iPAD for all students AHHHHHHHH

[Ex-MGSTech]

I can't see that they are any better or any worse than other computer technology.

 

In ability to deploy apps to more than one machine, read his blog he's hitting issues with having to pay for the same app for each new user of the same device!

[Guest Guest]

That doesn't seem too bad. We're about 600 kids here and we get through about 900k per year.

 

But then, the vast majority is through a single mono MFD which we get charged 0.33p per copy for.

 

We've just moved to a managed print solution so this doesnt apply anymore but;

 

Approx half were from a photocopier @ 1p/p

Approx a quarter were from baby hp lasers @ 8p/p

 

 

Still, I think 1600 pages is rediculas. I don't think I will have printed (or had printed for me) 1600 pages in my entire life!!

[Guest Guest]

re the paper usage debate. A colleague of mine just said that at university she found that writing things down helped her to remember them. I know what she means actually. I'm not sure that typing has the same effect. My 16 year old son floored me the other day by saying he thought that the ability to remember stuff wasn't relevant to schoolchildren any more. The ability to find, organise and spot relationships between pieces of information would be the main skill for future generations. I tried to argue with him but it's more difficult that you think

 

I must say I think id agree with him (for the most part). Especially in a field where things change so fast that 5year old knowledge can be completely useless, the ability to learn and research is very important. For this reason I dont keep any manuals or references of any kind (same with drivers and software) as by the time i come to need them again they are usually out of date.

 

Obviously you can't work efficiantly without any knowledge but that comes from experiance. Therefore id look for experiance, ability to learn and research, and knowledge, in that order.

[jmair]

In regards to the question on if they will retain information with the device. We have been thinking of running a small digital classroom pilot at our middle school. One of the strong points we see with slate type computers is the social interaction that comes with the freedom of movement. While the students problem solve using the device, it’s the social interaction that’s also helping them retain the data far longer than individual students problem solving alone at a stationary computer or laptop. .

[Robbocop]

Thanks jmair. Yes I think the mobility and social flexibility is a key area where these things can provide a benefit. It's worth thinking about the user experience as well. Some of the apps are pretty powerful, yet take up relatively little space and processing power as they are narrow in functionality. So they tend to be responsive, simple and intuitive for the most part. I really like that. Applications like MS Word are fantastic, flexible and powerful to be sure, but complex and difficult to master. Sometimes simple is best in terms of speed and inclusivity. If you need someone to write four paragraphs about steam engines you really don't need a full blown page layout application. There's been a steadily growing rumble in teaching about the complexity of technology, and whether it can get in the way of teaching sometimes. For some teachers iPad and its spawn are therefore going to look very attractive and all of us in IT will benefit from being prepared for that I think. Nice thread this one. Thanks everyone!

[srochford]

Still, I think 1600 pages is ridiculous. I don't think I will have printed (or had printed for me) 1600 pages in my entire life!!

 

It's actually interesting to look at the distribution rather than the average and then target individuals who are using huge amounts of paper - what are they doing with it? There may be perfectly good reasons for what they're doing but there might be cheaper ways of doing it (could it go on a web site and never be printed? Can it be an SMS to parents instead of a letter home?)

 

Just looked at the printer nearest to me; since January it's printed 21,000 separate jobs. 20 out of 100 staff using it printed 12 or fewer pages; 10 people printed over 2000 pages. If we were looking to save on printing it would make sense to target those high volume users - the bottom 50 used an average of 1 ream between them each month which is not worth worrying about.

 

I'd love to be able to get rid of printers for regular use; if devices like the iPad make that happen them maybe Apple aren't all bad :-)

[Robbocop]

Just a quick addition for the members asking whether it was possible to print from the iPad. Famously Jobs said "we're working on it" recently, and it now looks like this feature will appear very soon, according to this item from MacWorld News Apple reveals more details on AirPrint wireless printing for iOS - iPod/iPhone - Macworld UK

[AntiThesis]

We've been discussing something like this actually and are quite interested in the ExoPC. iPad has also been a consideration but it's not something we're going to do for a year or two so I'm happy to wait for other companies to grow their wings.

 

Something I haven't really seen addressed much is ruggedness - kids (and teachers!) are rough on technology.

[Robbocop]

We've been discussing something like this actually and are quite interested in the ExoPC. iPad has also been a consideration but it's not something we're going to do for a year or two so I'm happy to wait for other companies to grow their wings.

 

Something I haven't really seen addressed much is ruggedness - kids (and teachers!) are rough on technology.

 

We're expecting good reliability from the iPad. Basically it's a sandwich of a solid piece of aluminium on the back and a sheet of toughened glass on the front. It doesn't feel like it will fall apart any time soon As it's a touch screen operating system, there's just a smattering of actual hardware switches - on/off button, Home button, orientation slide switch, volume rocker. They all feel pretty chunky too. Early days yet but they're looking pretty kidproof (and staffproof) at the moment.

[HarryMonkey]

iOS 4.1 will include native printing support, due out this November

 

iOS 4.1 is now out.

[Robbocop]

iOS 4.1 doesn't have the printing function, sadly. Apple has announced that iPad iOS 4.2 will be released in November and will have wireless printing but it's unclear whether the feature will happen on the iPhone or Touch at the same time Apple announces iOS 4.1 features, previews 4.2 update | Mobile | iOS Central | Macworld

[AntiThesis]

We're expecting good reliability from the iPad. Basically it's a sandwich of a solid piece of aluminium on the back and a sheet of toughened glass on the front. It doesn't feel like it will fall apart any time soon As it's a touch screen operating system, there's just a smattering of actual hardware switches - on/off button, Home button, orientation slide switch, volume rocker. They all feel pretty chunky too. Early days yet but they're looking pretty kidproof (and staffproof) at the moment.

 

It'll be interesting to see how they handle actually - I know our little ones can be quite... boisterous with technology at times. I suppose at worst it may need to have some form of rubberized cover to help absorb shocks.

 

Still holding out for ExoPC though

[Guest Guest]

It's actually interesting to look at the distribution rather than the average and then target individuals who are using huge amounts of paper - what are they doing with it? There may be perfectly good reasons for what they're doing but there might be cheaper ways of doing it (could it go on a web site and never be printed? Can it be an SMS to parents instead of a letter home?)

 

Just looked at the printer nearest to me; since January it's printed 21,000 separate jobs. 20 out of 100 staff using it printed 12 or fewer pages; 10 people printed over 2000 pages. If we were looking to save on printing it would make sense to target those high volume users - the bottom 50 used an average of 1 ream between them each month which is not worth worrying about.

 

I'd love to be able to get rid of printers for regular use; if devices like the iPad make that happen them maybe Apple aren't all bad :-)

 

Oh don't worry we've done plenty of auditting, using the stats to find patterns, main culprits etc. One department did 15,000 copies on a single photocopier in a single month!!! We know who it is thats driving our costs up. I just gave an overall figure for ease.

[Dos_Box]

ust as an update, I received a phone call this afternoon from a company who is going to be releasing an iOS management package including remote desktop, app deployment, and remote wiping of iPads and iPhones. Watch this space, I am expecting something to show you all pretty soon. It looks like iPads may be viable after all.

Oh, and this makes intersting reading: Steve Jobs Unveils New Enterprise Features at Apple iPhone 4.0 Event - Mobile and Wireless from eWeek

 

Seems Apple have acknowleged that they cannot ignore the enterprise 'space' any longer.

[Sean-OC04]

Features like remote wipe, wireless profile updates and enterprise roll outs are already supported for the iPad using the iPhone Configuration Utility..

 

Apple - Support - iPad - Enterprise

[Dos_Box]

Yes, but not for large scale deployments and companies such as Microsoft and Apple have traditionally been quite bad at providing\creating easy to use central admin tools.

[Dos_Box]

Here is the press release for the product I was informed of:

 

Absolute to Deliver Enterprise-Caliber Management for iPhone

 

Absolute Software unveils plans to support Apple iOS 4 in Absolute Manage

 

Vancouver, Canada: June 22, 2010 – Absolute® Software Corporation (“Absolute” or the “Company”) (TSX: ABT), the leading provider of firmware-based, patented, computer theft recovery, data protection and secure computer lifecycle management solutions today released plans to provide enterprise-caliber management capabilities for Apple iOS 4 devices, including iPhone, as core components of its lifecycle management solution Absolute Manage. With support for Apple iOS 4, Absolute Manage will provide IT departments with tools to help manage popular Apple products in an enterprise environment.

 

"Apple mobile devices have been very well-received by consumers and, increasingly, among larger organizations," said John Livingston, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Absolute. "With enterprise deployments of these devices on the rise, we are extending our long-standing focus on lifecycle management for Apple products to include robust management for iPhone. With our forthcoming solution, IT will be able to address brand new challenges such as managing in-house applications and managing iOS device configuration.”

 

Enterprise tools for management of iPhone

 

Slated for general availability during the summer of 2010, an updated version of Absolute Manage will provide IT departments managing iOS 4 devices with the ability to remotely manage aspects of lifecycle management and data protection.

 

Lifecycle management features include the ability to remotely:

 

Manage user profiles

Manage provisioning profiles

Inventory installed third-party applications (custom developed or from the AppStore)

Gather device lifecycle management information from the devices

Data protection features include the ability for IT administrators to remotely send a:

 

Device Lock command to any iOS 4 device in an emergency

Clear Passcode command

Remote Wipe command to delete sensitive data from a missing or stolen device

Building on a history of delivering manageability for enterprise Apple users

 

Absolute Manage is purpose-built to support IT departments that contend day-to-day with a mixed population of Apple and PC computers. Existing core features of the solution provide the industry’s leading lifecycle management solution for Mac computers. Features currently enjoyed by Mac administrators include:

 

Application & License Management – Deploy software and manage licenses across the network

Security, Change & Configuration Management – Remotely monitor and adjust configurations, and execute files

Automated Patch Management – Centrally manage and install patches, and report on patch status for all managed systems

Computer Imaging - Install a complete OS plus all standard applications onto Mac computers while in use or just out of the box

Power Management – Comply with green initiatives and lower total cost of ownership by remotely enforcing power saving policy profiles

Asset Inventory – Collect hardware and software data points from devices over the network and analyze the information for timely and fact-based asset management decisions

Availability: General availability of support for iOS 4 within Absolute Manage is scheduled for release during calendar Q3, 2010.

[teejay]

From being a complete sceptic, I'm actually getting quite enthusiastic about this type of device. What he has done so far is pretty impressive and I really can see the benefit. If they can get the manageability side sorted out I will be pushing for going down this route. I can see devices like the iPad working better than Windows 7 type devices, simply because the OS is designed for this type of use rather than being a generic OS that we'd had to lock down like mad a would have over bloated apps. Maybe if Google got their act together with the Android OS I could see that being some competition, but I think Microsoft have missed the ball on this one unless they can do something with Windows Mobile 7.

Yes we would still need full blown PC's in some areas, but nowhere near as many as we need now. If we could also dramatically reduce our reprographics and printer budget, reduce our reliance on full blown desktops/laptops, and reduce our Microsoft tax my 'back of fag packet' calculations put us in the same sort of budget as we currently spend.

[GrumbleDook]

The other option I am investigating within a project at NCC is how best to set up a 'dirty' or guest device network so that we don't have any control over them, but they are home devices instead. The way it is looking at the moment to try to configure them will still be a laborious process and it will even more cost onto setting up devices.

[torledo]

Here is the press release for the product I was informed of:

 

the more choice in terms of enterprise mgmt apps the better, but from a cursory glance at the press release don't think anything stands out that isn't already done by either the iphone CU or enterprise iOS mgmt solutions.

 

when people talk about true enterprise manageability of handheld/mobile devices the nirvana has to be over-the-air deployment of apps and application of updates [for OS and apps]. At present the hurdle with iOS devices and appstore apps is the requirement to have itunes as the deployment software, and hence direct usb connections to an itunes or iphone CU host.

 

what i would like to see is support for bluetooth mice so you can get a better windows desktop experience for those using the ipad and app streaming/VDI apps [this to me makes it a true netbook killer if you have the app streaming or VDI back-end]. what would also be nice is more over-the-air deployment options available in the next releases of the iphone CU.

[nicklec]

Using masses of bluetooth outside the home setting, especially with 802.1b/g/n around is asking for trouble. (Hint: 2.4 Ghz)

[Dos_Box]

the more choice in terms of enterprise mgmt apps the better, but from a cursory glance at the press release don't think anything stands out that isn't already done by either the iphone CU or enterprise iOS mgmt solutions.

 

when people talk about true enterprise manageability of handheld/mobile devices the nirvana has to be over-the-air deployment of apps and application of updates [for OS and apps]. At present the hurdle with iOS devices and appstore apps is the requirement to have itunes as the deployment software, and hence direct usb connections to an itunes or iphone CU host.

 

what i would like to see is support for bluetooth mice so you can get a better windows desktop experience for those using the ipad and app streaming/VDI apps [this to me makes it a true netbook killer if you have the app streaming or VDI back-end]. what would also be nice is more over-the-air deployment options available in the next releases of the iphone CU.

 

Yes, but this app alos manages Windows PC's and Macs, under one single banner. I have no doubt other network management vendors will be working on similar products, but generally they wait to see what the first to market does. Generally beign forst to market gets you eiter:

 

a. The largest slice of the pie. Or....

b. A widely lambasted product others copy and better.

 

Either way, centralised management of all your computers and devices is better than many disparate tools with differing capabilities and operating methods that don't want to talk to one another. As often is pointed out here. You can do pretty much all you want with the standard set of free Microsoft tools, but it isn't easy to roll out many different changes to varying kit from these tools. That's why there is a huge market for management software.