University of Limerick Computer Society
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| Skynet (UL Comp Soc) | |
| Image:Sharkey.skynet.jpg | |
| Type | University Computer Society |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1992 |
| Founder | John Quinn |
| Headquarters | ULSU, Limerick, Ireland |
| Website | http://www.skynet.ie/ |
The University of Limerick Computer Society (Skynet) in its most recent incarnation arose from the decision of student John Quinn to install Linux on his computer, beginning between 1992 and 1994, and give access to other students. These students were from both computing and non-computing disciplines. The University of Limerick Information Technology Department (ITD) were requested to allow the computer access to the Internet to allow Quinn's computer, named after the Skynet computer network from the Terminator films, to run services such as webserving. This exposed the users to new technologies such as the Apache HTTP Server. Many of these students went on to form the Irish Linux Users Group (ILUG).
When it became clear that a strategy would be required for when Quinn graduated (taking his computer with him), the Students Union was approached to re-register the dormant Computer Society. Funding obtained from the Students Union assisted in procuring replacement equipment and in running tutorials for new members.
For a number of years the equipment migrated between student bedrooms and donated space in college labs. One infamous incident occurred when an administrator issued a "shutdown" command to the main server but did not specify a "restart". The problem was the only way to restart it was to unlock the room of the student where the server actually resided, a student who was nowhere to be found. Thankfully he did show up eventually and the server returned to service. With the completion of the Student Centre, the Society's equipment now has a (more or less) permanent home in the UL Students' Union building.
The Society's governance structure leaves the system administrators free to administer the machines, as the early admins feared the election by popular vote of an inexperienced president would create difficulties in keeping the servers operational. It is this separation that causes the common confusion over the name of the Society. The University of Limerick Computer Society is the official name and encompasses both the social/events side of the Society and the computing resources. Skynet refers only to the computing resources. However, Skynet is commonly used in place of the official name.
The Computer Society now owns several machines operating in various roles, many of them donated over the years by the University and by private companies. Recently, improved funding has allowed the purchase of new equipment to ensure the stability of Skynet.
