On this page: Background | Who is it for? | Who isn't it for? | How to get a laptop | Responsibilities | Info for faculty | What you get | Laptop specifications| Request and contact form

Draft of Laptop Loaner Program guidelines

This page is being drafted here, in the Faculty and Student Experience (FSX) wiki space. The Laptop Loaner Program will be administered out of the IS&T Service Desk, with guidance from FSX. This page will go "live" on the IS&T web site soon, replacing the current Laptop Loaner Program page. However, the content is approaching its final form here, and the contact form (bottom of page) is functional now for submitting requests.

We would love to hear from you if you are a student or faculty member, and have any suggestions on the program or these guidelines. Feel free to use the web form to contact us. Many thanks,

- Oliver Thomas, Manager, Faculty and Student Experience

Background and purpose

"The Laptop Loaner Program" and "The Program" are used interchangeably in this document.

The Laptop Loaner Program was chartered in 2003 to bridge the gap between personal laptop ownership among students and increasing reliance on student laptops as part of MIT coursework. At the time, while personal laptop ownership was high, it was not high enough to make a general purpose pool directly available to students a feasible model. Instead the application of the loaner pool was focused by limiting it to faculty-sponsored requests for course-specific needs.

In light of significant resource reductions, increasing personal laptop ownership among MIT students, and a dramatic decrease in course-specific demand for loaner laptops, the Laptop Loaner Program is being reorganized to more directly meet the needs of individual MIT students requiring the use of a laptop in their academic work, because they do not own a laptop, their personal laptop is in for repair, or in situations where their personal laptop is insufficient to meet a particular (temporary) academic need.

The goal of the program continues to be to supplement significant (and now pervasive) personal ownership of laptops among MIT students with limited central resources to ensure that all current MIT students have the computational resources required to do their academic work.

Who is this program intended for?

  • Currently enrolled MIT students who do not own a laptop, and need one for specific short-term academic work
  • Currently enrolled MIT students who own a laptop that does not meet a specific academic need, which could be met by a model in the loaner pool

Who is this program not intended for?

  • Programs and classes looking for a pool of laptops for use by the program (rather than specifically assigned to individual students)
  • Programs, classes, or events not intended for currently enrolled MIT students
  • Community events, conferences, professional programs
  • Other activities not directly related to academic use by MIT students
  • Temporary replacement machine, while your machine is being serviced

Please note that these are guidelines articulating the intent and priorities of the Laptop Loaner Program. In the past, the program has occasionally met the needs of groups and events in the "Who is this program not intended for?" category. The program will still accept requests falling into this category, but please be aware that such requests can only be accommodated after all other priorities have been accommodated, if equipments is available, and if there is no chance of such a request interfering with upcoming requests more in line with the program's intent.

How does one get a laptop?

Faculty sponsorship is no longer required for laptop loaner requests. Any currently enrolled MIT student can request a laptop directly from the program at Request a laptop from the Laptop Loaner Program (should go to a web form). Each participating student can only have one laptop out at a time. Any student picking up a laptop, once a request has been approved, will need to present a valid MIT ID. Laptop loans are tracked via students' MIT ID numbers.

What are the borrower's responsibilities?

Students taking advantage of the laptop loaner program are expected to take good care of the laptop and observe best practices related to the physical and network security and protection of the equipment. Equipment will be returned to the program in a timely fashion and in good condition before the lending period is over. Students are not responsible for normal wear and tear or hardware failure.

However, students are responsible for significant accidental damage to the equipment, lost equipment, stolen equipment in cases where theft was preventable (police report needed!), and other damage due to misuse or carelessness. In the event equipment needs to be repaired or replaced in this situation, the student's Bursar's Account will automatically be billed for actual repair costs or a replacement fee of $1000, whichever is lower.

Equipment will automatically be considered stolen and reported as stolen to MIT Police if it is not returned by the end of the lending period, unless special arrangements are made for the laptop's return. Students are responsible of initiating contact before the lending period ends and making acceptable special arrangements for the laptop's return, if it cannot be returned by the return date.

Students are responsible for removing any personal data from the laptop before it is returned to the program. The laptop will be re-imaged upon its return and any data on the laptop will be irretrievable wiped. No accommodation can be made for recovering personal or academic data left behind on the laptop once it has been returned to the program.

What do we mean by "lending period?"

We ask that you let us know how you long you need the laptop for. Our standard assumption will be that it is for no longer than one academic semester at a time. Assume that if no other period was specified, laptops are due on the last day of Finals Week at the end of the semester during which they were checked out. Laptops checked out during the summer are due at least one week before the start of Orientation week (two weeks before classes start). Laptops checked between fall and spring semester are due at least one week before start of classes. If you need a laptop for multiple semesters, you must return it at the end of each semester and check it out again. Please include any special scheduling issues in your note, and when in doubt notify us early of any delays or issues with returning a laptop on time.

Special information for faculty

Occasionally faculty may be able to anticipate a need for a certain number of their students to obtain loaner laptops through the program, based on enrollment in a class or participation in class projects. For example, a class may have anticipated enrollment of 80 students and it is expected that 25% of these students will not have personal laptops. Yet the class has several individual student projects that require the use of a laptop. In such cases faculty may request a "special hold" on a certain number of laptops before the beginning of the academic term in anticipation of the expected demand. The program will make every attempt to set aside a sufficient number of laptops for a limited period of time. Laptops will remain "on hold" for students in the class until they have all been checked out or until the end of the second week of classes, whichever comes first. Students enrolled in the class will still be responsible for individually requesting and checking out their loaner laptops.

Faculty may occasionally sponsor academic programs with non-MIT-student participants and may need to request a small number of laptops for these participants. The program will attempt to accommodate such requests if possible. They will be prioritized below requests aligned with the intended use of the program, but before any similar requests without faculty sponsorship and requests not related to academic uses. An MIT account number will need to be provided for any such requests, since laptops cannot be directly checked out to individual MIT students in these cases. Replacement or repair fees that MIT students returning loaner laptops would be held responsible for will be the responsibility of the sponsoring MIT department in cases where laptops are requests for non-MIT students, and will automatically be billed to the provided account number.

What's in the package?

The standard "package" is a laptop, currently a Windows laptop, with a current, patched version of Windows XP SP3 installed on it, along with a standard set of software. We do not create custom software images for individual students' needs or to support specific classes a student may be enrolled in. However, students with loaner laptops are able to install software on the machine just as they would on their personal laptop. In addition, each laptop has VMware Desktop installed on it. If course-specific VMware images are available they can be run on these laptops. Details of what's included (hardware and software) are summarized below.

What's in the box?

The table below summarizes what is included in the standard loaner laptop package. Note that we can't usually accommodate requests for specific laptop models or configurations. While such requests are welcome and will certainly be considered, options are severely limited by machines and resources available in the loaner pool.

  • Hardware
    (These specs are really what Oliver would like the specs to be; they need to be adjusted to match current minimum inventory; we will try, resources permitting, to bring the pool up to these standards as quickly as possible; if you have special requirements around specifications please do not hesitate to contact us. Oliver Thomas)
    • Core 2 Duo laptop, 14"-15" screen
    • Discrete graphics with dedicated video memory
    • 1024x768 resolution or higher screen
    • 2GB or more of RAM
    • Built-in CD-RW/DVD media drive
    • Built-in hard disk with 160GB capacity or larger
    • AC power adapter with US plug
    • Padded protective laptop sleeve
    • Security cable laptop lock and key
  • Software
    • Microsoft Windows XP Service Pack 3
    • McAfee VirusScan Enterprise
    • Microsoft Office 2007 (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote)
    • Certificate Installer Tool for fixing certificate issues in IE
    • Kerberos single sign-on software
    • SecureCRT (SSH) & SecureFX (sFTP file transfer)
    • Firefox web browser (in addition to Internet Explorer)
    • Adobe Reader for viewing PDF files
  • Account setup
    • Laptops will have both an administrator and non-administrator account configured
    • Both accounts will be password-protected
    • Laptop users should use the non-administrator account for all work on the laptop
    • The administrator account should only be used if new applications need to be installed
  • Network setup
    • Both the wired and wireless network adapters in the laptop will be registered for DHCP on MITnet
    • These registrations will be centrally managed and will not be administer-able by the student

Contact the Program or Request a Laptop

Please use the form below to request a laptop or to contact the program with any questions, concerns, or suggestions you may have. Especially in this period of transition it is vital for us to hear from customers and potential customers of the program to make sure we maintain a resource that is of the broadest possible use to MIT students and faculty. It is important that you fill in all the fields as best you can. Please double-check contact information, email address and your student ID number.


Your name:
Your MIT username: (a.k.a. Kerberos name, eight characters max)
Your MIT email address: (Important!)
Your MIT ID number: (Nine digits)
Your Department: Beats me... Academic Media Production Services-Libraries Accounts Payable Administrative Services: Chemical Engineering & MS Admissions Office Air Force Aerospace Studies Alumni Association Anthropology Program Audio Visual Services Audit Division Budget, Finance and Treasury Cambridge-MIT Institute Campus Activities Complex Campus Police Center for Advanced Visual Studies Center for Biomedical Engineering Center for Biomedical Innovation Center for Collective Intelligence Center for Educational Computing Initiatives Center for Environmental Health Sciences Center for Global Change Science Center for Information Systems Research Center for International Studies Center for Materials Science and Engineering Center for Real Estate Center for Technology, Policy, & Industrial Develp Center for Transportation and Logistics Chairman of the Corporation Chancellor's Office Clinical Research Center Community Development & Substance Abuse Programs Comparative Media Studies Computer Science & Artificial Intelligence Lab Concourse Consortium on Financing Higher Education Controller and Accounting Services Copy Technology Centers Corporate Relations/Industrial Liaison Program Credit Union DAPER Administration DAPER Facilities DAPER Intercollegiate Sports DAPER Physical Education DAPER Recreation DLC Heads Science DUE Desktop Support David H Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Res Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics Department of Architecture Department of Biological Engineering Department of Biology Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences Department of Chemical Engineering Department of Chemistry Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering Department of Economics Department of Facilities Department of Housing Department of Linguistics and Philosophy Department of Materials Science and Engineering Department of Mathematics Department of Mechanical Engineering Department of Nuclear Science and Engineering Department of Physics Department of Political Science Department of Urban Studies and Planning Dept of Earth, Atmospheric, & Planetary Sciences Dept of Electrical Engineering & Computer Science Deshpande Center for Technological Innovations Design Laboratory Dining Division of Comparative Medicine Document Services EHS Headquarters Office Earth System Initiative Edgerton Center Educational Council Endicott House Engineering Systems Division Experimental Study Group Foreign Languages and Literatures Section Forum for Higher Education Francis Bitter Magnet Laboratory Fraternities, Sororities and ILGs GL Operations & Reporting & Journal Vouchers Global Education and Career Development Center Gordon Engineering Leadership Program Gray House HR/Payroll Harvd-MIT Division of Health Sciences & Technology Haystack Observatory History Section Hobby Shop Human Resources Department Industrial Performance Center Information Services & Technology Institute for Soldier Nanotechnologies International Innovation Initiative Kavli Institute for Astrophysics & Space Research Kuwait - MIT Center for Natural Resource Lab for Electromagnetic & Electronic Systems Laboratory for Information and Decision Systems Laboratory for Manufacturing and Productivity Laboratory for Nuclear Science Leaders for Global Operations Program Legatum Center for Dev Entrepreneurship Lemelson/MIT Program Libraries Lincoln Laboratory List Visual Arts Center Literature Section MIT Card Office MIT Energy Initiative MIT Investment Management Company MIT Press MIT Professional Education MIT-Broad Affiliation MIT-Portugal Program Materials Processing Center McGovern Institute for Brain Research Media Laboratory Medical Department Microphotonics Center Microsystems Technology Laboratories Military Science Museum Music and Theater Arts Section Naval Science Nuclear Reactor Laboratory Office of Communications Office of Development Services Office of Educational Innovation and Technology Office of Environment, Health & Safety Office of Experiential Learning Office of Faculty Support Office of Foundation Relations Office of Gift Planning Office of Institutional Initiatives Office of Insurance Office of Leadership Giving Office of Major Agreements Office of Minority Education Office of Philanthropic Partnerships Office of Sponsored Programs Office of Student Citizenship Office of the Arts Office of the Dean for Graduate Education Office of the Dean for Student Life Office of the Dean for Student Life - Administratn Office of the Dean for Student Life - Dept Heads Office of the Dean for Undergraduate Education Office of the Dean of Humanities, Arts & Social Sc Office of the Executive Vice President & Treasurer Office of the General Counsel Office of the Institute Professors Office of the President Office of the Provost Office of the Recording Secretary Office of the Vice President for Finance Office of the Vice President for Human Resources Office of the Vice President for Institute Affairs Office of the Vice President for Resource Devlpmnt OpenCourseWare Operations Research Center Parking and Transportation Office Picower Institute for Learning & Memory Plasma Science and Fusion Center Procurement Program in Media Arts and Sciences Program in Science, Technology, and Society Program in Writing and Humanistic Studies Property Office Public Service Center Registrar's Office Religious Life Research Laboratory of Electronics Residential Life Programs SHASS Department Heads School of Architecture and Planning School of Engineering School of Engineering - UPOP School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences School of Science Sea Grant College Program Secretary of the Corporation Security and Emergency Management Office Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology Singapore/MIT Alliance Program Sloan School of Management Spectroscopy Laboratory Sponsored & Genl A/R & Cashier Student Activities Student Financial Services Student Support Services System Design and Management Teaching and Learning Laboratory Technology Licensing Office Technology Review Technology and Development Program Technology and Policy Program Terrascope The Broad Institute Travel Undergraduate Advising and Academic Programming VP Information Services & Technology Whitaker College of Health Science & Technology (Sorry, MIT has a lot of departments)
...or your major (course): Undecided 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 20 21E 21F 21H 21L 21M 21S 21W 22 24 CDO CSB ESD HST MAS NIW OR PEP RED SDM STS None (Students)
Your role: Student (MIT) Faculty (MIT) Staff (MIT) Other (please explain in notes)
Topic: I am an MIT STUDENT and would like to request a loaner laptop I am a FACULTY MEMBER with a special request Other comments, questions, or suggestions
MIT account number: (optional 7-digit cost object, if needed)
Concerns specific laptop: (MIT property tag or S/N)
This is for a specific class: (If for specific class, specify number, e.g. 1.00)
Loan requested until: Please specify the expected return date.
Note that we cannot loan a laptop out beyond the end date of the current academic semester.
Notes:
 

JavaScript use in the macro is restricted by your Confluence administrator at Macro Security hence it has been removed from the page. Please see your Confluence administrator for additional details.

What happens after I submit the form?

Your request is sent via email to laptop-loaner-program@mit.edu. Assuming you filled in your email address and other information correctly you will receive an automatic reply with a tracking number. (Please double-check the email address you entered!) If all necessary information is present you should hear back from the program within 1-3 business days. If you are an MIT student requesting a laptop you should hear back with information on when and where you can pick it up. You may also be tempted to just send us email directly without filling out the form because web forms can be annoying. We will try to respond to direct email as best we can, but such requests often take longer because we need to mail back and forth to collect all the needed information. Please use the web form if at all possible.

Draft created July 23 rd 2009.
Draft last updated August 24 th 2010.