Campus News

Computer Services solves printing gluttony

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Computer Services takes measures to conserve paper and printer usage.
Rumors circulating that the computer lab will soon begin to charge for the paper printed in the lab have turned out to be just that: rumors. The lab has confirmed that they will not begin to charge students for printing, nor do they foresee a charge being placed in the near future. “If you think about it, you already pay for printing,” said Chief Technology Officer Walley Nehls. While the lab will not be charging, there will be some upcoming changes. The lab will begin to limit the amount of free paper that students are allowed per semester. As of now it is estimated that each student will be given 250-300 sheets of paper for free each semester, they will also take into account that some majors may require more sheets of paper than others. These limitations will be put into place due to the amount of over printing that has taken place in the past. In 2008 there were 10 students that printed over 10,000 sheets of paper each. In that same year there was roughly 4,500,000 pieces of paper either printed or copied. “Our goal is not to charge for printing, but, to limit the amount of free printing,” said Nehls. “We want to be good stewards of the resources God has given us. We would like to be able to offer color printing, and swipe card copying as well as the traditional black and white printing on campus.” Even though printing will still be free, these changes have been accepted with mixed feelings across the campus. “I think that limiting paper isn’t such a bad idea,” said senior Nichole Arnold. “People really do abuse the situation, but I think they are going to have a hard time monitoring that and enforcing it.” Others seem to have this same basic feeling regarding the changes. “I think it’s totally a good idea in theory, but it could become bad quickly, said sophomore Solomon Gibson. “The students that write a lot of paper are going to use more than 300 sheets a semester. That’s not counting syllabi and note. Wanting to save paper is a good idea, but 300 sheets will not be enough.” Other students feel completely different about this issue. “300 sheets is simply not enough,” said Junior Christy Brink. I understand that paper and ink is expensive, but it seems like our tuition money should be enough to cover it.” “I think that isn’t fair,” said sophomore Rachel Ford. “I understand some students may be abusing it and ruining it for everyone else, but that’s not everyone. A lot of professors are making us print out a bunch of articles to read instead of having a textbook, I’ve probably printed out about 1oo pages and that’s only for one class.” Until the changes are put into effect, no one really knows the total impact on students. However, students can be reassured that they will continue to receive free printouts up to a pre-determined limit.
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