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Evening all, I was sufting as you do with some cider and came across the mad deal from Dixons DYNAMODE 6-pin PCI-Express to Dual 4-pin Molex Power Cable | Dixons | Can anyone beat this?

What model no of Watch Guard Firebox are you using? I currently am running two types. The Firebox X Edge e-Series X20e and Firebox X Core e-Series X550e both with Version 11.2 Software across three schools. I have one set of rules that covers the whole school, pupils and teachers alike which is not ideal. Once I get back to school for the new term I will be setting up and using Single Sign On (SSO) which is within the Watch Guard. This will then allow me to make different sets of rules for different groups i.e. pupils and teachers and the works on your AD authentication within your domain. It’s a two part install with SSO agent and SSO client, the agent is install on your domain and the client on you Pc’s. This gets around having to authenticate twice. Once this is done you know who has logged on where, now you can set up an internet logging server/service. I have been told it will take up a fair bit of space when running so just bare that in mind. I will be back to work on Tuesday/Wednesday this coming week and can scan and give you the set up instruction if you wish.

I was having a wander on the net when I came across this news item and wondered what you guys allow in school with regards to moblie phones and if you think this would be a good idea over here? News - French want to ban mobile phones in schools - The Ecologist

Welcome to W4TB - Wait For The Bell I have had a look at this site and what it offers and a lot of questions come up from an administration point of view which I cannot see the answer to on your website. Here are just a few, (anyone else please feel free to add to this list.) What back ground within IT have your team all come from?, what I am getting at have you all worked within schools as that would show you understand just some of the problems we face on a daily basis or are you just web designers who came up with a good idea? Did you actual do any market research, like visit some schools and talk to IT administrators and ask them what the pit falls are in offering a service like you have? Student2student Pupils chatting in a secure social networking site. This one on paper sounds like a good idea, but in practice a nightmare to administrate. For starters most schools band chat programs like msn/yahoo/g-mail message for several reasons. 1.) It disrupts lessons if pupils are chatting to each other instead of doing the lesson. 2.) It’s a very easy form of Cyber bullying 3.) It’s very hard to police and time consuming, hence why it’s band 4.) So on your site they can chat, but who is doing the monitoring, who is responsible for cyber bullying, do we as administrators get a report on any cyber bulling or rude words used and by who….this list could go on but you get the picture. Oh on a personal note you list that to use this part of the site a teacher has to sign a pupil up for this. Now call me bias but some teachers can’t tie their shoes laces let alone know anything about IT procedures (that was a direct quote from a ICT teacher about other teachers in a school, and one I personally agree with) and I think you should aim this sort of control to the IT administrators of a school or LA. At least give the control to turn the feature off if the school wishes not to use it. Pupils Portal Now some of the features of this look really good, but just looking at the folders you list quite a few things spring to mind with huge big red warning signs!!! For starters you list folders for the following. Desktop Documents Images Music Videos What sort of control are you placing on say the Desktop or Documents folders? 1.) File sizes within these folders? 2.) Do you band exe files, zip files etc as most schools band this sorts of files 3.) Do you release the danger of a pupils being able to load say “usb hacksaw” into their my docs from home then coming into school and being able to download it into the school’s network and bypassing in effect the schools firewall/ filtering to such files. Not to mention if such a thing happened who is responsible is stopping it happening? You? Images folder 1.) Again file size limit 2.) Permissions for pictures within a school network, do you know anything about this?....data protection springs straight to mind. 3.) Who is policing this? Music 1.) This is a mad one, never heard of Copyright of music? 2.) File size again. 3.) Who is policing this? Videos 1.) Another mad one, Copyright for starters 2.) Most schools band sites like you tube, Google video etc and we don’t need the pupils to be able to bypass these restrictions and them to bring this files within our networks 3.) Permissions again from parents, as it is needed for Images within a school network No where on your site do you have a statement about which laws you have covering but you should be aware you need to cover at least the following…which you currently don’t seem to be doing. Computer Misuse Act 1990 Data Protection Act 1998 Freedom of Information Act 2000 Communications Act 2003 Malicious Communications Act 1988 Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 Trade Marks Act 1994 Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 Telecommunications Act 1984 Criminal Justice & Public Order Act 1994 Racial and Religious Hatred Act 2006 Protection from Harassment Act 1997 Protection of Children Act 1978 Sexual Offences Act 2003 Public Order Act 1986 Obscene Publications Act 1959 and 1964 Human Rights Act 1998 The Education and Inspections Act 2006 Once you have covered all the points above them maybe, maybe you might be onto a winner……but one has to think that you have opened pandora box and your not going to get that back in. Anyway rant over……coffee time!

Ah that picture brings back memories..... But to answer Gaz orignal post I like HP as I have them in 3 schools I look after and have no problem with them.

Sad to hear Nortel is going down the pan but not a surpise coming from a past employee. Nothing wrong with the equipment, it was way ahead of its time when I worked there in 1999. While most people were still on dial up we have 10Mb in the factory I worked in and they were working on 20Mb when I left, all fibre of course and wireless access through the factory in every room. Video conferencing to Canada even then was amazing. But all good things come to an end...specially when the accountants get into the act!!! Nortel provided equipment for BT in this county but did their own FWA (fixed wireless access) phone system abroad in counties like Poland, Mexico, Canada, USA etc.