Information technology center combines computer network, libraries, and advanced multimedia tools. We live in a time of breathtaking change as our society undergoes a profound transformation in how we live, do business, and communicate. The rate of this change--and the new information and knowledge that goes with it--just keeps getting greater and greater.

The all-new, state-of-the-art Media Union on North Campus is designed to help engineering students keep pace with and take advantage of this change. The new 225,000 square-foot information technology center embraces the latest in computer, multimedia, and library technology, providing a new dimension to graduate coursework and research computing.
The Media Union houses the Engineering Library, Computer Aided Engineering Network (CAEN), offices, a virtual reality laboratory, interactive multi-media classrooms, theater and performance spaces, and design and innovation studios. Visit the Media Union WWW home page at: http://www.ummu.umich.edu/.

Engineering Library Collection
The Media Union Library bridges art and technology by combining the Engineering and Art and Architecture libraries. The Engineering Library collection includes more than 600,000 volumes and one million technical reports, historical records of early engineering research, archival architectural materials, U.S. and international industry standards, and resources on intellectual property, including U.S. patents and trademarks.

The library also subscribes to more than 2,500 serial titles, with both popular and scholarly engineering journals. Another 1,000 journals are available online, a service unique to the College of Engineering (CoE).
The library's excellent engineering collection--known to be one of the best in the world--is backed up by a well-trained, helpful staff available to assist individual students as well as groups on a walk-in and appointment basis. The library is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week during the Fall and Winter Terms. You can visit it online at: http://www.ummu.umich.edu/library/.

In addition to the Media Union Library, graduate students also have access to the U-M's network of 25 divisional libraries. Two major libraries on Central Campus include the Harlan Hatcher Graduate Library and the Harold Shapiro Undergraduate Library. The University's total collection is well over six million volumes. A unique computerized catalog system called MIRLYN services the U-M's libraries. Through MIRLYN, students and faculty can access the library's catalogue from most computers on campus and via the World Wide Web.

Computer Aided Engineering Network (CAEN)
As an engineering student, you will have access to the Computer Aided Engineering Network (CAEN), perhaps the world's premier computing environment for engineering-related research and education.

CAEN maintains a fully integrated, multi-vendor network of advanced function work stations and specialized high-performance computers serving CoE students, faculty, and staff.

CAEN includes more than 5,000 engineering class work stations in a variety of locations throughout North Campus. A large percentage of the equipment is located in the Media Union. Other sites include faculty and graduate offices, laboratories for classroom instruction, and 18 other public facilities. All CAEN sites are available to the entire CoE community for unlimited use, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

CAEN supports scientific and engineering oriented work stations (Hewlett-Packard, IBM, Silicon Graphics, and Sun) and personal computers (Apple Macintosh, Dell, and Intel Pentium). The Center for Parallel Computing, which provides assistance in creating, designing, and running parallel models, houses IBM and Convex supercomputers.

CAEN's computing environment is fully integrated with other University of Michigan organizations, including the Information Technology Division (ITD), Medical Center, and the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science's (EECS) Departmental Computer Organization. Michigan's gateways to the Internet--including MCINet and CICNe--extend this connectivity across the country and around the world.

One of the most impressive facilities run by CAEN is the Advanced Visualization and Animation Lab, also located in the Media Union. The Vizlab, as it is called, allows engineers to represent complex information in dynamic visual form.

As a new graduate student, CAEN's support services will make it easy for you to jump right into the world of distributed computing. CAEN offers introductory training sessions, knowledgeable consultants, technical documentation, a newsletter, and online help. Visit the CAEN WWW home page at: http://www.engin.umich.edu/caen.