We have been caught!

   In the short time that I have been on the island I have noticed that it is really about who and what you know rather then what you have been told. 
   Internet is a big discussion topic here mainly because you can't access wireless internet on campus unless you do so through your computer, which has been registered with the IT department.  The network you can choose on your laptop is STUDENT, which has enough connections for all the students on campus or a majority of them anyway.  I am not sure how all this crap works but I would appreciate a little more flexability.
   Well, not all of us like to bring our computers to campus because we really don't use them during class and they are heavy and cumbersome.  Students do like to bring lighter versions of internet connection such as, blackberry's, iphones and ipads.  These tools are nice because the majority of students on campus make electronic flash cards through a site called Quizlet and then down load the app on the phone and then flip through the electronic flash cards on breaks. Quizlet is a great program that anyone can use for free at a basic level, when you pay you can do more stuff but I don't find it necessary. Upper classmen save their flash card sets and can pass them on to the next semester, which is SWEEEEEEET. Peers can share note cards and such and not have POUNDS of cards to carry around and study.  Again the traveling light factor. 
   The problem is that the network choice is exclusively GUEST, which has a limited number of connections available. If you are not one of the few or in the right location on campus at the right time you can actually connect; if not then you are S.O.L.  I think, no worries I can just make your way to the campus Learning Resource Center (LRC) where there are around 70 computers for student use during the  semester. 
     Oh, wait...policies are changing and the plans for the LRC are to turn it into the testing facility and have all tests on campus computer based.  Ugh, I am not thrilled with this.  Can you imgine taking the GRE every exam....ugh. Anyway, this transition has been in process the last couple of weeks and slowly students are realizing the change and are not liking it.  Do you know how many exams are given every semester! LOTS, which translates to no campus computers.
   Limited use of the LRC is becoming more and more annoying and so some of us have found a few loop holes in the STUDENT network connection and have been able to connect to the internet with our mobile devices.  Mainly these loop holes are freak occurances that occur in certain locations of campus.  Again, I have no idea how these things work but I find when I am in some buildings I get connection to STUDENT network and others I do not.  Well, it has all caught up to us at the begining of this week and all students recieved this email:

Students,

There is a surge in i-Phones, Blackberries and I-Pods  on campus.  This is causing capacity problems with the “Student” wireless network.  Some students have 3 or 4 wireless devices.  The result is that other students are getting bumped off because there are no available IP addresses.

Our first priority is for every student to have one laptop device registered on the student network.  All phones and PDA’s should use the “Guest” network.  Some of you have slipped through the cracks and have “student” wireless on your smart phones. To make room for student laptops, we have to remove this.

This is a necessary move to make sure that all students have access to e-College during class times. We will be making these changes over the next several days.

Paula Randall

Director of Information Technology

WE HAVE BEEN CAUGHT!! I felt like a mouse caught in the cookie jar after I got this email! Well, I never thought it would last forever but it was nice while it did.  I just want ONE convienence...nope..not going to happen. 

Anyway, but to the NOTES!