Who should I contact if I am having trouble using or understanding the IT Connection? What is the IT Connection? Why is this system in place? Who created the IT Connection? Who is responsible for submitting these messages? What are the different ways that I can view messages from the IT Connection? Can my department/college use this system for our messages too? Are there certain times that outages are planned or dates when no changes can take place? There is a scheduled change that conflicts work I am planning … What should I do? When the network is down how will I receive messages, since my e-mail may not be accessible?

Who should I contact if I am having trouble using or understanding the IT Connection?
Please contact the UTS Help Desk at 777-1800 if you need help or have problems in using or viewing the IT Connection.

What is the IT Connection?
This is a new alert and messaging system to notify the University community about changes, outages and information. This is a more comprehensive system for communicating consistent messages from University Technology Services and other areas within the Division of Information Technology.

Why is this system in place?
University Technology Services is replacing the old Outages listserv with the IT Connection. The previous messaging system was only a listserv-subscription and for many users, was not very easy to read or understand. The IT Connection provides a consistent way to view important information from UTS along with allowing the University community to select which type of message they want to receive and how they wish to receive them.

Who created the IT Connection?
The University Technology Services – Contractual Services group created this system based on input from IT staff and other faculty, staff and students on the USC campus. The system has been tested and under review during 2005-2006 and was implemented on April 3, 2006 to the University community.

Who is responsible for submitting these messages?
The IT Connection is broken down into several roles: Super-users, Group Administrators, Help Desk, Technicians and University faculty, staff and students. Technicians are primarily the people who submit outages, but on occasion, Group Administrators and Help Desk staff can submit messages.

What are the different ways that I can view messages from the IT Connection?
There are several ways to receive information from the IT Connection.

1. E-mail:  Subscribe to the IT Connection by logging into the system and clicking on Email Notification from the tabs at the top above the Calendar. From there, you can list specifically what types of messages you want and how frequently you want them.

2. Text Messaging: When you subscribe to the IT Connection, you can provide a text messaging address that these notifications will be sent to. Keep in mind, there is a 120 character limit on the text messages generated, so you will not be able to read the entire message. However, you will see the most important information then be able to check out the details when you have access to your computer and Internet.

3. RSS: Stands for Really Simple Syndication and allows you to receive messages from the IT Connection in your RSS viewer. For more information about RSS, please visit http://uts.sc.edu/itbulletin/comments.php?id=1170_0_1_0_C .

4. Web view: Even if you are not subscribed to the IT Connection, you can view the calendar and list of all the IT Connection messages. Simply login (using your network username and password) to view the Calendar. You can view any message, including change windows and freeze dates from University Technology Services.

Can my department/college use this system for our messages too?
Other areas that would like to use the IT Connection to provide consistent messages to the University community may request information from UTS – Contractual Services, at 777-7366.

Are there certain times that outages are planned or dates when no changes can take place?
Yes, UTS has created change windows and freeze dates that IT staff must use when planning maintenance and other changes. These are:

Change Maintenance Windows

BEGINNING		ENDING
Tuesday	6:00 PM	Tuesday	11:30 PM
Wednesday	2:00 AM	Wednesday	6:00 AM
Friday	6:00 AM	Friday	8:00 AM
Saturday	2:00 AM	Saturday	6:00 AM
Saturday	8:00 PM	Sunday	12:00 PM

Freeze Dates

BEGINNING	ENDING
January 7, 2008  12:00:00 AM	January 26, 2008  12:00:00 AM
April 21, 2008  12:00:00 AM	May 9, 2008  12:00:00 AM
May 30, 2008  12:00:00 AM	June 1, 2008  12:00:00 AM
June 23, 2008  12:00:00 AM	July 8, 2008  12:00:00 AM
August 7, 2008  12:00:00 AM	August 10, 2008  12:00:00 AM
August 14, 2008  12:00:00 AM	September 1, 2008  12:00:00 AM
December 1, 2008  12:00:00 AM	December 17, 2008  12:00:00 AM

In addition, there are certain freeze dates that UTS staff abide by, such as exam weeks, grading cycles, move-in weekend, etc. These will be listed on the Calendar View within the IT Connection.

There is a scheduled change that conflicts work I am planning … What should I do?
If you see a conflict with a planned outage or emergency change, please contact the Help Desk at 777-1800 immediately.

When the network is down how will I receive messages, since my e-mail may not be accessible?
If the network is unavailable or e-mail access is unavailable, you can always call the Help Desk at 777-1800 to find out more information about the problem. Other methods of communication, such as text messaging (this is why it may be helpful to provide a text message address when subscribing to the IT Connection), RSS feeds, or traditional methods such as voicemail may be appropriate.