Computing and Information Services plans to extend wireless Internet access to classroom buildings but currently has no plans in place to make dorms wireless, citing a high cost of installation and what it perceives to be a lack of student interest.
The University has already introduced wireless Internet access into several common spaces on campus, including lounges in Keeney Quad, Barbour Hall and Andrews House and classrooms in MacMillan Hall and Barus and Holley.
Wilson Hall, Sayles Hall and the Salomon Center may be next in line to receive wireless Internet access, according to Alan Usas, assistant vice president for academic and network systems and services.
CIS has worked with academic departments in the last nine months to split the costs of installation in order to reach a greater number of buildings. A recently completed two-year network upgrade project will also prove helpful in installing wireless Internet access later, Usas said. "Growth has been steady and in small steps as departments have been willing to work with us," he said.
While University policy prohibits users from connecting to the Brown network through unauthorized wireless hubs, a few students have set up hubs in their dorm rooms, Usas said.
The main obstacle to wireless Internet access in new areas on campus is the project's substantial cost. On many college campuses, students already have wireless Internet access in their dorms; Dartmouth College went fully wireless as early as 2001. But Brown has decided against making such a large-scale investment at this stage, Usas said.
Usas also said wireless access in dorms is not something that most students have demanded. "There hasn't been any organized set of communications from UCS that this should be a priority," he said.
While it may be premature to talk about wireless Internet access in dorms, Usas still considers it a possibility for the future. "Which areas are next is guided by students, faculty and staff and what would be valuable to them," he said. "The way we've been going about deploying wireless is by request."
And student interest may be gradually increasing. In a meeting yesterday, two student representatives on the Computing Advisory Board brought up their interest in this plan. The University will be receptive to their requests, Usas said. "We are interested in getting more input about students' use (of wireless access) in dorms and other campus locations," he said. "We would love to hear that this would be something they would find useful and valuable."
