Meeting+Minutes+March+30,+2011

** Wednesday March 30, 2011 ** Members present: Kent Sauls, Jentry Byelveld, Kyle Tammen, Heidi Dudley, Diane Frank, Matt Keenan, Barb Bolen, Jill Schrader, Mike Schreiber, Mike Mahoney
 * HHS Technology Committee Meeting Minutes **

1) ** Projector Maintenance Versus Replacement ** For now we are committed to bulb replacement over projector replacement because of the cost of replacement bulbs (around $200.00) versus replacing the projector (around $550.00). Bulb replacement is handled as part of building technology costs where as projector replacement costs would be handled by individual departments. Science has been slowly replacing their projectors with newer models. At $550.00 for a new projector versus $200.00-$300.00 for a new bulb, each department may have to decide when it is cost effective to replace projectors (new projectors are brighter and have longer bulb life and prices continue to go down). To learn more about this Heidi provided some handouts. One was on Epson projector replacement versus replacing the bulb and changing settings on Epson projectors, and the other has tips on how to extend projector bulb life. We went into the computer lab and Heidi showed the committee how to change projector settings to extend the life of the bulb. ECO mode (which makes the projector image slightly darker) can give a bulb up to 1000 hours of additional life. **All projectors in the building should be set to High Altitude Mode** and filters should be blown out at least once a year. There is also a way to check the number of hours that have been used on a projector. Members were shown how get to all of these settings and were encouraged to take this information back to their departments so that all projectors in the building can at least have the high altitude mode turned on.
 * Bulb replacement pricing versus cost of a new projector **
 * Projector usage settings (High altitude, ECO Mode…) **

2) ** Budget ** Departments with Eee Carts were asked to find out if replacement of the Eee Carts would be something we need to keep in mind with the budget. All members seemed to agree that if departments didn’t have to pay for new Eee Carts, they would all be interested in replacing them.
 * Cart Feedback **

3) ** Optiplex 745 Computers in classrooms and library lab switch out ** Members were handed a spreadsheet listing all of the classrooms assigned to their department. Rooms with 745s in them were prefilled with the serial number of the 745 we have listed as being in that room. If the room information is blank, we need the computer model and serial number for that room. Members were asked to fill in any specialty software needed on machines and the level of priority as far as replacement. Rooms with 745s will get top priority because the 745s will be needed to replace the small library lab. **Any computers that are replaced with new machines will have Windows 7 on them.** Members were told to keep this in mind as **Windows 7 is a major upgrade and some current programs used in classrooms may not run on Windows 7.** On the spreadsheet, members were asked to:
 * 1) Verify that the 745s we have listed are in the correct location. If not, change the room number.
 * 2) Check the room numbers, add or delete rooms if needed.
 * 3) Indicate if a document camera is in the room by circling yes or no. If one is wanted in the room, indicate that.
 * 4) List specialty software needed (like TI navigator, Smartboard, Geo Sketchpad, Impact…)
 * 5) Indicate the order of replacement by listing 1,2,3… (keep in mind that new computers will have Windows 7)
 * 6) List the serial number and the model number of any computers not listed.
 * 7) Complete and give back to Heidi by the next meeting.

4) ** Reminders ** By the next meeting we will have learned about the upgrade to IC Gradebook. We will know by then if it will involve a major upgrade or just be a tweak. Heidi will report back on what will be involved with the gradebook upgrade at the next tech committee meeting. The deadline for applying for **TIE conference scholarships** has been extended to April 15. If you attend this conference in Copper Mountain from June 21-24, you can earn up to 1 or 2 credit hours by writing a 500 or 1000 word paper on the experience.
 * Inspired Learning Conference ** will be April 16 at the Ames Facility (the same day as the Splash and Dash and the Spirit Dinner) you can earn ½ credit hour by attending this one day conference.
 * The Standards Awareness Workshop ** is a district-wide event that Heritage is hosting on Wednesday, May 25th. Teachers will be paid a $75.00 stipend for attending.


 * *Next meeting Wednesday, April 27th. **