[166] in UA Exec
Re: Notification of 'Printer in the W20 "Game Room"' Project
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Quentin Smith)
Sat Dec 5 23:49:19 2009
Date: Sat, 5 Dec 2009 23:49:13 -0500 (EST)
From: Quentin Smith <quentin@MIT.EDU>
To: Geoffrey Thomas <geofft@mit.edu>
cc: "Vrajesh Modi (UA Special Projects Committee)" <ua-projects-chairs@mit.edu>,
Owen Derby <oderby@mit.edu>, ua-senate@mit.edu, ua-exec@mit.edu
In-Reply-To: <alpine.DEB.1.10.0912052058560.25730@dr-wily.mit.edu>
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On Sat, 5 Dec 2009, Geoffrey Thomas wrote:
> Wait, so this is a proposal for the UA to spend $1500 towards moving a=20
> printer from W20-575 downstairs and replacing it with a new one, when the=
re's=20
> already a broken printer (ceres) in W20 that almost certainly needs to be=
=20
> replaced anyway?
IS&T is funding the purchase of the new printer, which they probably would=
=20
have done anyway. I believe the intent is for the UA's money to contribute=
=20
only to physical security; this may include adding card access or=20
electronic passcode locks.
> Presumably the replacement printer is the same model as bias, the Dell 53=
10n=20
> printer in the 12-182 cluster, to which various review sites on the web=
=20
> attribute a 50ppm speed and a "fast" warmup time. I think this is the mod=
el=20
> IS&T is/was planning to replace dying cluster printers with because the H=
P=20
> 8150s are kind of old. (Although I haven't seen this happen anywhere othe=
r=20
> than bias, I'm assuming because of budget cuts.) List price is $865 from=
=20
> Dell's website.
You are presuming wrong - the current plan is to put in a fast Xerox=20
printer.
> What's more, IS&T is spending _at least five thousand dollars_, with no=
=20
> current stated budget cap, on this? Is this going to be locked down any=
=20
> more than, say, quick-print in the building 11 quickstation cluster on=20
> the Infinite (which just has the standard KSL mechanism and an=20
> always-open door), and if so, why? The KSL security pad is $70 from=20
> their web order form.
It's not completely clear yet, but this is the last Senate meeting of the=
=20
term, and thus the last chance to request any funding for the project,=20
which is likely to happen during IAP.
> So the UA could easily buy those two items, get CAC to set up a table in =
the=20
> arcade or next to the staircase quickstations, and set it up themselves,=
=20
> which would save the UA $750, save IS&T $5000, and keep six printers in=
=20
> W20-575.
See above; your numbers are based on a false assumption. Also, it is=20
likely, though not for sure yet, that w20color will move into W20-575 and=
=20
thus there will still be six printers, including a color one.
> Lest someone complain that I didn't include consumables in this budget,=
=20
> third-party toner cartridges for the 5310n are $100 for 30,000 pages. If =
you=20
> were to blow every cent of the UA's remaining $750 on toner over a single=
=20
> academic year, that's something like over a thousand pages a day, way mor=
e=20
> than it sounds like we're expecting this to be used.
>
> I encourage at least my senators to vote against funding for this project=
in=20
> its present form. I don't deny that an Athena printer on W20-1 would be=
=20
> pretty awesome (I remember wanting one once or twice this term), but the=
=20
> present budget sounds exorbitant, and I'm skeptical that this is the best=
use=20
> of Senate's discretionary funds -- as well as of $5000 of IS&T's money th=
at=20
> could go towards upgrading quickstation or cluster machines to faster one=
s,=20
> upgrading all six of the W20-575 printers to Dells, etc.
--Quentin
UA Chief of Information Technology
>
> --=20
> Geoffrey Thomas
> geofft@mit.edu
>
> Disclaimer: In addition to being a UA constituent, I am also an IS&T empl=
oyee=20
> (RCC) and Athena developer. I am most definitely not speaking with either=
of=20
> those two latter hats on, and I have not spoken to anyone in IS&T about t=
his=20
> current proposal, nor is any information that I think wouldn't be easily=
=20
> available to any other undergrad figuring in to my response.
>
> On Sat, 5 Dec 2009, Vrajesh Modi (UA Special Projects Committee) wrote:
>
>> Good question - a new one will be purchased, and an old one will be take=
n
>> out of service.=A0 IS&T will service the new printer, but they don't wan=
t
>> the total amount that they spend to go up, so they'll stop servicing the
>> one that they remove from the 5th floor.
>>=20
>> Best,
>> Vrajesh
>>=20
>> On Sat, Dec 5, 2009 at 11:23 AM, Owen Derby <oderby@mit.edu> wrote:
>> Vrajesh,
>>
>> You mention the printer will be removed from the 5th floor to
>> "avoid ongoing costs to IS&T". Do you mean that a printer
>> from the 5th floor will be relocated to the 1st floor, or a
>> new one will be purchased? And if IS&T will no longer be
>> servicing the printer, who/where will the upkeep and
>> consumables(ink,paper) funding come from?
>>
>> Sounds like a great idea to me!
>>
>> -Owen
>>=20
>>=20
>> On Sat, Dec 5, 2009 at 10:32 AM, Vrajesh Modi (UA Special Projects
>> Committee) <ua-projects-chairs@mit.edu> wrote:
>> This message is being sent to formally notify Senate
>> and Exec about the 'Printer in the W20 "Game Room"'
>> project (in accordance with section 4.1 of the Cover
>> Letter to the Fall 2009 Budget).
>>
>> This project entails replacing one of the printers on
>> the 5th floor with a "blazingly fast" (50ppm duplex,
>> ~6s from power save to first page) printer and
>> quickstation in the former game room on the first floor
>> of W20 (Student Center).=A0 This project will save
>> students' time by allowing them to quickly print
>> something on their way to class on the first floor
>> instead of having to go the the 5th floor Athena
>> cluster.=A0 A printer on the 5th floor would be removed
>> to avoid the ongoing costs to IS&T of servicing an
>> additional printer.
>>
>> The UA CIT has been spearheading the communication -
>> MIT IS&T is already on board.=A0 I'll be meeting with CAC
>> on Monday at 2:45pm to verify that they are willing to
>> use some space in the former game room for this
>> purpose.=A0 If they have no objections, it is likely that
>> this project will enter the implementation stage in the
>> next several weeks.
>>
>> Please send me an e-mail with any questions or
>> concerns.=A0 (A request for funding will also be sent out
>> shortly.)
>>
>> Best,
>> Vrajesh
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