Fines for mobile phones

swingking

Has anyone ever been fined for use of mobile phones in libraries. I was in the library today and someone was texting while waiting for a book at the berkely counter

What's the story with that

I suppose they don't care enough unless someone complains... Funny you should mention it actually because I was thinking the same thing earlier.

I saw the sign "fines from €15" (or something similar), and thought... For such a meagre fine, you might as well just use it and see what happens. Not that I would though. 8)

wheresthebeef

i think its really only if the phone is causing a disturbance. so outside of a study area, you'd get away with texting or whatever, probably.

ZWEI_VIER_ZWEI

swingking wrote:

Has anyone ever been fined for use of mobile phones in libraries. I was in the library today and someone was texting while waiting for a book at the berkely counter

What's the story with that

Why on earth would they have fines for texting people? That would imply that the library would have a fundamental problem with the presence of mobile phones on your person, the kind of silliness that you might expect to find in secondary school, my old school had rule saying that if you had a mobile phone in your bag, you could get detention or whatever, even if it was turned off, I'm sure it wasn't the only one...if you're not distracting people there shouldn't be a reason to be fined, and to be honest, if they tried laying a fine on my ass if I was texting someone I'd raise ****in' hell...

wheresthebeef

the fines document didnt say whether or not it was the presence of a phone that was the problem, or it actively causing a disturbance, as far as i can remember.
someone suggested that texting can be disruptive cos of the clicking. (Don't ask me!!!)

ZWEI_VIER_ZWEI

Perhaps that the case, that it is just the presence of phones, which is the problem, couldn't tell you, I don't do libraries but it would be REALLY sucky if that was the case. Clicking noise my ass ;_;

cuckoo

wheresthebeef wrote:

the fines document didnt say whether or not it was the presence of a phone that was the problem, or it actively causing a disturbance, as far as i can remember.
someone suggested that texting can be disruptive cos of the clicking. (Don't ask me!!!)

The clicking is irritating. For me anyway. Not as much the quick, 'see you at 2pm' texts, but the back and forth conversations that take forever, and the buzzing phone for each text and report.

I don't understand why some people go to the library to write War and Peace via text. Grrr. :mad:

europerson

I was once in Iveagh Hall, queuing up to take out books, and there was a guy making a call on his phone. One of the librarians asked him to stop. He refused and continued with his call. The librarian came out from behind the counter, stood beside this guy, and asked him to hang up. Again he refused. When he was finished on the call, the librarian asked to see his ID, which he had in his hand anyway. The librarian promptly informed him that he would be fined. The phone-user didn't really seem bothered.

<Jonny>

<Jonny> wrote:

I suppose they don't care enough unless someone complains... Funny you should mention it actually because I was thinking the same thing earlier.

I saw the sign "fines from €15" (or something similar), and thought... For such a meagre fine, you might as well just use it and see what happens. Not that I would though. 8)

The Librarian is being granted additional powers for next year (along the lines of the Junior Dean) for more disruptive offences, and this includes mutilating a book, mobile phone use, eating and drinking. Basically, 90% of the powers are focussed on stopping disturbances for students.

Half the books are already mutilated! That'd be difficult to enforce.

Thirdfox

Eating and drinking? What constitutes an offence there? I like to have my bottle of water on the table...

Nietzschean

the ole no drinks sign should tell you that one.

Thirdfox

Yes but I'm talking about enforcement of that rule... (even the guy giving the tour of the library at the beginning of the year said ignore that rule).

Will that change next year?

xeduCat

Dunno. Hey, stop trashing the books and you won't have to worry about it. Food on desks attracts vermin, damages the book stock, and is just plain rude. It's not that hard to go out somewhere else and eat.

xeduCat

europerson wrote:

I was once in Iveagh Hall, queuing up to take out books, and there was a guy making a call on his phone. One of the librarians asked him to stop. He refused and continued with his call. The librarian came out from behind the counter, stood beside this guy, and asked him to hang up. Again he refused. When he was finished on the call, the librarian asked to see his ID, which he had in his hand anyway. The librarian promptly informed him that he would be fined. The phone-user didn't really seem bothered.

I frequently chase people halfway across the library who literally run away when approached and politely asked to hang up. If people don't like the rule, they should lobby to have it changed. But it's a very simple policy - no phone calls - and it is the absolute height of ignorance to be so blatant in defying it. The worst offenders, from personal experience, are BESS students (sorry). However, that could be a function of their relative inexperience with the library (like the final year business student who berated me and thus the library for not telling her about our 'new' online renewal system - in place for about seven years...) rather than anything innate about BESSies.

Any Boards users ever been confronted by an angry xeduCat demanding the cessation of a phone call?

Thirdfox

I'm talking about my bottle of water though (food annoys me too).

Agent Smith

xeduCat wrote:

Any Boards users ever been confronted by an angry xeduCat demanding the cessation of a phone call?

not yet, but i'm about twice your size, So good luck with that....

Nietzschean

uh huh, the bigger they are, the harder they fall. and really joe who in fairness would take any **** from you? even enda feels free to give you crap... though you did sit on him for his trouble...

cuckoo

agent smith wrote:

not yet, but i'm about twice your size, So good luck with that....

I wouldn't advise taking on SuperXEducat, Defender of the Books.

Food in the library is just ugh.

Time Magazine

Nietzschean wrote:

even enda feels free to give you crap... though you did sit on him for his trouble...

I was just on a high from my victory immediately before-hand >:D.

wheresthebeef

the water issue was discussed at Su Exec, and i think it was much assumed that having water was fine, as long as it was kept under your seat, and only taken up for occasional sips etc.....
the rules are there so that if someone abuses the system, they can do something. doesn't mean that the rules will be applied to the exact letter. it just gives people like xEduCat the scope to do more, when the need arises.

Pet

Nietzschean wrote:

uh huh, the bigger they are, the harder they fall. and really joe who in fairness would take any **** from you? even enda feels free to give you crap... though you did sit on him for his trouble...

Hehe, harsh.

cuckoo

wheresthebeef wrote:

the water issue was discussed at Su Exec, and i think it was much assumed that having water was fine, as long as it was kept under your seat, and only taken up for occasional sips etc.....

That'd make a great defence if a librarian were to take issue with water on someone's desk, "but, the SU exec said it was ok, at least, they assumed it was...."

The Hamilton library gets so stuffy sometimes that it would be cruel to deny water to people studying there.

Crisp eaters, however, should be dangled over the nearest balcony by their ankles, and if they've left greasy fingerprints on books - well, then they shall be dangled by someone with greasy, slippy hands.

John

I think there should be a system for 3rd/4th years to reserve seats in the library. Went to get some lunch the other day to find a bunch of 2nd year pharmacists in my seat when I got back. I moved not too far from them and they spent the whole time chatting. Cunts.

Pet

This guy sat down the other day beside me, and my.god. I never thought someone's nose could whistle so loudly - it sounded like a squeaky dog toy, except one that you couldn't hide in the press or throw in the bin. I kept getting distracted and thinking of sheepdog trials and kettles and then tea, so eventually I had to get up to feed my crippling caffeine addiction, and besides, I don't know whether it was irritation or craning my neck to look at the small print in the Geology book I was pretending to read, but my neck was starting to spasm, giving me that friendly neighbourhood psycho look. Oh my god, run-on sentence.

Tacitha

I studied abroad last year, where the libraries allowed drinking so long as you used one of these. Could it work here? Might be a good green policy for the coffee dock as well.

Time Magazine

In fairness, I'm quite sure my female classmates in the Lecky would require something less complicated.

Awayindahils

cuckoo wrote:

Crisp eaters, however, should be dangled over the nearest balcony by their ankles, and if they've left greasy fingerprints on books - well, then they shall be dangled by someone with greasy, slippy hands.

ah in cuckoos quest for silence there shall be no prisoners

Thirdfox

Thirdfox wrote:

Eating and drinking? What constitutes an offence there? I like to have my bottle of water on the table...

You'll be allowed have water/food by your side or in your bag. You were never allowed to have water on your table, for fear it would damage the furniture! Ever see a libro-cop ask you to take it off and put it on the ground?

Thirdfox

Nope, but thanks for the heads up, I'll be keeping my water in the bag then.

EmoKid

my friend was in the library. a different friend took his phone from his bag, put it on "loud" and put it back in his bag. as he was walking out of the library, the other guy rang him. he got fined. true story.