hallb15

Get yourself down to Richer Sounds. They give good advice and in the two stores I've been in, they do know what they are talking about. I've bought all my home audio and TV stuff from them. They have demo rooms so if you have a look around their website to get an idea of what you can afford, then ring them with your thoughts, they'll be able to get that equipment setup for you to have a listen to. Take your favourite CD/Vinyl with you. If you join their VIP club (its free and they only send a couple of emails a week) they'll even arrange a late or early demo so you can fit it around work.

What is it on the student's F: drive that they need to access from the recording studio PC? Is there another way you could look at this?

How's the Ofsted inspection going?

No Bluetooth, but you didn't ask for Bluetooth! I didn't think AppleTV supported audio over Bluetooth. But having a Bluetooth wireless speaker in each room they intend to use could work... I have one of these and it works very well - clear sound and louder than it looks: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Pioneer-XW-BTS3-K-Wireless-Bluetooth-Cabinet-Black/dp/B00B1VECOW/ref=sr_1_16?ie=UTF8&qid=1415712504&sr=8-16&keywords=wireless+speaker Or you could get a Bluetooth audio adaptor and use it with any speakers: JUSTOP BTR006 Bluetooth Wireless Stereo Audio Receiver With 3.5MM Jack, Universal Adapter For Speakers, New Module with Bluetooth V2.1 A2DP profile: Amazon.co.uk: Electronics the possibilities are endless!

These are very good. Pulse Active-30-BK 5inch, 30W Powered Speakers / Monitors (Pair) PA Systems, Speakers, Amplifiers | Laser Disco Lights, Band Stage Lighting - Astounded This is what I use in some of my classrooms now. Or they do a 50W version which may be better for large rooms: Pulse Active-50-BK 6.5inch, 50W Powered Speakers / Monitors (Pair) PA Systems, Speakers, Amplifiers | Laser Disco Lights, Band Stage Lighting - Astounded

I think what they are referring to is that to block using the URL you would have to block sites.google.com which would block some legitimate google sites. This is what I have found to be the case with Surfprotect. I can block the keyword punblockedgames to prevent the children from searching for it, but if they have a link to the URL they could still access it.

Our school business manager has a Fujitsu Lifebook A512 (Thanks @VeryPC_Colin_M) and she has no complaints. I think its chunky and bland but performance wise it has been rock solid. I don't normally like Fujitsu as historically they've produced some rubbish, but credit where credit's due, this one has been fine. I've tried a VeryPC Thinbook and out of the two its far nicer looking, well built and performed well but Windows 8 ruined it for me. That's just me being stuck in my ways though.

For new, try @VeryPC_Colin_M For refurbished, try @ICTDirect_Dave - if he has any HP Workstations left, they'd be ideal...

I'd echo what @Garacesh said above. This is not a secure method. You'd have to create a script that deleted the F: drive map - or schedule a task to do it at the end of every lesson maybe? Otherwise the next time a student uses the computer in question, they may still have the previous user's F: drive still mapped. Could you create a music shared drive on the domain and map it during startup on the recording studio PC? That way, at least only the student's music work would be at risk, not their whole home area. You could also look at a cloud-based solution like dropbox or one drive.

Local admin or domain admin? Gotta be domain admin. Are you backing up more than one server using agents? These were often the cause of my issues with Backup Exec. For a full backup to NAS, Windows Server Backup does a pretty decent job and would at least give you some peace of mind that you had a backup in place whilst you sort out your Backup Exec issues out. It can take ages though, so make sure you schedule it for a quiet time when no other backups or important tasks are scheduled...

Yes. Something along the lines of: NET USE X: \\server\%username% I'm curious why you want to do this though? EDIT: @sted went into way more detail!

Not wanting to worry you, but there are only 14 more 'working' days til the start of December. Looking forward to MAAAADvent already...

Backup Exec has gone through many versions, some were great, but most had so many quirks and issues that I stopped using it several years ago. Most of the problems I encountered were due to permissions and the various agents that had to be installed on each server to be backed up. What account are you running the backup jobs under? Even though it works for other backup jobs, you could try creating a new domain admin account and using that to run the backup job that is currently failing.

Turtle Beach seem to be the ones most recommended for gaming. Depends on your (Santa's) budget.

Oooh - check out @VeryPC_Colin_M's new signature! Does that mean you can sell me Windows at a decent price now?

At the moment, my children just want to play games so they are allowed to use my iPad with wi-fi off, only when myself or my wife are in the room. As they are getting older they are wanting their own tablet so I have been considering the best path to take. The HomeHalo looks like a well thought out product and I'll definitely be backing it. Thanks @IrritableTech for posting it. I hope a few more edugeeks back it too...

Have you got another Smart serial-USB cable you could try? I've got a spare you can borrow if you like...

For £25, its worth putting a decent basic, Gbit switch in like this: Netgear ProSafe GS108 8-port Gigabit Metal Desktop Switch - Ebuyer Look to wiring the other desktop computers into this switch. 8 ports will be enough for now unless the company is likely to expand in the near future. Updating the antivirus definitions and running scans to rule out viruses or malware is always a good idea. CCleaning (or your preferred software) the desktops wouldn't do any harm either. Depending on the age of the desktops and the physical environment they are in, a good dusting inside with a soft paintbrush and can of compressed air is also a good idea. Depending on budget, getting a reasonable server may be the best way forward as it gives you central management of everything, and takes the strain off the one currently hardwired desktop. Lenovo have some cashback offers on at the moment e.g. Lenovo ThinkServer TS140 4GB Xeon E3-1225 v3 3.2GHz Tower Server - Ebuyer Comes with free server 2012. Would be a good starting point - without knowing more about the business and its plans... If you have a clear idea of what they are trying to achieve, where the business is heading, and what budget you might have, you can plan an upgrade strategically. If your client is happy with refurbs, @ICTDirect_Dave will sort you out. If you want a new, bespoke server try Ed at @VeryPC via @VeryPC_Colin_M There's lots of Edugeekers who will be willing to help you determine the right spec. Keep posting on here and we'll do what we can.

Definitely look at upgrading their internet connection. For a business that uploads website updates regularly, their current 1mb upload is woefully inadequate. I've looked at the Zen Internet website and they do offer FTTC connections, and they advertise up to 9.5mb upload speeds on their cheaper packages which should be a vast improvement. Fibre and Phone Packages | Fibre Broadband | Business | Zen Internet Get this (or similar) installed and working properly on the one wired PC. Then tackle the desktops. The netgear wireless adaptors you linked to will do the job pretty well but in an office environment there's really no excuse for not having wired connections. What does the business do? You mention two printers, but what are they printing? Photos can be huge and printing just 1 photo wirelessly could bring the whole network crashing down, especially as the printers are shared via the one hard-wired desktop PC.

@VeryPC Al and Will - any chance of a video anyway - just for fun?! I liked the green screen jiggery pokery a few videos back - some more of the same would be cool....

Great month of competition madness @VeryPC thank you! Sorry I didn't get time to make a sock puppet - this week was half term holiday for us and I've been busy with the family. Now I'll have to get back to some real work on Monday...

These kind of things are done when under the influence of alcohol... You probably did sign up when placing an order for the "Toast N Egg" - I still want one of these: Tefal Toast N' Egg TT550015 Toaster - 2 Slice - Black: Amazon.co.uk: Kitchen & Home

^ This is how I would do it too. You might want to consider protecting the cells so teachers can enter marks, but not edit/mess up the cells containing the formula!

+1 for Excel - its always had the best easter eggs in it too! Spiceworks is also in my top 3

I want one! BBC covered it here too: BBC News - Scientists create real 'Back To The Future' hoverboard