MICROCOMPUTER USE BY STUDENT CONSTRUCTION ORGANIZATIONS OF PURDUE UNIVERSITY

INTRODUCTION

Reflecting the diversity of interest in different fields of construction of the students in the Building Construction and Contracting Department at Purdue University, are the many societies and organizations. There are established and active student chapters of the American Institute of Constructors, Associated General Contractors, Associated Builders and Contractors, National Association of Homebuilders, Women in Construction, and Sigma Lambda Chi. Among the long standing activities sponsored and supported by these groups are a guest speaker program, a spring recognition and awards banquet, a student-faculty breakfast, a back to school hog roast, and a sale of special educational materials.

To broaden these services and introduce new ones, the organizations pooled their resources and purchased a microcomputer. The intended uses for this machine included administrative support in word processing, accounting, data base management, and budgeting for the officers of the groups as well as providing a letter quality printing capability for the entire student population, something that was desired by the students but unavailable at that time. It was recognized that as the computer was incorporated into the organization's way of working, more applications would likely be found for it. Because of this a machine with what appeared to be excess capability was purchased.

DESCRIPTION OF HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE

The microcomputer purchased was an IBM AT with the following specifications.

·        640K random access memory

·        20 M fixed drive

·        1.2 M floppy drive

·        360 K floppy drive

·        1200 baud Hayes modem

·        IBM monochrome display adapter

·        Amdek 310 amber monochrome monitor

·        Microsoft bus mouse

To provide the ultimate in letter quality printing capability a Hewlett-Packard LaserJet Plus printer was purchased. One optional font cartridge (the Times Roman F cartridge) was also bought.

The software that was initially obtained for use on the computer was:

·         IBM PC DOS version 3.1 (operating system)

·         Microsoft Word (word processing)

·         Smartcom II (communications with modem)

·         Sidekick (memory resident manager/utility)

·         PC-Write (word processing)

GETTING STARTED

The computer and printer were installed in an office shared by all the student organizations. It was recognized that for the computer to realize its full potential it would have to be made as easy and straightforward to use as possible. The student organization officers would range from computer novices to knowledgeable computer owners. To make it easy to use, a menu system based on DOS batch files was installed. When the computer was turned on, the AUTOEXEC.BAT file would display a menu of program choices on the screen. By entering one of the choices on this menu the user would call a second batch file that would execute the commands to load and start the chosen program. After the user was done with that program and exited from it, the batch file would return the original menu to the screen and ask for the user to make another selection.

The advantage to this system in addition to its simplicity for the novice was that it was easy to set up using just the capabilities of DOS. The disadvantage was that it wasn't resistant to curious but clumsy tinkerers who could render it inoperable any number of ways. While only one instance of suspected malicious damage was experienced, on several occasions someone inadvertently damaged the files that drove the menu system. After a little experience at backing up the files most likely to be damaged, it became an easy task to get the menu system into operation again. As more of the users became familiar with the computer, less and less trouble was experienced with this simple system.

The computer met immediate acceptance and was quickly put to work assisting in the day to day chores of running the student organizations. Announcements, memos, meeting minutes, and all other types of paperwork was done using the program Microsoft Word. This had two benefits to the department and organizations. The typing load on the department's secretaries was lessened somewhat and the documents being prepared and distributed had a much more professional look to them. Many of the officers found themselves taking more time to carefully compose their writings when they found out how easy editing could be when using a word processor.

The students now had available the HP LaserJet printer for preparation of documents that they wanted to look especially good. Since it was decided right from the start that only officers of the organizations or their designated helpers would actually run the computer, a student, to get something printed would start by typing it using the word processing program available in the auto tutorial lab, PC-Write. That file was then given to the person on duty in the organization office, who would import it into Microsoft Word arid print it. This was done because Microsoft Word used the full capabilities of the laser printer. A modest fee to cover paper costs and printer supplies was charged. The students used this service for all their letter quality printing needs which for most of them was the preparation of their resumes and cover letters. The fee charged by the student organizations was less than half of the comparable commercial fee For the same service.

ELECTRONIC RESUME SERVICE

One of the original objectives discussed for the computer was to use it as a host for an electronic bulletin board that might provide the following services to the construction industry, other educational institutions, and the faculty and students at Purdue.

·           Provide a way for students to make their resumes available to contractors without the expense of blanket mailings by posting them on the bulletin board.

·           Serve as a clearinghouse of construction information for area contractors especially for current bid proposal solicitations.

·           Provide another way for information about classes, assignments, meetings, or^- any other announcements of interest to students to be distributed.

·           Provide another way that faculty could communicate with other schools and trade information.

·           Support a pool of public domain software for construction related tasks that could be copied and used by other schools, contractors, or students.

Since the IBM AT can in theory support multi--tasking, it was hoped that a bulletin board system (BBS) could be found that would operate as a background task while the computer was being used for other things. In spite of talking to BBS operators and other computer experts all over the country no such software could be Found. The capabilities of the hardware

simply exceeded the ability of current operating systems and programs to fully use it.

The system that was finally chosen was a public domain program called RBBS and it was obtained from PC-SIG, (1030D East Duane Avenue, Sunnyvale, California 94086), a company that distributes public domain software and shareware. The cost of the program was six dollars per diskette and it was contained on two double sided double density diskettes. The instructions for installing and using the program were contained in a text file on one of the diskettes. This is often the way documentation about a public domain program is distributed.

The first type of information exchange set up on the BBS was an electronic resume service. The students who expected to graduate and were seeking a job provided the system operators with a copy of their resumes. These were stored in a file on the hard drive of the machine which could be examined from a remote location by an employer. The equipment necessary to call into the BBS and establish a link is widely available to most contractors today. Essentially a computer with at least one floppy disk drive, a modem and phone connection, and a communications program capable of monitoring the sending and receiving of data In a format the BBS is set up to handle is all that is required.

After the BBS was Installed and tested by calling within the department from other computers having modems, notices were sent to several contractors who had a record of hiring our graduates and also were considered progressive about keeping abreast of current technology. The notices announced the trial resume service and encouraged the contractors to try it out. A few calls were soon being logged and before long one of the students announced his first job interview attributed to the electronic resume service. Some of the features of the system that was liked by the contractors included:

+ The ease of examining a large number of potential employees's records without the necessity of making personal contact with them.

+ The fact that their search for potential new employees could be done in the evenings or on weekends. Not only did this leave the regular working hours free to pursue normal business but the search was cheaper in off hours due to the reduced phone rates.

+ The ability of the BBS to allow leaving a message either for a potential employee if that Is how they chose to contact them, or to the system operator or a faculty member if they had a suggestion or comment or wanted additional information.

The students liked the idea of having their resumes read by as many employers as possible.

One contractor commented that he would like to see students with other majors such as mechanical or electrical engineers use this or a similar service so they could seek those people in the same way.

FUTURE DIRECTIONS

The positive response received from both students and contractors about the electronic resume service leads us to believe that its capabilities should be expanded to include:

·      An additional category for .undergraduates seeking part time or summer employment.

 

·      An opportunity for alumni seeking a job change to submit their resumes in a way to maintain anonymity if desired. These would be displayed in a separate file for employers to examine when seeking someone with experience.

·      The opening of the service to majors from other departments or schools in the university. This would not only attract more attention from potential employers for the building construction students, but the fee charged for the service could generate money to help support the student organizations and maintain the computer.

In addition to the extensions listed above concerning electronic posting of resumes, the following goals for the increased use of the computer system have been set.

·           Become a node in the nationwide network of computer bulletin boards that focus on construction related matters being developed within the Associated Schools of Construction.

 

·           Work more closely with industry to find out. what services that could be provided by the Purdue BBS would be most useful to them.

 

·      Train and equip more of the students and faculty with the hardware and software for using the existing BBS. This would bring closer to realization some of the original goals for the BBS mentioned above.

 

·      Obtain the necessary software and hardware to move into the area of desktop publishing to provide support for development of educational materials, departmental and alumni newsletters, and other faculty and student needs in producing typeset quality documents.

 

FUTURE HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE NEEDS

The task of providing the increased service and capabilities mentioned above, would be made much easier with the addition of the following hardware and software.

·           Another computer in the AT class (i.e. containing an 80286 microprocessor) to serve as a dedicated BBS host. This machine should have a fixed disk with a minimum capacity of 50 megabytes and be equipped with some device (probably a tape drive) to allow frequent backup of the data on the fixed disk.

 

·      The replacement of the graphics adapter and monitor on the existing machine (it could be moved to the BBS host computer) with a high resolution color monitor and a multi--mode display adapter which incorporates the IBM Enhanced Graphics Adapter standard as well as higher resolution modes that will be used when software becomes available. This higher resolution is necessary for desktop publishing requirements.

 

·      A memory expansion for the HP LaserJet to allow a wider variety of font styles and graphics.

·      Additional font cartridges for the HP LaserJet.

·      Software to allow page formatting in the same style as professional typesetters.

 

 

OBSERVATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

For anyone interested in establishing a BBS system the following observations and recommendations will be helpful.

·           + Plan for a dedicated computer to serve as the host for the BBS and make a dedicated phone line available for it.

 

·           + If the computer is to be managed by student organizations as the system at Purdue is, steps should be taken to ensure continuity of information. That is, before one student who is very knowledgeable and capable graduates, at least one student and preferably several students should work with him for at least a semester to learn how the system operates. Having a student graduate before a replacement is found and trained can bring the system to a screeching halt.

 

·           + Try to find one person who likes working with computers and designate him as the "guru" of the system. He can coordinate the efforts of the other members of the student organizations who also work on the computer. Having one person responsible for the functioning of the machine tends to lessen the system tinkering which inevitably leads to down time.