iPhones Down Duke Network

Snazzy gadgets cause wireless problems, headaches for university IT staff
By Sam Biddle,  Newser Staff
Posted Jul 19, 2007 7:34 PM CDT
iPhones Down Duke Network
V-MODA VIBE Duo with Apple iPhone (Photo   (Associated Press)

Wireless access points on the Duke campus are going dead for 10 to 15 minutes at a time, and the university has 100 to 150 suspects: iPhones. An IT spokesman tells the News and Observer the devices are hammering the university's wireless network with up 18,000 connection requests per second, "the electronic equivalent of repeated knocking on the door."

The problem could turn from a summer annoyance to an academic disaster when thousands of students—and their iPhones—return to school in late August. Duke is working with Apple and Cisco, the AP reports, to track down the cause of the problem. (More iPhone stories.)

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