Last chance for the NGS user survey

This is it. The closing date for the NGS user survey is nigh - well this Monday anyway!

We've had a great response to our survey this year and I would like to really thank everyone for completing the form and giving us all your feedback. However I would like a couple more users to complete the survey just to make this one our best ever.

Once the survey closes on Monday I then have the enviable task of taking all your feedback and putting together a report which will be made available on the NGS website summarising all your responses and feedback. The report will also be used to feed into our bid for the continuation of the NGS which we will soon be formulating.

So if you would like your views and opinions to be incorporated into the user survey report and the next phase of the NGS, be sure to complete the user survey before the end of Monday 24th January!

PS and don't forget every completed survey which has an email address included is entered into a prize draw for one of THREE Amazon vouchers!

Happy new year from the NGS

Welcome back after the Christmas holidays and I hope you had a good break. NGS staff are starting back today so there will be some catching up on user helpdesk queries and the usual getting back up to speed.

A couple of quick reminders of NGS news -

• the presentations from the NGS Innovation Forum are now available on the NGS website along with the posters from the event.

• there is still a chance to win Amazon vouchers in the NGS user survey so if you would like some last minute sale shopping on us, make sure you fill in the user survey by the end of the month!

Happy new year!

Win Amazon vouchers in the NGS user survey 2010

The annual NGS user survey is underway and, with all the changes that lie ahead, it has never been more important to gather your feedback.

During the next year there will be changes taking place at the NGS and it is important that our users are involved in these changes and are kept informed every step of the way. We have recently launched the annual NGS user survey and this year, perhaps more than any other, it is vital that we receive your input.

The user survey asks about several possible changes to the services that the NGS currently provides and the impact that changing these services would have for our users. For example the withdrawal of free compute and data resource. We would also like to know what services NGS users see as essential such as the helpdesk, grid certificate management and training. The results of the user survey will be fed directly into our funding bid for NGS 4 which will reflect the wishes and needs of our user community.

The user survey is open to all registered NGS users and all completed user surveys will be entered into a draw for one of 3 Amazon vouchers.

Happy new year from the NGS!

I hope you all had a good break over the holiday season and that you are all coping with the snow. The NGS sites have not escaped the bad weather with Manchester staff being sent home yesterday and the university still closed today. The site at RAL was hit today with many staff being unable to get to work. Staff are working from home but please be aware that some helpdesk queries may be delayed. Hopefully normal service will be resumed soon!

Incase you missed it in the pre-Christmas announcements, our user survey will close on the 20th of January so if you would like the chance to win some Amazon vouchers then make sure you complete the survey ASAP!

And the wind down begins

Things are beginning to quieten down here at the NGS in preparation for the Christmas holidays. As you may expect NGS staff are also on holiday over the next few weeks so we have announced our Christmas cover arrangements in the fortnightly NGS email bulletin that went out today. This announcement is also on the front page of our website.

However, although things may be calming down now, next year is already looking very busy. Personally I'm going to be going through all the feedback we've received on our new website and addressing the comments, suggestions and feedback. We want to make the website as useful for our users and institutions as we possibly can so all feedback is welcome!

If you haven't already done so there is still time to complete our user survey which will close on the 20th of January 2010. So if you would like to be in with a chance to win one of three Amazon vouchers to help with your January sales shopping then make sure you complete the survey soon! I'll be spending the end of January going through the user survey results so if you would like your comments and feedback heard then you know what to do!

I'm also busy organising 4 NGS roadshows for the beginning of next year at various sites across the country. Keep an eye out on here and the NGS website for more news on these. The roadshows are becoming more and more popular and sometimes it's hard keeping up with demand. However we will consider all requests to hold more roadshows after Easter! If you would like a NGS roadshow at your institution then please let us know by emailing the support desk.

I hope you all have a great holiday and that we'll see you back on the NGS in 2010.

Got an opinion - then share it!

If, by some amazing feat, you haven't seen the announcements for the NGS user survey that is out now then here is another one!

The NGS user survey targets all registered users of the NGS and queries how they use the NGS, which parts of the NGS they use, if you are aware of all the services and outreach methods from the NGS and also gives NGS users the opportunity to have their research publicised as use case examples of NGS research.

Oh and all completed surveys will be entered into a prize draw to win one of three Amazon vouchers. Perfect timing for the festive shopping and sale season!

If you'd like to feedback on your experience of using the NGS then please visit the 2009 user survey.

Win Amazon vouchers courtesy of the NGS

Here at the NGS we have released our user survey for 2009. The annual survey aims to gather information on user habits, why people use the NGS, the resources they use and the output of NGS usage amongst others. Each completed survey will be placed into a draw at the end of the year to win one of 3 Amazon vouchers.

We really do want to hear from you and your opinions on the NGS - what you like, what you don't, what would make your life better or how wonderful we are! There are also opportunities in the survey to advertise yourself and your research. I am always looking for interesting research taking place on NGS resources to highlight in a range of publications and to make into our popular case studies.

The results of the survey won't just lie unloved on a shelf somewhere - we'll put together a report which will be available from our website and will contain actions on your recommendations and suggestions where appropriate.

If you would like to take part in the survey please visit the survey home page.

Tell us what you think!

A user survey for the NGS has just been launched. We are looking for active and past users of the NGS to tell us what they think about the services that we offer and how they use the service. The survey is quite short and should only take about 5 minutes to complete. There is the opportunity to add in additional information if there is something in particular you would like to bring up that isn't mentioned in the survey.

The survey can be found at http://www.zoomerang.com/Survey/?p=WEB227TRL65SMP

The results will be published in a report during the summer and will contribute to the future direction and goals of the NGS.