ePortal mobile access

[mcloum]

Hi all,

 

Has anyone got any tips or ideas on the best reliable way to give PE staff access to ePortal for registers out on the field?

 

We're moving from Bromcom so im thinking were going to run into the same problems as the Wireless PDAs we had with them. Except this time we wont be able to download the register first then go out and mark it and send it back when within AP range..

 

Cheers

[john]

Give them a mobile phone with a decent data plan and externally access it over the Internet perhaps? Bit costly for registers but a way around it.

 

Or get a decent Wireless system like a Ruckus one - Net Ctrl - Mark Power can sort you out and there new stuff is great and has a really good range on it from what I've seen and discussed with them so with the right boxes, assuming your field isn't 100 miles away or owt daft should give you some better coverage

[Batman]

I'd be tempted to give the pringles can/satellite dish diy long range wifi solutions a go!

 

I think you can get fairly directional long range wifi aerials. You could create a hotspot somewhere on the field from your nearest building. Any good?

[skawarrior]

You can access ePortal via a PDA however you need the licence for it.

 

We looked into this last year and was told by Serco that the licence is currently free during the testing period. I was informed however that this period has been ongoing for at least 2 years and there was no information on when it would be chargable or indeed an idea of the cost.

 

The access is therefore technically free (for now), only cost is the purchase of PDA's ad the related costs.

[BaccyNet]

We currently use a few PDA's on a data contract with Vodafone for PE staff. Unfortunatly as we are not a '3G area' the speed is painfully slow but it just about does the job.

Have had the odd occasion where either ePortal or the PDA does not recognise each other properly and tries to use the full ePortal page but usually a reset of either does the trick:)

[nry]

Free PDA licence? Ours wasn't, we added it last year, a few quid per student on roll per annum.

[john]

Free PDA licence? Ours wasn't, we added it last year, a few quid per student on roll per annum.

Was going to say when I enquired it was a few quid per student per year so not worth it for the couple of staff that would use it

[rossbale]

Hi,

 

I work for Nedap Education who supply an e-registration system that integrates with most major MIS Systems.

 

Our systems use RFID cards issued to students and we can supply a mobile data logger unit about the size of a large keyring, that reads upto 1000 cards and then stores the data in the unit until it's plugged into the USB Cradle on a PC and downloaded into the system.

 

It's offline data capture, but small, robust and doesn't require any sort of data plan or other device.

 

Regards,

Ross

[Tester2001]

Simple, don't leave Bromcom, they have m-Register, which allows registers to be taken in the field, or on the coach to a school outing anywhere, ask them for a demo. It uses mobile phones, you could even go on a trip to Paris and mark your register from the top of the Eifel Tower.

[SchoolITLackey]

Tester - do you happen by any chance to be a Bromcom employee? Each of your posts so far appears to promote Bromcom applications ....

[mcloum]

Simple, don't leave Bromcom, they have m-Register, which allows registers to be taken in the field, or on the coach to a school outing anywhere, ask them for a demo. It uses mobile phones, you could even go on a trip to Paris and mark your register from the top of the Eifel Tower.

 

Put it simply i didnt have a choice of moving away from Bromcom, the new principal made that decision. Im hoping i can use the wireless windows CE pads i bought for use with bromcom...i dont see why not.