Yin Xiao – News editor. Integrated Technology Services made a significant improvement to the campus Internet connection Oct. 22.
Linfield’s Internet bandwidth increased from 60 millions of bits per second (a measure of bandwidth on a telecommunications medium) to 100 Mbps. Bandwidth is defined as data transfer rate in computer networks.
“[Internet demand] at Linfield increases all the time,” Irv Wiswall, ITS chief technology officer, said. “A year and a half ago, we increased bandwidth from 30 Mbps to 60. Now it looks like we need to increase it again.”
ITS monitors Linfield students’ Internet usage from period to period, from an hourly graph to a yearly graph. Inbound lines on these graphs represent bandwidth when traffic is coming into Web pages. Outbound lines indicate the amount of bandwidth relayed back by Web pages.
In recent months, traffic continued to reach the network’s maximum allowance of 60 Mbps. Wiswall connected with ITS providers to discuss the necessity of a bandwidth increase to 100 Mbps.
Wiswall said he decided to add bandwidth after he discovered ITS only needed to pay a little extra money: The cost for 60 Mbps is $4,310 per month, while the cost for 100 Mbps is $4,800 per month.
The main benefit of additional Internet bandwidth is that Web pages load faster.
“We will still watch these graphs,” Wiswall said. “If traffic keeps hitting 100 Mbps, we will ask to find more money to add [Internet bandwidth]. As you know, things keep growing.”
In 1992, Internet bandwidth at Linfield was 0.15 Mbps. In 1995, when Linfield created its own Web page, it was 1.5 Mbps.
These days, students on campus have noticed a change when surfing the Internet, especially those who spend a lot of time online.
“I couldn’t tell if it’s faster in the HPs because of less people or increasing bandwidth, but loading Web pages is much faster in the music center when I am on Facebook and watching TV shows on Hulu,” junior Garrett Garceau, who lives in the HPs, said.
Junior Stephen Guttridge, a computer game enthusiast, also noticed the increased bandwidth’s effect on Web page loading times. He said he was excited that the speed of the Linfield’s Internet connection is now equal to that at his home.