For students in computing labs, Wharton uses Exceed's X-Windows server running under Microsoft Windows to provide the same graphical access to data. Networked classroom teaching stations are configured identically to lab stations, allowing faculty to bring the data sets into the classroom. The Wharton Research Data System offers a number of advantages for Wharton faculty and students, and meets the goals of universal availability, ease of use, and reduced maintenance and support. The entire collection of data sets is now available as a local resource on UNIX systems throughout Wharton - including shared departmental systems and faculty desktop systems. Students can access these data sets with the same graphical environment by using X-Windows in the student labs.
Users can now manage and analyze the data using a single tool.
Because the same data tool is used for all data sets, users can easily analyze data across different data sets. Many other statistical packages such as SPSS, BMDP, and SPlus can easily read SAS data sets. In the future, Wharton Computing and Information Technology plans to further enhance this data architecture. In addition to adding more data sets, Wharton plans to provide transparent data access to an even wider range of systems at the School. Teaching with live data Wharton's primary objective in developing the Wharton Research Data System was to assist in faculty research and student instructional exercises.