Carly Belkowski had an English paper due.

Like every other naive freshman, she thought the East Halls computer lab would not be crowded when she needed it most.

Wrong.

There happened to be a class being conducted there.

So she traveled to North Halls on the advice of a staff member in East Halls. Strike two -- the printers were broken.

Next stop: South Halls. Again, Belkowski was denied -- the line stretched out the door.

"My paper ended up being late and I lost points," said Belkowski (freshman-division of undergraduate studies). "Needless to say, I wasn't too pleased."

The Center for Academic Computing is trying to relieve such problems -- it just gained another lab.

The recently installed computer lab in 202 Chambers is part of a long-term plan to increase the number of computers at the University, said Jim Kerlin, CAC's deputy director.

"A couple of years ago, there was a real recognition that we needed more computers," said Jim Sleezer, director of Instructional Technological Support Services.

University administrators developed a plan that called for the installation of 250 microcomputers per year until an "ideal" ratio of 20 students to one computer would be reached, Kerlin said. Right now, the ratio is 52 students to one computer, he said.

Last year, 131 microcomputers were installed.

Contrary to popular belief, the University does "quite well" in implementing the proposed plan, Kerlin said, citing the renovation costs for lab facilities as a major factor that must be considered along with the actual installation costs. The renovation for a computer facility at Waring Commons will cost about $350,000, Kerlin said.

Since microcomputer funding is "never enough," the support services and CAC have concentrated their efforts on efficiency instead, Sleezer said.

The lab in Chambers Building -- a cooperative effort of the support services and CAC -- is used in a classroom fashion for about six hours a week for teaching and general student use, Sleezer said.

The lab is specifically designed for the dual use and has room for a screen and projector, as well as an instructor's console, he said.

Sleezer denied that long lines are a problem.

"I think it has a lot to do with students waiting until the last minute," he said. "Very few times does a student get a paper assigned that he has to in 24 hours."

But students think differently.

"The overcrowding of the computer labs is so bad that most students go to (them) expecting to wait anywhere from 15 to 60 minutes," said John Potsiadlo (sophomore-marketing).

Pat Sheplee (freshman-business) said, "It's been my experience that if a student wants to go to a lab and get a computer right away, they either have to go early in the morning or well after midnight."

Labs are so deserted at the beginning of the semester that they close early, Sleezer said. The extra time is then used for staff training.

Sleezer had nothing but praise for the lab staff members.

"CAC has students that are really trained in the systems," he said. "They can do incredible things for students if they would just ask."