News about nformation systems throughout M I T V o l u m e 1 8 • N u mI b e r 4 MS a r c h / A p r i l 2 0 0 3 . New MIT Home Page Innovates Further, as the home page images . on a Very Good Thing change, the border containing the MIT . logo remains consistent to show the . • Susan Curran . integration of MIT the institution and . MIT the community. Coming Soon: Tap into Tuition . eci n’est pas un hack,” As before, members of the com- . Assistance via the Web . 2 . “C proclaimed the debut of munity and the public are invited to . the new MIT home page on April 1. submit images or designs. This spirit of Software Spotlight . “This is not a hack.” collaboration celebrates the diversity TSM Backups Can Save the . Very true. The redesigned home of MIT and its freewheeling spirit, and Day, So Schedule Them Now . 3 . page reflects a great deal of thoughtful . reinforces the idea that we’re all here . work, based on data gathering through to learn from one another. Network Notes . surveys and focus groups, work with a SecureFX and SecureCRT: More . Fostering Community 4 . professional design firm, and usability Options for Good Connections . Through its changing graphic . testing. The redesign team, led by IS Bits and Bytes . Web Communications Services (WCS), and spotlight, the MIT home page . has fostered a very organic kind of Advice about End User License . worked to achieve a sense of dynamism . community. The spotlight provides Agreements and Readme Files . 4 . and community, and to communicate . an important way for groups and de- . that MIT, the institution, relies on the MCC/Computer Currents . partments to share news and activities . collective strength of its many diverse The Changing Role of the MIT . with the MIT community and the . parts. Computer Connection . 5 . outside world. And it continues to . The More Things Change . showcase the vibrancy and creativity It’s Here, So You Can Go: IS . One of the best-loved features of . of MIT. It can feature anything from Offers E-mail Vacation Reply. 5 . the site was the surprise and creativity . the announcement of a Nobel Prize to . of the changing home page graphic. men’s gymnastics, from new nano- Tech Tips: TSM . 6 . Since 1997, the home page has featured technology research to a spectacular . Telecom Talk . hundreds of graphics contributed by new hack. students, alumni, outside artists, and Sorry, Wrong Number: And This . Where the previous home page 6 . even prospective students and parents. One Has Consequences . offered only one or two spotlights, . Recognizing that the changing . the new site features eight, one on the Update on Windows 2000 . graphic mirrors MIT’s tradition of home page and one or more on each 7 . Delivery Project . hacks and “open source” initiatives, of the second-level pages. The new . the redesign team made sure it re- Getting Help . 8 . home page creates a connection to . mained the centerpiece of the new site. these second-level pages through color Surf Sites: Resources for . The graphic will continue to play on . (which changes daily), typography, Developing a Web Site . 8 . the Institute initials much of the time; . grid and layout, and the white bar . the main difference is that it can now . at the top. fill a larger canvas. . continued on page 2 Usability Testing software, used by people with repeti- NEW MIT HOME PAGE To ensure the usability and acces- tive strain injuries; and the World Wide continued from page 1 sibility of the new site, WCS worked Web Consortium’s validator. Minor with the IS Usability Team and the changes in the way the web pages One Level Down ATIC (Adaptive Technology for Infor- were coded significantly improved Each of the five second-level pages mation and Computing) Lab. accessibility for users with disabilities, (Education, Research, Offices+Services, Usability testing was conducted in without detracting from the experi- Community, and About MIT) uses an phases, to validate the work at each ence for non-disabled users. stage. Each round of testing provided enlarged and cropped logo as a back- The Team Behind the Scenes valuable insight – often in unexpected ground to bring together the catego- The redesign was led by WCS in ways. For example, in one design, sev- ries of life at MIT. For the graphical close collaboration with designers from eral users could not locate the campus key to the background designs, see Pentagram. Pentagram understood right map, even though it was visible on the the About This Site page at away that the site’s greatest strength http://web.mit.edu/site/ page. At the same time, users readily was its “un-institutional” feel – that it aboutsite.html understood some complex elements wasn’t the result of a Madison Avenue that the redesign team thought might Navigation for the second-level branding campaign. In fact, it is the go unobserved. opposite: a natural extension of the pages has also been revamped. Now, The first phase of testing focused when you look under “Research,” you open, creative culture that exults in on the menus and site architecture. hacks and invented OpenCourseWare. can search by topic, not just by lab or As the original navigation was found department name. This makes the site Now that the new web site has been to work well, it was retained with only launched, feel free to send your feed- easier to get around – and highlights the minor modifications. The second phase interdisciplinary work going on at MIT. back to <[email protected]>. presented a preliminary design to a And don’t forget that you’re invited to Other enhancements to the second- variety of users, and identified the level pages include merging “Adminis- play! Design contributions, visual puns, need for more vibrant color. The third and clever Photoshop images can be tration” and “Resources” into “Offices and final phase was a heuristic review +Services,” renaming “Campus Life” sent to <[email protected]>. For full of the chosen design direction in order details about submitting a design or to “Community” to reflect the diver- to identify any unforeseen problems. requesting a spotlight, see sity of clubs and interests, and renam- Working with the ATIC Lab was ing “Academics” to “Education.” These http://web.mit.edu/site/ very helpful in creating a site that users propose.html pages have also made long lists easier with disabilities could navigate easily. to navigate with a user interface that The site was tested using JAWS, a screen Graphics that are used receive a credit expands and contracts the lists of links. reader for the blind; voice recognition on the home page. ø Coming Soon: Tap into Tuition it is eligible for reimbursement. The Assistance via the Web process takes only minutes to complete MIT Information Systems and displays a confirmation screen that The employee self-service function on tells whether the course is eligible for reimbursement. Managing Editor the Web will expand in May with the Robyn Fizz introduction of tuition assistance (TA) Employees can review their TA Writer/Editor tools. These will let eligible employees: account or submit data for course reimbursement by going to Lee Ridgway • Determine if a course qualifies for http://web.mit.edu/sapwebss/ i/s is published six times a year. MIT faculty tuition assistance and staff receive copies through campus mail; • Check their TA balance for the and clicking on the Benefits tab. Em- i/s is also available in lobbies around campus. calendar year ployees still need to submit (in paper) Individuals at MIT may subscribe by contacting proof of payment for a course as well the managing editor. • Check the status of reimbursement as proof of successful completion. requests Send comments or subscription requests to: Employees can also use this link to MIT Room N42-290B, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, • Submit course data for reimburse- see when a reimbursement check was Cambridge, MA 02139-4307 ment (although paper forms will issued. Phone: (617) 253-0540 still be accepted). You can send questions about the Electronic mail: <[email protected]> Instead of submitting course infor- new tuition assistance process to i/s is also published online at http://web.mit.edu/is/isnews/ mation on paper before taking a class, <[email protected]>. At Lincoln employees can verify that their course Laboratory, call the Benefits Office at A companion Web site, i/s NewsLink, offers (781) 981-7072. frequent news updates. It’s located at qualifies for tuition assistance using http://web.mit.edu/is/newslink/ an online tool at This service is part of collaborative http://web.mit.edu/hr/careers/ work among Human Resources, Pay- All product names are trademarks of their manufacturers. taplan.html roll, the HR-Payroll Project, Financial Systems Services, and Information © 2003 Massachusetts Institute of Technology This tool asks eight or so questions Systems to improve MIT business about the course to determine whether processes and services. ø . 2 . i/s • March / April 2003 • http://web.mit.edu/is/isnews/ http://web.mit.edu/is/isnews/ • March / April 2003 • i/s . 3 . S o f t w a r e S p o t l i g h t TSM Backups Can Save the Macintosh: Keep the TSM Confirm Scheduled Backups Day, So Schedule Them Now Scheduler Running The day after a scheduled backup, • Janet Littell Mac OS X check the last section of your TSM • Ensure that the TSM Mac X Sched- schedule log for statistics with the uler is always running by adding it most recent backup date and “number eing able to recover recently lost to your System Preferences>Login of objects inspected,” etc., to confirm B files contributes significantly to Items list.