Technology Metro

SIS (student information systems) are a powerful tool for teachers and administrators and PowerSchool seems to be one of the best. It is a web-based, multi-platformed and can be customized; its fast implementation and reliability make it popular in schools. It differs from Focus in that it provides training that allows users to have it running quickly using their own unique data. PowerSchool is an independent system that can be used on any computer, another distinct advantage.

Powerschool makes taking attendance easy, and it’s simple to post assignments and enter grades. It’s web-based so teachers or administrators can work anywhere there is an internet connection. Students can be evaluated using mean, median or mode tendencies and can assign grades to student groups. It features a dashboard-type interface that makes it easy to find data and that data is available to any user. Information only has to be entered once to be included in the system, a significant timesaver for office staff.

Like Focus, PowerSchool lets parents and students access it through the internet. A log lets teachers know how often the students work on their assignments and how involved the students’ parents are in their education. This feature motivates parents to be accountable for their children’s’ success or failure and lets them have access to grades and attendance figures. The majority of parents truly care about their child’s education and performance; Powerschool allows parents to be more proactive and involved.

Here is the 101 on FLAC files. FLAC stands for Free Lossless Audio Codec. FLAC is an audio format similar to MP3 but defers in one huge way, there is no loss in the quality of the audio file when compressed using FLAC, unlike MP3. The compression method FLAC uses is similar to how zip works but because FLAC is specifically designed for audio, it has much better compression than zip.

So, how do you play a FLAC file in a Windows OS? Well, if you want to use the native music player of Windows operating system, Windows Media Player, you will need to download and install a DirectShow filter. Download the madFLAC DirectShow decoder filter and your Windows Media Player (WMP) will play any FLAC files.

You can use other softwares like Winamp, MediaMonkey which will play FLAC files out of the box. If you want to encode FLAC files, download a FULL version of Winamp.

If you use dbPowerAMP Audio Player, you will need to install this FLAC Plugin.
If you use Media Center / Media Jukebox, you will need to install this FLAC Plugin.

Now you can play FLAC files in any of your favorite audio player. If you want to know How to Rip CD’s to FLAC, I will be writing a post on it soon.

OpenLDAP, or open source Lightweight Directory Access Protocol, is directory software developed a internet users. Since 1995, these users have developed this software for network people. Its purpose is to give these clients directory services and is now included in all of Linux’s products. It includes libraries that use LDAP protocol, a stand-along LDAP replicator called Slurpd, a stand alone server named SLAPD and sample clients, utilities and tools.

File sharing for Windows and Linux users is provided by the LADAP server. It has a shared email directory that lets all network users have access to contacts. This is a great time saver, eliminating searching for contact information. Larger businesses will appreciate the easy access to network services and organizations will like the boost in productivity it provides.
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OpenLDAP isn’t really user friendly like Microsoft Active Directory so it’s definitely not designed for those without much experience. And although you can get books to help you use LDAP, there’s a very high learning curve involved. People who use LDAP are invariably thrilled with the results but it’s definitely not for beginners.

The latest release of  OpenLDAP is OpenLDAP-2.4.13. You can Download OpenLDAP-2.4.13 from this link for free. OpenLDAP-2.3.43 is also available for download if you wish.