Word: bandwidth
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...effort to cut down on the overwhelming traffic created by Napster and other file-sharing software, Harvard Arts and Sciences Computer Services (HASCS) announced three weeks ago that it would limit outbound network traffic to only a fraction of the total bandwidth. Although this temporary measure is intended only to prevent outside users from connecting to computers on the Harvard network, it has now become clear that the restriction is interfering with legitimate student use of the network. Although we support HASCS in its attempt to make sure that a functioning network is available to students, the current problems would...
HASCS has suggested that students wishing to opt out of the firewall attend a regularly scheduled, no-questions-asked information session on network use and bandwidth consumption. Although we agree with HASCS that basic knowledge about the network is desirable, a short online reading and quiz--similar to the network quiz taken at the beginning of the year--would be more convenient and appropriate than a 20- to 30-minute lecture, especially since those asking for a firewall exemption will largely be familiar with the concept of bandwidth constraints. A system that enabled students to change their firewall status online...
...only a temporary solution. A properly implemented firewall would only block network traffic that students do not miss, such as outsiders' Napster downloads from student computers. If students actively decide to share their files and leave the firewall, the move will not accomplish much. With the price of bandwidth dropping rapidly, HASCS should increase network bandwidth so that there are fewer incidences of overload. Outages will only become more common if network capacity does not grow with increasing demand...
...firewall might do much to alleviate the current crises in network bandwidth. But at most, it should be in place only until HASCS has time to implement long-term education campaigns and infrastructure improvements. A permanent firewall on the FAS network is not just at odds with this University's commitment to academic freedom. It would hide away a vast chunk of the Internet from those of us who stand to learn from it the most...
...says Michael S. Vernal '01, who is also a teaching fellow for Computer Science 244: "Advanced Network Design Projects." According to Vernal, the FAS network is connected to the outside world via a single 100mbps (megabits-per-second) pipe. Each of the network's 12,000 connections shares this bandwidth. Says Vernal: "If one-third of the undergraduate population was using the FAS network at the same time, each student would be connected at the speed of a 56.6kbps modem." That's the connection speed you'd expect of your mom's AOL connection, not of a prestigious academic...