[Offtopic] DEECD Notebooks

[Cameron Bell]

Heh heh, funny you should mention that. I have already upped the RAM and 
HDD on mine and will need to return it "as was".

I can't believe it, but our ISP has blocked tinyurl - I assume you are 
referring to the UMPC from Asustek?  We are most definitely considering 
using them. We were lead to believe that Acer was to  have some 
available this year for review and assessment, but that has fallen 
through so we await to see who is first on the market with a UMPC. It 
would be preferable to spend $200 on ICT access than $1000+ per pair 
with laptops.

Bet there will be lots of people who try to apply laptop/desktop 
methodology to them and reject them outright.
Cheers
Cameron

Roland Gesthuizen wrote:
> I did hear from one teacher that you just remove the HDD and pop in a 
> new one that is much larger (Say 120 Gb+)  Keep the old HDD or use in 
> a portable usb2 hdd box. This would set you back by around $100. Of 
> course you would need to replace everything at the end of the laptop 
> cycle and your new HDD would not be covered by the laptop warranty.
>
> I notice that there are some super cheap laptops now out that come 
> with Linux for just a couple of hundred dollars. Imagine if schools 
> would consider using something like these as entry level hardware for 
> staff or students?
>      http://tinyurl.com/2f8v4z (Age news report)
>
> Regards Roland
>
> On 28/08/2007, *Cameron Bell* < bell.cameron.p at edumail.vic.gov.au 
> <mailto:bell.cameron.p at edumail.vic.gov.au>> wrote:
>
>     <disillusionment>
>     Is it just me or are you finding that the notebooks DEECD lease are
>     struggling to keep up?
>     I have put a Gig of RAM in the R51 (up from default 512) I have and
>     because at any given time I am running a virtual box, a remote desktop
>     session for admin, plus email plus online marking, the thing is
>     having a
>     hernia. I don't even bother with Clickview videos.
>     I was thinking of getting a Macbook in the next rollout, but I have
>     severe doubts that they would be any better, especially given the
>     miniscule partition size you are left with if you install XP as
>     well. (I
>     would need 3 partitions to take any advantage of getting a Mac -
>     Ubuntu,
>     OSX and XP)
>
>     At  least in NSW teachers can lease the Macbook Pro. Would be good
>     if we
>     at least had an option of getting a reasonably speccd machine. Many
>     users wouldn't need it, but I reckon that if you include all the
>     graphics teachers, multimedia, or other "power users" (I hate that
>     term)
>     across the state, it could justify a choice.
>     Cheers
>     Cameron
>
>     </ disillusionment>
>
>     Important - This email and any attachments may be confidential. If
>     received in error, please contact us and delete all copies. Before
>     opening or using attachments check them for viruses and defects.
>     Regardless of any loss, damage or consequence, whether caused by
>     the negligence of the sender or not, resulting directly or
>     indirectly from the use of any attached files our liability is
>     limited to resupplying any affected attachments. Any
>     representations or opinions expressed are those of the individual
>     sender, and not necessarily those of the Department of Education
>     and Early Childhood Development.
>     _______________________________________________
>     offtopic mailing list
>     offtopic at edulists.com.au <mailto:offtopic at edulists.com.au>
>     http://www.edulists.com.au/mailman/listinfo/offtopic
>     <http://www.edulists.com.au/mailman/listinfo/offtopic>
>
>
>
>
> -- 
> Roland Gesthuizen - ICT Coordinator - Westall Secondary College
> http://www.westallsc.vic.edu.au
>
> "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can 
> change the world; indeed it is the only thing that ever has." 
> --Margaret Mead 

Important - This email and any attachments may be confidential. If received in error, please contact us and delete all copies. Before opening or using attachments check them for viruses and defects. Regardless of any loss, damage or consequence, whether caused by the negligence of the sender or not, resulting directly or indirectly from the use of any attached files our liability is limited to resupplying any affected attachments. Any representations or opinions expressed are those of the individual sender, and not necessarily those of the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development.