Bringing the Physical World Online

Read more Remote Resilience stories.

As ASU continues to monitor COVID-19, the university has transitioned from in-person teaching and learning to remote options. In this challenging time, however, the collective innovation of ASU faculty and staff has demonstrated remarkable adaptability. As a method of celebrating the good during uncertain developments, the University Technology Office is gathering success stories of “remote resilience” from the ASU community. The situation globally and across the country is changing daily, but we also plan to share these stories to keep pace.

In the transition to a remote modality for teaching, learning and working, questions have arisen about experiences that are thought to be inherently physical and need to be experienced in person. But one UTO team is finding a solution to one aspect of computer lab work.

“Our team has been exploring innovative ways to utilize our existing tools to further the university’s mission of inclusion and accessibility,” Systems Analyst Kevin Tinnin said. “To this end, we have begun to make available online physical computer labs, including peripheral devices and specialized tools, through virtualization.”

An initial “physical to virtual lab conversation” provided online learners around the globe a full lab of 33 physical machines, with specialized software and hardware that can still meet the needs of courses remotely. This way, students don’t have to obtain the required software and hardware individually and attached webcams make visibility of the attached hardware possible.

But the first effort was met with a large-scale follow up. “To date, we have made 19 Labs and 574 lab computers available to online students,” Tinnin said, adding the work is getting done in partnership with the Fulton Schools of Engineering. “As the continuation of online classes progresses, we hope to see further adoption of this technology and resource.” As this process expands, needs will be assessed for computer labs across the university, but you can visit studentapps.asu.edu to find labs available now. The challenge of bringing physical equipment to remote learners still looms large, but this success story indicates bright possibilities.