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FAQs on the Basic Use
of Your EarthWalk Wireless Mobile Computer Lab System
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The beauty of all EarthWalk wireless mobile computer lab systems is its ease
of use. Your mobile computer lab requires just one standard electrical
outlet and one Ethernet drop. Just plug it into both, and you're
ready to work. An Ethernet connection is only necessary when
you want to connect to your school's server or to the Internet.
You may use the eBuddies as independent computers with just
one electrical plug.
You will want to assign a specific eBuddy laptop to a student
so that you can monitor its use (or abuse). Hand out the laptops,
walk through the start-up sequence, and assign the day's task.
You will want to review the basic care of a laptop computer
every time you hand them out.
BEFORE HANDING OUT THE LAPTOPS:
- Remind your students that this is an expensive tool and
must be HANDLED WITH CARE.
- The students should have clean hands.
- Neither food nor any liquids should be permitted around the desk area where the laptops will be used.
- Students need to carry the computer with two hands.
HANDING OUT THE LAPTOPS:
- Call the students one at a time to collect each assigned
laptop.
- Monitor that the students are carrying the laptops
with two hands as they return to their desks.
- Then review the correct method of opening the latches.
- Discourage your students from touching the screen. Have
them point without making contact. This will save lots of
cleaning time and prevent damage to the LCD panel.
- Every precaution should be taken to avoid dropping the
laptop and banging it on hard surfaces.
POWERING UP THE LAPTOPS:
- The power button is located in the back center
of the keyboard.
- Press this button until your computer is powering up.
This may take a second or two. The power light will come
on. Then wait for Windows to boot up.
- Encourage your students to be patient while the computer
is running its start-up sequence.
- Instruct your students as to which software application
to open.
ACCESSORIES:
- The presentation monitor may or may not be used.
If you choose to utilize the presentation monitor, one of
the mobile lab laptops (or teacher's desktop PC) will need
to be cabled to the monitor.
- A printer can be networked or connected locally.
- The wireless keyboard is a useful tool when moving
around your classroom. Make sure that the infrared detector
is plugged into the PC connected to the monitor. The detector
must have a clear line of sight to the keyboard at no more
than a 45 degree angle.
- You may have a BatteryBay recharging unit with
your mobile lab system. This accessory provides freshly charged
batteries for extended work time. If you plug in the AC
power cord while exchanging batteries the eBuddy laptops
do not need to be shut down.
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Again, the ease of these procedures is one of
the great features of the EarthWalk mobile computer lab system. It is very important
to walk your students through the correct "shut down"
procedures after every lesson. Then collect the laptops and
return laptops to their respective slots. For maximum battery
life DO NOT plug in the AC power cord unless the laptop battery
is fully discharged. Lock the cart for the security of your
equipment.
SHUTTING DOWN THE LAPTOP COMPUTERS:
- They must close each software application by clicking
on the "x" located in the upper right corner of
each program's screen.
- To shut down the entire hard drive, click on the start
icon and slide down to the shut down command.
- After clicking on SHUT DOWN, they will need to click on
OK when the message box appears. Wait for each unit's screen
to go to black.
- Then each laptop can be closed.
- The laptop may be closed before the screen turns black
if it has been shut down correctly.
COLLECTING THE LAPTOPS:
- Call the students one at a time to return the laptops
to the specific storage bay assigned to that laptop.
- Do a quick check to verify that each laptop has indeed
been shut down. You can do this quickly and easily by checking
the power light. This light will turn off when the computer
has shut down.
- Make a visual assessment of the condition of the
returned laptop.
- Gently slide the laptops into the storage bay with the
recharging port facing toward the outside of the cabinet.
- For maximum battery life DO NOT plug in the AC power
cord unless the laptop is fully discharged.
- Check to see that the green recharging light is shining
steadily.
CLOSING THE CABINET:
- Double check to see that every laptop has been returned
to its assigned bay.
- Then close and lock the sliding doors.
- The SmartCart should remain plugged in to the electrical
outlet so that the laptops can be recharged, but the Ethernet
connection can be unplugged.
- We recommend that you keep an incident log to note
any problems with the eBuddy laptops. If a laptop was accidentally
dropped or if it did not perform appropriately, the incident
log is an excellent communication tool. These laptops are
often used by more than one student and/or are under the
supervision of more than one teacher.
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Yes. Leave the SmartCart plugged into an electrical
outlet overnight. EarthWalk uses state of the art lithium-ion
batteries. These batteries recharge at a rate of one minute
to one minute of use. Leaving them recharging for longer periods
will not harm the battery's performance. Batteries should be
fully charged, removed and stored separately in a cool dry place
for extended periods of inactivity. However, for maximum battery
life DO NOT plug in the AC power cord unless the laptop is fully
discharged.
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It is highly recommended that two people work
as a team to move the cart. Although the cart rolls relatively
easily, it is rather heavy when fully loaded with all that valuable
equipment. In a perfect world, it would be wonderful if an auxiliary
staff member could be assigned to move the cart and set it up
for the classroom teacher a few minutes before the scheduled
lesson. However, the classroom teacher and one assistant could
move the cart from area to area. Make sure that the sliding
doors are closed, the Ethernet AND electrical connections are
unplugged, the cords are properly stowed, and the monitor is
secure on top of the cart. |
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The eBuddy laptops have the capability of completing
a battery swap without losing any working material. Plug
the laptop into an AC power cord, gently pull the battery attachment
clips away from the laptop's body frame, remove the depleted
battery, replace with a fully charged one and secure the clips.
You then disconnect the AC power cord, and you are ready to
get back to work.
It is highly recommended that you purchase extra batteries to
support your use of wireless technology tools. EarthWalk has
created a solution that provides "battery power in reserve".
Our BatteryBay will provide freshly charged batteries
for use throughout the entire school day. |
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The eBuddy laptops must be correctly shut
down before they will fully recharge. If you have plugged
the laptops into the AC power cord and still have low batteries
in the morning, you need to check to see if the laptops were
accidentally left on while in the charging bay. A careful check
of the power light will determine whether the laptop has shut
down. |
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For maximum battery life completely discharge
batteries before recharging. For example, if you only use your
eBuddy for a 1 hour session and return it to the SmartCart,
DO NOT plug in the AC power cord to recharge it unless the eBuddy
indicates the battery charge is low.
eBuddy 5 & 6 series batteries must be calibrated before
use and every three months thereafter for optimum performance.
Please refer to your User Manual for complete instructions. |
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The laptops have built in function keys to
control the contrast of the monitor's image. Hold down the
appropriate Function key, and you can increase or decrease the
contrast. It may also be advisable to lower the overhead lights
in the classroom to reduce the glare on the eBuddy's screen. |
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Our monitors will work with some Macs, but not
all. To display Mac screen content on our presentation monitors
you will need Super
Res or Switch
Res which are shareware programs enabling you to change
video output resolution on some Macs. Check with your sales
reps for more information. |
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