Don’t blink on this free ink

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You’ve budgeted for tuition, the new student activity fee, textbooks and food, but you probably weren’t prepared to budget for printing.

If you don’t have money loaded to your Papercut account — the service that monitors nearly all printing on campus — you could find yourself in a bind and with no easy solution. Some might take it upon themselves to preload their Papercut account, but at 10 cents per black and white page, and 25 cents for color, printing a class syllabus can drain an account in an instant. And let’s face it, you’re already broke.

You could always purchase your own printer, but without appropriate planning, a race back to your apartment could be costly when it comes to that last-minute assignment you procrastinated a little too long on. And even the most strategic planners can’t get around the $20 or more cost of an ink cartridge.

Fortunately, there are more cost-effective options..

The Office of Diversity and Inclusion is widely known as one of the few places on campus where students can print for free.

Located near the center of campus, the widely accessible office on the second floor of the Rhatigan Student Center, is known all-too-well for its essential printing perk.

Here, students will sign in at the front desk and can print up to 10 black and white pages per day. The office tends to load the printer with recycled paper where the back of the page might have been used before, but you’re free to ask the front desk for new paper.

The office is open to all Wichita State students.

One caveat, however, is the traffic.

Students are limited to the use of four computers. In a hurry, you’ll be slowed down waiting for a lengthy boot-up — costing you precious minutes .

The Office of Adult Learning, located in the Gracie Wilkie Annex, sees a lot less traffic, but also has the scoop on free printing.

Here, students can print both black and white and color pages at no cost. There are only three laptops in the office, but rarely are they occupied. If you’re in a bind, the Office of Adult Learning could be your best bet.

The office asks that you be courteous, however, and limit use to 10 pages per day.

If you’re going the route of not owning your own printer, it’s worth preloading your Papercut account with $5-10 for 50 to 100 pages — it might be enough to get you through a semester or two.