[SIMS] Importing Email Addresses into SIMS

[matt40k]

What format are they in? Is it easily formulated? Mine are just their admission

I laught at David Grashoff when he pointed me at that patch, I didn't think anyone would be unkind enough to give students email addresses based on the admission numbers!

[GREED]

It shouldn't matter Matt, to link any email address to a student record (which if I read right looks at the admission number as the unique identifier) then it is the process of locating the correct record which has been done.

Although, I remember asking for this 4 years ago...

[vikpaw]

I laught at David Grashoff when he pointed me at that patch, I didn't think anyone would be unkind enough to give students email addresses based on the admission numbers!

- But it makes absolute sense, because it's the same as their login now, and it's obfuscated to the public, so it can act as a safety feature too.

It shouldn't matter Matt, to link any email address to a student record (which if I read right looks at the admission number as the unique identifier) then it is the process of locating the correct record which has been done.

Although, I remember asking for this 4 years ago...

The admission number is used here, however, for other purposes of getting data out of SIMS, we're relying on the person id from the db, because, this also captures pre-admission students, who we want to do things with regards getting their photos on ID cards early.

As it happens, having the student emails on the system isn't that useful, as they don't seem to use them much. Most staff maintain a list of their personal addresses. This will change in the future as we start using sharepoint.

[GREED]

- But it makes absolute sense, because it's the same as their login now, and it's obfuscated to the public, so it can act as a safety feature too.



The admission number is used here, however, for other purposes of getting data out of SIMS, we're relying on the person id from the db, because, this also captures pre-admission students, who we want to do things with regards getting their photos on ID cards early.

As it happens, having the student emails on the system isn't that useful, as they don't seem to use them much. Most staff maintain a list of their personal addresses. This will change in the future as we start using sharepoint.

Useful if you want to use Schoolcomms or group call to send them direct messages, like the parents receive.

[vikpaw]

Useful if you want to use Schoolcomms or group call to send them direct messages, like the parents receive.

Yes but we evaluated the usefulness based on how much they use their actual school emails! Hardly ever unless they study IT at upper school, or are taking a specific IT module for email in primary school. Hence why uptake should be much better once they have a vle to log into and then get email automagically.

[GREED]

Yes but we evaluated the usefulness based on how much they use their actual school emails! Hardly ever unless they study IT at upper school, or are taking a specific IT module for email in primary school. Hence why uptake should be much better once they have a vle to log into and then get email automagically.

Do you allow access to web mail accounts? A number of schools I have worked in/with do this and do their school accouns are all they have internally so the uptake is much higher.

[vikpaw]

Do you allow access to web mail accounts? A number of schools I have worked in/with do this and do their school accouns are all they have internally so the uptake is much higher.

It is allowed, but the issue is more they don't have the time in front of a computer, however, site wide wireless will be rolled out shortly (once the niggles are deniggled) at which point there'll need to be rules on usage, and most likely they will be steered towards using school email via Outlook, OWA.

Be interested to know if anyone uses live@edu for their internal mail, but chooses to block hotmail - probably a topic for a different thread though. don't want to derail this too much for our new member Mr @boffinson .

You'd have thought that Capita would buy out @matt40k 's app, ( or just buy him, to market S3 ! ), or at least make their own to make life easier for those that have forked out for InTouch.

[matt40k]

You'd have thought that Capita would buy out @matt40k 's app

Pfff.. unlikely, more likely they'll add something into SIMS or let me release it publicly.

[deKay]

Sorry for the thread resurrection, but I'm after doing the exact same thing now - importing 1200 student email addresses into SIMS for students, so we can use them with InTouch (specifically, for the new exam timetable emails feature).

Can this (now) be done? Has anyone done it? If so, how?

Thanks.

[vikpaw]

@deKay - if they are easily formulated, there is a patch, as i mentioned earlier, that could easily be modified to suit your school. ours are just admission number followed by the @school.sch.sa suffix. it should be relatively simple to alter, but if you use names and there is a risk of duplication, then it may need the human element to intervene.