University of Florida - Computers

Quick Stats

College Prowler Take

There’s no mistaking it, technology is here. You might not use your Web space or the wireless connection a whole lot, but the reliable and addictive Ethernet will become vital to your continued existence a lot faster than you think; if you have a regular connection at home you’re going to spend your vacations whining to your mom about how she’s living in the Ice Age. Fast internet access is not the only aspect of technology you’ll be exposed to, though—most students will leave here fairly proficient with both Macs and PCs, and maybe even something crazy like UNIX.

Most students do firmly recommend bringing your own computer. It’s an investment, but one that you will definitely appreciate when it’s three in the morning, your paper’s due in six hours, and you remember that you can’t eat pizza or drink coffee in the University labs. And in most labs, especially Norman, Weil, and Architecture, you’ll be able to get a spot within just a couple of minutes, if not instantly. However, if you go barreling into the Computer Sciences and Engineering area lab at 2:50 and expect to print something out before class starts in ten minutes, well, best of luck to you.

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Students Speak Out

Anonymous says:

There are labs to use, and you can... There are labs to use, and you can use them, but the biggest college investment you make (besides tuition) should be an up-to-date computer. Honestly, that is my biggest recommendation! We have Gatorlink, which sllows you to use all online resources from the library from home using a proxy server. It saves so much time and is an amazing resource for class! 12345 Computers Report

Anonymous says:

The computer labs are great. The... The computer labs are great. The computers have the most recent technology, and there are a lot of them. It is nice to have your own computer, though, so you can stay home and work on it. 12345 Computers Report

Anonymous says:

There are good computer labs, but... There are good computer labs, but I would recommend bringing your own computer. Almost all classes have a Web site that you need information from. You’ll be typing a lot of papers and checking grades online. It’s a big help to just have it there when you need it. 12345 Computers Report

Anonymous says:

The computer labs are nice, one is... The computer labs are nice, one is open 24 hours, and you can almost always get a computer as long as it isn’t an evening of finals week, but nothing beats having your own computer. If you live on campus, you are connected to the campus network, DHNet. It’s fast, and free, so there’s a bonus for living in the dorms. Just try and remember to keep your Instant Messenger sound down, and encourage your roommate to as well, otherwise both of you will be hearing that little dinging in your sleep. Oh yeah, sharing a computer with a roommate will work for, like, two days. 12345 Computers Report

Anonymous says:

It’s convenient to have your own... It’s convenient to have your own computer, but if you can’t swing it, I wouldn’t worry about it too much. The labs are easy to get into except the night before a huge class paper is due or during midterm and final weeks, but other times it’s fine. They have Ethernet on campus and in most apartments too. It’s incredibly fast and convenient. 12345 Computers Report

Facts

Did You Know?

UF dorms have this fabulous invention called DHNet, which is the Division of Housing’s name for Ethernet. There are two DHNet jacks in every dorm room, and the connection is super fast. One warning: you can’t run Kazaa or Morpheus or any other P2P programs from computers on campus, so you might be hitting Best Buy to get your tunes the old-fashioned way.

Speaking of those two nice jacks they provide in each room, you might be able to guess that the top brass on campus long ago decided to require each student to have a computer. Now, no one’s knocking on doors, matching names to computers and kicking out anyone who’s unequipped, but your life will be much easier if you’ve got one (besides, do you really want to argue with your roommate over whose turn it is to use IM?).

Don’t feel completely left out of the high-speed connection game if you’re thinking of living off-campus. A lot of apartments offer Ethernet as well. Even if you get an apartment without it, you do have the options of DSL from BellSouth or a cable modem from Cox Communications. These aren’t exactly cheap, but if you ask around, students will tell you that they’re worth it.

If you end up without a computer, or something happens to the one you’ve got, the campus labs are pretty cool. Printing is not only cheap but convenient—you don’t have to carry quarters with you or anything; they just bill the cost to your student account and you pay it later. Plus, there are CD burners, scanners, and even more specialized equipment on a lot of the computers.

UF’s Integrated Student Information System is an extremely useful Web site (www.isis.ufl.edu) where you can check for open classes, register for them, add and drop courses during add/drop period, find your grades, look at your unofficial transcript, “shop” for other majors, see what you still need to complete for your degree, check on your financial aid status, and do a lot of other important school-related things (stick with calling it ISIS and you won’t confuse anyone).

The library computers offer access to a ton of useful resources online that you wouldn’t be able to get if you weren’t associated with the University. The cool thing is that you don’t have to go to school to use them: just go to the UF libraries Web page (www.uflib.ufl.edu) and click on “Remote Access” near where it says “Library Databases and Other Internet Resources.” Follow the directions and you’ll be able to connect to all the online goodies your tuition is paying for while you’re sitting around in your PJs.

Gatorlink is the university’s e-mail system. You can establish an address just about as soon as you enroll. The University requires you to do so; they’ll send you information you’ll be expected to know about little things like, oh, graduation, grades, parking—the kind of stuff you’ll want to be aware of. If you’re really balking at the idea of checking an e-mail address that ends in “@ufl.edu,” you can have it forwarded to whatever account you want. Just make sure you check
it regularly.

One tip about choosing an e-mail address: no one’s going to tell you that you can’t, but think long and hard before you commit yourself to something goofy. Would you rather tell a potential employer to e-mail you at imaqtpie04 or something like “first initial, last name?” It’s your call, but remember that it is a big pain to change your address once it’s created. Personally, I would save the less boring but also less professional stuff for your Instant Messenger account.

Every student gets a certain amount of Web space to create a Web page, which is a requirement in a few technology classes. If you’re interested in doing this for fun, however, contact CIRCA help at (352) 392-HELP (4357). It’s pretty easy, and you can do whatever you want with it.

You’ll need an Ethernet card to connect to DHNet, but if you’re buying your computer new, it’s probably included. If not, you can get them for less than $25 for a desktop and under $50 for a laptop, and they’re pretty easy to install.

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