Hello Everyone:
In this update:
- Students, faculty, and staff: New Phiz Campus Directory inside of Malone Xpress
- Staff and faculty: Automated Purchase Order system rollout.
- The Owls are coming. Classroom cameras are changing
- Upgraded Apple/Mac Computer lab JC207 and JC205
New Phiz! (Campus Directory) inside of Malone Xpress
We are pleased to announce that the "Phiz" our campus directory has recently been updated by Levi Muriuki and our Jenzabar summer intern Corvay Chapman. Here are some highlights of the new system:
- Everyone: Mobile friendly so it is more useable when on a smartphone or other mobile device
- Everyone: Improved search. Search results update dynamically while typing.
- Faculty: Improved group interface allows faculty to see their automatically generated course lists (think photo directory so you can learn all your students' names and faces) for any current or future term classes. Previously you had to wait until the class was "in term" (a couple days before class started) before you could see the group.
- Improved information security measures
- Improved look and feel - It now matches the rest of the Malone Xpress platform.
Pleasse check it out on Malone Xpress and give us feedback! There is a link to a feedback form at the top of the Phiz page.
Automated Purchase Order [PO] system rollout
We have been working on an automated method for creating and approving purchase orders for quite some time. Here are some highlights of the new system:
- Automatic PO numbering - you no longer need to call the business office for a number
- Automatic approval routing depending on the account numbers selected in the system and total amount of the PO.
- Choose invoice or CC as the payment type.
- Project mapping if the purchase is part of a larger project or capital request.
- Automatic GL balance lookups for accounts which you have been set up to see in Malone Xpress.
- Soft-encumbrance: This looks at the balance in GL and subtracts any other purchase order amounts which are active in the PO system so you don't accidentally spend the same money twice!
- Check the status of your existing PO's using a saved query.
- The person who originated the PO request will receive an email with a PDF copy of the PO that can be sent to the vendor when the request is approved.
- Once approved, invoices related to the PO can be attached and will automatically be routed for payment when you/they are ready.
We are ready to begin rolling this out to departments one at a time. Please reach out to the IT Help Desk if you are interested in being an early adopter.
The Owls are coming. Classroom cameras will be changing
The Owl cameras are the classroom cameras we originally ordered for the classrooms. They should all arrive sometime in the month of October and will be immediately deployed to classrooms. The Owl cameras will be placed closer to the center of each room since they can "see" 360 degrees. These units have the ability to focus and show whomever is talking through the use of directional microphones.
Upgraded Apple/Mac Computer lab JC207 and JC205
New iMacs have been installed in the JC207 Mac lab. Overflow workstations in JC205 next door have also been updated. The lab is now 4K video editing capable. Let the IT Help Desk know if you have questions or are looking for a particular software package to be installed. Remember that you can log into the lab availability portlet on Malone Xpress:
to see whether a lab has available computers as well as what software is installed on each workstation. Remember that the lab availability tool only works if you are on campus.
