Campus Center to get wireless net access

Next fall, students will be able to use wireless Internet inside the Campus Center and on its outdoor patio. The Tufts Community Union (TCU) Senate recently approved the project, and construction is scheduled to begin this summer.

The project was spearheaded by freshman senator Jeff Katzin, who took over the plans from former TCU President Melissa Carson, who resigned earlier this semester due to health reasons.

In order to get Internet access, students will need a wireless network card, which will be available at the Student Information Booth with a student ID card. TCCS will install the necessary software in students' laptops free of charge.

Three ports will be installed at the Campus Center -- one by the commons, one by the upstairs office, and one by the pool tables. At a cost of $3,000 per port, the project will allow for complete coverage in the Campus Center. Coverage is currently available in Tisch and Ginn Libraries, the Medical School's library, Dowling Hall, and Olin Center.

Katzin has also planned an advertising campaign to notify students of the new system. "We plan to do publicity to go along with the project," Katzin said. "We will send information home. Publicity is one of our top concerns. We plan to meet with students also."

Executive Administrative Dean Wayne Bouchard, approved the Senate's plan for the project's funding. "I was approached by student Senate leaders to consider making the Campus Center the next location, which, for a variety of reasons, made good sense," he said.

The project warrants financial support in order to take advantage of opportunities to expand Internet capabilities, Bouchard said. "Every year we look to enhance and improve the computing and communications environment at Tufts," he said. "More recently, Tufts has substantially expanded its network bandwidth, which, coupled with emerging wireless technology improvements, really makes this an ideal time to move more aggressively in this direction."

Students have raised concerns about the wireless system currently in Tisch Library. "The coverage is spotty at times and it's worked well at times," freshman Chris Eager said. "I was there this weekend and I couldn't access the system. It's a decent connection, not as good as at the dorm."

One problem at the library, especially during finals time, is the lack of available of wireless network cards, Eager said.

Bouchard and the Senate have also considered plans to expand the wireless system to cover the entire campus -- plans similar to the system in place at Dartmouth College.

"At some point in the not too distant future, we will be considering options to provide wireless capability all over campus," Bouchard said. "We are waiting for standards to sort themselves out, the speed to improve, security protocols to be strengthened, and the costs to decrease."

Bouchard referred to the recent developments in wireless technology, most notably the new 802.11g electronic device. The new technology delivers wireless internet service at nearly five times the speed of its predecessor 802.11b -- 54 bits per second compared to 11.

Many commercial equipment builders, such as Cisco Systems, are waiting for approval from the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineering to go into production on the new device, which it expects in the next fiscal quarter.

The full-campus device would require construction of outdoor antennas, which would be far more expensive than the plan for the Campus Center.