If you're currently enrolled in college, you're probably beginning to realize just how much technology is going to play a factor in your learning experience. While it used to be that the most high-tech piece of equipment you had to send a child off to school with might be a typewriter, these days it's not even enough to simply have a desktop or laptop computer--you must have the kind with the right amount of memory, the right capacity for handling a workload, and even particular software. And for befuddled parents, it's not the demands of one's children--it's the requirements of the particular departments of study.

Whether you're attending Central Texas College in Killeen or Greensboro College in Greensboro, technology has never been so important when it comes to getting a good education. But how can you possibly stay connected if you don't have a powerful wireless internet connection outside of the common spaces on campus? There are a couple of different ways to try and solve that sort of problem. You could split the cost of getting broadband with roommates and then invest in a router so that you also have wireless internet at home, but that would only result in a signal that ends up lagging because everyone is online at once. Or you could resolve to always study on campus, but that can quickly lead to trouble and frustration, as sometimes there are loud groups in the library, and the stress of getting to off-campus housing late at night is enough to be a deterrent to many students, especially young women.

So what's the best way to stay connected to everything from the latest discussion you're participating in via Blackboard to your friends back at home? A solid and reliable connection to the internet, for sure. But Wi-Fi signals are often limited or unreliable, and there's no way that you can tote a broadband connection around with you. So what's a smart college student to do?

Turn towards the future of technology, of course. Because so many college students are not weirded out by the prospect of getting online and updating their Facebook via their smartphone or even checking out a website on someone's iPad, the notion of using a lot of equipment in nontraditional ways seems like the norm. So something like WiMax, which is wireless signal for your web surfing that relies on towers like a cell phone company rather than using the typical old paradigm of getting online, makes a lot more sense. In fact, if you really look at things, it makes a lot more sense than dealing with the unreliable nature of using the on-campus network, where there are so many different students all connected that it is a wonder that the entire thing doesn't crash on a regular basis.

But there's something more about WiMax. If you're living in a dorm and don't want your roommate eavesdropping when you have sensitive conversations about being homesick, you can tote your laptop elsewhere and still manage to Skype without interruption. And if you are trying to find deals on textbooks, it's a lot more pleasant to scour the internet from the privacy of your own room rather than in the one spot in the common area where you can actually pick up the wireless signal. In short, it just makes considerably more sense if you want to be a part of a bright future to get on board with the technology that's going to get everyone there, sooner rather than later.