I understand the need for the University to put some type of restrictions on internet usage. I suspect that there are a limited amount of people who use a vastly disproportionate about of resources by excessively downloading non uni stuff while at uni. I am not really referring to the myspacers, or the youtubers. There are people who use far more bandwidth by downloading files that are over 1gig.
I believe however that allowing a 32 MB daily limit is wrong and paternalistic. By allowing a small amount each day rather than a larger weekly or monthly limit the uni are refusing to allow us to manage our own internet usage. There are occasions when I have had to download 40 MB+ PDF reports. Under the new system this will take a much longer time since I will get only 32 MBs at full speed then I will have to download the remaining 8MB at dialup speeds.
On a weekly or monthly limit I could download the file at full speed and then reduce my usage for the rest of the month or week.
I have noticed that the library computers now deliver a pretty stern warning that “accessing anything that isn’t directly related to study at university is deemed to be inappropriate use of computer facilities”.
I guess that means that accessing this site (FlindersStudents) could be deemed as inappropriate usage.
I don’t think that this site should be deemed as inappropriate usage. Firstly Students at the Uni should be encouraged to communicate and have a social chat. It encourages retention rates by providing students with a degree of physiological support. If this site was deemed inappropriate then you would have to say the same about subject based FLO chat rooms, and the FlindersOne site. Secondly as far as I have seen the site is pretty bandwidth non-intensive so it is not adding a whole lot to the universities bandwidth bill.
{this was an okay post wasn’t it? Karma me positive
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