News Release
MSU Computer Laboratory Renamed
Academic Computing and Network Services
March 11, 2004
In 1956, MSU entered the world of digital computing with the creation of the MSU Computer Laboratory. Within a year the Computer Lab had built one of the earliest large scale digital computers, MISTIC. In the nearly five decades since, the world of computing has changed dramatically, with the rise of desktop and handheld computers, and the increasing importance of the campus network. Those changes have altered and expanded the Computer Lab's mission. To better reflect the department's mission and the services it offers, the unit has been renamed Academic Computing and Network Services.
"The name 'Computer Laboratory' or 'Computer Lab' made sense in past years when we built mainframes and wrote our own operating systems," says Tom Davis, Director. "Over the past 15 to 20 years, our role has steadily evolved, as we took a central role in managing the campus network and providing a variety of computing services."
The new name was chosen after a period of extensive discussion with staff, with customers, and with other units in Libraries, Computing and Technology. President McPherson approved the name change in February.
In addition to managing the campus network and the university's Internet links, ACNS provides general computing help desk services; operates the MSU Computer Store; runs the campus e-mail, network ID and file storage services; repairs computers and designs networks, develops Web sites, databases, and applications programs; provides shared and co-located server hosting; runs a technical training program; operates 50 instructional microcomputer labs; provides campus test scoring services; handles network security and abuse issues; and, jointly with University Relations, operates MSU's main Web presence.
MSU Computing History
- MSU's first computer was known as MISTIC, for Michigan State Integral Computer. The vacuum-tube MISTIC filled a room and had 1024 40-bit words of memory. Today's handheld PDA has far more computing power.
- Former Mathematics Chair Dr. J. Sutherland Frame recalls persuading President Hannah to fund the $150,000 effort to build MSU's first computer by pointing out that Wayne State and the University of Michigan already had computers.
- MSU recruited L.W. von Tersch from Iowa to lead the team that built MISTIC. Dr. Von Tersch headed the Computer Laboratory and later became Dean of Engineering.
- Even in 1956, many departments sought time on MSU's new computer. Early users included Henry Blosser , who later directed the Cyclotron.
A new Web site, www.acns.msu.edu , will launch soon.
Contacts: Tom Davis, Director, 355-3600
Rich Wiggins , Sr. Information Technologist, 355-4500 x 149, wiggins@msu.edu
