Starting Monday Western has developed a new login system for students and faculty to keep unauthorized users off the system.

Richard Kirchmeyer, vice president for Information Technology, said the new system will affect computers in all of the main student labs.

Students will now access computers by using their Western e-mail account login name and password. Students who use other e-mail accounts will still need to use their Western accounts to login.

“You don’t need to remember anything new,” Academic Technology Coordinator Masako Barnaby said.

Barnaby worked with Scott Copus, Academic Technology lab systems specialist, graduate student Bikram Assal and Jeppie Sumpter, Network Computing and Communications network specialist, on the new system.

Barnaby said the new login system was implemented because computers in campus labs haven’t required a login process. The computers could be used by anyone, including non-students. She said since students pay a technology fee to use the labs, they should be the ones benefiting from them.

“This was the best way to approach (the problem),” she said.

The old system was convenient, she said, but it could not discriminate between student and non-student users.

Kirchmeyer said the new procedure will also help Information Technology with computer repair by allowing the department to know who was using a computer if a problem occurs.

Owensboro sophomore Jason Fischer said the new system is easy to use. He said it only takes seconds to complete.

“I guess they don’t want people who don’t go to school here using their computers,” he said.

But, some students are not as pleased with the new procedure, which they view as an added hassle.

Herald reporter Stephanie King contributed to this report.

Herald reporter Molly O’Connor can be reached at [email protected].