EDITORIAL – Online solutions come with own problems

Pitt is seemingly only a few clicks of a mouse away from becoming an entirely online… Pitt is seemingly only a few clicks of a mouse away from becoming an entirely online university — and that’s not a good thing. The University is expanding and modernizing, welcoming ever-larger freshman classes, adding new buildings to the wireless network and increasing its presence in Oakland, all of which are fine. By relying too heavily on the Internet, though, it is creating various frustrating problems for its students and employees.

Twice now there have been fiascos with ordering basketball tickets online. While some students certainly appreciate not needing to wait in line, this is vastly preferable to not being able to purchase tickets or being charged incorrectly because of server problems. What’s more, a few hours spent with others similarly eager for the season to start can be a great experience and is considered a venerable tradition at some schools. A good portion of being in college is meeting new people — what better place to do that than in line for tickets?

It isn’t just sports fans who have been affected by Pitt’s overeager use of technology, though. Several students and parents have had issues using the new eBill system. Some were not aware that they wouldn’t be receiving paper bills and also found their accounts frozen. Others found their accounts were not accurate or up to date. For the majority, though, the biggest hassle came from not being able to pay by credit card without incurring a sizable service fee. The convenience of paying online lies in avoiding the need to write a check. The eBill system, as it stands now, has not made paying tuition any easier for a large portion of the student body.

By far the most frustrating addition to Pitt’s arsenal of technology, though, is PeopleSoft. Whether because students have not been taught to use the system, which is without a tutorial, or because PeopleSoft itself is simply not equipped with the same capabilities as its predecessor, many have found themselves unable to sort out their schedules

Some complain of being unable to print a day-by-day version of their schedules. Others are frustrated with the inability to search for classes by day or meeting time, or to see whether or not a given class will satisfy a requirement. For still more, the largest problems are simply not knowing how to navigate the system to access their schedule in the first place and forgetting their new PeopleSoft number — which many don’t even know exists. Or, if all of this can be done, few know how to do it.

Technology has its place on campus, and, if organized properly, can make the college experience easier and more pleasant for everyone. By trying to do too much too fast, though, Pitt is simply making things more difficult. As students, we want our tuition dollars to go toward people, not PeopleSoft.