Trying to get online keeps students busy //
EDUCATION: So many want to call in to the Net these
days, universities can't keep up. The answer could
be new fees.
DATE 03/28/95
NEWSPAPER THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
SECTION NEWS
EDITION MORNING
PAGE A01
STORY LENGTH 39 INCHES
HEADLINE Trying to get online keeps students busy //
EDUCATION: So many want to call in to the Net these
days, universities can't keep up. The answer could
be new fees.
BYLINE/CREDIT DAN FROOMKIN: The Orange County Register
SUBJECT TERMS OC:STUDENTS:COLLEGES:COMPUTERS:COST:SERVICES
KEYWORD-HIT.
As the Internet explodes in popularity, more and more college
students trying to cruise the giant network from home are finding
they can't jack in.
Instead of accessing a world of information, they get a busy
signal.
At the University of California, Irvine, where almost 11,000
students have free Internet accounts, 220 modem-equipped phone
lines aren't enough. The modems, which allow computers to
communicate by telephone, are tied up for hours every night.
And at California State University, Fullerton, where 4,500
students have accounts, the 48 modem lines are so overwhelmed that
officials are trying not to let any more students know they exist.
The only answer, officials at both universities say, may be to
end a quarter-century academic tradition of free, unlimited access
to computer networks -- and start charging fees for some services.
Student leaders at Cal State Fullerton agree. They're so
desperate for better computer access -- both on and off campus --
that they are considering a mandatory $30-a-semester fee to get
more and better equipment.
"We're trying to catch up real quick," said student-body
President Chris Lowe.
The university's computer facilities provide students with a
sort of on-ramp to the information superhighway. "We want to make
that ramp a little bit bigger," Lowe said, "so we can have more, if
not all, of our students get access."
Hype and reality have combined to dramatically increase student
interest in the Internet, particularly in the past two years.
Most students are lured primarily by the ability to send
electronic mail. But once online, they also can search through
billions of pieces of information -- as well as scroll through
computer bulletin boards, make small talk on chat networks and play
interactive fantasy games.
At UCI -- highly regarded for its computer-science programs --
on-campus access is not a problem. State-of-the-art machines are
widely available in labs open 24 hours a day.
But now that fully two-thirds of UCI students are online, those
calling in from home face almost constant busy signals during peak
hours: 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. on weekdays and all day long on weekends.
"It's an issue that has really exploded in the last 18 months,"
said Don McLaughlin, assistant director of the Office of Academic
Computing.
At the beginning of the boom, McLaughlin said, UCI had about 40
modems for incoming calls.
Officials recently added 42, to a total of 220 -- and it's still
not enough.
The modems also don't transmit information as fast as some
students now expect. "It's outdated technology today," McLaughlin
said.
"We cannot keep up," he said. "There's no way we can get ahead
of the curve -- and stay ahead of the curve -- without large amounts
of money."
McLaughlin's office is looking at several options, including an
"express" modem pool that would cut users off after 20 minutes, and
a system that would guarantee access -- for a fee.
One possibility, he said, is to start shunting students who want
better, faster access over to commercial providers, who charge for
their services.
Gene Dippel, associate vice president for information services
at Cal State Fullerton, looks on with envy at the resources
available at UCI.
"It's like driving the Rolls-Royce, vs. an old Chevrolet," he
said.
Fullerton's free on-campus terminals and modem lines are so
overtaxed that Dippel, who dreams of putting all students online,
is instead forced to take a distinctly defensive posture.
"We do not advertise any of this. We do not promote any of this.
We do not encourage any of this," he said.
"We're trying to keep people from using it."
About 4,500 Fullerton students, or 20 percent of the student
population, have free Internet accounts at the university. Of
those, almost half signed up just since fall.
But the campus has only 48 modems. And unlike UCI, Cal State
Fullerton is almost exclusively a commuter school -- meaning that
for many students, off-campus access is not just a luxury.
As a result, it's gridlock on the on-ramp.
"Lotsa luck getting in," said Dick Bednar, director of
telecommunications. "It's like when they opened the Sears store in
Brea and everyone who had a Sears credit card showed up and you
couldn't walk down the aisles."
Dippel said the busy signals are discouraging.
"The problem is that some people just quit and they don't come
back because they can't get on," he said. "And unless you're highly
motivated because your grade depends on it, then you're not going
to come back."
"It's really unfortunate," said Lowe, the student leader. "We've
got a large group of students who are graduating not even realizing
the potential amounts of information available on these computers."
The university is spending $5 million to wire all its buildings
with high-speed cable connections, allowing users to tap into the
campus' computer networks without a phone call. But without better
equipment, the wiring isn't of much use, Dippel said.
"It's like having a sewer but no toilets," he said.
Charging students $30 a semester would raise about $1 million a
year, but Bednar said that adding modem lines alone could eat up a
lot of that money.
Officials say it's hard to tell how much it would cost to
provide universal access because the technology is constantly
changing.
For students, the problems are starting to get annoying, however.
Fullerton junior Chris Jepsen, 22, said getting into the network
has been frustrating at times. He's gotten busy signals. "And once
in awhile, the computer'll do something strange and disconnect me."
And while at Fullerton remote access is only one of many
complaints students have about their facilities, at UCI it's the
main one.
"Sometimes it's really hard to get through," said Mark Moussa,
21, a senior. "Obviously, it's frustrating if you can't get in for
a couple of hours."
UCI freshman Katherine Tu, 18, is evidence that demand for
remote access will continue to increase.
Sitting in the main computer lab electronically chatting with
students across the country the other day, Tu said she's looking
forward to doing it from home.
"My computer at home has a modem," she said. "I'm just trying to
figure out how to use it."