That's how University of Montana chief information and technology officer Ray Ford explained the technological advances coming to the University of Montana and Montana State University once the Northern Tier Project is up and running.
The fiber optics project will put the two flagship campuses in the fast lane of the information superhighway.
Videoconferencing will go from grainy and delayed to crystal clear and real time. Isolation will no longer prohibit Montana students and faculty from participating in research projects nationwide. Internet on campus will remain strong even during peak hours.
These are several advantages IT officers predict once UM and MSU fire up AT&T's now-dormant line of fiber that stretches the length of Montana, mostly along the Interstate 90 corridor. It is one section in a line that stretches from Seattle to Chicago.
In working with universities from Washington, Wisconsin, Minnesota and North Dakota for several years, Montana has helped establish what will become a major communication pipeline to serve educational and research needs.
“It breaks down the barriers of where you live,” said Gwen Jacobs, MSU spokeswoman. “If you have enough bandwidth, it doesn't mater if you're sitting in Bozeman, Montana or New York City,” research can be done from any location.
The company is allowing the universities access to the line for free, but charges a usage fee. The two main universities will split the cost.
At a regents meeting in Havre in May, the board approved the project idea. The vote on Wednesday will approve the funding plan.
Campuses in Missoula, Bozeman, Billings and Miles City will connect to the line. Most important, however, is the extended link to Seattle, which is a national and international hub for private connections and research networks.
“We want to set the tone for innovation of the next big thing,” Ford said.
No longer will scientists have to sit in the same room as the equipment to collect data.
A class of UM students learning Japanese could potentially correspond more easily via videoconferencing with a class of students in Japan learning English.
A doctor could more easily converse with a patient long distance by videoconferencing rather than telephone, allowing for a much better prognosis for the patient, Jacobs said.
Montana has not necessarily been behind the curve as far as Internet connectivity, but this will enhance things from “adequate” to “first-rate,” she said.
If all goes according to plan, the enhanced interconnection of the entire line could be working by July 1.
Reporter Chelsi Moy can be reached at 523-5260 or at chelsi.moy@missoulian.com.
|
 |
 |
Add your comment now! Write your comment in the form below.
(Email address is for verification only. If you'd like to email a story, look for the link above)