ITS survey 2016
In December 2016, we again invited all staff and students to take part in a survey held jointly with the Library.
Thank you!
We'd like to thank everyone who took part in the survey in December. Over a thousand people responded and we're already using the feedback and comments we received to improve the services we provide.
Headline results
- You think IT staff are friendly and knowledgeable but you have ideas for improving support in some areas
- Wi-fi connections are decent in some parts of campus but you would like easier connections and wider coverage
- Problems affecting the reliability of services earlier this year caused significant problems for many of you
You said, we did...
Reliability
Reliable access without waiting for ages to log in.
For the last year or so, we've been working on a major project to change the University's file storage systems. This is a major piece of work but when the new platform is in place, it will bring marked improvements in system stability and login speed. We're hoping it will be ready for the new academic year and we'll have more details soon.
Customer service
Support in the evenings and weekends, more printers and computers.
The new IT Service Centre opened at the start of the Spring Term with more facilities for students and longer opening hours. We've also worked with our colleagues in the Library to extend the popular self-service laptop loans service to over 70 computers.
Printing
Free printing!
Our budget won't stretch to cover the costs of all student printing unfortunately, but we're planning to install more advanced printers in 2017 so we can lower prices.
The work we've done on e-Submissions and e-Feedback is also helping to reduce the need for hard copies of assignments and should continue to make a difference as it is introduced on more modules.
Wi-fi
Wi-fi in all buildings - try the first floor of Arts A where there is none.
In recent years, the University has made specific funding available to improve wi-fi in student areas such as residences and social spaces. Although we're keen to extend the service, significant further investment will be needed to cover the remaining staff and administration offices. Realistically, in the meantime, some buildings will have only limited coverage.
Visitors and eduroam
It's embarrassing when we're unable to log visitors on to eduroam.
A number of people reported problems with visitor access to eduroam which we think were due to some specific issues with our network configuration. We did some work in December to address these faults and make it easier for visitors to connect in the future. The changes we made should also help Sussex staff and students to use eduroam successfully when visiting other universities.
Cloud storage
Better cloud application integration (e.g. Dropbox)
Cloud platforms can be very useful for storing and sharing files and data and we're now providing two services:
- Office 365 is available to all staff and students including online versions of Word applications and up to 5TB of storage space per person with OneDrive
- Box.com was introduced for staff in the autumn, offering unlimited storage
Quick summary
See our handy graphic for a quick summary of the key points (click to enlarge).
Updated on 27 April 2021