UNIVERSITY OF UTAH COMPUTER CENTER

M E M O R A N D U M
February 28, 1974

TO:	Faculty, Deans and Department Chairmen

FROM:	Ed Sharp, Director Computer Center

SUBJECT:	Instruction and Research Computing--New Developments

The Computer Center goals are to
1. Expand instructional interactive computer terminal usage on a test basis throughout the campus.
2. Revise pricing quarterly, as required to correct inequities and encourage growth and development of instructional interactive terminal use.
3. Increase campus service and training for both faculty and students through appropriate academic channels.
The new time-sharing service and rates outlined below will be available only to instructional departments of this University and other State institutions of higher education, implementing the instructional computing plan established in January of 1973.

REAL TIME BASIC (RTB)

RTB has been available six hours a day for student, faculty and research use. Effective March 1 this service will be available more than twelve hours a day. RTB is especially designed for student use and is very inexpensive (typical student sessions cost about 35¢).

A large program library is available for general use, teletype response time is excellent, and this BASIC is compatible with implementations elsewhere. Until we have more experience with RTB and the system resources required to support it, the pricing outlined below is tentative and subject to revision quarterly.

RTB will cost $1/terminal connect hour or 12.5¢/second, whichever is greater. Our experience indicates an average session is 20 to 25 minutes and less than two computer seconds are used during this time. This service is designed to be inexpensive. Students using small FORTRAN, ALGOL or COBOL jobs should be able to accomplish the same task more conveniently with greater understanding at less than half the current cost if BASIC is used instead.

PUBLIC LIBRARY PROGRAMS AVAILABLE THROUGH RTB

The Public Library contains over 300 programs including 29 tutorial programs to aid in learning RTB. Sixty-three statistical programs are available and range in capability from simple statistical measures, such as mean and standard deviation, to correlation, curve fitting, multivariate analysis, regression, and analysis of variance. Over 40 mathematical programs provide capabilities for linear and simultaneous equations, linear programming, integration, logic, probability and teletype curve plotting. Over 20 programs concern banking operations and include systems for loans, savings banks, planning and decision making, information management and management games. The public library also includes 25 investment analysis programs including portfolio selection, stocks and bonds analysis, funds analysis, mortgage and financial projection programs. Programs available for management science include accounting, economics and production programs, as well as management simulation games. English, French, German, Greek, Italian, Latin and Spanish tutorial programs are also available in this library. Other programs such as a statistics tutorial, computer assisted instruction (CAI), Anthropological routines will be complemented as time allows.

CAMPUS TERMINAL NETWORK

The Computer Center is presently developing plans for a network of 30 additional concurrent terminal users consisting primarily of teletypes at locations throughout the campus. These terminals will be initially located in buildings where evening and weekend access is possible, where high student traffic justifies the equipment. The Computer Center will relocate terminals from time to time to maximize utilization. Questions concerning this should be directed to me at extension 6802.

Ed Sharp