Recommended IT Tools

Based on the SLAC IT Collaboration and Communications tool survey results, and in conjunction with the SLAC IT Council, we have developed and published an IT Recommended Tool Matrix to provide guidance in selecting tools for:

In setting out to establish a recommended tool matrix our strategy was to focus on two key data points; user preference and tool usage, while also giving consideration to other important factors. We utilized a lab-wide survey to learn what our users preferred. Log data and data storage information were used to determine which tools were more widely utilized among our users. Other important factors we had to consider were Stanford and DOE alignment, cost, tool life expectancy, support requirements, market dynamics, and resiliency.

 

Collaboration

ToolRecommendedGeneral SupportLimited Adoption & SupportEnd of Life
 Recommended by SLAC 
with the highest adoption 
rates amongst SLAC users.
Departmental adoption for 
specific use cases and fully 
supported by SLAC IT.
Niche use cases with limited 
adoption, usually supported 
by the department or group.
Targeted for 
decommissioning 
within 24 months.
Document Collaboration    
Google Docs/Slides/Sheets   
Microsoft Office 365   
Overleaf   
Video Conferencing    
Zoom   
Microsoft Teams   
Skype   
Blue Jeans   
WebEx   
Virtual Whiteboard    
Google Jamboard   
Microsoft Whiteboard   
Mural   
Miro   

 

Communication

ToolRecommendedGeneral SupportLimited Adoption & SupportEnd of Life
 Recommended by SLAC 
with the highest adoption 
rates amongst SLAC users.
Departmental adoption for 
specific use cases and fully 
supported by SLAC IT.
Niche use cases with limited 
adoption, usually supported 
by the department or group.
Targeted for 
decommissioning 
within 24 months.
Email Client    
Office 365 Web Mail   
Outlook   
Mac Mail   
iOS Mail   
Instant Messaging    
Slack   
Microsoft Teams   
Skype   

 

Device Configuration

ToolRecommendedGeneral SupportLimited Adoption & SupportEnd of Life
 Recommended by SLAC 
with the highest adoption 
rates amongst SLAC users.
Departmental adoption for 
specific use cases and fully 
supported by SLAC IT.
Niche use cases with limited 
adoption, usually supported 
by the department or group.
Targeted for 
decommissioning 
within 24 months.
Cardinal Key   

 

Digital Signatures

ToolRecommendedGeneral SupportLimited Adoption & SupportEnd of Life
 Recommended by SLAC 
with the highest adoption 
rates amongst SLAC users.
Departmental adoption for 
specific use cases and fully 
supported by SLAC IT.
Niche use cases with limited 
adoption, usually supported 
by the department or group.
Targeted for 
decommissioning 
within 24 months.
AdobeSign   

 

Remote Access

ToolRecommendedGeneral SupportLimited Adoption & SupportEnd of Life
 Recommended by SLAC 
with the highest adoption 
rates amongst SLAC users.
Departmental adoption for 
specific use cases and fully 
supported by SLAC IT.
Niche use cases with limited 
adoption, usually supported 
by the department or group.
Targeted for 
decommissioning 
within 24 months.
Remote Access Unix    
NoMachine   
FastX   
Secure CRT   
PuTTY   
Remote Access Windows    
Citrix   

 

Scientific Engineering Applications

ToolRecommendedGeneral SupportLimited Adoption & SupportEnd of Life
 Recommended by SLAC 
with the highest adoption 
rates amongst SLAC users.
Departmental adoption for 
specific use cases and fully 
supported by SLAC IT.
Niche use cases with limited 
adoption, usually supported 
by the department or group.
Targeted for 
decommissioning 
within 24 months.
Analysis Tools    
Ansys   
LabVIEW   
Mathematica   
MATLAB   
2D CAD Tools    
AutoCAD   
3D CAD Tools    
Solid Edge   
Mechanical Design Tools    
ETI_GD&T Trainer   

 

Second Factor Authentication

ToolRecommendedGeneral SupportLimited Adoption & SupportEnd of Life
 Recommended by SLAC 
with the highest adoption 
rates amongst SLAC users.
Departmental adoption for 
specific use cases and fully 
supported by SLAC IT.
Niche use cases with limited 
adoption, usually supported 
by the department or group.
Targeted for 
decommissioning 
within 24 months.
Hardware Token   
DUO Push   
DUO Mobile Passcode   
YubiKey   
Text message passcode    

 

Storage

ToolRecommendedGeneral SupportLimited Adoption & SupportEnd of Life
 Recommended by SLAC 
with the highest adoption 
rates amongst SLAC users.
Departmental adoption for 
specific use cases and fully 
supported by SLAC IT.
Niche use cases with limited 
adoption, usually supported 
by the department or group.
Targeted for 
decommissioning 
within 24 months.
Content Storage    
Google Shared Drive   
Microsoft OneDrive   
Sharepoint   
Network File Shares   
Confluence   
AFS   
Stanford Box   
DropBox   
Design Documents    
Siemens Team Center   
Confluence   
CDMS   
Electronic Logging    
Elog