Next semester, Tim Best will know exactly where his friends are and when.

Thanks to www.psuschedule.com, a Web site built last summer by his friend Dave Smith (junior-architectural engineering), Best can view the schedules of his friends and schedule his classes accordingly.

"It's more personalized, and more for you. It lets my friends know where I am," Best (sophomore-biochemistry and molecular biology) said.

"Through word of mouth, people's [AOL] Instant Messenger profiles and away messages, it spread and now people I don't even know are using it ... it's a phenomenon--everyone's connected," he added.

More than 4,500 students currently use the Web site.

Smith said connecting students was his inspiration for creating the site.

The class titles are filled in on the schedule after students enter their class numbers from the Office of the Registrar.

"With eLion, you can't share your schedule and can't let others know what your schedule is like; only you can view it," Smith said.

"Psuschedules.com lets people know when you're available and when you're not available," he added.

However, Smith said a limitation to the Web site is that students do not have access to the actual course database, meaning students still have to schedule through eLion.

He added that students can also add other time commitments that affect their schedules like work or club activities, into the site's extra time commitment section.

Students type in a description of the commitment and its starting and ending time.

Then they designate each day of the week it occurs and choose a shade from a selection of colors to differentiate it from other commitments and classes on the schedule.

"The format is really cool," Justin Schultz (junior-architectural engineering) said.

"You can scroll over your classes and it's really easy to visualize your schedule--the information is right on the screen," he added.

Best said the site is a better organizational tool for students than eLion.

"There is definitely a nice graphic layout and it makes it easier to picture where it's going," he added.

In addition to its efficiency and colorful quality, the site is constantly updating itself.

"I made this program so that it goes through and updates courses, the locations and teachers everyday," Smith said.

Frannie Worek (junior-mathematics) said she has the link in her AOL Instant Messenger profile, which allows anyone with her screen name to see her schedule.

The schedule-sharing revolution at Penn State could not have been accomplished, however, without the dedication of its creator, Best said.

"Dave is a really hardworking guy," he said.

"When he has a goal he gets it done, and it's pretty apparent that he put a lot of work into this site. I'll definitely be using it for [next] fall," Best added.