And some Coop employees working on the sales floor said they had not seen dramatic changes since the service was introduced.

"I wouldn't say a lot of kids were using it, but I would say I've seen a lot of kids pleased with it and indicating that their parents were too," said Francis J. Mahoney, who works in the Coop textbook department.

Two Coop employees working the registers in the textbook department, Sarah V. Deloach and Anita K. Valentine, said they had not noticed either a huge jump in sales or a large quantity of students using Crimson Cash to buy books.

And even if students did whip out ID cards for a Crimson Cash purchase, both said the speed of their transactions would not change significantly.

Bringing the Card to The Coop

Murphy said the advantage of this method of payment for parents is the ability to limit the student's buying power. Unlike a credit card, Crimson Cash is only accepted at certain Harvard-related locations, most notably dorm and House laundry rooms and Loker Commons.

Officials involved with the program said a trial period of two to four weeks took place in August, before service began Sept. 4.

"It's an exciting new development which allows students to pay for their books with money they or their parents provide. It allows more flexibility," said Chana R. Schoenberger '99, who has been a student director of The Coop for three years.

"We hope many students will make use of this service," added Schoenberger, who is also a Crimson executive.

Murphy said The Coop wanted to create a method of payment that was better or commensurate to the Coop Credit Card, a private card program The Coop discontinued last year in favor of a Coop Visa card offered by First USA.

During the heyday of the Coop's own card, it was difficult for most college students to obtain credit cards because of their ages and lack of credit ratings. But with the advent of aggressive credit companies eager to snap up students as customers, the Coop faced a shift in the market.

MIT, where The Coop also operates, does not yet have a Crimson Cash type of card. MIT students will have to pay for their purchases at The Coop either with a Coop Visa, or the more traditional cash, check or credit card.

Murphy predicted that Crimson Cash will expand in the years ahead.

"We think it will just grow as we go forward," Murphy said