Yay! That's awesome. Thanks for finding that out for me The guy on my res tour also said we would get cables so i was kind of confused for a bit about who to believe. But now i have online proof :p

Originally Posted by mitch

Perhaps they are not going to give out ethernet cables this year. I doubt that though. Every student requires a cable for their rez.

Every computer requires a power cable too, but they're not giving those out :p

Seriously though, just beware, giving them out for free is a relatively new thing - they've only been doing it for the last couple of years, and never did before that. It's conceivable that they could have discontinued the practice, and may not have updated their website to reflect that. I'd actually give MacOnline a call or an e-mail to confirm.

Cippi,

That's true, but all computer's come with power cables. Not many students have ethernet cables to bring to university It wouldn't make sense for them not to provide ethernet cables because then hundreds of students would be in trouble. The only reason they would stop handing them out is if they are losing money off it. However, in that case they would just charge for them. But I agree that calling or e-mailing them would be the best way to get a straight answer.

What if you know your friends are going to be in your rez often and so more then one person will need to use one ethernet cable?

You either use one computer, or if you're in a rez with wireless internet, go to the designated wireless area like the study rooms. If your rez doesn't have wireless internet and you want to use the internet all of the computers, then go to the library or other buildings that have wireless and work there.

yeah last year i moved in during upper year time and i didn't bring an ethernet cable. The tables for the macconnect ppl were all gone and i had to run around capmus trying to find where to go to get one. haha. eventually i found out they had office hours and i went in to ask for one ..cause seriously.. so hard to live w/o internet. they asked why i needed one. and i explained it and then they just gave me up. i'm sure if you ask, they will give it to you. but good for the online proof dragonfly!

Originally Posted by mitch

That's true, but all computer's come with power cables. Not many students have ethernet cables to bring to university It wouldn't make sense for them not to provide ethernet cables because then hundreds of students would be in trouble.

See, I don't buy that at all. For literally years they did not give out free ethernet cables, and then just suddenly started a couple of years ago, which caught me by surprise when I found out. To me, having an ethernet cable is just as much a requirement for operating a computer as is having a power cable, regardless of whether or not you typically use wireless. While my argument was intentionally over-the-top (of course power cables come with computers while ethernet cables typically don't), I just don't see it as being a big burden to bring your own, nor do I see it as the responsibility of the university to supply students with them for free if they don't have one. There seems to be an odd sense of entitlement present in a lot of posts in this thread.

Incidentally, they always used to sell ethernet cables at the MacOnline table during move-in, because invariably someone would forget to bring one. I just don't think it should be taken for granted that you'll be getting one for free.

Well a lot of people use wireless internet at home or still use dial-up. It's not a necessity to have an ethernet cable to operate the computer. A lot of people that use broadband internet take it for granted because we're so used to it. There are an equal number of people that still don't use it and have never had an ethernet cable.

If they were not supplying the cables at MAC, I believe it should be listed as a requirement to bring to university, which it's not. I think the university has realized that many people don't know they have to bring ethernet cables and are supplying it as part of the residence package. For the amount of money that is spent by each student for residence, the least the university could do is provide an ethernet cable.

Saying this, I've never taken it for granted that I'd get one for free. I've always brought an extra, I've just never had to use it.

Originally Posted by mitch

If they were not supplying the cables at MAC, I believe it should be listed as a requirement to bring to university, which it's not.

No? Check out pg. 9 of last year's residence handbook: http://housing.mcmaster.ca/Residence...eshandbook.pdf

How do I connect my computer to the Network?
All that is required to connect to MacOnline is a network adapter, a straight through RJ45 network cable, and an installed web browser.
...
The minimum supported requirements for your Internet Connection are:
• Pentium II, Celeron or compatible processor
• Windows 2000 or higher
• 128MB of RAM
• SVGA Monitor
• An installed 10/100 Base-T network adapter
• A straight-through RJ45 network Cable
• An installed Web Browser

It does say "network cables will also be available" (during move-in), which is something they've always offered, but not necessarily for free.

Originally Posted by mitch

For the amount of money that is spent by each student for residence, the least the university could do is provide an ethernet cable.

The problem with that is that "the university" does not exist as a budget entity - it's a lot more complicated than most people think. The bulk of the money is going to Housing & Conference Services to put a roof over your head. A large chunk then goes to Hospitality Services to pay for your meal plan. A relatively small amount goes to MacOnline, a service provided by University Technology Services in order to bring the internet to residents. If room in that budget permits, then maybe they'll give out some free cables. All I'm saying is, until you have confirmation, don't count on it...and you should know ahead of time that you'll need one, anyway

This has turned into a rather pedantic argument at this point, so until I (or others) get a chance to speak to some of our contacts at UTS, I'll refrain from commenting further.

lol..yea.. it turned out to be an argument..but i enjoyed it..and it seriously helped.. thx to all.

Mitch, what about Apple's Time Capsule?

Its a wireless external HD which doubles as a router.

Is that banned too?

Never heard of it, haha

Is there really a reason you need to bring a router?

I don't need it for the router per say, but rather for the external hardrive.

Since i already have it, i don't wanna go and buy another wired external HD.

Why don't you just ask your reps and CA's during Welcome week to be sure it's ok? Can't go wrong there

You should be fine with it (the Time Capsule is a pretty cool piece of tech, by the way ). Just don't use the router functionality if you're concerned about it messing something up, but I have to tell you, I've known MANY people running wireless routers in their rooms without incident. It's true that MacOnline doesn't necessarily like you using them, but as of last year it wasn't against their Terms of Service, and the most that would happen if they find out is that they'd ask you to stop.