Updated
10/23/07
What is Ruckus?
The Ruckus service provides KU students
with unlimited access to over three million songs and hundreds
of videos. With Ruckus, students can download and share music
with their friends and classmates in a fast and
user-friendly download environment designed exclusively for
college students.
Why Sign Up?
- Free unlimited download access
- Download full albums in minutes
- New music every week
- Create and share your playlists
- It's 100% Free
How much does Ruckus
cost?
ResNet Music Subscription:
FREE to all students.
Faculty and Staff Music Subscription:
$8.99 per month for unlimited music downloads.
Ruckus-To-Go: $20
per term for the ability to download Ruckus music to portable
player. Click here for more information
about Ruckus-To-Go.
How fast are the
downloads?
Because Ruckus places servers directly on
the KU ResNet network, campus residents will experience quick
downloads of their favorite songs.
Those users with Off-Campus or Faculty and
Staff music subscriptions download over the Internet from
Ruckus headquarters, so download times are dependent on the
speed of your internet connection.
Do I own the music
and movies I download?
No. Music files you download are protected
by digital rights management, so they're licensed to you for
30 days. A "Renew By" date in your music
library indicates when the license for each downloaded title
will expire. If you are logged into Ruckus and play an expired
song, the license will renew automatically. You can also manually
renew the license by right-clicking the title and selecting
"renew license." You can renew a track as many times
as you like as long as you are a Ruckus subscriber. If
you cancel Ruckus, you will no longer be able to renew your
licenses.
Students who opt for the Ruckus-To-Go plan
($20/term) may copy downloaded music to a compatible portable
player.
Can I purchase
music and movies through Ruckus?
Ruckus offers online music purchases through
Buy.com. Movies are not available for purchase via Ruckus.
Whenever you are given the option to download
a music track or album you are also given the option to buy
through Buy.com. If the track or album is available for purchase
through Buy.com then a Buy.com icon will appear. By selecting
that icon you will be taken directly to that track or album’s
page at Buy.com. A track purchased and downloaded through
Buy.com can be burned to CD.
What is Ruckus-To-Go?
For $20/term Ruckus-To-Go lets you move
downloaded Ruckus music from your PC to a portable player.
Once moved to the portable player, music will play for 30
days before it needs to be re-synched with your PC in order
to renew the license. Please note that in order to utilize
Ruckus-To-Go, you need a compatible, subscription-enabled,
portable player. Check
here for a current listing of supported players.
Ruckus-To-Go is available to any KU student,
staff or faculty member for $20/term.
Must
I be connected to the campus network to play downloaded music?
No. Downloaded music can be played on your
PC for 30 days (movies can be played for 5 days), regardless
of whether or not your PC is physically connected to the campus
network.
What are the
computer requirements?
Any computer with a browser can log into
Ruckus. However, only computers running Windows Vista, XP or 2000 are
able to download and play music. The specific computer requirements
are:
- A computer running Microsoft Windows Vista, Windows
XP SP1+ or Windows 2000 (player will not work
on a Mac unless the Mac is running Windows -- see note for Mac Users below for more info)
- 800 MHz or faster CPU
- 256 MB or greater RAM
- Windows Media Player 10 (WMP 9 for Windows
2000)
- Macromedia Flash Player 6.0 or higher
- Quicktime 6.5 for Ruckus video
- 10 MB free hard disk space for Ruckus
Player
- ~4 MB free hard disk space per song
- Windows Internet Explorer 6 (medium
security setting, javascript enabled, and allow cookies)
Mac Users: If you have an Intel-based Mac, visit http://www.apple.com/macosx/bootcamp to learn how you can run Windows on it. Another popular alternative is Parallels Software International Inc.'s Parallels Desktop, which allows you to run Windows within a window on your Mac.
How
do I create my Ruckus account?
Just go to www.ruckus.com
and follow the online steps. Please note that you'll need
to enter your KU email account ID and password to verify that
you're a KU student. Once verified, you create a separate
password used to log into the Ruckus service.
How
do I purchase a Faculty and Staff Music subscription or Ruckus-To-Go subscription?
Subscriptions are purchased directly from
Ruckus via a secure, online credit card transaction.
Can I download
Ruckus music to my laptop in Rohrbach Library (or
another academic building)?
You are able to download music to your personal computer from the library, but because Rohrbach Library and all academic
buildings are not on the ResNet network, files are transferred from Ruckus headquarters and not from the on-campus Ruckus server, which will result in slower download speeds.
I'm a Mac (or
Linux) user. Can I use Ruckus?
You are able to log into Ruckus, maintain
your Ruckus profile, watch Ruckus video and browse others' profiles and playlists.
However, because Ruckus music files utilize
Microsoft DRM (Digital Rights Management), you will not be
able to play them.
Note: If you have an Intel-based Mac, visit http://www.apple.com/macosx/bootcamp to learn how you can run Windows XP on it. Another popular alternative is Parallels Software International Inc.'s Parallels Desktop, which allows you to run Windows within a window on your Mac.
Will Ruckus-To-Go
work with my iPod?
No. iPods utilize the Fairplay DRM (Digital
Rights Management) which is not compatible with Ruckus music
files.
What's the file
format of the media I download from Ruckus?
Windows Media Audio (WMA).
How
is Ruckus legal?
In an effort to prevent piracy of
the copyrighted content distributed by its system, and in
an effort to enforce subscription rules, Ruckus employs Microsoft’s
Digital Rights Management (DRM). Ruckus content is encrypted
with DRM making it playable only when it has a valid license,
and only Ruckus users can acquire a valid license to play
the content by logging into the Ruckus service. Licensed content
can be played using any media player that supports DRM (Ruckus,
Windows Media Player, WinAmp, DRM supported portable players…etc). Once
a music license has been acquired it will last 30 days before
expiring and you must then re-acquire the license. Renewing
a license does not mean you have to re-download the content.
Is
Ruckus just for colleges and universities?
Yes. Ruckus Network is dedicated to providing
digital entertainment based on the interests, lifestyle and
preferences of college students. Only colleges and universities
can subscribe to Ruckus for their students - it is not available
for purchase by the general public.
Where
can I get help if I encounter any problems with the Ruckus
service?
The ResNet helpdesk (x31310) will try to
answer questions you may have. Ruckus also has online
support available to any Ruckus subscriber.
ResNet Disclaimer:
This FAQ reflects the Ruckus service deployed at Kutztown
University as accurately and completely as possible. We'll
do our best to keep the page up-to-date with any new offerings
or expanded services that Ruckus may add in the future.
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