Who checks their e-mail before they leave for class to see if a gunman is on the loose? Much of the horror of the senseless tragedy at Virginia Tech could have been avoided had students been notified to stay in their rooms by cell phone or SMS instead of e-mail. Every university in the country needs an emergency notification system that uses a medium appropriate for the urgency of the message. If Verizon can ring me telling me my phone bill is due, my school can sure as heck ring me to tell me my life might be in danger if I go to class. Penn State should get on it as soon as possible.