Printing Limits

1. The College has adopted a 300-page printing limit for students. Below you will find some commonly asked questions about the printing limits. Click on a link to read our response.
   Why does the College place limits on printing? How many pages do I have available to me? Will I be able to carry over unused pages from the previous semester? What happens if the printer jams or is out of toner? Do I get the pages put back onto my account? How do I cancel a print job that has not completed printing? What about nursing students and other students not on the traditional semester pattern? The pop-up is slow. Can anything be done about this? How can I contact the Help Desk? What can I do if I want to print after my limit is used up? How can I reduce printing? How can I print single-sided?  Is there anything else I should know? My instructor tells me I MUST have 20 pages in my account reserved for his final exam. What can I do? Why can't I pay for more "limit" pages? Are there further changes planned for the future? Why are the limits not based on the courseload of the student, or on the program of study? Can't you just crack down on obvious abusers? I have more ideas and suggestions. Where can I send them? Why does the College place limits on printing? When no limits were in place, there was significant waste. This not only cost the College money for paper and toner, it encouraged irresponsible use of natural resources. The College decided to implement a system that allows for a limited amount of free printing for each student each semester, and a pay-per-page system for additional pages. How many pages do I have available to me? You are given 300-free pages at the beginning of the January, May and September semesters. Your free printing allowance is reset to 300 pages on the first day of classes in January, May and September. Will I be able to carry over unused pages from the previous semester? No. Pages used will be set to zero and pages remaining will be set to 300 for all student accounts, on the first day of classes in January, May and September. Top What happens if the printer jams or is out of toner? Do I get the pages put back onto my account? No, there will be no adjustments due to printer problems. Page limits are based on previous usage patterns, which include failed print jobs. We encourage you to print small jobs, and to investigate any problems before re-sending a job with problems. This way, a problem will not cost you a significant number of pages. Note: You can CANCEL a print job that has not completed printing, and you will not be charged for the remaining pages. If you do not cancel the job, the pages may be counted against your printing allowance. There are no refunds for failed print jobs. Top How do I cancel a print job that has not completed printing?  Click the Start button on the computer desktop. Select Settings from the Start Menu. Select Printers and Faxes from the Settings Menu. Double-click on the printer you sent your print job to.  Click on your print job. Press the Del key on the keyboard. Click Yes when the dialog box asks you if you are sure you want to cancel the selected print job.It will take a few seconds to delete your print job from the print queue. Top What about nursing students and other students not on the traditional semester pattern? All student accounts have 300 pages available. Student accounts are reset three times a year, back to 300 remaining pages on the first day of classes in January, May and September. The dates are not changed for students on other schedules. The pop-up is slow. Can anything be done about this? We're aware of this issue, and if it can be sped up, we'll do it. Refer any technical problems to the Help Desk. How can I contact the Help Desk? You can call the Help Desk at 604.527.5330 or send an email to helpdesk@douglascollege.ca. At the David Lam Campus, there is a telephone available in the hallway near the computer labs, simply dial 5330. Top What can I do if I want to print after my limit is used up? Pay per page printing is available at standalone stations in the libraries at each campus. They are also available in room 6212 at New Westminster and room A2030 at David Lam. You will need to bring your print-ready documents on removable media (USB memory stick or CD-ROM). You can print at home. There are businesses that provide printing services either by bringing in your media or submitting print jobs over the web. How can I reduce printing?  Print double-sided. Double-sided printing is now the default setting for all computer lab computers. Ask yourself whether you can look at information on the screen rather than printing. Use Print Preview to see what you are printing and how it looks. Maybe you can get away with printing fewer pages or adjusting the format of the document before you print. Pay attention when the computer tells you how many pages it will print. Most applications allow you to select which pages to print. Instructors are investigating other ways to reduce the amount of pages students are required to print. Some faculty are accepting assignments online, and we are providing information to them on ways to do this. Top How can I print single-sided? Printers in computer labs are set to print double-sided by default. To change this setting, follow the instructions below.  Note: These instructions are written for the MS Word application. For other applications, you will often find the print option in the File menu. Click the Office Button (located on the top left-hand side of the Word window). Select Print. The Print dialog box opens. Click the Properties button. The Properties dialog box opens. Select the Printing Shortcuts tab. Select No from the Print on both sides drop-down menu. Click OK to close the Properties dialog box. In the Print dialog box, click OK to send your print job to the printer. If you require assistance, call the Help Desk. Top  Is there anything else I should know? Be sure to log off your account before you leave the computer lab. If you are not logged off, anyone could use your account and your free pages. My instructor tells me I MUST have 20 pages in my account reserved for his final exam. What can I do? All printing limits are turned off during final exams, which occurs once a semester.  Top Why can't I pay for more "limit" pages? Handling payments and limit changes individually is not currently available. Additional pages will be available on a pay-per-page basis at standalone stations in the libraries at each campus as well as in room 6212 at NW and A2030 at DL. Are there further changes planned for the future? We are investigating network-based pay stations for the computer lab areas that will make the pay-per-page option widely available and more convenient. Why are the limits not based on the course load of the student, or on the program of study? The intent is to provide a limited amount of printing to each student, not to provide for all student printing needs. Top Can't you just crack down on obvious abusers? With self-serve printing, there's no way to look at every job to determine misuse. Setting limits is a straightforward way to ensure College printing resources are used appropriately. I have more ideas and suggestions. Where can I send them? Send suggestions to Educational Technology Coordinator, Paul O'Connor, oconnorp@douglascollege.ca.

For general inquiries and service support, please contact our Help Desk.
(email: helpdesk@douglascollege.ca, or phone 604.527.5330)