Volprint, a new system that charges students and faculty a small fee for printing, began operating on Aug. 12 amidst some controversy.
Anyone printing documents in any of the Office of Information Technology labs or using library printers is now charged 2 cents for each printed side of each page.
The system was instituted because previously students have printed carelessly, creating large amounts of waste, says the system’s Web site, http://volprint.com. Money was taken from funds intended for new technology because the budget was not able to cover all printing costs.
The bulk of wastful printing occured in OIT labs and the library.
“More than 9 million pages were printed last year,” said Barbara I. Dewey, dean of libraries. “Thousands of sheets were thrown away. We feel that [Volprint] will definitely cut down on that aspect of it.”
However, not everyone at UT is satisfied with the change. Second year graduate and civil engineering major Karthikeyan Ramaswamy said any additional fees affects international students because their budgets are limited. Even a small fee like this one could hurt, she said.
Others shared this view.
“I do not like it,” said Tiana J. Moon, a junior studying microbiology. “I don’t see why it is necessary. We pay the technology fee, why are we getting charged for this?”
But the technology fee covers the maintenance and purchase of technology and doesn’t cover consumables, such as paper, said representatives from OIT.
To subsidize the cost of printing, approximately $120,000 from the Tech fee went into the Volprint program, said Stan Pinkleton, executive director of OIT Tech Support. So a portion of the Tech fee is still going toward printing, he said.
Since its implementation, Volprint has been a success.
“As far as I can tell it is running smoothly,” said Kawanna M. Bright, research assistant professor and minorities librarian resident.
To print, users must login with their NetID and password. Next, the user must verify the print job after seeing how much it will cost. Users must pay for jobs even if printed accidentally.
The fee is automatically deducted from the user’s Volcard account. Accounts can be activated at the stadium’s Volcard office.
Printing fees can also be paid with copycards, but only at specific computers that accept them. However, the fee increases to 6 cents for each printed side of each page purchased with copycards. Because copy cards can be used by nonstudents, the price for printing is increased.
Faculty and staff use the same system and pay the same fees as students. The impact of those fees can be lessened by printing conservatively.
Program brochures and Volprint’s Web site list ways to decrease printing costs. For example, using compact, floppy and zip disks can cut costs, the Web site says.
In addition, students can take advantage of the 50 megabytes of internet space allotted to them. To access this space, students should select the Unix Home Area Icon on an OIT computer and it will take them directly to their account.
Volprint was selected after years of meetings and researching different options. At the end of last spring, a system testing period began. Deduction amounts, the system’s compatibility with different types of computers and other aspects were checked, Dewey said.
Students are encouraged to report any problems they have with the system.
