"Alex Rudshteyn, Associate Director for Library Systems, continues to grow as a supervisor and manager. He has shifted much to the day-to-day responsibility to Network Specialist James Liu and has focused his own attention on development and future projects. But perhaps his most significant achievement is the relationship he as developed with ITS. Alex is much more than a liaison between AIT and ITS. He functions as our ambassador, cheerleader, and sometimes our fireman. Relations between AIT and ITS have never been as cordial, and much of the credit for this belongs to Alex." Howard Spivak, Director for Library Systems and Academic IT
"James Liu is a hard-working employee with a great set of technical and interpersonal skills. He is a valued staff member in AIT and the Library, and we are fortunate to have him." Alex Rudshteyn, Associate Director for Library Systems
The new Library has more than 650 computers, including thirteen servers, all managed and maintained by Alex Rudshteyn, his second-in-command James Liu, and their cadre of part-time student workers, many of them computer science majors.
Computers LL 1st Fl 2nd Fl 3rd Fl 4th Fl Total Public 53 70 103 0 0 226 Staff 70 49 22 58 16 215 CUNY + look-up 6 20 7 6 0 39 Classrooms 0 62 0 58 0 120 Faculty Lab 0 14 0 24 0 38 Servers 0 0 0 13 0 13 Total: 129 215 132 159 16 651
Over the summer 2004, we will install an additional 20-35 public computers and 5-15 lookup terminals around the Library, bringing the total number of machines to almost 700. It is truly amazing that such a small, tightly organized staff can handle this incredible workload.
"For AIT, the realities of the new building had their biggest impact on the Library Systems group whose responsibilities went from a few hundred computers to the maintenance and management of approximately 650 computers and 13 servers. The scale of this increase was underscored in a single event, which proved to have significant long-range impact: the virus attack that occurred in late August 2003.
"To a large extent, this event was unique in circumstance, in that it occurred just before the new semester began when we were just starting to re-clone the computers for the start of term. Had this attack occurred a few days later, new virus protections would have been in place and the impact would have been minimal. The East Coast blackout that occurred almost simultaneously with the virus attack created even more problems for Library Systems staff, in that it thwarted what had been for many years our first line of defense, shutting down all computers until they could be protected. With the restoration of power computers restarted automatically, opening themselves to attack." Howard Spivak, Director for Library Systems & Academic IT
August 2003 brought two major worm/virus attacks which coincided with a blackout covering the entire eastern quadrant of the country. Since that time, virus assaults have occurred on a continuing basis, but none has caused any damage or interruption of service. The major impact on the Library of these three phenoms was budgetary. Before August 2003, like most institutions Brooklyn College reacted to viruses. When a serious antidote was released, staff installed it. Now, we aggressively attempt to prevent viruses. Library Systems installed new software that permits a more automated update process and altered procedures so that staff re-clone PCs and servers immediately when we learn about flaws in the MS Windows operating system. While this is a policy that requires considerably more time and money than the old reactive one, it is one to which we absolutely must adhere. The end result was that Library Systems, which used 6,131 part-time work hours in 2002-2003, required 9,410 work hours in 2003-2004. And the worms just keep on coming ... Microsoft is about to release a new product, Windows Update Services. Supposedly, this will ease the handling of patch management for both servers and clients. We will see.
Networks and computers do not maintain themselves. James Liu has assumed most of the network maintenance responsibilities, including the management of part-time staff who assist him. Typical tasks include:
Task Status Re-cloning all public computers in the Library Ongoing Updating the clones Ongoing Updating Sophos (anti-virus software) Ongoing Installing Microsoft security patches Ongoing Re-purposing old computers Ongoing Installing and configuring new public-access computers Ongoing Maintaining/troubleshooting PCs and printers throughout the building Ongoing Providing technical support for events held in the Library Ongoing Conducting and maintaining the Property Management Inventory Ongoing Inventorying all software and licenses Ongoing Inventory management Ongoing License management Ongoing Faculty laptop lending As requested
Server tasks:
CD server Completely redone Apple server Completely redone Net storage Completely redone Netware 6 Ongoing Multimedia sever Completely redone
Miscellaneous projects:
Configuration and setup of SmartBoard for a Library classroom Completed Configuration and setup of the DMZ server Completed Configuration and setup of ADA-compliant laptops Ongoing Installation and setup of equipment on a new server rack Completed Configuration and installation of new public printers Completed
Staff are preparing for these upcoming projects:
Refurbishing old computers. Staff have removed old, stripped computers from the Library Café to the Systems office, aiming to repair what machines they can for use as CUNY+ look-up terminals throughout the Library.
LINUX testing. At the present time, staff are running a number of LINUX test machines in the AIT office to see whether these can be added to our server farm. The aim is to provide a simple LINUX box on every floor for print services.
NAS server. Staff have just finished building a new rack-mountable NAS server. This machine will free up some storage on server Bignetnew for use by clients of the Faculty Training and Development Lab.
Final testing of Netware 6.0 server. Once this server is up and running, staff can bring down Bignet for a complete overhaul.
Honeypot servers. We are considering setting up one or more so-called honeypots, non-production computers used as false targets for unauthorized activities. They can keep miscreants busy, distracting them from legitimate resources while also allowing staff to learn more about intruders and their tactics.
Beaming stations. Library Systems staff are creating beaming stations to support our wireless/pocket PC project. Presently in test are a number of infrared devices.
"I don't know if it is good or bad, but there is a trend for Library Systems to become the main programming division of AIT. At the present time we are working on a number of Web development and pure programming projects. A very interesting fact is that few of them are joint venture for ITS and AIT. This shows how much our relationship has grown." Alex Rudshteyn, Associate Director for Library Systems
Library Systems staff are at work on, or have completed, these programming projects:
Asked about the quality of his experience at the 2004 New Media Centers Conference, Nick Irons responded:
"In one word: Electric! (Perhaps due somewhat to the striking Vancouver locale...) As in prior years, last week's conference was a valuable opportunity to learn from our colleagues on how they're dealing with the opportunities (and occasional challenges) of New Media in the academic environment. In addition to hands-on sessions using digital audio and video for Instructional Design, I also participated in discussions on managing Instructional Development for Faculty and using large-scale video displays effectively. I'd like to note that it was sometimes quite difficult to choose from among the many simultaneous workshop/seminar tracks; I'm sure that each and every session would have been well worth the time." Nicholas Irons, Associate Director for Faculty Training and Development
"It is estimated the "half life of knowledge" for an IT professional is eighteen months. Not even medicine has as short of a half life. So the need for constant updating of both technical and professional skills is constant." Howard Spivak, Director for Library Systems & Academic IT
Each year Library and Academic IT staff enjoy many professional development opportunities--this document is filled with references to the many conferences, training programs, expos, and so forth in which faculty and staff participated. Our membership in MetroSET www.metroset.org pays dividends many times over, as staff and faculty participate in its excellent local programs. Systems staff also invest a great deal of time in what they think of as "self education"--studying the latest books, technology magazines, and manuals.
Professional development is certainly no luxury for staff whose day-to-day responsibilities include building Web-enabled infrastructures, developing new patron-focused architectures and applications, supporting mobile access to technologies, and implementing security management. Rather, it is essential. These are some of the training opportunities of which staff availed themselves in 2003-2004: