Meeting these needs at OSU meant purchasing new equipment, installing a new payment system, and increasing prices. Since the Valley Library Information Commons opened in 1999 printing personal laser copies has been free. Equally alarming, thousands of copies ended up in the recycling bins near the printers. Faced with high inflation in the price of journal subscriptions and the need to hire more staff to provide services in a larger building, the Library Administration decided that subsidizing laser printing was no longer financially or environmentally responsible. Most academic libraries in the United States including OSU, expect users to pay for the cost of making personal copies from journals, books, microfilm, and microfiche.
Many universities also require users to pay for making printouts in computer labs and libraries.
The new charge for laser printing simply extends the long accepted principle of paying for personal copies to the newest library printing service. The Library Administration wanted to find a payment system that is convenient. Our goal is for everyone to use the same method of payment for all printing services in the library. After discussions with OSU Purchasing, the Campus ID Center staff, various vendors, and with managers in OSU Information Services, the same Diebold system used for dining and other campus services was purchased for the Valley Library. Diebold is the leading manufacturer of ATM machines and is a reputable commercial firm.