Many factors influence education nowadays. Educational institutions are faced with budget cuttings, outdated IT, data security management and the willingness to integrate remote learning at home. Virtualization technologies provide innovative solutions to the problems. The paper presents an original educational infrastructure using virtualization…

This paper presents a mobile learning application for a learning course at higher education level. Based on the RSS feed technology, the presented mobile application establishes an in-time communication channel between the instructor and his/her students to keep them up-to-date with all course important dates, instructions and information in…

In the process of textbook management of universities, the flow of storage, collection and check of textbook is quite complicated and daily management flow and system also seriously constrains the efficiency of the management process. Thus, in order to combine the information management model and the traditional management model, it is necessary…

The need to maintain an unpolluted learning environment is no easy task for schools and districts that have incorporated social networking sites into their educational life. The staff and teachers at Blaine High School in Minnesota's Anoka-Hennepin District 11 had been considering the pros and cons of establishing a school Facebook page when the…

Too often, organizations make the mistake of treating malware infections as a series of independent occurrences. Each time a malicious program is discovered, IT simply cleans up or rebuilds the affected host, and then moves on with routine operational tasks. Yet, this approach doesn't allow the institution to keep up with the increasingly…

Over the past decade electronic security technology has evolved from an exotic possibility into an essential safety consideration. Before resorting to high-tech security solutions, school officials should think carefully about the potential for unintended consequences. Technological fixes may be mismatched to the problems being addressed. They can…

When an individual hears the term risk, he/she usually thinks of the financial institutions whose mismanagement of risk was instrumental in causing the 2008 financial crash. But all organizations, including colleges and universities, face various types and levels of risk, which threaten to harm the institutions and their ability to fulfill their…

The sourcing of IT systems and services takes many shapes in higher education. Campus central IT organizations are increasingly responsible for the administration of enterprise systems and for the consolidation of operations into a single data center. Specialized academic and administrative systems may be run by local IT departments. In addition,…

It has been said that a computer lets a person make more mistakes faster than any other invention in human history, with the possible exceptions of handguns and tequila. Computers also make mistakes on their own, whether they're glitches, conflicts, bugs, crashes, or failures. Avoiding glitches is considerably less frustrating than trying to fix…

For some colleges and professors, classified research promises prestige and money. Powerhouses like the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Johns Hopkins University have for decades run large classified laboratories. But most other universities either do not allow such research or conduct it quietly, and in small doses. The…

The education sector remains abuzz with cost-cutting expectations despite pressures to increase services. Automation of costly manual tasks could save funds for many of these institutions, specifically in data protection. The IT departments of schools and universities can take advantage of a proven cost-savings opportunity in data protection that…

Schools fear the predatory behavior that lurks around social networking sites, where the exchange of personal information can make users sitting ducks for hackers, thieves, cyberbullies, and scammers. So they're caught in what appears to be an all-or-nothing choice: take advantage of the academic opportunities that social networking sites can…

No matter how many car washes or bake sales schools host to raise money, adding funds to their coffers is a recurring problem. This perpetual financial difficulty makes expansive technology purchases or changes seem like a pipe dream for school CIOs and has education technologists searching for ways to stretch money. In 2005, state K-12 school…

This paper describes the implementation of an information security program at a large Midwestern university. The initial work is briefly summarized and improvements that have occurred over time are described. Current activities and future plans are discussed. This paper offers insight and lessons learned for organizations that have or are…

In this article, the author discusses some features of Windows Vista that may be of interest to teachers and/or their students. These are: (1) User Account Control; (2) Windows Firewall; (3) Windows Backup; (4) Parental Controls; (5) Windows Sidebar and Gadgets; (6) Instant Search; and (7) Windows ReadyBoost.