Correction run Oct. 29:
This is not the first year the Student Senate has formed a technology committee.

Students who start studying late at night might find themselves out of luck when searching for open computer labs.

Ohio University's two main computer labs, in the Computer Services Center (CSC) and Alden Library, are open from 8 a.m. to midnight Monday through Thursday with restricted hours on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.

However, junior James LaPlante said he would like to see longer hours. LaPlante said he does his studying between 7 p.m. and 5 a.m. and often is in the computer lab until closing.

Junior Julie Bush also said longer computer hours would benefit OU students.

"Extended hours would be good for people who don't have their own computers," she said. "It would promote more study."

However, most students study during the day and would not make use of late-night computer hours.

Freshman Kate Hockman said she would use the computer labs from midnight to 2 a.m. only if she had an emergency. She said she usually studies between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m.

CSC is not open after midnight because there is not a great demand for computers during that time, said Jean Lewis, training and customer support coordinator.

CSC was open until 2 a.m. two years ago, but it changed the hours because few students were using the labs late at night, Lewis said. It also is difficult to find students who are willing to work at the lab during the extended hours, she said.

The Alden Library lab has the same hours as the library because it would be difficult to secure the building when the library is closed, said Pam Farley, the library's computer lab manager.

Student Senate is working to make computers more accessible to students. This year, a technology committee was formed for the first time in the senate's history.

Although the committee has no concrete ideas, members have discussed expanding computer lab hours or increasing the number of labs, said Patrick Hall, chairman of the committee.

The committee is looking more toward a computer lease program to make more computers available to students, Hall said.

The senate has found this program has been implemented successfully at other universities. They also surveyed about 100 students this fall and received an overwhelmingly positive response to the idea, he said.

Even though CSC usually is open until midnight, it will extend its hours to 2 a.m. during the last few weeks of school to meet an increased demand for computers. Extended hours will begin the second week of November.