Campus Center goes wireless

By the end of the summer, the Mayer Campus Center will be equipped with wireless network access through the same type of technology currently installed in the Fletcher, Tisch and Health Sciences libraries.

When the work is completed, network and Internet coverage will extend throughout the entire building plus the outside patio, according to Jodie Nealley, director of Student Activities.

The wireless networking service is clearly a slower connection than a normal, hard-wired Ethernet jack is, but it makes up in convenience and flexibility what it lacks in speed.

To access the wireless network, students, faculty and staff will need a notebook computer running Windows 95, 98, NT or 2000 or an Apple Macintosh portable running MacOS 9.x or greater. There must be a PCMCIA card slot for the wireless network card, a CD-ROM drive for loading software and sufficient internal memory and disk storage to install and run the wireless drivers and software.

As with the wireless pilot programs in the three Tufts libraries, Tufts Computing and Communications Services (TCCS) student support representatives will be available in the basement of Ballou Hall to help with technical support and troubleshooting.

Because of security concerns about unauthorized access to the university network through this technology, TCCS will be implementing a log-on process that will limit wireless service to Tufts students, faculty and staff.

If you do not have a wireless networking card, a limited number of cards will be made available for borrowing from the Student Activities Information Desk in the Campus Center. If you wish to purchase your own wireless card, TCCS will be making arrangements with the campus bookstore to stock some of the 802.11b cards that it has tested.

For more information about the wireless technology, call Doug Herrick, associate director of data network operations, at (617) 627-4683.