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The Retirees's Association ( Faculty, Librarian, Administrator), University of Windsor, Windsor, Ont. Canada
Vol VIII, No. 3, June 1998
Association NewsCharging for Computer User-IDs and Dial-Up Services
Linda Menard-Watt
Yes, those ugly rumors are true. The University will be charging staff, faculty and others for use of the dial-up services, beginning July 1, 1998. Before you panic, keep in mind that 88% of faculty and staff use less than the 50 hours per month that will be available without charge. So please read on for the details.
Usage of the faculty/staff dial-up service has been growing steadily, putting increasing pressure on these resources. Computing Services added 16 more lines at the end of 1997 and upgraded all the modems. Currently, the faculty/staff dial-up service consists of 62 modems, all providing 33.6 kilobaud transfer rates.
Current Policies
Userids are issued to full-time, part-time and retired faculty and staff as well as sponsored guests. Possession of a valid userid allows the bearer to use computing facilities on campus as well as to remotely access campus computing, e-mail and the Internet.
Remember the Acceptable Use Policy that you reviewed when your userid was issued? This is our contract with you about the legitimate use of your userid. The basic premise is that your userid is for you to do University related work. Any commercial work is a serious violation of this policy.
Why a Charge for Userids and Dial-up Services?
Demand for dial-up service has increased steadily over the past year. By the middle of the Fall '97 term, the service was generally fully utilized from 6 p.m. to 12 midnight during the week. Those of you who tried to get in during these hours are very aware of this. A closer examination of the usage indicates that 74% to 80% of this resource is utilized by active faculty and staff, and employees on sabbatical or maternity leave; the other 20% to 26% is used by retirees, non-active sessionals and guests.
So, it became apparent that we need a mechanism that:
1. assists in managing this demand. The demand for this service continues to increase such that we can expect a continuing demand for more lines and even faster access as the technology improves.
2. contributes towards an awareness of the cost for this service. A charging algorithm will make people more aware that there is a cost to these services.
3. encourages these resources to be properly used. In order to ensure that we use these limited resources effectively, it is important that the University adopt practices that judiciously encourage the proper use of this resource.
4. strengthens the security of our resources. Unused userids are prime candidates for hackers who then use, and may abuse, computing resources. Retirees, non-active sessionals, guests and even some faculty and staff who obtain a userid and then leave it dormant when they no longer require it, add to this security problem.
Consultation Process
In the initial formulation of the userid and dial-up charging policy, the issues and administrative concerns were discussed with Computing Services staff, particularly those from the consulting group who work directly with University clients. A suggested policy was outlined and brought to the Director of Human Resources, to the Vice-President, Administration and Finance, and to the Assistant to the Vice-President Academic (Technology), for comment and consideration. During the budget process, the Vice-President brought a charging proposal for faculty/staff dial-up to the President's Executive. After feedback from this group, the number of non-chargeable hours was increased and the charges for the retirees, guests and non-active sessionals were modified. This was presented in the Senate as part of the overall budget package and recently to the Managers' and Supervisors' Forums.
A final consultation with the Executive Deans, administrative Directors and with the Faculty, Librarian and Administrators' Retirees Association was carried out to communicate the concepts and to finalize the details.
THE CHARGING DETAILS
You will fall into one of three groups for charging purposes:
1. faculty and staff group;
2. retiree group;
3. guest group.
Retirees
Any former staff or faculty employee who has retired and is receiving a University pension is included in this group.
What are the charges?
As a retiree, you will be charged for your userid. The specific details are being finalized. The final amount will include dial-up services for up to 50 hours per month. Charges for usage beyond 50 hours are the same as for faculty and staff, that is, if you use more than 50 hours and less than 100 during a month, you will be charged $10; for every 100 hours you use beyond 100 hours, you will be charged an additional $10 for that month.
Charging begins July 1, 1998. If you have a userid and wish to continue, you are expected to make payment before July 1, 1998. Your expiry date will be for one year. Computing Services will e-mail all retirees with userids informing them of the specifics of the new policy and procedures.