It was only a few years ago that St. John’s University was number ten on Intel’s list of the top wireless universities. As we all know, St. John’s has a campus-wide wireless network available for the use of all students. In addition, they recently added a mobile wireless network for those with iPads, iPhones, Droids, or other Internet devices. And, of course, each and every student receives a laptop their freshman year, and now the option of upgrading to a Mac has been added.

I would like to extend my own personal kudos to the University and its IT department for meeting its student’s needs. However, I think there are some areas where complaints and cries of obsolescence are beginning to rise.

Of all the IT-related complaints made about St. John’s, slow network speed is probably the most prevalent. With that said, I don’t think that the university’s network is unsatisfactory, I just find it to be lacking. St. John’s does a great job of making sure that we can email, network, and research without any trouble; but, they haven’t picked up on how much the way people use the internet has changed in just a few short years.

At this juncture, the Internet is becoming an all-in-one solution. We socialize through facebook, watch movies on Netflix and funny videos on YouTube, video chat on Skype, stream music on Pandora, and game online with people around the globe. Streaming media has become an everyday norm for almost everyone in Generation Y. The network at St. John’s can slow down pretty tremendously during the day, probably due to so many people doing these very normal things.

In an interview with the Torch, S.G.I President Patrick Brewer addressed the issue of slow connection speeds and said that the IT department is working to fix the problem.

Another huge aspect of the university that seems to be forgotten about by the IT department are the resident students. A growing issue for them is that it should not be a problem to have their gaming systems online. While many will dismiss this as a minor issue, the problem has grown to a point where it can no longer be completely ignored.

More than ever, people play videogames online against players from across the country and the entire globe. Social gaming has seen grown beyond the small community it once was to a point where very even casual players game online. Still, the problem moves beyond just gaming. For many people, a game console is the centerpiece of their entertainment system, and often does so for an entire suite.

Gaming consoles are beginning to replace VCRs, DVD Players, and even broadcast television. The Playstation 3 can play Blu-Ray discs, DVDs, CDs, MP3s, video files, and more. It can browse the web, stream movies from Netflix or YouTube, and share media files over a network. Keeping a console like the Playstation 3 or the Xbox 360 offline cripples its capabilities and its ability to serve as the centerpiece of a dorm room.

Is it necessary that they are online? No, but keeping them offline just holds back the ability that these systems have to bring people together. We’ve all bonded over movies, music, and games in the past. A new generation shouldn’t be denied that just because they go about it in a different fashion.

Another thing ignored by St. John’s are putting printers in the dormitories. Just one per building would help to lighten the load put on the labs around campus and help out a lot of resident students. This may not sound like a lot, but its usefulness would be immeasurable.

Overall, I think St. John’s is serving the current body of students well. Our IT department does a great job, and deserves praise. But, they also need to keep improving. After all, that praise comes with a preliminary warning: don’t’ stop getting better. In the fast-paced world of technology, standing still is almost the same as moving backwards. So, instead of simply meeting its student’s needs, I would like to challenge the university to exceed them. Don’t just settle for being good, go the extra mile and be the best.