Microsoft’s Windows Vista and Office Upgrades Are Complete

Campus computers are running the newest operating system and office software

WATERVILLE, June 7 — Thomas College has successfully completed its campus-wide upgrade to Windows Vista, Microsoft’s newest operating system, and Microsoft’s Office Professional Plus 2007 suite.

The timetable is well in advance of what other colleges and businesses are doing across the nation. The new products will provide the latest tools for students, faculty and staff to increase productivity, security and output.

Christopher Rhoda ’88, M.B.A. ’89, vice president for information services, said students are demanding the latest software for their educational experience, and these upgrades help to meet those demands. And, the introduction of the newest operating system and software product to campus supports the College’s strategic initiative of being an educational leader in technology.

“We are providing access to tools today that many businesses may not use until months or years down the road. As a result, Thomas graduates and students who participate in internships will be able to train other employees in the latest operating system and Microsoft Office products,” Rhoda said.

Windows Vista offers a network and sharing center that lets users set up a wireless network at home; easy-to-use organizational tools that make it simpler to get things done; a backup-and-restore center that offers improved functions; and a central place for entertainment, where users can access television shows, games, music, movies, home videos and photo slide shows. Vista also allows the College to use the latest multimedia and security software.

Some of the benefits of Office 2007 are improved menus and tools to help create documents more easily; a consistent appearance between the documents created in Word, Excel and PowerPoint; a new To-Do task list centralizes tasks, calendar information and e-mails flagged for follow up; and an enhanced Office Outlook 2007 junk e-mail filter to help reduce electronic spam and protect against harmful attachments. Additionally, Office 2007 saves Thomas College precious space on its servers because of the software’s smaller file sizes, said Rhoda.

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