mr_wordshark

Thanks guys, We have seen this and based on the helpful observations from DaveAshworth and Mullet_Man above we have now modified the network installation instructions. These will be released within the next day or two. SCCM is mentioned in the main install instructions, with a note pointing SCCM users to the detailed SCCM appendix. We are really grateful for this feedback given we don't use SCCM ourselves. Please keep it coming! Sorry, Arthur, we don't have a custom action in the MSI that can readily be tweaked, and I suspect if we had then this could add complication for some techs. Rik (Support Manager, Wordshark & Numbershark) [email protected]

Thanks very much for this - we have noted this ready for any other techs with SCCM queries.

Hi Sadams I see you contacted us here in Wordshark Support soon after posting this, and we quickly sorted the issue (.Net 3.5 has to be enabled, as per instructions, or the management software is unable to function. Your server's .Net 3.5 was installed but disabled) Our general advice for anyone experiencing any issue installing Wordshark or Numbershark networks is - most techs who have read the network installation instructions have no issues. If you do, then the "troubleshooting" section (Appendix A) usually quickly points to the answers for common issues. Our contact details are at the end of Appendix A, and elsewhere on the documentation, and we would much rather you email/phone us before wasting precious time.

Hi, Bananas, With a declaration of interest in sig block! Hope you were successful - whether you were or not, I'd add that it is worth revisiting all of the above. Clicker has moved on, with latest "Clicker" offering much more than previous releases. Much the same for the newly released version 5 of Wordshark an Numbershark 5, where the new features make them even more useful for SEN than previous releases, but critically also make them much stronger for “inclusion” and “whole school” use.

Hi all - an update from Wordshark/Numbershark support: We have a CC4 package for Wordshark 5, and RM have just updated their info to say that they should have our CC4 package for Numbershark 5 approved and back with us around 7th November 2014. - Rik, support manager

Hi all Just to say - the email address on the mr_wordshark posting of 23 July 2012 has changed, and is now support @ wordshark. co. uk In other respects, inc tel number, the posting is still correct. As Miscbrah has found, we do indeed still support v3, even though it is now 13 years old - and sadly struggles with Win7 and 8, though happily, our current versions don't!

Hi Stuart_C With declaration of interest in sig block, and apologies that I have only just spotted your post - please do ring us here in Wordshark/Numbershark Support, 0208 748 1170. Even though v3 is now approx 12 years old so obsolete by most standards, we are still happy to support you (and yes, this is free, and no, we are not a premium rate number!). In general, to anyone reading this posting, rather than you spending ages trying to get software to run, if you ring the support dept for that software, you will usually save a fair bit of time...then you will have more time to bring home the bacon:rolleyes:

Hi all With declaration of interest in sig block. A site licence (one-off, NOT annual) for Wordshark or Numbershark is in the same ballpark price area as the SM annual support cost (and our support is FOC for a minimum of 5 years) Numbershark and Wordshark are indeed very different to SM in "look and feel" when "straight out of the box". Both, like SM, are indeed often used for learning support in English/Maths, though both are used across a wider age/ability range (I'm supporting a mature student through her Masters with the aid of Wordshark! I taught using Numbershark to GCSE grade C, so yes, both are useful for secondary school for more than 'just' learning support). Some teachers like the way that a child can be "put" on SM which then takes them through a program of work step by step so that the teacher can get on with other things - I can't comment on Dave.81's "enjoyed dumping", though can see the potential for that. Numbershark and Wordshark CAN be set to take children through a program of work step by step rather like SM, but to avoid the "dumping" we insist the teacher first sets up that program to give the child or children what the teacher professionally considers they need. This is available in v4 via: Admin / [add and]Manage Students / Set up detailed work programs. We have a "how to" document here in Support for any staff needing more comprehensive instructions, or can "Logmein" to demonstrate. A very powerful feature of both programs, but not one to use without good reason. More commonly, Numbershark and Wordshark are used in ways that allow students rather more autonomy. Support, 0208 748 1170, can help if needed.

Hi Undercover With apologies that I didn't spot this post before, and with declaration of interest. Briefly, there are several possible reasons. It can happen if someone changes the shortcut icon "Start-in" properties, so that the program can no longer find the data folder "[word][number]shark-shared" OR that folder has been moved OR deleted. It can also happen on certain releases IF there is a network overload resulting in a client machine not being able to exchange details with that same folder. Noted that it is CC3 (that often can make a difference!) Best bet for anyone who ends up with either program asking for the network registration code is to contact us, either by phone or send a phone number for us to contact you. Support number is 0208 748 1170 (UK weekdays 9-5), and we can usually sort out the issue pretty quickly.

With declaration of interest as Support Manager for Wordshark - Thanks Elsiegee40, I confirm that is the current pricelist. I have looked, and it is the same firm that is selling on both amazon.co.uk and .com. I doubt they have meant to give the Americans such a good deal. The list price for a single user CD, inc VAT and postage, for UK customers is £69 for Wordshark (unchanged for best part of a decade, despite the program hugely expanding in that time). In almost all cases, the single user CD is not the optimum product for school use - we have several other delivery mechanisms (activation, USB, network) that are usually more appropriate within a school.

With declaration of interest (sig. block) This may well be the .PDF files for all of the secondary school specialist vocab word lists, or the phonics word lists. Good to see these are being used! We have them here in Support so phone 0208 748 5927 or email [email protected] if you are not already sorted, and we will wing them across to you. A thanks to all of you for stepping in and helping (I was at BETT, so did not see this message as quickly as I might usually have done)

Hi Synaesthesia, Thanks for the kind words: We have been well pleased to see how popular Wordshark and Numbershark remain with the children (and interestingly with a growing number of adults with a wish to improve their literacy/numeracy). I'd like to hope that we eventually become equally popular amongst techs, by producing the full range of solutions & support that are needed by you folks. Whilst we can't promise to deliver everything that techs ask, we are doing all we can to move the right direction, as you may see from our increased product range. I do believe your earlier point about schools with large numbers of CDs, given you are mentioning v3. We know much larger numbers of v3 CDs will be in schools, as that was in an era when many schools did not have networks but did have loads of standalone computers with CD drives. Most of these CDs will be 5 - 12 years old (v4 Wordshark and Numbershark came out 4-5 years ago), and I would really advise the the schools for educational reasons to save a bit of cash next financial year, to trade these in and move to our latest releases, which have phonics and additional features that give even better value both in primary and secondary schools, for SEN and also for the rest of the ability range (now being used at the "other end", indeed I've been using it with a couple of folk at Masters degree level myself! My point still stands - I would really not be advising any school in these days of netbooks and networks to be buying a load of v4 CDs when we have other products for Wordshark and Numbershark which are designed to be better for school use. Regarding the very old v3 disks on CC3 networks - all I would say is that trading those 10 CDs in would go well towards the price of a site network licence of v4, with rather less messing about for the tech, and technically, practically and educationally better. As you have mentioned it, legally I have to say that the licence requires the physical presence of the CD in the local drive... legally speaking, VirtualCD use is not permitted by the licence, and can be (and sometimes is) picked up by anyone checking compliance. I can see from what you describe your schools are abiding by the spirit of the licence. Glad I'm not a lawyer as tech support is far more fun! Anyhow - ready to go off and celebrate the new year. Hope 2012 is better for all of us than many of the papers are saying.

Hi Synaesthesia (Declaration of interest) Our own sales figures and experience show that very few schools would have anything like as many as 15 CDs. The original poster was trying to run one single user CD on 15 machines, which is not at all the same thing. If any school did ring us up here in Support and ask about a bulk rate for purchasing 15 CDs, we would be looking very carefully at why: Even 15 CDs bought at a bulk rate would be more expensive than a network licence or 15 single user activations (that do not need the disk in the drive, and which would be the obvious choice for standalone netbooks). In the past year, we have come across some schools wanting to buy CDs in bulk on behalf of parents, as a service and fund-raising activity. I can't recall any school buying 15, or even 10, single user CDs. What would be the point, given most schools are moving to netbooks and/or have a perfectly decent network to run our network product on. If any Edugeek tech reading has bought 10+ CDs of Wordshark or Numbershark in the past year in preference to our other products, and can tell me why, I'd be interested. The only exception I can see is for schools in Northern Ireland who are on the C2K province-wide network, where their providers have contractual reasons for not installing our network product into individual schools. I totally agree with you that many computers do not have optical drives, and many do not need them. We have a product (the activated installable version) that has been designed for such use - and we accept trade-ins on disks, right back to our old DOS disks (how many other firms allow a trade-in for software sold in the previous century?). If you feel there is more we as a company could/should do, please say. We do our best to listen (one reason why I'm here now!)

Hi Richard (Declaration of interest again) It is possible that the link you have posted will be useful for some readers of this thread, and thanks for thinking to look. The link you have given provides instructions for people with our (now several years obsolete!) release 3.05 network product, and how to package this NETWORK version for use on a RM CC3 network. The original enquiry is about the Single User CD, and no mention was made of it being for a CC3 network, so I doubt it will be helpful for FredTed. That said, it may be useful for others with CC3 or CC4 and old network disks. For anyone with older or newer CC3/CC4 network disk, it will be worth looking at our instructions (written with RM Techs at their Abingdon/Didcot base) at: Community Connect In the same link, you will see that single user CDs for Wordshark and Numbershark are NOT the product to go for if you have CC3/CC4.

Hi FredTed With obvious declaration of interest below! We have several Wordshark licence forms, to suit most needs. 1. the CD product (needs to be in the drive as the portable licence, so can be installed on many computers but used on just one at any time) Try to avoid this - fine for domestic use but not educationally or technically the best for a school for many reasons! Given the CD is the licence, it is of course copy -protected, though sadly we have a few who try to rip us off. Some even ring up to ask how to do so! If the CD gets damaged, we do have a disk replacement service so not the end of the world. 2. the network product - given the program is increasingly used across the whole age/ability range by far the best value for money. Site licence for X concurrent computer users. Server based, so has no annual charges and no bandwidth requirements 3. the multiple activation product - install onto individual machines rather like the CD product, but do not need the CD. Activate on line (or via another computer that is) 4. the USB stick product - best for a teacher using at home and at school, takes data and program around on the stick. Also good for little Johnny who lives with Mum, goes to Dad at weekend, needs to take program and data to SENCO and home tutor.