Students Program Robotic Arm

Students in Mr. Garrant's Robotics class demonstrated their ability to successfully program a robotic hand.  In the video above you can see that the robot mimics the actual hand movements of a student using a glove with digital sensors.

Lightning Strikes Bogle

Bogle Hall was struck by a bolt of lightning during a recent spring storm.  The lightning strike damaged a network switch, taking the network offline in that building around 4:00 pm on Friday, April 7th.  To resolve the issue, Sean Lex, Assistant Director of Technology, replaced the switch and brought the building back online an hour later. 

Sophisticated Phishing Attack

A sophisticated phishing attack, which extended beyond Blair, recently impacted users on campus.  The attack involved malicious software that generated emails, which looked like shared Google doc links.  In response, the technology office immediately sent out an email on how to avoid spreading the attack, along with directions of the steps to take to protect their accounts.  Technology office staff then blocked the domain and sender from which the emails were coming to stop the spread of the attack on campus.  To learn more on how to protect yourself from phishing attacks, please view the article found at this LINK.

Responding to Netflix Issues

Students and faculty are occasionally frustrated to discover that access to Netflix through the school internet connection stops working.   This most often happens immediately after a school vacation, and is initiated by Netflix's own automated security systems.  The problem is caused by a large number of Netflix accounts being accessed both from multiple countries and then through the single internet connection of the school.  This makes some Netflix accounts appear fraudulent to Netflix's systems.  Blair fully supports the legal use of streaming video content in the campus's residential environment.  The technology team works directly with Netflix to resolve these issues as quickly as possible when they occur. 

Our Technology Office Recycles

Each year, Blair's technology office recycles the outdated and broken electronic equipment that has collected over the school year.  We work with an offsite recycling company to ensure that all data has been electronically wiped from the devices before they leave the school.  We send equipment to be recycled rather than sent to a landfill to reduce waste.

Maintenance Work Requests

Blair supports software for submitting and managing maintenance work requests for grounds and facilities.  The software generates login accounts for users to view their work requests, using the password listed prominently at the top of the login page.  The submission form includes fields to allow the user to specify details, and to help the maintenance team respond appropriately.  The person submitting the request will get an automatic email summary whenever he or she submits a work request and can check on the date the work was completed.  Users on campus can click HERE to access a how-to document listing all the steps.

Conductive Thread Tie

Students in Mr. Garrant's class worked on a fabric electronics project that incorporated conductive thread and voice commands.  Lights sewn into the tie with the thread respond to voice commands including blinking fast when loud noise is detected and lighting up fewer bulbs when noise levels are low.  "It's a work in progress," says Mr. Garrant, but he encourages his students by stating that debugging the system is part of the learning process.