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Commercial Portals:
1. What Do We Need To Learn?

The attendees were also invited to add to their notes More Commentary on Commercial Portals, which is reported separately from the outline of this page. The lists below focus only on responses to the first half of the Danger in the Construction Zone instructions.

1. To achieve resolution or greater understanding of Commercial Portals,
   WHAT DO WE NEED TO LEARN?

   Summary:

   • We need to learn what a commercial portal deal would mean: its possible benefit, as well as its legal and ethical ramifications in the college environment.
   • We need to learn what it would take to create our own portal service, at the campus or district level.

   Transcriptions of Conference Notes:

   • [Multiple] How can we, as a district or as a college, support or provide a portal without going to a commercial source?
   • [Multiple] What information/data would be collected by commercial companies, and how?
   • How does it benefit students, how does it benefit the college? What will be or could be the long term consequences of outsourcing like this?
   • We need to learn the true motive behind these companies and think about the ramification, legally, it may have regarding privacy for the students.
   • How do we control what is advertised? Will the advertising be offensive with others?
   • How the data profiling affects students in light of every organization they interact with.
   • How are we (MCCCD) gathering data on students?
   • What is ethical practice vs sticking to make idealistic principle.
   • Does using a portal violate the privacy act of students which is on MCCCD registration forms?
   • How does this affect online classes?
   • Specifics of data mining -- how it works.
   • Research portals -- how they work to turn it to own advantage.
   • What are our students worth?
   • At the college level: determine, philosophically, if there is a conflict of interest in wedding an academic institution to a commercial one.
   • Determine if there are legal/privacy issues that must be worked out.
   • What acts or types of companies will be allowed?
   • What information do we need to make our sites secure.
   • We need more details on the pros and cons.

Return to:
Introduction to Commercial Portals
Danger in the Construction Zone Contents
WebDev 2000 Contents