NSRC, Computing Center Staff Assist Network Support Services in Angola

By Steve Huter (sghuter@nsrc-org) and Hervey Allen (hervey @oregon.uoregon.edu)

How did the UO Computing Center become involved with network support services in Luanda?

The project began last July, when two Angolan students at a TCP/IP workshop in Geneva, Switzerland, asked the Network Resource Center (NSRC) for ideas about how to improve their user support services. The NSRC, which helped organize the Geneva workshop, has been dedicated to making affordable networking technology available around the globe for the past decade, and is now based at the UO Computing Center.

The NSRC had worked with the Angolans in the early 1990s using FidoNet technology, and provided some technical advice to them when they transitioned to a TCP/IP network, dubbed EBOnet, at the end of 1996.The EBONet engineers explained that their network user base had expanded dramatically since then, outpacing their current ability to meet the demand for support.

As EBONet is the primary resource in Angola for full Internet access, its constituency had quickly grown from a handful of former FidoNet users to nearly a thousand users, including not only Angolan individuals and companies, but also researchers and employees of the US Embassy, the US Information Agency (USIA), the United Nations, and various international nongovernmental organizations. While EBONet staff had already begun developing a Help Desk service, they wanted to learn more about how to support their growing user population.

The NSRC turned to Hervey Allen, of the Computing Center's Help Desk and microcomputer consulting services, to help EBONet staff design some systems and procedures. After extensive email and telephone communications to plan the work agenda and make decisions about what software and hardware to bring along, Hervey flew to Luanda on November 11.

In keeping with the philosophy of the NSRC, Hervey worked in cooperation with EBONet staff‹suggesting some changes, answering questions, and demonstrating how to use various tools and resources‹but always stressing that the real work must be done by the EBONet staff itself.

Using Spanish and some English to communicate with the primarily Portuguese-speaking Angolans, Hervey

• observed traffic flow at the Help Desk and suggested improvements
• initiated a set of Help Desk web pages disseminating user support information
• introduced the staff to other NSRC resources for assistance in network management and system administration
• gave a public presentation on customer service and the role of the Internet

Occasionally, questions arose that required more help, and Hervey was able to call freely on the expertise of half a dozen other Computing Center staff via email. Everyone pitched in willingly to give EBONet support services a boost.

Before leaving Angola, Hervey drew up a final report with specific recommendations for improving EBONet's existing services and adding new resources as needed.

Barely two weeks after Hervey's return to the states, EBONet staff reported that a number of his recommendations had already been implemented. Haymee Perez Cogle wrote recently, "We thank the NSRC and Hervey a lot for the assistance and hope that our collaboration will continue. Your visit was very useful, Hervey, and our staff is now very motivated. We're working on the installer, reorganizing our schedules and procedures, finishing the FAQ for our web site, and improving the technical assistance services of our Help Desk."

As for Hervey, he discovered that many of the same issues confronting the UO are also faced by the EBONet staff in Angola: busy modem lines, modem and password problems, and struggles with connectivity.

Hervey also noted some interesting differences, such as the total absence of Macintosh computers, the overwhelming number of Toshiba portables in use (by those who had portables), and the surprising fact that almost no old machines (486 class) are employed by EBONet's users‹the hardware is quite modern.

Hervey affirms that the Angolan training sessions were mutually beneficial. "The chance to apply what I do every day at the University of Oregon to help a group of people who are getting an entire country started with the Internet was a truly gratifying experience," he says. "The spirit of teamwork and collaboration between EBONet, the NSRC, and the Computing Center was great to see and be a part of."