One of the major changes at RWC this year is the new look and the new location for some computer and tutoring labs. Rene Barnett, who is the Computer Lab Manager, said that the College wanted to centralize as many of the labs as possible in one area. This includes the Writing Lab, Math Lab, Study Skills, Disability Services, and the Computer Concourse, and two computer classrooms.
There is also a new look to the computer labs. They contain brand new Dell Optiplex computers. The new machines include zip drives that allow a lot more storage on one disk. A regular floppy disk can hold 1.44 megabytes of storage space, whereas a zip disk can hold up to 256 megabytes. Many students will be able to go the whole year needing only one zip disk. The memory on the computers is also 256 megabytes.
Barnett also said that absolutely no food or drink is allowed in the lab. Last year there were several incidents of pop spilling on the keyboards and even coffee spilling into a PC, ruining the entire machine. This is why the entire computer is kept on top of the desks this year.
No installation of software is allowed due to university policy. Certain software can mess up the program configurations that are currently installed. This restriction includes AOL instant messenger and even the compact disks that come with the textbooks. Compact disks that can be run on the computers are only by request of faculty. Be prepared to have your student identification displayed on top of the CPU.
Computer Concourse hours are Monday-Thursday 8 a.m.-10 p.m., Friday 8 a.m.-5 p.m., Saturday 10 a.m.-4 p.m., and Sunday noon-6 p.m. Hours for other labs vary.