-a way- that best compliments and enhances the distinctive management style of a given institution at a particulartimeinitsdevelopment. Because institutional administrationisdynamic,itisuseful, perhaps necessary, to be aware of the range of hardware, development, organi- zation, etc. options for administrative computing. We wish to acknowledc.3e, the financial assistance of the IBM Corporationin providing the support to CAUSE for the Initial distribution of this work. We ,need alsoto acknow- ledge the careful criticism of the style of this work by Julia A. Rudy of CAUSE and the thoughtful construction of the figures by Fred W.Lacerda. The text and figures were produced by the authors us inAPL and SCRIPT as part of a test documentations ystom currently under development. Any errors in the fln:s hed work are solely of our owncon- struction. V. Chachra R. C. Hnterick Blacksburg, Virginia January 1982 iv About CAUSE CAUSE, the Professional Associationfor Development, Use, and Management ofInformation Systemsin Higher Educa- tion, helps member institutions strengthen their management capabilities through improved informa;ion systems CAUSE provides member institutionsNith many services to increase the effectiveness of their administrative information systems. These servicesinclude:the Exchange Library, whichis a clearinghousefornon-proprietaryinformation and systems contributedby members; an Information Request Service tolocatespecific systems or information; consulting services to review AIS organization and manage- ment plans; organizational publicationsincluding a bi- monthly newsletter,a bi-monthly professional magazine and the CAUSE Monographs; and the CAUSE National Confer- ence. Additional details on the CAUSE organization and activities may be obtained from the CAUSE National Office in Boulder, Colorado. v About the Authors Vincd Chachra is the Assistant Provost for Planning and Information Systems at VirginiaTech. Inthisposition, he is responsible for academic planning aswell as directsupervisionoftheUniversity Library,the University Computing Center and the University Registrar. In addition he serves asthedirector for the Center for Library Automation.. He has several pro- fessional publications tohis credit andis co-author ofa book on graph theory pub- lishedbyAmerican Elsevier. He was elected as delegatetothe WhiteHouse Conference on Library and Information Sci- ences. Dr. Chachra is a past president of CAUSE. Robert C. Heterick, Jr.isDirector of the Design AutomationLaboratoryat Virginia Tech. Prior to his current position,Dr. HeterickwasDirectoroftheComputing Center at the University.He has lectured widely oncomputersystemsmanagement and isthe author of several papers on the subjects of resource allocation in computing systems and decision support systems. He hasserved as a consultanttotheIBM Corporation,the Governor of Virginia, the President's Privacy Protection Study Com- mission and numerous universities and pri- vatecorporations on computersystems management and distributedcomputingin networks of microprocessors. vii Table of Contents Chapter 1:COMPUTING PERSPECTIVES Archimedes Lever 1 Ai Brief Look Backward 3 Analog Applications . 10 The Modern Computer 11 Architecture of Computing Systems 18 Computer Languages . 23 Modes of Computing Chapter 2:TECHNOLOGICAL TRENDS Cost of Computing 31 Hardware Costs Hardware Strategies . 39 Personnel Problems 43 Software 45 Impact of Software and Personnel 45 Chapter 3:ORGANIZING FOR COMPUTING Combined vs. Separate 49 Management Tecfir iques 51 Reporting Structures . ....... 56 Job Shop vs. Utility Operation 59 Security and Disaster Plan ning Development vs. Maintenance 64 Evaluation and Audit . 68 Chapter 4: SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT The Data Base Approach 73 Architecture of DBMS . 76 Models of DBMS 78 Data Administrator 79 Systems Development Life Cycie 80 Structured Techniques 83 Problem Areas 86 Mamigemerit Information Systems and Beyond 88 Seqiie Design Cnrideline 97 The Data Digraph 101 Chapter 5:OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT Scheduling 103 Critical Path 106 Service Charging 112 Job Accounting 118 Accliting 122 Otieueing and Simulation 125 Security and Privacy 127 Chapter 6:INFORMATION MANAGEMENT ROLES Ihe User 131 The System Perspective 132 Data Ownership 133 Control 134 Planning for Change 138 Software Directions 143 Chapter 7:INTRA-INSTITUTION COMMUNICATION Office Systems in Perspective 147 Word Processing Attitudes 151 Local Networks 155 Terminals for Managers Program 161 Planning for the Automated