See also: Photocopier Locations
FAQ: Printing in the MIT Libraries
MIT Tech Cash web site
| About Us > Equipment
Tech Cash in the MIT Libraries:
Frequently Asked Questions
Note: On August 1, 2008, Tech Cash became the preferred method of payment for photocopying in the MIT Libraries.
Paying for copies and prints
Getting Tech Cash, Guest Tech Cash, or adding value
Costs for Copying and Printing
Getting Help
Paying for copies and prints
How can I pay for copies in the MIT Libraries after August 1?
On August 1, 2008, the MIT Libraries installed a new fleet of photocopiers, and change to MIT's Tech Cash system as the method of payment for library photocopying and printing from the publicly available computers in the MIT Libraries.
You can use one of these 3 Tech Cash cards for payment:
Where can I use my old card? and for how long? Will it still work after August 1, 2008?
DISCONTINUED:
Old Copy/Print Card
Copy/Print cards were discontinued on August 1, 2008.
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These old cards are no longer available for sale, and cannot be used in the new copy machines.
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If you still have one of the old copy cards, it is no longer valid and cannot be used in the MIT Libraries.
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Getting Tech Cash, Guest Tech Cash, or adding value
Where can I get a new card?
- MIT Users: Pay for copies with your MIT ID and your Tech Cash Account.
- MIT Visitors: Purchase a Guest Tech Cash
card from one of the following
- Vending locations:
- About Guest Tech Cash:
- Each Guest Tech Cash card costs $5.
- Each Guest Tech Cash card includes $4 worth of Tech Cash, which can be used at participating merchants across the MIT campus
- There is a non-refundable fee for each card of $1.
- Guest Tech Cash can be used again and again. You can add value with a credit card at any time by visiting the Tech Cash web site.
- Value must be added in amounts of $5 or more through the Tech Cash web site.
- A 2% transaction fee will be added each time you add value to your card.
- See also: Detailed Instructions for adding value to Guest Tech Cash cards.
I'm an MIT faculty, student, or staff member. I don't have a Tech Cash account yet. What can I do?
I'm an MIT visitor. I don't have a Tech Cash account. What can I do?
Guest Tech Cash
cards for MIT visitors can be purchased with cash from vending machines across the MIT Libraries.
- Vending locations:
- Each Guest Tech Cash card costs $5.
- Each Guest Tech Cash card includes $4 worth of Tech Cash, which can be used all over the MIT campus
- There is a non-refundable fee for each card of $1.
- Guest Tech Cash can be used again and again. You can add value with a credit card at any time by visiting the Tech Cash web site.
- Value must be added in amounts of $5 or more through the Tech Cash web site.
- A 2% transaction fee will be added each time you add value to your card.
- If you need a Guest Tech Cash card and cannot pay with cash through the vending machines, cards may also be obtained from the nearest service desk or in person at Document
Services, Room 14-0551, during regular business hours.
How can I add funds to my MIT Tech Cash or Guest Tech Cash card?
- Bring your MIT ID or Guest Tech Cash card to any available computer, and visit the Tech Cash web site
- Tech Cash and Guest Tech Cash funds expire 1 year after the date of last use. See Tech Cash Policies for more information.
- If you have trouble adding value to your account or have made an error, please contact the MIT Card Office by email: techcash@mit.edu
Detailed instructions for adding value to a Guest Tech Cash card:
- Visit http://guest.techcash.mit.edu
- Select "Quick Deposit" or "Make a Deposit" from the menu on the left
- Agree to the Tech Cash terms of service
- Select the tan "Print/Copy" tab from the choices at the top of the page
- Enter the 9 digit number that is in the upper right corner of the back of your card
- Select a Tech Cash plan: Choose the "Express (Guest Tech Cash)" plan from the pull down menu if you want to use your account elsewhere on campus, or select the "Library Print/Copy" plan from the pull down menu if you are part of an MIT department and want to use your account to pay for copies or prints in the MIT Libraries only.
- Select or enter the amount you would like to add, there is a $5 minimum.
- Enter your email address. This is the address that your electronic receipt will be sent to.
- Enter your credit card number and credit card expiration date in MM/YY format (ex. August of 2008= 08/08)
- Click the "Next" button and your transaction will be complete
Where else can I use Guest Tech Cash?
Tech Cash is accepted at most campus dining and vending facilities. A list of Tech Cash Locations is available on the MIT Tech Cash web site.
I already have an MIT Libraries Copy/Print card. Will it still work after August 1, 2008?
See How can I pay for copies in the MIT Libraries after August 1? and Where can I use my old copy card? answers above.
Costs for Copying and Printing
How much do copies cost?
- Current MIT Faculty, Students, and Staff: $.10 per copy when you pay with your MIT ID and Tech Cash account
- MIT Visitors: $.15 per copy through Guest Tech Cash
I'm a member of the MIT community. The copier says a copy or print is $.15, instead of $.10. Am I being overcharged?
Members of the MIT community receive a discount of $.05 on each copy made, and are charged $.10 per copy when paying with Tech Cash through an MIT ID.
Please Note:
- Members of the MIT community will receive this discount only when paying with an MIT ID or with a Copy/Print Only card purchased in person at Document Services.
- This discount does not apply to Guest Tech Cash cards purchased at library vending machines, because the vending machines have no way of determining MIT affiliation.
- The MIT-only discount is applied behind the scenes in the Tech Cash database, after you've made all of your copies or prints. While the card reader may display a cost of $.15 per copy, the system counts the number of copies made, and applies the discount after all of your copies or prints are finished.
- Example: If you start with $10 in Tech Cash, and make 1 copy, you'll be charged $.10, despite what the screen may say. It can take up to a minute for the discount to be applied after your transaction is completed.
- If you want to check your Tech Cash balance, EXIT your transaction, and then swipe your card again to see your new balance.
- You may also monitor your Tech Cash, Guest Tech Cash, and Copy/Print Only balance online through the Tech Cash web site: MIT-Only or visitors
- If you are concerned that you've been over charged, contact techcash@mit.edu via e-mail. Include your full name, Tech Cash Card # or ID#, and the date/time/location of last use in your e-mail message.
Why does copying cost more for MIT visitors?
The cost incurred by the MIT Libraries for each photocopy is more than $.15 per copy. The MIT Libraries have chosen to discount the cost for MIT faculty, students, and staff to support scholarship and research at MIT by charging $.10 per copy to the MIT community.
Unfortunately, the MIT Libraries cannot afford to provide the same discount to visitors from outside of MIT. By choosing Tech Cash and Guest Tech Cash as the payment method for guest photocopying and printing, the funds that you spend to acquire a Guest Tech Cash card can be used elsewhere on the MIT campus, to pay for coffee, purchases at the MIT COOP, and more. We hope that the convenience of using Guest Tech Cash for payment will be mitigated by the ease and convenience of using Tech Cash, and the investments we've made to improve copying and scanning equipment across the MIT Libraries.
Use of the photocopiers within the MIT Libraries has decreased by 80% in the past decade. As the number of copies decreases, the cost to provide photocopiers at all of our library locations goes up.
Getting Help
I'm a member of the MIT community and want to buy copies for my lab or department work group with an MIT requisition. How does it work?
- Come to Document Services between 11am and 3pm, Monday through Friday. Bring a requisition or your MIT SAP account information with you to make your purchase.
- You will be given an MIT Libraries Only copy card. The value on the card can only be used for printing and copying in the MIT Libraries. This card will not be valid for other Tech Cash or Guest Tech Cash transactions elsewhere on campus.
- Departments that already have Copy/Print Only cards and want to add value can do one of the following:
The copier jammed/ate my copies. How can I get help or a refund?
- In some
instances, a document may fail to appear due to a lack of paper or toner
in the copier/printer, or due to a paper jam. In such cases, the paper/toner may be
replaced, or a jam cleared. Once normal copying/printing has resumed, you may
copy your document again, or re-send your document to the print queue.
- In such cases, please report the problem to the nearest service desk. Library staff will allow you make make
use of a staff Guest Tech Cash card provided by the MIT Libraries to pay for this document.
- If it is not possible to re-print or copy the document you require as described above, refunds my be requested from the MIT Card Office by email: techcash@mit.edu.
- Guest Tech Cash cards are the same as cash, unless you register your card with the MIT Card Office. Unregistered cards cannot be replaced if lost or stolen. See How Can I Register my Tech Cash card for more information.
- All purchases, including prints and copies, made by Tech Cash or Guest Tech Cash are subject to the Tech Cash refund policy.
My browser is giving an error when I try to access the Tech Cash web site. What should I do?
There are two versions of the Tech Cash web site for members of the MIT community and MIT visitors.
Note for MIT Visitors: If at any time the browser indicates a certificate error, the browser has been redirected to the secure site. Please ensure that the url begins with ‘http’ and NOT ‘https’.
How can I register my Tech Cash card so that I can get a refund later if my card is lost or stolen?
Guest Tech Cash cards are the same as cash, unless you register your card with the MIT Card Office. Unregistered cards cannot be replaced if lost or stolen.
- Registering your Guest Tech Cash card allows the Tech Cash system to know who you are.
- To register your Guest Tech Cash card, send an email
to techcash@mit.edu.
Please include the following information in your email message:
- Your full name
- Your email address
- Guest Tech Cash card number
- the date/time/location where you last used your card
- Cards that are registered with the TechCASH office can have the funds from the lost card transferred to a new card if the card is lost or stolen. The amount of this transfer will be the available balance on the original card (as indicated by the Tech Cash accounting system) as of the time the original card was reported lost via the on-line account management system.
- If you've added value to a Guest Tech Cash with a credit card through the Tech Cash web site, your card is already registered to you.
Are there alternatives to copying or printing that are free?
- Printing is free for members of the MIT community. See the Printing FAQ for more information.
- See Printing from MIT Libraries E-Journals for more information on printing alternatives, like e-mailing journal articles or citations to yourself.
- Self-service scanners are available in most library locations, which will allow you to scan library materials for free.
- New book scanners were installed in Barker, Dewey, Hayden, and Science libraries in September of 2008.
- Most of the scanners in the MIT Libraries will allow you to save scanned files, email files to yourself, or save files to a USB drive.
- See the MIT Libraries Equipment page for more information about locations and capabilities.
- Self-service photocopiers in Barker, Dewey, Hayden, and Rotch libraries can scan files to e-mail.
- Place your item on the glass, press the "Scan/Fax" button, select "Direct Input" and enter your e-mail address on the keypad.
- Scanning to e-mail from the copiers is free, but there is a limit of 20 pages per transmission.
- USB flash drives are sold at library service desks for $7 each to allow you to save scanned files for later use instead of copying or printing.
- However, we recommend
that you bring your own storage media with you to the library.
- Although many workstations in the Libraries
have disk drives, you may want to verify if the disk drive option exists
prior to beginning your search.
webmaster@libraries.mit.edu
This page was last updated on
Monday, 19-Oct-2009 12:27:56 EDT
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