NEWS: Time Limits Enforced on Modems

Effective February 1st, 2000, Missouri State University will be placing a 75 hour per month time limit on the Springfield off-campus and West Plains modem pools during peak hours to redistribute dialup modem time more equitably.

All users of the Springfield off-campus and West Plains dialup pools will be affected and anyone using more that 75 hours of peak time will have their dialup access disabled for the duration of the month.

January 26, 2000

Today, administrative staff of the West Plains campus officially requested that the West Plains modem pool also participate in the peak dialup restrictions in the same manner as the Springfield off-campus modem pools.  Consequently, we are currently updating our programs and documentation to reflect this change.  Effective February 1, 2000, the West Plains modem pool usage will also count against your peak hours of usage.

January 12, 2000

If you’ve tried to dial up the Missouri State University modems lately, you’ve probably received a busy signal and statistics show that a small percentage of people are staying connected to our modems almost continuously.  To help with these problems, Missouri State University is instituting a new dialup policy that is more equitable.  The policy monitors the amount of time you spend dialed up each month.  If you are on line more than 75 hours during peak usage hours, you cannot dial up any of the Missouri State University modems for the rest of the month during peak or off-peak usage hours.

Peak usage hours are currently every day from 1:00 pm to 1:00 am.  Time spent on line before 1:00 pm does not count toward your 75 hours.  For instance, if you dial up at noon and stay on until 3:00 pm, you accumulate two hours of peak usage time.

You can check how much time you have used during the month.  Your personal usage statistics are available on the Web.  Computer Services will also send you email before you reach your limit of 75 peak usage hours.  The number of hours allowed and the hours defined as peak times will be reviewed and may change to be more effective.  The current policy and associated limits will be kept up to date and will be posted on the web.

Overall, the new policy helps people regulate their dialup usage, which decreases your odds of getting a busy signal.  This policy change will not eliminate busy signals, but it will redistribute available modem time more equitably among all dialup users.  For more information about the dialup policy, and other modem-related issues, please see: