Despite what you may have been led to believe, computers and other tools of high-tech communication do not represent the future of education at Brooklyn College. On the contrary, computers represent BC's immediate present. They are right here, right now.

Brooklyn College offers students and staff access to the very latest computing programs and equipment in several locations on campus, including Academic Information Technologies (019 Library); The Atrium and Wolfe Student Computer Laboratories (1306 Plaza), and the recently opened, state-of-the-art Library Café.

Since even the most cutting-edge computer lab is only as good as the people working it, BC's support staff is knowledgeable, highly qualified and, as is most important when dealing with bold concepts that may frighten newcomers, eminently patient.

At the Atrium Lab, Managers Selena Threet and John Stephen are presently handling final-exam-season traffic and preparing for the BC Summer Schedule (8am to 4pm, Monday through Thursday). Year round, the Atrium and Wolfe Labs house 45 IBM PCs and eight Mac systems.

"We almost never close!" Ms. Threet says with a smile, "It's pretty much business as usual throughout the year. We serve as headquarters for several different programs in July and August, including classes for incoming freshmen, and some for specialized groups such as IMMERSE, which is an intensive remedial program. Nonetheless, students taking summer courses will have all the same resources that are available during the Fall and Spring semesters."

The Atrium Lab, after purchasing a wide variety of new equipment last year, will focus now on upgrading and updating their existing systems. "We're in the process of upgrading all our PCs to Windows 95/98," Ms. Threet says. "The same goes for upgrading to Internet Explorer 5. The reason this takes time is because different departments, especially in the middle of a semester, have different requirements. Health and Nutrition, for example, might utilize a different operating system, so if we did a sweeping change, none of their software would work. But we're getting there."

The Wolfe Computer Laboratory has already been completely upgraded to Windows 95/98.

Ms. Threet points out, "We've made huge leaps in the past two years by providing unlimited Internet access, the newest equipment and the newest software. Our service teams are good and getting better. We anticipate students' needs better. There are a lot of opportunities to learn and to gain experience that didn't exist even two years ago. We all look forward to the future."

Across campus, in one of the two multimedia classrooms on the lower level of BC's Gideonse Library (an area that one might light-heartedly refer to as "The Data Basement"), Nick Irons takes a moment to address his two favorite topics: computer technology and the role it plays at Brooklyn College. Mr. Irons' official title, Manager of Faculty Training and Development Lab, and Academic Computing Facilities, essentially means he is the man that professors go to when they are ready to teach on-line.

"Presently," Mr. Irons says, "I am working with several faculty members on trials that integrate distance learning modules, meaning that if a class is held three times a week, the professor meets with students twice a week, and the third class is held off-site. Students can dial in, download reading materials and participate in on-line chats. As more faculty members develop these classes, students will need additional computers on campus where they can access those on-line materials. We don't want to demand that every enrolling freshman purchase a computer, but it's obvious that the computer is a tool whose use is only increasing."

In addition to his work in The Faculty Lab, Nick Irons has been a key force in the creation of The Library Café, the biggest and most dynamic addition to the BC campus this decade. The Library Café, like the other computer labs on campus, receives technical support from Information Technology Services (ITS).

"One aspect that I really like about Brooklyn College computer services, ITS in particular, is that we're innovative," he says, "and the Library Café is a perfect example. The Café has been servicing about 600 students per day, and the wait time for a computer has only been about ten minutes on average. Plus, the layout of the Café isn't your traditional vertical columns and horizontal desks: it's got its own unique design that takes into account the whole being of the student. There's casual seating where a student can chat with a fellow student or a faculty member, and where coffee and snacks are available. And then the student might decide, 'Let me doublecheck my professor's web page, and make sure I got everything I need from the lecture.' You can do all these things in one place without the very serious, very academic air of a traditional library, which I think makes the Café even more conducive to a total learning experience."

In the coming months, Mr. Irons says that students can look forward to more multimedia classrooms, more staff support and more developments at the Library Café. "Whatever we have been doing," he states, "we're going to keep doing, only better and more so. We will keep rising to meet students' changing needs. For one thing, the library itself will be moving, which may affect the availability of some printed materials, so we'll have more on-line materials available. That means, as well, that there should be more computers on campus to enable students to access those materials. In a larger sense, there seems to be a mini-revolution in computer technology every year-and-a-half, and that time frame appears to be narrowing. The field itself is moving at Internet speed. Academic Computing Facilities is committed to staying on top of those developments, no matter what, and providing Brooklyn College students with the very best computer services."