What is bandwidth ?	Bandwidth is the communication capacity of an electronic pathway, such as a communication pipeline. Data flows quickly and smoothly when the amount of traffic traveling in the pipe is small relative to the size of the pipe. When the amount of traffic exceeds the capacity of the pipe, the speed at which data travels begins to drop. However, when lots of students are sharing lots of music and movie files, the speed of the network decreases for everyone.
Why should I care ?	When lots of students on the residence hall network are sharing lots of music and movie files, the speed of the network decreases for everyone. Many people exceed bandwidth quotas because they are sharing copyrighted material without permission. Copyright violation is against the law and you may be prosecuted.
Why is my Internet so slow ?	When the amount of traffic exceeds the capacity of the pipe, the speed at which data travels begins to drop. Usually, this happens when lots of students are sharing lots of music and movie files, the speed of the network decreases for everyone. See the What is Bandwidth? page for the fish analogy. (From University of California, Berkeley Office of Residential Computing)
What can I do to Help ?	Turn off File Sharing Programs File sharing depends on the file-sharing program to be running constantly, allowing people to download files off your computers. Quitting the program is difficult or tricky, depending on the particular program. Don't know how to shut them down? See the Disabling Peer to Peer File Sharing webpage page. Or just turn off your computer when you're not using it. ( Courtesy of the University of Chicago ) Don't Download Large Files to Excess Don't download large files like mp3's, movies, games, or game demos to excess. Also, remember that pirated movies and software are illegal. If you violate copyright law, you are subject to College and criminal sanctions. Avoid the Internet During Peak Hours Weekdays from 6pm to 2am, the Internet is at its peak time. Downloading large files and playing LAN games during this time is probably not the best idea. It's like driving in traffic. Avoid the information superhighway during its respective rush hour. Keep in mind that there are many alternatives to using the Internet during peak times.
How to Disable File Sharing ?	Most file sharing programs hide rather than close upon request. To ensure that a file sharing program has really been shut down in Windows, check the system tray to see if the program's icon is still there. To see how to shut down a specific file sharing program such as Aimster, Audiogalaxy, Bearshare, Gneutella, Imesh, Kazaa, Limewire please visit the Disabling Peer to Peer File Sharing webpage