This is the first in a series of Q & As with faculty and staff at West. For this Q &A, the NWN sat down with Tim Furman, the student technology and applications support specialist who helps the freshmen with their netbooks.

NWN: What is your main responsibility in the school?

Furman: I make sure that the technical parts of the netbooks work. I fix and maintain them, and work with the wireless connection. I also help with training in how to use them.

NWN: What is the oddest repair you’ve done on a student’s Netbook?

Furman: I’ve had some that have fallen down several flights of stairs.

NWN: Any other ones?

Furman: Well, the student will know who she is when I tell you this, but she spilled chicken broth on the inside of it. We cleaned it out, but I imagine that when it heats up now, it smells like chicken broth. …Of course, we also have usual cases of cracked screens, since the Netbooks get crushed by a student’s books.

NWN: On an average day, how many freshmen come in for help with their Netbooks?

Furman: “Average day” is misleading. Some days we have a ton—between 15 to 20 students a day, though we’ve had some busier days. And some days we have a little—between two to three students a day.

NWN: What is the most common thing or problem that freshmen come in for?

Furman: They can’t figure out how to print. We put up a web video explaining how to, but some didn’t watch it. With other problems, the solution is usually to reboot.

NWN: Do you repair students’ other laptops, or do you only repair Netbooks?

Furman: Only Netbooks. We can advise others on what to do, but we won’t touch the machine.