[K12OSN] OT: Google Apps

[John Ingleby]

> Message: 1
> Date: Thu, 4 Dec 2008 09:09:33 -0500
> From: "David Hopkins" <dahopkins429 at gmail.com>
> Subject: [K12OSN] OT: Google Apps
> To: "Support list for open source software in schools."
> 	<k12osn at redhat.com>
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> 	<bad371bd0812040609if9bce63mae052f6e73868b8f at mail.gmail.com>
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> 
> A lot of teachers at our school have discovered Google Apps and are
> pushing it as a replacement for StarOffice because it is web-based,
> allows students to submit documents easier and a whole host of other
> benefits.  However, what has also been observed is that the servers
> get very very sluggish once an entire class of students sign in.  The
> suspicion is that this is due to Google Apps and Flash?
> 
> Does anyone have experience with Google Apps in their environement?
> Pro's and Con's of using it vs StarOffice?  How does it run in
> alternative browsers (e.g. Opera, Konqueror, Nautilus)?
> 
> Sincerely,
> Dave Hopkins

We're using Google Apps and yes, things do slow down when there are some
14 pupils working at the same time. Our classroom server has 3G of RAM,
and pupils found they could work faster by downloading and working via
OpenOffice.org, then uploading at the end of the lesson. But the
experience has prompted us to upgrade our broadband connection, we
should soon get 5 x the speed for half the cost! We will see if that
makes any difference.

Google Apps has definitely been advantageous for pupils to work both at
school and at home, on any platform, and submit documents for review by
their teacher.

John Ingleby
ICT Teacher
Rudolf Steiner school
Kings Langley, UK