Thus resolution of these cases will be the responsibility of the schools. Some accommodations by ISC, such as the continued maintenance of a free-access express modem pool with short session limits, should help to alleviate these and some other transitional problems. The Committee should continue to monitor the progress of and issues arising from the modem pool transition. The pilot version of a new Web design was released on a trial basis early in the year, but not launched due to a decidedly mixed reaction. The Committee was informed that the evolution of the site is dependent on decisions that relate more to organizational management than to technological or aesthetic questions.
Some services are also available to off-campus students.
As well as simplifying the interface with the local supplier for this audience, Telecommunications is able to leverage purchase of long distance services at highly favorable rates. Several members of the Committee wished that they could avail themselves of such economies. The growth of cellular and Internet telephony and the fierce competition between long distance carriers may however lead to a diminution of this advantage. The one aspect of Penntrex that is least well received is its billing. We believe that this is largely due to the unavoidable delay in collating information from the third party vendors and that, while this cannot be wholly eliminated, some electronic billing options under consideration could reduce its impact.