UMail’s New Web Interface – BETA Available

A new, more secure Web interface for UMail will be available in Fall 2008. Try out the beta version and let us know what you think! more...

Workshops for Faculty and Graduate TAs - August 2008

Registration is now open for Academic Computing's August workshops for faculty and graduate TAs. Learn more about managing your course in SPARK or using blogs in your classes. For a full list of offerings and to register, see our Faculty Workshop/Event Registration form.

Request a SPARK Course in SPIRE

Instructors can now request SPARK courses, sign up for SPIRE Grade Upload, and check the status of their SPARK course requests in SPIRE. This replaces the SPARK course request process previously in use. more....

Apple Security Update Released

Apple has released a security update for its 10.4 and 10.5 operating systems. We recommend that you download and install this update via Software Update or from the Apple Web site.

We're Hiring...

OIT is looking for Computer Classroom Consultants, Software Support Consultants, and Help Desk Consultants to assist students, faculty and staff with their day-to-day computing questions.

Log in to Mobius with Your NetID After July 28, 2008

Beginning Monday, July 28, 2008, you must use your NetID (OIT Account user name) and password to log in to Mobius. more...

WebCT Campus Edition Officially Retired

WebCT Campus Edition (CE), was officially retired on July 1, 2008. WebCT CE was replaced by SPARK as the campus-wide learning management system in Fall of 2007. more...

Phishing Warning! Do Not Give Out Your OIT Account Password June 18, 2008

You may have received one or more email messages asking for your NetID, password or other personal details. These fraudulent emails are an example of phishing – an attempt to steal your identity. OIT/UMass Amherst will never ask you to provide your OIT Account information or any other sensitive information via email. Learn more about Phishing attacks targeting UMass Amherst.

Apple Quicktime 7: Update Released

Apple has released a critical update for the Quicktime media player, which improves its security and functionality. We recommend you download and install this update via the Apple Software Update utility or by downloading the latest version of the software from Apple.

Create Your Own Course OIT Account in SPIRE

Need a separate blog, UDrive or Web space for a class that you are teaching? Use the OIT Accounts area in SPIRE to create a course OIT Account. UMass faculty and staff can also use SPIRE to reset their OIT Account password(s) and create temporary wireless accounts for guests. more...

New to UMass? Activate Your Account!

All new students at UMass Amherst must activate their OIT Account before the beginning of the semester. Your OIT Account gives you access to the campus email system (UMail), which is used for all official University communications, and other computing resources on campus. more...

We're Hiring...

OIT is looking for Software Support Consultants, and Help Desk Consultants to assist students, faculty and staff with their day-to-day computing questions.

Workshops for Faculty - June 2008

Registration is now open for Academic Computing's workshops for faculty. These workshops cover a wide variety of technology-related topics and most allow you to learn new technologies while working with content from your own courses. To review our list of offerings and to register for a workshop, visit our Faculty Workshop/Event Registration form.

Extend Your UMail Account After You Graduate

Students leaving the University automatically get access to their UMail address for 6 months after their leave date. Use SPIRE to extend your UMail account for 6 additional months. Learn more....

Sync Your SPIRE Schedule with Your Favorite Calendar Software (Beta)

Students and instructors can now download their schedule from SPIRE, then import it into their preferred calendaring tool (e.g., Apple iCal, Microsoft Outlook.). Please note that this new SPIRE feature is still undergoing testing. more...

Use SPIRE to Subscribe to Campus Alerts

Students, faculty, and staff can use SPIRE to subscribe to Campus Alerts text messages, a new service that will provide emergency notifications directly to subscribers’ cell phones. Subscribe by April 30, 2008 and you're automatically entered to win one of five iPod Nanos. Campus Alerts Web site

Voice over IP (VoIP) Telephone Service Available to North Residents

Students living in the North Residence Halls are invited to participate in OIT’s Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) pilot project. Using VoIP, you can make and receive telephone calls on your computer from anywhere on campus where there is a wired Internet connection. more...

OIT Moving CGI Scripts to a New Server

As of May 14, 2008, OIT will be hosting CGI (Common Gateway Interface) scripts on a new server and disabling access to the existing server. OIT’s CGI server hosts programming code associated with online forms on UMass Amherst course and department Web sites. more...

Apple Safari: Critical Update Released

Apple has released a major update for the Safari Browser, which improves its security and functionality. We recommend you download and install this update via the Apple Software Update utility or by downloading the latest version of the browser from Apple. Please note that OIT does not support the Safari browser on Windows computers.

New Link from SPARK to OWL in Testing Phase

The UMass Amherst Provost’s Office, the Office of Information Technologies (OIT), and the Center for Educational Software Development (CESD) have developed a link from the learning management system used for on-campus courses, SPARK, to our online homework tool, OWL. more...

We're Hiring...

OIT is hiring student Software Support Consultants and Help Desk Consultants to assist students, faculty and staff with their day-to-day computing questions.

New Spam Filtering Tool for UMail

OIT has installed a new spam filtering tool, Spamhaus, on the campus mail servers. Spamhaus identifies email messages sent from known spammers and blocks them before they reach the incoming mail servers. more...

Looking for an OIT Classrooms Computer?

Check out our new Computer Availability page, which gives you up-to-the-minute information on the number of computers available in OIT Computer Classrooms. Make sure you also check our classroom hours and scheduled classes information before going to a classroom.

New Resource for Instructors: Photo Rosters in SPIRE

Starting this Spring, the Photo Rosters for UMass Amherst courses will be available to all active instructors who earn their Security Certificate. These rosters feature students' UCard photos and are intended to support your teaching. Please make sure your students’ photos remain confidential at all times.

Discounts on Adobe Software for Faculty & Staff

For a limited time, UMass Amherst faculty and staff can purchase Adobe software for personal use at a significant discount through the Adobe Select program. The program is usually only open to students and includes software such as Adobe Acrobat Professional and Adobe Creative Suite. This offer had been extended through March 2008. more...

New Version of WinSCP Released - be sure to update!

WinSCP, the popular Windows FTP client, has received an important version update that makes the program more stable and secure. WinSCP is free and available for download from the Supported Software & Downloads section of the OIT site.

Take our Copyright Quiz!

During the '06-'07 school year, over 1400 members of the UMass community received notices of copyright violations from the RIAA or other copyright holders. Take our Copyright Quiz to learn how you can avoid copyright violations. Copyright Quiz