DeCriscio is a philosophy major
from Fort Wayne, Indiana.
CHRISTA SCHRODEL / THE DEPAUW
Complaints about DePauw University’s wifi are nothing new.
However now, the complaints go beyond the typical “gosh this is so slow” or “hey look, that turtle moved faster than this web page could load.”
Instead, this time the problems center around the new DPU Secure and the DPU Guest.
First and foremost, the new network’s reach teeters out at the edges of campus. This lack of internet connection at the far ends of the bubble are far worse than simple DePauw wireless ever was.
I live in one of the university owned houses and apartments that is somewhat on the outskirts of campus. There are several times where I will lose internet completely for a few minutes and none of the DePauw networks will show up at all on my computer. However, during this outage, I have my fair pick of non-DePauw networks, so it’s not my laptop or iPad.
The internet eventually returns, and I can continue whatever I was doing. Normally, it’s Netflix, but that’s beside the point. The internet outage is most frustrating when I’m in the middle of doing homework.
DPU Secure is difficult to connect to, which is a bad combination when it is what students are supposed to use to print.
It took me about six or seven tries when I was first connecting to it, and it still takes a good three or four tries every time I need to connect to it since the initial connection was made.
As far as what students have been told, you can’t print from the DPU Guest, even if you use the old means of logging onto the network.
From what I have heard from other student’s, my issues with the new network are not solely mine. It seems to be the trend that those who have Windows based computers have the most difficulty signing on to DPU Secure.
But, I applaud the Helpdesk for attempting to create a secure network in which you have to be a member of our community to access. It matches what other college campuses have, particularly Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne, the University of Saint Francis and Purdue University to name a few.
The difference between a secure connection and one that is not secure is whether or not internet traffic is encrypted.
To explain the difference, lets look at the little folder tents that elementary school teachers sometimes have students make when they don’t want them to cheat. When they have their folders up, other students can’t look at their peers answers. But, when the folders are down, it’s easier to look at someone else’s answers.
A secure connection is like having the little folder tents, but the difference is, instead of cheating, we’re talking about someone’s ability to see your browsing history, usernames and passwords. It’s pretty serious stuff, and it is a really important move for DePauw.
So, the move to a secure internet connection is a very good thing in the long-run.
But, before moving to the two different networks, the Helpdesk should have made sure that the kinks were all worked out. Not to mention, as a whole, the internet at DePauw needs some work.
-DeCriscio is a junior philosophy major from Fort Wayne, Indiana.