--- Forwarded Message from "Jessamine Cooke-Plagwitz" <[log in to unmask]> ---

>Date: Thu, 26 Oct 2000 10:40:15 -0400
>From: "Jessamine Cooke-Plagwitz" <[log in to unmask]>
>To: <[log in to unmask]>
>Subject: re. portable lab carts

Here at the University of South Carolina, we have the same setup as many of you.  We have a fancy iBook cart that holds 20 iBooks, and have a wireless network hub (ours is by Cisco Systems) in the lab.  We've found that, in fact, the speed of our Internet connection over the wireless network is much faster than that of our "old-fashioned" wired network.  We've had no trouble running all 20 iBooks at the same time, as long as we stay on the same floor in the building.  The connection loses its potency if we try to move computers up to other floors, however.

Here's a question for those of you who are using laptop carts: how are you dealing with security issues?  Naturally, when not in use, the cart and its passengers are kept tightly locked up.  My concern, however, is that a teacher in a room with 20 excited students (and they inevitably become excited when they see the computers arrive) may not be able to keep track of all the computers at all times.  I'm worried that while the teacher's back is turned, an iBook or two may find their way into someone's backpack.

We have a sign-out sheet for students in the classroom (but that's not infallible), and are investigating the idea of installing security cameras in there.  Do any of you have any other suggestions or hints?

Thanks so much in advance!
Jessamine

Jessamine Cooke-Plagwitz, Ph.D.
Academic Director
Ted Mimms Foreign Language Learning Center
University of South Carolina
Columbia, SC 29208
Office: 803/ 777-1363 or 803/ 777-2083
Fax: 803/ 777-8021
E-mail: [log in to unmask]
http://iris.sc.edu/ecard.asp?ID=1067 

"We must be the change we wish to see."
                                           -M.K. Gandhi