rjf2019

I found this article, and am going to look into it. Thanks! https://support.apple.com/en-gb/guide/mac-help/mchlp2266/mac

We have a Mac Mini which we run as a caching server for iOS and App updates, and works great to stop the internet connection from getting jammed up. It is the one bit of kit that gets overlooked for being turned back on though. We've had planned power outages twice this week. Every other bit of equipment in the cabinet comes back on as soon as the power is back on, but of course the Mac Mini needs to be turned on manually. One solution would be to put a reminder sign on the cabinets, and would probably do the job. I was wondering though if anyone has a technical solution that they use? I found this article on Google, and wonder has anyone had any success with it? https://www.techrepublic.com/article/how-to-enable-mac-computers-to-automatically-power-on/

Thanks everyone. I will wait for the quotes and see where we are from there. Soundbars were mentioned, which I had completely overlooked. On the existing touchpanel TVs that we have, we have soundbars. The TVs are connected to the PC by HDMI, and the bar connects to the TV. They sound great when the TV is on. However, if the teacher is working outside of the school day without the TV on, they don't get any sound. Has anyone got a different / better set-up, that gets around this problem?

I have x2 sets of machines to convert to Cloud Ready Chrome OS. The first set were laptops, with built in wifi and worked perfecetly. (I'm very impressed with it all.) The second set are RM One PCs, which don't have built in Wifi. I have connected a dongle to one, but at the start up screen for installing Never Ware, it doesn't detect any Wifi networks, and the dongle doesn't flash or anything to suggest that it is doing anything. I have swapped USB ports for the dongle, including to one that I know to be functioning, which hasn't made a difference. I'm wondering if: 1) I need to get past the intitial set-up by using a network cable, and then plug the dongle in once the machine is up and running with Chrome OS? 2) I need to buy some different dongles. I don't have the name to hand of what I was using today, but can check my order history.

We are planning ahead for a refresh of boards in classrooms, and are looking at interactive TVs. We are currently all Promethean boards, and I wouldn't rule them out. Another brand that I keep hearing good things about is C-Touch. Does anyone have any opinions on them? Or other brands that you would encourage me to look at? And I guess also, any that you would discount?

Thanks everyone. Really helpful. @Danp That's a great map of how you've laid it out. Previously I had been thinking of splitting the content 50:50, but that makes much more sense. I'm going to have a play around with that today.

That's really helpful to know - and 44 more TVs that I have organised over the past 18 months. I'm really intersted to know more about the layouts that you are using, as it's something that I could get my head around fully. Am I able to combine a widget such as Google calendar with another such as the Clock or Weather on one page? This is the mount that I am looking at https://www.screwfix.com/p/sanus-full-motion-tv-wall-mount-full-motion-32-47/9461j It's a bit more pricey than the one you link, but I'm only doing one TV, so it's less of an issue. This is the TV. https://www.avpartsmaster.co.uk/samsung-32-dc32e-display-p90829 They had a few cheaper, but weren't expecting stock for a while.

It is time to update our staff room display, which is on approx 12 hours a day displaying our calendar. The simplest option for me is to grab a TV for Currys etc, and get our Premises Manager to mount it to the wall. However, I'm aware that ordinary TVs aren't designed for this use case: both in terms of being on 60 hours a week and also in terms of it displaying something so static. Would anyone try and persuade me towards a display panel specifically designed for this use case? And if so, towards and particular brands or suppliers that they would recommend. It will be fitted by our Premises Manager. Ideally a site that displays the prices, rather than me having to enquire. It will be attached to a Raspberry Pi running YoDeck, so need for any software etc. It just needs to be able to power on from CEC, and also not power itself off in the middle of the day because it thinks it isn't being used. It will be mounted portrait, and I'll also be looking for a mount that will hopefully allow it to be angled both left/right and up/down. (This really isn't my area of expertise!) ​Edit:​ I've had a quick look on AV PartsMaster and JP-UK and am more inclined to a commerical display. Pricing is pretty much in line with a TV, and it makes more sense to me to buy something that has been designed for this purpose.

Ahhh, that's a fair point and an oversight on my part - thanks! I'm looking for a way that we can get access to videos that we have filmed and uploaded to our own channel. Maybe there is a way within the Creator Studio, I just couldn't see it.

Does anyone have a reliable way to download videos from YouTube. (I'm looking at ones that are not copyrighted.) Happy to pay for some professional software, or if there is something free that someone is using happy to hear also. Got burned with this on my Home laptop by downloading some free software with a virus when in a hurry one time, so being particuarly cautious.

The extra info and suggestions are much appreciated jawebber and eean

That post did make me go away and think about whether a windows PC would do it. However, I’m realising that my wish list also extends to a few more things (some of which the Chromebit is doing) * consistently survive being powered off at the mains whilst running * stay up to date without any need for user interaction * run for months (or more) without being touched * boot to the OS as soon as it is powered on at the socket Maybe I am asking for too much...

I’d forgotten that I had been down a similar route too, as one of the solutions I found wouldn’t allow me to log in to a google calendar. The calendars do need to be kept private, and only accessed via an approved google account. Thanks for the suggestion though.

Edimax rang a bell when I read that, so I have gone and checked. These are the ones that we have for the PCs. There’s no harm in trying one and seeing what happens. TP-Link TL-WN823N Wi-Fi Dongle, 300 Mbps Mini Wireless Network USB Wi-Fi Adapter for PC Desktop Laptop(Supports Windows XP/7/8/8.1/10, OS X (10.9-10.13) and Linux, WPS, Soft AP, USB 2.0)

We have a selection of school google calendars that are shared with staff. We also have a TV in the staff room that displays the week view for a quick glance. We’ve never quite got this right though. To begin with we had an Android device, which we replaced with a Chromebit (I don’t think they’re made any more.) We have chrome extensions to stop the device from going to sleep and to refresh the page every few minutes. However, due to firewall restrictions, we can’t access it remotely through Chrome Remote Desktop, which can make managing it tricky sometimes. The main issue is that every so often, it will get turned off at the plug or unplugged and it just sits on the desktop, and someone needs to manually visit it and open Chrome again. (And I think possibly enter the password for the google account to log on in the first place.) Has anyone got a solution for a similar situation? I have played around with kiosk mode, but never got it to work correctly, and also tried to get a Rapsberry Pi that would do the same, but never quite got that working either. The disadvantage of the Pi is that if I were to leave I don’t think anyone else would have the experience / interest in them to get it working if it became corrupted etc, and I’ve learned from experience that automated updates aren’t ideal on Raspbian OS. Open to any suggestions.