OZones connect with laptop users

From left, Jason Fillo, Habib Haider,Richard Little, Adi Vora and Ryan Steele work together with a laptop computer on class notes.

Look for this logo on posters and stickers across the campus for areas that are wireless.

5:03 p.m., March 7, 2005--From Smith Hall to The Scrounge, from the Trabant University Center to Morris Library, students, faculty and staff who use portable computers are enjoying the convenience and mobility afforded by UD’s growing number of wireless access, or “OZone,” locations.

With a network that offers zero wires, zero waiting and zero worries, OZones give laptop users access to UD’s wireless network at more than 360 campus locations.

While Morris Library offers more than 200 wired locations, the Melva B. Guthrie Atrium and the Reserve Room are popular spots for laptop users with wireless capability seeking to connect to the UD campus network.

“The wireless system is very useful. It’s nice to be able to work at my computer in a nice setting like the Reserve Room,” Gary Wilkinson, a junior computer science major, said. “The system is quick, and it allows me to go online and get my work done. I like the flexibility.”

Junior natural resource management major Ryan Farrell said he liked the idea of being able to work online in a quiet spot like the Guthrie Atrium.

Gary Wilkinson in the Morris Library

“It’s fast, and I use it all the time,” Farrell said. “I love it.”

A summer upgrade boosted the maximum network speed from 11 megabits of information per second to 54 megabits per second, more than 100 times faster than standard 56kbps dial-up modem Internet connections.

Although the computing sites in the lower level of Smith Hall are known for their wired hookups, mainly for desktop users, an increasing number of OZones are becoming available there for laptop users with wireless capability.

“Having this system means that there is one less thing that I have to pack along with my laptop,” Trevor Bart, a computer science freshman, said. “I can just turn the laptop on and use it. It’s also great when I’m in between classes at Trabant, and I’m short on time.”

Ryan Farrell in the Morris Library

A popular student hangout since its opening in 1996, the Trabant University Center also is the place of choice for laptop users working in groups or as individuals.

“It helps to get me out of the dorm,” Casey Cashdollar, a sophomore Spanish studies major, said. “It makes things easier, because I’m not always running from the library to the dorm. It’s also nice because you can work at a computer and keep in touch with your friends.”

At another table in Trabant, senior computer information sciences (CIS) major Ryan Steele sat with four classmates who took turns discussing the web-based class information that was displayed on the screen of his 17-inch laptop.

“This lets me follow online lectures,” Steele said. “I use it everyday I have class.”

Joining Steele in the discussion were junior CIS major Jason Fillo and senior CIS majors Aditya Vora, Richard Little and Habib Haider.

Casey Cashdollar works on her wireless laptop at the Trabant University Center during her lunch break.

“All of our classes are web-based, and we have to do a lot of programming projects, so we just connect to the UD network and do this work,” Haider said. “I also like using the wireless system in Morris Library, because it is a nice place to work.”

The Scrounge in the Perkins Student Center also is a popular spot for students and faculty who like the idea of using a laptop outside the classroom or the office.

“My students told me about The Scrounge being wireless. It gives you some independence and frees you from the confines of an office,” Stephanie McClellan, assistant professor of consumer studies, said. “It also is a great way to get resources into the classroom. It gives you access to specific information and speeds up the information-gathering process.”

The growing UD wireless computing access system also serves as a handy tool for staff members like Louis Borsos, a network technician II in Information Technologies--Network and Systems Services. Among Borsos’s tasks are the installation and servicing of equipment at the many OZones locations on the Newark campus.

Trevor Bart in Smith Hall

“In certain locations, I can access site information and see what my next assignment is,” Borsos said. “It’s very helpful to me, because it allows me access to technical information even if I can’t get into a room because a class is taking place.”

Louis Borsos, network technician II in IT Network Systems, uses his wireless laptop to check on workorders while he’s away from the office.

To connect at the various UD wireless network sites, users need a wireless network card (or built-in wireless capability), and an active UDelNet ID.

Laptop users with questions about wireless capability can bring their computers to the Technology Solutions Center in 002A Smith Hall. Wireless cards are available at the UD Bookstore and at popular electronics stores.

For more information on system requirements, set-up and UD wireless computing policies, as well as helpful maps that indicate wireless locations, visit [www.udel.edu/wireless].

Article by Jerry Rhodes
Photos by Kathy F. Atkinson

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