Channel, Issue No. 1

Abstract

[evdate 1990-08-15] Channel Newsletter of the Centre of Computing Services & Telecommunications The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology AUGUST 1990 Issue No. 1 Network services Vector Processing Inside : Director's words 3 Messages from Managers 5 Our present picture 9

13/F, World Shipping Centre, 7 Canton Road, Kowloon, Hong Kong Channel@usthk.BITNET

2 Channel Issue No. 1 3 In this issue . . . . . From the Director of CCST Where have the Systems and Operations people gone? The Role of CIC The Actions Group : Systems Engineering The Present Picture Need Some Advice For Your Queries? Computer Training Courses for the period Sept. 1,90 - Dec. 31,90 Next Issue : On Information Systems Readers may notice that we do not include a column on our Information Systems team in this issue. It is our intention to leave it to the next issue. The main focus of the next issue of Channel will be on our information systems, covering : - The "Ultimate" Information System - a Dream or a Vision? - What is Quodata? - Who's who in IS? . . Editor's Notes Channel is a b&monthly publication of the Centre of Computing Services and Telecommunications (CCST) of HKUST. Prepared by the Computing Information Centre (CIC), Channel provides valuable information about CCST plans, developments and services. Topics on new trends in computing technology or other related topics of interest are also included. User contributions to channel are welcome and should be sent to the Editor along with the authors name and department. Channel is distributed to all University members who are registered users of the CCST services. Other parties who would like to have their names added to our mailing list for Channel may complete and return the form on the last page to the Computing Information Centre. Esther chan, Editor of Channel c/c ccesther@usthk BITNET -

Issue No. 1 Channel 3 From the Director of CCST . . . . . This is the first issue of the HKUST Center of Computing Services and Telecommunications

(CCST) newsletter. by means of this newsletter, CCST intends to inform our users and other

interested parties about CCST plans and developments, policies and services, and publish some

how-to-do-it articles on our computing environment. In short, this newsletter will serve as the

main vehicle for communicating new developments to our users. CCST will have, however, many

other publications which will focus on the use of specific computers, software systems, and other

details. I hope that hkust academic and administrative staff will form the habit of reading this

newsletter carefully. Current plans call for this newsletter to be available in "on-line" mode on our computer network

as well as in printed form. Some of the articles will be both in Chinese and English. For the time

being we have some difficulties w-ith our Chinese language articles for our on-line newsletter

version. Later we will overcome this limitation. The HKUST CCST has been in existence for about one year. During that period we have

experienced explosive growth. We have about one more year of development time before our

campus opens in Sai Kung in October 1991. Thus, we are about one-halfway through our two-year

development period before HKUST becomes fully "operational". What have we accomplished

during this period'? Actually so many accomplishments have taken place that they cannot all be mentioned in a short

article, but I would like to single out a few of the major ones. Staff Development Most people think of a computer center in terms of computing equipment and machinery. but over

80% of the budget of a typical university computing center is for personnel expense. Moreover; the

quality of a computer center is Largely determined by the quality of the computer staff and their

attitudes. ?MY greatest joy since joining HKUST has been our success in recruiting the very highest

caliber of staff available in the region. I have been honored to be a computer center director at five universities, four in the United States and now at HKUST. But of all those institution; the HKUST

CCST staff is by far the best. I hope all of our computer users will agree with me in this assessment.

Please challenge us to provide you with the total computing environment you need to conduct your

academic and administrative activities. Administrative Information Systems Administrative information systems are very difficult to develop and require a very long development

time. Our unique situation at HKUST requires us to develop a complete core of all major systems

in a two year time period. This is a daunting task, but we have a good start on it. We have been

working with our major user departments: Finance, Personnel; Admissions, Registration and

Records, and Estates Management, to accomplish this task Much of the credit goes to these

departments for their able assistance. We now have major systems running in Finance and

Personnel. Over the next several months we will have more than double the number of

administrative information systems available to our users. BY October 1991 we do expect to have

the "core" of all major processing systems complete. Al systems are on-line and available to all our

users who have proper access clearance. In the future many of these systems will have dual

Chinese-English capabilities.

4 Channel Issue No. 1 Computer Network Our University will focus on distributed/network approaches to computing such as major USA

institutions like Carnegie Mellon University. To make this approach work, a powerful, all-encompassing

computer network is required. We have been working on our computer network for over one year. Our

temporary Harbour City offices are fully wired - all computer users are connected - we have no stand-

alone units! We have recently introduced our network services: electronic mail, electronic bulletin

board, on-line directory, on-line printing, on-line file services, Bitnet gateway, as well as other services.

These are only our first generation systems and we expect to improve their quality, utility, and user

friendliness greatly over the next year. We have recently installed our trial FDDI network, becoming

one of the very first in the world to operate this futuristic type of network. Over the next number of

months we will concentrate on learning more about FDDI, configuring our campus network, and

managing the load and traffic on such a large and complex network. Academic Computing Services Last but definitely not least we are now beginning to concentrate on the academic systems and services

which will be available on our computer network. We have waited a little while to start this academic

development, because we felt it was essential to have the active input from our teaching staff before we

begin. Now our initial teaching staff are present in Hong Kong and this process may begin in earnest.

HKUST aspires to be a world-class institution specializing in Science and Technology, Engineering and

Business & Management. We realize that HKUST cannot achieve these goals without an absolutely

top quality academic computing environment. CCST will develop special expertise in those areas which

will be essential to the support of these academic endeavors: high capacity RISC processors, high

capacityFDD1 networking, parallel processing, high quality network services and the best user services

we can provide. We appreciate the patience of our users during our development period. It is not easy to develop all

administrative information systems, network services, academic systems and support staff during such

a short time period. But I believe we have made a reasonable start. Over the next year (and longer)

CCST looks forward to working with all of you to see that HKUST develops into the kind of institution

we all are seeking. Dr. Wm. Max hey, Director of Computing Services and Telecommunications ccmax@usthk. BITNET Issue No. 1 Channel 5 6 Channel Issue No. 1 Where have the Systems and Operations people gone? "Lawrence, what is the responsibility of the Systems and Operations team?" I often received such question in the past nine months. "I know, your staff members are the hardware people and Bill's (Information Systems team) are the software specialists." That was the usual guess. "No, there will be a Systems Engineering team harder' than us." I said. "So, who are you guys Indeed, it is difficult to sum up our work with a few words. From June 1989 to May 1990, before our two Tangs (Danny, Manager of CIC and Michael, Manager of Systems Engineering) assumed duty, we were responsible for all the tasks other than the development of administrative systems (mainly the Finance and Personnel systems at that time). Names such as Michael Chan, Steven Wong, Eddie Kwok and Samuel Kwan might be familiar to you. During that period, in CCST, PCs meant Michael, telephone services and Bitnet meant Steven, E-mail meant Eddie, telecommunication meant Samuel, Chinese processing meant Victor, Unix meant Andrew and Charles, operation meant Wah and Man, and network meant all of us. After Danny was on board, our faces gradually hid behind the CIC people. When your PC's have trouble, you will see the CIC and SE staff instead of Michael Chan. When you need an E-mail account, you will see Danny, instead of Steven and Eddie. If you want . . . . you see Danny . . . "How come the Systems and Operations people disappear, do they all retire?" "Oh, no, definitely not!" "So, what are you guys doing now To be exact, we are responsible for the system programming and networking software. After CIC and SE took over the user interface and hardware aspects, we are now concentrating in planning and development. One of the major projects completed was the design and implementation of the network services, such as bulletin board and E-mail. Other major on- going projects include the Sai Kung campus network, Chinese processing and image processing. Our networking approach follows those prominent and innovative universities in the States, such as Stanford, MIT and Carnegie Mellon. However, our major characteristic would be to have Chinese and image on our network. Besides planning and development, we also provide system programming support. One major task is to provide support to the IS staff to bring up the Quodata and other information systems. Of course, with all these large projects, we cannot rely just on our own team, we have to work closely with others: in the design and implementation of the user interface, we need to cooperate with the CIC people; for the information system, we have to rely on our IS team; in the hardware area, we have to work with our SE staff, and last, but MOST important, we need the input from YOU, the University community. "Please, forget about all the computer jargon, can you tell me in a few words?" "I can't find the exact words, may be, we can take the construction of a building as an analogy. In the software area, we are the structural engineers, Bill's and Danny's staff are the architects and interior designers. For a modern building, you can't accept a building just with four walls! The structural engineers, the architects and interior designers need to work together to create a state-of-the-art building, just as our Centre has to work as a united force to provide the necessary services."

Issue No. 1 Channel 7 To summarize, the following are some of the projects we have participated: Projects completed : Install Citinet telephone service in Harbour City office; Design and install Ethernet network in Harbour City office; Support Information Systems team to bring up Quodata; Set up Bitnet and E-mail service; Design and develop network services, including bulletin board, file transfer, electronic mail, network printing, dial-in/dial- out etc. On-going projects : 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. Introduce Chinese into our systems; Design and implement the network FAX server; Introduce Unix services; Enhance network service (working with CIC team); Design the Sai Kung campus network (working with SE team); Set up the FDDI pilot network in Harbour City office (working with SE team); Provide system programming support to the administrative system (working with IS team); Design and introduce image processing capability in our netwrk; Evaluate new PCs and laser printers (working with SE team); Last, but not least, we will have our first lady system programmer, Miss Saminda Lam, in August. Lawrence law, Manager of Systems and Operations cclaw@usthk.BITNET

The Role of CIC C I C means . . . . . The name Computing Information Centre (CIC) may sound a bit strange to some of our users as to what role it plays within the whole CCST. The following will help to clarify this. The first Information Centre (IC) was set up by IBM Canada in 1974 to experiment with ways of encouraging end users to do some of their own programming. This idea has since then been widely accepted and practised in different kinds of organization with great success. The scope of activities undertaken by an IC has also been extended to include office automation, user education and consultation, software tools evaluation, establishing standards for computer usage, etc. In HKUST, CIC is the main interface between CCST and the University community. It seeks to support and enhance University administration, teaching and research through the application of computer and telecommunication technologies. Through seminars and short courses, high-quality documentation and consultation, CIC supports faculty, staff, and students in their computer-related administrative and academic endeavors. The following are the major areas that CIC is responsible for. Office Automation . With today's technology and office culture, achieving a "paperless office" is not a realistic goal of office automation. However, the effective application of computer technology can significantly improve office productivity by reducing repetitive works, streamlining office activities, and speeding up information flow. The use of the standard office tools (WordPerfect, Lotus and dBASE) that we support can speed up many Of the office routines. The introduction of the Electronic mail (E-mail) and Electronic Bulletin Board (EBB) services has provided our users with alternatives to telephone, memos and circulars.

8 Channel Issue No. 1 The image processing and Chinese language processing projects that CCST are undertaking will bring our University into another level of sophistication in computer application. image technology enables the storing of documents in image form and supports the rapid retrieval of the document images practically anywhere on the network. Typical Chinese language applications include Chinese desktop publishing and the provision of dual Chinese-English capabilities in our administrative systems and various network services. After the Systems and Operations (S&O) colleagues have completed the technical programming and evaluation parts of the projects, the IS and CIC teams will work closely with the user departments in best applying these technologies in their applications. Academic Computing : The development of academic computing at HKUST has a slower start comparing to other areas of computer application but will be catching up quickly in the next few months. CIC is beginning to develop the support activities for our academic community. Input will be sought on the detailed types of computing function required by individual faculty members in supporting their research programmes as well as the needs associated with each course and subject. With all this information available, we can then consolidate the academic computing needs of the University as a whole and from there to design an advanced computing environment that we are all seeking. By summer 1991, we expect to have a complete range of academic support functions in place, including documentation, consultation, short courses, and related materials. The support functions will be centered around the academic focus of the University, emphasizing areas such as CAD/CAM, graphics, scientific computation, parallel and vector processing, simulation and modelling, etc. Working together with staff of the Education Technology Centre, we will also assist faculty in developing multimedia instructional software that use video and a combination of slides and computer graphics. User Education:

Developing an advanced computing environment is a challenge CCST is taking. Beyond accomodating new technological elements, which in itself is complex, the Centre must establish training and support services in line with the growth. High-quality training is the absolute pre-requisite for obtaining productive results from the University's heavy investment on computer technology. Each member of the University community will receive computer training appropriate to his/her needs. Training end users to effectively use the computer tools goes well beyond keystroke mechanics. Immediate, action-related, and bottleneck-removing assistance are the most appropriate delivery method. Our consultants provide users with technical and problem-related advices. As the user community grows in size, CIC is planning to set up a user group with representative(s) from each department. A comprehensive training programme (Co-ordinator course) will be provided to this user group, to develop local expertise at the departmental level. Training to be offered includes basic PC trouble shooting, setting up of departmental bulletin board, detection and killing of virus, etc. This group of "super- users" can in turn provide first-line support to other users in their own departments. Other Services : Apart from the above major functions, CIC is also responsible for a wide range of other services: (a> publish the bi-monthly Newsletter - Channel, as a major bridge between CCST and the user community; (b) prepare documentation on various software tools and services offered by CCST; (4 operate a library of computer software, manuals, and magazines; W manage computer barns and laboratories of PCs, Mats and Workstations; (4 establish interest groups to foster attentions in specific areas. Two users' groups - PC and Macintosh, will soon be set up for users with common interest to share experience. Hardware and software vendors will also be invited to speak to the users' groups.

Issue No. 1 Channel 9 Although CIC is the main interface between CCST and the University community, behind the scene backing it up is a group of highly competent individuals from other teams of different focuses. The network services developed by the S&O team (thanks to Lawrence, Michael, Victor, Steven, Eddie, and Samuel for their marvellous works) were eventually rolled out by the CIC staff. Notwithstanding the team structure that we have, all the CCST staff form a coherent group. We share together the joy of success and gloom of failure and a common target of developing an advanced computing environment that are necessary for HKUST to become a world-class institution of science and technology. Danny Tang, Manager of CIC Ccdannyusthk. BITNE T

The Actions Group : Systems Engineering Engineering Services . . . . . installation - maintenance - troubleshooting Systems Engineering (SE) team of CCST provides engineering services (installation, maintenance, troubleshooting etc.) to office and campus networks, PCs, workstations, systems, printers, electronic devices, and the PABX system in HKUST. Our engineers are functionally divided into two groups to deal with the equipment installed in our offices. One group is responsible for PCs and PC related devices while the other is responsible for the rest. For the time being, most of our installed equipment/ devices are still under warranty. To serve our users in the shortest possible time in case of machine failure, our staff will do the first-line problem analysis and board swapping while waiting for the service from the vendors. To achieve a faster and more effective service, the SE team is preparing to take up the maintenance in stages. We are now negotiating with the vendors and suppliers to arrange for the self-maintenance. According to our plan, we will first take up the maintenance of the Epson printers once the warranty or the current maintenance contract expires. Apart from the maintenance services, the SE team also works with the other teams in product sourcing and evaluation, ensuring our users have the products with the best price performance and reliability. Campus Network System Design One major challenge we are now undertaking is the design of the state-of-the-art FDDI network system in the Phase I building of our Sai Kung campus. The installation work of these systems will start once the site construction work is completed so that computer and communication services are available to our users when we all move into the campus next year. FDDI Testing Very soon, we will begin the testing phase of the FDDI equipment/devices installed in our planning office. Various tests (hardware/software) will be put on these FDDI equipment and the corresponding performance will be analysed. These studies will form the basis for implementing the backbone FDDI network in our Sai Kung campus. To help our services to be the best of the best, all suggestions and comments are welcome! Michael Tang, Manager of Systems Engineering ccwctang@usthk BITNE T

10 Channel Issue No. 1 The Present Picture. l 0 . 0 Introduction : Computing at the Desktop The computing environment in HKUST, as we always say, is built around a distributed architecture. Apparently, this means that valuable computing equipment, such as your personal computers and laser printers, can be found almost everywhere. While users can enjoy computing power directly without leaving their own offices, this presents only part of the whole picture. Ultra 286 Sigma 286 Mac SE Mac II 386 PS2

The first component which is slightly behind the scene is what we call the office network. Its importance can be imagined if you realize that nearly every two pieces of our equipment are conceptually connected. This is actually achieved by adopting the Ethernet as the basis of our current office network. The Ethernet can be thought of as a highway for data. Equipment (or node in networking terms) tapping to this highway can send to or receive from any other equipment on the highway. It would surely be amazing to imagine that the thin black wire running through your personal computer via a T-shaped connector is, in fact, part of the data highway we are talking about. Mac Ultra 386 More importantly, with this fully connected data highway, some really meaningful activities can take place: users can now enhance their working efficiency and get better results by enjoying the various kinds of network services, such as the E-mail service, the administrative information system service, the printing service, etc. All these services would not have been made such easily accessible to the users without our office network. Servers : The Heart of Our Office Network While the role of our office network could never be over-emphasized, the machines providing these services are actually of equal importance. At the present moment, two VAX 3800 mini-computers manufactured by Digital Equipment Corporation are employed for providing various kinds of network services. One of them is mainly used for the administrative information system service. The other one supports most networking functions such as local and international E-mail service, laser printing service, modem service, etc. Ultra 286 Mac Sigma 286 Ultra PS2 386

Issue No. 1 Channel 11 If the University keeps growing at the current pace, the current computing resource may soon be tied up. It follows that plans for adding adequate resources to accomodate the growing needs become immediate. In particular, we perceive that the two VAX servers may be the first to saturate and are looking for ways to add new services in order to cope with both the increasing demand and the upcoming new services. Samuel Kwan, Computer Officer & Senior Systems Programmer Systems and Operations ccsamuel@usthk.BITNET Need Some Advice for Your Queries? The User Consultation Team of the Computing Information Centre (CIC) is responsible for handling enquiries and solving problems relating to services provided by CCST. Users may contact Mr. Tony Chan, our Consultation Coordinator, at 302 1476 (E-mail address: cctony) should any difficulty arise. We have also set up a special E-mail account, CHANNEL, for users to send in their queries, ideas, suggestions and comments concerning services we provide. A consultant will respond to messages sent to this account as soon as possible. To request for computing resources, users should contact Mr. Danny Tang, Manager of CIC, at 302 1512 (E-mail address: ccdanny). Esther Chan, Editor of channel CIC ccesther@usthk BITNET

Computer Training Courses for the period Sept. 1,90 - Dec. 31,90 CIC offers training courses to members of the University. The following is a brief description of the courses scheduled for the period Sept. 1,90 to Dec. 31, 90. Hands-on exercises are included in every course. Users should consult the Electronic Bulletin Board newsgroup named Computer-training-courses for details of the courses. (I) (I) Introduction to PC DOS Introduction to PC DOS This course presents the basic ideas and This course presents the basic ideas and

operations of DOS (Disk Operating System) on operations of DOS (Disk Operating System) on

PC. It is a prerequisite for other PC based PC. It is a prerequisite for other PC based

courses. courses. October 18 am October 18 am December 20 am December 20 am (2) (2) Introduction to WordPerfect 5.0 Introduction to WordPerfect 5.0 This course presents the basic ideas and This course presents the basic ideas and

operations of word processing using operations of word processing using WordPerfect. WordPerfect. October 19 am October 19 am December 20 pm December 20 pm (3) Advanced WordPerfect 5.0 This course completes a general WordPerfect training. It covers the advanced WordPerfect functions : multiple documents handling, macros, column documents and graphics. November 23 pm (4) Introduction to Lotus I-2-3 The objective of this programme is to introduce the concept of electronic spreadsheet to general computer users. By using Lotus l-Z-3 as the software, it also aims at teaching users to use l-2-3 effectively. September 20 am November 22 am

12 Channel Issue No. 1 (5) Advanced Lotus l-2-3 This course completes a general Lotus l-2-3 training, it covers the advanced Lotus functions: windows, macros, linking files, multiple files handling, advance allways graphics, etc. September 22 pm November 22 pm (6) Introduction to dBASE 3+ The purpose of this comprehensive course is to introduce the relational database management system dBASE III+ to the participants. September 21 am November 23 am (7) Advanced dBASE 3+ This course completes a general dBASE III+ This course completes a general dBASE III+

training. It covers the advanced dBASE 3+ training. It covers the advanced dBASE 3+

functions : functions : entry form/full-screen editing, entry form/full-screen editing, w --

multiple files handling, programming, etc. multiple files handling, programming, etc.

December 21 am December 21 am Centre of Computing Services and Telecommunications. . . . E-nail Phone address Director AX Mgr. Systems & Operations Dr. Wm. Max Ivey 1440 ccmax Mr. Lawrence Law 1442 cclaw Mgr. Information Mr. William Tung 1443 ccbtung Systems Mgr. CIC Mgr. Systems Engineering Mr. Danny Tang Mr. Michael Tang 15 12 ccdanny 1533 ccwctang User Consultation Mr. Tony Chan 1476 cctony Coordinator Editor of Channel Miss Esther Chan 1537 ccesther FAX 736 7088 Dialup 736 9181 Computer room 1494 SE workshop 1535 The telephone extensions are (852) 302-xxxx. The BITNET addresses are E-mail address@usthk.BITNET (8) (8) Introduction to Network Services Introduction to Network Services This course introduces to our users the This course introduces to our users the network services ; electronic mail, electronic network services ; electronic mail, electronic

bulletin board, file transfer, and network bulletin board, file transfer, and network

printing. printing. 16 repeating sessions : 16 repeating sessions : September 6,7 (am, pm) September 6,7 (am, pm) October October 8,9 (am, pm1 8,9 (am, pm1 November 8,9 (am, pm) November 8,9 (am, pm) December 6,7 (am, pm) December 6,7 (am, pm) For registration, call Mrs. Anna Ho at 302 1570. For registration, call Mrs. Anna Ho at 302 1570.

. Esther Chan, Editor of Channel c/c ccesther@usthk. BITNET Channel Mailing List A mailing list is maintained for the distribution of Channel. To be placed on the mailing list*, fill out this form completely and mail to the Computing Information Centre, CCST, 13/F, World Shipping Centre, 7 Canton Road, TST, Hong Kong. Please print clearly. c] Add my address to the mailing list 0 Address change (write new address below) 0 Remove my name from the mailing list Name : Organization : Address : Registered users of the CCST services are placed automatically on the mailing list. 總監的話 本通訊是香港科技大學計算及電算中心ccst旳通創刊號 藉著本通訊ccst希望向用戶和有關人仕披露ccst的各項計劃和發展

政策和服務 以及刊行一些關於我們的計算環境的說明文章。簡單的說，本通訊要成為我們向用戶述新發 屐的一個重要媒介。此外， CCST還

有不少其他刊物，集中描述特定電腦和軟件系統的使用及其他詳情。本人希望香港科技大學

的學術和行政員工能有恆細讀本通訊 在現行政策下，本通訊終同時以「聯機」方{????}s於我們的電腦網絡上和印於印刷本上。{????}{????}

文章訊是中英雙語的，暫時我們的聯機通訊版本的中文文章還有一些技術問題，日後我們會 打破

這局限。 香港科技大學ccsT成立已差不多一年，期{????}畯怞傅憭H的擴展。在一九九一年十月校園在西

貢正式開幕之前，我們還有大概一年的發展時間。換句話說，在香港科技大學全面運作前， 我

們差不多已走了兩年的發展期中一半的路，期{????}畯怞酗陘\成就？ 事實上，這短短一篇文章根本沒有可能把那許多的成就一一記下，但本人仍想突出幾個要點 ：

員工發展 多數人一想到電腦中心就只想到電腦設備和機器，但其實在一個典型的大學電腦中心，其中 超

過八成的財政預算是用於員工支出上。一個電腦中心的質量主要是取決於它的電腦員工的質 素

和這班員工的取向。加入香港科技大學以來，本人最高興的莫過於我們能夠成功聘請到本地 最

優秀的員工。本人有幸曾出任五個電腦中心的總監，前四次在美國，這次在香港。在這許多 學

府中，香港科技大學CCST的員工是最優良的。我盼望日後所有的電腦用戶都會贊成我這個評

估，大家不妨鞭策我們去為各位提供一個進行學術和行政活動所需的完整計算環境。 行政資料系統 開發行政資科系統不是一件容易的事，需要的開發時間也很長。香港科技大學的特殊情況要 我

們在兩年內開發一個所有主要系統的完整核心。這是一項艱鉅的工作，但我們已有一個好的 開

始。我們一直與財務部、人事部、招生及註冊{????}H及投產管理部攜手進行這個任務，這些部

門給予我們的一臂之力實在功不可沒。現在我們在財務部和人事部己有主要系統運行，幾個 月

後我們更會有超過雙倍目前的行政資科系統供用戶使用。我們計劃在一九九一年十月完成所 有

主要處理系統的「核心」，屆時所有系統都是聯機的，有存取權的用戶便可使用這些系統，

將來這許多系統還有中英雙語的處理能力。 電腦網絡 像康奈基米崙大學(Carnegie Mellon University)等主要美國學府，香港科技大學將著重分佈式/網絡電腦模式。

要這個模式起作用我們必須有一個强而有力無所不包的電腦網絡我們致力 於開發電腦網絡已超過一年，海港城臨時辦事處已完全敷設好網絡，所有用腦用戶都已經連

接，我們再沒有獨立的單元！最近我們推出了一連串的網絡服務，包括電子郵遞、電子報板 、

聯機目錄、聯機打印、聯機文件服務、BITNET網間連接器等。這些都是我們的第一代系統，

未來幾年我們要大大提高它們的質量、使用和易用性。我們最近裝置了試驗性的光纖分佈式 數

據接日〔FDDI〕網絡，成為全球第一家操作這種未來式網絡的機構。以後幾個月，我們會集 中學

習FDDI，並配置我們的校園網絡以及管理在這一巨大複雜的網絡上的負討和流通。 學術計算服務 最後一點，也是同樣重要的一點，就是我們正開始致力在電腦網絡上提供學術系統和服務。 我

們在開發這學術系統前稍稍呆了一會，因為我們覺得在起步前我們必須先聆聽教學同事們的 踴

躍意見。目前我們的教學人員班底已初步在港成立，這個進程也可以認其推行了。香港科技 大

學渴望成為一所專於科技、工程和商管的世界級學府，我們瞭解到如果沒有一個絕佳的學術 計

算環境，香港科技大學決不能達到這個目標的為支援高能簡戈指令系統計(RISC)處理器， 高能FDDI網絡並行處理高質網絡服等學術系需求以及提供最好的用戶服務CCST將 在這些方面上培養各方專長。 我們對用戶在開發期間給予我們的忍耐非常感激，要在如此短期內開發所有的行政資料系統 、

網絡服務、學術系統和培養支援人員誠非易事，但本人深信我們已有一個好開始。未來一年

及以後，CCST渴望與大家一起努力使香港科技大學發展成我們共同追求的學府。 艾偉林博士 計算及電訊中心總監 ccmax{????}uSthk BITNET