Covering the business of education and training

Students at the University of Iowa don't need to go to the laundry room to see if there are any machines available. They can look online.

Once they secure a machine, they don't need to hang around to wait for the wash cycle to finish either. An email alert will tell them.

The school employs a new Web-based service called LaundryView that supplies the information via software installed in their new high-efficiency washers.

"We're hoping with the notification that your clothes are done, people will get down there and remove their clothes more quickly," says an assistance director for residence life.

Of course, the student has to be online to get the notification AND check their email. Why not get text message alerts to their cell-phones instead?

Better yet, why not take a textbook, sit and read, while the laundry business is done.

Somebody's words of wisdumb - "Yeah, let's install the software." The school pays $13,000 annually for the software.

Students help out by paying 50 cents more per load for the service as well.

And I thought the laundry room was a good place to strike up a conversation, get some study done, throw some bonehead's clothes on the floor for not coming to empty out the machine when the cycle was finish, and to do other cool...college-type things.

What do you think?