All NIU students can create their own Web site for free while attending NIU.

Elizabeth Leake, associate director of ITS customer support services, said the university provides as much as 15 megabytes of home directory space for students to use to create a Web site. Home directory space is used for storing assignments and saving photographs.

Students are cautioned that if they use all of their 15 MB of space to create a Web site, they will not have enough space left over to file assignments on the home directory, Leake said.

Five separate megabytes are available for students’ e-mail.

“Students are encouraged to keep an eye on the five-MB limit for mail,” Leake said. “Once their mailbox fills up, they may not receive important information from campus resources.”

Student-run Web sites are given web addresses that are associated with their Z-ID numbers.

The address for all student Web sites is www.students.niu.edu/~z123456; in his or her personal Web sites, students substitute their own Z-ID number at the end.

Some students, like junior biology major Geoff Watson, weren’t aware that NIU offers students space to create Web sites.

“I already knew that other schools offered space, but I didn’t know [NIU] did,” Watson said. “I think it would be fun to play around with, and it would be good if I need it for a class.”

All the instructions students need on how to activate their Web site accounts and construct a site are available on the ITS Web site, www.its.niu.edu.

The information can be found under the link “Web Services,” and from that students select the “Student” link for detailed instructions.

ITS also provides instructions for creating Web pages with Mozilla Composer, which is available in all ITS computing labs on campus.

While all NIU students are allowed to create their own site, they do not have total free reign. All Web sites must be in accordance with NIU’s acceptable use policy, which must be read and agreed upon before the student can open an account. Students who do not follow the policy will have their Web site taken down.

The amount of students currently using the web services offered by NIU are not tracked, Leake said.

“Developing a Web site is an educational experience and provides a personal communication tool for friends and family,” she said.

If students have any problems or further questions, they should contact ITS’ customer support center at 753-8100. Students living in the residence halls can call 753-6267 for assistance.