For a university that prides itself on being paperless ' for example, by making bills available only online ' Ohio University's switch from printed course catalogs to an online catalog is long overdue. Nonetheless, OU should be commended for moving into the 21st century and saving money to boot.
By Fall Quarter, OU's course catalog will be available online through a new software system. While the start-up costs will be $120,054, the annual cost will be only $19,644 ' compared to the $93,000-plus annual labor costs OU currently spends to print the catalogs.
The benefits are not only monetary. Course offerings can change, and it will be easier to reflect changes through an online system than in printed material. Students will be more likely to read an electronic catalogue than the current printed form, since finding relevant information will be quicker than leafing through a thick book. Ideally, the search function will work better than the one on the front page of the university's Web site. Departments will be able to edit and update without having to go through a central system. Environmentalists will appreciate that OU is killing fewer trees.
University officials also hope they will be able to use one aspect of the online catalog as a recruiting tool. A shopping basket feature will allow current and prospective students to keep an eye on courses that interest them. Since OU officials have complained about enrollment as a factor causing the budget deficit, perhaps this could help with the problem.
It's nice to see the university make good decisions for a change. Let's just hope the implementation of this online catalog is as good as the idea. Editorials represent the majority opinion of the Post executive editors.
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Changing from print to online course catalog lets students access most updated information
