The NIU OneCard now has one more role to fill.

In an effort to encourage students to use Huskie Bucks, campus copy machines soon will accept OneCards while NIU phases out copy cards, said Shey Lowman, director of document services.

The new change comes with a price increase. For 8.5-by-11-inch and 11-by-17-inch paper, it will be 8 cents per copy and $1 per color copy.

Copy cards purchased before June 16 can be used until May 2004. However, the machines will no longer accept coins.

“A big reason to make copying a cashless environment is to make it safer for employees walking with bags of money,” Lowman said. “Students also will benefit from not having to carry cash.”

Problems with the old copy card systems include card jams, scrambled data and a constant need to replace bent or damaged cards.

All NIU students, including those at Rockford, Hoffman Estates and Naperville, will need to purchase Huskie Bucks in order to make copies.

“NIU has spent the last five years finding new copy card readers,” Lowman said.

There are 275 copy machines on campus, 16 of which are in Founders Memorial Library. Fifty-five machines have both the old and new OneCard readers.

The new readers are all networked and monitored together. By hooking a copy machine to a computer, the machine can be used as a printer. Value transfer stations at the library, the Holmes Student Center, Swen Parson Hall and the Gabel Hall Learning Center are equipped to sell Huskie Bucks cards and accept deposits.

Some students like the change.

“I think it’s good not to have to carry around extra stuff,” senior finance major Ivan Dunston said.

However, there are some problems with the new system.

“We have had complaints about the machines not accepting change or credit cards,” said Virginia Sanchez, Huskie Prints supervisor.