Printing in the Library – The Inside Scoop

UniPrint

Need to print that syllabus, those lecture notes, that paper?  You can do it in the Library!  We have two UniPrint stations (one on the First Floor, in the Pro Deo Room, and one on the Second Floor at the top of the stairs) for printing from computer workstations.

To cover the cost of paper and toner, the Library does charge a small fee for printing from our stations – 7 cents per page, debited from your Royal Card account.  However, to make sure you start the semester on the right foot, the Library subsidizes your first 200 prints each semester!

We get a lot of questions about printing, so here are a few details:

  • The Library subsidizes your first 200 prints in the Fall 2009 and Spring 2010 semesters.
  • If you’re taking an Intersession class, you’ll also get your first 50 prints subsidized in January.
  • Your subsidized prints should be available on your Royal Card starting with the first day of classes.
  • Unused subsidized prints “roll over” from Fall and Intersession into Spring… but any prints that are unused by the end of summer do not roll over into Fall 2010.
  • We do not subsidize photocopies.
  • When you send a print “job” to the UniPrint system, it will stay in the print queue for 2 hours – so make sure you go to the station and print it out before it expires.
  • If you are having trouble printing, ask for help at the Reference Desk!

Please remember to “think green” and print only what you need.  If you’re printing PowerPoint slides, think about printing 6 slides per page – you’ll save 5 sheets of paper.

P.S. You asked us for wireless printing- and we’re working on it! We’re testing it right now and will let you know when it’s ready to go.

Update: Wireless printing is now available for most PCs.  We’re still working on Macs and 64-bit Vista computers.

Taking Care of Your Stuff

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If you’ve been in the Library this semester, you have probably seen signs like the one above, perched on many of the group study tables and in the group study rooms. The reason for these signs is simple: we (your team of intrepid librarians) have noticed the tendency for students to leave their personal belongings — including laptops (both personal and those checked out from the Library), textbooks, cell phones, USB drives, RoyalCards, wallets and purses — unattended while working in the Library.

Now, on the one hand, this is a sign that you guys feel at home here at the Library, which is a very good thing. It means we’re doing our job, and the Library is fulfilling one of its many purposes, so yay for that!

However, last semester there was a very bad situation during finals where textbooks were being stolen when left unattended in the Library, and were presumably resold as used textbooks, for a profit. And it wasn’t just one or two textbooks — it was entire classes who were stuck, the day before they were due to take the final, without a textbook to study from. It was a bad, bad situation.

We also sometimes find Library laptops left completely after they’ve been used, and the poor student who checked out the laptop for 3 hours suddenly gets charged a huge overdue fine (around $70!) when the laptop finally gets checked back in at the end of the night. Now, imagine if you left your personal laptop unattended and then it were stolen — the expense would be even worse! (Not to mention all your lost files…)

And along the same lines, we also sometimes notice Library computers (PCs) which no longer have a student working at them, but are often left logged in, and sometimes even have websites with personal, sensitive information left on the screen for anyone to see, copy or steal. And I’m talking social security numbers, FAFSA information, and the like! Not good! With the risk of identity theft already being high in our digital world, I strongly encourage all of you to close out of browsers and documents, and then log out of the Library computers before walking away. By logging out, you make it so the next PC user can’t inadvertently stumble upon the website or file with your personal information during their time on the computer following yours, since all files and browser history are wiped out when you log out.

So, please, don’t leave your personal belongings unattended — or do so at your own risk. (And the risk is high!)

And remember to close browser windows and documents, and log out of Library PCs before walking away.

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This has been a Public Services Announcement provided by your Friendly Neighborhood Librarian.

:-)