alan-d

The above refers to another document which gives more detail - do you have a link to it?

I've a feeling this is a trust issue between your servers, but I could be totally wrong as it's late and my brain has gone to sleep - I'll check up on it in the morning when I get a minute. Oh btw - welcome

I'll read it tomorrow - so don't get humpty and bump this post

You are automatically assuming that all schools already have a dedicated IT technician or team in place or have funding to do so. There are hundreds of schools that rely on local knowledge eg teachers to run the network and don't have funding. BSF could in some circumstances benefit enormously. We all know that a technician based locally is ideal but unforyunately we don't live in an ideal world and we have to make decisions that suit individual circumstances.

Go with the one you feel most comfortable with - but I have to say that the FCO one would probably have better long term prospects. I've known people who work there in one form or another and they love it.

PM'd you

Hang on - only just seen this post

I think the answer to that is to start with a simple comparison with our counterparts in industry. Start with the basic tasks that would be expected of a technician or NM then compare it with industrial equivilents. You will probably find that although industry technicians do the same tasks in a lot of areas, they probably don't do all of them. This is obviously a generalisation but you get the idea. As to who actually defines the differences - well I guess that's where edugeek comes in.

The NVQ system is flexible in a way that skills in one organisation are recorded so that they are transferable. For example my wife is doing an NVQ which is transferable to other nursing homes. Most IT tasks of an administrative function such as keeping logs, backups, procurement, distribution etc are more or less the same everywhere. Yes there are differences specific to each organisation but in the main the resposibilities are there in one form or another. Personally I dislike the NVQ system, mainly because most are run by companies looking for an easy profit, I'm just using it as an example of how it could be achieved. It would take a lot of time and resources to set up and administer but the end product would be a nationally recognised sytem of a technicians ability with an educational environment.

CMOS battery??? or BIOs chip gone on Hols?

Unfortunately as it stands at the moment, this Mark is only going to be vaild within the school it was gained which is why I suggested an NVQ type qualification that could be recognised nationally together with vendor specific qualifications. As I see it at the moment, there is no real incentive to obtain NAACE accreditation unless there is definate hope that the individual will progress up the ladder within the same organisation. Why would an individual work toward a NAACE accreditation when a microsoft qualification would give him/her a more flexible portfolio? Although it's not going to be used as such now, you can be pretty certain that schools or LEAs will use this accreditation to decide on the relevant payscales in the future. This issue of making the accreditation only valid within the organisation it was gained has to be addressed before any further decision are made. I feel that to keep it as it is will cause the whole plan to fall on it's backside before it even gets off the ground.

Yep seen it but the Head had us banish it from school

I believe there is a problem with the above. What you are saying is that to gain any formal recognition of the job and knowledge you have from NAACE, you are required to obtain industry recognised qualifications. We are all well aware that schools do not have the funding for the majority of industry recognised qualifications and the majority of technicians pay for most, if not all, courses and exam fees themselves. If you are saying that schools should use NAACE qualifications to assist in grading and renumerating their technicians, how is any lowly paid technician ever going to progress? Especially if they are a single entity within the school and have no experience around them to draw from. I agree that industry qualifications are a useful lever, but only if the school in question uses the technology the qualification covers. If by some fluke of nature a school has some training funds to cover technician training, they, quite rightly, would only pay for courses that would benefit the school. ie why pay for an MCSA when you run Linux? or why pay for ECDL when you use Open Office? Schools are unique in industry terms in that the technicians are the jack of all trades in the IT world. Considering that uniqness would it not make more sense that the qualification for NAACE accreditation be more on the lines of the NVQ route. Specifically designed for the school IT technician that could be carried from one school to the next.

I like the image manipulator - playtime

I've not read it properly but is this of any use?

I just ordered one for £50 from them - outright purchase as they don't do one under the schools agreement.

Start here

Store room not big enough for a single desk - never mind 3. Also no window. As for your first comment - I shall treat that with the contempt it deserves :P

Like using MSN messenger but with only 6 contacts?

It has to be soundproofed because the location of the servers is also the IT office where 3 technicians work. Air con is installed & works fine, but over the years the number of servers has increased and the noise level, although just within H&S regs is constant and causing discomfort to the technicians. We either have to put the servers in a soundproof cabinet or move them to the other side of the school after converting a very small store cupboard. At the moment the cost of a cabinet is cheaper than converting the storeroom (ie electrics, air con, cabling etc). Oh by the way H&S also say that if we cannot do either of the above, we can issue ear defenders to those working in the office! You can imagine my response to that one!

Yep - just emailed them and Keystone .

Do they have a web addy?

Finally I've been given the go-ahead to price up some silent server cabinets. Any recommendations for suppliers who also install as it's not a straight forward 'stick it up against a wall' solution. Note - normal cabinets are of no use - it has to be as sound proof as possible.

About 2-3 weeks on average.

lol - maybe you don't exist Worth giving them a call - we've been using them for 2 years and not had a single problem. We collect the cartridges etc, they collect and send us a cheque. Get the parents and local businesses involved and the money that can be raised is quite substantial for little effort.