McCombs School of Business
Media Services : News and Tech Updates
01.14.08
McCombs Improvements: Check out what's new around the McComb's complex:
  • In the CBA building, rooms 4.304, 4.324, 4.326, 4.328, 4.330, 4.332, 4.344 and 4.348 all have document cameras
  • The GSB Cohort rooms have new DVD players
  • UTC rooms 1.116 and 1.118 have new glass projection screens (Please don't write on the screens! Chalk, pens, etc. ruin them)
  • The UTC  auditoriums (rooms 2.102 and 2.112) have new seating, carpet and paint. Nice
  • The 3rd and 4th floors of the UTC have a new coat of paint
10.01.07
 New Building Maps (Now with UTC!): The floor maps for the McCombs building complex now reflect the many transformations that have occurred recently (accurate as of 7.12.07). Check them out at:

http://www.mccombs.utexas.edu/media/BuildingMaps.asp
10.01.07
Updated McCombs Kiosks: The MSB kiosks have undergone a nip/tuck and they're now sporting a clean new look that's sure to please.
08.29.07
MSB Media Lab Moving: The Media Lab is now located in the basement of the UTC building, in UTC 1.110. Stop by and check out the larger, fancier lab.
01.18.07
Updates to the UTC 3rd and 4th Floor Classrooms: Classrooms on the 3rd and 4th floors of the UTC have received new LCD projectors and new smart-desk interfaces. Familiarize yourself here.
12.20.06
 MSB Wireless/Ethernet Access: Before using any application that accesses the University network through either a public Ethernet or wireless port, you must now open an internet browser application and login to the page that you are automatically directed to with your UTEID. If you have forgotten your UTEID, please visit the UT EID Self-Service Tools page for assistance. For additional Wireless/Ethernet instructions, please visit our Wireless/Ethernet Access page.

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Classroom 2000 Transformed into "Legacy Events Room" (LER): Construction is now complete on the Legacy Events Room. Click on the links to the left to see a few views of the new space.

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Click		 06.28.06
Classroom 2000 Transforming into Special Events Room III: Classroom 2000 (above the Hall of Honors) in the CBA building is becoming a new Special Events room. Part of the construction process involves lifting the entire structure with three 60-ton hydraulic jacks. We look forward to seeing this completed, it promises to be a visually striking addition to the McCombs school.

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UTC First Floor Renovation: The first floor of the UTC building is undergoing a major renovation. Look for new "smart" classrooms, better lighting and a more comfortable atmosphere when it is completed.

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04.28.06
 Data Theft from the McCombs School of Business: On April 21 a security breach was discovered in the primary administrative information system at the McCombs School of Business at The University of Texas at Austin. This system contains 197,000 individual records. Of these records at least 106,000 contain Social Security numbers and names. Among those in the system are Business School alumni, students (including students who have taken even one course at the Business School), admissions applicants, present and former faculty and staff, and corporate recruiters. For current information please visit: http://www.mccombs.utexas.edu/datatheft/
07.27.05
 New Equipment Available for Checkout: Media Services has some fresh tech ready for MSB students. Here ya go:
07.27.05
 MSB Wireless Upgrade and Expansion: The MSB wireless network is expanding! GSB 2.124 and 2.126 have been added!  The access points are getting faster! All of the access points are being upgraded to 802.11g, so you can cruise at superhighway speeds! (You must have an 802.11g wireless card to take advantage of the speed bump.)
07.27.05
 More Classroom Upgrades To Come: Beginning this Fall, CBA 4.304, 4.344 and 4.322 will get multimedia upgrades. For a quick reference of what your room can do, go here. Go Lance.
07.25.05
 Classroom Upgrades: 6 MSB classrooms now have upgraded multimedia capabilities. Lucky rooms: CBA 4.338, 4.340, 4. 342, 4.348 and UTC 3.120 and 4.120. For a quick reference of what your room can do, go here.
01.18.05
 Wireless World: UT Wireless service is now available in the McCombs Plaza. Sit down, log on, and drink coffee.
10.05.04
 Dub Your DVD's: Media Services now charges $1.00/per copy plus media cost for DVD duplication. Check our Service prices here.
08.16.04
 More Multimedia: GSB 2.124 and 2.126 have been recently overhauled and equipped with the latest in multimedia gadgetry. The new rooms are scheduled to be ready for the Fall semester, and they come equipped with LCD Projectors, DVD, CD, VHS, Laptop Projection  Custom Lighting, and more. Check them out at GSB 2.124 and GSB 2.126.
07.13.04
 Wireless Access: Wireless connectivity is creeping throughout the McCombs Business Complex.  Areas currently covered are:
  • The Atrium on the 3rd floor of the CBA building
  • The MediaLab in UTC 1.110
  • The 1st, 3rd and 4th floors of the UTC
  • The Carpenter Family MBA Student Leadership Center in the GSB building
  • The Hall of Honors in the CBA building

You will need to have a valid UTEID (have you forgotten your UTEID? Go here) and a wireless network card (buy one at Media Services) to use this service. There will be wireless network access in the Reliant Reading Room in the near future.

 
07.13.04
Room Updates: Two new state-of-the-art multimedia classrooms for Fall '04:
  • GSB 2.124 and 2.126 have undergone a complete transformation. For a list of their capabilities and instructions on how to use them, go here.

 
01.28.04
Room Updates: We've been working on a multitude of projects since our last update, here's a run-down:
  • GSB 2.120 and 2.122 have larger screens and new floors
  • Work on the new Behavioral  Lab is about to be completed, and it will feature a new observation room, control room and PC lab
  • The new Executive Education classrooms will be finished by mid February and they will now have built-in translator booths and translation equipment
  • The Special Events room is getting a new computer projection unit which has the unique ability to change it's orientation from long/narrow to short/wide
  • The Faculty Conference room in CBA should have built-in computer projection by mid/late March
CNN
 audio
in
atrium		 01.23.04
 Listen to CNN in the MSB Atrium: Now you can watch CNN on the atrium TV's and listen to the audio by tuning in to 88.1 FM on your portable radio. Yep, we have an FM transmitter pumping out the CNN audio on 88.1 FM, check it out.

01.20.04
 Dub Your Tapes: Media Services can now create DVD's from your VHS tapes. Bring them on.
01.20.04
MSB Upgrade: We are delighted to announce that the MSB atrium will be the new site for an O's restaurant food hut. Get your breakfast tacos here. The latest reports say that it should open in early February 2004.

03.11.03
 Spring Break: CBA 4.344 and CBA 4.248 will receive a ceiling mounted computer/video projector. This will make it easier on faculty to use their laptops for presentations; no reservation is needed any longer. For video we will roll in a VCR, which will then also be displayed over the projector. However you will need to reserve the VCR cart.
03.03.03
 Update News: All of the VCRs in the UTC, GSB and CBA media lecterns have been exchanged with new models; this should resolve the failure problems that we experienced in the last two semesters.

Future Updates: All media lecterns will receive new audio modules which were developed in-house and will address all of the current issues, like computer sound problems and hums. The current modules were pre-manufactured and could not accommodate all of the built-in equipment as well as that brought in by users.
We will also replace all of the computer video cables to make the lecterns more compatible with the new smaller-type notebook computers. The current plugs do not make good contact when the VGA plugs are slightly recessed in the notebook.

01.03.03
Spring 2003 Projects: We picked up some loose ends over the Christmas break and gave GSB 2.124 an overhaul.
We are running a prototype test on a new video player for our lecterns, due to the overly sensitive mechanism in the current model and too many failures when the tape is not inserted correctly.
The BBR Video Conferencing Facility gets a major overhaul, simplifying the user interface and upgrading some components which did not work to our satisfaction last semester.

01.03.03
Summer 2003 Projects:
Behavior Lab  Media Services together with the Marketing department will construct and equip a new behavior lab on the 6th floor in CBA. The new facility will be more spacious and have state of the art equipment to make it easier for the operator to achieve satisfactory results. The current facility still has the recording equipment from 15 years ago installed. The new layout allows for observation of study groups and discussions, as well as mock store fronts. A large observation room gives up to 15 people the opportunity to observe life.
The computer lab section will get new computers and flat screen monitors, this will give us more desktop space in the carrels so they can also be used for writing assignments. Computer monitoring software allows the instructor to observe actions the student takes and analyze the decision process. The PCs can also be used for NetMeeting and teleconferencing through a small desktop camera on each workstation.

Executive Education  We will build new classrooms for the executive education program on the 5th floor in GSB. The room is devisable into two independent classrooms when only 32 or less seats are needed to allow for simultaneous teaching in both halves. Besides the MSB Standard in projection capabilities, one of the rooms will have equipment allowing the capability for 3 simultaneous language translation streams built in so our international classes can have digital quality audio instead our current portable system. These will be very nice rooms when completed and we are very proud of being able to play a major role in the construction and installation of this top of the line facility.


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11.08.01
The BBR Videoconferencing Suite is technology complete, and is now having it's interface rewritten for ease of use. It will be available for faculty, staff and classes that require videoconferencing. It should be ready for business soon and the specs are pretty impressive, here is a bit of what you can expect:
A beautiful new wired conference table with network and power connections for laptops, as well as the command console touch-screen with which the room is controlled. The touch-screen's interface is web-enabled, which allows the controller to sit anywhere in the room (or anywhere in the world for that matter!) There are three table microphones, one wireless Mic, DVD, CD, VCR players and VCR and audio tape record. A Proxima digital projector can be used with the remote-controlled screen to project from any of the available video sources. The Crestron videoconferencing system has three auto tracking video cameras that employ face recognition to automatically follow a person around the room, freeing a speaker from sitting at the table. The conferencing system uses two wide-format plasma screens, enabling a user to read a presentation off one screen while viewing the remote party on the other.

Summer 2002 Projects:
UTC: All media classrooms in the UTC building conform to our new media system standards. 24 rooms in the UTC have improved lighting and new desk/lecterns with VCR, DVD players and computer connectivity all displaying on the large rear projection screen. A user can also record from an external camera with the VCR, allowing faculty and students to record their presentations for later review. Cameras can be checked out at the Media Service counter in GSB 3.132 for the duration of the class.
Control of all equipment is from a touch panel which allows us to keep the desk surface flat, without any protruding buttons. Computer connectivity is available through a VGA cable hidden under a flap in a nook on the desktop. Network, audio and power jacks are also provided to allow the user to connect their own cables.

GSB: The MBA Cohort rooms on the third floor in GSB are completely remodeled, with the orientation of each room rotated by 180 degrees. Rear projection was deleted and changed to front projection, which has no reflection of the room and a higher contrast allowing for greater visibility.
The lighting was upgraded to give the instructor zone control instead of just on or off as it was before. The room size increased as well due to the deletion of the large projection room, this allowed for additional seating. All student seats have power and network access to enable the usage of laptops during lectures. The ceiling speakers were removed and a BOSE speaker system installed for superior sound during presentation. The front of each room now has two full size projection screens side by side, which will allow for simultaneous use of computer projection and overhead projectors. 20' of white board surface is in the front of the room and it runs on double speed motors giving you only a five second delay before the whiteboard is available.
Lectern/Desk configurations are very similar to the UTC rooms and at a push of a button the desk converts into a full size stand-up lectern.

Technology changes
There will no longer be a built-in PC in these rooms, and slide projection will be deleted as well. If a faculty member or guest is unable to provide his or her own computer, we have laptops available for check-out in GSB 3.132 which is right behind the Cohort rooms, and if needed we will set-up slide projectors for presentations as well.
Added technologies from the current systems are DVD/CD player and VHS recording capability.

The MBA Lounge will now be located behind the Cohort rooms, adjacent to the study rooms. Technology in this facility will consist of projection in the conference room and a large TV in the lounge section, as well as an internet bar which allows for several laptop users to connect to the network and power.
The second conference room is equipped with network access in the conference table as well as connectivity for an audio conference phone, portable teleconferencing should be available by Spring or Summer 2003.
A new projection system in the UTC Auditoriums will enable all users to project simultaneously up to three computers or video sources, or the same source on up to three screens. This will give better visibility to the students and allows for more flexibility in the lecture set-up. In addition to three projection screens per room, we will also have document cameras offering an alternative to overhead projection. The document cameras will make the images more visible to the back of the room and resolve the key-stoning effect from the screen that you experience due to the steep angle which the image is projected onto the screen.
We still will not allow self service in the auditoriums, our projectionist, Bill, will continue to assist you from 7:30 to 5:00 every day with your needs.

We will also play a role in the FTTC upgrade and other small facilities


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