Link above not showing up?
See my pics here.When I attended the recent Texas Computer Education Association (TCEA) Conference in Austin, Texas, I came upon a little booth with a couple of young, hip folks in it who had practically nothing to show except an old craptop and a lovely logo. Intrigued, I ask for a demo . . .
That’s when Jonathan, founder of the company, booted up said craptop in about 8 seconds. What did I see on the screen??? A CHROMEBOOK! That’s right people, a CHROMEBOOK.
“Will this old crappy computer really load all of MY Apps and Extensions?” (keep reading. Seriously, you've GOT TO SEE THIS!)
I asked dubiously. Jonathan said, rather humbly, “it should! Log in and let’s see.” So I did,
and it did. And again, I was blown away. I thought, I have to rush right home and tell my friend and Tech Director Tracie Simental! Then I mentioned this plan (of rushing home and finding Tracie) and found out that our district had been piloting the solution for MONTHS! (Way to keep me in the loop, T.S.).
Anyway, my enthusiasm has not abated for this product. I’m so geeked. And now in Huntsville ISD we have lots of devices that look pretty crappy that are acting very nicely as Chromebooks. Stuff we were going to have to recycle now has a new life. What could possibly be better than that?
Here’s more from Angela of Neverware . . .
The Chromebook user experience has the power to change education as we know it, but schools face real challenges when it comes to balancing their existing technology infrastructure while embracing the new cloud-based operating system. Even for schools with the budget to invest in moving to Chromebooks, CloudReady ensures that their existing PC infrastructure remains relevant. With CloudReady, a school can take an out-of-place and out-of-date PC or Macbook and start managing it alongside their newest Chromebook in the Google Management Console. Not only does this unify management challenges, but it also expands the total number of devices a district can keep in circulation, making possible things like 1:1 programs. CloudReady removes the tension that schools face between their long-standing investment in Windows and Mac infrastructure and the benefits of moving rapidly and efficiently to the world of Google Apps for Education.
