Hybrid Integration Platforms, or HIPs, allow citizen integrators to calibrate and manage APIs, set security layers and cross walk variables without coding or help from IT. What this means in plain language is that an HIP can help solve integration problems by allowing users to establish data flows between SaaS, PaaS and on-premises applications and data systems at their discretion.
For colleges and universities, the need for HIPs coincides with the change from legacy ERP systems to hybrid, cloud-based ERP. These cloud-based apps are being added as needed, rather than the traditional heavy customization of monolithic, on-premise ERP solutions. Basically, that means that all of these disparate apps need to be able to communicate with each other effectively, and this isn’t always the case. That’s where HIPs come into play.
At N2N, we’ve designed our Illuminate platform to be the first commercially available HIP for the higher education market. Illuminate acts as translator, enabling different cloud-based apps to seamlessly and securely communicate with each other. So when students use a mobile device to check grades, schedule classes, or look at financial aid, they are able to do so safe in the knowledge that their information is being kept private, and only being used by apps that need their data.
This is important for colleges and universities around the country because in coming years, more and more of their ERP solutions are going to be cloud-based. Adding apps every year doesn’t seem like a good solution unless you can find a cost-effective way to integrate them together.
And that’s exactly what Illuminate provides. App developers work with us because they know they can market their product as flexible and secure, and colleges love us because we help them realize the dream of a fully integrated campus. Students may not know what goes on in the background when they open their mobile apps, but they still reap the benefits of HIPs like Illuminate. Students expect to find cutting edge technology on campus when they get to college, and falling behind can cost a school in enrollment and the quality of the students they attract.
And because Illuminate was built with the security of Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI), you can rest easy knowing that apps are using the highest levels of cloud-security available. We know you need integration, but we also know that it’s useless if it isn’t secure. Using OCI means Illuminate is the safest HIP on the market today.
At N2N, we understand the trends developing in ERP implementation, and that’s why we built Illuminate, to help educational institutions solve their integration problems. When students have access to fast and secure mobile apps, it enhances their education and everyone wins. Adding the newest apps on campus can be difficult for colleges, but with Illuminate, it doesn’t have to be.
So contact N2N Services today if you’d like to hear more about Illuminate and how our experts can help you with all of your integration needs.
Increasingly, educational institutions are moving away from their highly customized ERP solutions, and towards more flexible, cloud-based solutions. In fact, according to Gartner, by 2018, at least 30 percent of service-centric companies will move the majority of their ERP applications to the cloud. That’s because the cloud offers greater flexibility that monolithic, postmodern ERP simply doesn’t provide.
The needs of educational institutions are constantly changing as technology marches forward because colleges and universities are expected to be on the forefront of any new technology. Students come to college expecting the latest tech and apps to supplement their education, and this can be difficult to accomplish with a legacy ERP system that isn’t flexible enough to meet changing educational and business needs.
So the solution seems to be moving ERP applications to the cloud, and embracing a hybrid approach that keeps a small core of on-premise ERP functions, combined with cloud point solutions. These loosely coupled suites of cloud functionality will bring with them integration challenges for the institutions that adopt them.
That’s where N2N and our Illuminate platform step in. Illuminate acts as the plumbing between an educational institution’s cloud-based apps and their legacy ERP systems, providing seamless and secure data transfer from each system. Illuminate takes each department’s existing, disparate systems and acts as a translator, allowing them to communicate with each other.
Illuminate allows users to calibrate and manage APIs, set security layers and cross walk variables without coding or help from IT. This is known as a Hybrid Integration Platform. Illuminate is special because it’s the first commercially available HIP in the higher education market. With Illuminate, colleges and universities have a simple, low-cost solution to for all their integration needs, and they can rest easy knowing that they can add any cloud-based application as needed. So when the next great mobile app comes calling, colleges will be able to easily integrate and implement the app on campus.
At N2N, our goal has always been solving the integration problems of institutions, no matter what market they are in. It won’t be long before more institutions make the switch to the cloud to solve their ERP problems, and when they do, they’re going to need a smart, inexpensive integration solution.
Contact us today if you’d like to learn more about Illuminate and to set up a demonstration for you and your team.
At N2N, we’re proud of our background in higher education and the service we provide to colleges and universities around the country. Illuminate is an invaluable asset to colleges that are running more and more apps and systems each year, and looking for a way to securely integrate them all. We know Illuminate is a boon for higher education institutions, but that’s not the only place it can work. Yes, we pride ourselves on helping colleges, but we also pride ourselves on our ability to make our services work for a diverse group of businesses and institutions.
Now that businesses are using the cloud without the reservations that they once had when it first came onto the scene, there are certain issues that almost all businesses face ones that aren’t limited to colleges. The cloud allows businesses to easily store and access data and applications using any device, without having to deal with expensive hardware purchases. This boosts productivity and efficiency, while driving down costs. With the growth of cloud-based applications, companies ended up using these apps along with older on-premise legacy applications. The trick is getting all of these to work together, whether they’re cloud-based or on-premise.
And that?s exactly what Illuminate does. Illuminate is what’s called an iPaaS, or Integrated Platform as a Service. It acts as a central hub to integrate all of the applications a business uses, whether cloud-based or on-premise. So there usually isn’t any hardware to install, and our “concierge approach” means that we provide integration as a service, with no lengthy training required for implementation. No matter what combination of legacy, on-premises systems and cutting-edge SaaS applications your business uses, Illuminate acts as a central hub to integrate them all. It allows each program to communicate with every other program seamlessly and securely, and makes it easy to accommodate the addition of as many new applications as may be necessary in the future.
One dashboard within Illuminate allows administrators to view and monitor transactions that pass through the system, to ensure that information input into any one application will instantly be shared with all other participating applications as well, so that all systems are always up-to-date and coordinated.
Don?t think that all these transactions lead to less security, though. Illuminate allows for central management and monitoring of data transfers, helping to ensure compliance with all regulations.
At N2N, we know a college can,t be run just like a business, but we also know that businesses today face many of the same challenges as higher education institutions as they look to the cloud to handle their applications. With Illuminate, no longer will employees need to update several different systems with new data, or search through several different applications to find information. Illuminate automates those tedious tasks, freeing up resources for other projects.
In a typical college classroom or study area, displays and TVs have replaced whiteboards and markers as the easiest way for students and professors to share information and collaborate with each other. For a long time, these displays were wired to desks or perhaps a podium at the center of a room. Anyone wishing to share something from a laptop or device had to connect to the display from that one position in the room.
But increasingly, colleges are beginning to experiment with wireless display technology that allows professors and instructors to walk around freely with their devices and lets students share videos and projects with the rest of the class.
If you think about it, this is really just the next logical step. Smartphones and tablets have become so common on campuses that we don?t think twice about seeing students operating one or more devices. Wireless display technology is simply capitalizing on the fact that students and professors have their projects and data on hand, and want to be able to share them quickly and easily.
Wireless display technology offers plenty of benefits that help simplify and enhance the learning experience. WiDi technology eliminates the need for cables, and allows students and instructors to move freely, or stay exactly where they are. There?s no need to change seats or exchange one laptop for another. This in turn reduces expenses for cabling and switch equipment.
But one of the real benefits of WiDi technology is that it improves collaboration and makes it easier than ever for students to share videos, pictures, presentations, and any other information critical to their studies. This is important in the classroom, but other areas like libraries and study rooms can benefit from the same technology. Students gathering together to study can easily compare notes, watch presentations, or collaborate on group projects?without the hassle of constant plugging and unplugging from wired displays. It even gives students and instructors the convenience of dual-screen multitasking. They can now stream a video from their smartphone, and while it?s playing, open email or search the internet.
With WiDi technology, colleges and universities can add another component to the technological innovations that are driving education. At N2N, we understand the complex relationship between technology and the higher education world. More technology can certainly be a boon for colleges, but it can also create problems as more and more apps and systems are added each year. That?s why we?ve created the N2N Integration Cloud specifically for higher education institutions. The NIC integrates all your existing apps and systems, and acts a translator, providing seamless and secure data transfers across all systems. Adding new apps is easy, and the NIC can be scaled up or down depending on the needs of your particular institution.
If you?d like to learn more about the NIC and the intersection of technology and education, contact N2N Services today.
Ask just about any college student what bothers them about their classes, and you?re sure to hear about their textbooks. It?s easy to see why. College textbooks can be incredibly expensive. Some books cost hundreds of dollars, and just one semester?s worth can easily run over a thousand dollars. Books can be bought used, but publishers change editions regularly, making an old textbook a hassle to use. In many cases, students are allowed to rent textbooks, and return them at the end of the semester, but this isn?t always an option, and most students don?t get away unscathed by the prices at the start of each semester.
Many students complain that they bought a book that they hardly used in class, and this leads to college students waiting to buy their books until they?re sure they need them?and already behind in the class. So where do digital textbooks fit into all of this? At first glance, they seem like the ideal solution, but let?s take a closer look and explore the pros and cons of the digital textbook revolution.
Pros
Digital textbooks allow for an interactive learning experience. Many companies offer links to videos and unique source material, and even interactive diagrams and quizzes.
Digital textbooks are also easy to use. Instead of flipping through a four hundred-page book, students can use search features to quickly find what they?re looking for.
They also add the benefit of superior portability. Carrying around four massive textbooks is now as easy as sticking your iPad in your backpack.
One of the most talked about aspects of digital textbooks is the pricing. You might think that digital versions of textbooks would be much cheaper?after all there is no cost for printing or shipping?but unfortunately this isn?t always the case. Combined with the cost of the tablet or e-reader, the price difference can end up being a wash.
Cons
Interactivity is great, but not all digital textbooks come with these features. Some are simply page scans, and many students still prefer books that allow you to use ?cognitive mapping??developing cues to remember where you saw the information in the first place.
Reading on a tablet is also fraught with potential distractions for students. That same tablet holds all their apps and social media that many students prefer not to be tempted by.
It seems that some students also just like the physical aspect of books. Being able to highlight and write directly on paper is preferable for some, and reading on e-readers can interfere with intuitive navigation of the text.
Lastly, while it?s relatively hard to steal a mammoth print textbook from the bookstore, digital piracy of textbooks is a growing concern for publishers. With prices as high as they currently are, it can be tempting for students to illegally download their textbooks.
At N2N, we understand the complex relationship between technology and education, and we?re here to help your institution innovate and flourish. If you?d like to learn more about how Illuminate can push data to mobile devices, dashboards and wearables, contact N2N Services today.
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