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MyUB now available to all of UB
By SUE WUETCHER
Reporter Editor
MyUB, the personalized portal that brings all of UB's Web resources right to the user's desktop, now is available to all university students, faculty and staff.
MyPage allows users to customize the window, depending upon their interests.
And one of the key benefits of the university-wide rollout is the potential to improve university-wide communication and services, MyUB developers say.
"Everyone suffers from duplication of communication from multiple sources; now there's a way to streamline communication in a consistent manner," says Voldemar Innus, vice president and chief information officer. "We now have choices," Innus says, noting that not every communication is "mission critical," requiring distribution via university-wide email.
The more that university-wide email is used for things that are not mission critical, the more it devalues the communication, he says, pointing out that many people automatically delete email from university-wide listservs because they've been inundated by communication that is not of interest to them.
MyUB (http://myub.buffalo.edu) offers different places to organize communications, he points out. For instance, the information channel "Important Announcements" is for mission-critical items, such as the closing of the university or the announcement of a new president or provost, that are of interest to all members of the university community. And "Need to Know" houses communications that have a critical impact, such as relevant deadlines, financial information, health and safety, and quality of life issues.
Moreover, MyUB can "fine-grain" information, Innus says. For example, information that is only of interest to faculty members can be sent only to faculty members via MyUB; information for senior engineering majors can be sent only to senior engineering majors.
"People can target their messages to the people who want and need them; it's less spam and more effective communication," he says. "It frees up email to do what it does best."
Anyone wishing to submit an announcement for dissemination through MyUB should email ubinfo@buffalo.edu.
Innus notes that a recent redesign of MyUB streamlined the interface, provided for faster downloads and added a "MyPage" feature as a second window to MyUB. While an individual's MyUB page provides information targeted to the user depending on his or her status at the university—a faculty member in the College of Arts and Sciences, for instance, or a senior architecture major—the MyPage allows the user to customize the page depending upon his or her individual interests. Many users add the weather, UB news, Buffalo News headlines, events or favorite Web links to the page, he notes. MyPage also allows users to rearrange information channels, change font size, even change the color palate, he says, comparing the exercise to redecorating one's home.
"This is my tool and it should be organized the way I think," he says.
There is, however, one constant on everyone's MyPage: the "need to know" channel, he says.
In order to gain perspective on how to improve MyUB, steering groups have been formed through the Administrative System Advisory Board (ASAB), says Elias Eldayrie, associate vice president for information technology. The student group is chaired by Katherine Ferguson, associate vice provost and director of enrollment marketing and communication services; the faculty group is chaired by E. Bruce Pitman, professor of mathematics and associate dean for research in the College of Arts and Sciences, and the staff group is chaired by James Nadzbruth, associate vice president for student affairs, and Thomas Okon, manager of technology services.
Moreover, the MyUB team conducts a user survey every spring to gauge how the portal is being used, Eldayrie notes.
He points out that MyUB has proven to be useful—and thus popular—among members of the UB community.
"MyUB is a virtual one-stop shop. It provides our students, faculty and staff the ability to personalize Web-based services according to their specific needs," he says. "Consequently, UB's constituents have embraced MyUB's effectiveness and incorporated its functionality into their day-to-day life at the university."
Data backs up that assertion. According to a "snapshot" survey taken between Sept. 15 and Oct. 15, 2003, 84 percent of active students—and 93 percent of undergraduates—used MyUB.
As of last October, 37 percent of faculty—defined broadly as tenure-track faculty members, as well as those carrying the title of instructor, teacher or lecturer—have used MyUB. Of those faculty responding to the spring 2003 user survey, 64 percent used MyUB either daily or several times a week.
Figures on staff use are not available since staff members did not have access to the portal until fall 2003.