ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, October 16, 1996 TAG: 9610160052
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: PEMBROKE
SOURCE: LISA APPLEGATE STAFF WRITER
EASTERN ELEMENTARY School gets Internet access via satellite, a link a hundred times faster than most modem connections.
Eastern Elementary School has zoomed into the Internet fast lane.
The rural Giles County school Tuesday became the first school in the world to use satellite technology that makes Internet access as fast as a couch potato can switch channels with a remote control.
Hughes Aircraft Corp. developed the ``wireless expressway'' first for the military, and then for DIRECTV home television distribution. Now, using the same technology that brings 175 television channels through satellite dishes smaller than most TV sets, schools can receive information directly from a satellite, which will feed pictures and data more than a hundred times faster than most modem connections.
``The Internet is not a new concept to us,'' said teacher Jeff Young, ``but the speed at which we can access it is.''
The satellite systems are sold two at a time, so Clifton Forge Elementary East was the second school in the state to place an order for DirectPC and was connected shortly after the Giles County school.
At a news conference in Eastern Elementary's computer room, Young demonstrated how quickly the DirectPC system works. As fast as he could click his mouse, he went from a NASA web page that played the voice of astronauts on the latest shuttle mission to a Virginia Tech page covered with photographs that appeared almost instantly.
Giles County Superintendent Bob McCracken said using the Internet under the old system - via phone lines - had already enhanced learning and even helped lower the dropout rate.
``These students are not going to get tired of repeating the same skills,'' he said. ``I can't help but believe the excitement over computers'' improves attendance.
Hughes Aircraft chose the 517-pupil school to demonstrate that it can be cheaper for rural schools to use wireless technology for high-speed Internet access than phone lines, chief scientist Ivan Somers said.
Hughes Aircraft charges $6,000 for the system, which includes a computer and dish. The company is paying Eastern Elementary's access fees for the first six months.
McCracken said he expects the satellite to be cheaper in the long run than other options, considering the time saved waiting for information and the cost saved by not having to install cable across the county. He expects to pay $35 to $50 a month in access fees.
Many of the behind-the-scenes players who have been pushing for a networked Southwest Virginia attended the news conference. Members of the New Century Council, Virginia Tech engineers, state Sen. Bo Trumbo, R-Fincastle, and U.S. Rep. Rick Boucher, D-Abingdon, crowded into the room, expressing hope for more than just better-educated children.
``This is the first link to a broad chain of events that will revitalize Southwest Virginia,'' said Trumbo, who approached Hughes Aircraft about the possibility of using the satellite to reach rural corners of the area.
One of the goals of the New Century Council, a group promoting regional development in Western Virginia, is to create a ``wireless valley'' where companies would not be deterred by sprawling countryside and mountainous terrain.
The satellite may provide speedy access, but it can't replace fiber-optic connections, Boucher said. A vocal advocate for reducing disparity between rural and urban schools systems in Virginia, Boucher has pushed to connect all 83 schools in his district by fiber-optic links. About one-fourth of those schools already are connected.
Boucher said links can handle two-way video conferencing, allowing students at one school to learn from a teacher at another school.
Another type of distance learning is being tried in Pulaski County, using antennas to transmit information. Its capability is limited by the need for a clear line of sight to make a connection, however.
Judy Keating, a sixth-grade math teacher at Eastern Elementary, said she looks forward to getting up-to-date stock listings from the Internet for student projects.
She said her pupils may not realize why information is moving more quickly with the satellite connection, ``but they know they're first in the world, and boy, that's something.''
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
LENGTH: Medium: 83 lines ILLUSTRATION: GRAPHIC: Chart by staff. color.by CNB