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il VOLUME 56 ISSUE 9 Photo h\ Josh Grubb Nina Lappebakken is just one of the hundredes of students on this campus alone who regularly enjoy digital music via MP3 player. While not all MP3's are illegally downloaded, universities across the country are still under pressure from the RIAA to crack down on this controversial issue. University absent from recent RIAA file sharing report By Miranda Byrd Staff Writer miramlajbyrd@yahoo.com Peer-to-peer. MP3, Lime Wire. Sound familiar? These twenty-first century terms are now being paired with the existing terms piracy, copyright and lawsuit. Reality is setting in for many college students across the country who now find themselves tangled in the legalities of sharing music without permission. In 2000, the rock group Metallica spoke out against the tile-sharing program Napster and its users, blaming the MP3 service for acting as a conduit for copyright infringement. This campaign turned into a movement within the recording industry to stop peer-to peer file sharing of music. The Recording Industry Association of America has filed suits against individuals, and since 2003 over 18,000 people have been taken to court for illegal downloading. Seven years after the initial uproar, the crack down continues on music pirates. Last week the RIAA began sending letters to college students at over three times the previous amount. According to RIAA Chairman and CEO Mitch Bainwol, “The theft of music remains unacceptably high and undermines the industry’s ability to invest in new music. This is especially the case on college campuses... We recognize that the nature of online music theft is changing, and we need to adjust our strategies accordingly.” As part of the battle against music piracy, RIAA released anew list of universities with the highest occurrence of illegal downloads. UWG was not on the list. “Our work with college administrators has yielded real progress, and we're grateful for the help of those who have worked closely with us,” says Bainwol. UWG has implemented network security to make it more difficult for students within the network to share music with one another. Programs like iTunes allow students to listen to other students’ music libraries, but prevent permanent file-swapping. How difficult is it to get caught stealing music? Not very, thanks to the cooperation of colleges across the country. For more information on UWG’s network security policies, visit the Information Technology Services website at www.westga.edu/~its. the West Georgian Public Safety office moves to larger space By Lauren Kania Staff Writer uwg24@yahoft.com Do you know where to go when you have to pay a parking ticket? Most students are unaware that Public Safety is no longer located over by the football practice field on Back Campus Drive. The department, which was located there for almost ten years, has moved and is now located in Row Hall. Row Hall was a residence hall up until a year ago. Since the development of Arbor View and the Suites, students no longer occupied the building. Public Safety had grown over the years and was in need of more space, which is why the move occurred. They now share the building with the department of Physical Education, with Public Safety located on the right when students enter through the front. The building accommodates the department of Public Safety very well with more office space for the officers and staff. The on campus investigators, which are currently located in Aycock Hall, will now be moved into Row to be closer to Public Safety, which will improve inter-department communication. Plwlo h\ Tracy Ammons Two students enjoy the arcade phenomenon Dance, Dance Revolution, one of the many activities available at last Friday’s Midterm Madness. Midterm weekend By Tracy Amnions Stuff Writer tamnionsl@nty.westga.edu We have reached that time of the semester yet again—those dreaded, flabbergasted midterms. Some of us are flat out sick of studying—if we see another flashcard or read one more page we are going to hurl. The Campus Center feels our pain, so they hosted Midterm Madness Friday night, March 9, where students could relax. In News Company turns death into diamonds. WWW. I Ml WI'STCiFORCiIAN.COM Madness brings fun, games, Bond unwind, and have some fun w ith friends. Students gathered in the Campus Center Ballroom and surrounding rooms from 6-10 p.m. to enjoy free food, entertainment, and games. Games included a Texas Hold’em tournament, a nine ball pool tournament, a Madden tournament, and two arcade style Dance, Dance Revolution pads. “My favorite activity at the event was the dance machine,” said UWG student Danielle Woods. “I In Entertainment Dark Adam ti ß and Sudoku! After 10 years on Back Campus Drive, the Public Safety office has relocated to a more centralized location in Row Hall. The area where Public Safety was previously located w ill be torn down for the new Health and Wellness Center Tom Mackel. chief of Public- Safety at the University of West Georgia, feels that the move is beneficial for students, “We're located in the center of campus and it's much easier for students to access”, he said. Chief Mackel also explained that anew system would be in place for In Sports Wolves baseball goes l-3 last week. receiving hangtags in the beginning of next school year. For the past two years, students have been required to come to Public Safety to get their hangtags the first week ol school. This often meant long lines in the August heat. The new system w ill allow students to register online for their hangtags and will then receive them in the mail by the time they come back to UWG. UWG junior Lindsey Flexer likes the saw other students enjoying it, so I decided to give it a try. Surprisingly, it was very fun.” There was also a group trivia game, equipped with game show style podiums and a buzzer system, w here students tested their knowledge. 1 n addition to the variety of games, the Campus Center hosted a screening of the movie “Casino Royale,” which has not yet been See Madness P‘W 2 In Opinion Solutions for a useless smoking ordinance. Wednesday, makch it 2007 idea, “I like the new system because when we come back in the fall, we will already have our tags and won’t have to worry about getting tickets.” Public Safety will be working to create more metered parking around their new location for students who need to come in for short amounts of time. For more information about Public Safety, contact 678-839-6000. West Georgia proves its got talent By Abby Bass Guest Writer Abh\V2 l4@aol.com “Come one, come all. and show off your talents!” This was the call out to UWG students, faculty, and staff a few weeks ago w hen the Third Annual Variety Show, hosted by the Student Activities Council, was announced. Many people answered the call and auditioned, leading to the selection of nine talented performances. The Variety Show nx>k place Tuesday. March 7th at 7 p.m. in the Campus Center Ballroom w ith overwhelming success. The show began w ith the introduction of the MC and famous comedian, Dan Ahdoot. Ahdoot was a finalist on Comedy Central's ‘Last Comic Standing,’ and also writes for the hit show ‘Crank Yankers.’ When the performers were not entertaining the audience, they were certainly given a laugh by Ahdoot’s funny antics and comedy. The full house was given a treat when the performances were led off by the only faculty/staff member to compete, Ed See Variety page 2 HL__ Photo by Abby Boss First place winner Brandon Duffie wins with the song “Love” by Music Soul Child.