educause 2006 podcast - connecting your campus with sms
TRANSCRIPT
Connecting Your Campus with SMS
Russell Lindell, Sr. Software Applications Developer, Texas A&M University at Qatar
Ravi Kallianpur, Director of User Services & Instructional Technology, Texas A&M University at Qatar
Overview
• Texas A&M University at Qatar• Introduction to SMS
– Definitions and terms• TAMUQ’s implementation• Demonstration• Implementation for your campus• Questions
What Is Texas A&M University At Qatar?
• TAMU branch campus• Doha, Qatar• Fall of 2003• Qatar Foundation• College of Engineering
– Chemical– Electrical– Mechanical– Petroleum
Our Students
• 185 students• Planned enrollment - 600• 40% International
– 27 countries
• Very high use of mobile phones
Why Did TAMUQ Choose To Use SMS?
• Contacting applicants– Voicemail nonexistent – Lack of an email culture– Unable to reach applicants by phone
• High use of cell phones in the local culture• Decided to use SMS
SMS Gateway Solution
• Originally used staff cell phones• Ineffective for large groups of recipients • Slow composition of messages• CIO decided on web based interface for
convenience of use• Used existing authentication system for
only staff and faculty
SMS Vocabulary
Short Message Service (SMS): A service for sending messages of up to 160 characters to mobile phones.
SMS Gateway: A web site that lets you enter and send an SMS message.
SMS - Short Message Service
Also Known As:• Texting• Text Messages• SMSes• Texts
Key Benefits Of SMS Technology
• Instant reception of communication
• Low bandwidth requirements– SMS equivalent to 1
second of voice data
• Targeted audience• Global reach
When Should SMS Be Used?
• Time sensitive information• Supplement to other forms
of communications• Low bandwidth situations
– Natural / Manmade Disasters
• Email inaccessible or impractical
Possible Uses For SMS
• Emergencies– Natural / Manmade disasters– Jeanne Cleary Act
• Advisories– Traffic accident / Unscheduled maintenance– Weather advisories
• Instructor communications– Room location– Class time
Possible Uses For SMS
• Reminders– Library, Registration and Fees– Appointments
• Campus news and events– Sports scores & highlights– Student government elections– Club news & updates
• Contact during school holidays• Find out what your students
want / need
“I only wanted one pint today. Didn’t you get my text message?”
Disadvantages Of SMS
• Limited in length– 160 Characters
• Less than 100% participation among users– Cell phone ownership – Release phone number
• Potential for SMS SPAM• Unverified receipt
Things To Consider
• Policies– Purpose of the system– Who can use it– Scope of use– Cost to the recipient
• Procedures – Under what conditions is a message sent– Special conditions in an emergency situation
Things To Consider …
• Other considerations– Language support
• العربّية (Arabic)• 中文简体 (Mandarin) • ภาษาไทย (Thai)• Ρусский (Russian)
– SPAM: Don’t abuse the system
TAMUQ’s Implementation
• Custom SMS Gateway• Service provider for
message delivery• Development technologies
– ASP .NET– C#– Active Directory– SQL Server– Web Services
Features Of TAMUQ’s SMS Gateway
• Web based application• Integration with Active Directory
– Authentication– Address book
• Personal address books• Group messages• Message logging• Message tracking• Usage statistics
SMS Gateway Infrastructure
Demonstration
Please turn ON your cell phones!
Utilization
• Faculty use to notify students of assignments and exam reminders
• Admissions use to contact applicants
• Used to notify students of class changes
• Emergency notifications• ITS helpdesk• Removed aversion to text
messaging
Metrics: Messages Sent By Month
Metrics: Total Recipients By Month
Parameters Of Use
• Only faculty and staff have direct access– Students go through the department of
student affairs
• Both business and personal use– Incidental use
• No cost to the recipient
Third Party Solutions
• e2Campus– www.e2Campus.com– www.omnilert.com
• Rave Wireless - Rave Essentials– www.ravewireless.com
• TXT4schools– www.tonicdesigns.co.uk/html/txt4schools.html
Summary
• What is SMS• Benefits and Disadvantages• Appropriate Use• TAMUQ’s Custom Solution• Third Party Solutions• Slides on Educause website• Comments / Questions?
