Everyone knows that illegally downloading music is, well, illegal.

NIU, along with other universities, gladly took initiative to stop the so-called epidemic of unlawful music downloading with the implementation of Ruckus.

The problem is obvious: too much illegal downloading takes place, especially with people in our generation. Regardless of your opinion on whether people should be charged for music, the fact is that it is illegal to pirate music.

What’s the solution to this obviously pertinent problem? You could use Ruckus to download all of your music. Granted, you can’t put the music on your iPod, but it is free and therefore keeps you out of trouble.

Anyone who has used Ruckus knows why it was so popular at NIU. It offered a wide selection of music in an easy-to-navigate way. Best of all, the music was completely free. Whether or not the music was really free involves a lot of investigating. Perhaps the music is owed to us after large amounts of money were paid toward our student fees.

Unfortunately though, the site was shut down last week. The only way you would know this is by going to their Web site where you would be greeted by the words “Unfortunately the Ruckus service will no longer be provided. Thanks.”

The posters promoting Ruckus still adorn the walls of the residence halls. Word-of-mouth seems to have been an effective method of getting this information out there. This past week alone, I heard numerous people complaining about Ruckus shutting down and uncertainty surrounding their future music downloading endeavors.

Now the only legal ways to download music require money, a resource most college students don’t have a surplus of. Subscription services like Rhapsody and 99-cent stores like iTunes end up costing a lot in the end.

Now that the ability to download free, legal music is no longer offered for college students at NIU, what leverage does the university have to promote legal downloading activity?

What does this mean for the average college student who refuses to break the law when it comes to downloading music?

Sadly, I guess you’re out of luck; time to break out your wallet.