Transcript SMS - Educause

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
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TAMUQ’s implementation
Demonstration
Implementation for your campus
Questions
What Is Texas A&M University At Qatar?
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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
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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
“I only wanted one pint
today. Didn’t you get
my text message?”
– Sports scores & highlights
– Student government elections
– Club news & updates
• Contact during school holidays
• Find out what your students
want / need
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
• ‫العربيّة‬
• 中文简体
• ภาษาไทย
• Ρусский
(Arabic)
(Mandarin)
(Thai)
(Russian)
– SPAM: Don’t abuse the
system
TAMUQ’s Implementation
• Custom SMS Gateway
• Service provider for message
delivery
– www.strikeiron.com
– www.abctext.com
• Development technologies
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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
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Personal address books
Group messages
Message logging
Message tracking
Usage statistics
SMS Gateway Infrastructure
TXT MSG
Internet
Data
SQL Server
International Gateway /
Service Provider
Active Directory
TXT MSG
TXT MSG
TXT MSG
Faculty
Staff
TXT MSG
TXT MSG
IIS
User
Students
Groups
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
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What is SMS
Benefits and Disadvantages
Appropriate Use
TAMUQ’s Custom Solution
Third Party Solutions
Slides on Educause website
Comments / Questions?
Contact Information
• Russell Lindell – [email protected]
• Ravi Kallianpur – [email protected]