Hey everyone, my name is Chris Barnes, and I am the Web Editor at The Sun. This semester, I’ll be writing a column that takes a look at the technical side of life, both on the Hill and beyond. We live in a world that is becoming more and more dependent on the fast flow of information, and finding the right gadgets and software can be a big help in getting things done. Hopefully my advice – much of it gained through trial and error (emphasis on the latter!) — will be of some use to you.

Since this will be the first weekend at Cornell for many of you (welcome Class of 2011), and the first full weekend back for most of you, I decided it might be useful to take you on a tour of the computing scene here at Cornell. So, without further ado, here we go.

Cornell Information Technologies runs the show behind the scenes here at Cornell. While many of the various colleges and departments have their own IT staff, CIT is the big central organization that most students will have the chance to interact with. Aside from operating ResNet, ResPhone and various other brand‐name products that you know and love, CIT provides some very useful services to members of the University community. The student employees that staff the HelpDesk are on call during the day to take your calls and answer your questions about computing at Cornell.

Having worked as a lab operator since freshman year, the services closest to my heart, however, are CIT’s public computing labs. Located every where across campus, many of these computing centers are open 24/7 during the school year and can help you get your work (or printing) done if you don’t have your own computer.

CIT’s flagship product is Bear Access. Bear Access allows you to get at all the electronic student services provided by the University. The big one is Just The Facts, JTF, which allows you to check grades, change your schedule and look at your Bursar and CornellCard bills. Most of you probably woke up bright and early at 6:30 a.m. on Wednesday to add and drop courses. JTF also allows students to pre-enroll for the next semester’s courses (also at 6:30 a.m., which you must be very excited about); the pre-enroll dates will come up around November, depending on your class year.

The next most important service that most of you will deal with is ResNet, the dormitory Internet service. Cornell has some seriously high‐bandwidth connections available right in the comfort of your dorm room; all you need is a computer. Be careful how you use the Internet, though; ResNet gives you five-gigabytes of bandwidth for free, a rate of $1.5 per additional gigabyte.

For those of you with no concept of how big five gigabytes is, trust me when I say that it becomes very easy to run up a large bill, especially if you engage your computer in procuring movies and music through less than legal channels. While I can’t condone illegal file sharing, especially since there are great legal alternatives like the iTunes Music Store available, if you’re set on doing it, there are a couple of options available. Always look for a network that operates within the Cornell campus. While still illegal, these are less likely to get you in trouble and won’t run up your bandwidth bills.

The other way to get online on campus is through the RedRover wireless Internet service. RedRover “hot spots” are placed strategically across campus in public places like Robert Purcell, the libraries and Duffield Hall. In many classrooms, you can bring your laptop along, and RedRover will happily allow you to connect. Plus, as of right now anyway, bandwidth used on RedRover does not count against your five‐gigabyte limit, but high‐bandwidth activities such as downloading large files can quickly slow down the wireless access points that run the service, so use it judiciously! The downside of RedRover, of course, is that you will need a mobile computer or Wi-Fi‐ready device (e.g. a telephone or PDA) to use RedRover, unless you happen to get a signal in your room.

Well, I’m just about out of room here, but for more helpful tips, be sure to check out Eclipse’s website at http://eclipse.cornellsun.com. Hopefully you’ve picked up a few things about how to get around the Ithaca branch of the Information Superhighway here; if you have any questions that aren’t answered here or online, feel free to pass them on to me and I’ll try to answer them on the site.