Public Workstations Inappropriate Use

[Jennifer Lang]

Our university library has several public WWW workstations. Lately,
we've experienced problems with local high school students using the
workstations to view objectionable (i.e., nude photographs, XXX
websites, etc.) materials. Also, because the public library imposes time
limits on their WWW computers, we have seen an increased number of local
citizens (non-university) using our workstations for recreational
purposes.

We certainly do not want to practice any sort of censorship, nor do we
want to discourage the local community from using our resources;
however, these workstations were set up for research purposes for use by
students, faculty and staff. We are considering drafting an acceptable
use policy but are concerned that this may not be sufficient to prohibit
non-university users from using these workstations inappropriately.

Has anyone had a similar experience at a university library? If so, we
would be interested to hear how you are dealing with (have dealt with)
this issue. Thanks.

Jennifer Lang
Visiting Librarian
Langsam Library
University of Cincinnati
Cincinnati, OH 45221-0033
(513) 556-1856
langjf at email.uc.edu