| Program Sessions |
Additional information will be published once it becomes available. |
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James Cook University Internet Accounting Project Due to exponentially rising internet access cost, James Cook University required a means to account for internet traffic and reduce the overall cost of providing internet access to its staff and student client base. The new Internet Accounting system, based on a package called Infranet from Portal Software meets this requirement by accounting for all incoming traffic through the web proxy server and the firewall. Using the Infranet Accounting system usage is attributed to individuals and it's flexibility allows management at any level from individual through to aggregations within Universities financial hierarchy. Infranet is used widely by ISP companies, however this is the first time it has been used by a University, so the solution developed with the assistance of Portal Professional Services Engineers involves solving some unique problems. The Internet accounting system interacts with existing corporate HR, finance and student information systems to automate tasks such as account maintenance, quota allocation, quota purchase and usage reports using perl and the Infranet API. The paper discusses the design, project management and successful implementation of the Internet Accounting System online at http://www.jcu.edu.au/internetaccounting |
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Operational Aspects of Cable & Wireless Optus IP Network The Network Application Centre (NAC) Service Desk was implemented in June 1999. The Service Desk was transferred into the technical division with the intention of adding additional value at the ‘front end’ by having the Fault Analysts located more closely with the Network Engineers managing the network. From an AARNet perspective there was also a need for the service desk to improve the level of service and information conveyed to the AARNet community. Initially the Service Desk coverage was 09:00 - 17:00 weekdays, later in August this was extended to 07:00 - 19:00 weekdays and finally 24 x 7 coverage on Sept 30th 1999 after additional personnel were employed and trained. Listed below are some Service Desk achievements:
Other Service Desk initiatives underway :
Listed below are other Network Applications Centre achievements:
Other Network Applications Centre initiatives underway:
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Port Based Network Authentication in a Lab Environment In the never ending search for more efficient ways to
offer access to university networks to clients, laptop access seems a sensible way to go. Clients should be able
to bring a laptop into the university and plug them into intelligent switches, reducing support and hardware costs. |
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CQU Library is realigning its public services to better fit the new functional paradigm of the university. Integral components of the realignment are more effective management of phone calls and streamlining request handling. The Library aims to implement a 'call centre' approach to handling phone calls, and client tracking to handle requests. The changes not only involve enhanced use of telecommunications but also training and organisational structural issues. |
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Server based computing - sometimes known as Thin Client Computing is gaining wide acceptance as an application delivery technology of choice for a rapidly increasing number of organisations in Australia and around the World. This paper will discuss the real business benefits of Server based computing in the education environment by focusing on a number of recent K-12 and Tertiary Case Studies. In particular it will focus on the Lemon Grove School District - an area of eight schools serving 4600 students in a low income community near San Diego, California. Through their innovative approach to collaborative learning the district has seen dramatic improvements in the rate of learning while reducing their IT support costs by 50% and improving application performance by 60%. 1. This technology allowed the Lemon Grove School System to reduce the bandwidth requirements for the applications that were being used. 2. Reduction in costings and management 3. All interested IT Managers/Network Managers/Infrastructure Managers |
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A lot has changed since the days of the High Power and poor performance of the Microwave radio links. Introduction of the unlicensed Spread Spectrum Technology and the use of new technology in licensed higher frequency systems have changed the performance of this link. Repeated high-speed links with throughputs of up to 155 Mbps are being used today to provide connectivity for Universities, TAFE’s, corporate groups and Government departments. Major advances have also been made with Laser technologies. |
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Windows 2000 is one of the fastest growing operating systems since its release in February 2000. Universities can benefit from the robust security and single instance administration provided via the Active Directory. Microsoft and many many third party vendors will exploit the Active Directory to reduce the administrative burden on overworked IS staff. This session will present a real life case study of one of the first commercial implementations in Australia of Windows 2000 by the Project Manager Scott Gosling of Sunrise/Powerlan. The session will highlight the benefits gained and the experiences from the deployment specific to Educational Organisations by illustrating the deployment at St Peters Lutheran College a private K-12 school located at Indooroopilly, Qld. Through the deployment of Windows 2000, St Peters have reduced the support burden on their IS staff and improved communications and productivity between their staff. Presenting during the second half of the session will be by Peter Fitzsimon from Microsoft, who will discuss the specific benefits of the Windows 2000 platform. In particular Microsoft Metadirectory Services (MMS), Unix Integration with the Active Directory, Quality of Service support within Windows 2000. |
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Engineering of the DIAS Network - Present & Future The Optus Core IP Network, nicknamed DIAS by Optus Engineering, has grown from an infrastructure, initially deployed to meet AARNet domestic and international network requirements, to a network that now supports over 250 major corporate and ISP customers. This rapid customer growth rate has occurred due to the flexibility, functionality and performance provided by the network. However, this has also resulted in months of double-digit traffic growth rates. Designing the network must take into account both the high growth rates and the necessity for providing an uninterrupted service to the existing customer base. This presentation will provide a technical overview of the Optus network today, including both international and national backbone connectivity details. Detail of the routing protocols and policies will be provided, as well as an insight into how the network of tomorrow may look. |
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Just become a Carrier - It's not a problem! (or is it?)
This presentation, jointly delivered by Peter de Haas, Director, Gibson Quai Pty Ltd and George McLaughlin, Executive Director, AARNet Pty Ltd, will present a 'snapshot' of the telecommunications marketplace and discuss the pros and cons of holding a carrier license and the impact of removal of the exemptions from CSP obligations. |
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Convergence
Without Compromise: Ken Hart is the General Manager of NEC Australia, Business
Networks Division. Ken has been involved in the Telecommunications industry
for over 36 years, first in the U.K and since 1987 in Australia with NEC. Ken has been associated with all major
developments in the Australian Market in the last 13 years and amongst other responsibilities, now has the challenge
of taking NEC Australia forward, into the new era of IP Telephony.
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Adding a machine to a network and letting the world know it exists can take a surprising amount of effort, particularly for organisations that have devolved LAN management. Melbourne University has developed a Web-based system called IPReg to help it manage the demands of frequent changes to central DNS and DHCP servers as well as TCP/IP subnet allocations. We hope in the future to devolve change management to departmental IT staff. The main networking issue is that of managing certain aspects of a rapidly changing network, in particular an efficient way to update DNS and DHCP servers. Other institutions may want to compare our system with the one they have currently. The suggested audience would be core IT staff at large institutions, particularly ones such as universities where various faculties may want to look after their own systems. |
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How
universities can provide Highly Available services on any IP based network
over a local or wide area network through the used of load balancing, while
greatly reducing their expenditure on servers at the same time. How to
create a guaranteed Quality of Service, maximize performance and scale your
services much faster and in a very low risk manner. How to distribute
content automatically in this environment. How to monitor and manage all
the elements of Internet Traffic and Content even in distributed
topologies. |
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It is widely recognised that the inclusion of video and audio content in learning/training material makes the experience both more enjoyable and more effective. Unfortunately there is a world of difference between demonstrations and a fully deployed system that incorporates rich media. When users attempt to deploy and implement systems they are faced
with a host of technologies and services that have typically never
been used before, such as streaming media applications, codecs, media
servers, compression techniques, content creation and content
management. Not only must these be well understood, but they must be
seamlessly integrated into a system that is simple and ready to use by
both the creator and the user of the content. The system cannot tax
the infrastructure to the point that it inhibits the flow of
information and applications already running over the network. |
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This presentation includes a brief description of the more common modes and
methods of network oriented denial-of-service attack including some first |
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Almost No-Cost Web Traffic Management In 1996, the University of Southern Queensland experienced explosive growth in its Internet traffic use. This growth was due to students' discovery of the Internet and increases in the network bandwidth available at the time. One side effect of this trend was the increased use of scarce computer laboratory places for surfing the Internet, preventing other course based activities from taking place. A strategy to address these issues was required. Although there was no funding available, by utilising existing hardware, and keeping the system as simple as possible, USQ implemented a quota system for student Internet access and a booking system for regulating Internet use in the computer laboratories. The quota system is built on proxy servers, an LDAP directory server and some PERL and VB scripts. This system has worked satisfactorily and has helped to control the costs of Internet traffic. The session will identify the key components of the USQ internet quota system and show the integration between these components. |
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IP Network Performance Measurements A look at the use of both passive and active network performance measurements to analyse network usage and trends within AARNet and the international community. |
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IP Network Performance Measurements GrowZone OnLine is a project of the GrowZone Development
Network, a not-for-profit community-based southern Queensland regional development
organisation. The project has been capital-funded by NTN (Networking The Nation),
with the aim to develop a viable regional internet infrastructure that is affordable and
accessible for rural communities. |
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Update: Voice Over IP The AARNet Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) Project was instigated to |
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In response to the demands arising from commercialisation and convergerce, the IETF is developing higher layer mechanisms to provide Quality of Service in the Internet. These are beginning to appear in commercial equipment albeit in a very simplified form. This presentation will overview the principal mechanisms, Integrated Services and Differentiated Services, in the context of a sparsely meshed network such as AARNET2. In order to provide a practical flavour the presentation will be illustrated with preliminary results from the experimental Diffserv network being constructed at CSIRO. 'Networking technology is undergoing a revolution as higher layer mechanisms for providing Quality of Service are developed by the IETF in response to the demands of commercialisation and convergence as well as the availablity of higher transmission bandwidths and sophisticated algorithms for buffer management and scheduling in the nodes. The new Differentiated Services concept is aimed at handling aggregations of traffic in the heavily loaded core of the network whereas the older Integrated Services concept is focussed on individual end to end connection characteristics. Current work within the IETF is attempting to arrange a marriage of the two. While the development of 'premium' type services may be relatively straight forward, the proposed mapping of the Intserv Controlled Load service onto the Diffserv Assured Forwarding mechanism raises some conceptual difficulties. The presentation will overview both Intserv and Diffserv and then discuss the prospects for a successful marriage in the context of a sparsely meshed network such as AARNET2. Although the principal motivation for Diffserv is to avoid scaleability problems in high traffic density core routers in a heavily meshed network, the focus on traffic aggregates means that the Intserv-Diffserv scenario is also of interest in situations such as AARNET2 where traffic is carried over a core network which can only provide QoS on a bulk basis. In particular we look at TCP based streaming video type applications which may seek to avoid the presumably high cost of 'premium' services yet require significantly better than best effort. In order to provide a practical flavour the presentation will be illustrated with preliminary results of measurements made on the experimental Diffserv network being constructed at CSIRO. The presentation should be of interest to all those contemplating the provision of QoS capability using the new mechanisms which are now begining to appear on commercial equipment albeit in a very simple form. |
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Equitable
Telecommunications in Regional Australia: Is it possible to have equitable telecommunications in regional Australia? It is not only possible, but essential if regional areas are to survive and prosper! A group of people in the Northern Rivers region of NSW decided to get together to make it happen. Norlink Ltd was established to rectify the inequities in telecommunications and facilitate the development of an information economy in the region. Norlink is a non-profit community organisation and the Board consists of representatives from the eight peak regional bodies of the Northern Rivers Region. SCU is a major contributor on the Norlink Board. "Networking the Northern Rivers" is a Norlink initiative to plan and implement a regional telecommunications infrastructure to promote economic and social development within the Region. Norlink received funding from the Networking the Nation Program (under RTIF) to conduct the first stage of this project, completed in June 1999. This included the provision of a local awareness and training program, the development of a demand aggregation telecommunications strategy, and the production of a draft business case to attract carriers to enhance broadband services in the Region. Funding for the second stage has also been granted by NTN to continue the initiative. Stage 2 (Facilitation of Community Groups) aims to facilitate and coordinate individual community groups across the Northern Rivers region in order to improve business outcomes and quality of life through the use of modern telecommunications and IT. Norlink has entered into a strategic partnership with Nortel Networks to engage the wider community of the Northern Rivers region in identifying suitable drivers to stimulate demand for advanced telecommunications and information technology infrastructure. This is being achieved through Nortel Networks’ Integrated Community Networks process (ICN). Concurrent with Stage 2 Norlink is working on Stage 3 – Attracting investment by telecommunications providers, and facilitating the establishment of a regionally focussed, customer-oriented regional telco. A Scoping Document has been presented to nine prospective telecommunications providers. Responses to this have been received from six potential partners and further discussion and negotiation has taken place. A tender is currently being finalised and is due to close in July 2000. Once a final decision is made, detailed discussion regarding setting contracts, defining the architecture, administration (billing and customer service etc) and managing a pilot project will begin. Stage 4 is implementation and completion of "Networking the Northern Rivers". Funding for this is currently under consideration by NTN. The questions are: Should the Government be stepping in with the large amounts required to fill the gaps? Can we do it without government funding if we have to? |
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QUT.COM – Being Virtual in the Real World The Queensland University of Technology has adopted a hybrid business model which builds new strengths in flexible teaching and learning delivery and electronic infrastructure, into traditional strengths in campus bricks and mortar, staff and industry partnerships. Key
aspects of this hybrid trad/e-university business model will be
presented: marketing strategy, student relationship management and
services portfolio, partnership with other providers, online teaching
approach, university leadership culture and governance mechanisms,
integration with business systems, and technology infrastructure. The key challenge has been to broaden and embed the power of the virtual university within the core processes of a traditional bricks and mortar university. |
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In July 1999 Apple Computer introduced Airport, the first product to be announced based on the IEEE 802.11b 11Mbps wireless standard. Developed in conjunction with Lucent Technologies, Airport has among its unique features complete integration across the entire Apple product range, outstanding ease of use and low cost. This presentation will look in detail at the hardware and software implementation of Airport. It will highlight how the transparency achieved through total integration of the technology into the Macintosh unleashes the "magic" of wireless networking and how this is challenging users to change the ways in which they use computers. This presentation should appeal to network designers and network policy makers. |
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QUESTnet 2000 STUDENT PAPERS |
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My research project involves integration of voice, data and video over the IP network. Because of our remoteness, we NEED the best of new age telephony, at a cost such that we can remain connected all the time, to the rest of the world.
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Internet Access Techniques to be used in Regional Australia In this paper, the authors will review the most common Internet and |
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Topics of interest to be explored in this discussion may
cover: Panel members are: |
