Transcript Questions on Notice

Questions on Notice
Sydney Region CC Training Day Term 1 2006
I have tried and tried, but I cannot find the details of
past CC Days at the For CCs website. Please show me
S-L-O-W-L-Y how to find it.
1. Sydney Region Website:
http://www.sydneyr.det.nsw.edu.au
2. Click Support, then click Technology, then click For CCs
3. Select the Year – 2004/2005/2006
4. Now, AT THE TOP of the screen, select the specific
session you want
5. Hey presto.
Is there any way that languages can be distributed in
Word from the server so that students can type in other
languages eg. Chinese, Greek, Arabic?
To get full language support (not just fonts) involves
installing regional language packs from the Windows CD
onto each workstation.
It is possible to do this using Altiris deployment.
The Altiris infrastructure is currently being implemented.
We will look at a standard implementation in the future
Otherwise, it’s a visit to each PC that needs it.
I made a form with MS Word. It had drop down boxes, check boxes and a field to
type information in. I then mail merged a class list into it and had a form for each
student but once the merge was complete the field to type into became inactive on
each and every form. Can it be done or am I pushing Word too far?
Paul Clark will talk about Forms in MS Word during his
session coming up next.
Hold onto your hats, it will be a bumpy ride.
Can you please show me how to add a favourite so all
students or all teachers can see it. (SR Win 2003 Servers)
•For Sydney Region Build Servers:
Place the favourite in the InternetFavorites folder
Students: \\server\apps\internetfavorites\student
Staff: \\server\apps\internetfavorites\staff
Would you please show in slow motion how to drop an
address (URL) into student and staff accounts?
(SR Windows 2003 servers)
Greg to demonstrate (in slow motion) the
process of creating a URL shortcut and
dropping it anywhere.
How can I add multiple folders instead of going through"
insert -new -folder" every time?
It depends on where you need to add the folders –
please clarify the question
This can be done through the use of batch files and the
MD command.
Some batch programming expertise is required.
Alternatively, you use keyboard shortcuts. Alt-F-W-F
On an Apple, Apple-Shift-N creates a new folder.
How fast (or otherwise) should a computer be which is only
used to run OASIS? Is a Pentium 1 likely to make OASIS run
slowly or is it the program itself?
The current OASIS will work fine with a Pentium 1. The
current bottleneck with most OASIS servers is the speed
of the network card in the server. Most only have a
10MBit/sec NIC.
The speed of OASIS can be improved by a small factor
by using a faster PC, but a Pentium 4 would be wasted
with the current OASIS.
Remember, the OASIS system is going to be changed this
year and will require faster PCs. A Pentium 1 will NOT do
for OASIS Thin Client.
On the CC listserv Greg Sharkey mentioned a program that
could limit simultaneous logons, has he tested it? Does it
work? What are your thoughts as TA's on this program?
•It’s a system called “LimitLogon” – get it here:
•http://tinyurl.com/nkguf
• At this stage, we have been unable to test it (lack
of time)
• It is worth looking at if you are having problems with
students sharing logon details.
Could you tell me how to set up Adaware so that the
definitions can be automatically updated. The DET seems to
block access to the auto update option in the program.
Note: Ad Aware is not free for Educational Institutions.
Ad-Aware and Spybot do not have an automatic
update setting, but they can be told to update upon
running
You must set the DET Proxy into the software – [demo of
updating process]
Note: SAV 10 has some Anti Spyware capabilities and
can be automatically updated
A Double-barreled question… (Try separating them)
Q: Do children need permission to use the internet?
Yes
Q: Is it possible to have an internet permission note for a
child that covers all that child's years at a school, instead
of a new internet permission note each year? We do
this now with child protection notes, and would like to
have just one note for all the child's years at the school.
Yes. But parents must be informed that they can
withdraw (or grant) permission at any time in writing.
Note: With the Project formally known as Webservices
you will have to send out new permission notes.
Can you suggest some fabulous software for kids in
Special Ed classes? It must be ENTERTAINING to catch
their interest. Basic number/alphabet software is great.
• See CC Day Term 4, 2005
- Ideal Resources
- http://ideal-resources.com.au/
• http://www.kinderhive.net/techgames.html
• http://www.sparktop.org
Why do ASI SOE PCs have 17.63GB of unallocated space on
their hard drives which is not partitioned?
When the SOE setup was determined, it was decided to
reserve space for future use.
It is easier to reserve space on creation than gaining
space at a later time.
Some schools have used this space to store video files or
install other operating systems such as Linux.
Why are there never any Apple-specific questions
in this session?
Ummm. Because people haven’t been asking them?
I know I was dozing during one of the CC Days last year....
Can you remind us where we get the patch for the T4L PCs
to make the title screen stay for only a couple of seconds?
You should pay attention to everything we say ;-)
http://esdt.det.nsw.edu.au
Download and run UpdatePC.exe from the
Downloads page.
There are also instructions on the CC Day website –
Term 2, 2005.
My understanding is that G5 Macs installed as part of T4L in
2005 were to have OS 10.4. My G5s only have 10.3.9. How
and where do I get the 10.4 software for them?
Oooh! An Apple-specific question!
Contact Software Sales and purchase the DVD.
Ph. 1800 065 324
Note this is only available for installation on rollout
computers, not for school purchased, Westfield prizes or
older Macs.
Training in digital video/editing and a Dreamweaver
course - what happened to it? Any chance of it being put
on again?
Please contact Lena Arena:
Sydney Region ICT Consultant
[email protected]
Scope and sequence - where can we take the children
who achieve all the Primary outcomes?
•Contact Lena Arena – Sydney Region ICT
Consultant
•Look at the following websites for extension
activities
•CLI
•TALE
•Edna
•Learning Federation
I want faculty coordinators to update their section of the
school website. Can the changed offline files can be
automatically uploaded to the DET server each night?
This can be achieved by configuring a scheduled FTP
script task a bit like CEGETTER.BAT is used to update SAV
definitions on the server
Alternatively a commercial package like Macromedia
Contribute might be worth investigating.
•But:
- Who approves the content?
- Has it been tested?
We want external access for students & parents for true
on-line learning. Is there any recent development that
makes this happen in a secure, cost effective way?
One option is to setup a Sentral Server as this contains
Moodle – a Learning Management System.
This can then be set up with a reverse proxy which allows
browser access from home.
Sentral is being presented after lunch
You can setup any webserver and use an LMS via a
reverse proxy, but Sentral makes it easier.
We are planning to get notebooks next T4L - what needs
to be done to set them up on a wireless network?
• All T4L laptops come with wireless cards installed.
• Where/how is wireless access required?
• Have you got the access point(s)?
• What Wireless security are you using?
• Contact your TA for Advice re acquisition, planning
and setup to meet DET standards.
How can I properly dispose of old laptop
batteries?
• Take the batteries to any major battery retailer that
has a disposal point
•Eg Battery World, Coda,
• Do not throw them in the bin.
Will we be able to access the new OASIS servers from
home? If not, why not?
Walking in the sun is more enjoyable…
The answer is still to be determined and won’t be known
until the final OASIS solution is established.
Why Not? – security of OASIS financial data and access
to Student/Family private data would be a concern.
How can I purchase one of the special red spanners to
unbolt old CISP PCs. Our GA broke ours, and we still have
a few old PC's attached to desks.
Greg Sharkey has spares. If he runs out,
ask another TA.
What is the latest update on the Year 6 Computer Skills
Assessment? Has the written component been
abandoned?
The CSA6 is still around but is being delivered in a
different format. It is a school based competency test
delivered when the teachers feel it to be appropriate. It
is purely school based and results collated will be inhouse only. Running it is also optional. Comparisons can
be made with historical statewide data from previous
CSA6 exams. It is a computer delivered test.
• Details can be found at
https://detwww.det.nsw.edu.au/directorates/schoimpro
/EMD/csa.htm OR:
http://tinyurl.com/gpn9v
(Intranet Only)
Would you please outline the usual role of the computer
coordinator in a school?
Sure.
Arrive at school and do everything and anything with
regards to any technology advice, support and setup
(i.e. any device which should have a power cord or
battery)
When all tasks have been completed, return home to
prepare for the next day.
Other than that, there is no official role statement for a
Computer Coordinator.
Will the new OASIS fileservers negate the need for
Oasis/Windows switches?
• If a new OASIS fileserver is delivered to the school, a
KVM switch will still be useful
• If the move to OASIS Thin Client is finalised, a KVM
switch will not be required
• Nor will your old crappy computer
The ASI rollout machines from '05 appear to have
problems with Excel, and the patch apparently doesn't
work. What will be done?
Yes, this problem has been confirmed. It is related to the
initial SOE configuration process which DELETED the
administrative install of MS Office 2003 from the
workstation’s DETAPPS folder.
For some reason, Excel refers back to that folder and fails.
At present, the only solution is to download the full
administrative install from the ESDT website downloads
page to your server and then run it on each affected PC.
Once this is done, the problem should go away.
A better solution (if you have a server) is to uninstall Office
2003 from the affected PCs then reinstall it from your local
server. This is the preferred method we have been
adopting.
I liked this session. How do I go about submitting
my own “Question on Notice?”
Glad you asked. http://www.sydneyr.det.nsw.edu.au
Sydney Region Website…
Support…
Technology…
For CCs…
Click the Link on “Questions on Notice”
You can only submit Questions from a school computer as this is a DET
Intranet function. Remember, the questions you ask should be ones that
would be of interest to other CCs.