List of bad software

[GrumbleDook]

I have noticed something that is key to all of this. We are basing our description of 'bad software' on it being a pain to install or update ... not about how much hand holding is needed with staff or students to use it, or whether it is actually any good when they get round to using it.

 

Just something to think about.

[Midget]

That's a very good point, but unfortunately without knowledge in the field the software is for (or at least the curriculum), it would be difficult to know whether the software is substantial.

[MkII]

Yeah. Wether it's good or not to use isn't my concern - ie i'm not involved in teaching the kids how to use it. We only get told about the problems.

 

If it crashes a lot, doesn't do what it says on the tin, or needs techs to go show teachers how to use it, then we know.

[GrumbleDook]

I know that subject specific knowledge is need to say whether it is useful (and some here do have that knowledge) but talking about how much hand holding is needed is something we can comment on ... after all ... this needs to be factored into the TCO.

[_Bat_]

That's just pointless, will all of those people even use DB on those machines? And why the hell do primary school teachers need laptops?

 

Probably not, but it is what I was asked to do.

 

They plan their lessons on their laptops at home. In my schools, they sometimes also use their laptops for their interactive whiteboards. Why does a secondary school teacher need a laptop any more then a primary school teacher?

[Midget]

Obviously primary education has advanced far beyond what I experianced at that age. Our curriculum was rather more adhoc and mainly consisted of "open book to page XX and do the questions" after they had finished teaching us how to answer those questions. Do they now have to plan playing in the sand pit down to the last grain?

[localzuk]

Well, software which is bad... One big can of worms there.

 

For hand holding, it has to be MS Office. No-one knows how to use it properly - with most staff knowing only how to do simple wordprocessing.

 

For installing? This is a difficult one for me - we haven't bought any difficult to install software in the last couple of years. All the old stuff is just that, old. So making a comment about it would be inappropriate. However, the Shockwave player/plugin is a pain to install, as is the KS3 ICT test software.

[elsiegee40]

Do they now have to plan playing in the sand pit down to the last grain?

 

Yes... and more! Having been at a Primary that was in special measures for 2 years, the forms had to be seen to be believed!

 

ICT is an integral part of Primary School life now. Interactive whiteboards are the norm. Planning forms and pupil reports are routinely being completed on computers.

 

Then there's all the statistics required by the government...

 

and I nearly forgot the risk analysis forms!

[Midget]

bloody hell, they've ruined primary education. I don't think there should be such an emphasis on computers at primary level. A handful of computers for the head and staff to put details on and print worksheets and thats about it and concentrate on actually putting down a foundation for their learning. Have they started teaching citizenship and how not to treat a person from another race?

 

 

and i'm going to stop there before I start sounding like the Daily Mail.

[localzuk]

Why should they not put emphasis on ICT at primary level? Almost all future career paths contain ICT, so why shouldn't be involved as a key skill like english and maths?

[Midget]

teach about computers at comp, primary should just be to give the kids a good foundation in reading and writing and maths, something that alot of kids miss these days.

 

How does teaching a <10yo kid how to write a letter in MSWord help their developement?

 

anyway, this is a different topic.

 

back on track.... has anyone mentioned Nelson Thornes yet?

[Halfmad]

Ones I've had trouble with:

 

Picasso - mind mapping software type thing, seems to install OK but has a lot of quirks with saving data (or not!) and in certain areas of the program you MUST print out every page even if you only want to see the page you're currently on.

 

Business@Work - I discovered we were using two slightly different versions in the school and if a pupil tried to open his document in another room it simply wouldn't work and crash the PC. No fix from the suppliers and the only way to tell what version your running is to check a log install file in the program directory. Easy to update, but why not build in backwards compatibility for even a tiny update!

 

Smartboard software - I know it works great but there's far too many versions of it and of course staff insist on having the most up to date version at all times. Very time consuming.

 

Seemis - registration program we must use, randomly stops working and you have to delete the contents of the folder and force it to update all files. Rubbishly written and very, very poor interface.

[localzuk]

@midget - you know as well as everyone else that there is a lot more to learning ICT than writing letters in word. Computers are ubiquitous to life now, so should be ubiquitous in education also.

 

Also, what's a comp? Do you mean comprehensive? We don't have them down here...

[MkII]

I installed PCs for the local toddler group as it was a requirement by the inspector.

 

At that age the kids are familiarising themselves with mice etc.. I put Artrage on there that the kids love, and the teachers work through basic story type programs.

 

As kids move into reception and year one, they don't then need to be taught the basics, they can get straight into using software.

[GrumbleDook]

@localzuk

 

Funny you should mention about comprehensives. I was lucky enough to tour round some schools along the south coast (well, from Bristol to Devon and then along the coast) and one of the schools we stopped off at has 4 specialisms ... ok, 3 official ones but another unofficial (but they were in the process of getting it recognised!).

 

They only needed one more to be a comprehensive ;-)

[Oops_my_bad]

Microsoft Windows.

[Midget]

Microsoft Windows.

install linux or bsd and throw a teacher at it and then you'll see which is better.

 

actually in no case is windows worse than linux/bsd

its easy to install via network, the teachers can use it, it's pretty easy to administrate

 

compare that to linux.

[GrumbleDook]

No OS wars ... we are talking about software that is used in educational environments ... do not start changing this into an OS war.

[Midget]

GD> that's why i replied as such, i use linux, but in an educational environment windows is much better.

[Geoff]

Pardon? I use Linux at work. I can talk to the Windows machines just fine over RDP/ICA/CIFS. I can talk to the Linux servers just fine over SCP/SSH. And for bonus points, I get a PC that doesn't crash (nForce chipset...grumble...grumble..).

[becktonboy]

re OP, I guess we all think of software that's a pain to install is because we aren't trying to install crap software? I have tried and rejected dozens of programs which didn't get as far as checking out for ease of installation, as they were checked out on my home laptop first to see if they were worth the bother.

 

midget, you have a lot to learn about Primary Schools, the foundation stage in particular, if you're interested; if you're not, a question like 'what does a primary teacher need a laptop for' is unbelievably redundant. I can't even be bothered to start going into the value of computers to the children, take my word for it, they are valuable to the point that our 35 strong nursery has 3 PCs, on all day, and the children have at least 30 mins a week in the ICT suite.

[Skoggmeiger]

Ok its 2:44 am, and I'm just back from my birthday bash but why do people get hung up about Digiblue?

 

 

That must have been one wild Birthday Bash!

[localzuk]

Oh, Macromedia Studio 8. Now there's a fun one to install - even if it is in MSI format!

[Pottsey]

Writing With Symbols + Makton fine from an end user point of view terrible for an IT Tech point of view.

 

The version they sent us needs 4 floppy disks to start the install process. First you have to install version 2 of WWS CD with floppy disk then version 2 of Makton CD using another floppy disk with the install program on.

After waiting ages for both CD’s and floppy disks to install you need to get WWS 2.6CD and the upgrade floppy disk and wait. Once that’s done get the Makton 2.6 CD plus floppy disk and wait. Good look if you have a none floppy disk laptop or PC.

[MkII]

esaams - assessment with multimedia - intended for Music and PE primarily.

 

Dreadful program, based on MS Access - need I say more! In the first month of use we lost everything.

 

Very expensive, £1000 for two licences.

 

We couldn't afford a server dedicated to it, although manglement had already decided they must have it anyway. So if staff swap classes, you have to re-create the whole thing on another PC.

 

So far the teachers like it, although they get the IT techs to do all the work on it, and they're sending one of us on a teacher training course just to use it.

 

I wouldn't touch it with your bargepole given the choice.