Laptop Ban

Let me start with a question. Can you relate our college with something? Well I like the comparison with a graveyard. Don't get me wrong. Our college is not situated on top of a graveyard or something though there are zombies walking and smoking around, you know who I mean. So back to the graveyard. Why a graveyard?
Its not a graveyard of dead bodies, no. But its a graveyard of incidents, promises, student identity, student rights and student dignity. That's what it is. These are all  dead here.
Now I'd like to unearth one such "dead" incident which occurred sometime ago.
                                            The Laptop's death!

  

Of course we don't use our laptops like this dude. But Laptops are indispensable objects in our life. Just like mobile phones. They are small, robust, they add the style factor, and most of them are not sluggish like our college 'high-end' PCs. 

Scenario:

Imagine what would you have done about some abstract/project you have to submit an hour from now without a your personalised laptop?

You go to the CC. Switch on a system. "Damn man its Linux" (btw Linux rox). Now you need to edit some content in your flash drive. 

Freak:"Dude where are the files in my pen drive?"

Geek:"You need to mount it man."

Freak: "Mount? Wassat??" *Scene Contra*

Lesson learnt: We all love to work in our personalised zones.

Laptop has become our identity and our best buddy. What's the point of having 2Mbps Wi-Fi if no one had a laptop. For kicks?

So this small buddy of ours gives us so much power in our finger tips, flexibility so who in their right minds would want to separate our dearest buddy from us?

And in a society which is at its verge of implementing OLPC in schools we have a Laptop Ban in a technical college?? Are we evolving backwards?

Story:

Not so long ago, in the age of tyranny of Hitler a.k.a Smokey, an innocent guy was using his lappy during a free period. It was a free period and as all free periods are devoid of silence or in other words from some eminent people in our college, the class was a market ! Smokey supposedly was around went into the market and saw our hero with his laptop.

Smokey: Who gave you permission to use a laptop in MY college?

Hero: brrrrr...

Somkey: What great Doctrine you want to gain by using laptop in class? Cant you read your text books??

Hero: brr....

Smokey: What? How much electricity is being wasted, do you have any idea? How much Wi-Fi is being sucked up? How much cash can go into my pocket if you all tech idiots stopped bringing this stupid box to college, do you have any idea??

Hero: bbrrrr...

Smokey: SHUT UP!!

Hero: .............

*Scene DPK*

The rest as we all know is the infamous laptop rule: no student is allowed to use his/her laptop inside college premises without a permission from the Headless guy of the department and the Principal. The incident was an instant talk all over the college. Refinement after refinement, which our teachers are experts in doing (refining a simple story into an action packed 2 hr bollywood movie), when the story was re-told our hero was supposedly watching a movie in the class. 

Oh! by the way our TECHIP aided college also has laptops. Now that's a relief. So how do we get to use this "boon"? Go request it via the class advisor (yea the one who rings your parents) to the college office. So after some days you get the permission to use the thing* (* conditions apply).

Woah! Its a beast man. Core duo, 256MB RAM (!!), 80GB HDD.(seriously?)

The instant access to Internet, the REAL source of knowledge (which is forbidden by our syllabus in the first place) is being deprived to us by this rule.

When even the supreme court is digitalising, our college gets a Laptop Ban. And we dream about competing with the IITs. 

Where do you see the "technical excellence" that we are supposed to be receiving here.

After two days of cursing each other, the teachers, Smokey and his great grandfathers, this incident dies as we fall busy into the rat race that we call life. Did we do anything about it. Who cares man? Wait we forgot the college senate. We could have represented the issue through the official "management body" of the college in front of the teachers. Man, the next senate meeting is after the next senate election. Perfect! Senate meetings are like Arts and Sports. Once in an academic year.

So our Hero licks Smokey's feet and also all the feet of other teachers in our college, gets his laptop back after a week or so. Did any senate/student body help our Hero? (Man he is the hero, he doesn't need help ) Its his problem and we don't want to get wet in it, right?

So what do we get an idea about ourselves from this incident?

We are all Heroes in our college. But when the 'smoke' blows at your face our feet trembles. Why? 

Think about it...

Until then lets all stand in queues for the autographs of our HODs and teacher. Its a rare opportunity fellows. We are blessed.