Keynote Address: Generation X in IT
Randy Johnson and Harris Kern, R & H Associates, Inc.

Generation X in IT. What? A generation gap within IT? Of course there is, just like there is virtually everywhere else. What is so different and how will things change to favor Gen X? From a centralized planned world to one of virtual information management, the impact of Generation X will loom large to change the face of IT as we know it.

Randy and Harris will explore how the IT industry is being influenced permanently by Generation X staffers who are bringing new technical skills and attitudes into organizations. The speakers will offer ample evidence and note important trends, both technical and cultural, to highlight where things are going and how it will impact our role as systems administrators.

11:00am - 12:30pm
Monitoring
Session Chair: Adam Moskowitz, Genome Therapeutics Corporation

Implementing a Generalized Tool for Network Monitoring
Marcus Ranum, Network Flight Recorder, Inc.

Extensible, Scalable Monitoring for Clusters of Computers
Eric Anderson and Dave Patterson, University of California, Berkeley

Monitoring Application Use With License Server Logs
Jon Finke, RPI

11:00am - 12:30pm
Overview of the Large Scale System Administration of Windows NT Workshop

The program chairs of USENIX's Large Scale System Administration of Windows NT Workshop will select highlights of the workshop for presentation.

12:30pm - 2:00pm
Lunch (on your own)

12:30pm - 2:00pm
Lunch (on your own)

2:00pm - 3:30pm
The Business of System Administration
Session Chair: Wendy Nather, Swiss Bank Warburg

Automating 24x7 Support Response To Telephone Requests
Peter Scott, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Turning the Corner: Upgrading Yourself from System Clerk to System Advocate
Tom Limoncelli, Lucent Bell Labs

How To Control and Manage Change in a Commercial Data Center Without Losing Your Mind
Sally J. Howden and Frank B. Northrup, Distributed Computing Consultants, Inc.

2:00pm - 3:30pm
DNS - Doing Nothing the Same
Joel Avery and Andrew Macpherson, Nortel Technology

Northern Telecom and Bell Northern Research have recently merged their corporate appearance into a single entity called Nortel. This project included migrating bnr.ca, nt.com, and bnr.co.uk to "nortel.com," deployment of 100 new DNS slaves, worldwide 24-hour DNS support for all Mac, PC, and UNIX machines, and the migration of our IP address repository from a proprietary system to a commercial product.This talk discusses the implications upon the DNS, both on the Internet, and on the 180,000 hosts in the Nortel network.

3:30pm - 4:00pm
Break

3:30pm - 4:00pm
Break

4:00pm - 5:30pm
System Design Perspectives
Session Chair: Hal Pomeranz, Deer Run Associates

Developing Interim Systems
Jennifer Bevan, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory

A Large-Scale Data Warehouse Application Case Study
Dan Pollack, America Online

SHUSE at Two
Henry Spencer, SP Systems

4:00pm - 5:30pm
Panel Discussion: 40 Bosses, 3000 Users, 20 Projects... Managing Computers for Academics
Chair: David Parter, University of Wisconsin

Sysadmins in academic departments have a lot of fun but often face special challenges. These challanges include the multitude of "bosses" (the faculty), the diversity and frequent turnover of users (the students), and the lack of clear lines of authority and accountability between the faculty, students, and staff. In addition, the department sysadmin must maintain relationships with the campus computing center, while at the same time relying on student staff (who sometimes are allowed to graduate).

Facilities managers/senior sysadmins from four sites will present case studies of their facilities. The panel will explore approaches to various issues including staffing, budget and funding, purchasing, security, and training. They will also address relationships to faculty, research projects, the campus computing center, and the institutional bureaucracy.