While getting my Masters at the University of North Carolina I held a number of internships at Duke University. My first year at Duke, I worked at the Lilly Library on East Campus, here I provided reference and instruction for the Duke’s freshmen population. My second year at Duke I worked in the reference department of Perkins/Bostock library answering reference questions and working on a number of smaller projects. I also worked in the electronic resources department on a clean up project for the library’s link resolver.

After graduating from UNC, I went to work for Ex Libris; first on the link resolver SFX, and eventually on the electronic resources management system Verde. My primary responsibility was ushering customers through the implementation process. In this role I provided implementation support and training for customers.

When I grew weary of travel, I took a job as a Systems Administrator at Wheaton College. Here I focus on administering systems for the library, archives, and academic technology. My work takes me from administering a learning management system (Moodle) to helping the college’s Records Manager create systems and workflows for archiving official college records.

To find out more about my work history please feel free to view my Curriculum Vitae. If you’re interested in my professional interests, my blog is a great place to start. Links to both can be found on the right hand side of the page.

Cloud Computing in Higher Education: Practically Deploying Systems with the Cloud
Presenters: Rosalyn Metz, Systems Administrator for Curricular Support, Wheaton College

Where: Amherst, MA
When: Monday December 6th 2010

Abstract: This presentation takes a look at some of the different cloud based services and discusses how they can be used by higher education technology professionals to provide systems they supply to their users. The session will focus on real world examples and demonstrations of the different services.

Links:
PowerPoint Presentation (.pptx file)
Redmine and Heroku (.mp4 file)
WordPress and S3 (.mp4 file)
WebWork and EC2 (.mp4 file)
Moodle and EC2 (.mp4 file)

Publication: Educause Podcasts

Link: http://www-cdn.educause.edu/sites/default/files/nercomp10-metz.mp3

Abstract: Cloud computing is the new hot topic in IT. While many are talking about it, few actually understand what it is, how it’s being used, and what benefits it could offer to higher education. In this interview from the NERCOMP 2010 Annual Conference, Rosalyn Metz, shares her thoughts on this trend toward the cloud. Metz is systems administrator for curricular support at Wheaton College.

Publication: Educause Quarterly

Publication Link: http://www.educause.edu/EDUCAUSE+Quarterly/EDUCAUSEQuarterlyMagazineVolum/CloudComputingExplained/206526

Abstract: While many talk about the cloud, few actually understand it. Three organizations’ definitions come to the forefront when defining the cloud: Gartner, Forrester, and the National Institutes of Standards and Technology (NIST). Although both Gartner and Forrester provide definitions of cloud computing, the NIST definition is concise and uses industry-standard terms.

This article takes an in-depth look at the NIST definition of cloud computing. Each of the NIST definition’s points is defined in greater detail, and examples of cloud-based technologies will help the reader gain a better understanding of the cloud.

NIST defines cloud computing as:

…a model for enabling convenient, on-demand network access to a shared pool of configurable computing resources (e.g., networks, servers, storage, applications, and services) that can be rapidly provisioned and released with minimal management effort or service provider interaction. This cloud model promotes availability and is composed of five essential characteristics, three service models, and four deployment models.

The remainder of this article discusses these five characteristics, three service models, and four deployment models.

Where: Washington, DC
When: Saturday June 26th 2010

Abstract: This panel session will focus on providing an overview of what cloud computing is and how it is being used to fill needs in libraries. Panel members will each provide a short presentation and then the moderator will coordinate a discussion on common themes.

While working at Gelman Library I met a nice man getting his PhD. He convinced me that I liked what I was doing, so I should keep doing it. I attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where I received my Masters in Library Science; although my main focus was in information science.

Where: Hyannis, MA
When: Wednesday April 28th 2010 – Friday April 30th 2010

Abstract: Our panel of local technology superstars returns to discuss the top technology trends to watch in Massachusetts libraries this year. Get the early word on the new and exciting, the useful and needed, and maybe even the confusing but popular technologies on the horizon. The panel will include some returning experts from last year as well as some new faces. Soak up their expertise and impress your friends.

Where: Norton, MA
When: Friday March 19th 2010

Abstract: ITIG DigiCamp features a community-driven format where each session is suggested, designed and delivered by the audience.  DigiCamp’s format was in the style of an unconference.

Institution: School of Information and Library Science, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Publication Link: http://www.rosalynmetz.com/masterspaper.pdf

Abstract: When students write research papers they use a variety of sources in their paper. These sources range from web pages to research articles. The purpose of this study was to decide whether or not undergraduate students would choose to use scholarly or non-scholarly sources when presented with both types of sources in a set of search results. Twenty Duke University students were recruited for the study. They were given a research topic and asked to perform a search. The researcher fabricated both the search results and interface in order to control the experimental environment. The students were asked to rate the sources found in the results, choose four sources to use for their research scenario, and finally, were asked to explain reasoning behind their choices. The findings concluded that the students in this study were more likely to choose scholarly sources over non-scholarly sources and give these scholarly sources higher ratings.

To start up solr type:
sudo su root
cd jetty
java -jar start.jar

To start up ruby on rails:
sudo su root
script/server

To index the test data:
rake solr:marc:index MARC_FILE=data/test_data.utf8.mrc SOLR_WAR_PATH=jetty/webapps/solr.war
more information on using solr marc to index your own data see: http://code.google.com/p/solrmarc/wiki/BlacklightHowTo

Once you have started solr and webrick you can access the AMI at http://<public dns>:3000. If you are having problems accessing the page, this may be due to the ports you did (or did not) open for the server. You can open the ports from your AWS Management Console by clicking on Security in the left hand navigation pane, choosing the security group you sued to start up the instance, and then editting your security settings to look like the following.