Some students are complaining due to a series of problems with the Touchtone Registration Add/Drop Class Schedule (TRACS) system.

Suzanne Murphy, a junior marketing major, said she thought the TRACS system wasn’t as good an idea as expected.

“It took me six to seven times to get through, and then it kept cutting me off,” she said. “I called the help number, and they said the system was overloading and to stay on the line. I stayed on for about 20 minutes and then finally hung up to try again.”

Murphy also said that while the new system was less trouble than standing in lines, it was more of a hassle than she thought. “I would think it would really be bad for people calling long distance to have to keep calling back,” she said.

Senior marketing major John Molitor said the university should have better informed students about TRACS before it was put into full swing.

“They should have at least put a mailer out,” he said. “I got my schedule and then all of the sudden I had to use it for add/drop.”

Teresa Wallace, a sophomore pre-physical therapy major, said she thought it was a good system overall, but that it had its problems.

“I think it’s good. I mean, who wants to stand in line?” she said. “But, I think it’s a good system screwed up by NIU.”

Wallace said she also had disconnection problems, as well as problems with busy signals.

“I spent about three hours on the phone, and I think that’s the biggest problem,” she said. “There’s also a problem when you make one stupid mistake because you have to hang up and start over.

“I think they should also let you call up and be able to just find out if a class is open or closed,” she said.

Patricia White, a junior sociology major, said the system was fine during schedule completion, but added, “When add/drop started, it became very inconvenient because it kept cutting you off.”