As the first week of school comes to a close, many students have faced the formidable task of course-actioning into classes they were not able to register into last spring. With the registration process itself unable to ensure a modicum of fairness, the onus rests on professors to ensure this parity.

There are measures professors can and should take, particularly this November when setting up class registration. For instance, after courses fill up, professors should restrict classes to instructor permission only, to prevent students from having friends with earlier registration times “hold” classes until they’re able to switch.

Additionally, professors should shy away from arbitrary methods of letting students in classes. Letting students in at random may eliminate any bias in filling open class spots, but these procedures should involve bias. Preference should be given to upperclassmen, students within a certain major, and those who have shown enthusiasm in attempting to register — such as showing up to the first class or e-mailing the professor early on.

Because we have a registration process that basically amounts to a free-for-all, it’s up to the individual instructors to come up with these guidelines. With the beginning of another semester marked by haphazard course-adding, hopefully instructors will implement more uniform, fairer systems.

Leasing companies have a somewhat spotty reputation among students. With large segments of the real estate market around the University owned by several large leasing companies, and dramatic hikes in prices recently, it’s easy for students to have the perception that their landlords aren’t exactly their friends.

When moving in at the beginning of the school year, students experienced two starkly different treatments by two specific leasing companies. In both cases, apartment complexes owned by large leasing companies were not completed by their scheduled dates, leaving students without a place to live at the beginning of the school year. The companies’ treatment of students is so dramatically different that both deserve to be called out — one for its adept handling of the situation, and the other for its exceptionally poor job.

In the first case, 110 tenants were informed that the apartment complex they were planning on moving into, Eagle’s Landing, would not be completed on time. Collegiate Hall, the leasing company that owns Eagle’s Landing, informed residents of this in early July, and offered students alternative housing until the apartment complex was completed, as well as reimbursements on moving and utility connection costs. In this case, Collegiate Hall showed a great deal of respect and concern for its tenants.

Woodard Properties, on the other hand, faced the same situation when it was unable to complete its Camden Plaza apartment complex on time. However, Woodard displayed a complete lack of consideration for its residents. While tenants will get a $500 credit once they move in, Woodard offered residents no alternative housing — so students were left on their own scrambling to find a place to live. Residents were given two weeks notice that they would not be able to move into their apartments. With all this, $500 seems like little compensation, especially considering the fact the Camden Plaza apartments range up to $3,120 with 4 bedrooms.

In both cases, the rental companies were most likely absolved from any legal responsibility, due to “no fault” clauses in their contracts. However, the fact remains that these companies were, if not legally so, still ethically responsible for making sure their tenants had a place to live. When facing the inability to do so, Collegiate Hall went out of its way to accommodate its tenants, while Woodard Properties treated theirs with nothing but disrespect and indifference, and such radically different treatment of students deserves note.

The Virginia women’s volleyball team will play on a brand new court in Memorial Gymnasium this fall. With that new court comes the hope of a fresh start for a Cavalier team reeling from past disappointing seasons.

Virginia has not recorded a winning season since 2000. They were just 8-24 overall last year, winning only two conference games. With cautious optimism, the Cavaliers now are hoping they have the needed weapons to turn the tide and come up with a winning season.

“We will have more success than previous years,” Virginia head coach Melissa Aldrich Shelton said. “We have a lot of potential, but it really depends on our heart.”

In past years, the Cavaliers have put an extremely young squad on the court. This season they will benefit from the leadership of seven upperclassmen on their 15-player roster and will rely on the play of key veterans such as senior middle Shannon Boyle and senior libero Whitney Ashcraft.

Virginia also welcomes some fresh young talent, most notably freshman outside hitter Lindsay Orsco, who was first team All-Texas in her 2002 high school season. The Cavaliers will have to throw much of the leadership burden on the shoulders of freshmen Emily Kirkwood or Kathleen Branagh. Both of these players will vie for the starting setter position.

“This season will be interesting,” Ashcraft said. “We have a lot of first- years, but we also have a very deep roster.”

That roster includes a strong group of outside hitters. Junior Celeste Laborde will head up the left side, while senior Katie Synan, who racked up 176 kills, will solidify the right side and add power to Virginia’s game. Also look for senior Paige Davis, sophomore Kristin Chaney, and red-shirt sophomore Lisa Krowlikowski to make key contributions.

At middle, junior Alexis Geocaris and senior Shannon Boyle should be a reliable tandem. Both have the ability to hit over .400 and Boyle was fourth on the team last season with 2.23 kills per game.

Freshman Meghan O’Leary may lack some of the experience of her fellow rookies, but she might be the team’s best athlete. While at Episcopal High School in Baton Rouge, La., O’Leary starred in three sports — volleyball, basketball and softball — and was named the winner of the 2002 Wendy’s High School Heisman.

At the libero position, the defensive specialist of the team, the Cavaliers have no need to fret. Virginia boasts the top libero in the ACC, Ashcraft, who had an impressive 499 digs last season. The Cavaliers will look to her to be the foundation of a team filled with talented players who seem a tad uncertain about their capabilities.

“Everyone has to step up and do their job, not just certain individuals,” Ashcraft said. “If we can do that we’ll be an awesome team.”

Suffering from previous disappointments, Virginia has been careful not to indulge in overzealous expectations. Most of all they want to improve, take one game at a time and, as Ashcraft puts it, “we just want to win.”

Kevin McMullan became the final addition to Virginia’s baseball coaching staff, head coach Brian O’Connor announced Wednesday. McMullan will coordinate recruiting and serve as the top assistant coach, in addition to his daily duties as the new U.Va. hitting coach. He joins new pitching coach Karl Kuhn, signed on July 30, to complete the coaching staff for Virginia baseball.

A former catcher, McMullan comes to the University with extensive baseball experience. He has been a member of the baseball staff at an assortment of NCAA schools, including the Indiana University of Pennsylvania, where he graduated in 1990.Before coming to Virginia, he most recently served with the Atlanta Braves minor league system in 2002 as the team manager for the Danville Braves (A).

Adding another distinction to a growing list, quarterback Matt Schaub was one of 26 candidates announced for the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award watch list. The award is given annually to college football’s top senior quarterback. The extensive list for the award will be reduced to five by Oct. 22, and the winner will be announced on Dec. 4.

The honor is given in the name of NFL Hall of Famer and University of Louisville alum Johnny Unitas, an 18-year veteran of the NFL who is considered one of the greatest professional quarterbacks of all-time. Last year’s award winner, former USC quarterback Carson Palmer, continued in his senior year to win the Heisman Trophy and become the NFL’s top draft pick.

Schaub, after an impressive junior year where he was named ACC Player of the Year, is the top-rated returning quarterback in the nation and is also a Heisman Trophy candidate.

Last year’s season ended on a penalty kick with the Virginia men’s soccer team being stunned by William & Mary in the second round of the NCAA tournament. This season it’s a whole new squad taking the field at Kløckner Stadium Friday night.

The Cavaliers will face Seton Hall University Friday and St. Louis Sunday in the U.Va. Soccer Classic. Virginia is 42-14-3 all-time in home openers and very dominant anytime it’s on its home field.

Virginia opened last season with the Classic also, but against different opponents. There is one other significant change. Virginia has 14 new additions to a team that lost a great deal of talent and depth through graduation and the Major League Soccer draft from last season. Team chemistry and experience could be a problem for the Cavaliers early in the season.

“Our goal is to come together as quickly as possible, since we are a young team,” senior defender Matt Oliver said. “We’re improving every practice and every game.”

The loss of Jonathan Cole in the back, Jacob LeBlanc in the midfield and Alecko Eskandarian up front hurts Virginia at every position. A class of young guns and returning players will help to keep the Cavaliers from missing a step on the field.

“Matt Oliver, Hunter [Freeman], Kirk [Dinnall], Phil Long, Paul Johnson –we’re counting on these guys,” Virginia coach George Gelnovatch said.

A host of transfers to the Virginia program also will be of great service, especially Mike Littlefield. The sophomore forward played his freshman season at Coastal Carolina where he finished second on the team in goals and points.

“Littlefied did well. He’s still getting used to the team and the players,” Gelnovatch said. “He’s a proven goal-scorer and we’re counting on him to score goals.”

Littlefield will look to make an immediate impact on the field for Virginia but still has a lot to learn at the D-1 college level.

“The bottom line is I’m thrilled to be here and I’m grateful for the guidance George has provided,” Littlefield said.

Littlefield will be playing alongside Dinnall, Long and junior Chris Megaloudis on the front line, looking to bolster a traditionally potent offense.

This season will mark the season and home opener for the Cavaliers, who face two solid teams especially St. Louis which is ranked No. 11 in preseason polls. The rest of the year does not get any easier for Virginia as the team faces off against the likes of Wake Forest, UCLA and Clemson.

“Five of our first six [games] are against top-20 teams,” Gelnovatch said. “It’s a very tough schedule, as it always is, but that makes us better in the end.”

Leadership is one aspect that must be accounted for on a squad with 10 freshmen and three transfers, especially with strong leader Cole’s departure.

“We’re looking to guys like Matt [Oliver] and Paul [Johnson] who are clearly our leaders,” Littlefield said.

The Cavaliers will look to improve on their 15-7 record of a year ago with the weekend’s tournament as a spring board into the regular season. Whether or not the spring board catapults them into a pool of success or struggle rests on the players’ ability to get acquainted and carry that chemistry onto the field.

The Virginia football season kicks off Saturday as the Cavaliers play host to the Duke Blue Devils. Game time is set for 7 p.m. at Scott Stadium.

Since Virginia’s throttling of West Virginia in the Continental Tire Bowl, the Cavalier faithful have pointed to Saturday’s game as the first step in what they hope to be one of the greatest seasons ever. Unfortunately, the Cavaliers will have to overcome a bit of history to bring those hopes to fruition.

Virginia has lost three straight season openers, including two straight at home. In 2000, the Cavaliers sprinted to a 21-0 halftime lead before falling to BYU in overtime. In 2001, senior star Antoine Womack suffered a severe leg injury in Virginia’s loss to Wisconsin. Last year, Marques Hagans fumbled the ball on the Colorado State one yardline on the last play of the game, squandering Virginia’s hopes for a comeback win.

“Everyone knows it’s there,” quarterback Matt Schaub said of the opening-day losing streak. “It’s not something we like to talk about.”

Thankfully, this year’s Virginia team is stronger than any of the past three. Duke should not prove as tough of a test as Virginia’s previous season openers. Still, no one in the Virginia camp is taking the Blue Devils lightly.

“They’re a tough team,” Schaub said. “They’re going to be a tough challenge to open the season. They’re not going to quit. They’re going to keep fighting.”

Duke returns 22 starters including specialists from last year’s team, more than any team in the country. Though the Devils went only 2-10, they lost five games by a total of 17 points, including a 27-22 loss to Virginia at Wallace Wade Stadium.

“They’ve got a lot of returning players and we’re just going to have to be ready to play,” Schaub said.

Duke is led by the two-headed rushing attack of Chris Douglas and Alex Wade. Together, they comprise the top returning rushing duo in the ACC. Wade, a 250-pound fullback, ran for 979 yards last season. Douglas, the speedy halfback, ran for 640 yards. The two should provide a significant test for a Cavalier defense that let everyone run over it last season.

“Douglas and Wade are very good backs,” junior defensive end Chris Canty said. “And we’re looking forward to that challenge. We’ll get a good test early in the season.”

Blocking for Wade and Douglas will be an offensive line comprised of four 300-pounders. The shrimp of the group, center Luke Bayer, weighs in at 290 pounds. In comparison, Virginia’s starting left tackle, D’Brickashaw Ferguson, weighs in at 265.

“We’re using the same game plan as last year,” sophomore defensive lineman Kwakou Robinson said. “We have to move those big guys out of the way.”

Carl Franks is in his fifth year as head coach for the Devils and is squarely on the hot seat. Duke has lost 25 conference games in a row, and one professional news writer posited that Franks will lose his job if they don’t break through this season.

The past suggests he might have a good chance this weekend. Virginia allowed Franks his first college victory, falling 24-17 to the Devils in 1999. Duke also beat Virginia in 1994, the last time it took down a ranked opponent.

Virginia has the talent, coaching and experience to be a great team, and Saturday will allow them to begin to prove whether they are worthy of that title.

The first week of classes can be hectic enough, but for students whose computers have been infected by the “blaster” worm or other computer viruses, functioning without bedroom access to ISIS or AOL Instant Messenger has become increasingly frustrating.

As of yesterday afternoon, ITC had found 340 infected computers in dorm areas and 903 throughout rest of the University.

These latest numbers represent the first noticeable decrease in compromised computers since the outbreak of the blaster worm, which affects many newer versions of Windows, including 2000 and XP, on Aug. 11.

“We’ve had a record number of help desk calls,” said Mark Smith, manager of the ITC help desk and desktop support, who noted that the previous monthly call record was reached in nearly one week.

In a room at their Astronomy Building office, several ITC representatives have been working full-time to allay damage from the two related worms and seven currently-detected viruses.

“This is really an ad-hoc group,” said Terry Lockard, ITC director of computer support services. “It’s a war room.”

Each day, the staff examines the latest count of compromised computers and takes the necessary actions, including software updates on the ITC Web site and isolating blocked students by user ID, then sending them e-mail notification messages. In addition, ITC has made various outreach efforts to students, informing many on move-in day by staffing tables and providing handouts.

“It’s been very, very stressful,” Lockard said. “We’ve tried to get the word out so students can help themselves.”

For second-year College student Kristen Bailey, life with an infected computer has been inconvenient.

“I’ve been having to use friends’ computers and going to computer labs,” said Bailey, whose computer was infected on move-in day. “I haven’t been able to communicate with anyone for a week. They probably think I’m dead or something.”

Because ITC quarantines computers immediately following contraction of a worm, students are left with only limited access to University Web sites, at which point ITC recommends that the user reinstall the computer’s operating system.

While unfortunate for computer users, the infected computers have widened the market for professional and even amateur repair services. Justin Belcher, a second-year Engineering student, has advertised a blaster worm solution that allows users to retain files on their hard drives.

Through a roughly five-hour process, Belcher uses a series of virus updates, patches and original software to remove the worm for a fee of $80.

“A couple of my guy friends came to me complaining that they didn’t want to reformat their hard drive,” Belcher said. “It took me pretty much all of Monday to develop the process.”

After hanging fliers throughout Grounds on Tuesday, Belcher estimates that he has fixed about 10 computers, all successfully.

“Everybody that I’ve helped is up and running perfectly,” he said.

Local agencies also have seen an increase in business. Michael Burton, who runs a business called the Computer Man, charges an hourly rate of $90 for worm removal. Located on Blenheim Road, Burton goes to his customers and says he can usually fix the problem in under an hour.

“It’s a nasty worm, but the damage [to the hard drive] isn’t terrible,” Burton said. “It prevents Internet connections so you can’t get on to update.”

Echoed by ITC and other computing services, Burton emphasized three recommendations to avoid worms: keep anti-virus protection up to date, run all Microsoft updates, especially critical updates and run a firewall.

As for viruses, ITC Webmaster Keith Donnelly advises, “If the attachment just looks funny, don’t click on it.”

Picture this: An online music service where music plays instantly without downloading time, song information is always accurate, files are always of good quality and personal music libraries can be pulled up on any computer.

Does it sound too good to be true? Maybe not — it’s Rhapsody, the largest legitimate online music service. There is one caveat — the service costs $10 a month, plus a per-track fee to burn songs to compact discs.

As record companies campaign to stop unauthorized distribution of copyrighted music, they are relying on a growing number of for-pay online music services to turn the tables on networks that allow illegal file-sharing by providing better services that consumers are willing to purchase.

The Recording Industry Association of America said the alternatives currently available should be enough to keep people away from illegal file-sharing services.

“There’s a whole host of exciting options,” RIAA Spokesperson Jonathan Lamy said. “In our minds, there’s no excuse for people to steal music illegally when they have so many legitimate alternatives.”

Others say legal online music services still have work to do in order to attract customers. Rhapsody offers 25,000 albums, but the selection is limited by artists, such as the Dave Matthews Band and Puff Daddy, that do not give permission for their work to be included.

Independent music also will suffer if for-pay programs grow in popularity, according to the Webmasters Alliance, a firm that represents online radio services. It contends that the RIAA is stifling independent music, both in the arena of online radio and through its support of services such as Rhapsody, which provides music only from record labels.

“The bottom line is that they’re trying to take every single source of independent music and choke it off,” Webmasters Alliance President Ann Gabriel said. “They want to promote their own member-level music.”

Despite difficulties in drawing people to paid services they can receive elsewhere for free, the file-swapping phenomenon has sufficiently changed the media landscape so that record companies must find a way to adapt, Computer Science Prof. Alfred Weaver said.

“It becomes a question of economics,” Weaver said. “Prices are falling. Record publishers are understandably worried. The question is — can they price this art in a new and realistic way?”

It will take several years for a price tag on online music to stabilize, Weaver estimated.

In the meantime, recording industry executives are working on other alternatives, particularly for college students, according to Lamy.

“Colleges are where the online piracy problem is the worst,” Lamy said. “Students have more time than money, and they have ready access to high-speed Internet.”

Higher education administrators and entertainment executives formed a committee over a year ago to address illegal file-sharing on university campuses.

“Downloading music or motion pictures can interfere with normal educational activities,” said Shelton Steinbach, general counsel for the American Council on Education and a member of the committee.

In its search for alternatives, the committee is exploring the possibility of providing students free or reduced-price music through university networks, with the price hidden in student activity fees.

University officials said they worry about diverted staff time and have remained cautious about the idea.

“It needs to be discussed more,” said Shirley Payne, ITC director for security coordination and internal relations. “We really are hoping that companies like Microsoft and Apple will jump in and fill the gap.”

That is what Rhapsody and other legal music services — such as Press Play and Apple iTunes — are trying to do.

“It may be hard to imagine, but the fees charged by these services are going to seem worth it,” Rhapsody’s lead product manager Evan Krasts said.

Legal music services rapidly are improving, working to provide music from all artists and expand to different media, Krasts said.

Still, Rhapsody only has subscribers in the tens of thousands, as compared to Kazaa’s millions of users.

Third-year College student Pete Croft said for-pay music services will never be able to count him as a subscriber.

“There’s always another way to get music,” Croft said.

An unexpected rise in enrollment among first years this year has spawned a housing shortage and may cause additional problems for the University’s perennially understaffed academic departments.

Officials had hoped to have 3,040 first years enrolled at this point in the year, but the number was 3,122 as of yesterday, according to Director of Institutional Studies George Stovall.

“Ultimately it’ll get down below 3,100,” Stovall said. “My best guess is that it’ll be 3,090 by the time all is said and done.”

University Spokesperson Carol Wood said officials are relatively certain this year’s higher enrollment is “just a one-year blip.”

Admission Dean John Blackburn “expected more to drop out in the summer than dropped out this summer,” she said.

According to Chief Housing Officer Mark Doherty, there currently are 28 first-year males in tripled rooms in the Alderman Road dormitory suites, as well as 12 males housed in study lounges in Cauthen and Woody Houses. A total of 16 female students are being housed in Cauthen and Woody lounges. Those students all are receiving a pro-rated discount on their rent.

Additionally, 162 first-year students are being housed in Hereford College presently, which is about 40 more than last year, Doherty said.

A feasibility study for the replacement of the deteriorating Alderman Road dorms built in the 1960s recently was completed, but construction is unlikely to start on those new buildings anytime soon, Doherty said.

“If it’s going to begin, it would likely begin in the next three or four years and would probably take 10 to 12 years to complete,” he said. “What we’d need to do would be to insure that we build new housing first so that we could then demolish some of the existing buildings.”

As a result, a first-year housing shortage is likely to become the norm in the coming years, although new language house spaces might help to somewhat alleviate the problem, Doherty said.

“For first-year students we will continue to have something of a crunch until we bring on additional first-year facilities,” he said. “There has been some very preliminary discussion about the possibility of first-year students in appropriate numbers being allowed to apply for residency in language houses.”

Politics Dept. Chair Robert Fatton, Jr. said it is not clear yet whether the additional first-year students will create a crisis situation for course enrollment in his department, which currently has over 700 majors.

“It’s not clear, but what is clear is that virtually all the courses offered at the undergraduate level are full,” Fatton said. “If there is a real problem we will see it next week when most students have settled into their classes and dropped from previous classes.”

Wood said the University’s future enrollment plans, adopted in April by the Board of Visitors, call for minimal undergraduate growth.

“We’ll continue on our slow growth plan,” she said. “That would be in the 50 [new students per year] range.”