Best Solution to outfit a classroom with computers

[Uranium-235]

Re: Best Solution to outfit a classroom with computers

I have a better idea, how about thinclients and a massive ibm 8-quad processor terminal server.

sure with the noise the students wouldn't be able to hear a thing but oh well

if shes going for a kickstarter I would have to say get the netbooks, but good netbooks

I thought you said this was just for 'net surfing? now there is software involved. Jeez.

I guess it *might* be possible to have a wireless router in the room, wanned to the schools lan, and have a server on the routers's lan. Of course the IT department might nix this whole thing

[Topcat]

Re: Best Solution to outfit a classroom with computers

I get the idea the teacher isn't that computer saavy. Not to mention that network might be partiually off limits (with schools they tend to be for non-school computers), VCDs would have to get there somehow, and Flashdrives walk off like you wouldn't beleive.

Also, such CDs and DVDs are often times DRM'd to the extreme... they have e-copies of the textbook among other stuff, which is highly protected (textbooks are expensive!). I wouldn't be surprized is there was some method of copy protection used.

I guess she'd have to watch her flashdrives like a hawk..... I'd hope she's savvy enough to use a basic network, otherwise she has no business buying laptops for the entire class..... LOL I must say, if shes considering used laptops, she probably isn't the most computer savvy.....sad

[Uranium-235]

Re: Best Solution to outfit a classroom with computers

....or about 50 bucks worth of thumb drives...or VCD's on the HDD...or over a network....tons of easy peasy ways around that.

there are some software out there that will use ONLY cd's. But that is becoming a non-factor more and more. Usually now a days its downloadable. However if you do run into such thing you can always rip the cd (depending on level of copy protection) MDF's it and use alcohol 52% to mount that cd image

but as far as the comment about the 'network' that is another downside to a school. They might allow internet but probably no actual network files to be shared/seen, but this is not necessarily true. If they were smart and they allowed students to wirelessly connect thier own brought laptops then they probably have that wireless traffic complexly separate from the lan/server traffic (for security reasons)

[ratdude747]

Re: Best Solution to outfit a classroom with computers

....or about 50 bucks worth of thumb drives...or VCD's on the HDD...or over a network....tons of easy peasy ways around that.

I get the idea the teacher isn't that computer saavy. Not to mention that network might be partiually off limits (with schools they tend to be for non-school computers), VCDs would have to get there somehow, and Flashdrives walk off like you wouldn't beleive.

Also, such CDs and DVDs are often times DRM'd to the extreme... they have e-copies of the textbook among other stuff, which is highly protected (textbooks are expensive!). I wouldn't be surprized is there was some method of copy protection used.

[Topcat]

Re: Best Solution to outfit a classroom with computers

One more point I will make- netbooks have no optical drive. Many textbooks coem with interactive discs... If she wanted to use those in the future and went with netbooks, she'd have to buy a fleet of extenal optical drives.

....or about 50 bucks worth of thumb drives...or VCD's on the HDD...or over a network....tons of easy peasy ways around that.

[ratdude747]

Re: Best Solution to outfit a classroom with computers

One more point I will make- netbooks have no optical drive. Many textbooks coem with interactive discs... If she wanted to use those in the future and went with netbooks, she'd have to buy a fleet of extenal optical drives.

[Topcat]

Re: Best Solution to outfit a classroom with computers

Would one have held up to you in 6th grade? I didn't think so.....it wouldn't have held up to me walking on it in 6th grade either...and I wasn't an overweight kid in grade school. I'm guessing the average weight of a 6th grade boy would be between 100~120lbs, I was in that range. That's a pretty poor comparison anyway.

As I stated, my argument is new versus used....and I think the points I made are pretty much game and match.

[ratdude747]

Re: Best Solution to outfit a classroom with computers

With all due respect, if you stepped on a d630, its all over.....if I stepped on a d630, its all over...and I am about 20lbs heavier than I was in high school....and my weight back then would have killed any notebook.

I thought they were 6th graders? Did I miss something?

[Topcat]

Re: Best Solution to outfit a classroom with computers

In a classroom environment I beg to differ. The risks that they would likely see would be fall into carpet (classroom floor) and getting. The chances of each surviving is very different... a d630 could handle getting walked on by a kid; such event would pancake a netbook.

With all due respect, if you stepped on a d630, its all over.....if I stepped on a d630, its all over...and I am about 20lbs heavier than I was in high school....and my weight back then would have killed any notebook.

Another point to consider is failure rates. Aside from nvidia bugs (which do not apply to ones Shovenose found), I have never heard of a d630 dying from electronic failures or other forms of normal wear.

Netbooks on the other hand I have had die from such issues, from usb ports falling apart to SD slots randomly dying. Granted, they were ASUS eee PCs, but from seeing the guts of other netbooks, It wasn't just an ASUS thing.

I'm sure there's been a few..... Netbooks probably moreso.....but still new > used. Asus, I wouldn't even use those as an example...... All the Acer's I've beaten on have proven tougher than they appear...

Yeah, you have a warranty, but they are a PITA to deal with and they are SLOW to get you your new unit. For me (it was bought at Best Buy), it was 4-6 weeks waiting and a lot of passionate arguing with dork quad just to get my damn thing replaced after they said it "couldn't be fixed". I can't speak for other vendors but from what I hear it other vendors can be just as lame

PITA warranty better than no warranty....and on a limited budget, thats still a blessing.

Also, every time you get a new unit, you have to set it up again, which could be a pain depending on how they are setup.

Ghost to the rescue...and that's also why the school's IT guy gets paid so much..... A used one would be the same way. Invalid comparison.

Last, there d630 has a bigger screen which could be helpful when viewing certain sites... there is a lot less scrolling, that's for sure.

a 12" screen with a full mechanical keyboard on a netbook is plenty. If kids dont mind web browsing on phones and tablets, a 12" screen is just fine.

This isn't a crack on the d630, its an awesome laptop for its time. Hell, I was using an i5100 up until 2 weeks ago, and the d630 kicks its ass with no strain.....my comparison is new versus used in an EDU environment....used is a horrible idea.

[ratdude747]

Re: Best Solution to outfit a classroom with computers

A netbook would survive most the abuse as well...and as cheap as they are, they're a little more expendable....

In a classroom environment I beg to differ. The risks that they would likely see would be fall into carpet (classroom floor) and getting. The chances of each surviving is very different... a d630 could handle getting walked on by a kid; such event would pancake a netbook.

Another point to consider is failure rates. Aside from nvidia bugs (which do not apply to ones Shovenose found), I have never heard of a d630 dying from electronic failures or other forms of normal wear.

Netbooks on the other hand I have had die from such issues, from usb ports falling apart to SD slots randomly dying. Granted, they were ASUS eee PCs, but from seeing the guts of other netbooks, It wasn't just an ASUS thing.

Yeah, you have a warranty, but they are a PITA to deal with and they are SLOW to get you your new unit. For me (it was bought at Best Buy), it was 4-6 weeks waiting and a lot of passionate arguing with dork quad just to get my damn thing replaced after they said it "couldn't be fixed". I can't speak for other vendors but from what I hear it other vendors can be just as lame

Also, every time you get a new unit, you have to set it up again, which could be a pain depending on how they are setup.

Last, there d630 has a bigger screen which could be helpful when viewing certain sites... there is a lot less scrolling, that's for sure.

[Topcat]

Re: Best Solution to outfit a classroom with computers

I did have one D-series land approx. 2 ft sliding off my car seat into pavement and the crystal cells cracked to high hell

Same with a precision that got its screen slammed into a trunk lid....amazingly enough it still works....but yea....screen is cracked and toast.

A netbook would survive most the abuse as well...and as cheap as they are, they're a little more expendable....but seriously, if the stupid ass kids would treat them with respect, this would not even be an issue....granted, there will always be an 'oopsie' every now and then....but I guarantee if the money to replace one from careless treatment came out of junior's pockets, the harsh treatment would stop really quick.

Back when I was in school, if you brought any food or drink in the computer labs/library, the gestapo librarian (a 70's age woman) would go ballistic and throw you out.....

[Uranium-235]

Re: Best Solution to outfit a classroom with computers

the only thing that saved it on that hard floor drop test was the fact it landed on on the base, and not the screen.

I did have one D-series land approx. 2 ft sliding off my car seat into pavement and the crystal cells cracked to high hell

[ratdude747]

Re: Best Solution to outfit a classroom with computers

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5jKLa6KTheU

Pretty durable?

[ratdude747]

Re: Best Solution to outfit a classroom with computers

^
I have...and they are nice...but to stand up to that kind of abuse, they still wouldn't really outlast a netbook....if you drop one onto concrete, down stairs, kick/punch/otherwise assault, liquid spills, its pretty much done..... That's just a given for pretty much every and any laptop. If you want to curve students destroying them, make the sorry little shits start paying for them when they do.....I bet all of a sudden they start lasting longer....

...And My D400 and my D630 have seen all of those between them (many of them not my fault). They are stronger than they look.

I do know of a D620 that did not survive a major spill... solution: Laptops are closed and put away before snack time. (from what it looks like, they don't go home with students).

Somewhere there is a youtube video of a D600 getting abused and surviving... I'll link it when I find it.

[Topcat]

Re: Best Solution to outfit a classroom with computers

....If shovenose is really looking for something indestructable, then he needs toughbooks. Those will survive being dropped and kicked.

I agree with that 100%.....but I dont think the budget will allow....

[c_hegge]

Re: Best Solution to outfit a classroom with computers

^
My D531 survived a liquid spill.

Latitudes (and older thinkpads) are WAAYYYY more durable than any netbook, and would outlast one in a school environment. As I said, though, If shovenose is really looking for something indestructable, then he needs toughbooks. Those will survive being dropped and kicked.

[Topcat]

Re: Best Solution to outfit a classroom with computers

^
I have...and they are nice...but to stand up to that kind of abuse, they still wouldn't really outlast a netbook....if you drop one onto concrete, down stairs, kick/punch/otherwise assault, liquid spills, its pretty much done..... That's just a given for pretty much every and any laptop. If you want to curve students destroying them, make the sorry little shits start paying for them when they do.....I bet all of a sudden they start lasting longer....

[ratdude747]

Re: Best Solution to outfit a classroom with computers

Topcat,

You haven't seen a Dell Latitude D630 or D620 in person, Have you? (If you weren't 3-5 hours away, I'd show you myself).

They are the same build quality as your Precisions. Lower specs, yes, but they are just as durable.

Body wise, everything but the palm rest and the LCD bezel are made from Magnesium. There also is a small plastic area on the lid, which isn't metal due to the antennae hidden up there.

The LCD latch is an actual latch (made from AL or steel), not a cheesy magnet.

They can take a beating... my D400, made using similar construction, took a 4 foot fall into solid concrete; aside from a scrape it came out unscathed. My old netbook on the other hand, took a 4.5 foot fall into a hard wood floor and nuked the screen.

[Topcat]

Re: Best Solution to outfit a classroom with computers

^^^
Wow!! WTF Nazi school district was this?! If I witnessed that, I'd have removed my kid, made a huge stink, and placed my kid in a different school....private if necessary. Of all the things ailing kids these days, that was just not one....and shame on these nazi 'educators' for sucking the life out of youth today!

Shovenose, my comments weren't aimed at the d630. those are nice laptops....but putting used ones in the hands of students is not a good idea. As for netbooks not standing up to students, that also is a half truth.....a careless student will destroy a full sized/higher end laptop just as easily and quickly....netbooks aren't any more flimsy than a full size laptop. Short of Dell precisions or Panasonic toughbooks, careless students will destroy laptops in no time flat.....build quality doesn't really help when some dumbass has it in his back back, and it gets punted 30 yards across a field....it will break regardless.

My netbook gets the crap beat out of it. I use it for Z Car diagnostics. I can't tell yuo how many times it's been flung from the passenger seat to the floor doing hard stops and other harsh driving.....its held up well and doing fine....nothing broken, scratched or malfunctioning. The batt is starting to poop out, it only lasts for about an hour nowadays (I have a car adapter for it too, so not a big deal), but otherwise, it's been perfect.

...so if this deal materializes, I maintain my suggestion of netbooks. Best bang for the buck.

[Uranium-235]

Re: Best Solution to outfit a classroom with computers

as the son of an elementary school teacher, I just hear ALOT about things that school administration does that is absolutely stupid. Let me give you an example...

Before I begin let me say that my mother is a bilingual teacher, all of her students are spanish speaking, and come from legal and illegal immigrants, usually directly from mexico. And before you wonder, no i'm not hispanic in the least, my mother was a missionary in her 20's and want to Venezuela where she learned spanish.

annyhooo...

there was a kids birthday and her mother bought cupcakes she made herself and passed them out at lunchtime. The principle herself went around to each student and picked up each cupcake right in some cases from the kids hands and threw them away in the big trash can right infront of the kids and the mother. the mother was in tears. She did it cause the cupcakes didn't meet the nutritional requirements.

I just told my mother about your case and she said you should definitely check and make sure