Jennifer Devery got fed up with the lack of computers in the labs so she asked Santa for a computer last Christmas.

"Whenever you have to get something done, there's never any computers and you can't always find people to help you when you need help," Devery (freshman-political science) said about the labs.

Santa heard her cry for help, and Devery got a Brother personal word processor. Devery, who refuses to use a typewriter, said she will use her word processor mostly for her English 15 class this semester.

Jason Webster is also relieved that he no longer has to use the computer labs on a regular basis. His grandmother gave him a computer for his room.

Webster (senior-computer engineering) didn't like the labs because of the crowds and chaos he usually faced there.

"Now I can just work in here, and whenever I get done I can just transfer it across the telephone lines," he said.

Webster said his friends showed him that trick. As long as the student has a modem, any computer can access the University mainframe this way, he said.

But there is another way for students to access the University main frame -- R/Net, the Residence Hall Network for Enhanced Telecommunications. R/NET is a special option in certain rooms in North Halls and in Beaver Hall.

Students pay $50 per semester for this option. The fee covers equipment rental and line maintenance.

Students can access the University's mainframe with a personal computer, a Macintosh or IBM, or just a terminal, said Carl Knowlton, manager of labs and classroom support for the Center for Academic Computing. Students can get into almost anything in the University backbone, including services such as LIAS, Pattee's computerized card catalogue system, he added.

Matt Donadio and Michael Cox have R/Net in their Beaver Hall room.

"I knew what R/Net offered so I decided to take advantage of the services. It's convenient to have everything in the room," said Donadio (freshman-engineering).

"It saves time," said Cox (freshman-engineering).