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Vice President for Research Cyberinfrastructure at the University of Michigan, dean of the School of Information, Interim Dean and Associate Dean for Research at the College of Engineering. Papers include materials relating to research in technologically-based collaboration, institutional leadership, teaching and service.

The Daniel E. Atkins papers document his research and administrative roes at the University of Michigan. The papers include materials relating to research in technologically-based collaboration, institutional leadership, teaching and service,including meetings and activities as Dean of the School of Information. The papers comprise 11.6 linear feet in three major series: University of Illinois, U-M College of Engineering, and U-M School of Information. In addition, there is a series of digital material related to Atkins' work on the U-M IT Council.

Ed Saunders served the University of Michigan in many capacities, including as Director of the Microcomputer Education Center (1985-1986) and Director of the Information Technology Division's Office of Instructional Technology (1990-1997). Papers include department materials, department publications, and correspondence regarding the development of instructional technology use at the University of Michigan.

This collection follows Ed Saunders' career at the University of Michigan and includes Saunders' collection of department materials and correspondence. His collections primarily focus on University of Michigan projects aimed at promoting interactive learning with technology.

The Gary M. Olson papers largely document the work done at the University of Michigan and Carnegie Mellon University, during the mid-1980s, to create a computer application called the Experimental Research in Electronic Submission (EXPRES). The goal of the work was to create a collaborative, networked application, which would allow researchers - using different hardware and software environments - to electronically share research. The EXPRES application was intended for electronic submission of grant proposals to the National Science Foundation (NSF).

The Gary M. Olson papers largely document the work done at the University of Michigan and Carnegie Mellon University, during the mid-1980s, to create a computer application called the Experimental Research in Electronic Submission (EXPRES). The papers do not fully document Olson's career. Rather they give insight a key collaborative project. The papers have been organized into four series: Meetings and Reports; Publicity and Presentations; Publications; and Subject Files.

The Information Technology Division, formed in 1985, consolidated academic and administrative computing at the University of Michigan. Douglas Van Houweling was named head of the unit and at the same time appointed to the new position of Vice Provost for Information Technology. During the 1980s, the unit oversaw a shift away from Michigan Terminal System (MTS) mainframe computing to a distributed, networked environment. The Information Technology Division record group documents the development of networked computing at the University of Michigan as it evolved from 1979 to 1995, mainly during the tenure of Douglas Van Houweling. The records include historical data, internal and external committee material, correspondence, and topical files and visual material.

The records of the Information Technology Division measure 23.5 linear feet and date from 1976 to 1998; the bulk of the material represents the years 1985 to 1997. The records consist of correspondence, meeting minutes, electronic mail, newspaper clippings, and reports. They document the administration of ITD, the development of computing on campus, UM's role in the development and management of local, regional, and national computer networks, and ITD's participation, largely in the person of Douglas Van Houweling, in a number of computing organizations, most notably EDUCOM and CIESIN (Consortium for International Earth Science Information Network).

The ITD record group is divided into fourteen series including Central Files, Divisions, Networks, University Files, Vendors, Organizations, Deputy Vice-Provost for Information Technology, Vice-Provost for Information Technology, Virginia Rezmerski Files, Computer Sales Program, Computing Sites, Dean's Partnership Program, Software, and Photographs.

Karl L. Zinn, a specialist in computer-assisted instruction, joined the University of Michigan faculty in 1963 as a research associate with the Center for Research on Learning and Teaching. Promoted to research scientist in 1969, Zinn was instrumental in establishing the MERIT computer network and developing CONFER, the first computer-based conferencing systems on campus. Papers document the development and utilization of CONFER and contain extensive examples of print-outs of conferences, particularly those relating to the use of computers in instruction. Topical files chronicle various technological issues, including the development of MERIT and early uses of computers in the classroom.

The Karl Zinn papers document the development and utilization of CONFER, the first computer-based conferencing system on campus, and contain extensive examples of print-outs of conferences, particularly those relating to the use of computers in instruction. Topical files chronicle various technological issues, including the development of MERIT, the Michigan state-wide computer network, and early uses of computers in the classroom. The Zinn papers are organized into three series CONFER, Topical Files and User Reference Documentation.

Merit (once an acronym for Michigan Educational Research Information Triad) was an organization developed to research the effects of connecting large research universities together by means of a computer network. Officially established in 1966 and still operating today, Merit contributed greatly to networking and the growth and expansion of the Internet. Most of the materials in the Merit record group documents Merit's early growth and development in the 1960s through Merit's post-NSFNET involvement in the late 1990s. Correspondence, project contracts and proposals, meeting minutes, and administrative records make up the bulk of the records.

Most of the materials in the Merit record group document Merit's early growth and development in the 1960s through Merit's post-NSFNET involvement in the late 1990s. Correspondence, project contracts and proposals, meeting minutes, and administrative records make up the bulk of the records.

This record group contains the following series: Administrative, Correspondence, Networks, Staff Files, Audiovisual, and Publications.

Michael T. Alexander was a member of the research staff of the University of Michigan's Computing Center and Information Technology Division Research Systems from 1965 to 1996. Collection contains records of Alexander's duties as well as extensive documentation for the Michigan Terminal System, including manuals and systems reports.

The Michael T. Alexander papers document the work of Alexander and other University of Michigan Computing Center programmers and staff in developing the Michigan Terminal System (MTS) and other software.

The title of this collection acknowledges Michael T. Alexander as the primary collector and donor of the papers. The collection includes a varsity of administrative records relating to MTS with an emphasis on the development of certain aspects of the Michigan Terminal System environment such as email.

Researchers should be aware that these records use the term "MTS" in three different respects:

1. MTS the UMMPS Job Program with which most end-users interact;
2. MTS the software system, including UMMPS, the MTS and other Job Programs, Command Language Subsystems (CLSs), public files (programs), and documentation; and
3. MTS the time-sharing service offered at a particular site, including the MTS software system, the hardware used to run MTS, the staff that supported MTS and assisted end-users, and the associated administrative policies and procedures.

In the first instance, "MTS" would be considered a part of the UM Multiprogramming Supervisor (UMMPS). In the other instances, however, the UMMPS would be considered a part of "MTS." The researcher should, therefore, exercise caution when assuming a particular hierarchical relationship between MTS and UMMPS in these records.

The records of the Michael T. Alexander collection are organized in six series: Administrative Records; Budget Material; Distribution Tapes and Documentation; Software Manuals and Programming; Systems Reports; and Vendors.

The NSFNET 20th anniversary celebration, held November 29-30, 2007, recognized the impact and achievements of the NSFNET program. The conference featured keynote speeches and panel discussions from participants who worked directly on NSFNET, and also from those whose work it benefited. The collection contains print and digital media documenting the event: program of event proceedings, video recordings of panel discussions, video recordings of oral history project interviews, 35 mm color slides.

The NSFNET 20th Anniversary collection documents the event, "NSFNET: The Partnership that Changed the World. Celebrating 20 Years of Internet Innovation and Progress," held November 29-30th, 2007, in Arlington, Virginia. Consisting of website printouts, event program, archived websites, DVD-R discs, DVCAM tapes, and 35 mm color slides, the collection provides historic information regarding the foundation and progress of NSFNET over the past twenty years. The collection consists of two series: Event Information and Oral History Project.