Q: Is double-sided printing now the default setting for printers on campus?

A: With the launch of the new Pharos Printing Systems, starting with the ZSR Library, double-sided printing (also known as duplex printing) has now become the default printer setting for machines across campus. According to ZSR Director of Access Services, Mary Beth Lock, the transition was motivated, in part, by goals in sustainability.

The switch to default duplex printing translates to significant paper conservation in the library, where the busiest printers on campus are located. Lock reported that as of mid-October 2013, the three copy/print machines across from the Circulation Desk in the ZSR have already been used 70,000 times since their installation on September 23rd and 24th. Between classes it’s not hard to tell that these are the most frequently used machines on campus. Their predecessor, a single machine sitting in the same location, had been used well over a million times in the three years it faithfully served the students faculty and staff who used it.

Single-sided printing is, of course, still available for those who prefer it.

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