Information Technology Update – June 20, 2018

June 20, 2018

Protecting Devices in wet weather

We are now entering the colder months of the year and with that the threat of rain increases as we saw last Sunday with torrential rain causing many sporting events to be cancelled. With all students at the College having 1:1 devices, it is important students have in place a strategy to prevent their device from being damaged by water if they are vulnerable to wet weather while on their way to and from school. As a result, the College recommends all students comply with the following steps:

  1. The first thing students must do is make sure their device (particularly the HP Spectre laptop) is shut down when transiting from to and from school.

  2. Students need to make sure the device is safely secured inside the sleeve, inside the protective case the College has provided in the case of laptops, or recommended in the case of iPads. Unfortunately, while the sleeves and cases provide the device with a high level of security from physical damage, on their own they are not waterproof and offer only limited protection against any water getting inside the backpack.

  3. As an added level of security against possible water damage, it is recommended students always have in their school bag a spare, unused garbage bag (preferably with a drawstring). If/when the weather looks threatening, before the student leaves home or school, they should place the device case inside the garbage bag, inside their backpack which will provide an added level of protection against any water damage.

  4. The backpack should be zipped up to prevent any rain from getting inside the bag.

  5. If the device looks like it has been in contact with water or liquid, it should be turned off or should remain off and put in a cool dry place (not in front of a heater).

  6. Devices should be taken up to the IT Hub if there is any concern about water damage.

The College will inform all students of this recommended strategy and hopefully will help avoid any student getting water damage to their device.

Microsoft Office for home for free!

As part of the College’s membership to Office 365, all students are allowed to download the Microsoft Office suite for free on up to five home computers. This can be done quite easily by following the instructions on the iPad Parent Support page here:

http://ipads.stpats.vic.edu.au/installing-office-365-at-home.html

The important thing to remember that when the Office suite has been downloaded that the student logs in to the application and registers their ST Patrick’s College email and password to authenticate the download. After this has been done, the Office applications can be used by anyone. Please let me know if you have any questions about this.

Mark Holland

Director of ICT