I’m using OS X OpenDirectory to authenticate and mount users network folders via NFS mounts. What was surprising was how easy it was to share via NFS and AFP at the same time. The system isn’t as secure as I’d like it, but since we are only using it for student work it will due.

What I’m still amazed about is the total cost of the install. 15 workstations (P4 3.2 Ghz with HT) with 17″ LCD monitors for a grand total of $3800.00! Compared to around $15,000 for 15 iMacs or Macbooks, it is a purchasing ration of roughly

4-to-1.

Of course, the openSUSE workstations do not have iWork or iLife, but they do have Firefox, OpenOffice, and GIMP (Photoshop like program). We have found that nearly 95% of our library computer use was for research and word processing, so why pay the mac premium? It is really important to consider where on the “Creation Continuum” the worksation falls. The pilot is geared towards meeting the specific needs of library users and leveraging the power of  “cloud computing” resources we are providing to students via Google Apps, WordPressMU, and Moodle.

So far there are two early successes. One, students think the new computers are “awesome”! They actually like the idea of “open-source” software and some want to put it on their computer at home already. Two, using recycled computers is about as “green” as it gets when comes to electronics.

I’d be happy to post more about the process if anybody is interested.

After finishing my Masters program his Spring, I needed a break to regain some enthusiasm and perspective. As fate would have it, a wonderful project has fallen into my lap and appears to be a great place to spend my “cognitive surplus” now that school is over.

My school district is using some calendaring software and a wiki to create an electronic curriculum guide. It is an exciting project because we are trying to take a number of great web-based tools to capture our district institutional knowledge. It is a pretty bold initiative, but so far it looks great and has incredible promise. I’ll talk more about it later as the details become more public.

At my individual site, we’ve made some great progress with teacher blog use and are now focusing on student blog use. While the staff isn’t ready to open the doors completely on student blogging, I’m currently developing a WordPressMU server as a structured portfolio for student writing. My eventual goal is to take the work that I’m doing and somehow turn it into a plugin. Initial testing suggests that the appropriate hooks are available to make this happen, but I have yet to determine if my programming skills are up to the the challenge of writing a plugin.

I would love to here from anybody that is interested in using WordPressMU for student portfolios.

At this point I’m sharing it with a few educators who expressed interest in using student blog portfolios.  It ill be interesting to see how students will react to a school-based social network.

There seems to be a little funkiness with some of the site RSS, but it is an issue being addressed in the road map. I wish there were more documentation on the Elgg schema. I find it difficult to see how things are linked together and where various files are kept. This may be my short coming, but it is a bit trying due to all of the guess work.

I eagerly await the next version, and hope that I can give back soon enough.

I’m almost done with the implementation phase of my master’s program and look forward to getting back to some of the newer things I’ve been toying with at school.

I’d like to get a program start which takes advantage of Elgg to create a school social networking/blog/portfolio system. It was incredible simple to get the installation running and the portfolio piece (by Nathan Garrett) installed. Also, it looks as though the LDAP authentication piece should be easy to implement.

My only real complaint is that standard registration requires an email address. Unfortunately, there are just to many institutions, at the K-12 level, who are worried about students accessing email. It would be nice if the LDAP authentication removed the need for an email.

I’ll be sharing my discovers about Elgg as the project develops.