Monday will bring big changes in the Boston College online community. Agora, the 5-year-old Web interface used to access many University services, is getting a major overhaul. BC Information Technology Services (ITS) is preparing to launch a new version of Agora that promises to be a first step toward providing a one-stop shop of features found on major commercial Web sites like Google.
Dubbed Agora Portal, this new-age Agora will sport a fresh look and feel, easy access to important Web sites like BCInfo, hot buttons for common tasks, a personalized selection of academic and student calendars, and perhaps most compelling, a customizable window field where users can personalize their pages by adding a mix of internal BC services or external links to their favorite Web sites. Moreover, it will add these features while retaining all the original functions of the old Agora.
When a new users first log in, they will be presented with a default layout of windows - known as "portlets" in the IT world - that include several new features. One window, called "My Courses," lists all of the student's current courses and provides access to the course roster, course e-mail listserv, or WebCT page, if available, at the click of a button.
Another window is linked to a user's BC e-mail account, and it can be customized to display the subject line of the five most recent e-mails received. The user can simply click on the headline of the e-mail message to be taken to WebMail, where the message can be read. The window also has links to refresh the inbox or compose a new message, if desired.
On another default window is the local Chestnut Hill weather, but can be personalized by clicking a gear-shaped customize icon that allows the user to set any zip code for his or her desired weather reportage. The options also include the ability to view live local radar right on the Agora Portal page.
Indeed, it is the ability to personalize that is the biggest change from Agora to Agora Portal. Besides the default windows that can all be rearranged or removed on the user's whim, Agora Portal users can customize which additional windows appear by clicking "customize tab" found under the Student Home tab. Here they can add "services" on their page from a predefined list of supported internal and external Web sites.
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