HRE, HRS, to be wired for cable TV next

Installation slated for summer High Rise South and High Rise East will leap into the 1990s this summer. The two buildings will be wired for cable, among other things, during phase two of the University's ResNet program, said Data Communications and Computing Services Director Daniel Updegrove. Phase one provided private telephone line capacity, Pennet Ethernet connections and cable television to High Rise North, Kings Court/English House, Van Pelt College House and Ware College House this year. Phase two will provide the same services to the other two high rises. The two high rises were chosen after a study assessing the future of ResNet found those buildings the most efficient ones to service at this time, Updegrove said yesterday. "We deliberately chose a range of buildings in phase one to get a good understanding of the construction complexities," Updegrove said. "The high rises were the cheapest in terms of unit cost." The study, Updegrove said, revealed that the best way to go about wiring the rest of campus is "to focus each year on a certain kind of building in a certain location." For ResNet purposes, the unwired portion of campus has been grouped into four areas: the two remaining high rises, the graduate towers, the Quad, and the low rises and Hill House. The project, Updegrove said, should be completed over the next four summers. Residential Living Director Gigi Simeone said the two high rises were chosen for phase two in order to maximize the number of students who benefit. "Choosing [High Rise East and High Rise South] offers connections to as many as 1,700 students," she said. And Updegrove said the high rises are a financially sound decision for the University as well. "Our goal was to get the maximum benefit of students as quickly as possible, and to get a maximum number of rooms wired at a low unit cost," he said.

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