alice-teacher installing on workstations

Quinn, John quinnjr at milwaukee.k12.wi.us
Mon Aug 29 12:47:14 EDT 2011 

In my situation at Milwaukee Public Schools, I have reliable access it IT support, so I have the flexibility to pursue setting up my lab in a sensible-efficient-reliable way.  Here is what I'm thinking to do.
 
1.  I'll have Alice installed locally on each computer - I understand this will make things run more smoothly.  I just need to correctly configure Alice to understand it's relationship with the network file storage and get network permissions configured correctly.  I may need some assistance with configuring Alice.
 
2.  I will share access to alice files back and forth through a shared network drive.
 
3.  I will request that students obtain a thumb drive for their personal backups and for the option of working at home.  Students will also be able to email their Alice work to themselves or to me.  I'm still working out the details of files submission guidelines.
 
4.  I am managing the class through a Wiki site  (http://www.computerconcepts1.pbworks.com) which I am busily constructing using all the resources I've been combing through off the web.  I have 2 Gig of space on which I THINK I can store some Alice files to use for instruction.  In this way, students could get access to MY Alice files from my Wiki site on the web:   outside of school, and on the weekends.  Unfortunately the site cannot host storage for all my students work, so the network/thumb drive storage is necessary.
 
5.  My goal is to create a web 2.0 rich environment, to streamline the mechanics of link and file access, and allow students to focus on Alice worlds rather than mechanical frustrations.  All run through my Wiki.  NO paper.  (A first for me.)
 
 
******   Important!  ******      Here are today's questions that I am grappling with.     HELP!    Perhaps people could comment under each question.
 
1.  As I was experimenting with the Alice settings on my PC (typical setup) at home, I notice that I cannot turn off the Alice Startup Dialog Box.  If I uncheck the box, it just appears checked when I restart.  When I uncheck the box in Preferences-> Seldom Used, it just comes up checked again when I restart.  Is this a bug?  Or is my preference file not where it should be?.
 
 
2.  This second problem may be related.  I created a folder on my desktop called AliceWorlds.  It's where I am storing my growing collection of a2w files.  I went into preferences->general and changed my save-and-load-from settings to point to this directory.  I was assuming that this would become the default location where alice would look for files to open and save.  It works, but when I restart Alice it doesn't remember the changed setting.  Why?  Anyone else experiencing this?
 
 
3.  I notice that many sample alice worlds come "zipped".  When I change the name of the zip file to .a2w, it doesn't show up in Alice's Open World window until I specify "all files", where it then appears as  <name>.a23.zip.  I then need to open the world and resave it as a standard a2w file.  Is this what everyone is doing?
 
 
4  Could someone point me to links or programs to figure out how to have my students compress (or zip) their files before emailing or storing on their thumb drives?  I think it would be challenging for my students to have to do what I oulined above every time they want to unzip an Alice world to load on their home computer.  Any specific compression software to use or avoid?
 
 
 
I know this is a lot, sorry.  I'm meeting with my district tech guy tomorrow (Tuesday) and hoping to have these issues ironed out quickly.  Thanks to everyone so far who is reading and responding.  This is a great community.
 
 
________________________________

From: alice-teachers-bounces+quinnjr=milwaukee.k12.wi.us at lists.andrew.cmu.edu on behalf of Don Slater
Sent: Sun 8/28/2011 6:31 PM
To: Alice educators
Subject: Re: alice-teacher installing on workstations



Ed,
There is not much to read... All you need to do is unzip the appropriate download file for your system, and then copy it onto the flash drive. The performance hit depends on your system, I believe, and it may not be noticeable at all. But you should set up a drive and test it on your machines.

Alice was designed to sit above the registry in those systems where network considerations made its installation problematic. If your students had enough space allocated to their home directory, you could copy Alice to their documents folder or desktop and run it from there, but all those copies on your system would probably not make your sysadmin very happy ;-)

Let me know if you have any other questions.

All the best,
Don Slater

On Aug 28, 2011, at 1:01 AM, Edward Bujak wrote:

> Don,
>
> Where can I read about running Alice 2.2 from a CD-ROM and also from a flash drive?
> The CD-ROM is cheap, but does not allow me easy additions/deletions with other "flash-based" (not installed) applications and other support resources and files.
> Flash-based thumb drives are versatile.
> Is there a performance hit?  If so, is it tolerable?
>
> We are in total technology lockdown: no installs/setups (we are not local admins), but we can copy files to the hard drive and place an icon on the desktop for the students to launch.  This involves a lot of work by me to repeatedly visit every laptop as it traverses my class (a time nightmare).
>
> It is a constant light rain around Philadelphia, from the hurricane, since mid-afternoon; nothing bad.  I also have a few very fast (< 2 second) power outages.  Nothing bad.
>
> Thanks.
>
> --Ed
>
> > From: dslater at andrew.cmu.edu
> > Date: Sat, 27 Aug 2011 22:57:10 -0400
> > To: mhuret at mindspring.com; alice-teachers at lists.andrew.cmu.edu
> > Subject: Re: alice-teacher installing on workstations
> >
> > Marilynn,
> > That is one solution, but there is a performance hit when this solution is implemented. Most networks have ghosting in which one machine is set up, and then it is copied out to all the other machines in the network. What has to happen is that the modification that we detail for networked machines has to be added before the copying out takes place. And there are ways in the script to specify the Users Documents directory, instead of having to reference every possible user. It is always better, performance wise to have a local copy of Alice, if possible. But some systems have to use the flash drive / CD option.
> >
> > I am not sure what this specific system requires. I always wait for the community to supply suggestions before I chime in.
> >
> > Thank you for your thoughts.
> >
> > Survive the storm. My daughter and brother are out in that area. I am paying attention.
> >
> > All the best,
> > Don Slater
> >
> > On Aug 27, 2011, at 1:26 PM, Marilynn Huret wrote:
> >
> > > Don,
> > >
> > > I wouls assume that since multiple students are using the workstations they should consider using flash/thumb drives. That way there are no IT permissions and then the students can set the preferences to save to their drives or to a directory on the workstation designated for their individual work. Obtaining a batch of 2G drives for students to work with is a lot easier than worrying about installing on a lot of units
> > >
> > > -=mh=-
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > -----Original Message-----
> > >> From: alice-teachers-request at lists.andrew.cmu.edu
> > >> Sent: Aug 27, 2011 12:00 PM
> > >> To: alice-teachers at lists.andrew.cmu.edu
> > >> Subject: alice-teachers Digest, Vol 13, Issue 9
> > >>
> > >> Send alice-teachers mailing list submissions to
> > >> alice-teachers at lists.andrew.cmu.edu
> > >>
> > >> To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit
> > >> https://lists.andrew.cmu.edu/mailman/listinfo/alice-teachers
> > >> or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to
> > >> alice-teachers-request at lists.andrew.cmu.edu
> > >>
> > >> You can reach the person managing the list at
> > >> alice-teachers-owner at lists.andrew.cmu.edu
> > >>
> > >> When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific
> > >> than "Re: Contents of alice-teachers digest..."
> > >>
> > >>
> > >> Today's Topics:
> > >>
> > >> 1. Re: requesting lab set up help (Quinn, John)
> > >>
> > >>
> > >> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
> > >>
> > >> Message: 1
> > >> Date: Fri, 26 Aug 2011 14:29:37 -0500
> > >> From: "Quinn, John" <quinnjr at milwaukee.k12.wi.us>
> > >> Subject: Re: alice-teacher requesting lab set up help
> > >> To: "Alice educators" <alice-teachers at lists.andrew.cmu.edu>
> > >> Message-ID:
> > >> <9B25A7D341745642B6FB8A4907906211C82C2B at cs-exchange-01.district.MPSDS.edu>
> > >>
> > >> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
> > >>
> > >> As I met with the district PC tech guy and we're planning to install Alice 2.2 in the computer lab at my school (Windows XP workstations), I was asked the following question: does Alice have "multiuser" capability in the sense that it could be installed on one shared network drive and everyone can use it, or should it be installed and configured on each individual machine? [I think I know the answer already, but told him I would check.] It seems that where Alice looks for the preference file when it opens could be the issue, as noted in the disucssion below. In a network setting, the preferences would need to be user-specific rather than machine-specific. Any thoughts to share??
> > >>
> > >> Thanks,
> > >>
> > >> John Quinn
> > >> Milwaukee Public Schools
> > >> 262-243-9430
> > >>
> > >>
> > >> ________________________________
> > >>
> > >> From: alice-teachers-bounces+quinnjr=milwaukee.k12.wi.us at lists.andrew.cmu.edu on behalf of Don Slater
> > >> Sent: Thu 8/25/2011 12:38 PM
> > >> To: Alice educators
> > >> Subject: Re: alice-teacher requesting lab set up help
> > >>
> > >>
> > >>
> > >> John,
> > >> It may be helpful, but I am a big believer in the if it is not broke, don't fix it school of thought ;-)
> > >>
> > >> You should probably try a couple more workstations just to be sure...
> > >>
> > >> Keep me posted...
> > >>
> > >> All the best,
> > >> Don Slater
> > >>
> > >> On Aug 25, 2011, at 1:07 PM, Quinn, John wrote:
> > >>
> > >>> I did a trial install on one or the workstations in my classroom yesterday just to see if Alice 2.2 would indeed load and run. Got an error message, then clicked on the "If Alice doesn't work try this" in the REQUIRED folder. Then Alice loaded just fine. Is the discussion below relevant for solving this problem?
> > >>>
> > >>> Thanks,
> > >>>
> > >>> John Quinn (Milwaukee Public Schools)
> > >>>
> > >>> ________________________________
> > >>>
> > >>> From: alice-teachers-bounces+quinnjr=milwaukee.k12.wi.us at lists.andrew.cmu.edu on behalf of Don Slater
> > >>> Sent: Thu 8/25/2011 11:45 AM
> > >>> To: Alice educators
> > >>> Subject: Re: alice-teacher requesting lab set up help
> > >>>
> > >>>
> > >>>
> > >>> The following information is contained on the Alice 2.2 downloads page:
> > >>>
> > >>> Using Alice on a networked machine:
> > >>>
> > >>> Alice 2.0 compatibility with networked machines has been hit-or-miss. This was due to the Alice preferences file location being hard-coded as:
> > >>> C:\Documents and Settings\<username>\.alice
> > >>>
> > >>> In cases where the user's home directory was not on the C drive or in a different path, Alice would throw up a gallery viewer error and possibly prevent the user from accessing Alice.
> > >>>
> > >>> We have modified Alice 2.2 to allow the user to enter in the path to a writable directory on any drive, networked or local. This can be done by opening up the following file in a text editor:
> > >>>
> > >>> Alice 2.2\Required\etc\version.txt
> > >>>
> > >>> It should look like this:
> > >>> 2.2 9/1/2008
> > >>> 0x7F8AD1
> > >>>
> > >>> Add a new line at the bottom and enter in the *full* path to where you would like the preferences stored. This will need to be a writable directory. Do not use quotes. For example, if I wanted to change the location to my desktop on drive E, I would do the following:
> > >>> 2.2 9/1/2008
> > >>> 0x7F8AD1
> > >>> E:\Documents and Settings\jtimberlake\Desktop\.alice2
> > >>>
> > >>> Save the file and close it.
> > >>>
> > >>> If Alice is running, make sure to shut it down and restart.
> > >>>
> > >>> To confirm it is working, navigate to the directory you typed above and you should see a .alice2 directory. If you do not see one, make sure hidden directories are viewable.
> > >>>
> > >>> Let us know if you continue to have problems.
> > >>>
> > >>> All the best,
> > >>> Don Slater
> > >>>
> > >>>
> > >>> On Aug 25, 2011, at 12:04 PM, Lorie Atkinson wrote:
> > >>>
> > >>>> I am teaching a beginning programming class and am having trouble setting up my students successfully to be able to use Alice.
> > >>>>
> > >>>> Items:
> > >>>> Students do not have access to the c: directories
> > >>>> Students have read access to the common y: directory
> > >>>> Students have their own folders on the h: drive
> > >>>>
> > >>>> Last year I copied Alice onto the common directory and the students were able to work. (small class)
> > >>>> This year one student will work fine, then the other 10 will error loading.
> > >>>>
> > >>>> I am able to load Alice on to each computers' c: drive, but then they do not have access to a start icon.
> > >>>>
> > >>>> Just looking for ideas, thanks,
> > >>>> Lorie Atkinson
> > >>>> _______________________________________________
> > >>>> alice-teachers mailing list
> > >>>> alice-teachers at lists.andrew.cmu.edu
> > >>>> https://lists.andrew.cmu.edu/mailman/listinfo/alice-teachers
> > >>>
> > >>> _______________________________________________
> > >>> alice-teachers mailing list
> > >>> alice-teachers at lists.andrew.cmu.edu
> > >>> https://lists.andrew.cmu.edu/mailman/listinfo/alice-teachers
> > >>>
> > >>>
> > >>> <winmail.dat>_______________________________________________
> > >>> alice-teachers mailing list
> > >>> alice-teachers at lists.andrew.cmu.edu
> > >>> https://lists.andrew.cmu.edu/mailman/listinfo/alice-teachers
> > >>
> > >> _______________________________________________
> > >> alice-teachers mailing list
> > >> alice-teachers at lists.andrew.cmu.edu
> > >> https://lists.andrew.cmu.edu/mailman/listinfo/alice-teachers
> > >>
> > >>
> > >> -------------- next part --------------
> > >> A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
> > >> Name: not available
> > >> Type: application/ms-tnef
> > >> Size: 8273 bytes
> > >> Desc: not available
> > >> Url : https://lists.andrew.cmu.edu/mailman/private/alice-teachers/attachments/20110826/fb390c88/attachment-0001.bin
> > >>
> > >> ------------------------------
> > >>
> > >> _______________________________________________
> > >> alice-teachers mailing list
> > >> alice-teachers at lists.andrew.cmu.edu
> > >> https://lists.andrew.cmu.edu/mailman/listinfo/alice-teachers
> > >>
> > >>
> > >> End of alice-teachers Digest, Vol 13, Issue 9
> > >> *********************************************
> > >
> > > _______________________________________________
> > > alice-teachers mailing list
> > > alice-teachers at lists.andrew.cmu.edu
> > > https://lists.andrew.cmu.edu/mailman/listinfo/alice-teachers
> > >
> >
> > _______________________________________________
> > alice-teachers mailing list
> > alice-teachers at lists.andrew.cmu.edu
> > https://lists.andrew.cmu.edu/mailman/listinfo/alice-teachers
> _______________________________________________
> alice-teachers mailing list
> alice-teachers at lists.andrew.cmu.edu
> https://lists.andrew.cmu.edu/mailman/listinfo/alice-teachers

_______________________________________________
alice-teachers mailing list
alice-teachers at lists.andrew.cmu.edu
https://lists.andrew.cmu.edu/mailman/listinfo/alice-teachers


-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: not available
Type: application/ms-tnef
Size: 21037 bytes
Desc: not available
Url : https://lists.andrew.cmu.edu/mailman/private/alice-teachers/attachments/20110829/a020cd68/attachment.bin

More information about the alice-teachers mailing list