Computing at IU developed over time

Editor's note: The first of a two-part series on the history on student computing at IU. See Monday's IDS for recent technology advances at IU.\nIn 1998, technology was on the upswing at IU. University Information Technology Services upgraded the campus computers in January, giving each machine 64 megabytes of memory and an operating system that premiered a new technology -- "multitasking."\nA few months later, UITS tested the latest programs, Microsoft Exchange and Outlook. By fall semester 1998, the number of modems in the two-hour dial-in pool had jumped from 216 to 598. But because of the large number of private computer owners, it sometimes took hours to connect to the IU server from off-campus residences.\nHow times have changed for students.\nFast forward to 2001, and home computers have 13-gigabyte hard drives. Microsoft programs are household names, and "multitasking" is necessary for academic and professional survival.\nAnd best of all? No more busy signals.\n"From the late 1980s until 1999, modems were a source of agitation and upset between UITS and our user community," said Brian Voss, an associate vice president for information technology. "Busy signals were a fact of life, 14 hours a day. You could wait with your autodialer busy dialing for 30, 40 or even 60 minutes trying to get in between 5 p.m. and midnight."\nFirst, IU and IU-Purdue University at Indianapolis merged technology organizations to form UITS in 1997. \nModem and phone line prices had plunged from nearly $1,000 to $200 per port, and the University's newly formed powerhouse could use this to its advantage in two ways -- by adding IUPUI users to increase purchasing volume and by connecting the two core campuses to increase access to both schools' hardware and software vendors.\nA University committee also created an Information Technology Strategic Plan to guide computing development University-wide. Approved by IU President Myles Brand in 1998, the plan clarified the need for better service and helped UITS win funding for expansion.\nUITS then put the extra money into more modems. \n"It used to be that the modem usage graphs would show (peak users) nearly 14 hours a day," Voss said of the situation before the strategic plan, when off-campus modems numbered around 1,000. "In the summer of 1999, we made a significant increase in modems, and we've been adding more every semester since then."\nThe most recent additions are 92 new lines, added to the 856-5200 dial-in number. This brings the current modem total to nearly 2,000, about 15 users per modem. This is comparable to universities such as Penn State, on whose findings IU based its technology model. But 15 isn't a permanent number, because UITS relies more on actual usage data than a ratio to determine the right number of available connections. \nAlthough there are still times when the connections might not be as fast, from 10 p.m. to midnight, for example, students are starting to shake off their busy signal-laden pasts.\nSenior Liza Lerner said she doesn't have any complaints about her off-campus connection, but she remembers when the situation wasn't as rosy. \n"I used to have a lot of trouble getting on, and I had to keep re-dialing for half an hour sometimes, and I would be lucky to get connected," Lerner said. "That was really frustrating. I was mad that we had to pay a technology fee, but they couldn't provide off-campus students with better service. But then they added the new numbers, and I haven't had a problem since."\nNormally connected for 10 minutes at a time, four times a day, Lerner hasn't encountered a busy signal recently. She said Web sites load quickly, although dialing 856-5200 doesn't allow her modem a full-speed connection.\nBut for other off-campus users the story is different. \n"I dial in, and it's a total drag," senior Laura Black said. "Any kind of in-depth research or job hunting has to be done on campus because the Web pages take way too long to download. I figure it's the number I'm dialing into at IU, but I just think it's free, so there has to be some sort of setback."\nBesides slower modem speeds, Voss said house wiring and physical distance from the telecommunications provider -- in most cases Ameritech -- could interfere. Most users live at distances where a realistic connection speed is about 60 percent of their modem's capability.\nThe improvement in service has eased tensions between UITS and remote users, but it hasn't kept people away from the campus computers. As the number of computer-owning students increased, so did the demand for on-campus resources. \nThis led to another important part of the IT Strategic Plan, the implementation of a life-cycle replacement program. Its goal is to have no machine on campus that is more than three years old. \nThe telecommunications section of the IT Strategic Plan also suggests IU will be a forerunner in technological innovations by building high-speed networks and continually increasing the opportunities for users.