Agenda - 11-19-1997 - 10b - Laserfiche WebLink

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IJ There are approximately 350 PCs in use in Orange County government. The program which controls the PC, or the operating system, is Microsoft Windows. Orange County staff also use Microsoft Office software, running under Windows on their PCs, which provides word processing. spreadsheet, presentation and database tools on the user's machine. Many of these PCs are several years old and are inadequate to run Windows 95, the current de facto standard operating system for PCs. The mainframe system is an IBM RS/6000 computer. This system is a reliable, flexible, extendible technology that can have some years of future useful life. It provides centralized computer services and resides in the Information Systems computer center. Its main function is to provide database services for a number of departments, such as Finance and the Register of Deeds. Based on technology that is now nearly twenty years old, these systems are referred to as legacy applications. Users access these applications using terminal emulation software which runs on their PCs. This software allows them to connect to the mainframe and use the legacy applications through a window on their computer display screens. The hardware and software that connects users to the mainframe, to other users, and to applications that run on non-county systems(e.g., state system) is collectively referred to as the network. It includes wiring within buildings that connects the PCs, dedicated wires that connect nearby buildings to one another, and telephone lines that connect distant locations (e.g., Carrboro and Chapel Hill offices)as well as individuals who dial in on modems to the central network. Some larger groups, such as users in the Whiffed Building, operate on a network server in their building which in turn connects them to the network. A server is a specialized computer which uses network operating system software to control the flow of information throughout the network. The focal point of the entire network is the Information Systems computer center in the Government Services Annex in Hillsborough. A server there provides central access to files, and a second server provides a central e-mail service. An extension of the basic network connects several County locations to systems at state offices in Raleigh. These include law enforcement and emergency management systems and systems for the Social Services, Child Support Enforcement, and Tax Collection offices. 2.2 Applications Software Users of the County network have access to applications on their own PCs, on the network servers, on the mainframe. Applications consist of software programs developed by IS staff, commercial packages, and customized commercial packages adapted by IS staff for specific county needs. Mainframe applications include finance and personnel related programs, tax collection and assessment, land records and register of deeds, planning, environmental health, elections, animal control, board of commissioners, health, social services and related systems. These were all developed by IS staff, and IS staff continue to maintain them at considerable costs. PC programs include the Microsoft Office suite adopted by the county as its standard general purpose package and the Groupwise e-mail commercial software package. As part of a pilot project, some users also have the Netscape World Wide Web browser for Internet access.