Northwestern University Information Technology will retire and disable its “nuwlan” wireless network on Feb. 1, leaving only the Northwestern wireless network available for students to access Internet on campus.
The nuwlan network is being eliminated so students, faculty and staff no longer need to upload the Virtual Private Network client program to get online, said Wendy Woodward, director of technology support services.
“The goal here is to make it easier for our community to access wireless networks on campus while improving security,” she said.
But approximately 100 students regularly rely on the nuwlan-VPN connection when the Northwestern wireless network is either unavailable or too slow, Woodward said. There are several areas throughout campus that have spotty or missing wireless network signal, including dorms and classroom buildings.
Gaining access to the Internet through the Northwestern network is not always a problem, but staying connected is, said Xander Tapling, a Weinberg sophomore.
“My issues are more while I’m logged on,” said Tapling, who lives in Chapin Hall. “Typically, I won’t have any warning, and the Internet will start going slowly and then crash for about five minutes. It’s just a pain, especially when I’m using online discussion boards or trying to access documents. It just delays work needlessly.”
McCormick sophomore Roy Lu lives in the Delta Chi fraternity house, which is not covered by the Northwestern network’s wireless signal. Lu is not able to use the network anywhere in the house, he said.
“Being on the far side of campus costs us the privilege of getting University wireless,” he said. “You get a message error for every e-mail you try to send through the network. It’s about as reliable as AT&T signal in Tech.”
Woodward said NUIT is working to expand and improve network access points, especially in places on campus frequented by students. Still, only so much can be done for areas with heavy Internet usage, Woodward said.
“The more people who are accessing a wireless network in one room or place, the lower the connection will become,” she said. “It’s the equivalent of sharing a pie.”
Woodward said students, faculty and staff having difficulties with the Northwestern network may contact NUIT by calling 661 from a campus phone at the time of the connection problem so that it can be troubleshot in real time.
