Cost of Printing and Photocopying

Just a refresher as I get these mixed up all the time!

Printing = 15c per page, $1 per page for colour
Photocopying= 10c per page with a t-card, 15c per page with change
Scanning= free, but the user must have a balance on their t-card for the scanner to work

Troubleshooting: Slow Printing

The problem:
email from Jeff 09/11/2012:

The slow printing in the Wallace Room yesterday was a typical issue where the document(s) printed was so large in file size that the printer could not handle it. Sometimes at the beginning of the Fall term we see more of this. Perhaps new staff creating documents for students...and they don't realize the limitations of our UTL printers.

What you can do: 

• Ask Jeff first. But if he is not available, you can call the InfoCommons tech support at 978-HELP
• If the patron is in a hurry, get information on who made the document (if it was indeed course materials by a faculty member) and send to Infocommons staff so they in turn can contact them and explain the limitations.

Extended print "wait" time

Every time a user sends a print job it sits on our network waiting for them to print it out.

If they do not pay for it within two hours...the network automatically deletes it.

For Gerstein only...this time period has now been extended to four hours.

Printing - Document Queue

The public printer system will retain jobs for only two hours.

This is occasionally a problem for alumni or other researchers who may sit at a computer for hours at a time. If you help anyone that fits this description, please let them know to print out their documents every 2 hours (at least).

Receipts for adding money to print cards/student cards

If a patron requires a receipt for adding money to their card and/or purchasing a visitor card, loan services desk staff can issue one after the funds have been added.

T-Card Claim Forms

T-Card Claim Forms are issued from the Loan Services Desk when a Visitor Card is not dispensed by the Cash to Card machine or when a patron has deposited funds that are not added to card.

Patrons fill in the form and leave it with staff at the Loan Services desk. The Library's Business Office at Robarts Library follows up on the claim.

Staff Pre-loaded Print Card

The staff print card is located in the printer cabinet behind the information desk. It is preloaded with money by the library. This card is never given to patrons; staff must accompany the patron and use the card to print their materials for them. Remember to return the card to the printer cabinet when finished with it. If the balance is low, please report to Jeff Heeney.

Vouchers

Vouchers aka “Gerstein Public Printer Voucher for Missing/Defective Print Jobs”

Vouchers are issued when a patron uses their T-card or a Visitor card to print, and payment is subtracted from the chip on their card but the machine does not print/photocopy, or does so but the print/photocopy is damaged or illegible.

Vouchers are filled out at the Information Desk by desk staff, indicating the number of pages lost. Having a voucher allows a patron to approach the Information Desk at a later date and ask that a print/photocopy job be printed at a public printer by a staff member using the staff print card in the printer cabinet. When issuing a voucher, please inform the patron that are only to be claimed at Gerstein (i.e. patrons cannot take these to the Info Commons or Robarts to get print jobs). This is purely an internal Gerstein procedure.

Card Flagged Error Message

If a users’ card is showing the error message ‘Card Flagged’ when they try to print or photocopy, they should be instructed to go to the last machine where the card worked, and reinsert the card into that machine. This should remove the flag.

If they cannot remember which machine to go to, or if this does not remove the ‘flag’ they should be instructed to go to the T Card office (2nd Floor Robarts) to have the card unflagged.

Courtesy Printing Cards

Courtesy cards, vouchers and the Gerstein Staff Print card are all stored in the locked black printer cabinet behind the Information desk.

‘Courtesy cards’ are visitor cards which are held at the desk for the use of one-time visitors to the library when they have only a few pages to print. If the user is photocopying, they can be directed to the coin-operated machine and the change machine if they do not have coins.

If someone comes to the desk and asks for one of these ‘Courtesy cards’ they are likely not a one-time user and should be instructed to purchase a visitor card. Desk staff should use their discretion as to when the card can be borrowed by a patron.

When the courtesy cards are loaned out, the staff member must request a piece of identification from the person borrowing the card, which will be returned when the card is brought back to the desk. Staff should lock the ID into the black printer cabinet to keep it secure for the patron. If your desk shift is ending, let the next person who comes out know that the ID is being held in the cabinet for a visitor.

When lending these cards, the staff member should tell the patron that any funds left on the card will not be refunded, and to only load the card with the amount needed to cover the cost of printing.

Error Message on Smart Cards

We have recently discovered a new error message when patrons are unable to use their library cards for photocopying and printing. The machine says "Card Expired".

When this message appears, please direct the patron to one of two places:

If it is a TCard the student needs to go to the TCard Office for a replacement card.

If it is not a TCard (i.e. Staff, Faculty, etc.) please send the patron to Reader Registration for a replacement card. After they have their replacement they can go to the TCard Office to have any lost funds transferred to their new card.

Added 14 Sept 05: In addition to this, if you find a patron is getting conflicting messages (eg. one machine says INVALID CARD but another says CARD FLAGGED) the card is probably near the end of its life expectancy and again it needs replacement. In the case of conflicting messages it is fine to send all types of patron directly to the TCard Office.

Peter Gurney
[email message to all staff; posted by SL 12Sep05]