February / March 2007
Lakehead first university in Canada to switch to Google Apps
A server crash last Fall spurred on the planned conversion of Lakehead University's dated email system to Google's Gmail. In a remarkable three days, the Thunder Bay university's IT department switched over 38,000 email accounts to the new Gmail configuration with almost no interruption to service.
Lakehead's is the first campus-wide implementation of Google Apps for Education in Canada.
Google Apps for Education is a platform entirely hosted by Google that provides Lakehead students, faculty, and staff with email, chat, and web calendaring - all without the need to install and maintain software and hardware on campus.
Students, staff and faculty now get 2GB each of storage space, compared to 60MB with the old system. Since it is entirely hosted by Google rather than on university hardware, the university expects to save $2 million to $3 million a year on maintenance and about $6 million annually on infrastructure.
The move to Gmail also effectively and permanently resolves recurring email issues the Thunder Bay university had continually faced under its previous email system, including server capacity, non-delivery, and slow response time.
"The traditional way of looking at technology use and its management is coming to an end. Organizations have to continue to reinvent themselves and the services they provide to enhance the value of technology in education," said Shahzad Jafri, Chief Information Officer and Director of the Technology Services Centre at Lakehead University.
The university obtained the entire product suite for no charge since Google has been offering it under a beta program since late summer (although no mention has been made as to when this beta period will end). Colleges and universities that adopt it during this beta period will not have to pay. Google expects to launch a premium version of Google Apps for Education for which there will be a charge.
Google includes text-based advertising in Google Apps for Education.
For more information, please visit http://communications.lakeheadu.ca/news.
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