Tech Update

Hello -

Facebook –At school it is blocked and use will be prohibited.  At home, it becomes the parent’s responsibility to monitor use.  When we do spot checks at school, we should note use and ensure students are using privacy settings and other safety features for any social network site they may use at home. Also, FB’s new feature the “Groups” application with specific content sharing capacities and better controlled communication/collaboration should be used.    In fact, we should be monitoring students academic use of the laptops and be aware of their online behavior as it relates to academics.  Spot checks and monitoring ‘in good faith’ recorded using logs is key here for student safety and protection – and ours. FC will be offering Bluefield in the upgrade to FC10 and this is a magnificent and manageable social network that we will use as an alternative.It is a private SN that we can manage and invite ‘outsiders’ at our discretion.  Ideally, students may give us valuable data and insight (a test-drive) to safely segue to Facebook as an educational tool for us (Maybe? Let’s have the discussion….at some point?)

Skype – A discussion and a plan for safety and security should occur before we permit Skyping for academic purposes.  (Let’s have the discussion….at somepoint?) No student should have Skype downloaded as downloads are prohibited onthe Macbooks. 

Downloads  on Macbooks are not permitted without permission since the Tech Dept should be aware of license validations.  Be aware of the fact that when Macbooks undergo image updates, the downloads are removed…..as well as files on the Macbook….This includes I-tunes downloads,etc….Backup things important to ya.

Iphoto and Imovie – There have been some instances where it has been disabled on LFHS student Macbooks.  Our surveillance has not yet revealed inappropriateuse.  Please monitor the quantity and appropriateness of photos and homemade movies in your weekly spotchecks. 

Remember AUP’s, Spot checklists and student do’s and don’t’s are found in your FC desktop in the ‘Tutorials for us’ folder

The LFHS server room will undergo a facelift to house the PowerSchool server among many other things. The PS server should be here next week for installation.

If you haven’t backed up anything lately, you may want to…….

Upgrade to FC 10 by Thanksgiving  and FC server tech audit by Dec… and upgrade FC11 by Jan2011

2 NWEA servers by Dec – one at LFMS (was configured last week) and one at LFHS

LFHS wires project in Nov

Lfhs MLTI Deployment in Nov

Power School  tech audits – The lfhs server room will need another circuit and will be cleaned and painted regardless….

Our RSU36 Google domain has been updated and we will open itup.  Staff will have public access and student groups for grades 6-8 will stay internal

LFHS hardware and software for READ180 by DEC

Tech support email will morph to Spiceworks by Dec.  Spiceworks use has increased and believe it or not has improved management and response to tech issues.  Please promote use……

Joebox filter– we will work towards giving  LFHS staff  overrides by Dec or at the arrival of the new Joebox version slated for Dec.(following discussions about filtering philosophies and responsibilities)

Google docs and aby word will be the word processing toolsfor Macs as well as Pages and Noteshare

We successfully removed the Spam tag from the advice slips….this will be a process since we need to get off of ‘blacklists’ that wesomehow ended up on…..Long,long story….Spam tag could re-occur

We need to discuss cellphone/smart phone/ipod touchespolicies and enforcement for teachers and students in school – our best filteris usi!!!! At last count, more than 50 devices (ipods,, touches, etc) wereaccessing our network….We have policies about our network being compromised…..

Facebook and https and other https access like gmail  needs evaluation

  MLTI Tech and Parent Night forNov 17 for lfhs and to discuss laptop protection, take home, tech tips (web viewer……)

Thanks to all helping the tech dept…and each other…sincerely appreciated...and we wish we could be more…..

All the best,

Tech guys
11/12/10