The Wait (WEIGHT)

As summer winds down, I am once again excited about what technology has to offer, -especially in education. I love the interactive white boards, updated phone systems, and of course internet open source software. I locate these at home on my home computer and excitedly develop and share and swap ideas with other like-minded people online. But when I return to the workplace, the filter blocks these sites, or ITT just can't make them function within the network, "configuration issues" . Then begins the wait, beginning with bi-monthly work requests. September turns to October, then January then May. An example: Making Audacity input USB audio, or for that matter any OSS site input sound, text or video on a PC seems improbable, even though it works at home.
I am afraid my frustration is showing and I am feeling the weight of the wait. Instead of feeling excitement, I have learned that I must wait, it may come it may not. Usually an optimist, I can't wait to apply new technology, but I am frustrated.

Tags: Hardt, OSS, education, technology

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Comment by Johnathan Chase on August 29, 2009 at 11:04am: Feel your frustration. The excitement and optimism of the summer too often fades into the painful reality of district policies, bureaucratic red tape and inevitable technology issues.

Try to remind myself that I'm still better off having the compatabilty issues and technical difficulties than those educators in districts with austerity budgets and out-dated technology.

Nothing like music to lift the spirits and get me through the school year, and this song seems most appropriate...

The Weight

Comment by Paul Hardt on August 29, 2009 at 3:05pm: Here's the shocker. These are Open Source Software sites recommended by the tech dept & supported by IT and the superintendent of the school district. The communication process began way before summer. We have had many sit downs with IT & the tech director, the sites they support verbally just cannot be made functional.
You said:
Perhaps you have a terrible IT staff, but in the cases I am familiar with most IT staff would love for you to be excited... we LOVE technology too and want to see it used... we love to see people excited about it.

In that case I wish YOU were on our tech team. You are very clear & consise & as excited as I about successful usage.