What's a Texpert? and A Back-to-School Computer Checkup
Meg A. Byte, a pseudonym for technology writer, educator, and educational technology consultant Constance Bleiler, is Education World's technology expert.
Dear Meg A. Byte,
Exactly what is a texpert?
--Clueless in Connecticut
Dearest Clueless,
A texpert is a 'tech expert' who is frequently (but not always) a distinguished graduate of Wattsamatta U.
--Meg
P.S. Thanks for giving me the opportunity to clear that up!
Dear Meg,
What steps should I take to make sure my classroom computers are ready for my students when the new school year begins?
--Summer Thyme
Dear Summer,
Sounds like it's "thyme" to give all your computers an annual physical!
* Count fingers and toes. Start with the basics. Make sure every computer has all its external components; a mouse, a keyboard, assorted cables, and so on.
* The opening is in the back! Check all connections and attach all peripherals. Is everything plugged in?
* Breath in, breath out. Turn on each computer. Make sure it starts up easily and that no error messages display. If you encounter error messages, write them down and consult your local computer guru.
* Open wide. Check the applications on your system. Use the steps appropriate for your particular system to remove any programs that shouldn't be there. (You might want to archive some programs rather than deleting them.)
* Read the chart. Check data files. This a little harder to do, but you can use Find to search for files generated by specific programs. For example, search for "ppt" to find PowerPoint presentations, 'doc' to find document files, or "gif" to find certain image files. Archive or delete any files you don't want to keep.
* Cough. Clean out rogue bookmarks from your browser. Eliminating unwanted or outdated bookmarks won't save much space, but it's still a good way to start the school year.
* Take one of these and call me next year.Finally, restart the computer and run anti-virus software. Make sure you haven't picked up any of those nasty viruses that are going around.
Congratulations! Your computers now have a clean bill of health! Don't forget to check in with the receptionist on your way out!
--Meg
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