If any of the 1,500 or so delegates to the 24th annual meeting of the council--which includes some of the biggest names in the communications business in the world--happens to have to have left his or her laptop at home--t's not a problem. The Boeing Corporation has set up 28 computers on the main floor of the conference center of the Hilton Hawaiian Village, and each an every one is connected to the Internet through a broadband T1 circuit.

And why wouldn't it be? Broadband communications, via satellite and even submerged cable are precisely what the high tech delegates are discussing. And FLAG Telecom has set up an additional 10 computers on the second mezzanine floor of the conference, also hooked into the T1 line. And the pressroom has a few more for the pesky people of the Fourth Estate. All this was up and running Saturday, before the several hundred corporations attending set up their exhibit booths Sunday, to show off the latest in high tech communications.

But if the delegates have remembered their computers, they're even luckier. The sprawling Hilton complex of hotels, swimming pools, bars and shopping areas is equipped for wireless network communication.

According to Paul Lawler, PTC's IT expert, that means delegates who slip the little 802.11b cards into the sides of their laptops can communicate from any spot in the convention to any other plus the internet, at any time.

"They can even do it from the pool," Lawler said.

But they; wouldn't do that, not if it meant missing some of the seminars which, of course, are on how to communicate.

"Me, I'm here to network," said young Kevin Newton, a graduate student at the University of Hawaii.

That's the frank explanation of at least one of the 50-or-so mostly student volunteers who are giving up of their time, without pay, to help the 24th annual conference of the Pacific Telecommunications Council (PTC) run smoothly.

And if networking is what they are after, the students have quite a number of fields where it will be useful.

Yun Bin Lsu, for instance, is a telecommunications major and the five days she spends helping the masters of her field will earn her a special certificate at the University of Hawaii. Newton is studying cultural communications and with 1,500 or so delegates from about 55 countries, he figures there will be enough cross cultural communications at the Hilton Hawaiian village to reward the five days he will have to double studies with working at the complex.

Neal Riel, head of volunteers for the PTC said some of the volunteers are coming from as far away as Australia and Sweden, mostly to rub elbows with the best in the business. At least two, he said, are diplomacy students, who should get some practice with delegates--and friendly competitors--from some 700 companies. Sometimes that takes diplomacy.

That, however, is not the reason why twin 19-year old Chaminade University students Norraine K. and Nina Riel volunteered.

"We are here," said Norraine, "to help our brother."