How ITS Manages the Academic Software Catalog
- Moore, Chris S
The Academic Software Catalog includes over 100 applications that are installed in our classrooms and public computing spaces. The catalog of standard applications is refreshed annually based on license renewal, software utilization trends, and evolving needs of academic programs. This page outlines the relevant factors that establish the catalog as well as processes and requirements for deployment of software applications to classroom and individual workstations.
Academic Catalog Annual Updates
The standard applications in the Academic Software Catalog are generally enterprise license applications, meaning that ITS manages the license agreement with the vendor that allows the software to be installed broadly across the academic workstation fleet. By late spring in each year enterprise license renewals are either renewed or discontinued and this establishes the catalog for the upcoming academic year.
Requesting Supplemental Software for the Classroom
Course instructors may request supplemental software applications to be installed in our academic spaces to support teaching and curricular needs unique to their courses. Before requesting software or buying licenses, please read the information that follows to help ensure timely distribution of your software and that it is feasible and suitable for distribution.
Your Software Expertise
You are the expert of the software you’re requesting that is specialized to your specific course or program needs. Therefore, ITS needs you to facilitate access to all details relevant to the licensing and distribution of your requested application and be prepared to verify proper functioning once installed. Be prepared to act as the intermediary with the software vendor to provide the details that ITS needs to distribute your application.
Software Request Timeline and Deadlines
Please plan accordingly to meet all necessary timelines. Each software request will undergo a review process through which ITS can ensure it meets a relevant set of standards and requirements necessary for efficient and proper distribution. You need to provide the information that supports these requirements and standards.
The process to distribute software applications to academic workstations involves several phases to ensure requirements are met. In some cases, this can take weeks to complete. To minimize delays in processing your request please adhere to the software request deadlines for each semester below.
If you submit a software request after the deadline dates, ITS cannot commit to installing the software by the first day of classes or any specific delivery date. ITS may still be able to process the request and deploy the application if it meets all requirements, contingent upon available resources at the time.
Software Available on First Day of Semester | Deadline for Software Request Submission |
|---|---|
Fall semester | July 15 |
Spring semester | November 15 |
Software Requirements and Distribution Processes
The following review phases of the software request process outline details necessary for ITS to distribute software to academic workstations.
Functional Review and Rationale
The Academic Software Catalog includes numerous applications that meet the needs of most classes. Before submitting the software Request Form, please familiarize yourself with the catalog to see if the application your seek is already installed. Also, consider if an app that’s already deployed can meet your needs rather than requesting installation of software with redundant functionality. While the academic workstation fleet is modern and robust, overloading the hard drive or processor with applications can result in degraded computing performance. For this reason, please present a compelling rationale for your request for supplemental software. Additionally, if the software you request is not compatible the computing specs of the destination workstation(s), it cannot be installed.
Software License Review
Before requesting software, be sure that you have a license that allows ITS to install to academic workstations. Without this the software cannot be installed. Even if the software is free, there are often license terms involved that ITS must adhere to. Additionally, license activation methods can impact the time needed to make the software available. For example, activation might be handled through a license server or as part of the software installation itself. Consideration and implementation of these approaches add time to the process. Be aware of limitations to the number of workstations and/or concurrent users covered by the license. You need to provide all details about the software license and activation methods with your software request.
Information Security Review
INFO IN PROGRESS.
Software Deployment Method Review
ITS uses management tools to deploy software over the campus network to hundreds of academic workstations. To efficiently install your software, it needs to be compatible with this network deployment system. ITS will evaluate your requested software to determine if it compatible. If it cannot be installed in this manner, we might need to decline the request, or the process could require a significantly longer time to complete.