======================== SSC News, September, 1995 ======================== This is the SSC News. This monthly electronic newsletter will keep you informed about recent changes on the SSC computer networks. We hope this information will help improve communication between the SSC computing staff and all of you computer users out there. Inside this issue... SSC Town Meeting Announcing the SSC Web Page! SSC Training Sessions - Fall Semester 1995 Status of Network Improvements New Service from Consulting ODH is Now Available on EAGLE Reminder about Public Terminal Room Locking SSC Publications Announcements Consulting Question of the Month: Which Should I use, TELNET or SET HOST? User Survey from SPSS ---------------- SSC Town Meeting ---------------- WHEN: Friday, September 15, 1995, 12:00 Noon WHERE: SEWELL ROOM, 8417 SOCIAL SCIENCE Tom Flory, SSC Director, will preside over a Town Meeting to describe the anticipated evolution of the SSC computers. Plans are well underway to both improve service and reduce administrative overhead. This involves drastically reducing the number of host (VMS and UNIX) computers we have, replacing many older machines with one or a few much more powerful ones, and establishing a robust PC Local Area Network (LAN) around the Windows NT Server operating system running on a DEC alpha server. Just in the past year, we have reduced the VAX cluster from 28 nodes to 10 and installed a prototype NT server. We promise to keep the lecture short so there is plenty of time for discussion and questions. ---------------------------- Announcing the SSC Web Page! ---------------------------- The SSC now has a presence on the Web! The Web page contains information about our computers and network, services we provide including links to our local gophers, the organization of the SSC, etc.. Two SSC agencies, CDE and IRP, have also recently created web pages for their organizations--you can access them from the SSC home page. VMS users can check out our Web page using LYNX. UNIX users can browse the page using NETSCAPE from an X display or LYNX from other terminal types. The CDE Print Library also has a public terminal set up for using NETSCAPE. The SSC page is at the following address: https://www.ssc.wisc.edu. If you have not had an opportunity to learn to use LYNX or NETSCAPE, Wendy Brand will be teaching an SSC Training Session this fall. See the schedule below. ------------------------------------------ SSC Training Sessions - Fall Semester 1995 ------------------------------------------ Date Time Topic Room Instructor ---- ---- ----- ---- ---------- 9/1 11-12:30 VMS Basics I: Mail, Files, DCL, Helpline 4308 Hayes 9/11 3-4:30 VMS Basics I: Mail, Files, DCL, Helpline 2470 Flory 9/12 4-5 Internet Overview (listservers,etc...) 4452 Sandor 9/13 12-1 VMS Basics II: Text Editing with EVE 2470 Pan 9/14 4-5 VMS Basics III: Running Batch Jobs 2470 Hayes 9/18 10-11:30 UNIX Basics I: Files, Commands, Helpline 2470 Rodriguez 9/19 2:30-3:30 Intro to SAS (8 sessions: Tues/Thurs) 3432 Brown 9/20 1-2 WiscWorld (inc. FTP) for Windows from Home 3432 Flory 9/21 9-10:30 Intro to WordPerfect 2470 Clear 9/25 10-11 UNIX Basics II: vi Editor, Berkeley Mail 2470 Rodriguez 9/26 4-5 Gopher Explained: Shortcuts, Tips 4452 Sandor 9/27 1:30-3 Intro to PINE: A Menu Driven Mailer 2470 Wald 10/2 10-11 UNIX Basics III: Running Jobs 2470 Rodriguez 10/9 10-11 UNIX Basics IV:Customizing your Environment 2470 Rodriguez 10/10 10-11 3480,WORM,DAT,DISK...Where to put my data? 4452 Cooper 10/11 2-3 Internet Tools inc. FTP and TELNET 4452 Brand 10/16 10-11:30 UNIX Basics V: Manipulating Data 2470 Rodriguez 10/18 10:30-12 Extracting Data Interactively w/ BADGER 2470 Fassnacht 10/20 2-3 WiscWorld (inc. FTP) for Windows from Home 3432 Arnold 10/23,25 10-11 Intro to STATA 2470 McDermott 10/24 10-11 VMS Basics IV:Manipulating Data-ODH,XTRACT..4452 Cooper 10/25 2-3:30 WWW and its browsers (Netscape,Lynx,etc..) 4308 Brand Descriptions for each of the training sessions listed above may be found in SSCGOPHER. Note: All SSC training sessions require preregistration. If no one has preregistered for a course one week prior to its start date, the class may be canceled. To preregister for a class, send mail to SSCCLASS indicating which class(es) you plan to attend. You will be reminded about your preregistration through e-mail a day or two before the class begins. If no training session is offered for a topic you are interested in, please send mail to SSCCLASS requesting a session. We will schedule a session if a minimum of five people request training on a topic. --------------------------- New Service from Consulting --------------------------- Have you received a mail message from Helpline recently and wondered what it was for? Helpline is the software we use to log and track problems you report to CONSULTANT. At the request of the SSC steering committee, we now send an automated mail message to you after your question has been read and logged. You do not need to respond to this message; it is purely informational to let you know your request has been received. Soon, you will be able to use Helpline yourself to enter problems AND to search its database for answers to common problems. ----------------------------- ODH is Now Available on EAGLE ----------------------------- The title says it all! ODH on EAGLE should work exactly like it does on the other VMS nodes. ODH, which stands for "Our Data Handler", is a locally written program for extracting columns and cases from large data sets. We have done preliminary testing of ODH on EAGLE, but would appreciate any reports of problems you find. Just send mail to CONSULTANT. ------------------------------------------- Reminder about Public Terminal Room Locking ------------------------------------------- Just a reminder that the Public Terminal Room (Soc. Sci. 2470) will be locked at all times beginning September 5, 1995. If you plan on using the room, you will need to get authorization for the door access control system by filling out a "User Room Authorization Form" which is available in the Public Terminal Room, the I/O room, and outside of Social Science 4403. Details are in Bulletin. ------------------------------ SSC Publications Announcements ------------------------------ The following new publications are available for SSC users: How to Access Programs Contained in the Stata Technical Bulletin (#32) How to Forward Your VMS Mail to another Electronic Address (#36) SSC publications are available in the racks in the public terminal room, Soc. Sci. 2470 or from Consultant. Copies are also stored on-line in SSCGOPHER. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Consulting Question of the Month: Which Should I use, TELNET or SET HOST? ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Two network protocols connect the VMS computers with the UNIX computers: TCP/IP and DECnet. TCP/IP is the standard network protocol for UNIX and DECnet is the standard network protocol for VMS. When communicating with computers with the same operating system, you should use the implementation designed for that OS. For example, if you are logged on to EAGLE and you want to start a session on ROBIN, both VMS machines, use the DECnet command SET HOST ROBIN. If you are logged on to EUNICE and you want to start a session on NORMAN, both UNIX machines, use the TCP/IP command TELNET NORMAN (except in lower case). When communicating between VMS and UNIX, you should use TELNET. Using SET HOST on VMS to start a session on UNIX may result in unacceptably slow response time. --------------------- User Survey from SPSS --------------------- The marketing department of SPSS has circulated a User Survey to the SPSSX-L discussion group. It is fairly short and requests information about typical uses of SPSS software and input about future enhancements and developments. If you would like to consider participating, the file can be copied from STAFFDISK2:[100041]SPSS.MKT. The text includes the electronic mail address for returning the completed form. TO UNSUBSCRIBE FROM THIS NEWSLETTER, just reply to this mail message indicating you want to unsubscribe. We will remove you from the distribution list for future electronic mailings. If you ever change your mind, just notify the SSC Consultant or send mail to SSCNEWS asking to get back on the list.