24-hour computer lab provides resource for busy students
By Erin O'Brien
Midterms are in sight, and for those who need to study and don’t
have a computer at home, the answer may lie in the 24-hour computer lab
located in the Peters Building.
“I work full-time and go to school full-time,” senior Joanna
Capriola said.
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Chemistry major Willy Balthazar said he uses the 24-hour computer
lab up to four times a week and likes that lab assistants are there
to help him. Photo by Emily Tuck |
“That doesn’t really leave me a lot of time to get my homework
done. I like coming here where it’s quiet and, since it’s
24 hours, I can work at my own pace.”
The computer lab, located in the Peters Building, rooms 133 and 135, boasts
60 computers, a copy machine and several printing stations. The computers
run most common programs, including Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint and Word
and have online services to use.
“There are people here all the time,” lab assistant Fred Smith
said. “At around 2 a.m., it starts to die off a bit, but there are
even people here at 4 a.m. It usually packs around 6 a.m.”
The lab opens at noon on Sunday and stays open 24 hours a day until Friday,
when it closes at 5 p.m. The lab reopens Saturday at 8 a.m. and closes
at 8 p.m.
There is a lab assistant present at all times to help students with any
technical problem they may encounter while using a computer.
“All the assistants here are very knowledgeable and some are even
engineering majors,” said Willy Balthazar, a senior majoring in
chemistry. “They have always been very helpful.”
Balthazar also said that not all the students come to the lab to do school
work.
“I have seen people chat online with friends,” Balthazar said.
“But it’s mostly during exam time that this place is full.”
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