Spring Break
Printing, copying at library to be payable with WhoCash
News | 12/4/07
Posted online at 10:54 PM EST on 12/3/07
/ Last updated at 1:00 PM EST on 12/3/07
Fees for printers and copy machines in the Farber library will be payable by WhoCash after next February break, an official said.
Currently, patrons need to purchase printing cards from Conway in order to use the vending machines. After February break, patrons will pay for printing and copying by swiping their ID cards through new card-reading stations that will replace the old machines, Library and Technology Services assistant director for student technical services Anne Livermore said. To replace the old card reading stations with the new ones, LTS will have to shut down public printing over the break, Livermore stated.
Each time a user wishes to add value to the card using the current card-reading stations, the machine erases the old value and rewrites the card- with the new value, Livermore said, explaining that this process causes errors regarding the amount of money that should be on the card.
Lisa Wiecki, LTS assistant director for public services and outreach, said the change came in response to student wishes: "We heard students say that they'd really love to print or photocopy with WhoCash."
Livermore explained that the change is possible because a type of software known as a billing gateway can connect the WhoCash system with the campus printing system. LTS will use the software made by the same company, Pharos Uniprint, from which Conway purchased the printing software for the printer and copying system for its WhoCash system. Livermore said that LTS has worked on this issue for a year, as negotiating various technical issues and find the correct software took a long time.
She said LTS is working with the Campus Card Office to ensure that all deductions from students' WhoCash accounts are routed to the correct destination, such as Aramark for food purchases and Conway for print jobs.
Livermore said that LTS is continuing to work on a plan to make it possible for students to add money to their WhoCash accounts using their credit cards online, with the aim of introducing that service close to the launching of the printing payment system. "You can't very well have WhoCash printing and not be able to replenish your WhoCash online with a credit card 24/7," she said.
She said she could not yet provide details on those plans because negotiations with the involved companies were still ongoing.
Elif Gur '08, who uses the copy machines in the Goldfarb Library, viewed the prospective change positively: "I think it would be more convenient because I sometimes don't have enough cash on me to use the photocopy machine, so I think it's a good idea."
Currently, patrons need to purchase printing cards from Conway in order to use the vending machines. After February break, patrons will pay for printing and copying by swiping their ID cards through new card-reading stations that will replace the old machines, Library and Technology Services assistant director for student technical services Anne Livermore said. To replace the old card reading stations with the new ones, LTS will have to shut down public printing over the break, Livermore stated.
Each time a user wishes to add value to the card using the current card-reading stations, the machine erases the old value and rewrites the card- with the new value, Livermore said, explaining that this process causes errors regarding the amount of money that should be on the card.
Lisa Wiecki, LTS assistant director for public services and outreach, said the change came in response to student wishes: "We heard students say that they'd really love to print or photocopy with WhoCash."
Livermore explained that the change is possible because a type of software known as a billing gateway can connect the WhoCash system with the campus printing system. LTS will use the software made by the same company, Pharos Uniprint, from which Conway purchased the printing software for the printer and copying system for its WhoCash system. Livermore said that LTS has worked on this issue for a year, as negotiating various technical issues and find the correct software took a long time.
She said LTS is working with the Campus Card Office to ensure that all deductions from students' WhoCash accounts are routed to the correct destination, such as Aramark for food purchases and Conway for print jobs.
Livermore said that LTS is continuing to work on a plan to make it possible for students to add money to their WhoCash accounts using their credit cards online, with the aim of introducing that service close to the launching of the printing payment system. "You can't very well have WhoCash printing and not be able to replenish your WhoCash online with a credit card 24/7," she said.
She said she could not yet provide details on those plans because negotiations with the involved companies were still ongoing.
Elif Gur '08, who uses the copy machines in the Goldfarb Library, viewed the prospective change positively: "I think it would be more convenient because I sometimes don't have enough cash on me to use the photocopy machine, so I think it's a good idea."
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