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Release to Print update - Coming Soon to Res Halls

It's been two weeks since we began the new Release to Print pilot project in the Academic Commons and we wanted to update you on our progress. While we have encountered some challenges, overall the pilot program has been a success, and is helping to reduce the amount of unwanted printing. We have decided to move forward with the next phase of the pilot project. We will implement the Release to Print system in the Residence Halls on Wednesday, March 21st. Our biggest complaint has been that the process is slower. This is true; adding the release step does add time to the process, and we do not take this lightly. However, the release feature also reduces waste, and therefore the overall cost of printing. How much paper has Release to Print saved? We've posted a webpage that shows the current stats, updated every 10 minutes. You can see that about 15% - averaging around 1100 pages a day - are sent to the printers in the Academic Commons, but never released. Most print jobs are sent double-sided, so that means we're saving about 650 sheets of paper per day along with the accompanying reduction in toner, electricity, and wear and tear on the machine itself. Here is a summary of the main challenges that we've heard about, and ways to mitigate them:

• This printer is always busy. You can pick up your print job from any multifunction device on that floor. If one is busy, you can use the other.
• Printing on Macs is so much slower. Aside from the time it takes to log on to the multifunction device, the printing process itself should not take longer than it used to. This may be an indication that something isn't working properly with the computer you are using. Please let the Technology Helpdesk know, and we'll check it out.
• I hate lines. We do too. The devices on the ground floor tend to be used far less than the others. It might be worth sending your print job to the devices downstairs if the others are very busy.
• The real problem is people making photo copies. Yes, that can cause a back-up, particularly at the most-used device, which is the color device on the first floor. If you have a copy job that will take a while and doesn't require color copies, please consider using one of the other machines in the building - especially during busier periods.
• The print button doesn't work. It is a little confusing. There are two Print buttons on the Pharos screen. The top one is a tab to switch you between printing and copying functions and the bottom one will print your selected job(s).
• Please allow for login without ID. You can log in without your ID card - use the touchscreen to log on using your Oxynet username and password.
• There are long lines at the Color printer. Sometimes the color printer has been used for printing large amounts of fliers or brochures. This can cause a back-up.The color printer is intended for Academic use only. Use the Copy Center for printing fliers and brochures for non-academic purposes.
• I can't print from my personal computer. If you haven’t yet, please download and install the new drivers for your computer at bit.ly/oxyprintdrivers. If you have any trouble, the Technology Helpdesk will be happy to help you get everything set up.
• You should allow 1-sided printing. The default is double-sided printing but you can print single-sided pages if you wish - adjust this setting within the Printer Preferences menu when you submit your print job.
• Why won't it print in color. In order to save color toner, devices default to black & white - adjust this setting within the Printer Preferences menu when you submit your print job.

We also resolved a couple of technical problems; in particular, we found that one of the devices on the main floor had an intermittent problem with the touchscreen not working - unrelated to the new Release to Print system itself - which began to occur more frequently because of the increased use of the touchscreen; we expect that problem will be resolved today. It's not all complaints - we received a number of comments from people who are happy about the new system:

• "it's worth the small amount of time"
• "happy I don't have to sort through 30 docs to find mine"
• "fine so far, can't wait to see results"
• "I think this is good/easy/great"
• "Got over the hassle. Yeah for wasting less! Dorms are still terrible"

Thanks so much to everyone who has taken the time to leave a comment, question or suggestion on one of the boards that have been posted. It's been very helpful to hear about both the frustrations and what you like about the new system. We need your feedback to continue to make the system better.