University of Hawai'i University Relations Media & Publications Honolulu, HI 96822	(808) 956-8856 Telephone (808) 956-3441 Facsimile ur@hawaii.edu E-Mail
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE	July 17, 1997
Contact: Donnë Florence, (808) 956-7522

Hawai'i Educational Networking Consortium Names Statewide Dialup Service Provider University of Hawai'i students, faculty, staff and alumni throughout the state will enjoy easier dialup access to the Internet this fall, thanks to a new agreement between the Hawai'i Educational Networking Consortium and GST Telecom Hawai'i. The consortium, which includes K-12 Hawai'i public schools and the East-West Center as well as the entire UH system, picked GST Hawai'i OnLine as the preferred service provider for individuals in HENC member institutions. Eligible subscribers will be all students, faculty and staff of all three member institutions. Eligibility is also extended through UH to UH Alumni Association members, UH Foundation and the Research Corporation of UH. Eligible subscribers from the East-West Center include EWC employees, grantees and alumni association members. The contract calls for GST Hawai'i OnLine to offer eligible subscribers on all islands unlimited dialup access for $14.85 per month. Individual subscribers will be able to reduce the cost further by prepaying for a full year's service. The contract also includes provisions for ISDN dialup service and a toll-free (800-number) service for members of the educational community who travel outside Hawai'i. The service is expected to be available on all islands by August 15, in time for the start of the 1997-98 school year. The University of Hawai'i has operated free dialup services for over 15 years and now has the largest community of dialup users in the state&emdash;about 46,000&emdash;but only about 250 modems. The high users-to-modems ratio limits network availability for individual users, causes access delays and other frustrating problems, according to David Lassner, director of Information Technology Services at UH. "The new contract with GST Hawai'i OnLine will provide a much higher availability service for those who need more time on-line or cannot tolerate the busy signals that are inherent in our free service," Lassner says. For more information about the Hawai'i Educational Networking Consortium, visit the following websites: HENC http://www2.hawaii.edu/~henc UH http://www.hawaii.edu/ DOE http://www.k12.hi.us/ EWC http://www.ewc.hawaii.edu/