James,
Based on the dialog below it looks unlikely we will be able to say anything to appease this person. The responses the helpdesk personnel provided to his questions appear to be accurate, clearly written, and reference the proper documentation.
He does seem to understand the concept of ResNet, as referenced by the last sentence of his email below, in that it is not intended to be an ISP but is actually part of the campus network. I can not really understand how we are being rude by openly documenting the areas we know we are unable to support and suggesting an alternative, but I guess he appears to be on a rant and I am not sure he is willing to hear what is being said. This is the typical set of responses a user gives us when a game stops working for whatever reason.
Thanks for the heads up, I will keep an eye out for any email from Mr. Wells although he sounds like he has his targets set a little higher on the totem pole than where I reside:) I was going to suggest bringing housing into this loop, but I see one of the recent emails was forwarded to Luanne. I imagine housing will tell him pretty much the same thing he has already heard, but maybe they can get through to him.
Wm. David Caldwell
Director, Network Services
University of Texas at Arlington
Voice - 817-272-3622
Fax - 817-272-5796
Email - caldwell@uta.edu
-----Original Message-----
From: Helpdesk
Sent: Wednesday, August 29, 2007 1:37 PM
To: Montague, Suzanne S; Caldwell, William D
Cc: Morgan, Erin
Subject: RE: Gaming - 741832
Suzanne, Caldwell,
FYI/Heads Up...
James
-----Original Message-----
From: Wells, Kasey L
Sent: Wednesday, August 29, 2007 1:34 PM
To: Helpdesk
Subject: RE: Gaming - 741832
Hi OIT,
First off the internet connection students receive if not free, student's money pays for it, which makes it a payed service, just because you fail to realize this and feel that you are doing us, the students, a favor, does not mean that you have the right to deny students information about the network in which we have payed for.
Since OIT does not see a problem and does not care whether i get any information, im not goin to bother you with anymore questions about the secret network, i will be calling the head of OIT, or someone higher up than that if he/she seems not to care about the students either, and let them know how helpful you seem to think you should be to the paying students of this school.
And on another note, it is extremely rude, and says a lot about UTA, to suggest other services as a substitute to your own, accepting the fact that your service is sub-standard.
Kasey Wells
-----Original Message-----
From: Helpdesk
Sent: Tue 8/28/2007 5:26 PM
To: Wells, Kasey L
Cc: Hudson, Scott; Stringer, Luanne M
Subject: RE: Gaming - 741832
Hi Kasey,
Other than access to your game, is your Internet access working? Are you able to surf the Internet, etc.?
If your Internet access is not available, then please provide your building name, room #, and a local phone number at which we can contact you. The number you've provided, (817) 374-3418, is currently not a working number.
As was explained in replies sent to you on 7/31 (see below), for security reasons we can not tell you exactly what changes have been made to the UTA and/or Vernier firewall. As was also previously recommended, to make use of the Internet beyond a strictly academic interest, you should consider setting up Internet with Time Warner. The free Internet access provided in the dorms is a limited service that allows students to surf the Internet, check e-mail, etc. See the information below which is an excerpt from "The Guide for Ethernet, Cable Televisions, and Telephone Services" (http://www.uta.edu/policy/documents/housing/CableEthernetPhoneGuide.pdf):
=============
Time Warner Cable Internet
Students may wish to use Time Warner Cable for Internet service access if they choose to use services Resnet is not designed to support, or not allowed by the University. An example is for those students who choose to use services such as Napster, Kazaa, Morpheus, Grokster, or any similar services establishing a "peer-to-peer" network connection. Since these types of services cause a significant drain on network resources, the University has blocked or limited bandwidth access.
Students may wish to use Time Warner Cable for Internet service access if they desire to use services or deploy devices that Resnet is not designed to support. For example Resnet is not designed to support game playing software or devices such as an X-Box or PlayStation. While no efforts are made to specifically stop game play on Resnet there are no resources available to ensure network games work.
If the student is only using services allowed by the University, there will be no reason to purchase any Internet service(s) from Time Warner Cable. If a student chooses to obtain Internet service from Time Warner Cable, he or she should contact:
Time Warner Cable
972-445-5555
Time Warner Cable will bill the service cost directly to the student. The student is responsible for all required equipment and installation fees, if any. The University =============
Please let us know if there is a current connectivity issue beyond the gaming issue so that we can troubleshoot that problem further.
Thanks,
Erin Morgan
----------------------
From: Helpdesk
Sent: Tuesday, July 31, 2007 4:08 PM
To: 'klw7133@yahoo.com'
Subject: Blocked Online Games -- 725053
Hello Kasey,
As to your request to know what ports are currently being blocked at UTA, I regret that such information has been deemed security sensitive and OIT is not at the liberty to provide that information.
If you can provide us with specifics as to what you are attempting to troubleshoot, perhaps we can be of assistance.
Please let us know if you have any questions.
Thank you for using our Help Desk.
Funda K Reilly
UTA Office of Information Technology
Ph: (817) 272 - 2208
Fax: (817) 272 - 2063
E-mail: helpdesk@uta.edu
URL: http://helpdesk.uta.edu
Password Issues: www.uta.edu/selfservice
-----------------
From: McDonald, Scott
Sent: Tuesday, July 31, 2007 4:36 PM
To: 'klw7133@yahoo.com'
Subject: Online Gaming Question - 725053
Hello Kasey,
I understand that you had asked about online games etc. and the UTA wireless network.
The campus network is not intended for gaming purposes. OIT currently does not have any problems with the residents using the network for game playing as long as such activity does not create any network problems. But unfortunately, OIT does not have the personnel or resources to effectively support online gaming.
While OIT does not do anything with the intention of preventing or impairing online gaming via UTA network, there are changes to the network implemented (primarily involving security issues ) from time to time and these changes could have an effect on online gaming in general.
At this point, OIT is not in a position to make a determination as to if these changes have impacted your gaming experience or not.
If you're interested in an alternative to using the UTA network for your online gaming purposes, you may wish to consider getting an outside ISP to provide you with connectivity.
(See Housing and Resident's Life "Guide for Ethernet, Cable Television, and Telephone Services")
Please contact the helpdesk if you need further assistance.
Thanks,
Scott McDonald
OIT Computer Help Desk
First Floor Central Library
University of Texas Arlington
Ph: 817.272.2208
-
-----Original Message-----
From: Wells, Kasey L
Sent: Tuesday, August 28, 2007 4:56 PM
To: Helpdesk
Subject: RE: Gaming - 741832
yes i am well aware of your policy for online gaming, but like i told the receptionist, this game has always worked, now in the last few days it doesnt, that means there has been a change in your network, and as a paying student you are my internet provider, therefore support for gaming is not what im asking for, im asking my internet provider what changes have been made to my network and why they have been made, which is information that i have a right to know, also i would like the name of the head of the oit department, because no one i have spoken to yet seems to know how to answer my questions.
-----Original Message-----
From: Helpdesk
Sent: Mon 8/27/2007 4:38 PM
To: Wells, Kasey L
Subject: Gaming - 741832
Kasey,
UTA network was designed for academic and research purposes. While we do not actively block gaming, we also do not provide any support if it does not work. You should keep in mind that we do block ports that are used by IRC and peer-to-peer networks, so if your game utilizes any of those ports, you will not be able to connect.
Please let us know if you have any questions.
Thank you for using our Help Desk.
Ayka Agayeva
OIT Help Desk
UTA Office of Information Technology
Ph: (817) 272 - 2208
Fax: (817) 272 - 2063
E-mail: helpdesk@uta.edu
URL: http://helpdesk.uta.edu <http://helpdesk.uta.edu/> Password Issues: http://www.uta.edu/selfservice Ask us a question (click link below):
<http://fahrenheit4.uta.edu/absolutels/alsemail.aspx?getstatus=1&d=1>