Oswego State implemented a new system of printing, for some reason. Following semesters of moderately long lines at the QuickPrint in the library and the hundreds of empty computers in the residence halls, CTS decided enough was enough. The way we print on campus is simply too difficult and inconvenient, and something has to change.
There have been some mixed reviews for the new LakerPrint system, but the majority of them point out how unnecessarily complicated it is. Upon arriving to the library to print a document for the first time this semester, students were faced with the QuickPrint computers housing the new software. Instead of students downloading what they need, uploading it and clicking print, there was a new layer of complexity that students had to figure out. LakerPrint can have documents uploaded from any computer, which can be printed at any LakerPrint station. The documents are then held in the system for 48 hours so students can show up at a printer when they have the time and just press the button, in theory.
However, the system really is not that simple. Students can upload the documents they need, but simply “clicking print” is not accurate. Upon logging in, students are faced with maneuvering a mildly complex system of uploading. Once they learn how to upload, they probably would not have much difficulty repeating the task. Unless they have a helpful library employee hovering over their shoulder and giving them specific details on how to upload different documents, it is difficult to uncover.
Sometimes, even when students do the uploading correctly, it still does not work. Whether it gets lost somewhere in the cloud or LakerPrint just decides it does not like the essay, when students log in, their documents vanish. Since LakerPrint cannot be not done from personal computers, if the document fails to upload, students must re-locate them and re-upload them, if they thought far enough in advance to bring their laptops with them.
The default, when printing, is in color. Instead of the document being uploaded costing a few cents in black and white, LakerPrint default charges a few dollars for an essay in black and white, and some using the system do not notice the price difference. Instead of the old printing system, where it helpfully told you how many pages you had left, LakerPrint decides to tell you how many dollars’ worth of paper you have left. Most students do not know how much printing their 20-page research project will cost them, but they did know that it will cost them 20-pages of their original 500.
The new system is, of course, not the fault of the librarians or CTS. They are all very helpful in teaching this new technology, so if LakerPrint is intimidating, then students should feel free to check the LakerPrint website or visit the library for more information.
Photo by Maria Pericozzi | The Oswegonian
