I got to the office and was met at the door with a few requests. In one case, the early childhood area was still having air problems. I decided the problem was a closed door to a room with a return air vent. I opened the door and told them to let me know how things went. I still need to check on that.
I ran a wire from the same room with the return air duct to a digital copier so the ECH folks could share it and print to it.
I had not heard from the folks that ran our video security system, but I had an idea: The only way into the conference room was through one wall. So, I got the 8-foot ladder and hiked up it. Sure enough, I found the wiring above the tiles. As it turns out, the wires run to LEFT instead of the right, as was indicated in an initial diagram. On top of that, it makes a turn back toward the center of the room. Now, had this been the status quo for the other runs, I would have started there the other day. Ah, well, the important thing is that I got the camera installed just in time for an afternoon staff meeting.
At 1:30pm, I drove to Blevins to help their tech troubleshoot connectivity issues. One of their main switches was blinking rapidly and rhythmically. While it might look cool, it only means there is a problem on the network. Rapidly blinking lights are normal. Rhythmically blinking lights are okay if you know everyone is basically doing the same thing (say, all access some interactive web site or something). But, when paired together, it's usually a bad sign.
I started unplugging connections, trying to get the lights to STOP blinking rhythmically. That failed. Even with one connection, the pattern was the same. This indicated the switch itself had gone bad. To test this, the tech and I moved the connections to a variety of "spare" switches he had. Everything seemed to be working to a point. The computer lab and a part of one hallway were not getting connectivity. Let the hunt begin!
Turns out there is a run from the switch to the computer lab. From the lab, there is a run to a classroom that feeds the rest of that part of the hallway. Let's just say it took quite a while to come up with that conclusion. let's also say that old buildings with uber-thick fiberglass insulation is not a fun combination.
We determined that the connection to the lab from the main switch was not behaving. The cure was to run a NEW wire. Did I mention fiberglass insulation? Oh, and dust? And other "stuff" we're not going to mention? He and I looked like we had just escaped from the cotton candy factory (though not all the "cotton candy" was pink...). The key is that when all was said and done (around 5:00pm), it all worked!
At 5:15pm, I headed for the house.. Er, the school where my wife works to pick up the kids. Now, how does this tie in to work? While in my wife's room, she told me her SmartBoard wasn't making any sound. I did some troubleshooting and determined that the audio for the board was showing up as an "unknown" USB device. FYI, on systems with a Smart Board, there is often an "USB Audio Device" that can be selected. My wife's computer did not have this. It is a driver issue, but she does not have enough rights as a user to install the driver. While this could have spelled the end of the issue as far as I could help, I pushed on. Turns out, SOME teachers had an RCA-Headphone wire that connected their sound to the speakers on the board. So... I found a teacher that had BOTH - the USB *and* the adapter. Since they had the USB working, their adapter was not plugged in. I borrowed the adapter and connected it to my wife's computer. When the projector is *on* now, she has sound.
I will email the tech at the district so he knows what's going on.
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