Often when people say that they want to use Internet2, they mean that they want to use one of the high-speed nation-wide networks connecting Internet2 member sites.

UNLV connects to other Internet2 sites automatically via its links the Advanced Hybrid Optical and Packet Network provided by Internet2. (Access to high bandwidth is provided whenever a user at one Internet2 site addresses a resource at another Internet2 site.)

UNLV participates in Internet2 to allow our high-speed connectivity between our campus and other Internet2 sites to facilitate research and collaborative work that would not be possible at the transmission rates allowed by the commodities Internet. We also want to participate in the development of the next generation of Internet technology.

You have been using the high-speed network whenever you connect to any of the over 320 universities and additional government agencies that are members of Internet2. Your use of these high-speed networks is automatic. You don't need to do anything different than you do to use the commodities Internet. In fact, you have no influence over how your transmissions are routed.

There is a belief in some quarters that there are places on the Internet that can only be reached via Internet2. This belief is unfounded. Sites on the Internet are identified by IP numbers or addresses. These sites can usually be reached by many different routes. When you access Web or other resources at, say, Indiana University from the UNLV campus you connect via the high-speed backbone. When you connect to the same site through your cable modem at home, you connect through the lower-speed commodities network.

The Internet2 Web site contains lists of resources developed for various constituencies.

If you have a research or education application requiring the use of a high-performance network connection, please contact Bob Thorson, Senior Systems Analyst, ext 895-1493, bob.thorson@unlv.edu to find out more about the opportunities for using Internet2 networks.