I agree with Tom Computing in a couple of years won't look like what we all "grew up with" (actually I didn't see my first computer till I was in graduate school :-( ).
There will be a lot more special purpose "appliances" that will do key functions that we now do on computers. Communication is a good example. We are all in the process of transitioning most of our mail off of our computer and on to our smart phones, text messaging is a more important communication tool for many and it never was on the computer and devices like apples new iphone, I think, will accelerate the use of Video/phone on portable phones. For much more stuff devices like the iPad will be great, my android device can open pdfs/docs/ss etc. but it's a bit of a PitA. On my iPad it's a pleasure and tools that allow me to annotate and make notes on the PDF while I read it are great. I find myself only reaching for my Macbook for the following: Multitasking types of work tht the iPad doesn't - Yet - do, things that need the big screen on my Macbook and access to programs that Steve Jobs will not let me have on the iPad (converting PDFs to ebooks/full powered word processor when I want to have more control of importing and exporting/ full control of my filespace) But, I'm guessing all these things will change over time or when someone comes out with a really good Android tablet, I'll jump to that In a school setting we may still need a computer lab of high powered tower type computers that are easy to upgrade and can hold a ton of cards/drives/memory/ etc. for special purpose tasks like CAD, Graphic design, etc. But as netbooks approach the 100-200 range they are no longer devices we need to spend a lot of time and $ upgrading and or fixing. Hopefully we will enter into a relationship with a company which will supply us with cases of refurbished netbooks at a good price in return for or old broken ones. But basically when one dies we'll pull another off the shelf. If they get to the $35 price Tom joked about we wouldn't even talk about it but, really why would you spend hours repairing a $150 device either. The problem with 1/1 implementations and large scale roleouts of portable devices is that we are still in an old paradigm. We are in the computing is a relatively rare/expensive mindset and organizational structure rather than the computing is cheap and ubiquitous mindset. The complaints about teacher laptops are very familiar to me. Most of them relate to problems in expectations from the Superintendent. A teacher with a good laptop does not need a desktop computer @ school. They need 2 powersupplies and that's It. The laptops should be light enough and expectations should be clear enough that it is at school every day with the teacher. Yes, it is more expensive to buy and maintain but there are a lot of benefits: when everyone has the same platform then you can set expectations across the board. Making sure everyone has access to email, the SIS and files etc. from home is much simpler than having them bugging you about why the no name computer they got at the salvation army last week will not access the SIS system. If there is such a problem they can bring you the laptop and you can give them a freshly imaged replacement and reimage the one they brought in when you have time. If, good forbid, they had school desktops at home how much screaming woulf you get about hauling them in for upgrades/refreshes or to look at if there is a problem. Also, everyone will have the same wordprocessing program (Open Office), SS, etc. so you will not have file compatibility headaches of someone complaining that they cannot open the PFS-file data at work. All in all. It's the changes and new technology we love... right????? jim On Fri, Sep 3, 2010 at 9:57 AM, Steele, Thomas C <[email protected]>wrote: > Disagree, sort of... > > We just did a tech refresh consisting of 455 desktop computers and 11 > netbooks (mostly replacing old tablets). However, we anticipate that this > will be our last one. When the next round comes up in two years we hope be > implementing 1:1. That is also what is getting the most press so it is > logical that a board member would think most schools are buying laptops > (when is the last time you read an article about schools installing a large > number of desktop computers?) > > I should point out, though, that 1:1 computing does not necessarily mean > laptop computers. In fact, I can almost guarantee when we roll it out, it > will NOT be with laptops. It may be netbooks, but will most likely be > something more along the lines of a smartphone/tablet-like device (such as > iPad) - unless, of course, we can get a batch of those $35 computers from > India! > > -TS > > Thomas C. Steele > Technology Director > Manteno CUSD #5 > > > > -----Original Message----- > From: [email protected] [mailto: > [email protected]] On Behalf Of Jesse > Sent: Friday, September 03, 2010 7:52 AM > To: tech-geeks > Subject: [tech-geeks] Quick Poll - Laptops > > Just gathering fellow geek opinions on the following statement made by > a board member... > > "Most schools are buying laptops now instead of desktops" > > Agree? > Disagree? > Comments? > > > Thanks, > Jesse > | Subscription info at http://www.tech-geeks.org | > | Subscription info at http://www.tech-geeks.org | > -- Jim Flanagan 4439 N. California Chicago, Il 60625 773 463-5494 Chicago 773 396-4638 cell 231 448-2109 Beaver Island *Privacy Notice:* The information contained in this electronic message is intended only for the use of the individual or entity to which it is addressed. This message is private and may contain information that is privileged, confidential and/or inside information and exempt from disclosure under applicable law. If you are not the intended recipient, you are notified that any dissemination, distribution or copying of this communication is strictly prohibited. Please contact the sender by reply e-mail and destroy all copies of the original message.
| Subscription info at http://www.tech-geeks.org |
