UCSD’s new library mobile application, the PC Availability App, is giving students a new way to find available computer and study spaces on campus. The application was released Fall Quarter and is accessible on the library’s mobile site. 

The application provides information regarding how many computers are in use in Academic Computing and Media Services (ACMS) computer labs across campus, including six computing spaces in Geisel Library and two in the Biomedical Library buildings. The application also provides information on computer availability for 84 computers in Price Center, Center Hall and the Student Center. 

“Having access to a computer is critical for students,” Library Web Manager Steve Wieda said. “With this app, students can spend more time focusing on the work they need to get done.”

Information is updated by the minute and notifies users on the number of available computers in a particular lab at that time. 

“The primary benefit of this application is that it provides students with a quick mechanism for locating a lab with an open computer and it gives them directions to that lab,” Wieda said. “This will save them the time they would otherwise have to spend going to a lab that is crowded.”

The PC Availability App is among the top five most used resources on the library’s mobile website, which launched February 2011. Almost 1,350 students have used the application since the start of the year, with increasing student usage, according to Wieda. 

The application was a collaborative effort by the library IT staff, led by Matt Critchlow, and ACMS, led by Dan Suchy. It was launched last spring as a pilot project, with no announcements regarding its availability. The application was made available on the library’s mobile website and the “Campus Services” section of the UCSD mobile home page, allowing users to discover it themselves. Since then, about 4,800 students have found and used the app.  

“We are hoping that eventually the app can provide availability information for all computer labs on campus, including those that require private access,” Wieda said. 

According to Wieda, the library’s mobile web advisory group is constantly reviewing and considering new features for the mobile site that will benefit students. Features will be added to the application regularly.