University officials say the first two months of the card access system have run smoothly, but some residents say the attempt at improved dormitory security is an inconvenience.

The system has been installed in Atherton, Hartranft, Simmons, McKean, Pennypacker and McKee halls so far.

"When it's cold out, you have to freeze your hands while you take your (identification card) out of your wallet," McKean resident Marco Vitali (freshman-liberal arts) said. "It's just a waste of money because if you really want to get in, you can wait for someone else to come along anyway."

Some students said having to use their student ID card and show their key to the night receptionist is a hassle.

Assistant Director of Residence Hall Programs Dane Foust said that residents in co-ed or women's dorms, who use their cards to get in, should not have to show their keys to the night receptionist. With the system, the doors open only with authorized ID numbers, he said, adding that students who come in a group with a resident must show their keys or be signed in by that resident, Foust said.

"It gives you a good chance to get rained on when you're coming home at 12:30 at night, and then you have to deal with the (night receptionist)," said Atherton resident Karen Kessler (sophomore-physics).

"It's a stupid waste of money. It basically serves no purpose because they still have someone who has to sit down there. Plus, if (the system) breaks down we can't get in the building," said Pennypacker resident Jenna Myer (freshman-Spanish).

Students can direct their complaints to the staff within their dorm area, the Association of Residence Hall Students or the members of the Residence Hall Advisory Board, said Housing Director Don Arndt.

Atherton Hall night receptionist Jenni Sheehey (junior-psychology) said she likes the increased security of the automated system. Before, a "rover" assigned to each dorm area checked doors only about once every hour, she said, adding that the system can be an inconvenience if the door is open just past the 30 seconds.

Sheehey said students make the system more difficult than it is. Many residents forget their ID cards, knock on the window next to her desk so she will open the door, and then get angry when she still wants to see their keys, she said.

Hartranft Hall resident Marc Louis (junior-agricultural science) said the system is not as effective in men's dorms, which do not have night receptionists. Louis said he has forgotten his ID three times and has waited for another resident to let him in the building.

"It's still just as easy to get in (the building) if you just follow someone in," he said.

Foust said, "Our security system can only be as good as the students allow it to be," adding that students need to accept the responsibility of not letting non-residents into their dorms.

The University is installing the system in women's dorms next year, followed by the co-ed dorms in 1990 and the men's dorms in 1991, said Arndt. In 1992, dining commons and employee entrances will have the system, he said.

"The male halls are the ones that we're most interested in looking at the closest because . . . (male students') concerns are in terms of preventing damages, believing these damages have been caused by individuals who don't live in the building and might have been kept out by the system," Arndt said. At the end of this semester, the total cost of damage will be assessed to see if the system has helped, he said.

Hartranft resident Walter Ostrowski (senior-secondary education) said he believes the system will not prevent vandalism because most of it is caused by residents.

"How many people come off the street and enter (a dorm) to cause damage?" he said.

Vandals have not tampered with the system, Assistant Director of University Safety Tom Harmon said. The computer did malfunction once and locked the system, Arndt said.

"It's a pain because a lot of times it doesn't work, but it's for a good purpose. It helps prevent floor damages. During football season it would be good, but for now it's kind of useless," McKean resident Steve Kramer (freshman-business) said.

In women's halls, the system should prevent crimes such as sexual assaults, but it is too early in the testing period to see a difference, Harmon said.

"I think it will protect against someone who could just slip in because the only people who can get in are those that live there," said Simmons resident Sue Gray (junior-speech communications).

"I guess overall (the system is) a good idea. I don't think it's bad in any way," Pennypacker resident Kim Romano (freshman-division of undergraduate studies) said. "If anything it gives you a greater sense of security," she added.

The system provides security for doors where no student night receptionist is stationed, Harmon said. Each building has at least one door that can only be opened by using a resident's student identification card. Other doors are equipped with door contacts that signal the main computer in the Food Services building if a door is left open for more than 30 seconds or if a door is forced open, Harmon said.

The receptionist receives a call from a person at the main terminal if an unattended door is open and can close it immediately, he said.

The system also functions as a burglar alarm when students are on breaks, Harmon said.

Gray said her only concern with the system is that residents' phone numbers are not posted outside by the phone for visitors.

These phones also serve as emergency telephones, with an automatic link to Police Services, Harmon said. In the future, these phones will be more visible and better marked, he added.