Lenovo ThinkPad P53 Workstation Product Tour

The ThinkPad® P53 breaks barriers to achieve a new performance milestone: the most powerful 15-inch mobile workstation. Through impeccable design and engineering, the P53 packs the power of NVIDIA® Quadro RTX™ 5000 graphics with the latest Intel® Xeon® and Core™class CPUs – giving architects and designers a powerhouse product all in the portability of a 15-inch chassis.

Crestron Stories: How the University of Central Florida Created Active Learning

Take a look at how The University of Central Florida designed active learning spaces using Crestron tech where students can break off and collaborate with one another. All brand names, product names, and trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Certain trademarks, registered trademarks, and trade names may be used in this video to refer to either the entities claiming the marks and names or their products. Crestron disclaims any proprietary interest in the marks and names of others.

How one team turned a sprint project into a marathon success

TED Resident Keith Kirkland and his team at WearWorks use haptic technology to develop products and experiences that communicate information through touch. In 2017, they were faced with a seemingly impossible challenge: quickly develop a device for a blind ultra-marathon runner to compete — unaided and unassisted — in the New York City Marathon. Jennifer Brook, a design researcher at Dropbox, explains how the team at WearWorks navigated the challenges and tensions of designing this groundbreaking new technology.

HCGI Connectivity and Usability Success Story

Connectivity and Usability Open Doors for 

Robert H. Smith School of Business Students

Background
HCGI has served numerous departments at the University of Maryland for over 10 years. The company has provided technology solutions and hardware including Lenovo desktops, tablets, HP and Brother printers and scanners, secure Epson projectors and document cameras, and related software.

Client Challenge
The Robert H. Smith School of Business wanted to upgrade the technology in its classrooms. Some of their requirements included classroom presentations, teleconferencing, whiteboard capabilities, remote meetings and job interviews, and other educational activities. Meeting their requirements
seemed to indicate the need to buy various hardware and learning more platforms.

HCGI Solution
HCGI presented the client with various options, but recommended
Mondopad 2.0 by InFocus. Mondopad addresses every requirement of the
school of business and allows the school to utilize more features in the
future.

Benefits Delivered
• Watching Interactive classroom presentations that allow for drawing, annotating
and editing content on the fly
• Listening live to guest speakers in remote locations
• Video conferencing
• Web conferencing
• Accessing any web application online, since there is a
continual network connection
• Live job interviews for students over Skype
• Job interviews with financial
institutions using the secure
video conferencing feature
built into the Monodpad 2.0

HCGI recently delivered, installed and configured eight Mondopads and is slated to install many more in the future. The two models recently installed are INF5720, a 57” screen, and INF7021, a 70” screen. Each Mondopad has its own built-in computer, so there is no need for connecting and configuring various laptops to work properly with it.

The School of Business is beginning to use the over 100 features in Mondopad 2.0. These include BYOD (Bring Your Own Device), so anyone can video-call the Mondopad from a PC, Mac, tablet or smartphone. This level of connectivity and usability has opened up educational and career opportunities for the School of Business students.

The Mondopads require very little maintenance or configuring by the IT staff. There is a low learning curve so professors and students were able to start using the various functions right away. The Robert H. Smith School of Business chose HCGI to address its technology needs because of HCGI’s track
record of outstanding service and expertise.

About The University of Maryland
The University of Maryland is the state’s flagship and a land-grant institution with 37,500 students in 12 schools and colleges, 9,000 faculty and staff, and a $1.9B annual operating budget. It is one of 62 members of the Association of American Universities, comprising the leading research universities in the United States and Canada.

The University creates and applies knowledge, nourishing a climate of intellectual growth and providing outstanding instruction and in a broad range of academic disciplines and interdisciplinary fields. As a land-grant institution, the University shares its research, educational, cultural, and technological strengths with the Maryland citizenry and other constituencies. Its collaborations with State, federal, private and non-profit partners promote economic development and improve quality of life. The University offers faculty and students a vibrant ecosystem that nurtures and encourages innovation and entrepreneurship is a variety of ways.

As a public flagship campus, the university is committed to providing high-quality educational opportunities that are affordable by all students regardless of family income.


About Robert H. Smith School of Business
The Robert H. Smith School of Business is an internationally recognized leader in management education and research. The Smith School offers undergraduate; full-time, part-time, online, and executive MBA; specialty masters; Ph.D.; and executive education programs, as well as outreach services to the corporate community.


About HCGI
HCGI Hartford (HCGI) is an employee-owned, privately held IT integrator and hardware dealer celebrating twenty years in business in the Mid-Atlantic and beyond. With headquarters in Columbia, Maryland, HCGI has deep roots in the state and counts many Maryland state agencies, leading school districts and universities as clients. We also maintain district offices in Wilmington, DE, and Richmond, VA. Our Operations Center, based in Chicago, serves as our primary order fulfillment and customer service center.

HCGI represents over 200 hardware and software manufacturers. We are an HP Elite Partner and hold high-end certifications from HP, Lenovo, NetApp, VMWare, Samsung & Google. Our dedicated account managers are empowered to do whatever it takes to satisfy our customers, as we highly value our long-term customer relationships.

See more at https://hcgi.com

The Father’s Day Video That Will Melt Your Heart

We asked ten fathers and their children to express to the other why they felt proud. The result? An emotionally powerful Father’s Day video that may bring tears to your eyes--and that will make you want to say you need to say today. #TellThemNow

Why Intel and Fujitsu Partner Up

Fujitsu is leveraging the 2nd gen Intel® Xeon® Scalable processors and Intel Optane DC persistent memory for its refreshed PRIMERY and PRIMEQUEST servers, as well as the new Zenrai deep learning unit, targeted to HPC and AI Workloads.

The company will also be refreshing it’s Intel® Select Solutions for Simulation and Modeling and Intel® Select Solutions for Microsoft SQL Server. Alex Lam, VP, and Head of North America Strategy Office with Fujitsu discuss how these new technologies from Intel will help customers tackle new problems and push the boundaries in spaces like artificial intelligence and machine learning.

Intel and Fujitsu are among our product and service partners for HCGi.

This computer is learning to read your mind | DIY Neuroscience, a TED series

Modern technology lets neuroscientists peer into the human brain, but can it also read minds? Armed with the device known as an electroencephalogram, or EEG, and some computing wizardry, neuroscientist Greg Gage and his colleagues attempt to peer into a subject's thoughts.

HCGi Success Stories: Education Solutions

EDUCATION SOLUTIONS CASE STUDY

Key PGCPS Quick Facts

• 125,136 students

• 207 schools

• 9,197 teachers

• 23,785 employees in total

• $1.795 billion annual budget

The Challenge
Lower IT costs, improve remote management Prince George’s County Public Schools (PGCPS) is one of the nation’s 25 largest school districts, with 208 schools and centers, more than 125,000 students and over 22,000 employees. The school system is responsible for administering PARCC testing (Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers) in each of its schools. The school system previously used a mix of iPads and laptops of various brands. Management of these various devices became complex. Establishing consistent configurations across the school system became difficult, inefficient, and costly.

PGCPS sought a solution that would provide maximum efficiency in the IT department without excessive hardware costs. Further, the school system wanted the capability to fully manage configuration settings on every device from one location. PGCPS was an early adopter of Google Apps, so the IT team and the students were already familiar with Google’s platform.

HCGI Solution
HCGI began a pilot project at Oxon Hill High School in the fall of 2013. It deployed a limited number of Samsung Chromebooks and the Google Chrome Console Management solution. The management console allows the PGCPS IT department to remotely manage every device in any location. This includes installing or removing apps, blacklisting websites, and configuring user roles, access and security.

HCGI provided a Google Certified Training Instructor to PGCPS to help implement this solution in the school system. HCGI also provides ongoing training and support to the PGCPS team responsible for managing and deploying the equipment across the system. PGCPS has three technology distribution centers.

Every newly acquired Chromebook is shipped to one of these centers for asset tagging and enrollment into the Chrome Management Console. HCGI performed “White Glove” enrollment service for the initial 2000 unit Chromebook deployment. In addition to providing guidance in hardware selection, HCGI managed the configuration team to perform all service functions as well as administrative console and network configurations. HCGI validated device policies with a sample school or class.

Early testing revealed the LCD screens from the leading low-cost manufacturer were prone to breaking easily in a K12 education environment. HCGI quickly provided alternative Chromebooks by other manufacturers. A semi-rugged Lenovo model was selected and over 4000 units have been deployed, with no hardware issues reported.

HCGI’s longstanding partnership with a wide range of manufacturers, promises greater flexibility for Prince George’s County Public Schools. Further, the installation and activation of their Remote Management software give the IT department authorization and full control of every device district-wide. HCGI has delivered this powerful technology, allowing full implementation with the district’s IT team and ensuring smooth deployment of the Chromebooks.

Results
PGCPS enjoys dependable and affordable hardware, with superior hands-on client support by HCGI. The Google Chrome Management Console has given PGCPS the ease of maintaining an online curriculum, monitoring device use and securing student data for all Chromebooks from one central location. This has proven to maximize efficiency in both labor expenses and speeding up the process of getting Chromebooks into the hands of students.

HCGi Data Center Solutions From Market Leaders

At HCGi, we offer data center solutions from each of the market leaders.  Whether you are looking for increased data storage, additional compute capacity, reliable data backup and restore, or you just need to replace existing equipment- HCGi is here to help.

Our value add is to bring best-in-breed solutions to the table for you, assist in the technical evaluation process, and then help you make the most informed decision possible based upon the unique needs and requirements of your environment.  We pride ourselves on being an agnostic solution provider, and we offer each client a clear picture of the competitive landscape as they engage in picking a technology.  We will show you the strengths and weaknesses of each solution, and act as a trusted advisor.

Whether you wish to explore Hybrid-IT solutions, Converged Infrastructure, or a more traditional approach to compute and storage, our Solution Architects can help to build a custom solution for your needs.  We can also assist with installation and data migration services upon request, and we are also at your side for the full life-cycle of the equipment with post-sale support as needed.

Regardless of which data center technology you prefer, HCGi is your trusted partner in keeping your data center optimized and running efficiently for years to come.

Learn more at https://www.hcgi.com/

Cybersecurity Means Business! | William Agresti | TEDxJHUDC

Bill Agresti delivers a powerful talk about how to reduce digital risk in an efficient manner. According to Agresti, managers need to become more cyber-savvy while technology professionals should learn the ropes of the business world. Bill Agresti is a Professor in the Carey Business School at Johns Hopkins University. His research and professional interests are in cybersecurity, software engineering, and discovery informatics. He held senior technical and management positions at Computer Sciences Corporation, MITRE Corporation, and Noblis, Inc., where he was Director of the Software Engineering and Economic Analysis Center. He was Program Director for Experimental Software Systems Research at the National Science Foundation and led applied research and spacecraft systems development projects at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. He has a Ph.D. in Computer Science from New York University.