With the addition of 19 new Canon printers in UF libraries, students no longer need cash or a copy card for library printing. Instead they can swipe their Gator 1 Cards, which will use funds from their vending accounts.
Barbara Hood, the public information officer for Smathers Libraries, said the printers also serve as copiers and scanners.
The machines, which began working on Sept. 4, were installed in nine campus libraries, including Library West and the Marston Science Library.
Hood said the new system is advantageous because students can add money to their vending accounts online and do not have to carry an extra card around.
Creating or adding to a vending account requires a minimum of $15, according to the Gator 1 Central Web site.
Although students may have to add money to their vending accounts, Hood said the cost of printing has decreased.
The cost of color copies has gone from $1 to 50 cents, and the cost of black-and-white copies has gone from 13 cents to 10 cents, she said.
Ryan Crooks, a junior Japanese major, said he did not mind the old copy card system because the money he put on his card went a long way, adding he had not used his vending account in more than a year and did not know how much money was on it.
"I mean, why fix what wasn't broken?" he said.
Diana McCarley, a graduate student in the Center for Women's Studies and Gender Research, said she likes how the new printing system does not require cash.
However, McCarley said Gator 1 Central's Web site should provide clearer instructions explaining that money for library printers should be added to student vending accounts.
"Once you figure it out, it's easy, but I wouldn't say it's user-friendly from the beginning," McCarley said.
Hood said she expects the new system will take some getting used to.
"I'm sure there have been some small problems getting everybody up to speed because it's new for the staff and new for the students," she said.
