End of SELCO Support for Windows NT and Other Technologies

March 31, 2008 -- Effective today, SELCO is no longer providing support for Windows NT, serial receipt printers, or certain models of thin clients.  The email reproduced below, originally sent out on March 19, 2007, includes further details.  If your library is still using any of these solutions, please contact the SELCO Help Desk for assistance identifying alternatives.

From: Donovan Lambright
Sent: Monday, March 19, 2007 2:41 PM
To: CONPUB; CONSCH; DIRPUB; DIRSCH
Subject: End of Life and Support for Several Products

As technologies evolve it is necessary to occasionally end support for products that are no longer sustainable. We have reached that point with several products in use at Online Libraries. Effective on 03-31-2008, one year from now, SELCO will no longer support the following:

1) Windows NT--Microsoft stopped supporting Windows NT in 2004. Here at SELCO, we have continued to support it on older PCs but are finding it more and more difficult as time passes. Antivirus and security products used to lock down public PCs are increasingly unavailable for Windows NT, which is what finally prompted us to take this action.

2) Serial Receipt Printers--Support for serial devices is waning in the marketplace; most new PCs and thin clients are no longer available with serial ports. Furthermore, software such as newer versions of Citrix MetaFrame often do not support serial printers. In the SELCO region, Star SP200, Citizen IDP3540, and Citizen IDP3550 are the most common serial receipt printers. Note, however, that these models also come with parallel connections so the model number alone cannot be used to identify them. One quick way to identify a serial connector is by counting the number of pins. A serial connector has nine pins. A parallel connector has 25.

3) Wyse WT3200LE and WT3360 Thin Clients--The new version of Citrix MetaFrame requires functionality that is not available with these thin client models.

If you are unsure about the presence of any of these devices/software on your network, please contact the SELCO Help Desk. The Help Desk can also help you identify replacements, which are available through the quarterly Cooperative PC Purchase. Thank you for your understanding.

Donovan

Donovan Lambright, Automation Librarian
SELCO
2600 19th St. NW
Rochester, MN 55901
507-288-5513
dlambright@selco.info