There had been a rumor

floating about the Cadre office that UPEI was going wireless. Yep, UPEI surfing on the edge of tech- nology. Considering that we still use Pegasus e-mail, I. could not believe my ears. I had to go find out for myself. John Cunningham at Computer Services was more than helpful in dispelling some myths and letting me know about some upcoming changes in the campus computer labs.

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Technically Speaking

that I must relay that UPEI will not be going wireless in the near future. Apparently there had been a study, ‘but little progress had been made. The major concerns did not appear to be financial, but were more along the lines of security issues. It was little a vague - it seems that there could be licensing issues and such. While this news was a little dis- heartening, I was pleased with the next bit of news. Pegasus is being put to sleep like the old horse that it is. Yes, no more will we have to suffer that ponderous often broken piece of software that I would be ashamed to

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have written. John relayed that the school is switching to a web based system much like Yahoo and Hotmail. You will be able to access it from any PC hooked to the inter- net. John let me take a peek at the interface and it looks pretty slick. Our conversation switched to the quality of the computer labs on campus and how annoying some of them can be. They were surprised when I told them that about six of the computers in Main computer lab freeze up when you try to access your student drive. I have been complaining about this for most of the semester. The reason the PCs had remained broken was because everyone else assumed that some- one else had notified computer serv- ices, so of course no one had. John told me that there are three ways a person can notify them concerning a bad PC: you could use a form that is on the start menu of all the PCs in computer labs, you could stop by computer services in the AVC build- ing,contact helpdesk@upei.ca or call their helpdesk at 566-0465. This brings me to an inter- esting bit of information: the com- puter services department offers technical support. While this does not seem awe inspiring, I asked what their level of support entails. It turns out that it covers pretty much everything from physical problems to internet problems, but more importantly, it covers software issues, not just the WordPerfect glitch but the fun kind, like “How do I insert a table in WordPerfect without throwing off my margins?” The support desk is open 8:30 - 4:30 Monday through Friday, or you can e-mail their help desk at helpdesk@upei.ca.

When I asked about what

computer labs were going to be upgraded, I was surprised to hear

UPEI Cadre March 29, 2004 page 7

that Kelly computer lab was being upgraded again and those PCs would be going to a few other labs. The university usually purchases thirty computers annually; the cost is carried by money gathered from printing in the labs as well as some money budgeted by the computer services department.

That about covers my excit- ing visit to computer services. In all honesty, Darris and John were very helpful and really wanted students to know that they are there to help. On a personal note, I wanted to sug- gest that people looking for some different kinds of software than are found in the normal labs can use the computer services lab that has a wide variety of software as well as other peripherals such scanners.

- That is it, take care.

Food for Fines -

Do you have library fines? Would you like to help a fellow student or family on campus?

Bring 1- 5 non-perishable food or grocery items (e.g. canned goods, pasta, light bulbs, toilet paper, etc.) for the Campus Food Bank to the Circulation Desk at the

Library from Monday,

March 29 to Monday, April 19 and we'll deduct $2.00 | per item (up to $10.00)

from yout ery fines.

¢ #.