Working the wireless angle at the university level.
Some college students returning this fall may have been surprised to find their campuses were unwired during the summer break. From community colleges to large state and private universities, Wi-Fi wireless local area networks (WLANs) are being installed in dorms, common areas and academic buildings in greater numbers and at a faster pace than wired networks.Research from Cahners' In-Stat suggests that despite a general economic downturn, the market for shipments of wireless LAN equipment into universities continues to be very strong. In 2001, the education sector accounted for 35 percent of WLAN product shipments--more than two times the market share of the next two highest vertical markets adopting wireless: health care and finance.
What's Driving Wireless?
IT managers have found some principal factors are driving wireless adoption on their campuses:
* Student Demand: Students are influential and vocal about what they want. In the same way that students' increased use of cellular phones and pagers changed telephone use in dormitories, student passion for wireless devices such as laptops and PDAs is forcing university IT staff to support wireless access.
* Simplicity: Wireless networks are easier to install and maintain than Ethernet cables. Wireless Access Points (APs) can provide access in hard-to-wire locations on campus such as outdoor campus commons, stadiums, cafeterias, libraries and historic buildings. The average school building is 45 years old, making dropping cables undesirable and difficult, if not impossible.
* Cost: WLANs can reduce the cost to deploy and operate a network. California State University installed wireless classrooms when it estimated the cost to wire a 60-person classroom on their Monterey campus at $60,000--four to five times the cost they paid to provide unwired access.
Beyond the affordability of wireless APs (as low as $100), wireless access is increasingly built into laptops students bring to school. Thus, by working wirelessly, students don't have to incur the additional costs or complications inherent in the wired world.
Universities may find that wireless can save or even make money. When Harvard Medical School converted to a digital e-curriculum called "MyCourses," the university saved $150,000 in paper costs.
* Quality of Life: Perhaps the most significant way in which wireless is changing university life is the transformation of how and where students and faculty interact. Deborah Gelch of Lasell College in Massachusetts says, "Wireless is tearing down the walls of the classroom, bringing students and professors together as never before--improving interaction and collaboration. Wireless lets them correspond with each other or connect to the Web for research materials from wherever they choose--the student center, the library, even on the grass outside."
* Mobility: Whereas many workers in the corporate world stay at their desks for much of their work day, college students and faculty are extraordinarily mobile. Their need to stay connected and in touch as they move between classrooms and buildings is a strong driver for working untethered. The latest technologies even enable wireless users to remain connected as they move across subnets from one wireless coverage area to another--while keeping a secure connection.
Wireless Insecurity
This brings to mind the Achilles' heel of wireless networks: security. Consider the dichotomy: The best thing about wireless networks is that they are so open and easy to access. The worst thing? They are so open and easy to access.
IT departments at higher education institutions are faced with the challenge of enabling secure collaboration among students, faculty and administrative staff via wireless technology.
Educators want to provide the student body with the freedom to roam and work on Internet-connected computers throughout the campus. But they also want to ensure safeguards are in place.
In the past year alone, countless articles have appeared in the trade press about the lack of security in wireless networks.
Maintaining airlink privacy, network integrity and controlling user authentication and authorization are particularly crucial issues to university IT managers.
Role-Based Control
To address this issue, universities are integrating appliances that provide role-based access control for wireless networks.
These appliances, called wireless gateways, work like a bouncer at a nightclub--stopping people and checking their ID, then deciding who should go where and what they can do when they get in.
Role-based access control is flexible and can be modified remotely by IT staff. Further, it is scalable, as the number of roles is infinite. A role called "sophomore of liberal arts" allows one level of access, while roles for "grad student," or "dean" would allow different levels of access and bandwidth shaping.
Wireless networks are changing the nature of life and learning in today's universities. Ensuring that these networks are as secure and reliable as they are simple and easy to use will be crucial to their success.
Patrick Rafter Director of Communications Bluesocket Inc.
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| Author: | Rafter, Patrick |
|---|---|
| Publication: | Community College Week |
| Geographic Code: | 1USA |
| Date: | Nov 11, 2002 |
| Words: | 784 |
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