As the "polls" virtually opened yesterday, many more students than anticipated took the opportunity to vote all at once and forced the server to go down for a couple of hours, but other students have decided not to exercise their vote despite the ease of doing so.
The server went down "for an hour or two" Kiewit consultant Michael Pryor '98 said.
Pryor said the secure server is something the systems administrators at Kiewit had not used much.
"There are bound to be bugs and things we didn't foresee when you use something for the first time," he said.
Pryor said the systems administrators raised the maximum number of connections available after students connect to the server.
Several students said they have made an effort to inform themselves about the Assembly candidates so they could vote intelligently in the election.
Christine Chung '99 said she voted yesterday afternoon.
She said she read articles about the candidates and talked to people who heard the candidates speak.
Chung said she was "kind of disappointed" because upperclassmen told her the Assembly "didn't affect their lives, so they didn't have to pay attention."
She said upperclassmen told her the elections were just a yearly routine and they had no motivation to find out about the candidates.
"That made me wonder if I should spend the time researching something that won't affect me," she said.
But Stephen Jackett '99 did not wonder if he was wasting his time.
Jackett said he is going to vote in the election because "every individual vote can make a difference."
Jackett, who attended Monday night's debate in the Fayerweathers, said he attended with an open mind to get to know the candidates.
Other students have not taken the same care to research candidates.
Brian Amsbary '98 said he "probably will vote" in the elections.
He said he hasn't gone to hear the candidates speak, he has only seen their posters.
"The best ads are definitely for Carlos [Osorio '99] and Corby [Kelly '99]," Amsbary said.
He said a project he would like to see the Assembly continue with is the on-line course guide, but "all the candidates are talking about it, so it won't influence my decision."
Other students said they will vote for more personal reasons.
Dan Perkins '97 said he plans on voting because he knows presidential candidate Jon Heavey '97 well and feels "he will listen to the things I tell him and he's going to look out for my best interest."
Some students remained undecided about whether they will vote.
Peter Lee '98 said yesterday he had not yet decided if he would vote.
"The candidates all seem to be the same," he said. "No one candidate really stands out."
Voter apathy seemed high among seniors.
Kimberlee Cleaveland '96 said she probably will not vote because she is a senior.
Cleaveland said in the past she has voted based on the people she knew but "didn't feel like it mattered much," now.
"I don't know how much the SA can affect" the lives of students, she said.
But even some freshmen said they did not see how the Assembly affects their lives.
Barbara Loomis '99 said she is not going to vote in the Assembly elections.
"A lot of the things they promise are impossible," Loomis said. "Half of them are feasible, the other half aren't going to happen."
She said the candidates are naive to think some of their ideas could become reality.
Voting will end at 8 p.m. tonight. Students can vote over the Internet by accessing a ballot on the World Wide Web at the address: http://www.dartmouth.edu/projects/elections until that time.
