Photo by Carter Kegelman

Whether you’re looking up the latest pictures of Suri Cruise, downloading the new Hilary Duff single, or chatting online with your pen pal in prison, one thing remains constant: the slow Internet on campus. OK, maybe SLU students don’t do any of these things. But the fact still remains that our web speed is excruciatingly sluggish. Fortunately, Information Technology has made plans to improve Internet speeds for everyone.

“I would say we run into this problem every couple of years,” said James Mattice, the Co-CIO / Director of Network Technologies. “We submitted a proposal to Capital to upgrade our Internet bandwidth. Due to budget constraints, it got turned down over the summer. However, we will be upgrading the bandwidth very soon.”

This upgrade will increase Internet speed because more information and data will be accessible at one time. IT will purchase more bandwidth from their current buyer, Time Warner. “The need is definitely across the board,” said Mattice. “It’s a struggle for afternoon classes that want to use Internet resources. That was big in our decision — upgrading now, as opposed to waiting.”

IT voiced the difficulty in purchasing the right amount of bandwidth to optimize productivity and reduce waste. “It’s a big issue and we look at bandwidth a lot as utility – we have to have it,” explained Mattice. “The tough thing is you’re always trying to anticipate because if you have unused bandwidth it’s not like you get a refund.”

Christopher Watts, Director of the Newell Center for Arts Technology, is intrigued by the campus response and perception of the new speed to come. “Well, the number of big files people are trying to access on the Internet are always going up,” he said, “If you’re using your own personal computer it could be slowed with Spyware. That may be your computer and not the network and you’d have no way of knowing that.”

Varied responses to additional bandwidth are expressed by those very familiar with the system. “The defeatist position to take would be that no matter how much bandwidth you buy its always going to get used up and nobody is ever going to be happy.” Watts explained. “Unfortunately, additional bandwidth is almost immediately eaten up by additional network activity.”

Additional bandwidth will ensure faster Internet speed but will not directly address the fact that students and faculty Internet use peaks at predictable times. “There are certain times of day when nobody is on,” explained Watts. “If you wanted to download a file from the Internet at six in the morning on a Sunday – no problems. The afternoon is the killer because both faculty and staff are trying to work at the same time as students.”

Students share a common frustration with Internet speed despite upgrades in bandwidth that have occurred in the past. “The Internet speed here is unacceptable,” complained Brendan Reed ’10.

“It’s really frustrating,” said Emily Green ’12. “Sometimes you’re trying to quickly finish something up for class or check your email and it ends up taking about fifteen minutes to get that one thing done!” P.J. Massey ’12 agreed, “The inconsistent and unreliable wireless Internet service frequently disrupts my work ethic.”

Faculty responses have reflected equal frustration. Watts elaborated, “There are certain things people complain about since the beginning of universities and colleges and unfortunately this is one of them. Our network is pretty fast and very reliable. But actually connecting to the Internet is a separate issue.”

Watts also shared a positive suggestion to those looking for smarter Internet usage: “More or less there are two networks on campus: the wireless and wired network. Wireless network is more convenient but the wired network is faster. So if you’re doing something involving lots and lots of info, sitting in your room, plug into the wall – if people use two networks the right way it saves everybody some trouble.”

IT is testing and implementing new software to advance the university’s Internet usage and progress. Mattice explained the Net Enforcer as a “piece of hardware that provides bandwidth shaping – it prioritizes ‘good’ Internet traffic over ‘bad’ Internet traffic.” The hardware has been in place for many years at St. Lawrence and is in the process of being replaced to accommodate our Internet bandwidth upgrade. Mattice added, “All universities are now required to effectively combat illegal peer-to-peer file sharing as part of the Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008. The use of bandwidth shaping devices like Net Enforcer is a common method to comply with this requirement.”

Another system installed is called The Video Furnace, which is currently being tested. Mattice explained this system will allow on demand playback of videos for classes and will replace the old VCR blue screen playback system.

The Video Furnace will address the frustration teachers experience with the inconvenience of showing required films on the campus network. Watts expressed his opinion, “One of the things that has been bothering me for several years is that I know some faculty members that if they want the university to buy a movie for the library they’ll buy it on VHS instead of DVD to play on the cable network. In the short term that’s okay.”

Despite the negative attitudes buzzing around campus regarding the lethargic Internet speed, Watts said that he still holds the highest trust and faith in our Information Technology Department’s diligent work on the matter. “I think we have the best IT department of any school I have ever been associated with. I trust them that they are doing the best they can within the budget constraints and technological constraints,” said Watts. “However, that’s not going to stop me from grumbling about it.”

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