Touchless Printing Introduced at the Libraries

There’s a new way to print your documents at University Libraries, and it’s more user-friendly and Covid-safe than ever before. All the Libraries’ pay-to-print printers now offer a new touchless printing feature, which uses an app that can be downloaded to your mobile phone.

“Probably the main impetus for [Office of Information Technology] rolling this out right now was Covid,” said Carrie Preston, head of web services at the Libraries. “By not having to touch the printer screen, you’re not touching a surface that other people may have touched…within the last few seconds. But touchless printing can help with other issues, too, for example, if your ID card is too worn out and the printer can’t read it.”

The new touchless printing feature requires that you download the Pharos Mobile Print app onto your phone or other mobile device. Once the app is installed, you can either upload documents directly into the app, or send documents to your print queue in any of the previously available ways. From there, scan the QR code located next to the printer that you would like to use, and the document will print in a few moments.

“People can print directly from [the Libraries’] computers, people can print using My Print Center, which is a website you can upload your documents to, and you can even email your document to mobileprint@ohio.edu from your Ohio University email account and have it printed. So this touchless printing is just another option,” said Ryan Spellman, library support specialist.

Spellman added that the printing options that were already available aren’t going anywhere; touchless printing is simply another option that is now being offered. He noted that it may be easier and more convenient for many students.

“I feel like this is going to become a really popular method of printing, not just at the [Libraries], but at the University in general,” he said.

For more information about touchless printing, and all of the other printing options offered at University Libraries, visit the Office of Information Technology website, or contact the Libraries.