Computer Engineer – IT Living Lab

The goal of this project is to make computers that are not working, working again. Dr. Justice assigned me this project with the goal of helping out her other students in a different class. She gave me computers that were wiped clean with no software to fix them. The goal of this project is to take ten laptops and make them working again with new hardware and software since most of them were wiped clean. After that, I had to download and install a pdf reader and MS Office for the students.

Testimonials

The Living Lab provided me with a unique, real-world experience that other classes cannot. This class enabled me to use the skills that I have acquired from my previous classes and apply them to a real-world setting. Kris Westermann

Living Lab has been a great experience for me to learn daily obligations to maintain a healthy network. I’ve learned independent research is a very important process before network testing is conducted. I’ve also learned that you must have a process to monitor packets flowing in and out of the network. Working with packet sniffing programs has been helpful. In a team environment, I’ve also learned to install network cables, mount and install switches, and test networks. Charles Alan Stone

The Living Lab has been very educational for me this semester. I gained experience in collaborating with a client in order to install a Polycom Videoconferencing system, to provide a new way of communication for the client. Paul D. Bailey

Living Lab was a last-minute choice for me, and now I feel it should be the first choice anyone makes. The hands-on experience I have gained has helped me tremendously. I’ve definitely stepped out of my comfort zone numerous times and loved every moment of it. The instructors are extremely helpful, and my fellow classmates have also been teachers to me as well. Eugene Gephart

The Living Lab has been an enjoyable experience. It has provided new skills while strengthening old ones and has given me insight into the technical workplace. Wendell Matthew Klene

The Living Lab is like having an IT job in the field. You are pushed and pulled in many different directions with many different projects. You are thrown into situations that need to be figured out. The guidance is there, but nothing beats that feeling of figuring it out by yourself. Aaron Hook

The Living Lab has given me the chance to work on a project that I have yet to encounter in my six years of IT experience. It’s broadened my horizons and given me a great chance to work with other students in my field. I have also been able to pick up information from other fields of IT that I wouldn’t have been able to learn in my current job. Jerry Henderson

The Living Lab is helpful because it exposed me to an environment similar to one I would face in a real IT job. Abdulrahaman Ahmed Banjar

The Living Lab has been a great experience for me throughout the semester. I worked with some technologies that were previously unfamiliar and consulted with a client to develop a good solution to implement for them. Working in many unfamiliar and uncomfortable situations truly pushes you, and I believe it’s the best way to foster growth in any profession. So for the Living Lab to give that opportunity is a great thing. Nathanial William Adams

The Living Lab was a great opportunity to gain different technical experience in the IT field. The projects were all challenging and simulated a real-world environment to deliver upon. Nick Barnett

Clay Hampton