Thursday, September 9, 2004

by Jonathan Ference
News Editor

Students and faculty who attempt to login to Swatmail from the Portal
Page may notice that Swatmail seems to have received a bit of a
makeover.  This makeover is actually the replacement of an old
webmail program, TWIG, with a new system, known as IMP.  The new
interface came online at the end of this summer, under the direction of
Fran Gelfand of ITS.  Users may currently access both the old and
new interfaces; come September 20th, however, the
http://swatmail.swarthmore.edu web address will take users to IMP. At
the end of the semester TWIG will be taken offline, according to
Gelfand.

The new system greets users with a sleeker blue interface instead of
the old red header.  According to an email from ITS, the new
system includes many “noble enhancements,” not the least of which is
encryption of usernames and passwords.  IMP also features greater
support for world languages with different characters and filtering and
searching of messages.

During the early weeks of school, the new system has not been the
campus default, although interested users were invited to use it when
it became functional.  Since then, ITS staff has been working on
“customizations to the interface and changes to default configuration
settings” to make IMP as easy as possible to use.

According to Gelfand, over 1500 members of the Swarthmore College
community with swarthmore.edu email accounts have used the new system
on at least one occasion.

*****

by Maki Sato
Gazette Reporter

Daily Gazette staff members, like many Swatties, have been intrigued by
the New Dorm and the unusual architectural perks some residents enjoy.
In an attempt to shed light on the mystery of the lofts, the Gazette
has interviewed the first inhabitants of one of these fabled rooms.

Daily Gazette: What is your favorite part about living in this
loft/duplex?
Rich: Everyone comments on the windows more than anything else.
Rob: We have two stories and the design of the room is different. 
It’s a square room, but it has multiple sections.

DG: What is your least favorite aspect?
Rich: Well, I am a senior with a roommate.
Rob: It’s not bad having a roommate though.  There’s nothing
really bad. It’s super hot up there though (points to the second floor).
Rich: It’s hard to fill up the space.

DG: What motivated you to try for this room?
Rob: I looked at the floor plan and thought it was really cool. 
It was a matter of faith for Rich though.

DG: What was your lottery number?
Rob: I believe 5.

DG: Is there anything you want to say to readers of the Daily Gazette?
Rich: It’s not called the New Dorm.  It’s Kalafus.
DG:  Excuse me?
Rich: K-A-L-A-F-U-S.
DG: Where did that come from?
Rich: Do you know the unicycle man?
DG:  I think I’ve seen him before last semester.
Rich: James Kalafus.
DG: Okay, so it’s not really official.  How many people know about
and use this name?
Rob: Several score.
Rich: There are resisters within the building.
DG: Interesting.
Rich: Actually, it was funny yesterday because we tried to order pizza
from Acapulco and one of our friends confused them by trying to explain
Kalafus.  So it never got here.
DG: Maybe they just know it as the New Dorm.
Rich: But Renatos and Appetitos both know that it’s Kalafus.  They
deliver here.
DG: Really?  That’s impressive.

Rich: Oh, I forgot to say, the view is an eventual plus.
DG: Eventual?
Rob: Oh yeah, all the construction is a negative.
DG: Right.

DG: Do you get a lot people coming to see your room?
Rich: Yes, we get a stream of tourists.
Rob: People just come by and hang out.  We don’t need to entertain
them. They’re entertained by our space.  So our room is like a
lounge.

DG: That’s great.  I think I’m about done with questions unless
you have anything to add.
Rob: Oh, we have a green roof.  Instead of a rain drainage system,
we have plants.  I think we’re the first dorm to have that.
DG: May I see it?  (Climbs the 16 steps to the second floor to see
a modest patch of grass on the roof).  Very cool.
Rich: It is suppose to grow to cover the whole roof eventually.

DG: I see.  Okay, well thanks for showing me your rooms and for
your time.  I really appreciate . .
Rich: Wait, before you go, is it too late to add something?
DG: No, go right ahead.
Rich: I have another positive thing.  We get to be
interviewed.  We will soon be elevated to the status of gods above
men, or at least B-list campus celebrities.  The Danny Bonaduce
and David Cassidy of Swat perhaps.

*****

* US District Judge Richard Kopf of Lincoln Nebraska ruled on Wednesday
that the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act is unconstitutional since it
does not include an exception for a woman’s health. Kopf’s ruling marks
the conclusion of three simultaneous court challenges to the Act that
had prevented it from ever being enforced. Judge Phyllis Hamilton in
San Francisco and Judge Richard Casey in New York made similar rulings
earlier this year. It is expected that the set of three rulings will be
appealed to the US Supreme Court.

* Coalition aircraft struck a building believed to be used by followers
of terrorist mastermind Abu Musab al-Zarqawi in northern Falluja early
Thursday. No immediate reports of casualties were available, but
according to the Coalition Press Information Center, three of
al-Zarqawi’s associates were to be in the area at the time of the
strike. Al-Zarqawi is a Jordanian-born militant who US officials
believe has close ties to al Qaeda and suspect is responsible for the
beheadings of two hostages in Iraq. Thursday marks the fourth
consecutive day of clashes and air strikes in Falluja.

* A powerful explosion rocked Jakarta’s central business district early
Thursday morning, damaging the Australian Embassy and killing at least
three people. Witnesses reported hearing the blast as far as 10
kilometers away. A similar blast in the same area of Jakarta last year
killed 12, and, in 2002, terrorists struck on the nearby island of Bali
killing over 200 people. Both previous attacks have been linked to
Jemaah Islamiyah, a militant group seeking to establish a Islamic state
in Southeast Asia.

*****

Kitao Gallery Informational Meeting
SCCS Media Lounge, 4:30 p.m.

Exhibition Opening Reception for Adele Kubel
List Gallery, 5:00 p.m.

Hosting Perspective Students Mandatory Informational Meeting
Scheuer Room, 7:00 p.m.

Small Group Informational Meeting
SQU Small Room at the IC, 9:00 p.m.

SPIKE informational meeting
Kohlberg Coffee Bar, 9:00 p.m.

*****

SPORTS UPDATE

So far, only the weather has been able to defeat the Swarthmore Men’s
Soccer team.  After 45 minutes of torrential downpours that turned
the Moravian field into a minefield of puddles, the contest between the
Greyhounds and the Garnet Tide was postponed until October 4.  The
score was tied 1-1, with Ruben Heyman-Kantor ’06 getting the start in
goal and playing well, including saving a penalty kick.  Kirk
Ellison ’05 scored for the Garnet, which has 10 days to prepare for
their next match on Saturday, September 18 at Dickinson.

*****

Today:
There are no contests scheduled for today.

Tomorrow:
Volleyball vs. Dickinson (at Muhlenberg Tournament), 6:00 p.m.
Volleyball vs. FDU-Madison (at Muhlenberg Tournament), 8:00 p.m.

*****

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“Education is when you read the fine print. Experience is what you get
if you don’t.”
–Pete Seeger

*****

Interested in reporting or writing for the Gazette?
Got a news or sports tip for us?
Just want to tell us what you think?

Contact the staff at dailygazette at swarthmore dot edu

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