In This Issue:
~ Welcome to Tech Info
~ How To Deal With Filthy Computers
~ Helpful Troubleshooting Tips
~ Searching the Internet
~ Logging on to the Network
~ Fresh New Videos Straight To Your Classroom
~ Site-Based Technical Support

Welcome to Tech Info

Watch this space! - for interesting and useful news about technology and learning. There is lots going on.

What is more, this is an example of what you can create for your own classroom - simply by using the webpage templates available in "My Control Panel" once you have logged in. Check out the other templates you can use, including a Calendar and a Web Link page. The templates that say "w/ HTML" are for advanced users who know how to create a simple web page, and who have read the guidelines for creating classroom web pages.

Good luck, and please let us know how we can make this website better for you.

How To Deal With Filthy Computers

We are often asked about who is responsible to keep classroom computers clean - especially keyboards and mouses. We're afraid if you don't clean the computers and keyboards, nobody will! Yes, the computers, keyboards and mouses are among the filthiest items in our schools. Small wonder, when you consider that they are constantly handled by active children day in and day out.

The best way to clean them is, first blow them out with compressed air. OK, at least turn them upside down and shake them out and blow real hard on them to dislodge dirt, dust, staples, paper clips, candy wrappers, etc. Next, get a clean soft cotton cloth and spray cleanser on the cloth, not on the keyboard. You can use 'simple green', '409' or any good household cleanser. The idea is clean the surface, don't get the contacts under the keys wet.

Same goes for the mouse and cables, which also get very dirty. You can use a glass cleaner on the glass screen. Mouses with balls require special attention. You have to remove the ball cover, pop out the roller ball, and carefully remove the lint that has wrapped itself around the rollers. Try a toothpic, sharp end of a nail file, etc. Also blow out the cavity to remove as much gunk as you can. Optical mouses are much better - they don't roll up all the particles on the surface and suck them inside like the roller balls do.

The cleanest classrooms we have observed are those where the teacher has trained the children how to do this, and they have taken on the job as their responsibility.

Suggestion from Jelen Rodecker at Olivewood:

"The teachers pretty much clean their own and I take care of the labs. I use alcohol and the cosmetic sponges. One year I had a computer team who would go through the classes and clean computers during their morning recess or lunch recess. A couple of times I had the middle school students who came by to do their community service clean them."

Another from Jean Howard at Central:

"We use hand sanitizer EVERY time they go to the computer."

Helpful Troubleshooting Tips

1) Be sure to shut your computers down every night. If for some reason your PC freezes during the shutdown process, press and hold the power button for 5 seconds or until it turns off. By doing this you will ensure proper operation for the following day.

2) Frustrated with freezing computers? You can help the technical services department by keeping a log of specific errors and during which program or module they occur. By doing this you will help expedite the repair procedure and minimize down time.

3) Is your computer not turning on? Try unplugging the power cord for 5 seconds and then reinserting it. The power cord is located on the right-rear corner of your CPU (that is the box that the monitor stands on) and is the largest of all the cables.

4) Does your computer sometimes boot up with no icons, just a blank desktop? When logging in, be sure not to "Double-click" or press the "ENTER" key twice after entering your password.

5) Are you having problems with Succesmaker freezing? Try having the student "Wait out" the error. Sometimes it's a minor freeze that will catch up eventually. During this time, be sure that the student does not continue to click the mouse or use the keyboard as this will only worsen the situation. If the waiting game proves ineffective, press and hold the power button for roughly 5 seconds or until the computer shuts off and then restart. It is not advised to use CTRL+ALT+DEL to "Force quit" in this situation as the operating system has been compromised and will most likely result in another freeze.

Searching the Internet

The Internet is made up of over 2 billion websites according to a study† done in 2000. There must be considerably more than that now! Reeling in the information you want from such a deep pool can be daunting.

There are many search tools available and you can improve your chances of finding what you need with this tutorial.

Google (http://www.google.com) is a fantastic search tool and offers some fun specialty features.

Check out http://news.google.com for up to the minute news articles. You can search for an event or location and then sort your results by date to see the late-breaking facts. Google News also gives you the benefit of seeing articles on one incident from multiple sources in one convenient view.

This page http://www.google.com/language_tools offers a language translator. You can translate a word, a phrase, an entire passage, or even an entire website. Of course, you should bear in mind that this is a computer doing the translating so you may get some pretty amusing results. Even so, it is a useful way to get the gist of what is being written.

Speaking of what is being written; http://books.google.com/ is a searchable database of books. This is a terrific way to find the books you want to buy. You can even buy the books online once you have found the one that meets your needs.

Remember also that not every website is designed and tested with every web browser in mind. If you find a website is not loading correctly (a lot of blank space where it looks as though there SHOULD be content) you may want to try it in a different web browser. If you are using Microsoft Internet Explorer, try Mozilla, Opera, FireFox, Netscape, or Safari (Mac only). Many of these browsers were designed by the same people and once you are comfortable with one browser, you will probably have little difficulty getting around in the others. They each offer their own added features and you may find yourself growing attached to one over the rest. That is terrific and you will rapidly become a power user for that application, but keep in mind that you have options.

† Campbell, K. K. "Click Through the Clutter." Profit, May 2000. Lexis Nexis, September 8, 2000 http://web.lexis-nexis.com/universe

Logging on to the Network
When you start your computer up for the first time or reset it in Windows, you will get a Novell login screen asking for a Username and a Password. Notice the “Workstation only” checkbox. Always make sure that you uncheck this box. If you log-on with “Workstation only” checked, you will be unable to use any network-related programs, such as SuccessMaker, Reading Counts, SRI, etc. For a more detailed explanation, please visit our Teaching Tools page. There you will find links to many technology handouts at the bottom of that page.

If you are using a District computer offsite or do not wish to connect to the network, you should checkmark “Workstation only” to prevent the computer from attempting to log onto the network. Remember, this will mean you cannot use any networked software (SuccessMaker, etc) or your user folder. (U: drive or H: drive)

Fresh New Videos Straight To Your Classroom

By now all of you have experienced the wonders of Unitedstreaming. All classes now have access to over 50,000 video clips, 20,000 high-quality digital images, a clipart gallery and an audio file library.

Enhance your standards-based curriculum with these fun and informative multimedia productions.

Take your listening post to the next level or introduce new concepts to the whole class with high quality Discovery Schools videos, and support materials like blackline masters and lesson plans.

Site-Based Technical Support

National School District is fortunate enough to receive onsite technical support every week. Below is the schedule indicating when your site visit will take place. Please direct any technical issues to your Tech Liaison in advance of these visits.

Central ‚ Justin Finch - Thursdays

El Toyon ‚ Justin Finch - Mondays

Ira Harbison ‚ Joe Ferris - Fridays

Kimball ‚ Joe Ferris - Wednesdays

Las Palmas ‚ Justin Finch - Fridays

Lincoln Acres ‚ Justin Finch - Tuesdays

Olivewood ‚ Justin Finch - Wednesdays

Otis ‚ Joe Ferris - Tuesdays

Palmer Way , Joe Ferris - Thursdays

Rancho de la Nacíon ‚ Joe Ferris - Mondays