[82] in Resnet-Forum
Re: Why?
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Joe Holmes)
Tue Nov 30 20:32:35 1993
Date: 30 Nov 1993 16:52:55 -0500
From: "Joe Holmes" <joe.holmes@Sonoma.EDU>
To: resnet-forum@MIT.EDU
Reply to: RE>>Why?
David Wasley says a couple of interesting things in his last post:
************
If "it is a good thing" for students to have access to the network from where
they live, then it should be available to all students. I think any economic
arguement to the contrary will be very hard to sell politically.
...However, it only serves the students who live in campus-owned buildings.
Can we think of more general solutions?
...
Melissa,
Your model creates a priviledged student class. Is this really desireable
in a university setting?
...
**********************
The idea that equal networking should be available to all students is
commendable for its egalitarian qualities, but is perhaps outside the scope
of this topic (but I'll take a stab at it). I can't speak for other
universities, but here at SSU we have little influence on the over-all shape
of networking as it applies to all students on the campus. Those of us
working on the residential network are residential employees - not Computer
Center employees.
To make networking available to more residential students we have built a
small lab that we keep open 11 or 12 hours a day. Students who don't own a
computer don't have to walk all the way accross campus to find an open lab.
Printing services are also available.
A more general solution (i.e. bring high-bandwidth networks to all students,
regardless of where they live) would be far more costly and technologicaly
challenging (assuming you had the $$$$$). SLIP/PPP lines are something we
(SSU) have taked about implementing in the (unspecified) future. There might
be a nominal fee for such a service (a wild stab on my part says $15-$20 per
month - a real steal since a SLIP line goes for $150 commercialy) to help pay
for it. In the mean time, students can dial up to our VAX. You still get
most of your Internet functionality - its just not real fast.
I am not worried about an informationaly "priviledged student class".
One-third of our dorms cannot be networked (yet) because the wiring is
insufficient to support data. By David's critereon, we'd have had to delay
the network installation by a year or two just because we weren't ready to do
them _all_ at the same time. That's hardly fair to the two-thirds who can
have networking _now_ without delaying services for the other third.
Leveling out everyone's quality of service just to level it out is not (in my
mind) a worthy end unto itself.
Network services are somewhat demand driven, but not all services are created
equal - some are more useful than others. I think the big questions you have
to ask when looking at campus-wide access are:
1. What are the _core_ services all students should have access to?
2. What is the most serviceable way to provide such access?
a. how can you get the most connections per $$ ?
b. what is your upgrade path ?
c. how much does it cost _the_student_ ?
d. how accessible is it for non-technophiles?
3. What would be cool for students to have access to?
a. more bandwidth
b. whatever else is on your christmass list
On this campus we have found the best way to provide access to off-campus
students is via a modem pool attached to our VAX. The best way to provide
access to on-campus students is by extending our existing network.
(apologies for the spelling and the ramblings)
C. Joe Holmes
Information Slave
Sonoma State U.
These are my opinions, but I'll let others hold them.
