Analysis of Campus-Wide Wireless Network

The journal article speaks of user behavior in the utilization of wireless internet network connection. The study was conducted at Dartmouth College involving students, employees and faculty among school buildings, classrooms, discussion halls, dormitories, and residential buildings within the college, first during Fall 2001 and subsequently on Springtime 2002. Particularly the study aims to determine and understand the amount and nature of the traffic network. In this regard, access points in indoor spaces were considered within the premises although there would have been no problem had outdoor spaces were included because the college is compact in nature that even outdoor points are covered by the access points.

Results may be categorized into the character of the user, whether students or not; days of the week were traffic network is high; and lastly, the hours of the day where such traffic network is high. In relation thereto, the study gives the implication of the results which will be discussed hereunder.

Among the students, traffic network is at its peak on Sundays and Mondays and declines during Fridays and Saturdays. This is because students do their assignments, school work during the opening of the week and do relaxation during weekends. During peak days, traffic network is particularly at its peak around 10 o’clock in the morning. This could not be attributed to any reason but the writers speculated that this may because of the business class held in Tuck Business School (where the students are required to have their individual laptops).

In residential and workplace vicinities within the college, traffic network is usually at its peak in the afternoon as the bulk of activity are done during such period, this continues until night time and declines during the wee hours.

In sum, in residential areas and social places, it is peak hours during night time, with respect to academic areas, it is peak hours during the day. The same is true with regard to the libraries and lecture halls.

Duration of traffic network are relatively short, with a median of 16.6 minutes, 71% are connected in les than an hour and 27% in less than a minute.

Contrary results are shown during the Springtime. Researches observed that this may relate to on-campus hosts.

The study is very much reflective of our day to day activities. In my point of view, this reflects the present generation’s dependence on technology. Our day to day activities whether in school, work, or in our homes, internet has been widely used. Access is convenient, cost is low, communication is faster and better and work is a lot easier.

Likewise, regard to ever growing technology must be made. It has practically changed our views on things but definitely aids in the progress of the business world, economy towards globalization.

Presently, internet dependence is inevitable. Students, employees, businessmen, people in all walks of life connect to the internet every single day. The problem sometimes however is the availability of internet access or access points. Nowadays, many have used the mobile computers or the so-called laptops rather than the usual personal computers. This does not however mean easy access, some locations do not have access points such as wireless network connections. In this case, difficulty in looking for available access points arise. There are alternatives though such as on-demand network selections but the same are not so reliable, other than being time consuming, they can only be relied on when one is within the network’s coverage. With respect to advance network selections, the same requires network connection to be useful. Some likewise use hotspot finders but the same requires on-line connection. Hence, the researchers come up with the present study.

The present study answers the problem particularly pertaining to locating access points or the so-called network service maps to capture and convey encompassing network coverage and service descriptions to mobile users including laptop and mobile phone users. This is actually the offshoot of the researchers’ 2006 study on the same subject matter. By means of network service map approach, receivers obtain service descriptions from arbitrary sources over different network. This is an independent means of determining access points, which means that regardless of current internet connection, a receiver or user can locate areas with access points, independent of their present location.

Basic features of network service map approach are network service map model which provides refinements, detailed descriptions of certain typical application; filtering and aggregation, which allows the users or receivers to offer specific parts of their original service maps or combinations thereof which finds importance in aggregating service maps from different providers; uniform resource name; caching which increases data access performance; broadcast-distribution which provides multiple links and transport alternatives; bootstrapping which automatically finds service map resources by employing standardized receiver configurations. Equally important feature is the security feature. We have to consider the possibility that being public in nature, the network service map approach might be maliciously modified causing non-functional client software. To prevent this from happening, the researchers propose a validation scheme by means of public key-based digital signatures choosing from among the list of algorithms.

The concept of the researchers is very sensible. Not only are the interest of the service providers are protected but putting into the frontline the needs of the users and receivers. It aids and promotes easy communication through a very convenient internet access and a trouble-free access points determination. This likewise advances the technology as the world progresses towards a hi-technology globalization.

The present study is conducted in 2002 where the discovery and development of wireless area network technology is still at its early birth period. Current developments in technology are becoming unbridled several years from its birth. But a peek on the beginning of the wireless area network technology is equally relevant. This is the subject of the present study.

While current WLAN studies pertain to specific fields such as universities particularly, early studies are holistic and general in nature. Studies were made on the impact of WLAN in the workplace, in the homes and in universities. With respect to the workplace, many have found WLAN much useful in the corporate environment. There is greater flexibility, mobility and convenience in downloading presentations, researching in the webs and sharing information with others, irrespective of the location of the user in the workplace. Transfer from one building to another does not at all create any trouble, not to mention its low-cost aspect. The importance and relevance of WLAN find application in the area of telematics (automotive), hot spots and hotels and airports where presumably many users are benefited particularly in researching for information on travel, places or destinations. In the individual homes also, WLAN provides convenience. Despite being in the house, there is still the sense of connectivity with the world through the easy access to the web-based technology. The same is true with respect to universities where students are busy doing their school papers and assignments. Much has been discussed on universities with respect to their utilization of WLAN in recent studies.

The present study initially deals with inter-operability of WLAN cards and notebook computers. During the early developments of WLAN, there was already the so-called inter-operability aspect of its use. Basically, WLAN availability makes use of card to be connected to the devise allowing internet access. By virtue of the inter-operability scheme, cards may be purchased from one store while the notebook computers may be purchase from another without having to worry on whether or not both are compatible. There is assurance on the compatibility of these two despite difference in the vendor. Inter-operability does not benefit the users alone allowing them much leeway and option in the purchase of devices, but benefits more particularly the business operations of the vendor. It creates greater competition in trading with technology, thus results to faster development in technology.
Now as to the dual band, multimode WLANS, there is higher data rates of transfer being enjoyed by the users because this particularly utilizes 802.11a, b, g standards. More importantly, mobile phone users benefit from this. ICs allow easier integration of WLAN and cellular networks integrating mobile computing devise to communicate with both the existing cellular phone infrastructure and WLAN networks for high speed data application.
Truly indeed technology is fast developing benefiting the consumers, the business world and the world itself.