Did you know that 40 percent of polled universities have banned Napster? That's right, the worst is true.

Returning to the dorms wasn't half as bad as it was ten years ago. In 1990, there weren't many redeeming qualities of university housing. The RA was crooked, the showers filthy, and the halls all a clamor late into the night. Now, though, university students across the country are excited to check back into these roach- infested asylums - and all for promise of a high-speed connection. But who can really blame them? Computers have proven one of the greatest diversions during times of study, and we all know what goes on during lapses of procrastination. Whether you approve or not, hundreds of thousands of university students are file sharing, testing the very foundations of their campus IT departments, and whiling away their evening hours trading MP3s. Is this what their parents are paying for? Is this part of the new-millennium college experience? Many harbor disappointment, many are incensed, though some feel that students are well within their rights until the Napster trial has been seen to fruition.

Unfortunately, some students will log on to the horrible realization that their school has hopped the Napster-banned wagon. That's right. In a recent Gartner survey of 50 top American colleges and universities, 40 percent of those polled have announced that they will not allow Napster use on their servers. Here's the complete list of Napster-banned and non-banned colleges from the Gartner press release.

Napster-Banned Arizona State University Fresno State Georgia State University Hawaii Pacific Iowa State Kent State New York University Northwestern University Notre Dame Oregon State University Rice University Santa Clara University Seton Hall University University of California, San Diego University of Mississippi University of Texas University of Richmond University of Southern California Villanova University Wellesley College Yale University

Napster-Allowed Babson College Bates College Boston College Boston University Brigham Young University Colgate Columbia University Cornell University Duke University Florida State University Georgia Tech Harvard Michigan State MIT Penn State Princeton Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Stanford University Texas A&M UC Berkeley UCLA University of Colorado, Boulder University of Florida University of Idaho University of Michigan University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill University of Oregon University of Pennsylvania University of Wisconsin, Madison Washington State

Now if you happen to attend one of the unlucky 20, it looks as if you're up a river with a boat and no paddle. But would I leave you hanging out to dry? And at a time when the Internet is rich like the nights are long? Say no more! There is more to the Internet than file sharing, and there is much more to file sharing than Napster. But what recourse do you have when the headmaster pulls the plug? Let's examine your options:

1) If you are hell-bent on using Napster, and your university has banned access, there is a workaround available. Napigator is a simple program that essentially allows users to continue using the Napster network without actually accessing the centralized Napster servers. Thus, you can continue using Napster, just without the traditional Napster interface. Our complete Napigator guide will have you file sharing in no time. Give your university heads the finger with style and blow out their bandwidth just the same. You're paying to be there, right? Take advantage of it!

2) Now, if you want to breach the Napster contract altogether, perhaps you are better off using a file-sharing alternative. After all, the university has prohibited only Napster use, right? If they really meant business, they would have taken that Ethernet connection out of your room. Know your rights when it comes to the digital divide and slide between the cracks in their legislation. To begin, consult our file-sharing alternatives piece to learn about the other available applications. We'll have you up and running in no time.

3) But maybe you're fed up with these server-based file-sharing applications. Not to worry! You should probably check out RiffShare. RiffShare, developed by Widgetlab, takes the idea of MP3 file sharing and scales it down. Instead of using the entire Internet, RiffShare searches for MP3s and playlists on a local network, which essentially allows for intranet sharing of MP3s and MP3 playlists. With this LAN system, you will experience less wait time and faster search results. And with a bundled jukebox to boot, RiffShare is sure to impress even the most severe of skeptics.

4) Finally, you always have the option to get music the old fashioned way: frequent a local record shop. In fact, this might be your best choice for the file-sharing movement. Statistics show that CD sales in and around universities are steadily dropping. The Record Industry Association of America (RIAA) would like to think that Napster use is the direct cause of this - not the fact that students are generally broke (or inebriated). When you have a chance, pop into your local CD store and buy a disc - this way you can justify your rampant MP3-sharing habits. Believe you me, these activities will not go unchecked much longer.

I recently had the opportunity to interview David (who's name has been changed to preserve anonymity), a sophomore at Yale University who is experiencing the burn of being banned. David is not an excessive file sharer like some of his friends, but one who's more of the modest stance, as he relates.

ZDNet: When did you first hear about the Napster ban?
David: I heard only when enrollment began. We have these flyers that the IT department handed out during back-to-school week, and they noted that Napster use was not allowed. It was really shocking.

ZDNet: What will you do now? Are you still going to file-share?
David: Hell yeah! Everyone was talking about getting modems or trying to install DSL in their dorm rooms. They're getting crazy trying to get back on the servers. We're banned from only the Yale connection, you know. But I think I'll just use Gnutella at school, and most people I know have MP3s in their shared folders on the network. We can get them that way much faster.

And there you have it. Another situation resolved, and yet another subversive in the Ivy League. I understand the morality behind banning the Napster service (to some degree), but the universities have to realize that students who really want to file-share will continue to do so through other means. And think of all the trees that died to make the IT flyers - what a shame indeed. Until next week, keep your ear to the floor, don't get expelled, and listen for the lowdown.

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