by Matt Arthur
The Internet of Things , Higher Education , and IT : How Do We Fit In ?
IoT will bring changes to your campus
■ The Oxford Online Dictionary says about IoT : “ The interconnection via the Internet of computing devices embedded in everyday objects , enabling them to send and receive data .”
■ From Wikipedia : “ The Internet of things ... is the internetworking of physical devices , vehicles ( also referred to as “ connected devices ” and “ smart devices ”), buildings , and other items — embedded with electronics , software , sensors , actuators , and network connectivity that enable these objects to collect and exchange data .”
■ An Overview of Privacy and Security Issues in The Internet of Things by Medaglia and Serbanati postulates that “… the main idea behind the Internet of Things concept is the ability to connect loosely defined smart objects and enable them to interact with other objects , the environment , or more complex and legacy computing devices .”
As we all know , all types of gadgets are getting smarter and talking to other gadgets . One interesting way the IoT is reaching the masses , interacting with and even controlling other IoT devices , is through intelligent personal assistants like Alexa , Cortana , Siri , and the plain-jane-named Google Assistant . An example of what this means is the recently announced plan by Carnival Corporation to use IoT as a wearable medallion that will usher in “ a new paradigm for guest interactions .” This includes no-key access to their staterooms , shipboard people finder , enhanced dining , and interactive gaming experiences and , of course , the ability to buy stuff without credit cards , cash , or any other standard transaction . Cool stuff .
What ’ s This All About ? How does this affect higher education — in particular , those of us in IT supporting higher ed ? Is this a repeat of the BYOD surge as more personally-owned computers , phones , game boxes , and DVRs came onto our campuses asking — even demanding — Internet access ? Is this another way for students living on campus to yet again keep us on our toes ? Are there real academic and research pursuits here ? Just how does IT fit in ?
First , let ’ s set some expectations for what I ’ m about to say . Anytime one starts reading a piece that begins with a Wikipedia definition , one should understand this is most likely not a scholarly pursuit . This is the case here . I hope to make us think both individually and collectively , postulate and pontificate just a bit , and maybe even provide a resource that might help you consider how to brace for the wave of IoT heading to a campus near you .
Long ago and far away in the early 2000s , it seemed all of our campus networking folks were vexed by the thought of faculty and staff bringing their own laptops and smart phones onto campus with the expectation that these personal devices would work , at work . Lots of time , energy , and focus was spent on how to make networks available for BYOD without drowning in government regulatory and legislative quicksand . I think we were all thankful to ACUTA ’ s robust and active Leg / Reg Committee that still provides us all with updates and sound advice along the way .
Technology and ResNet Support I spent my early years on campus helping develop the ResNet for our residential students . The struggles were early and often as we thought of ourselves as a technology support group trying to develop good customer service habits . That changed as we began to realize that our students needed support for more than just academic technology .
Where do residential students spend most of their time ? In or around their residence halls . As the technology available to our students and their expectations of support changed from basic computer lab access during certain hours to CATV , 24 / 7 computer clusters with residential computing consultants ( RCCs ), wi-fi , and smart phones , we had to take a long look at our support model . It was at that sweet spot in time and space that we moved to become a great customer service organization that , yes , also supports technology .
Once we stopped being threatened by new technologies or support for ones that we didn ’ t directly provide ; once we decided that allowing our residential students to make the most out of the spaces where they spent the most time ; once we stopped trying to dictate and decided to assist , enable , and encourage , that ’ s when the pendulum started to swing our way .
That ’ s also why all of our ResNet support folks quietly laughed at the consternation and concern on the faces of their networking and telecom brethren when BYOD hit the staff and faculty mainstream . It seems to me that the new wave is similar to the old wave , and I ’ m willing to wager our ResNet friends have been quietly dealing with IoT as a customer support issue while we struggle with it as a technology issue .
28 Winter 2017 ACUTA Journal