Alison Kilgour reports. The university is the largest employer in this little industrial town, and in term time the student population swells the population of the town considerably. Fittingly, for an academic institution in an industrial environment, the university has a reputation as a leader in the field of technological innovation. In addition, it is considering dropping the 'Technology', from its title, and is now known simply as 'Loughborough University'. The university connects to the Internet's universe of information through a service called the ' Information Gateway ', which has been developed by the Computing Services department.
Gateway presents a 'seamless web' of local and remote services.
It has been live in its present format for a year and a half. Phil Herbert works in the Computer Services department and also rejoices in the title of WebMaster. He is quick to acknowledge the support given by the Vice-Chancellor, Professor D.J. Wallace, which has been crucial to the success of the service in gaining support from academic departments. Users from other institutions connecting to Loughborough over the Web are presented immediately with the Gateway, which acts as the university's 'official' home page. A university of technology in fact, if no longer in name, Loughborough is well on the way to ensuring that all staff members have a PC, or access to one, and most departments are now connected to the Gateway.