The Collins Memorial Library faces a constant struggle to be as sustainable as possible. This consideration led to the many changes students have noticed within the library this semester, including but not limited to the removal of the release stations for the printers.
“We used to get a lot of complaints about the release stations,” said Cindy Riche of Technology Services. “People didn’t want to wait in line.” However, problems arose with the new system that was implemented this semester. William Morse of Technology Services said that the problem was that each printing job would go through one server, and particularly large files could block all of the other jobs, meaning print jobs would go to any available other printer, causing much confusion among the students.
“If we had a student who printed a multiple gigabyte file, it would just block all of the other jobs. Now it can do it, but it does it in chucks, so it doesn’t block everyone else,” Morse said. The new change in the print server is intended to have each computer assigned to a printer and prevent large jobs from blocking other jobs. When the solution was implemented at the beginning of October, calls to the Technology Services Desk decreased dramatically.
This solution should address some of the sustainability concerns, as well, since it minimizes confusion regarding where each print job goes, keeping multiple printings of the same document to a minimum. The computers used as the release stations are not very sustainable in and of themselves, as they must be updated and maintained.
The school has also started using vDesk (Virtual Desktop), which allows students to access any school computer from their personal computer. Other features include access of software and tools such as Adobe Photoshop and SPSS from any computer. This will allow students to access programs at their convenience from their own computer while on campus. Students can find vDesk through the University website.
New library hours went into effect after fall break, when extended its hours to 1 a.m. Beginning Oct. 31, hours will return to 7:30 a.m. to 2 a.m.
Jane Carlin, the library director, said that popular usage of the library right before the 12 a.m. closing time led to a return to the old hours.