[Degreeworks-l] DW Test vs Prod - An Update

[Leask, Jane]

The upgrade to DegreeWorks TEST (now at DW 4.0.3) is complete (as far as I know), although there are still some quirks that we'll have to live with for the moment.

Look of the screen

*         One difference you'll see is that in DW TEST we have a new picture in the upper left corner and the new Samford logo.

*         Ken was able to re-establish the Web localizations after the upgrade, so except for the issues noted below, the pages should look the same as in PROD.  Many thanks to Ken for working on this!

*         You may see some new features/buttons/tabs.  For instance, the Planner now has a Management tab attached to it.  Otherwise, I don't think there are a lot of new features this time around.

Advisors/Majors/Minors/Concentrations/School

*         Multiple advisors and multiple majors/minors are not separating out in the Student Information block in the fields labeled Advisor 1 & 2, Major 1 & 2, Minor 1 & 2.  They are grouped together in one field (advisor, major, or minor).

*         And because majors and minors are grouped together, it doesn't mean that the 1st major or minor you see is considered #1.  However, you WILL see a GPA in the Major 1 and Minor 1 blocks....but you may have to scroll down to see which major/minor that GPA applies to when the student has more than one.

*         Concentrations are not appearing in their distinctly labeled fields in that top block at all (you'll still see them in PROD right now).

*         "School" is still missing from its field in the top block.

*         We believe these issues are the result of either a new table behind-the-scenes or some other revised coding that SGHE used as they upgraded the software.  We don't know yet if this can be corrected in a future upgrade or if we'll have to adjust OUR labels to match the data.  We'll decide that later.

What-If Scenario & Look Ahead

*         For those of us who are REG users, we have access to six different formats (ADV, DEPT, & STU users have access to only three).  The default is typically the Student Information version.  Unfortunately, when REG users first try a What-If or Look Ahead scenario in the upgraded DW, the format version will jump to a "Registrar Report" which will look odd, since it will include Scribe advice, such as MAXPASSFAIL 12 HRS or NONEXCLUSIVE (THISBLOCK).  This is NOT what's is supposed to do.  I've reported this and it may get corrected in a future upgrade, but for now, you'll have to choose another format (such as Student Info) from the drop down box to get away from the version w/Scribe coding.  But remember, this is only for REG users (which includes Greg), so advisors (regular or super advisors) should not be getting this aggravating view.

Right now, those are the only known issues that are still problems, but it wouldn't surprise me if something else comes to light.  Be sure to let me know if you discover anything else that doesn't match between TEST and PROD.  Once we decide the next step, we'll let you know when PROD will be unavailable while it's being upgraded to DW 4.0.3.

Keep in the mind the following, though:

*         DW TEST is on version DW 4.0.3.

*         DW TEST is looking at Banner DEVL (Banner 8), which does not have Spring 2009 or later grades calculated nor updated Fall 2009 registration.  So the data is outdated.

*         DW TEST is not getting nightly extracts of students and advisors, so new admits or transfers will not be available.

*         DW PROD is on version DW 4.0.1.

*         DW PROD is where I've been working w/some coding updates, but I haven't yet copied my most recent changes to TEST.  I hope to do so over the next week or so.

So...
If you want to look at updated data, use DW PROD.
If you want to experiment w/Notes, Petitions, Exceptions, use DW TEST (ideally).
If you want to experiment w/creating Planner Templates, use DW TEST (ideally).

Let me know if you have any questions.  Thanks, Jane


Jane Leask
Assistant Registrar (Certifications, Publications, and Programming)
Office of Student Records
Samford University
800 Lakeshore Drive
Birmingham, AL  35229
(205) 726-2912
jeleask at samford.edu<mailto:jeleask at samford.edu>
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