Free the Xerox
Once hung up around the main building in San Francisco, the movement gained support among Graphic and non-Graphic Design students.
Victor’s poster gained the attention of the Graphic Design Chair, Rachel Berger, and was featured during the end-of-semester slideshow.
See the posters below.
Why the Outrage?
The outrage has to do with the CCA administration punishing the wrong people for the actions of others.
The reason behind the re-implementation of the paywall software was due to people printing en-mass directly to the xerox copiers via the copiers’ IP addresses; a feature you can’t turn off or block behind a paywall like papercut (paywall used by CCA). Students who do not rely on the copiers to complete essential classwork in the Graphic Design Program were directly printing to these machines in extremely large amounts during the Spring 2023 job fair that was held on campus. They were using incredible amounts of paper to print their resumes for potential employers attending the job fair.
The insane amounts of paper being used that day raised red flags to the administrative body and they discovered the school was going over budget on paper. They decided to re-install papercut on the xerox copy machines over spring break without announcement in an attempt to not go over budget on paper. The problem with this is that paywall software does not block printing via the IP address, so the students who caused the re-implementation of papercut are still not paying for their paper usage; thusly not being financially punished for their actions.
Those that use the copiers as intended, however, do have to pay for each copy they make. These individuals, specifically in the Graphic Design Program, are being financially punished for the actions of others who can still get around the paywall with their original printing methods. That is where the outrage lies; the people being punished are not the main perpetrators.
Another smaller point of outrage is the price point of the paper copies. Papercut, as installed, is a pay-per-sheet model which is set to the same pricing as the high-quality laser printers at the school. It is 5 cents for one black and white copy and 60 cents for one color copy; double if double sided which makes no sense given it’s a pay-per-sheet model and not a pay-for-ink model. This price point is outrageous considering that xerox copiers don’t have a preview option for the copies and the simple fact that the quality is not on the same level as the laser printers found around campus.
Peer “Contributions”
This is an example a fellow peer “defacing” the poster to add more meaning to the poster. This one has been dubbed “The Printer Pig” and has unfortunately been taken down by an unknown individual; presumably the administration.