Maine Telecommunications Users Group Meeting Held at Thomas
Held in the Laurette Ayotte Auditorium beginning at 9 a.m.

WATERVILLE, Mar. 28 — The Maine Telecommunications Users Group meeting (MTUG) will be held on the Thomas College campus on Wednesday, April 4 at 9 a.m.

The meeting will feature some of the latest uses in making and receiving phone calls over the Internet, known as voice over the Internet protocol or VoIP. The meeting will also provide an overview of Unified Communications, an integrated computer and telephony system that streamlines business processes; and current trends in Session Initiated Protocol, or SIP, which is the ability to have phone conversations over the computer.

Thomas’ Christopher Rhoda, vice president for information services, will present at the meeting. He will highlight the many technological advances the College has made or is in the process of, including moving away from multiple communications systems to one unified communication platform.

Traditionally, Thomas has utilized three separate ways for its students to communicate: a computer, video and voice. Rhoda is now leading the College to innovative approaches in combining those platforms so that students will have one inbox, one e-mail address, one phone number, one fax number, a follow-me service, and have access to a single device to communicate and conduct classroom work. The College plans to put a windows-based phone in the hands of all students, faculty and staff .

Rhoda will also detail the College’s unique communications alliance with Microsoft and Nortel that provides Thomas with the access to the latest software on the market. Microsoft Corporation, a software and service company, and Nortel, a communications provider, formed a partnership last year in an effort to improve business communications worldwide. Thomas is one of a select few educational institutions to align itself with the global project.

During the meeting, Rhoda will also announce the College’s launch of the Microsoft Office 2007 suite and Microsoft’s newest operating system, Vista, which will be available to the Thomas community by August 2007.

The presentation will be held from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. in the Laurette Ayotte Auditorium. The event is open to the public. For more information, contact Chris Rhoda at 859-1204 or chris@thomas.edu.

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