ROLLING LAPTOP COMPUTER LABS
GUIDELINES FOR CHECKOUT AND USE
The rolling labs are available this week for checkout. Please note the following guidelines for checking out and using the labs:
- When requesting a lab, please complete the Rolling Lab Request Form. This can be obtained by going to and clicking on the Forms link.
- Try not to schedule more than three days for a lab. We want all teachers to have the opportunity to use them.
- If you have not used the lab before, you need to meet with me beforehand for a brief orientation.
- Most students have used the laptops before; you should, however, always review the procedures with them.
- Report all malfunctions/damage to my office immediately.
- Paper for printing is the responsibility of the teacher.
- Assign the same students the same machine each time they use the lab.
- Establish an orderly method of checking out the machines at the beginning of the period and checking in at the end. No more than one student should be removing/replacing machines at one time.
- To help with accountability, have student “number one” use computer “number one” Explain that they will be using the same computer each time and that they are responsible for using it correctly.
- Upon checking of laptops at end of period, the teacher must visually inspect laptop to verify that the removable floppy bay and battery bay are present: students can remove these and warranty will not cover theft. No one leaves the room until all the computers are in the cart and plugged in. It is essential that each laptop be returned to its’ correct shelf in the cart.
- Students must first unplug the power supply before removing the laptop from the cart. Care must also be taken when students are returning the laptops to the cart. The laptop should be partially inserted with the AC connection accessible. Once the AC plug is inserted, the laptop can be inserted the rest of the way. Care must be taken to avoid banging the power supply against the wall of the bay when returning the laptop. All laptops must be properly plugged into the power supply after each use.
GENERAL NOTES:
Startup and shutdown procedures by the students:
Press the button at the front of the laptop to open the case. Open the laptop for use by grabbing the front center of the screen above the open button, or use two hands to grab each corner. Using one hand at one corner will eventually weaken the screen hinge and potentially cause damage to the screen. Press the power button located at top left hand corner to start the laptop. When finished with the activities, students must properly shutdown the computer by selecting the “shutdown” from the Start menu.
What…No Mouse?
Each laptop can be used by either the touch pad, or the small “pencil eraser” grip in the center of the keyboard. The mouse buttons are located below the touch pad or the rubber grip.
General care guidelines:
Care must be taken to not touch the fragile screen. For example, kids pressing on the screen to point things out. These laptops are extremely fragile and should not be dropped.
Electrical needs:
There is a need to charge up the carts at night. If the entire cart is plugged into one outlet, there is strong likelihood the power requirements may trip the circuit breaker for the outlet. The two black AC cords need to be plugged into two separate outlet boxes, preferably at different ends of the room to ensure that one circuit is not being overloaded. This issue is also important for charging at any other time of day. For example, most classrooms will have problems in finding two separate circuits per room. Although it is not necessary for the two black AC cords to be plugged in while teaching a lesson, the yellow cord needs to be plugged in for printer and wireless networking.