SCLS Technology News

End of year ordering and Windows 7

The end of the year is quickly approaching and it’s time to start thinking about your end of year PC orders. This is a reminder not to wait too long to place those orders. Friday November 8th will be the final day to place an order through SCLS that will guarantee an invoice in your hands before the end of the year. If you are able to receive an invoice in mid to late January with a 2019 date, then you can place an order all the way up to December 13th.

Also, take a look at your Workstation Status Reports to see if you have any Windows 7 PCs at your library. This would be a good time to think about replacing as many as you can. Microsoft will end support on Windows 7 January 14th, which means we will no longer be pushing out Microsoft updates to Windows 7 PCs after January 14th. When you have a system that’s no longer supported by Microsoft on our network you not only risk compromising your PC, but you also put the whole network at a much greater risk of being compromised.

 

Photo by Brooke Lark on Unsplash

Desktop and Start Menu Changes on Public Stations

On April 3^rd, the Technology Committee decided to make some changes to Desktop and Start Menu on public stations.  The Desktop has seen some minor changes over the years, but this is the first time the Technology Committee discussed all of its contents at one time.  The changes will occur on Windows 10 public stations that allow full internet access and will be completed Sunday, June 16th after libraries are closed.  Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 public stations will not be reconfigured as they continue to be replaced by newer computers.

Changes to the Desktop

• Calculator will be added.
• Resources for Job Seekers website shortcut will be added. This collection of resources for local job seekers is maintained by the Workforce Development Specialist at SCLS, Mark Jochem.  The shortcut will be labeled “Job Resources.”
• Internet Explorer will be removed. Internet Explorer will still be available on the computer, but will only be accessible from the Start Menu.  The committee decided that Internet Explorer is rarely used and should not be taking up space on the Desktop.  That said, it is a good idea to keep it available from the Start Menu in case a certain website does not display properly with Chrome or Edge.
• Windows Media Player will be removed. VLC is the more versatile and popular media player.  Windows Media Player will remain installed on the PCs, so that any file that requires it will still open.
• Computer will be renamed to "This PC."  "This PC" is the default name for this shortcut on Windows 10 PCs.
• My Documents will be renamed to “Documents.”
• My Pictures will be renamed to “Pictures.”
• My Videos will be removed. This folder is rarely used.  The "Videos" folder can still be accessed by opening “This PC” on the Desktop.
• My Music will be removed. This folder is rarely used.  The "Music" folder can still be accessed by opening "This PC" on the Desktop.
• Google Earth will be removed from the Desktop and uninstalled. The committee decided that this program is rarely used.  Google Earth can still be loaded from the Chrome web browser.

   

New Start Menu

The Start Menu will be simplified to only include shortcuts to the web browsers and to the Microsoft Office programs.  Other applications, like iTunes and VLC, will be removed from the Start Menu because frequent updates would break the shortcuts.

   

Software updates for SCLS-supported PCs

While you're sleeping, SCLS-supported PCs receive regular software updates.

What should you know about SCLS software updates?

Leave your PCs on at night
Regular updates are performed at night. To make sure your PCs receive their updates, leave them on at night (you can turn off the monitors if you like, but leave the PCs themselves on). For patron PCs that are normally frozen to prevent changes, SCLS sets them to thaw, perform updates, and then re-freeze themselves. If the PCs are off at night, they miss receiving updates, and may even get confused when they are turned on in the morning and try to perform their nightly maintenance tasks at the wrong time. 

SCLS updates standard SCLS-supported software
"SCLS-supported" software includes:

• Browsers (IE, Edge, Chrome, and Firefox)
• Common browser plug-ins (Flash, Shockwave, Java, Silverlight)
• Adobe Reader
• Windows operating system
• Antivirus software

If you have other library-specific software (Quickbooks, graphics programs, etc.) installed, you may call the Help Desk to request a software update if you need one.

Don't update the software that SCLS updates
Updating the software that SCLS manages can create confusion and problems, especially with Firefox.

Although it may be tempting to install the latest, greatest version of Firefox, don't do it!  We configure Firefox with special print settings for use with Koha. Before SCLS pushes out a Firefox upgrade, SCLS staff does thorough testing of the new version, and then a few pilot libraries do testing to make sure the new version of Firefox works correctly with Koha. Skipping this testing can be a recipe for unexpected Koha problems and extra work to try to set things right again.

 Photo by Casey Horner on Unsplash

Retiring Firefox from public PCs

In March 2017, we announced that the Firefox browser would not be included when we rolled out Windows 10 on public computers. Because there isn't an easy way to manage Firefox centrally, in the past we had to create custom scripts and tweaks to customize and maintain it on public PCs. When planning for Windows 10 for public PCs, it made sense to replace Firefox with Edge, a browser that can easily be centrally managed. The Tech Committee approved eliminating Firefox from Windows 10 public computers at the February 1st, 2017 Tech Committee meeting.

After a significant update to the Firefox browser last week, we discovered problems on older public PCs with the way the new version Firefox behaves when combined with out custom security and privacy measures. Because of these issues, at this week's Technology Committee meeting the committee approved the decision to also retire the Firefox browser on Windows 7 and 8 public computers. When Firefox is retired on Win7 & 8 public PCs next week, the LINKcat desktop shortcut will be reconfigured to open in Chrome.

Mouse Settings Now Accessible on Public PCs

We received a request to grant patrons access to the mouse settings on public computers.  The settings can now be accessed on Windows 8.1 and Windows 10 computers by opening the Accessibility folder on the Desktop.  On Windows 7 computers, you will go to the Desktop and open the Ease of Access folder.

The speed of the mouse pointer can be changed after selecting the Pointer Options tab.  This could be useful to people who have difficulty controlling the mouse at its default speed.

Another nice feature is the ability to change the primary button configuration of the mouse.  Many left-handers prefer to use the right mouse button for selecting and dragging.  This can be changed on the Buttons tab.

PCs with the MyPC reservation system reboot automatically at the end of a patron session.  The mouse settings will revert back to the default configuration after the restart.  On catalog PCs and full internet stations without MyPC, the settings will only revert back if the patron initiated a reboot or logoff at the end of his/her session.

Advance notice for network printer installs

Just a quick reminder -- if your library is getting a new network printer or copier that will be used by your SCLS-supported PCs, please schedule this in advance with the SCLS Help Desk. With a little notice, we'll be able to make sure we have staff available to make any necessary network configuration changes and to help install the new driver on your supported PCs.

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Ordering PCs in 2016

If you still need to order PCs, barcode scanners, or printers in 2016, please pay close attention to these dates:

Friday, November 11 - 2016 bill to you by December 2016.
Order by this date to guarantee you'll have a bill in your hands from SCLS by the end of 2016.

Friday, December 9 - 2016 bill to you by January 2017.
Order by this date if you need a bill dated 2016 but can accomodate the bill being delivered to you in January 2017.  

To help libraries plan for PC replacements, SCLS regularly updates libraries' PC Status Reports. If you have any questions about ordering, please contact Craig.

If you still need to order PCs, barcode scanners, or printers in 2016, please pay close attention to these dates:

Friday, November 11 - 2016 bill to you by December 2016.
Order by this date to guarantee you'll have a bill in your hands from SCLS by the end of 2016.

Friday, December 9 - 2016 bill to you by January 2017.
Order by this date if you need a bill dated 2016 but can accomodate the bill being delivered to you in January 2017.  

To help libraries plan for PC replacements, SCLS regularly updates libraries' PC Status Reports. If you have any questions about ordering, please contact Craig.

Snipping Tool added to public PCs

On February 3rd the Technology Committee approved the addition of Microsoft's Snipping Tool to SCLS-supported public PCs, and SCLS staff rolled it out soon after. This tool can be used by patrons to capture part or all of the PC screen, add notes, and save the snip. The Snipping Tool is already part of SCLS-supported staff PC configurations.

Interested in learning more about the Snipping Tool? Microsoft's How-To page for the Snipping Tool has all the details!

 

Updated workstation status reports

SCLS publishes updated Workstation Status Reports on a regular basis. These reports detail the names, purchase dates, locations and some hardware specs for a library's SCLS-supported computers. The reports are color-coded and are an easy way to get a visual on the age of the PCs:

• PCs with a green ship date are less than 2 years old.
• PCs with a black ship date are 2 - 3 years old.
• PCs with an orange ship date are more than 3 years old. You should plan on replacing them before they reach 5 years of age.
• PCs with a red ship date are more than 5 years old and are obsolete. They should be replaced.

SCLS recommends libraries replace about 20% of the library's PCs each year so that none are older than five years. 

Ordering SCLS-supported PCs and peripherals can be done through the Hardware Ordering webpage.  Contact Craig for help with planning for equipment replacement or for questions about ordering.

Moving from Library Online to MyPC

As you probably already know, SCLS is moving from Library Online to MyPC (time management) and Papercut (print management). We are happy to report that we have 4 sites up and running on both MyPC and Papercut and 1 site up and running MyPC only. Many thanks to Oregon Public Library and Madison Public Library's Meadowridge, Goodman South Madison, Hawthorne, and Central locations for taking the initial plunge with us! We've received great questions and feedback which will help make the rest of our rollouts go more smoothly. 

If your library uses Library Online, here's how you can prepare for the upcoming rollout:

• ​Read over the MyPC documentation and FAQ
• Watch the archived "MyPC Basics" webinar if you haven't already done so

For libraries that will be going live with MyPC only (no Papercut)--- last week we sent an email to each library's contact asking them to sign up for their library's "Go Live" date. In the next couple of weeks, we will be getting in touch with each library's contact person again to talk more about desired MyPC settings.

For libraries that will be going live with MyPC and Papercut---- we're already in touch with some of you to talk about plans, and the rest of you should be hearing from us soon.