Agree, but feel that the information is probably a pretty accurate representation all the same.
------------------------ Walter Reynolds Principal Systems Security Development Engineer Information and Technology Services University of Michigan (734) 615-9438 On Thu, May 14, 2015 at 8:55 AM, Lee H Badman <[email protected]> wrote: > Is a great info graphic- but is only 208 students sampled, with no idea > from x number of schools? Detracts from the validity (in my opinion). > > > > > > > > Lee Badman > > Wireless/Network Architect > > ITS, Syracuse University > > 315.443.3003 > > (Blog: http://wirednot.wordpress.com) > > > > *From:* The EDUCAUSE Wireless Issues Constituent Group Listserv [mailto: > [email protected]] *On Behalf Of *Christopher Michael > Allison > *Sent:* Thursday, May 14, 2015 8:47 AM > > *To:* [email protected] > *Subject:* Re: [WIRELESS-LAN] AW: [WIRELESS-LAN] To provide (wireless) > service, or not to provide (wireless) service... > > > > I found some documentation on how WiFi ranks with students. It was a > something done by a company called 7Signal. The PDF attached is their > results. > > > > CHRISTOPHER ALLISON > > Network Engineer I > > > > Information Technology > > Mail Code 4622 > > 625 Wham Drive > Carbondale, Illinois 62901 > > > > [email protected] <%[email protected]> > > P: 618 / 453 - 8415 > > F: 618 / 453 - 5261 > > INFOTECH.SIU.EDU <http://infotech.siu.edu/> > > > > *"Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your > life."* > > Confucius > ------------------------------ > > *From:* The EDUCAUSE Wireless Issues Constituent Group Listserv < > [email protected]> on behalf of Chuck Enfield < > [email protected]> > *Sent:* Wednesday, May 13, 2015 11:02 PM > *To:* [email protected] > *Subject:* Re: [WIRELESS-LAN] AW: [WIRELESS-LAN] To provide (wireless) > service, or not to provide (wireless) service... > > > > I agree that it's important for students to have network access in their > homes. That says nothing about who should provide said access, and little > about the specific features required. > > > > FWIW, the cost of a robust WiFi network in residence halls is generally so > small compared to the other costs covered by the housing contract, that to > provide it is almost a no-brainier. We're just finishing up an 18-month > roll-out throughout our 153 residence halls. The 5-year cost of WiFi is > about 1% of housing contract revenue. The per-student cost of a semester > network access in the res halls is a little more than what Comcast charges > for one month of broadband internet access in a downtown apartment. If the > students want it and we can provide it at a lower cost than they could get > it on the open market, why wouldn't we? > > > ------------------------------ > > *From: *"Jake Snyder" <[email protected]> > *To: *[email protected] > *Sent: *Wednesday, May 13, 2015 10:25:37 PM > *Subject: *Re: [WIRELESS-LAN] AW: [WIRELESS-LAN] To provide (wireless) > service, or not to provide (wireless) service... > > > > The other factor in resnet applications is who is paying the bills. Some > campuses require students to live on campus. Others compete directly with > off-campus housing for revenue. Still others, housing and dining services > are income sources to the school. > > > > Poor wireless becomes a student satisfaction issue. This can result in > students leaving the school altogether (retention), or simply students > moving to private housing (loss of revenue to housing). Both have a direct > financial impact to the school. > > > > > > > Sent from my iPhone > > > On May 13, 2015, at 7:05 PM, Jon Young <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > Chuck, > > That's a very fair question and I don't believe there is solid data to > support (or oppose) my contention. I can only support my claim by > consistent anecdotal opinions of those in the institutional position to > know - our stakeholder interviews with personnel in Admissions, Res Life, > Student Affairs strongly favor this opinion at most residential > institutions. Interestingly, in my experience this is less so for those > institutions that have a larger demographic from economically disadvantaged > backgrounds. I'll leave the guessing as to why that is so to another forum. > > > > As you are likely aware, the ACUTA survey supports my contention but I am > unaware of any solid data surveying student recruitment in this area so it > is accurate to say that my opinion is based strictly on anecdotal (but > consistent) evidence from key stakeholders at a broad swath of > institutions. Even the ACUTA survey is based on the opinions of the those > institutional personnel, not direct student surveys. > > > > That said, for internal political purposes, those internal stakeholder > opinions tend to be crucial in gaining the backing needed for effective > wireless initiatives. As we all also know, higher-ed has a strong tendency > to base decisions on what peers and aspirational peers are doing and the > ACUTA survey can be an excellent tool for this. > > > > Thanks, > > Jon > > Vantage Technology Consulting Group > > > > On Wed, May 13, 2015 at 5:03 PM, Chuck Enfield <[email protected]> wrote: > > John, I’ve often heard it said that wireless is important to recruiting > and retention, but I’ve yet to find any solid foundation for the claim. > This may be because those search terms in Google return so much unrelated > information that the good data is hard to find, or it could be that the > claim is tenuous. Can you point us to any sources to substantiate it? I’m > skeptical, but open to evidence. It would definitely change the way I > think about our wireless services in relation to business needs. > > > > Thanks, > > > > Chuck Enfield > > Manager, Wireless Systems & Engineering > > Telecommunications & Networking Services > > The Pennsylvania State University > > 110H, USB2, UP, PA 16802 > > ph: 814.863.8715 > > fx: 814.865.3988 > > > > *From:* The EDUCAUSE Wireless Issues Constituent Group Listserv [mailto: > [email protected]] *On Behalf Of *Jon Young > *Sent:* Wednesday, May 13, 2015 4:43 PM > *To:* [email protected] > *Subject:* Re: [WIRELESS-LAN] AW: [WIRELESS-LAN] To provide (wireless) > service, or not to provide (wireless) service... > > > > We consult with many higher-ed institutions and the question your > President has posed about buying bulk data is a real one that many > institutions have looked into. We are frequently asked this question (same > question for cellular when it is time to replace the phone system) when we > assist schools with the network and WiFi strategy so I can tell you that if > you define the "some schools are investigating" this by asking their > independent consultants, that is true. If you are asking if it is remotely > viable and if anyone is seriously pursuing it beyond asking the question, > the answer as you expect is a resounding "no" for all the reasons others > have articulated on this thread. > > > > That said, a couple of things to note: > > Many schools have chosen to successfully outsource their resnet including > wireless (see the recent resnet report from ACUTA). That is sometimes by > letting the local cable company come in and offer service in the residence > halls and sometimes by outsourcing resnet to a company like Apogee. There > are pros and cons to insourcing vs outsourcing resnet but I think it is > reasonable to consider if that is the right choice for your institution. > > > > Of I think larger importance to your President - the quality of wireless > internet is a key component of student recruitment and retention at many > institutions. At the request of one Ivy, I even wrote an internal white > paper justifying ubiquitous WiFi across campus based primarily on student > recruitment and retention. I suggest speaking with your admissions group > and getting their thoughts on the importance of high-quality wireless > internet (define that how you like) in the res halls and the rest of campus. > > > > Good luck, > > Jon Young > > Vantage Technology Consulting Group. > > > > On Wed, May 13, 2015 at 9:24 AM, Brian Helman <[email protected]> > wrote: > > I have a little more information to provide now. I absolutely appreciate > that it will be extremely tempting to respond with biased opinions. I > don’t think there is anything that can be said that I haven’t already > expressed to my team. However, that will not help me write up my > recommendation. So that being said, feel free to chime in with tangible > reasons to do this or not… > > > > Apparently, our president heard that some schools are investigating > purchasing bulk data contracts with mobile (“cellular”) carriers for data. > The idea is, we would stop providing 802.11g/n/ac wireless in the residence > halls and instead provide students with the abilities to register their > devices with the mobile carrier to use 4G/LTE data. The University will > pay for this. > > > > Pros: > > No wireless (802.11) to purchase, support > > Reduced POE requirements on switches > > No wireless driver/configuration mismatches problems to support > > > > Cons: > > Is mobile wireless signal available everywhere inside the buildings? > Costs to improve signal. > > What speeds are available (what range of speeds)? Is it by user or > aggregate? > > How is congestion handled? > > What devices – mobile phones only? Hotspots to provide access to > non-cellular devices (e.g wifi-only tablets; laptops) > > More Ethernet ports needed for devices that previously depended on wireless > > What provider(s)? > > Support shifted from “device to institutional wifi” to “device to myfi” or > “devide to 3rd party” > > Cost per user, per GB? > > > > What else? > > > > If you know of any institutions who have attempted this (I have heard MIT > is looking at it, but we aren’t MIT), please let me know. > > > > By the way, the background here is .. we installed our 802.11n network ~5 > years ago and haven’t had any commitment to fund it since. So now we are > trying to deal with capacity (BYOD) issues that didn’t exist 5 years ago > while upgrading to 11ac. Of course, it’s not a 1:1 swap of equipment since > we’d be migrating from 2.4GHz to 2.4+5GHz. That puts the costs for > forklift upgrades pretty high (did I mention I’ve been unsuccessfully > asking for funding for 3 years?). > > > > I believe this can all best be summarized with a simple .. Oy. > > > > -Brian > > > > > > > > > > > > *From:* The EDUCAUSE Wireless Issues Constituent Group Listserv [mailto: > [email protected]] *On Behalf Of *Jerkan, Kristijan > *Sent:* Sunday, May 03, 2015 12:34 PM > *To:* [email protected] > *Subject:* [WIRELESS-LAN] AW: [WIRELESS-LAN] To provide (wireless) > service, or not to provide (wireless) service... > > > > As a public institution in the EDU sector we always had a byod policy in > our dorm network, specifically including „anything You want to connect to > the port in Your room“. > > > > Parameters: > > -5k+ dorm rooms (1.8k the largest segment, 20 the smallest) > > -120km radius > > -at least one (mostly two) RJ45 port per room (cat5-7 to the switch, fiber > afterwards) > > -10/100MBit ports (deliberatly did not go for 1GBit at the edge) > > -no additional accounting, just dhcp with opt82 > > -public ips behind reflexive acl (no shaping, etc.) > > -uplink via the federal research network > > -service neutral (whoever wants to can use a DSL provider also/instead and > may use the inhouse cable from their basement to their room for it) > > -one service number (fixed number, forwarded to five cellphones – whoever > picks up first wins) > > -managed by ~10 students (pro bono, but with a couple of incentives) > > > > That beeing said, here are a few points why this works for us and is not > generally applicable: > > -people have to work together to archive common goals (state, local, > university and dorm administration – technical and administrative staff) > > -it does not take much to put a service neutral CAT cable into every room > while they are beeing built/renovated instead of a cheaper telephone cable, > but it does take a joint effort and common goals > > -to every dorm room there is a rent/contract, so we know who is „behind“ > it and can make one specific person liable (opt82) > > -there are only single-bed rooms (this is a cultural thing and different > than in the US, I guess noone around here would even rent a shared room) > > -almost no dorms are adjacent to the classrooms/labs (seamless wireless > coverage/services wouldn’t be possible anyway) > > -in order to find enough students (5 for the core team) who will do the > occasionally needed actual work without payment, a balance between demands > and incentives is important > > > > Effect: > > -very low capex and extremly low opex for the dorm network [numbers only > off list] > > -very limited support calls (maybe 2/week; maybe 10-20 during the > move-in-phase, mostly students from the states asking about the > non-existant login/pw) > > -no need to worry about deprication charges or every new feature > (regarding wireless: ABG to N to AC; MIMO, fequency analysis chipsets; > 2.4ghz to 5ghz, wave2) > > -the least administrative overhead possible > > -none of the students in our networking team had problems finding jobs > after they left (no trouble finding volunteers, very long participation > period) > > -scalabe system; got us from ~1.2k rooms (back in ’99) within a 1km radius > to 5k+ (today) in a 120km radius > > -effective support answers („Yes, You can also attach every AP You want to > You port… No, don’t worry, if You are able to understand Your class > reading, You will also understand vendor X’s manual…) > > -no secondary discussions (health, etc.) > > -plug&play experience for students > > -ability to consolidate our attention to more interesting projects; we > still provide wireless (eduroam), but only in common areas away from the > rooms (ALU/Aruba 6000, now 7210, anything between 124s and 270s except the > cloud based APs) > > -over the years we had some (small and larger) dorms outsourced to > different (small and large) companies who provided full wireless-only > coverage, standard management as well as forbidden private wireless, but as > our own model proved technically resiliant and cost-effective time and > again, our external partners solutions didn‘t > > > > Basically our setup could be exactly what Your administrative staff/board > is aiming for. > > My personal message to them would be to first and foremost take an honest > look at how and why things are the way they are. > > If they just argue out of a mix of intuition and auserity, their good > intentions will cause a fail (probably utterly and completely, like many > others before). > > It is possible to run a cost effective plug&play network, with a high > satisfaction rate amoung students (EDU did that long before the BYOD > marketing hype). But that requires a high level of cooperation (belivers, > ideally who themselves lived in dorms and remember how student life can > be), common goals, success in overcoming obstacles and also constant > vigilance and re-evaluation. > > From an administrative and oversight point of view this is a lot more and > complex work than finding, distributing and approving funds. For various > reasons it is also not always something that can be implemented everywhere > or sustained for a meaningful period of time. Therefore it is often better > to honestly deal with the geographic/personal/political reality and to > solve the technical problem with money. > > Even if Your board would want to, a change towards a system like ours > takes time. Your institution should definetly not run on an obsolete > wireless infrastructure during that periode (and wear out its staff and > cause stir among students in the process). > > Hope this helps to balance the biased view. ;-) > > > > > > Regards, > > Kris > > > > > > > > > > *Von:* The EDUCAUSE Wireless Issues Constituent Group Listserv [ > mailto:[email protected] > <[email protected]>] *Im Auftrag von *Brian Helman > *Gesendet:* Freitag, 1. Mai 2015 17:23 > *An:* [email protected] > *Betreff:* [WIRELESS-LAN] To provide (wireless) service, or not to > provide (wireless) service... > > > > A few weeks ago we made a pitch for funding to upgrade our res halls to > 802.11ac. This request for funding has had an unforeseen effect. I’m not > being asked to investigate NOT providing wireless networking in our res > halls. Here are the options, as it has been described to me: > > > > -No institutional wireless. Let the students bring in their own AP’s > > -Some kind of managed service (wireless as a service) with 802.11 > > -Some kind of institutionally owned/leased mobile wireless (e.g we provide > our own 4G) > > -Hybrid > > -Continue with 802.11n 2.4GHz and fill in holes as they pop up > > > > I’m not going to put my thoughts up here just yet. These are the > options/thoughts as presented by the levels above me. > > > > Let the discussion begin…. > > > > > > > > > > ____________________________________ > *Brian Helman, M.Ed *|* Director, ITS/Networking Services | *(: *978.542.7272 > <978.542.7272>* > > *Salem State University, 352 Lafayette St., Salem Massachusetts 01970* > > *GPS: 42.502129, -70.894779* > > > > ********** Participation and subscription information for this EDUCAUSE > Constituent Group discussion list can be found at > http://www.educause.edu/groups/. > > > > ********** Participation and subscription information for this EDUCAUSE > Constituent Group discussion list can be found at > http://www.educause.edu/groups/. > > ********** Participation and subscription information for this EDUCAUSE > Constituent Group discussion list can be found at > http://www.educause.edu/groups/. > > > > ********** Participation and subscription information for this EDUCAUSE > Constituent Group discussion list can be found at > http://www.educause.edu/groups/. > > ********** Participation and subscription information for this EDUCAUSE > Constituent Group discussion list can be found at > http://www.educause.edu/groups/. > > > > ********** Participation and subscription information for this EDUCAUSE > Constituent Group discussion list can be found at > http://www.educause.edu/groups/. > ********** Participation and subscription information for this EDUCAUSE Constituent Group discussion list can be found at http://www.educause.edu/groups/.
