Louis L'Amour Quote

'Nobody got anywhere in the world by simply being content.'"

Louis L'Amour

This quote struck me as so true in my worldview currently. I read quite a few books of his when I was younger since my grandfather had about a gillion of his paperbacks. He was always reading them when he had a spare moment.

Being exposed to others in the government and educational setting, it seems to me those type of people (settling or being content) are in the majority. Then the decision-makers / policy-makers wonder why the schools or local governments are failing. Because... people are content to show up, draw the check, do minimal work, and have no repercussions of their actions. Look around... I may be wrong, but I will need it pointed out to me. B/c in the end, I am a guy.

Quote of the Day

Your life, as you know it... is gone. Never to return. But they learn how to walk, and they learn how to talk... and you want to be with them. And they turn out to be the most delightful people you will ever meet in your life.

Bill Murray in Lost in Tranlsation (2003)

Home Wireless Networks

Lifehacker linked to someone's blog nice enough to give a step-by step tutorial on setting up a wireless network at home. Windows users will have to run that stupid CD if you purchase a Linksys WAP or wireless router (Thanks CISCO for nothing!!!). There were a couple of things I noticed though with the instructions.

• They will get a user's network operational.


• They suggest WEP instead of WPA (big no-no for the last couple of years).


• They did discuss immediately changing SSIDs (good!).


• They did not discuss possibly having to change Wireless Channels due to interference.

But, all in all, pretty good for most things... Lord knows it is not easy to find a simple tutorial a couple of years ago on this stuff. Most tutorials got clouded down into some kind of argument over standards relative to WiFI or security and lost sight of the goal. Getting the network operational... I would remember step 4. This will definitely come into play if there is a fair amount of "overspray" from other wireless networks nearby. Happened to a buddy of mine running a private one on Lakeland Drive in Jackson, MS...

Evaluating Technology Plans

One of the major tasks I have is evaluating the technology plan of a large school district in Mississippi. This district has 17 schools, 500 teachers, and 7500 students. It has been a large undertaking to properly evaluate the state of technology in the district as it pertains to the district's technology plan. Think it sounds too deeply embedded in programmatic, research jargon??? Try having to lay hands on every piece of technology as it pertains to the instructional process in the district. Why? In order to ascertain the accessibility of technology to students you have to evaluate each piece objectively. Here is a good resource that explains a general overview of the evaluative process.

AJAX, Alienware, Dell, Oh My...

Well, I ran across an online app somehow this morning that showcased a really cool usage of AJAX. Yes, dragging maps around is nice. Yes, keeping search histories of multiple session ids is nice. But, hey, we could live without them too. Anyway, this group has created an online word processor that is under 400K in size. No registration required... The interface feels like an earlier version of OpenOffice's word processor. But, really cool... Think of kids that have to write papers but don't have a decent app and have only a modem connection that gets half the full rate. Here you go... You can test it for yourself at http://www.ajaxwrite.com.

Well, a buddy of mine and I were wondering how long Michael Dell would stand by and let Alienware consistently make a better product, let consumers choose specs down to the motherboard and memory level of their computer, and kick his tail in all the benchmarking reviews (ala PC Mag and the like). Well, Dell took the Gatesian way of handling it. If you can't beat 'em, buy 'em. Hey, I like Dell. I have spec'd, evaluated, and bought over 1000 of those things in the last 5 years and only about 10 have had to be serviced. Pretty good ratio... But, I just hope the buyout will benefit the customers in the form of Dell actually making a better product in their homeline. Hey, I won't buy most Dimensions and Inspirons they sell. But, I may get a call from somebody wanting me to help them out with their super-cheap, POS Mobo, Dell Dimension. And, I hate to say it... But ads work... And, what do they do? Make people like me handle calls from friends and family asking why their 299 Celeron is running "slow"... Whatever. Make better products... Stop selling crap in part of your product lines... I hope they do.

Maintaining Labs

I spent the day yesterday in Charleston, MS at Charleston Middle School .


Map That school is one our Core Schools that is partnering with the CREATE for Mississippi project. They are a part of East Tallahatchie School District.

Anyway, they got a 30 desktop lab this year through grant funding. They have been able to utilize all of their enrichment, remediation, and progress monitoring programs for students at this school. However, with the good, there is also bad. The heavy use by student in the lab also indirectly leads to quite a few alterations in each computer's look, feel and performance. And, this is one time creativity is bad. As an educator or trainer, having 30 computers that look and act different can be a nightmare. So, I spent a fair amount of the day cleaning up things. I have done this before, but I think the Gateway system recovery (a link of the freakin' Start menu) got me. I think kids got board whether in afterschool programs or whatever, and clicked the link. Which basically undid everything I did in the Fall... No, I didn't have a ghost image b/c they don't have the license. So, I can't "provide" that service for them. So, I redid everything.

• Change Windows Update to Microsoft Update
• Remove all Acrobat Readers (3 versions) and update to 7.07
• Update from MS AntiSpyware to Windows Defender
• Remove Norton AV 2005 90-day trial and install ClamWin AV (Prefer AVG-but free for only personal use)
• Install and Config a stealth IE Privacy Keeper
• Configure Windows for the least amount of damage (Game removal, Sys Recovery removal, etc.)
  

So, it took awhile. It gets a little old. It had some sick, cool factor back when I prepped labs in '98. But, now, considering what I do most times with technology, it gets pretty old. I am trying to convince the district to get some kind of lockdown software. B/c in my experience I figure they have a couple of options.

• Novell rights mgmt
• Windows rights mgmt
• Pushing weekly images from the server level to the clients
• Using a program like DeepFreeze, Fortres, or CleanSlate

My opinion based on looking at the network. I would take an image of the computers and burn them to a bootable DVD. Then, I would install something like DeepFreeze and lock EVERY COMPUTER down. I hate it... I still have problems with progs like that... Does it constrict teachers and students' feeling they have some sort of ownership in the school's technology??? I don't know. But, I do know that computer up-time is one of the primary barriers to technology integration, which defeats my main mission in the school. So, lock 'er down and let's get to business.

ThinkFree Office Revisited

I am developing a handout for a training we are doing via videoconference in about a month. The topic is going to encompass Diigo and thinkfreeOffice Online. Both are really good products as I have stated before. I like the fact that Diigo can post to your blog. Another nice feature is to port out your highlighted areas of selected bookmarks to another page. I could really see the use of this when writing research papers, journal articles or dissertations (like I am finishing).

ThinkfreeOffice Online is getting there. It would take awhile to load up the required Java files for operating the online application. However, it really will be worth the wait. Unlike other open-source applications, I like the fact that its applications Write, Calc and Show's toolbars and interface mimic the MS Office environment. Again, both products are well worth the look. I am not sure why you would buy MS Office again. And, I use it daily.

A Dark Day in Baseball

Well, I guess it was fitting for this travesty to happen in March coinciding with March Madness. Team USA was knocked out last night by Mexico 2-1 in the WBC. The Rocket even got pinned with the big L. I just never thought that I would see the day where an all-star baseball team from the United States would not be crowned champion. Reasons for this failure will abound... ala lack of preparedness of the players, a group of all-stars do not make a team, and so forth. But, none of these things will work for me. Baseball was invented HERE!! I am thinking Alexander Cartwright is turning over as we speak. Chalk this up to another sport where we can claim we are the best, but history is showing possibly not...

Blogger Hacks

OK, so I think the real reason there is such a thing called Blogger Hacks is for people like me. Personally, I have tested most of the major installable apps for my department's project, CREATE for Mississippi. I used to have a self-created news portal, which was ok, but pales in comparison to the most recent rendition of WordPress. Anyway, I like it a lot more than Blogger. Sure, they are both blog apps, but I just like the whole open-source development and support movement behind WordPress.
Regardless, I do like the site at FreshBlog, which outlines a myriad of Blogger Hacks that are actually useful. The one I like best is the drop-down menu for recent posts.

Gmail for Your Domain

Google has initiated a beta test on offering Gmail for users' domains. It looks like a really good deal. Think about it... you don't have to purchase a mail server, server software, or install anything. The main catch... you have to get your clients to get comfortable with the "Google" way of email web clients.

Social Tools

It seems like in the past few months more programs are coming to the forefront (and getting utilized) that promote online creation and sharing of ideas/products on the Internet with others. A few that our office has been looking at are Del.icio.us, Diigo, and Writely.

Del.icio.us is a social bookmarking tool that I personally use. I have always had trouble keeping track of my archived bookmarks from work and home. This stops that problem completely. I also like the fact that posts are cross-referenced with other users, which allows you to find other similar sites if you browse their lists. The main reason I like this tool for educators is that it helps teachers get students on the same page by pointing them to a common site that includes the bookmarks for the day. This is great in a lab environment for a on-site support person to facilitate the process, as well.

Diigo is a social annotation tool. It works hand in with social bookmarking tools like Del.icio.us. By combining social bookmarking, clippings, in situ annotation, tagging, full-text search of everything, easy sharing and interactions, Diigo provides one powerful personal tool and a rich social platform. Ok- in ed speak - it allows teachers to post sticky notes on Web sites to guide students through the learning process. Way cool!!!

Writely is an online word processor. The best thing about it is that it looks like MS Word, but is online. No software needed... Google liked it so much they bought them out recently.

So, Gates was right a few years back when he discussed placing the Office suite online. I think we are almost there whether we like it or not. For him, the only problem there are other companies that are placing their open-source products online NOW not later like ThinkFree Office Online. I am just not sure how long people will continue to buy MS Office if you can accomplish the same tasks for FREE. As generations shift, more people thinking in that mindset will appear.

A Minimalist Approach...

Ok... I am tired of web publication. I have taught the techniques of web design, web site creation, blogging, and so forth. And, I have really missed the most important point in any of these concepts. Content is KING!

So, I am ditching the idea of maintaining multiple pages in personal web site. I do that all the time with my FT job and freelance work. So, it is quite obvious I can not maintain anything personally except in this type of format. So, here is a minimalist approach. Let us see in the upcoming months if this folds as well.