SOFTWARE UPDATES: bringing it and end users together

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SOFTWARE UPDATES bringing it and end
userstogether

• Joan Bowen
• Celeste McCormick
• Lewis-Clark State College

Nwdug 2012
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ABOUT YOUR PRESENTERS
Joan Bowen Application Specialist Registrars
Office Lewis-Clark State College 500 8th
Ave Lewiston ID 83501 208-792-2806 jebowen_at_lcsc.
edu
Celeste McCormick Manager of Administrative
Computing Information Technology Lewis-Clark
State College 500 8th Ave Lewiston ID
83501 208-792-2888 cmmccormick_at_lcsc.edu
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HISTORICAL background

• R13 to R 16 conversion
• Mock Registration
• Creation of Datatel Advisory Committee (DAC)
• Need for better communication between IT and
  Users
• No Us versus Them
• Major Stakeholders
• Application Specialists roles
• Admission Office
• Registrars Office
• Financial Aid Office
• Controllers Office (Business Office)

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THEN COMES R18...

• Opportunity New protocol for IT
• New tools for downloading software updates
• New emphasis on IT research before loading
  updates
• Goal IT preparedness
• Anticipate potential impact to the system
• Recommend specific testing by end users
• Address any custom impact

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SOFTWARE UPDATE CYCLE

• Two month cycle
• Load updates every other month
• Standing outage 5-8am every 2nd Friday of the
  month
• Updates retrieved on weekly basis
• Updates are NOT installed yet
• Research can be conducted in smaller, more
  manageable batches
• IT and end users are constantly aware of what
  updates are coming next
• IT researches the updates publishes info about
  them for the end user

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Reasons for the spreadsheet

• Notify users about what updates are coming next
  and help them understand them better
• Keep track of ITs testing and research
• Provide a snapshot of the impact of the full
  batch of updates
• Serve as a roadmap for the programmer responsible
  for installing the updates

Yes, we do hope to automate this
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DISCLAIMER

• ITs research and recommendations are NOT a
  substitute for end user research and testing
• This disclaimer is posted on both the intranet
  and the spreadsheet 

The information that IT provides in the
spreadsheet has two goals first, to identify and
(if necessary) address any impact that the
updates will have on customized processes
second, to summarize IT's understanding of its
scope and offer recommendations for particular
areas to test.  The information that we provide
in the spreadsheet is in no way intended to
supplant or substitute for the full Answernet
documentation and is intended to supplement the
full Answernet documentation along with your own
assessments and testing.
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SOFTWARE UPDATE TIMELINE

• Weeks 1 through 6 (every Monday)
• Latest updates retrieved from Datatel into LPR
• Updates are NOT installed
• Latest updates are listed in a spreadsheet
  (including DMI updates)
• Latest updates are distributed among programmers
  for research
• Programmers present results of research for last
  weeks updates
• Spreadsheet is posted on the intranet

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SOFTWARE UPDATE TIMELINE

• Week 6 (Monday) Cut-off date
• No more updates will be retrieved from Datatel
  after this date
• Week 6 (Friday) Live cloned to Test
• Week 7 (Monday)
• All updates installed in Development and Test
• Testing begins
• Week 8 (Thursday) User sign-off
• Week 8 (Friday) Updates loaded into Live

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RETRIEVing UPDATES
SU/Answernet Description Date retrieved from Datatel Installed? Go live date Pre-requisite SUs Pre/post install steps What does the SU deliver? What are users recommended to do about it? What does IT need to do about it? Has IT done its tasks?
The information that IT provides in the spreadsheet has two goals first, to identify and (if necessary) address any impact that the updates will have on customized processes second, to summarize IT's understanding of its scope and offer recommendations for particular areas to test.  The information that we provide in the spreadsheet is in no way intended to supplant or substitute for the full Answernet documentation and is intended to supplement the full Answernet documentation along with your own assessments and testing.  The information that IT provides in the spreadsheet has two goals first, to identify and (if necessary) address any impact that the updates will have on customized processes second, to summarize IT's understanding of its scope and offer recommendations for particular areas to test.  The information that we provide in the spreadsheet is in no way intended to supplant or substitute for the full Answernet documentation and is intended to supplement the full Answernet documentation along with your own assessments and testing.  The information that IT provides in the spreadsheet has two goals first, to identify and (if necessary) address any impact that the updates will have on customized processes second, to summarize IT's understanding of its scope and offer recommendations for particular areas to test.  The information that we provide in the spreadsheet is in no way intended to supplant or substitute for the full Answernet documentation and is intended to supplement the full Answernet documentation along with your own assessments and testing.  The information that IT provides in the spreadsheet has two goals first, to identify and (if necessary) address any impact that the updates will have on customized processes second, to summarize IT's understanding of its scope and offer recommendations for particular areas to test.  The information that we provide in the spreadsheet is in no way intended to supplant or substitute for the full Answernet documentation and is intended to supplement the full Answernet documentation along with your own assessments and testing.  The information that IT provides in the spreadsheet has two goals first, to identify and (if necessary) address any impact that the updates will have on customized processes second, to summarize IT's understanding of its scope and offer recommendations for particular areas to test.  The information that we provide in the spreadsheet is in no way intended to supplant or substitute for the full Answernet documentation and is intended to supplement the full Answernet documentation along with your own assessments and testing.  The information that IT provides in the spreadsheet has two goals first, to identify and (if necessary) address any impact that the updates will have on customized processes second, to summarize IT's understanding of its scope and offer recommendations for particular areas to test.  The information that we provide in the spreadsheet is in no way intended to supplant or substitute for the full Answernet documentation and is intended to supplement the full Answernet documentation along with your own assessments and testing.  The information that IT provides in the spreadsheet has two goals first, to identify and (if necessary) address any impact that the updates will have on customized processes second, to summarize IT's understanding of its scope and offer recommendations for particular areas to test.  The information that we provide in the spreadsheet is in no way intended to supplant or substitute for the full Answernet documentation and is intended to supplement the full Answernet documentation along with your own assessments and testing.  The information that IT provides in the spreadsheet has two goals first, to identify and (if necessary) address any impact that the updates will have on customized processes second, to summarize IT's understanding of its scope and offer recommendations for particular areas to test.  The information that we provide in the spreadsheet is in no way intended to supplant or substitute for the full Answernet documentation and is intended to supplement the full Answernet documentation along with your own assessments and testing.  The information that IT provides in the spreadsheet has two goals first, to identify and (if necessary) address any impact that the updates will have on customized processes second, to summarize IT's understanding of its scope and offer recommendations for particular areas to test.  The information that we provide in the spreadsheet is in no way intended to supplant or substitute for the full Answernet documentation and is intended to supplement the full Answernet documentation along with your own assessments and testing.  The information that IT provides in the spreadsheet has two goals first, to identify and (if necessary) address any impact that the updates will have on customized processes second, to summarize IT's understanding of its scope and offer recommendations for particular areas to test.  The information that we provide in the spreadsheet is in no way intended to supplant or substitute for the full Answernet documentation and is intended to supplement the full Answernet documentation along with your own assessments and testing.   
32616.74 Colleage Student and Core Summer Bundle Updates 2008.07.07 none 8-Aug            
32996.44 Advancement Update and Membership Delivery 2008.07.07 none 8-Aug            
36638.63 Retention Alert Follow-up - Phase 3 2008.07.07 none 8-Aug            
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RESEARCHing updates
SU/Answernet Description Date retrieved from Datatel Installed? Go live date Pre-requisite SUs Pre/post install steps What does the SU deliver? What are users recommended to do about it? What does IT need to do about it? Has IT done its tasks?
38749.82 Saved List Utilities Update 2008.06.16 none 8-Aug All pre-reqs already installed None SLC now allows a continuation character "/" at the end of each paragraph line. SLP will not error out if 100 or more person IDs are entered. Test SLC and SLP for functionality. Nothing N/A
39274.81 WA312Teamsite hyperlinks maintenance 2008.06.16 none 8-Aug 30680.15 (WebAdvisor 3.1.2) None WebAdvisor hyperlink processing is now more flexible for developers, which improves the interface for end users. Users are requested to test WebAdvisor. IT needs to test all WebAdvisor links. Not yet
37614.04 Update to WebAdvisor Transcript (WSTR) 25-Feb-08 None April 14 -live 24178.74, 32149.56, installed None The sort specification for the WebAdvisor Transcript was corrected to meet new specs of a revised UT sort routine now puts the data in the correct order doesn't put errors in UT.THROWN.ERRORS Users are requested to test the online transcript in WebAdvisor Custom version of the transcript (XWESTS01B) was modified to meet the new specs of the sort routine now puts the data in order oldest to newest. The modified page will go live with the SUs. Not yet
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RESEARCHING DMI UPDATES
SU/Answernet Description Date retrieved from Datatel Installed? Go live date Pre-requisite SUs Pre/post install steps What does the SU deliver? What are users recommended to do about it? What does IT need to do about it? Has IT addressed the impact?
38476.37 Web Payment Enhancements - DMI Update 5/20/2008 Live 13-Jun This update must be installed prior to loading and implementing SU31056.78-1805. This software update contains new DMI components needed to support the Web Payment Enhancements project. Nothing DMI updates deal with IT tasks. They facilitate the installation and function of associated software updates. Yes. IT has reviewed this update.
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USER Testing Process

• Access to Answernet by Application Specialists to
  research software updates
• Communication via e-mail (reply to all)
• Steps involved
• Admission Office
• Creates 6-12 records in Test Account
• Differing Criteria
• Degree vs. Non-Degree
• Residency Status
• Registrars Office
• Different scenarios
• Full-time vs. part-time
• Restrictions (Holds)
• Break all rules

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User Testing Process

• Financial Aid Office
• Import ISIR records
• Create Financial Aid packages for students
• Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP)
• Controllers Office (Business Office)
• Billing scenarios
• Student Receivables - Financial Aid Transmittal
• Notify Registrars office for schedule changes
  affecting billing
• Accounts Receivable Accounts Payable
• Sponsored Billing

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COMMUNICATION WITH it

• Report concerns during time that testing is
  within the individual offices
• Showstoppers may require additional meeting time

• Get IT involved in finding solutions
• Nothing to LIVE until all stakeholders approve
• Approval posted on the intranet

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Other Considerations

• WebAdvisor
• Test Normal Processes at least once through web
• Registration
• Grading
• Student Information for each office
• Changes to WebAdvisor require more extensive
  testing
• Release Highlights
• Review before software updates are loaded
• Learn new process in Test environment
• Create new security classes for new mnemonics
  delivered in release

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IT TESTING RESPONSIBILITIES

• Test only those updates with information or
  instructions under What does IT need to do about
  it?
• Divide updates among programmers to distribute
  the testing tasks
• Address any custom impact
• Assist users as needed

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Questions?

• Ask us!