Zorro_Slot

Perhaps NM should install it on those three machines for you - wouldnt take long and would give you what you want. The problem is that it would set a president (emmental cheese anyone?) so everybody else would want all manner of junk installed. Thas just my 2p.

same here!

Its funny, you know... The people who try to convince us of the benefits of managed ICT have a vested interest in the situation. But I suppose thats normal. We all try to fight our corner as best we can. One guy from a service provider told a group of us that his bonus would be reduced if schools were not happy with the company's performance. What makes him think I or anyone else gives a damn. I work more hours than I'm paid for, doing my best to meet the needs of the students and staff, with no bonus on the cards! If the service I provide was below par, I would get a bollocking and if it was consistently below par I would get the sack. But unlike me, mister service provider will see his bonus reduced. Is this supposed to make us feel confident that they will provide us with a decent service? What a Joker.

Sims is poo. 'Nuff said. .... Useful comment, i know...

I would love to document my network, but have zero time to do it in.

In my last job we had a similar problem, mobos kept dying. BIOS log showwed thermal error each time. Had 50% fail in a few months. Took months and loads of hassling to get them to replace the remaining boards -they did it four boards per day over several days!!! This is why I will not buy PCs from Dell anymore.

Raid is a massive pain in the a**e. I've had it fail on me twice and couldnt get th damn thing to rebuild itself. Same happened to my brother. Note to Self: Raid is poo.

Xerox compats are the way to go, never had a problem with them. Extremely good value for money.

OK, heres my 2p worth... We have a Dell 5110cn Laser, and I bought it based on excellent reviews from Computer Shopper and elsewhere. It is essentially a rebadged lexmark, but dont let that put you off - its superb. It offers duplex printing, the driver gives you the option of password protecting the colour option, so if you only want staff print in colour, just set a password. http://www.pcpro.co.uk/shopper/reviews/92553/dell-colour-laser-printer-5110cn.html The outlay for a set of original toners is high - high capacity rainbow pack retails at around 550 quid from Dell, but they last well. If you shop around you can get them much cheaper. I have a contact at a company called Wordflow, Philip Warr. He can do the pack for closer to 400 quid. http://www.wordflow.co.uk/pgIndex.cfm?sitevar=reset&appvar=3494 Also, if your felling adventurous and in the mood for saving even more money, you can refill the carts as they are literally just plastic cylinders full of toner - no other gubbings inside like drum etc. I have bought a kit from TonerTopUp, which is excellent. It cost 10 quid has everything you need to melt a hole in the cart. The toners themselves are 79 quid per color and 16 quid each for replqcement chips. Strangely enough, they couldnt do the black at a lower price then the dell original, but its only 56 quid. Saves a fortune. http://www.tonertopup.co.uk/productCatalog.asp I have no link with either of the companies! Just wanted to spreaad the word. You wont be dissapointed if you use either of them.