<p>Yeah, what the title says. Is it just flexible dollars, or is it something different? Is it one of those must-have necessities in CMU or can ppl go living without it? Do most ppl get it?</p>
<p>Also if you choose to not apply for it now, can you apply for it in the middle of the school years or for the year after?</p>
<p>you can get it at any time. Most people don’t. Basically you put money directly onto your student ID so that you can use your ID like a debit card to buy stuff from the campus store or from vending machines. That’s all there is to it. </p>
<p>Most people seem to find that cash and/or a debit/credit card work out just fine.</p>
<p>I remember putting something like $20 a year on it so I could get late night drinks from vending machines without having to worry about having change on me. If the machines are now hooked up to use ATM/credit cards I don’t think I’d bother with it, though.</p>
<p>About half of them take DineX now. I’ve not yet found one that took a debit card.</p>
<p>What would you recommend a freshman using then for incidentals - for using around campus in addition to the dining plans they MUST take? Thanks for your help!</p>
<p>If you are getting a PNC bank acct, that links to your ID card…which you can use for incidentals or plaid cash.</p>
<p>I am ilikecollage.</p>
<p>printing money and vending machines that dont take diner dollars.</p>
<p>Thats it.</p>
<p>Also, for freshman, diner dollars/dinex arent valid during orientation, so if you have the small meal plan(Red 9), you might want $20 in plaid cash(which I do remember being valid during orientation). Also, I think that your first time, they give you 2 weeks worth of food for a 3 week time period(orientation). Please eat at the event things during orientation, not campus food.</p>