Hi, Michelle, Margie, and other writing-centre colleagues: Not to be outdone by WPA-L, Inkshed has also hosted a discussion of booking software, responding to a request from Jo-Anne Andre of Calgary in November 2004. That was the same month that the Writing Lab Newsletter ran articles lamenting the unreliability of the TutorTrac software. I wrote from U of T--the summary is that we had our own software designed. I have pasted in below my description from that exchange, and will repeat my offer to give further contact information if desired: > We're big enough at U of T to make our own mistakes and learn from them. Several of the 17 or so writing centres here have developed booking programs, most of them web-based so that students can make their own appointments online and also cancel and re-book if necessary. They include controls on who can book and how often. You can get a glimpse of some of them by clicking on the "online" links for specific writing centres from the page www.utoronto.ca/writing/centres.html. Engineering was the first to produce its own system, created in large part by a student as the project for her fourth-year thesis. The systems used at Health Sciences and New College were commissioned from an outside consultant; Woodsworth and Trinity systems were done in-house, but benefitted from the early adopters. The system used by U of T at Scarborough was designed locally and depends on a campus intranet. These and our other systems have made scheduling and bookings (and cancellations and re-bookings) much easier, but they haven't entirely solved our challenges with record-keeping. For one thing, they don't keep waiting lists: they let students check availability and re-book any cancellations, but they don't give administrators a sense of how much unfilled demand exists. Some allow instructors to keep records and notes on individual students; others don't. If people want technical information or the names of our main designers, please contact me offline and I'll put you in touch. Regards, Margaret Procter University of Toronto Coordinator, Writing Support [log in to unmask]; www.utoronto.ca/writing/ 416 978-8109 Now it's a year later, so maybe we will hear more from Jo-Anne about the Calgary decision. If somebody has found or designed a program that's cheap, reliable, flexible, and capable of keeping records, please share the news! (What is an online error sheet, apparently provided by WCOnline--and do we want one?) Margaret Michelle Cox wrote: >Hello, this question was posted on WPA-L last month. Here's one of the responses: > >Date: Fri, 23 Sep 2005 08:40:34 -0400 >Reply-To: Writing Program Administration <[log in to unmask]> >Sender: Writing Program Administration <[log in to unmask]> >From: "Jeffrey R. Galin" <[log in to unmask]> >Subject: Re: Recommended Writing Center Software? (Not Tracking Software) >In-Reply-To: <[log in to unmask]> >Content-type: multipart/alternative; > > >Luisa, > > I can't say enough about WCOnline for managing online scheduling >and database management for visit reports and other data. WC Online >continues to customize as we need changes, adding components that we request >and regularly upgrading options that they offer. We have had them create >online error sheets that are now available to all registered users and >design interfaces to match the needs we have for our data streams. They >charge $600 a year or $60 a month. Our center has nearly doubled its >productivity since we started using WCOnline last spring. The url is >www.therichco.com/wconline. > >. Give it a look. > >Cheers, > >jrg > > > >Jeffrey R. Galin >Director, University Center for Excellence in Writing >Associate Professor >Department of English > > >Bohan <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > > >Hello Inkshed Members; > >This is my first correspondence with the listserv, and it is of the most mundane nature. I am looking for software that would allow students to book appointments at the Dalhousie Writing Centre electronically. Is anybody using a product with that capability? > >Thank you for helping. > >Margie Clow Bohan > >-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- >To leave the list, send a SIGNOFF CASLL command to >[log in to unmask] or, if you experience difficulties, >write to Russ Hunt at [log in to unmask] > >For the list archives and information about the organization, >its newsletter, and the annual conference, go to >http://www.stu.ca/inkshed/ >-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- > > >Hope this helps, Michelle Cox. > > >Michelle Cox >Doctoral Candidate, Composition Studies > >English Department >Hamilton Smith Hall >95 Main Street >University of New Hampshire >Durham, NH 03824 > >mail to: [log in to unmask] > >--------------------------------- >Yahoo! for Good > Click here to donate to the Hurricane Katrina relief effort. > > -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- > To leave the list, send a SIGNOFF CASLL command to > [log in to unmask] or, if you experience difficulties, > write to Russ Hunt at [log in to unmask] > >For the list archives and information about the organization, > its newsletter, and the annual conference, go to > http://www.stu.ca/inkshed/ > -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- > > -- Margaret Procter, Ph.D. University of Toronto Coordinator, Writing Support Room 216, University College 15 King's College Circle Toronto, ON M5S 3H7 (416) 978-8109; FAX (416) 971-2027 [log in to unmask] http://www.utoronto.ca/writing -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- To leave the list, send a SIGNOFF CASLL command to [log in to unmask] or, if you experience difficulties, write to Russ Hunt at [log in to unmask] For the list archives and information about the organization, its newsletter, and the annual conference, go to http://www.stu.ca/inkshed/ -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-