CORE--COMPUTER AND MEDIA/GRAPHICS

University Of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles CA

Investigators

Linked publications & trials

Abstract

The functions of the Computer Core are to support the computing needs of the MRRC faculty, staff, and students within the broader framework of information technology (IT) support by the University, the School of Medicine and the NPI. The support provided includes hardware and software support for desktop and laptop computers, support for specialized computer controlled research equipment such as laser confocal microscopes, the laser capture microscope system, digital still and video cameras, and electrophysiological data acquisition devices. Assistance is provided in the design and development of research databases and web sites. Network servers are maintained for data storage, shared printer control, web site hosting and file transfer between MRRC faculty and colleagues at other institutions. The general model of computing support at UCLA and at the School of Medicine is of a distributed system. This model allows for rapid response to local issues and the possibility of having support personnel who are familiar with the people and the research programs in their area while at the same time having available to them the greater resources of the wider IT community. The interface between the local and broader community is the computing support coordinator (CSC, Dorwin Birt) for the MRRC. Regular meetings of the School of Medicine Computing Support Coordinators (SOM CSCs) are held to keep individual CSCs up to date on current network and security policies, to discuss mutual problems, to set general policies and to keep their local departments or units updated on these policies and issues. The MRRC Computer Core participates in these meetings. Purpose and Objectives The objectives of the Media/Graphics portion of the Communications Core are to provide members of the MRRC with assistance in preparation of their scientific data for presentation. This service includes conversion of raw data into graphic representations as well as production of illustrations, photographs, slides, posters, and digital presentations and prints. The service is both cost-efficient and convenient. We estimate that during the last year Media/Graphics realized a savings of approximately 50% to MRRC investigators over what the same services would have cost at Photographic Services in the UCLA Medical Center. Charges among outside vendors for similar services are 3-4 times higher.