Anyone who has had the privilege of using the new laundry machines on campus can attest to the fact that they truly live up to all the hype.
The sophisticated card-swiping system is easy to use, checking on laundry via the Internet is true luxury, and the efficient washers and dryers do actually save students money. All in all, this is an excellent modification to campus life.
On the other side of the coin, though, are the copy machines available for student use. Up until this year, copies in the library and the union cost 5 cents each, which was a manageable rate comparable to those of large copy centers such as Kinko’s.
This year, all of the copy machines were replaced, but not without also doubling the cost of copies to 10 cents apiece.
The rationale behind this raising of rates is that the new copiers cause fewer paper jams, so less money will be wasted. Although the old copiers were no picnic, they certainly did not cause enough jams to make up for doubling the cost of copies.
What’s more, the 10-cent charge is per side, which not only costs more but also wastes precious resources. Students are not as likely to double side copies since it no longer saves them money, which seriously undermines the campus-wide effort to conserve paper.
If the high cost of copies cannot be reduced, students should at least have an alternative payment method available to them, much like the new laundry system.
A card-swiping machine that draws copy money from a student account or Viking Gold would make it much easier to pay for copies, especially since so much change is now required.
The new laundry system is extremely convenient and its efficiency saves students money; however, the new charge for copies is exorbitant and should incorporate a more student-friendly payment method.
Staff Editorial
