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June 12, 2002--The University of Delaware will introduce the newest members of the campus community—incoming students and their parents—to The Code of the Web, an education initiative designed to raise awareness of and ease the problems of bandwidth abuse and copyright infringement.
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| YoUDee supports The Code of the Web campaign, joining Molly Chappell, art director with the Office of Public Relations; University President David P. Roselle; Susan Foster, UD vice president for Information Technologies; Acting Provost Dan Rich; and Executive Vice President David Hollowell. |
The frontier-based campaign uses a humorous approach, featuring UD’s mascot YoUDee as an old-time Western sheriff and including catch phrases from the era, which make serious points.
"The University of Delaware takes great pride in its network capabilities, which are among the finest of any institution in the nation," UD President David P. Roselle said. "The Code of the Web campaign is designed to keep all of us at the University–students, faculty and staff–keenly aware of fair-use issues as they relate to responsible computing."
Susan Foster, UD vice president for Information Technologies, said the campaign was developed because "it is increasingly easy to trespass on a variety of limits" in using the Internet.
She cited two of the main problems at UD: bandwidth overuse, which is most troublesome when network users download large music and movie files, and copyright infringement, which involves web-based information and graphics being used for purposes other than those intended by the copyright holders.
 UD purchases access to the Internet and the amount of its access, which is measured in bandwidth, is finite, according to Daniel Grim, executive director of Network and Systems Services with Information Technologies. With the development of programs that enable network users to download music and movie files, the limit has at times been reached.
“In September 2001, we had a completely saturated access link,” Grim said. “The network cannot handle that amount of traffic. It becomes like gridlock on a highway, when cars can’t move because other cars are in the way. Everyone is backed up and nobody can get anywhere. The Code of the Web campaign is all about trying to get users to understand the impact they have upon other users as well as on the network itself.”
"I hope that everyone at the University will learn to care for the special privileges afforded them through access to UD's network," Foster said, "and that they will be especially cognizant of the privileges and rights of others by observing network use standards and copyright laws."
Foster said it is most appropriate that a Western theme was selected for the campaign because, "the Internet is still a frontier and, sometimes, a lawless place."
"There are rules," she added, "and sheriffs and posses to help make it a place where we can all pursue our interests. As it says in the UD Handbook for Responsible Computing, 'Don't ride with the outlaws.'"
The campaign outlines six "Rules of Commu-net-y" and discusses the punishments that Internet outlaws face.
The rules, in Western vernacular, are:
- Honor the brand. You don’t rustle cattle with someone else’s brand and, likewise, you don’t use material that bears the Circle C brand of the copyright without first getting permission. It’s stealin’—plain and simple.
- Katie, bar the door. Keep your eyes open for pesky varmints. There are some dastardly outlaws out there who think nothing of sneaking into your computer, rummaging through your files, breaking into your personal accounts and generally committing the vilest of deeds on your hard drive. The best way to stop ’em is to be on the lookout for knotholes in your security system. And, don’t you go trying to bust in on someone else’s computer, either.
- Don’t be a rattlesnake. Don’t be a rattlesnake who sends threatening, obscene or otherwise poisonous e-mail while trying to remain anonymous. Even a varmint as low as a rattler gives you fair warnin’ before it strikes, and you always know which varmint done the strikin’.
- Beware bandwidth bandits. Ordinarily, the Internet runs as fast as the Pony Express, but a couple of bandwidth bandits can hog-tie the whole Commu-net-y by downloading large movie or music files, by turning their computers into highly used servers or by otherwise corralling valuable space with useless information.
- Don’t be a claim jumper. If you’re thinkin’ the way to a private gold rush is staking out space on the University’s server to run a small business of your own, think again, pardner. It’s called claim jumping; it’s against the Code and it comes with a frontier justice all its own. Consider it this away: The quickest way to double your money is to fold it over and put it back in your pocket.
- Watch out for rustlers. There are some ornery wranglers out there who pretend to be someone they’re not by rustling IP addresses and establishing anonymous accounts. And, if you’re not careful, they might pretend to be you! They’re doggone sneaks and sometimes use file-sharing programs you didn’t even know you had. You can help by uninstalling file-sharing programs. Also, log off and shut down from time to time just to be safe.
The penalties for misuse of the web are stiff. Students who violate UD policies are subject to full disciplinary action within the Undergraduate and Graduate Student Judicial System, up to and including loss of computing privileges, suspension and expulsion.
University employees who violate the policies will be dealt with according to the judicial processes outlined in the pertinent personnel manuals and handbooks. Furthermore, violators could be prosecuted under state or federal law.
Foster said The Code of the Web theme is a fun and creative way to get a serious message across to the campus community, and she praised the Office of Public Relations team for its “very inventive work” to address the issue of bandwidth abuse.
She added that YoUDee, the University’s national champion mascot and the centerpiece of the campaign, makes “a wonderful champion of clean living” on the Internet.
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