Click here to receive your FREE subscription to Campus Technology
News
Madison Sees Jump in Laptop, Wireless Usage from 2006
9/18/2007
The number of students who own a laptop at the University of Wisconsin at Madison jumped to 77 percent this year, up from 64 percent in 2006, according to an online survey conducted by the school's Division of Information Technology (DoIT). The increase corresponds with a jump in the number of students who rely on wireless services, which went from 30 percent usage in 2006 to 50 percent this year.A separate survey of faculty and staff on campus also showed big gains in IT usage. About 60 percent use a laptop, double the 29 percent in 2006, and 49 percent use a cell phone, up from 20 percent reported last year. "The newer students coming in are even more comfortable with portability," DoIT communications manager told the Madison Capitol Times newspaper.
But with more portability comes more risk. The survey showed that 84 percent of the students surveyed never shared a password, up from 76 percent in 2006, the Times reported. Data backup is dramatically on the rise, with only 9 percent of the students saying they never back up their computers, compared with 40 percent last year.
"This was a pleasant surprise for us," Rust told the Times. "Our effort to redouble security seems to have gotten through to all."
Read More:
Paul McCloskey is a contributing editor for the Campus Technology group of publications.
Cite this Site
copy text (above) for proper citation
Recommended Reading
- Sun, Stanford Working To Archive History
In May in San Francisco, experts from leading universities, libraries, and research institutions around the world met as part of an ongoing effort to address a pressing issue: archiving the world's history, right up to today.
- The Quilt Coalition Rolls Out XO Communications for High-Capacity Network Services
The Quilt, a coalition of 28 regional network organizations, has added XO Communications Services to its authorized vendor list. The Quilt represents 200 universities and thousands of other educational institutions across the United States. With this new relationship, Quilt members can purchase XO's high-speed IP transit and network transport services at competitive rates.
- Wimba Classroom 5.2 Expands Classroom Capture Support, Adds MP3 Downloads
At the NECC 2008 conference in Texas this week, Wimba launched a new version of Wimba Classroom, the virtual classroom component of the company's Collaboration Suite. The new 5.2 release expands options for classroom capture and adds a variety of other functional and ease of use features.
- Automation Chimera: Education Is Not Management
The lure of automating workflow online so human intervention is minimized is continually reinforced in the minds of higher education administrators by examples of automated campus systems such as financials, student information systems, and other enterprise systems. But what's good for management is not always good for learning.
- Cognos Releases BI Software for Linux-based IBM System z Mainframe
Cognos, which IBM acquired in January, has released an update to its business intelligence software that will run on the Linux operating system on IBM System z mainframes. IBM Cognos 8 BI was being developed by the two companies prior to the acquisition, but assimilation of Cognos into IBM accelerated development.
- Facebook and Collegiality: A Serendipitous Social Niche
Facebook is a way to greet a colleague as if she or he is on your own campus: a wave at a distance, a hello at the corner burrito place, a honk as you both leave the campus parking lot. Informal collegiality has been extended over the miles.
