[Year 12 IT Apps] OT - Ultranet functionality - true integration ?

[Timmer-Arends]

Hello Kevork

these are all good things and yes we do want to work toward them, but I 
don't see that we need a revolution to achieve them. Why can't we evolve 
toward them by building on what we have, adding components that are missing 
and gluing the lot together by a common data transfer language.
In another context, Penny Wong recently said that we might not be able to 
get a Ferrari but we'd settle for a Holden (or something like that) - my 
fear (and I think fairly founded given Govenrment track record not just on 
the Ultrnet so far but on any big project involving computers) is that while 
aiming to give us a Ferrari we will actually get a Collins Class submarine 
(am I mixing metaphors or what) - works but can't actually do the job it was 
designed for, needs retrofitting as soon as it is released, and will be 
scheduled for replacement inside of a couple of years. In the meantime huge 
amounts of money will have been spent, us schools will have been put through 
the wringer trying to make it work, and many of us will possibly have been 
moved backward for our efforts. (Cynical...nah, not me!)

Regards
Robert T-A




----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Kevork Krozian" <Kroset at novell1.fhc.vic.edu.au>
To: "Year 12 IT Applications Teachers' Mailing List" 
<itapps at edulists.com.au>
Sent: Monday, March 16, 2009 9:40 AM
Subject: Re: [Year 12 IT Apps] OT - Ultranet functionality - true 
integration ?


Hi Roland and Robert,

   I think as admirable as batch import/export facilities are, in this day 
of striving for truly integrated systems,  subsystems need to be able to 
allow for access to the data in terms of partial or full import/export or 
retrieval, modification or addition through real time web based 
functionality.
  We have used this approach with our local version of the Ultranet known as 
MyFHC ( Ultranet is copyright ) , to generate live web based timetable 
viewing and hyperlinking to access specific moodle courses. This was 
achieved through a number of web pages incorporating session variables, 
LDAP, and retrieval from both MSSQL and mySQL using PHP.
  There are several other challenges on our journey towards full 
integration:
   1. real time roll marking data access and SMS to parents phones.
   2. live progressive reports online for students/parents on the way to the 
final version of the report. There was a thread on this recently and it is 
an area I am excited about.
   3. More moodle integration , see 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XjLukDNtf3k and 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8RuxnXeBos&feature=related by Tomaz Lasic 
( thanks Ros Meadows for the link )


Best Wishes



Kevork Krozian
IT Manager , Forest Hill College
k.krozian at fhc.vic.edu.au
http://www.fhc.vic.edu.au
Mobile: 0419 356 034

>>> "Timmer-Arends" <timmer at melbpc.org.au> 14/03/2009 5:36 pm >>>
>From Roland> ... agree on an XML transport layer and ...

Exactly my thoughts when all this came out into the open. Most (secondary) 
schools have most programs they need to operate the school's admin. If our 
place is anything to go by, the single biggest inefficiency is the lack of 
interoperabilty between the various packages.When the new report format was 
introduced and a contract awarded to produce QuickVic, someone managed to 
cobble together an XML specification that allows qucik, easy transfer of 
data between CASES and QuickVic (MarkBook). It seems to me that creating an 
EducXML and then insisting that all vendors create import/export functions 
that speak EducXML would be a heck of a lot cheaper, free up a lot of time 
for users, and have a greater chance of success than inventing a whole new, 
all singing, all dancing wheel.

Regards
Robert T-A
Brighton SC


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