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Computer changes scheduled

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  • By Mike W. Ray
  • Staff Writer
TINKER AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. --  Computer users at Tinker will experience some significant changes over the next few months, the 72nd Air Base Wing Communications Directorate reports.

For starters, the Office 2010 suite of software programs will be "pushed out" automatically, and in a phased schedule, to the estimated 26,000 computers on base. The suite includes Word, PowerPoint, Excel and Outlook, said Brenda Hill, SC deputy director.

Office 2010 does the same things as Office 2007 except that "it's been rearranged," said Edward Graham, SC management analyst. For example, the printing operation is "significantly different," SC Chief Technology Officer Mike Valentine said. In addition, Office 2010 has more features, Mrs. Hill said.

The upgrade is tentatively scheduled after the first of the year but might occur later this month, Mr. Graham said.

Another change will be the migration next year to the Air Force Network and replacement of the existing Tinker Communications Directorate help desk with a consolidated, universal Enterprise Service Desk.

Three changes will be immediately obvious:

· E-mail addresses will be retained throughout the user's career. Everyone -- military, civilian and contractor alike -- will have an e-mail address that includes his or her first and last names and ends with "us.af.mil" as in "jane.doe@us.af.mil". The "tinker.af.mil" domain name will be dropped.

· E-mail addresses will follow the user. Network and e-mail can be accessed from any AFNet-enabled computer anywhere, by using the individual's Common Access Card login. "The lost time that often resulted from a permanent change of station while awaiting a new account will be eliminated," Mr. Graham said. "When you arrive at a new station, you'll simply go to a computer and log on using your enterprise e-mail address."

· The Enterprise Service Desk will be accessible around-the-clock for resolution of e-mail and network issues. Tinker's help desk operates 18 hours a day (6 a.m. to midnight) Monday through Friday, except on holidays and base "down" days. In comparison, ESD personnel will be available 24/7/365.

When the migration to AFNet is completed by the end of FY2013, the Air Force will have four help desks: at Lackland AFB, Texas; Ramstein Air Base, Germany; Gunter Annex, Ala.; and at Hickam AFB, Hawaii.

The ESD will have a rollover capability: When you call the universal help desk number, the call will be routed automatically to one of the four sites; if all of the technicians at that site are busy helping other customers, your call will be routed automatically to the next available technician at an alternate site.

Computer problems will be handled just like they are now. When a user contacts the help desk, a technician will inquire about the nature of the problem and, if necessary, connect remotely to the user's computer. If the problem is too difficult to resolve in that manner, a ticket will be prepared and sent to Tinker, and a field technician will be assigned "as quickly as possible" to resolve the dilemma, Mr. Graham said.

Although there will be some downsizing of the help desk with the transition to AFNet, Tinker still will have several technicians to resolve major computer problems, Mrs. Hill said. ESD "will be the first response, but we'll still have technicians on site."

Mailbox sizes may change. "For some it will increase, others will be smaller, but most will remain about the same size," Mr. Graham said.

Migration of Tinker AFB to the AFNet is scheduled for next spring or early summer, records reflect. The task will take about two months to complete, Mr. Graham said. "There are a lot of technical things occurring behind the scenes."

All Air Force users will be converted by the end of FY2013, Mr. Graham said. Migrations began with Keesler AFB in March 2009, and approximately 50 bases -- including Scott AFB, Ill., and PACAF -- have transitioned already, he said. According to the Air Force Network Integration Center, about 845,000 users at 418 sites, including the Air Force Reserve and the Air National Guard, will migrate into the AFNet.

The principal reason for conversion to the AFNet is mission assurance. "We can address some security concerns" by consolidating, Mr. Graham said, because Air Force information and data systems are "under constant cyber attack." A centrally managed and standardized structure "vastly improves security, reduces operational cost, standardizes training procedures, and simplifies operations and maintenance," the AFNIC contends.

The number of service calls is expected to decline somewhat after the transition. "We answer about 120,000 help-desk calls each year" at Tinker AFB, and each call results in a computerized service ticket, Mr. Graham related. With AFNet's single sign-on capability, an Airman who PCS's to Tinker won't have to set up a new account.