E-readers for PDFs,etc.

[Biologist_]

We have networked printer-copier-scanners and I think it's a better solution than individual printers, or at least more cost-effective. Several important details make our setup work fairly well:

1. The networked printers can do some fancy stuff that individual printers probably wouldn't do: sheet-feed scanning, print in color, print double-sided, staple copies if desired, print different paper sizes, etc.
2. We send the print job and then type a personal access code at the machine to start printing it, so printed copies don't sit unattended. After I send a job, the printer keeps it in memory for the rest of the day and I can start printing any time.
3. Our offices are spread over two floors and there's a printer on each one so I don't have to walk too far to get to it. That also means there's a backup printer in case the one on my floor is out of commission.

Downsides: If I need to print a job right before class, there's a risk that someone else will be in the middle of a job. There are occasional printer jams. Sometimes people put colored paper in the printer and forget to remove it... None of those are big problems. I do keep a ream or two of emergency paper in my office at all times so I don't have to walk to where the paper is stored.

We do our own printing for exams in large-enrollment classes and that sort of thing. I guess if you have minions to take care of that kind of stuff, a personal printer might be sufficient for your needs.

[paddington_bear]

There's been no confirmation that we're going to communal printers. What would everyone do with the printers they have? And I wonder, if they're going to take people's printers away - or at least not replace them if they break - will people be able to connect their own printers to their office computers. I have a printer at home anyway.

[paddington_bear]

Official word came that we can't order toner cartridges after this month and we have to turn in printers by the end of the semester!  I need to buy my ipad soon!

[aside]

And order a toner cartridge!  Sorry you are having to deal with an unwelcome change.

[paddington_bear]

My printer has essentially been out of toner since about late October or November. The department secretary included a new toner in her order for office supplies, but it still hasn't arrived yet. Last semester I had to remember to print my notes at home or from a computer lab in my building. Hopefully it's still on its way and I can have a printer until the end of the year.

[mamselle]

Order two toner cartridges while you may...or even three.

Tablets aside...did you find out if you can purchase your local printer through any grant monies you might have? (Can't scroll back right this minute to look...)

You might be able to do so, and thus keep continuity with hook-ups, printer-formatting differentia,  etc. (a 0.01 in. difference in margins requirements can push one word over to the next page, all by itself, and mess up pagination on a page-limited grant proposal: ask me how I know, and how many minutes we had before the drop-dead submission time to find and fix the issue...)

Hope it gets worked out!

M.

[paddington_bear]

Order two toner cartridges while you may...or even three.

Tablets aside...did you find out if you can purchase your local printer through any grant monies you might have? (Can't scroll back right this minute to look...)

You might be able to do so, and thus keep continuity with hook-ups, printer-formatting differentia,  etc. (a 0.01 in. difference in margins requirements can push one word over to the next page, all by itself, and mess up pagination on a page-limited grant proposal: ask me how I know, and how many minutes we had before the drop-dead submission time to find and fix the issue...)

Hope it gets worked out!

M.

I don't have any grant money, so that's not an option. And I wouldn't want to purchase more than 1 cartridge because you have to turn in your printer at the end of the semester or when your cartridge runs dry, whichever comes first. I probably couldn't use up a cartridge in one semester anyway. And if I could, it'd be because I using a lot of paper. Which was the whole point of switching to an ipad. The department secretary thinks my cartridge came in, but she couldn't remember who they were for. :/

[mamselle]

Oh, no, so...she gave it to someone else???

Not good.

I've had bosses in such settings who'd have had my head for a lollipop if I'd done something like that...

M.

[paddington_bear]

Oh, no, so...she gave it to someone else???

Not good.

I've had bosses in such settings who'd have had my head for a lollipop if I'd done something like that...

M.

I don't think she gave them to someone else. I think that they've just been sitting on her desk since they came in since she didn't remember who to give them to. (I'm not sure why she didn't email the department to ask.) She has to check to see if one of them actually does match my printer.

[paddington_bear]

Toner cartridges that the secretary have don't fit my printer. The secretary was waiting for more orders and never ordered mine, it looks like. But some faculty in my department have a printer that was bought with department money, not university money, so now there's a question of whether we have to surrender those as well. But it's not clear whether my printer is one of those.  Regardless, I need to buy an ipad.

[wellfleet]

I bought a remarkable2 a couple of weeks ago--I like it! I'm still learning my way around, but for class notes and annotating pdfs, it's pretty great.

[paddington_bear]

I bought a remarkable2 a couple of weeks ago--I like it! I'm still learning my way around, but for class notes and annotating pdfs, it's pretty great.

Thanks for the recommendation! I'll look into it!

[wellfleet]

So far, I like having everything synched to my phone for quick reference and being able to enlarge the pdf text so that I can write a lot in the margins if I want to. I'm auditing a class this quarter and will use it throughout as a test.

It's also potentially a great way for me to quickly mark up text/comment for students (once I save their paper to pdf and upload) for when typing/monitor light gets to be too much. I'm not sure how well I can connect it to my very finicky campus network, but so far, uploading pdfs from home has been a snap.

The surface is cooler than I'd like, but so far, I much prefer it to using a stylus on an iPad. Plus, no backlight! I'm a Kindle Paperwhite fan of many years' standing, so I already like e-ink a ton.