Pay to Print

Frequently Asked Questions

How much will printing cost?
Each printed page will cost $0.05 for black and white or $0.21 for color. You may purchase a Copy Card from the Circulation Desk. Blank cards are available for $.70 or $5.00 cards that come preloaded with $4.30 equaling 86 prints or copies. At any time, cash value can be added to the card using the photocopier coin box located on the first floor near the Circulation Desk and in the 24-hour access Computer Media Lab or by the circulation desk staff.

How does the fee-based printing system work?
The Pay to Print system is comprised of several components: the user workstations, a print queue, print release stations, and printers.

Begin by selecting the print command in the application that you are using. You will then be prompted to enter a user name.  You have the options of password protecting your print job and naming the print job. This popup will appear on your computer screen:

• User Name - This can be your ePass or it can be any user name you choose.
• Password for print job - For added privacy, you may password protect your print jobs, however this is not necessary.
• Name for print job - It can be helpful to briefly describe the content of your print job especially when you are printing several documents or when you are printing webpages with long undecipherable urls. Type a short descriptive name (i.e.kidney). Naming the print job is not required.

When you click on "Print" your print job is sent to the print queue. 

Next, at your convenience, you will have to walk  to any Print Release Station.. You must Logon  with whatever user name you designated.  You will then see a list of your print jobs (and only your print jobs) that are being held in the print queue.  When you highlight the print job, the "number of sheets at a cost of $x.xx" is displayed. Insert your copy card in the reader and the number of copy card units credited on your card will be displayed. Highlight the print job and click "Print". The cost of your print job will be debited from your copy card, and your document will be printed. If you have insufficient funds on your card the print job will not be initiated.

This is the Logon Screen for the Print Release Station:

This is the Print Release Screen where you will see a list of your print jobs:

How do I determine the cost of printing my document?
Each printed page will cost $0.05 for black and white or $0.21 for color. Note the number of pages when you select File then Print ...or...at the Print Release Station, you will be prompted to insert your copy card. After doing so, use the mouse to select the print job from your list of print jobs residing on the print queue. When the job is highlighted, you will see the page count in the lower left hand corner of the screen. You will always be provided with the page count and the amount that you will be charged prior to printing your document.

How do I print selected pages of a document, rather than printing extra pages that I might not need?
From file menu, select "Print", and enter the number or range of pages you'd like to print in the "Page Range" section. Verify the number of pages in the print queue at the Print Release Station prior to releasing your print job from the print queue.

What should I do if I have sent a document to the print queue, and then realized that I don't have enough value on my copy card?
You may go to the nearest copier coin box or to the Circulation Desk to add value to your copy card. Your job will remain in the print queue for 60 hours, or until you have printed the document.

Is there a color printer?
Yes.  It is located by the Circulation Desk.  You can send color print jobs from all library computers, to the print queue, however, you must use the Print Release Station adjacent to the color printer. Each printed page will cost $0.21 for color

What should I do if there is a problem with my printed pages, or if my prints don't come out of the printer at all?
Please see a library staff member if there is any question as to the quality of a printed document that you have been charged for. Library staff are equipped with copy cards that can be used to reprint problem jobs for library patrons, however you will need to re-send the document to the print queue.

The refund policy for printing is the same as for making photocopies by copy card. The Circulation desk keeps special copy cards for patrons to use if the patron card has been debited incorrectly. To receive  credit on their card for a loss of more than a few copies, patrons should visit the Circulation Desk  Monday through Friday 8am to 4pm with evidence of the printing problem. Credit cannot be given for operator error.

Is there any way to save time by printing multiple documents at once?
After you have inserted your copy card at the Print Release Station, you may select multiple print jobs by clicking the mouse button and holding down the control key at the same time. You should see a total charge for all of your jobs in the lower left corner of the screen. Then choose "Print"

Will my print jobs expire after a certain period of time?
After 24 hours, your print jobs will be purged from the print queue.

How do I cancel a print job?
There is no delete print job on our system. Simply allow  24 hours to elapse and your print job will disappear.

Can I print double sided documents using this printing system? What will the cost be?
Yes, the default print setting is for double sided printing. You can choose single or double sided printing from the File - Print- Properties- Finishing-check or uncheck "Print on both sides."

What alternatives do I have other than printing my articles?

• email the article to yourself,
• save it to : disk, cd , zip or flash drive.

Email: In most electronic resources, there are icons to mark or select records, and icons to e-mail or export records. Please see the Help index of the resource that you are using for more information. You may also save articles or documents to the hard drive of your computer which can then be sent as an attachment to email.

Save to a flash drive: After marking a set of records from a database or selecting a document or displaying an electronic journal article select "File", then "Save As", and then find the appropriate drive, generally "Removable Disk (E:) for  flash  drives.

Type the name of the document, click on "Save". You may want to verify what type of drive option exists on your workstation prior to beginning your search.

Where can I purchase a copy card?
Copy cards (for printing and copying) can be purchased at the circulation desk. There are blank cards available for $.70 or $5.00 cards that come preloaded with $4.30 (minus $.70 for the card) equaling 86 prints or copies. Copy cards can be recharged at one of the coin towers located on the first floor library and the second floor 24 hour computer lab. The circulation desk will also recharge copy cards in 5.00 increments. 

Why am I asked to give a job name and password to the documents that I am trying to print?
These are optional  settings. Using a unique job name will allow you to identify your print jobs on the Print Release Station screen. You may select a the job name of your choice, or use the default option which will automatically use the name under which the document is saved. The file names of many web documents are sometimes confusing--selecting a specific job name may be helpful.

Giving your document a password adds a level of security to protect the privacy of the print job.

What should I do if I forget the password to my print job?
Unfortunately, you will have to re-send your print job to the print release station.  If you have forgotten your password, no one else can release your print jobs. Keep in mind, it is not necessary to password protect your job.