Google Apps for CSU – an Update CHECO Presentation

1. April 8, 2008 Rusty Scott Google Apps for CSU – an UpdateCHECO Presentation

2. Outline • Background & Motivation • A Student-Driven Initiative • Our Pilot Program • Going Forward

3. Background and Motivation • What are we trying to solve? • First and foremost, Student Email • Additional communication services available • Document collaboration • Chat • Web site creation • Alumni Email for life (not just forwarding) • Faculty and staff can opt in • For collaboration with students • Advising (calendar)

4. Outsourcing Perspective • According to the Campus Computing Project: • In 2007, 555 2-year and 4-year institutions participated in the survey • Regarding outsourcing of student email services: • Nearly 10% currently do • 7 % are beginning to deploy in 07-08 • 10% will review programs this year

5. Properly Positioned

6. A Student-Driven Initiative • Spring ’07 • Presented concept to University Technology Fee Advisory Board (UTFAB) – thumb’s up. • Fall ’07 • Discussed with UTFAB, outsourced vs. in-house solutions for email and communications services • Primary concerns regarding outsourcing • Privacy • Legal issues • Support model • Trusting the vendor • Students met with both Microsoft and Google • Students analyzed the offerings • Resource constraints dictate that we pilot one • In a close vote, Google was endorsed.

7. The Pilot – GA for CSU • Students assess functionality & fit • ACNS assesses: • Integration • Technical • Provisioning • Authentication • Transition to alumni status • Migration tools

8. The Pilot – GA for CSU (con’t) • Authentication with local (CSU) credentials through locally developed web page • A new subdomain • rams.colostate.edu • Address: ename@rams.colostate.edu • Nickname (alias): First.Last@rams.colostate.edu • The Google Apps ‘Start Page’ • Lots of potential • Easy to use • Turn it off (for now) • Scope and creep issues • Successful login = Gmail interface • Access to docs, calendar, spreadsheets, presentations, sites

9. The GA Start Page

10. CSU ‘Start Page’

11. GA Email Interface

12. GA Docs

13. GA Calendar

14. GA Sites

15. GA Sites - Dashboard

16. GA Sites - Announcements

17. GA Sites - Files

18. GA Sites - Lists

19. Pilot Results • 75 users in the Pilot • Half students, half IT staff • Relatively low survey response • However, EVERY response was positive • UTFAB was unanimous-ish in endorsing Google

20. Issues with which to Wrangle • Integration with existing processes • Provisioning, including applicants • Transition to Alumni status/domain • Taking full advantage of another (big) infrastructure and their spam filtering • Changes to First.Last@colostate.edu • Personal websites • Is ‘sites’ good enough? • What’s the need given Facebook, Myspace, etc.?

21. More Wrangling • Migration • Wholesale migrations are possible, but sticky • Would only be for mail housed locally (not, for example, a hotmail account) • Supports Dovecot IMAP (we just transitioned) • Handles folders as well • Requires plain-text password(!) • Retail migrations issues • Local AuthN limits IMAP/drag & drop method • Would be nice, folder names = labels • Google’s Fetcher relies on POP • Timing

22. Going forward • Lacking show-stoppers, offer opt-in model for Fall ’08. • Eventual sunset date on undergraduate mail service, TBD. • This free lunch isn’t, but still worth the effort, IOHO.

23. Questions • Are most welcome