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My university forced me to switch back to PC!

Chrispy

Chrispy

macrumors 68020
Original poster
Dec 27, 2004
2,270
524
Indiana
This is sick. So here is how it all went down. I go to a small school in Indiana and since I have been going here they have started to slowly eleminate macs from use at the school. When I asked the computer admin staff why they were doing this they told me "macs are a threat to the network becuase they can so easily get viruses and other malicious software without people even knowing" HAHA. I almost died from laughing in the guys face and just walked away.

So, last year they installed wireless networking around campus... YAY! However, they used a cisco VPN to allow for access AND made it so you had to download the school's version with the settings hidden behind a password. I tired downloading the same client for mac but without access to the settings I can't use it. So, I bring my computer to the support people and ask them to just please input the settings for me and then they can feel free to slap up the password so I can't see them. They refuse and tell me they did it the way they did on purpose to block mac and linux users from accessing the wireless network :mad: I tired and tried but there is simply no way around it.

So, this year when I return to school I find out they started using a windows 2000/XP specific access client called "cisco clean access". This means that you have to download the clean access software and connect using that. You can only get on the network if your computer has all the windows updates and virus definitions installed. If you don't have anti-virus software you can download some from the university... but too bad you can't get online if you don't have the anti-virus software to being with lol. Nice catch 22 there. Worst of all tho, this officially blocks the macs from any reliable connection to the internet in the dorms. My school has won and I am now using a cheap refurb Dell Dimension 5100C.... and when the powerbook updates come I will be so tempted too :(
 
Don't think there is much you can do really. I'd raise hell on the admin staff. Tossers.
 
EGT said:
Don't think there is much you can do really. I'd raise hell on the admin staff. Tossers.
Click to expand...

Yeah I was telling a friend of mine that it would be great to print this out after more people have made comment and then bring it to the admin people to show them how stupid they really are. It was bad enough when I had to deal with this at work but now at my college.. uhhh. If companies and schools would realize the potential IT savings of switching completely to mac then Apple would finally get the marketshare they deserve.
 
Chrispy said:
Yeah I was telling a friend of mine that it would be great to print this out after more people have made comment and then bring it to the admin people to show them how stupid they really are. It was bad enough when I had to deal with this at work but now at my college.. uhhh. If companies and schools would realize the potential IT savings of switching completely to mac then Apple would finally get the marketshare they deserve.
Click to expand...

All in good time ;)
 
it staff are either idiots, who love windows and can't see past (or through) it, or they pretend the company's better off with windows or they'll be out of a job.

it is insane at a college disallowing mac access, seeing as they're used in most serious business. my university tried it then realised that 40% of the staff and 10% of students there use them, so switched to wireless routers with PPTP VPN authentication, which is more than secure enough. it's funny now because all the windows users have to get this CD from the IT people and install all this antivirus software that they can't then uninstall from their own machines(!) and it takes about 2hrs to get a new XP machine working.

i took my powerbook to uni, typed in the username and password in the VPN settings in internet connect and BAM, i'm in.

it confuses me why people use windows for anything other than to laugh at, or check out the latest viruses.
 
Yeah it sucks using windows. I literally have some type of update to intall every day. Another sick thing I remembered is that my desktop publishing class forces us to use PCs. We doing QuarkXPress design work and my prof is all against mac becuase they are not used as much... yes.. of course nobody in the design industry uses a mac .... :rolleyes:
 
i would bring it up with a newspaper telling them they are limiting your freedom of choice on campus. :p

anywho yes that is pathetic, i would probably not go to that school if it were me.
 
Imbeciles. Perhaps you could go to the university president and show him that a portion of the university is operating with absolutely no regard for logical procedure, truth to reality, or consideration for the students. I mean, a state-assisted (I'm assuming) university that will only allow one type of machine running one OS? That's pretty @#$%ing shady.
 
Honestly, if it were me going to school there, I'd change to another school, and not because of the specifics of the situation (Mac vs. PC), but because of the general attitude. It seems that colleges and universities often forget that it's the students who are the customers, and without the students, and their tuition money, there would be no school. Make sure the school administration (not just the IT staff) knows how you feel.

I'm lucky in that the school I go to has a few large Mac labs, and goes out of their way to support the Mac. Our school was one of the 24 (or however many) schools that Apple said they were working with when they originally announced the Mac in 1984. Our wireless networks almost all use 802.1x authentication now, and it's actually a fair bit easier to get in with a Mac than it is to get in with a Windows machine.

An example of that happened the other day. Some guy was in lab with me, and he got out his HP laptop to connect to the network. He kind of called out "Can anyone connect to the wireless in here?" I said, yes, it works fine, the network is called such-and-such. He said, "That's not available in here." "Yes, it's available I connect to it all the time." He insisted that it wasn't available because his computer couldn't connect to it. I open up my PowerBook, and without me doing anything, I'm already connected with 4 bars of signal and full internet access on the very network he said was unavailable. I was laughing inside.
 
Chrispy said:
This is sick. So here is how it all went down. I go to a small school in Indiana and since I have been going here they have started to slowly eleminate macs from use at the school. When I asked the computer admin staff why they were doing this they told me "macs are a threat to the network becuase they can so easily get viruses and other malicious software without people even knowing" HAHA. I almost died from laughing in the guys face and just walked away.

So, last year they installed wireless networking around campus... YAY! However, they used a cisco VPN to allow for access AND made it so you had to download the school's version with the settings hidden behind a password. I tired downloading the same client for mac but without access to the settings I can't use it. So, I bring my computer to the support people and ask them to just please input the settings for me and then they can feel free to slap up the password so I can't see them. They refuse and tell me they did it the way they did on purpose to block mac and linux users from accessing the wireless network :mad: I tired and tried but there is simply no way around it.

So, this year when I return to school I find out they started using a windows 2000/XP specific access client called "cisco clean access". This means that you have to download the clean access software and connect using that. You can only get on the network if your computer has all the windows updates and virus definitions installed. If you don't have anti-virus software you can download some from the university... but too bad you can't get online if you don't have the anti-virus software to being with lol. Nice catch 22 there. Worst of all tho, this officially blocks the macs from any reliable connection to the internet in the dorms. My school has won and I am now using a cheap refurb Dell Dimension 5100C.... and when the powerbook updates come I will be so tempted too :(
Click to expand...

This might be a little late for you, but it is possible to get the settings for the Cicso VPN Client from the PC to the Mac in theory. After you install it on the PC, there should be a .pcf file in C:\Program Files\Cisco VPN Client\Profiles. You need to copy this to your Mac to the directory /opt/cisco-vpnclient/Profiles/ You also might need to copy the vpnclient.ini from C:\Program Files\Cisco VPN Client to /opt/cisco-vpnclient/
 
Chrispy said:
Yeah it sucks using windows. I literally have some type of update to intall every day. Another sick thing I remembered is that my desktop publishing class forces us to use PCs. We doing QuarkXPress design work and my prof is all against mac becuase they are not used as much... yes.. of course nobody in the design industry uses a mac .... :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

If your prof is using that line of logic, then why are you using Quark? You should be using InDesign, because that will quickly become the industry standard. And he's wrong, any serious design/ad firm uses Macs. I'm in the biz in Chicago, I know what I'm talking about. Transfer to another school.
 
mduser63 said:
Honestly, if it were me going to school there, I'd change to another school, and not because of the specifics of the situation (Mac vs. PC), but because of the general attitude. It seems that colleges and universities often forget that it's the students who are the customers, and without the students, and their tuition money, there would be no school. Make sure the school administration (not just the IT staff) knows how you feel.
Click to expand...

I am writing a letter at this very moment. I would leave the school but I am a Senior so it is in my best interest to stay here. This school has been terrible, however, and cut a large amount of my aid AND bumped up tuition and large amount for this year. The sad part is I was told I had to live on campus as a Senior or I would lose my grant... which they took away anyways! I will NOT be recommending this place to anyone else nor will I ever give a dime to this place after I graduate.

nydoofus said:
This might be a little late for you, but it is possible to get the settings for the Cicso VPN Client from the PC to the Mac in theory. After you install it on the PC, there should be a .pcf file in C:\Program Files\Cisco VPN Client\Profiles. You need to copy this to your Mac to the directory /opt/cisco-vpnclient/Profiles/ You also might need to copy the vpnclient.ini from C:\Program Files\Cisco VPN Client to /opt/cisco-vpnclient/
Click to expand...

I will definitely try this with a friend of mine's powerbook. I really want to get this resolved as when the updated powerbooks come out I would love to pick one up. I bought the cheap Dell for that very reason.. to have the money for a mac when the opportunity presented itself. I hope that works as it will make my friend very happy and I can laugh at beating the system!
 
Chrispy said:
I will definitely try this with a friend of mine's powerbook. I really want to get this resolved as when the updated powerbooks come out I would love to pick one up. I bought the cheap Dell for that very reason.. to have the money for a mac when the opportunity presented itself. I hope that works as it will make my friend very happy and I can laugh at beating the system!
Click to expand...

Feel free to PM if you have any issues.
 
My University has tried to do the samething with the wireless. At first that had VPN that would work on Windows only. Then a bunch of Linux + Mac people went to IT. Now they have the VPN signal but also a free open wireless signal for all others. It's not secure and you don't have access to your Network space, but it get us internet and that is all I wanted.
 
my school is actually just the opposite...i visisted here in april to see if i wanted to go, and they were talking about all the computer labs....they said they had 1 mac lab (all g4 imacs) and i didnt think it was that bad...their wireless internet supported macs, and they never said to choose PC over it...so i was happy with that..well i get to school, and i see the same mac lab. 2 days later, im walking by, and theres brand new g5 imacs in it. then, the other day my teacher emailed us to tell us that we would meet in writing lab to work on some paper....so i get there and i really dread the class because its awful, but theres about 30 brand new imac g5s in it...all have dreamweaver, and those macromedia programs, and bunch of other stuff....and everyone comes in and is like awed at the design. people are playing around not paying attention to the teacher at all...the only dissapointment was that they were running 10.3 (probably more compatible with the network, because htey told me not to install tiger before i came, even though i did and it works fine). there was one guy who seemed like mad that the screen was the computer. he was looking all over the place for it and i told him that was it, and he was like, no its not, i know computers. everyone used IE to go on the internet though, not safari....ill teach them tomorrow...feel the mac invasion
 
also of note.....the first week of school, no one could get onto the internet, wireless or plugged in....except for the 3 people with macs on my floor....the IT guys came around every room to help people out....and he walked in to my room and saw my mac and was like "oh i dodnt do macs sorry" and i told him not to worry because i had no problems connecting....and he just kind of walked away
 
I just sent off a large e-mail to the director of Electronic Information Services stating..

Dear Professor ****,

My name is Chris ------- and I am a Public and Corporate Communications major here at ****** *******. I am writing you regarding a disturbing trend I am noticing on behalf of Electronic Information Services.

First, let me say that I find the Clean Access client as being a great way to keep Windows users safe on the school’s network. However, this client makes using Macintosh computers on the network a painful experience. Each time you want to use the network you have to login with the registration window in Safari (or any Mac internet browser) and then login again while quickly clicking an accept button near the bottom of the screen before it makes you login yet again. In addition, you are never presented with the terms of usage or an option to accept or decline them if you use a Mac for access. This hardly seems like fair treatment for users of the Apple Macintosh platform.

In addition, when wireless access was added to **** ***** last year, I attempted to access the network with my Powerbook only to realize I had to use the Cisco VPN client. When I spoke with a helpdesk specialist I was told the VPN access was setup like this on purpose to keep any platform other than windows off the network. I even went so far as to find the Mac version of the exact same Cisco VPN software that ***** ****** is supplying to attempt to put in the settings myself. I then realized that settings are blocked so users cannot do this and I took my computer to the help desk to see if someone could set it up for me and then add the password so I could not see what settings were used. I was told absolutely not and was, again, told the Mac platform was “too dangerous” to have on the network. This makes no sense as the Macintosh OS X platform has proven, time and time again, to be far more reliable and stable than any Windows operating system being used today. It has been a year since the wireless access was added to ***** *******, and yet there is still no OS X support. I would think EIS could add an additional signal just supporting internet access so Mac and Linux users could bypass the VPN client requirement or make the Cisco client available for Mac users.

The EIS mission statement says…
The mission of Electronic Information Services is to support ****** ****** by providing leadership, quality resources, and effective services in information technology; and to nurture an environment in which productive application of computing and information technology can flourish. Electronic Information Services coordinates and manages servers; data networks (wired and wireless) including Internet access; communication resources including electronic mail, voicemail, telephone service, video cable, and satellite reception resources; general-access computing facilities; and general-purpose software related to the academic and administrative functions of the University.

I hardly see how, in essence, blocking a fast growing computer platform is nurturing an environment in which productive application of computing and information technology can flourish. For example, I am taking a desktop publishing course and we use Dell PCs because there are no capable Macintosh machines running OS X anywhere on this campus. Given that the design industry uses primarily Macintosh, it seems like we are being crippled by learning not only on outdated software (QuarkXPress 5.0 instead of Adobe InDesign) but also by using the wrong platform for the job.

I think ****** ******, as well as Electronic Information Services, needs to remember who they should be serving. The students make this University what it is and without our tuition dollars there would be no ***** ******. It hardly seems fair or practical to block students from being able to utilize technology to its full extent. I cannot help but feel like EIS is moving the university backwards in technology by systematically eliminating any platform other than Windows 2000/XP Pro. I sincerely hope you will hear what I am trying to say and make the appropriate changes to better serve future students here at ******* *******. Thank you for your time and consideration.

Sincerely,
Chris --------
 
Ohh nice letter,
polite, firm and to the point.
I like it.
:)

Maybe it will be a wake up call for your school.
I am lucky my school is very mac friendly, most of the profs are on macs and there are more mac labs than pc labs
 
blaskillet4 said:
Maybe They like windows because Its the reason they have a job... ;)




***Shifty eyes***
Click to expand...
Did you (or someone else) say this in another thread recently? I hope so, because if not, I'm having some serious deja vu right now.. :shudders:
 
Good letter Chrispy!

On a sad note, i just found out from my uni professor that they will be moving to an all Windows setup in the next 5 years. I will be long gone before this happens, so it will not effect me, but i don't get it. Our music lab is 90% Macs, and the Winblows machines are relegated to a corner, and only freshman or non-traditional students (i.e. older) unfamiliar with Macs use them.

I wonder what the cost will be to buy new licenses for all of the music software the uni has, move all of the audio hardware over to Winblows, etc.

It is a sad day when a uni decides to move to all Windows. They tout diversity, but i guess that line stops at choice of computer platform. :confused:
 
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