Sometimes it DOES pay to write letters.

[robotech_master]

As I mentioned in prior entries, I recently participated in a medical study at a local medical study center, spending two weekends cut off from the Internet and getting stuck with needles in exchange for the princely sum of $500. As I mentioned in my writeups, the big thing that bothered me was a lack of Internet access; I had my laptop with wireless but there was nary a network to latch onto to be found.

Figuring that the cost of a stamp was only 37 cents, I might as well bang out a letter outlining why Internet access would be good to have in a place like that. Here's the text of that letter:

January 29, 2005

Dear Bio-Kinetics:

I was recently a participant in a two-weekend study on a liquid form of the Allegra allergy medication. I found that your facilities were clean and well-equipped with a variety of recreational equipment, and your staff was always professional and courteous. The food was also quite good; I found it easy to obey the stricture to eat everything set before me. Almost any complaint I might have would end up being little more than nitpicking. I realize that when that many people have to spend time confined together in such a small space, compromises between those people have to be made. (It would be nice, however, if the curfew were at 10 p.m. instead of 11, as early as we end up being wakened in the morning.)

However, your facility was lacking an amenity that made the weekends a bit trying for me—an amenity which could be easily and cheaply added, and would benefit many of your studies’ participants. I refer, of course, to Internet access. One could dismiss a requirement for Internet access as frivolous, something that participants can easily do without—but to many people in today’s world, Internet access is far more vital than TV or billiards. This is the era of email, chatrooms, and weblogs, when social networks are more likely to rely on Internet access than on telephones. “Internet addiction” is not so much a desire to surf the Internet, but an aversion to being out of touch with friends, family, or even workplace.

Adding Internet access to your study facility would not require a purchase of expensive computer equipment. I do not ask for public-access computer terminals; I have had a great deal of experience with these and know how easy it is for them to become infested and rendered unusable by viruses and user-installed programs alike. (Although I suspect that if you were to purchase used or receive donated older computers, format the hard drives, and install Knoppix Linux, this problem would be minimized, and it would certainly be cheaper than the big-screen TV set or pool table in your facility; nonetheless, this would probably still be more than you would like to do.) I noticed while I was participating in the study that many participants, myself included, brought laptops with them. What I would suggest for your facility is the same method by which many institutions around Springfield—including the Mudhouse coffeehouse, various Panera Bread locations, both Ziggie’s Restaurant locations, and the Springfield/Greene-County Libraries—provide Internet access to their patrons who bring laptops: wireless 802.11 Internet.

The costs for adding 802.11 to your study facility would be minimal; all it would require would be a broadband Internet connection (which you may well already have) and a single wireless router. Such a router can be purchased at Best Buy or any computer store for $50-$150, will provide wireless Internet access to the entire building if properly placed, and will also serve as a firewall to prevent undesirable sorts of connections from being made (such as hackers or peer-to-peer software). Depending on the model, it may also do bandwidth throttling, to prevent study users’ downloads or surfing from overwhelming legitimate BioKinetics administrative traffic. It can even be password-protected so that only people in the study can access it.

Would you please consider adding a Wireless Access Point to your study dormitory’s amenities? It would only be an incremental cost, but would provide peace of mind and another activity to keep busy for those people for whom being out of touch with the Internet is a nerve-wracking experience.

Sincerely,

Christopher E. Meadows

I didn't seriously expect an answer; I just wrote the letter to make me feel better in knowing that I had at least done something to try to alleviate the major source of frustration for me during the two weekend studies. So, imagine my surprise when I got home to find an envelope from Bio-Kinetic Clinical Applications waiting in my mailbox. I tore it open, and here's what I found:

2/1/05

Dear Christopher:

Thank you for your letter dated 1/29/05 regarding your last study experience. The request for Internet access has been proposed to us for many years. Right now we do not have the space to dedicate for user terminals but your idea of a wireless network had not come to light before. Thank you for a great idea.

We are expanding our current facility in the near future. With this expansion, we are revamping our entire IS network. Along with our new IS network, we can increase our bandwidth and firewall protection. While these changes are quite expensive, the cost to add a wireless router to the clinic space would be minimal. The idea of using a wireless network also releases Bio-Kinetic of many administrative roles (and headaches) in dealing with dedicated user terminals.

Thank you again for your input regarding this issue.

Regards,

Dave Koenigsfeld
Vice-President & CIO
Bio-Kinetic Clinical Applications, Inc.

So now I'm enjoying the nice warm fuzzy feeling that comes from having my voice heard. Of course, I don't know how soon those changes they're talking about would take effect; it may be another study or two before I can be assured of having sweet, sweet Internet access over the course of the lengthy weekend. Still, it's good to know that the CIO took me seriously enough to answer me personally.

Changing gears, very shortly I'm expecting my uncle to pick me up for a birthday dinner for my grandmother. So, no City of Heroes for me tonight. Oh well...it's free food and a chance to visit with family. That's definitely worth giving up some computer gaming for.