We DO feel, however, that there needs to be some kind
of coordination, a clearinghouse of sorts, to help guide
final purchases. If X number of schools are moving to
HyperStudio, for example, we can purchase a district
license (but we must have some way of knowing what's
happening in all 17 schools). We must also have some way
of helping each building make sure that hardware purchases,
while multimplatform, are compatible with available
peripherals, etc. We are also discussing purchasing
district site licenses for *basics* such as works,
word processing, etc. Software beyond that level would
be a building decision.
ON a final note, I believe we used language something like
*current* and *changing.* That was to say... things change
so rapidly in the tech world that to list specific brands,
etc., was to dig a hole for ourselves that we might have
trouble crawling out of down the line.
I'm pleased with the policy. While most of the systems in
our hs are *ibm* types, we are free, for example, to bring in
a group of macs for web and multimedia development and video
production. I appreciate that flexibility.
-- Joni Rathbun, Media-Tech Specialist, Taft High School Lincoln County School District - The Oregon Coast jrathbun@ednet1.osl.or.gov If you need a vacation, you should see the state I'm in.