Problem: Though Owen has a lot of printers and staplers it is hard to find staplers at its required place. Thus, students have to go to different printer areas to staple the documents.
Solution # 1: Replace the hand held staplers with heavy electronic staplers that have to be plugged into the wall. It is too heavy to move these and they staple automatically. Moreover, put a note on the wall with each stapler on how to operate it.
Solution # 2: Have somebody from the library to check the staplers everyday and if moved bring it back to it's original location. Moreover, put a note on the wall "Please do not move the staplers, thank you for your cooperation."
Solution # 3: Chain the stapler to the desks/wall in their current locations. Henceforth, solving all the issues.
I like both idea #1 and #3. Any ideas where you don't have to rely on other people for them to work will be more effective. For #3, a bold may be more aesthetic than a chain.
ReplyDeleteI really like your first suggestion - not only should this help keep the stapler in its right place, it should hopefully cut down on the breaking of staplers. Question: do we know when the staplers are currently disappearing? Is it at night? I'm only wondering if the people who are currently walking off with staplers would be even more psyched to come home with a brand new fancy automatic model instead. Perhaps a real or faux (a la 810 Cafe) security camera could be employed.
ReplyDeleteAdditionally, perhaps the person who is getting suckered into making sure the downstairs tables are plugged in, in addition to his or her current duties, should also check these new staplers to make sure they are operational and fully loaded.
1) Personally, I do not like to use electronic staplers, but I may be in the minority. One constraint - it is doubtful that students will read any posted instructions.
ReplyDelete2) This idea seems like it would be very time consuming for the librarian. Again, I doubt that students will read posted signs.
3) I like this idea. However, it will be important to make sure that the chain is long enough that it does not impede the functionality of the stapler. Also, the chain can not get in the way of refilling the stapler when it runs out of staples.
It seems to me that one of the causes of the stapler problem is that the staplers run out of staples and people break them when they try to put new staples in. Is there a way to address that in one of these solutions?
1. If students can somehow break every stapler we have now, I don't have the confidence that we could use these without wrecking them too, and they'd be more expensive. One way around this would be to not allow students to try to refill the staplers, and make them go find someone from the library to refill them.
ReplyDelete2. This could work, but based on how quickly the staplers are moved, jammed, and otherwise rendered useless, this would be quite a task.
3. I like this idea... a lot. I would also remove replacement staples so that students would need to ask for help to refill them, because I can often find a stapler, but it has been wrecked by someone putting the staples in upside down, or putting the wrong size in. We can't be trusted anywhere near anything mechanical it seems.
1) i like this idea because i think that it could reduce the frequency with which the staplers break. however, i do see potential issues with them being more complicated and being more expensive if stolen.
ReplyDelete2) while i think there is merit to this idea, i think it would be more difficult and time-consuming than your other ideas.
3) i think this would be a great idea if you could make sure that the chain doesn't affect the stapler's functionality. as long as that can be avoided, this idea seems very simple and effective.
Additional feedback: while commenting on the "Noise problem on the second floor of Owen Library" group, I realized that I often print to Matterhorn (upstairs library printer) because it always has a working stapler next to it. Since the library is locked at night, this may indicate that staplers are disappearing at night. So, I recommend some method of chaining the automatic staplers to the table to prevent stapler theft.
ReplyDelete1) I don't like to use electronic staplers. I have many bad experiences in using it - jam. I might not know how to use it correctly. I believe that many people like me - don't know or don't care how to use electronic staplers correctly.
ReplyDelete2) I don't think that students would read the post sign.
3) I like this idea most. It is very important to have the chain long enough for the stapler being able to move around the table.
#1: Great idea. Very necessary. I would appreciate having this implemented.
ReplyDelete#2: Doubt the library staff will want to perform this task, so not sure how viable this is. Seems like a challenge to implement.
#3: Easy, doable, affordable. Great idea.
I like ideas #1 and #3. I think that #2 is too labor intense and not realistic. And I agree, we do need the stapler to actually be somewhere that we can easily find it!!!
ReplyDeleteIdea #2 seems very labor intensive for a long term solution.
ReplyDeleteIdeas #1 and #3 both seem like good ideas, but I think that I would look into the source of the stapler problem first. Are the staplers moving, breaking or what?
I think that chaining or attaching the stapler to the wall or desk is definitely the easiest and most effective way to go. I feel like that would be helpful for the students and easy to implement.
ReplyDeleteChain to the table. You have my support. More astetically pleasing than the "Stolen from Owen GSM" engravings I was considering.
ReplyDeleteOption 1 is great because people don’t try to steal the staplers they just get moved and if it was electric the effort it takes to move the stapler is so much more substantial, which will deter people from moving the staplers. The only suggestion I have to this is to put one at all of the printers.
ReplyDeleteOption 3 might work but I think it will look the school look unprofessional
#1 is elegant in terms of discouraging movement of the stapler. You'll have to find one that doesn't jam easily, though. The electric ones in the copy rooms on the third floor are always jammed. #2 is fairly in-elegant and doesn't really cause a behavior change in the main perpetrators of the problem. I like #3 in it's brute-force approach. Can you find a stapler with a good affordance for connecting a chain/screw? I assume that will be the hard part of that one.
ReplyDeleteI agree with most of your classmates that the first and third solutions have the most potential. Both have logistical issues that you will need to consider. I encourage you to consider them for both the short-term and the long-term. For example, if you decide to chain the staplers to the desks, how hard will it be for someone to replace a broken stapler with a new one? Who at Owen is going to have both the knowledge and the materials to replace broken staplers? If you decide to replace the hand held staplers with heavy electronic staplers, who is going to be in charge of troubleshooting the staplers if they jam? Can you get that person to commit to only purchasing heavy, electronic staplers rather than inexpensive, hand-held ones if the staplers become broken beyond repair? It seems like the buy-in of people who will maintain your solution after this class is over is likely to impact the long-term success or failure of your innovation.
ReplyDeleteSolution #1 could be fairly expensive (purchasing new staplers). From my experience, electronic staplers often have mechanical issues as well.
ReplyDeleteSolution #2 seems basic but will likely solve the problem. This should be easy to implement and likely involves few constraints.
I love solution 1 since it makes stapling easier. I think the main issue is that people do not load the staplers properly when it runs out of staples. If there could be a designated person who reloads the stapler, that may be helpful as well.
ReplyDeleteI love ideas #1 and #3. I think #2 might be a bit demeaning to the librarians who really aren't there to babysit library supplies.
ReplyDelete#1, although the most expensive option, might work best because electronic staplers tend to not break or get jammed as often as they are meant for high volume stapling. However, when it comes to maintenance, who would be responsible for taking care of these if they do break?
#1 I think is already in place in the 2nd floor. Good idea
ReplyDelete#2 can be delegated to student librarians
#3 The prison solution :) effective but clunky
#1 There is an electronic stapler plugged in the wall next to Denali. Having the instructions for someone who has never used an electronic stapler and how to reload the staples would be beneficial. Also having a tray with extra supplies would help.
ReplyDelete#2 I would imagine a note on the wall would help but not be truly effective. I think a ball and chain would work similarly like a string tied to the stapler. Having someone check the staplers would be pretty remedial..
#3 I like this and referred to it in #2. A thick string or having the stapler glued down would probably work just as well.
1) This is a good idea, but you would need someone to be responsible for the maintenance and upkeep of these heavy duty staplers.
ReplyDelete2) I am not crazy about this idea as it doesn't seem very innovative. This is an easy fix, but I don't see it being very effective.
3) I like this idea, but it would make Owen seem pretty rough and ghetto.
--How about this innovative idea: What if, instead of giving incoming students water bottles that leak, the new students each receive their own Owen mini stapler. Therefore, each year, there would be 170+ new staplers added to the building. Furthermore, students would not have to go around looking for one that is already out of staples.
1. The best idea and one that i think will be sustainable. Just requires a table and the $ resources.
ReplyDelete2. Staplers will still migrate and i don't think the librarians would want to do that.
3. low cost and straight forward. if #1 fails, try this.
Based on the comments above, most of which I agree with, maybe the electric staplers could be chained or bolted down. This would be a combination of idea #1 and #3. #2 is already happening but clearly it isn't very effective.
ReplyDeleteQuick comment - there is already a large electronic stapler at the Denali printer. But it is probably a good idea to put on at the other major printer stations as well.
ReplyDelete