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Internet Curfew for College Students?

Posted by ScuttleMonkey on from the no-more-overnight-torrents dept.

140Mandak262Jamuna writes "IIT Bombay, one of the top Indian engineering schools, is restricting internet access to its students. The restriction is simply to cut off all internet access at night from the dorms. The school claims the 24/7/365 internet access is hampering academic performance, personality development and extra curricular activities. Though these are the 'official' reasons, it appears there are other reasons too. Mr Prakash Gopalan, the Dean of Student Affairs, says, 'one only had to look at the hard drive of any of the students' computers to see that bad content dominated over good.'"

4 of 342 comments (clear)

  1. Unintended consquences... by __aaclcg7560 · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    So instead of pursuing virtual sex at nights, the students can pursue the real thing. That should keep the student health center busy.

  2. Re:Internet access is integral to education... by lucabrasi999 · · Score: 0, Flamebait
    No one cares that your a stupid old man who plowed through the snow uphill to use a computer. Taking away resources because some people misuse them is for Stalin and Sadaam not free society. Time to ban cars and fastfood It kills some people! You stupid fucking cocksucker. get a god damn clue. did I call you an ignorant fucking hypocrite yet?

    That reminds me: GET OFF MY LAWN!!!!

  3. Re:Same.. by Score+Whore · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    I fail to see how this is appropriate, given that most large universities don't pay by the bit.


    Universities aren't in the business of providing internet access. Yeah, they have it. For furthering their charters, ie. education.

    In fact, most after-hours usage imposes almost no cost on the university, as they typically pay according to the 95th-percentile rule and daytime usage is much higher than after-hours usage.


    Daytime use is higher in a business. Of course, residential networks have the opposite usage patterns. At a university where they have both types of usage on the same networks, it may well be that the 95th percentile hits right about the time everybody fires up their bittorrent clients and hits the sack.

    ...it really has nothing to do with cost.


    It has nothing to do with cost recovery. It has everything to do with excess cost and ensuring usage is related to the purpose of the university. If 50% of your bandwidth is completely unrelated to the mission of the institution, then it seems perfectly reasonable to eliminate that usage. If the only way to do so is to shut it off, or bill exorbitant rates, then that's just great.
  4. Re:Same.. by Score+Whore · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    Find me a school where you can remodel your dorm room and I'll consider your argument.

    You're attending a school your education is being subsidized by someone else. When you are living in a dormitory your living expenses are being subsidized by someone else. Those subsidies are earmarked for the purpose of getting you an education. Sorry, but when you're living in student housing you're not paying your own way. You can't expect the same freedoms and choices as someone who purchased their own home.