Tech Tips

Technology changes at a rapid pace. We try to find the appropriate balance between staying cutting edge and providing a rock solid dependable user experience. To that end, we are constantly testing, adjusting and modifying the software and settings that we have in place. We are no longer in an era of “set it and forget it” (apologies to Ron Perlman). We can set things, but since everything else changes so rapidly, our settings wouldn’t act the same way.

Add in to this that we have users who have different needs and skill sets. Some of our users stay up to date. They want the “latest and greatest” as soon as it comes out. Some users are still working on being comfortable with basic web technologies.

We support a wide variety of users and will continue to do so. However, we will be moving forward to provide the greatest experience that we can. Technology skills are no longer an option or something for the “techie” crowd. Rather, technology skills are a basic requirement for all. Just like good writing skills, good speaking skills and the ability to listen.

We will not leave people behind. We will encourage people to take advantage of the tools and training that is available.

Look for more training available here and on our PD site. If you have suggestions, please let us know. If you’d like to see some specific training, just drop an email to the HelpDesk.

Tech Plan 2012-2015Technology-Plan-2012-15-Final-Word

Attached to this post is the draft of our technology plan. Many thanks to those who worked to update the plan. We intend to continue pushing forward with implementing technology. Our goal is to make the use of technology as simple, quick and effective as possible.

Technology Plan 2012-15-Draft

We have begun to deploy LibreOffice in the district. This is an exciting opportunity for the you. LibreOffice is a free, open source software package. You can download and use LibreOffice at home as well as at work. LibreOffice will work on PC’s as well as Macs. It is completely free. We’ve also included a couple of tools that will help too- more information on that will follow.

You can download the program from here or here. (Note that the first link may be slower, thus, the second link is provided).

LibreOffice provides several programs:

• Writer (similar to MicroSoft Word)
• Calc (similar to MicroSoft Excel)
• Impress (similar to MicroSoft PowerPoint)
• Draw
• DataBase (similar to MicroSoft Access)

If you have used MicroSoft Office 2003, you will feel right at home with LibreOffice. In fact, it is much less of a change than moving to MicroSoft Office 2010.

See the image below for what the program looks like.

This is very, very similar to MicroSoft Word 2003.

• The first icon allows you to create a new document.
• The second one opens an existing file
• The third one is to Save a document.
• The fourth one is Email the Document.
• etc.

We will provide tutorials on our Professional Development Site.

We are currently in the process of transitioning to Windows 7. As we purchase new computers, those computers are being deployed with Windows 7 and LibreOffice. Windows 7 is a necessary move. MicroSoft will stop supporting Windows XP within the next couple of years. The good news is that Windows 7 is not all that much different from Windows XP for the user. It does look a bit different, but since we are well into the 21st century, it is time that users get comfortable with technology and change.

We will continue to support Windows XP. We’ll help with the transition over to Windows 7.

Open source software means that the code for the software is available for anyone to download. What open source really means to the user is that it is free. Our district utilizes quite a bit of open source software. Things like iBlog (WordPress) and iLearn (Moodle) allow our district to provide great service while saving money.

We are implementing another piece of open source software. Beginning with the new computers currently being installed, we are including LibreOffice. LibreOffice is an alternative to MicroSoft Office. LibreOffice contains Wordprocessing (Word), Spreadsheet (Excel), Presentation (Powerpoint), Drawing, Painting and Database applications. LibreOffice doesn’t include an email client. However, our recent upgrade to Exchange 2010 means that the web version is completely full featured. We have been using LibreOffice for a couple of years in certain areas of the district.

Why LibreOffice?

• LibreOffice is completely free.
• All documents are completely compatible with MicroSoft Office.
• Teachers can download LibreOffice at home for free.
• The learning curve for adjusting to LibreOffice is less than adjusting to MicroSoft Office 2010.

MicroSoft Office 2010 is very different from the 2003 version that we currently have on computers. As you know, time to do training is at a premium. LibreOffice is much closer to the 2003 version. You can try out LibreOffice yourself. Download by clicking on LibreOffice or get it here: https://www.libreoffice.org/ .

Welcome to the Technology Department blog. Here you can learn what is going on in the technology department. We’ll discuss some of our plans, provide some tips, give out some sneak peeks at where we are going and more.

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