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Patagonia Blog

Click to follow my Patagonia blogI'll leave the blog here for a while, for anyone who wants to have a look at it. To see the blog, click the photo.
07/09/11 - The iPhone 5 is due to be released in early October.
26/08/11 - Steve Jobs has stepped down from his role of running Apple Computers for health reasons.
05/04/11 - If you are going on holidays over Easter, don't broadcast it on a social networking site, such as Facebook or Twitter. Computer literate burglars are now using these sites to identify properties that they can break into without being disturbed by the occupier. Notably, Michael Buble recently returned from his honeymoon to find that he had been burgled while he was away.
16/03/11 - Microsoft released Internet Explorer 9 this week.
17/02/11 - Paypal are hiring 150 new staff in Dublin.
15/02/11 - YouTube is 6 years old today!
24/08/10 - The CAO fell victim to a Denial of Service attack yesterday. Just as thousands of leaving cert students were trying to access their college offers on the CAO web site, the system crashed as a result of an attack from a malicious bot herder.
05/07/10 - Intel are developing a super capacitor battery for laptops and netbooks which will be much smaller than existing batteries and will use power more efficiently as well as running cooler.
02/07/10 - Following warnings that 535,000 Sony Vaio laptops may be in danger of overheating, Sony have provided free software on its website to eliminate the problem.
28/05/10 - More than three-quarters of Irish TDs plan to use social media in the next general election campaign, with Facebook being the most favoured platform. Less than one third of campaigners used social networking tools in the 2007 general election. Dan Boyle and Ciaran Cuffe, of the Green Party, together with Fine Gael senator Paschal Donoghue regularly use Twitter to interact with the general public. In relation to Twitter use, there is a marked difference between the three main parties. Only 58% of Fianna Fail TDs intend to use Twitter for the next general election campain. This compares to 67% of Labour TDs and 90% of Fine Gael TDs. It will be interesting to see how the party most up to date with Internet technologies performs in the election. Intelligent use of the Internet was a big factor in Barrack Obama's successful election campaign.
25/05/10 - The Internet is running out of IP addresses! Despite having nearly four and a half billion addresses, it is estimated that IPv4 will reach maximum capacity by September 2011. The next version, IPv6 will solve the problem once it is rolled out globally. Every device on the web needs an IP address. This includes PCs and more recently, phones and smartphones. Each website also needs an IP address.
24/05/10 - Christian Payne has written an excellent article on Social Networking. Click here to read the article.
24/05/10 - YouTube is five years old! To celebrate, they have created a dedicated channel where the creators of some of the most popular videos discuss the impact that Internet celebrity has had on their lives.
28/04/10 - Sony has announced that it will stop selling floppy disks in March 2011. Sony originally launched the first 5.25 inch floppy disks back in 1981. Thirty years must be a record for a storage media! It looks like software creaters are going to keep the floppy disk icon as a symbol for saving a file even though floppy disks will no longer be used as a storage medium.
24/02/10 - Check out this very interesting clock
22/02/10 - If you have a digital camera, check out the Eye-Fi Pro X2 SD memory card. It turns your camera into a wireless enabled device. This means that you can upload your photos directly from your camera to a photo-sharing website from any wireless hotspot. An ad-hoc connection with your laptop will transfer images directly to your hard drive.
17/02/10 - If you are considering giving something up for lent, the charity Tearfund are urging people to cut back on power-hungry gadgets such as iPods and iPhones for one day a month. A personal computer left on for 24 hours a day creates 716kg of CO2 emmisions a year while televisions on standby mode consume 3 to 7 watts of electricity per hour.
17/02/10 - If you have ever dreamed of travelling from Moscow to Vladivostok on the Trans-Siberian railway, log onto the new virtual tour web site. The site, which was developed with Google maps lets you watch the journey in real time - a total of 150 hours!
16/02/10 - The UCD Centre for Cybercrime Investigation (CCI) has identified that almost 65,000 broadband users in Ireland are suspected of being involved in illegal downloading on a weekly basis. The list includes movies such as Avatar and TV series such as Greys Anatomy. Most of the illegal downloading is being done through BitTorrent. The CCI received €4.5 million from the European Commission to help co-ordinate the setting up of a cybercrime investigation unit in every EU country.
02/02/10 - Intel have launched a document reader, which will be of great interest to people with a visual impairment.
02/02/10 - If you are considering buying a digital radio, check out the Pure Sensia. As well as receiving thousands of Internet radio stations, it has a colour touchscreen and Internet access. It has apps for Facebook and Twitter and you can access your own music collection using Wi-Fi. With an optional ChargePAK, you can take your music on the move - once you stay within range of the Wi-Fi network.
28/01/10 - Apple have unveiled their iPad, which is essentially a larger version of the iPhone. It features a 9.7inch screen with a touchscreen QWERTY keyboard. It's powered by a 1GHz Apple A4 chip and includes a speaker, microphone, bluetooth and Wi-Fi. It's also very light, weighing in at a mere 680g. However, it doesn't have a web cam. Apple are claiming a 10 hour battery life and that the iPad can run almost all of the applications on the iTunes store. As the iPad is also an eletronic reader, Apple are launching a new store which will be called iBook Store. Just as iTunes revolutionised the sale of music, they are expecting iBook Store to change the way people buy and read books. The iPad will start at €355 with the highest spec 64Gb version retailing at €590.
The day after the launch, people began to see the limitations of the iPad. For example, it doesn't have USB ports so you can't plug in external devices like memory sticks. Also, you can't upgrade the RAM or the hard drive.
27/01/10 - A 20 year old hacker has hacked into the Sony Playstation 3. This could allow PlayStation 3 owners to run unauthorised software, play older PS 2 games, or install a different operating system.
26/01/10 - The Acadia university in Canada is attempting to take a census of all the web sites in the world. Click here to see their research so far.
26/01/10 - SanDisk have launched a memory stick with a special button to back up your files. The SanDisk Ultra Backup comes in 8, 16, 32 or 64Gb versions and supports password protection and encryption.
26/01/10 - Three have released a mobile dongle called the MiFi which allows you to share your mobile Internet connection with up to four other people. The MiFi is essentially a mobile personal USB Wi-Fi hotspot - it allows you to connect to the Internet anywhere within Three's network, using your home connection.
26/01/10 - Microsoft have a released a patch for Internet Explorer which fixes the security weakness that was used to hack into Google's system in China.
26/01/10 - WaveSecure is a new software application for mobile phones that allows you to track a lost mobile, prevent it from being used, copy the data off it and then remotely wipe it. www.wavesecure.com
14/01/10 - Covies is the first ever online Irish soap. It airs on Monday nights at 9pm on www.thecovies.com

12/01/10 - 3D TV grabbed the headlines at the recent Consumer Electronics show in Las Vegas. Unfortunately, the glasses required to watch 3D TV current cost between €80 and €150 per pair, unlike the cheap plastic glasses you get when watching a 3D movie at the cinema.

  • Samsung unveiled a 3D Home Ecosystem and plan to develop iPod like Apps for their 3D TV.
  • Sony unveiled the Dash personal Internet viewer and had a 3D version of Jimi Hendrix's woodstock concert in 1969.
  • Lenovo demonstrated the LePhone, a thin touchscreen model running on Android.
06/01/10 - Google has unvieled its new Nexus phone which will compete with Apple's iPhone. The phone gets its name from the androids or replicants in the cult science fiction movie Bladerunner. It will run on Google's Android operating system. Google are also planning to launch an Android application store as part of the marketing campaign. The Nexus features enhanced voice control, with a voice enabled keyboard for all text fields, including e-mails, twitter updates and facebook. It has a Qualcomm snapdragon 1GHz processor and 512Mb RAM which can be upgraded to 32Gb using an SD card.
04/01/10 - Intel have launched a new series of Atom processors, which will feature in netbooks and low-cost desktop PCs. A feature of the new processors is the integration of the memory controller and graphics inside the CPU. The new Atom is physically smaller and uses 20% less power, which should improve battery life.

22/12/09 - If you fancy sending someone a festive greeting, check out www.portablenorthpole.tv. Answer a few basic questions such as the age of the child or adult, where they live, whether they've been naughty or nice and what they'd like for Christmas.
15/12/09 - What will the PC look like in five years time? Check this out
10/12/09 - The Crisis Pregnancy Agency have launced a new interactive game on their web site promoting the correct use of contraception. Players can adopt one of two personas - "Paul" or "Emma" who meet in a nightclub. www.thinkcontraception.ie
07/12/09 - British Telecom is investing £48 million in Northern Ireland's broadband network. The project will upgrade equipment in 166 exchanges, resulting in 10Mb/s connection speeds in urban areas and 2 Mb/s in rural areas.
07/12/09 - Sky is on course to launch the world's first 3D TV channel in 2010. Subscribers to Sky+ HD will be able to access the channel as long as they have a 3D TV and 3D polarised glasses. Sky is planning to show English Premiership games in 3D. Manufacturers have not yet said how much a 3D TV will cost.
07/12/09 - Allrecipes.com has reported a massive increase in searches for Turkey and other Christmas related recipes!
07/12/09 - Twitter is growing in popularity. Department stores in American are now tweeting their customer with news of in-store offers. Subways in the major cities are tweeting route and delay information. This is in marked contrast to the company running the Dublin bike scheme, who disabled a very useful iPhone program which allows customers to see the current number of available bikes in real-time.
04/12/09 - Check out the iGame docking station. Plug your iPod or iPhone into it and your TV becomes a viewing platform. Watch videos stored on your iPod on the TV, play games on the TV and listen to music and podcasts through the TV
www.igamefamily.com
04/12/09 - Google are planning a "Cloud" viewing platform for the London 2012 Olympics
www.raisethecloud.org
04/12/09 - Got into the Christmas spririt yet? Check out the Christmas video playlist on the Muzu TV web site
04/12/09 - If you don't know what to get the tech-head in your life for Christmas, check out the ElectroMan Surge Protector
02/12/09 - Check out foursquare. It's an iPhone and Android Phone application that allows you to check in with friends and see their current location on a map - www.foursquare.com
02/12/09 - Google has added a new page to its site, listing movies and their ratings in your area. You can also view trailers, where available http://google.com/movies
19/11/09 - A recent survey found that 93% of people plan to do their Christmas shopping online this year. If I was a shop owner without a web site, I'd be worried!
18/11/09- New words for your dictionary:
1. "Unfriend" means to remove someone as a friend on a social networking site.
2. "Intexticated" means being distracted due to texting while driving.
3. "Sexting" is the sending of explicit text messages.
17/11/09 - Update on the government's laptop for schools plan. It's officially titled Smart Schools = Smart Economy. Every classroom in the country is to get a teaching laptop, software and a digital projector over the next 3 years. The teachers' union was sceptical saying that the allocated funds would barely cover the cost of a laptop and a projector in each class. The government are predicting that the international standard of 5 computers per classroom will be achieved over the next 3 years. Ireland currently has one of the lowest rates of ICT usage in education in the developed world.
17/11/09- Check out National Learning Network's new web site. It's a big improvement on the rehab.ie site. You might see some familiar faces on the home page. www.nln.ie
16/11/09 - The Irish governement is to invest €150 million in a new program which will provide laptops for every school in Ireland as well as teacher training and technical support. The investment comes at a time when Irish school children are said to be losing out on the digital revolution compared to children in other countries. A recent survey of computers in schools found that 1 in 5 cannot be used and more than 50% are at least 4 years old.
13/11/09 - Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 was released this week. It was the fastest selling computer game ever, with people queuing at midnight to buy it.
13/11/09 - If you're into music, check out the Altec Lansing Expressionist Plus PC speakers. They can be used with any PC, iPod, MP3 player as well as Blu-ray and DVD players. The perfect xmas present to yourself!
13/11/09 - Finally it has arrived - a phone that is also a mirror! Slot it over your existing car mirror and you need never worry about penalty points again. It has Bluetooth built in and a microphone and speaker for making and receiving calls. Check out
www.seecode-europe.de
06/11/09 - Initial reations to Windows 7 have been very positive. Click here to read a review.
05/11/09 - Are you still writing with a pen and paper? That's so last century! Check out the Livescribe Pulse Pen. It's a pen with 4Gb of internal storage. Write on the special paper and it saves your handwritten notes as well as converting them to a sound file. Tap the pen on the notes to play back the sound file. Once you're done you can transfer your notes to your laptop or netbook. The notes can be organised, shared online and are fully searchable using keywords.
02/11/09 - The Internet is 40 years old this week. Almost as old as myself!
15/10/09 - Samsung's new N130 netbook is worth a look. It has a 10.1 inch screen, Intel Atom processor, 1Gb of memory and high definition audio. Prices start at €359.
15/10/09 - Silicon Republic has won the best Technology web site in the annual Irish Web Awards. The Nialler9 site won the music award again. Boards.ie won the discussion forum category. The Rose Project won the most accessible web site category.
15/10/09 - The way we watch TV is changing. Recent research has found that by 2011 the 18-30 age group will be spending more time on the Internet than watching TV. A growing trend is for people to watch TV and then tweet their reactions in real-time on their laptop. Currently, you can watch TV on your PC by installing a TV card. Some higher end graphics cards have an integrated TV card. It won't be long before TVs and PCs are integrated in one device.
12/10/09 - In the new programme for government, Fianna Fail and the Green Party have undertaken to deliver high speed broadband of 100Mbit to all second-level schools. They have also promised to make broadband available in every house in Ireland, subject to EU funding. Lets see if they keep these promises!
12/10/09 - It's Maths Week this week. This annual all-Ireland event, now in its fourth year, helps people of all ages to grasp how an understanding of mathematics is useful for all of us. Check out www.mathsweek.ie
08/10/09 - To resolve the European Union's complaint about the way Internet Explorer is bundled with Windows, Microsoft have agreed to present PC users with a "ballot screen" giving them the choice of alternate browsers. The ballot screen will be a feature of Windows 7.
07/10/09 - Google and Yahoo have fallen victim to a massive email phishing scam. 10,000 hotmail passwords were stolen and displayed on the pastebin web site. A second list of 20,000 passwords from AOL, Yahoo and Gmail accounts was discovered a day later. The news was originally posted on the neowin.net technology blog.
05/10/09 - Check out this video of Michael's new PC. You may want to put on your sunglasses.
05/10/09 - If you play the guitar, check out the i-Tab. It's a music player that scrolls lyrics and chords on the screen in time with the music, allowing you to play along.
05/10/09 - Online advertising spend has overtaken spending on TV ads for the first time ever in the UK.
05/10/09 - Microsoft have released a suite of free anti-virus, spyware and malware, called Microsoft Security Essentials.
29/09/09 - The European Commission wants to turn down the volume on MP3 players and other mobile devices by bringing in new laws to limit their sound output. Under the new law, all mobile sound devices will have to carry warnings about the risk to hearing if you listen to loud music over a long period. According to reasearch, up to 10 million people in the EU may be at risk of hearking loss due to having their MP3 players turned up too loud.
29/09/09 - Margaret Faulkner, a 95 year old great grandmother, has won the Silver Surfer of the Year award. She uses her PC to contact her grandchildren and great-grandchildren on email and on Skype. She has also completed a digital photography course. She remarked that when she was born in 1914, there wasn't even radio.
28/09/09 - Click here to see a picture of Michael's new custom PC, which he has been building for the last few months. Rumour has it that flights had to be re-routed away from Kildare due to the blue light coming from Michael's house.
28/09/09 - Microsoft have released Windows Vista Service Pack 2.
18/09/09 - Google have launched a new version of their Chrome web browser. Chrome 3.0 is faster, more stable and has enhancements such as a better tab page and support for themes.
17/09/09 - Facebook attracted 100 million new members in the last six months. It now has 300 million users making it the world's largest social networking site. Facebook hopes to announce that it has more than one million Irish users in the coming weeks.
14/09/09 - More than 500 websites have been nominated for the second annual Irish Web Awards. The winning website will be announced in October.
14/09/09 - Google have launched an online version of the Monopoly board game. The game is played out on Google Maps. You start with €3 million and you can buy any street in the world. I wonder how much the main street in Ballybrack costs???
01/09/09 - If you have an Ipod and have lots of tracks that are missing names and artwork, log on to www.tuneupmedia.com. The downloaded software runs as a sidebar to iTunes and finds missing song names and artwork in a massive online Gracenote database. As an extra service, it will find live gigs in your area. It's free to download for the first 100 tuneups, after which a €14 fee gives you unlimited use.
01/09/09 - If you fancy talking to aliens, log on to www.hellofromearth.net. You can send a 160 character text message to the nearest earth-like planet, which is a mere 20.5 light years away. Messages can take up to 20 years to transmit. By the time you receive a response you may have croaked it!
31/07/09 - British computer expert Gary McKinnon has lost his latest High Court bid to avoid extradition to America where he faces trial for hacking into US military networks. The US authorities said Mr McKinnon was responsible for the “biggest military hack of all time” that had been highly damaging and involved 97 government computers belonging to organisations including the US Navy and Nasa.
31/07/09 - Microsoft and Yahoo have joined forces in an attempt to challenge Google's dominance in the Internet search market. The 10-year deal will see Microsoft provide the search engine facilities on all sites owned and operated by Yahoo. Yahoo will take over advertising sales on Microsoft's web sites.
23/07/09 - Although the average Facebook user has 120 online friends, they only actually communicate with an average 6 people. 80% of our phone calls are made to just 4 people. The average Skype user talks regularly to 2 people.
20/07/09 - Eircom was targeted in a cyber attack last week. Thousands of Eircom customers were either unable to access the Internet or experienced very slow connection speeds as a result of the attack. This is the second attack on Eircom in as many weeks. The previous week, customers who tried access web sites were routed to adult sites or advertisements.
20/07/09 - Windows 7 can be pre-ordered on amazon.co.uk. Home Premium edition costs €87.18. Professional edition costs €209.27. If you want the Windows 7 Ultimate edition, you'll have to part with €220.94 of your hard earned cash.
06/07/09 - A new website, cmypitch.ie offers Irish entrepreneurs an opportunity to pitch their ideas to potential investors - sort of an on-line Dragon's Den.
25/06/09 - Google has said that they will be offering their Chrome operating system for free when it is released in the second half of 2010. Microsoft currently has 90% of the PC operating system market and intends to release Windows 7 in October of this year. Chrome will debut on netbooks (small laptops). Netbooks are the only segment of the PC market that is growing at the moment.
19/06/09 - The Chinese Government has decreed that a software program called Green Dam must be installed on all PCs being sold in China. Green Dam blocks web sites that the Chinese government deems unsuitable for viewing. Dell has said that it will only install the software if it can be turned off and only blocks pornography.
18/06/09 - It's been a bad week for data security! Fifteen laptops were stolen from the HSE. Two of these laptops were not encrypted. One of them contained personal details of families who had been meeting with social workers. Just when you thought it couldn't get any worse, four laptops were stolen from the Bord Gais offices in Dublin. One of these laptops, which incredibly wasn't encrypted, contains the banking details of 75,000 people who recently switched from ESB to Bord Gais for electricity. It wouldn't inspire confidence in the way our semi-state companies are run!
18/06/09 - Results of every census in Ireland over the last 80 years are now available online on the Central Statistics Office website - www.cso.ie
17/06/09 - Due to European competition laws, Internet Explorer will not be included with Windows 7 when it is released. Anyone who wants to use Internet Explorer will have to download it from the Internet.
15/06/09 - Microsoft is getting ready to release a free anti-virus product for PCs that will compete with Symantec and McAfee.
12/06/09 - Stop Climate Chaos will be forming a giant human hourglass this Saturday at noon on Sandymount Strand. They want to highlight the fact that time is running out to stop Climate Change. Everyone is welcome to attend.
www.stopclimatechaos.ie
05/06/09 - Having stopped releasing albums, the band Ash will be releasing their A-Z series of singles on the Internet, starting with the letter A in September.
05/06/09 - Microsoft have launched their new BING search engine. They aim to compete directly with Yahoo and eventually Google.
04/06/09 - Students doing their Leaving Cert English exam yesterday were asked to discuss the advantages and disadvantages of YouTube.
28/05/09 - Check out www.wolframalpha.com, an amazing new search engine!
25/05/09 - A new online grocery retailer www.cheepcheep.ie has opened in Bray. They claim to be a lot cheaper than Tescos. Goods can be ordered and paid for online and must be picked up from the depot in Bray within four days.
19/05/09 - The world's digital content, which includes phone calls, emails, photos, online banking transactions and postings on social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter now accounts for 487 billion gigabytes of disk storage. If the digital content was printed in a series of books, the stack of books would stretch from Earth to Pluto (a mere 4.2 billion kilometres) and back 10 times. The 487 billion gigabytes of files is expected to double within the next 18 months.
19/05/09 - Internet and mobile television services will not require a television licence once the new Broadcasting Bill is enacted. Minister for Communications Eamon Ryan said that mobile devices and internet services such as YouTube would be exempted from the requirement for a licence. Mobile phones, PCs with a broadband connection and laptops with TV cards will be covered by the exemption.
15/05/09 - Western Digital have released a 2Tb hard disk. Available from dabs.ie for €280.51.
03/04/09 - The deadline for the ideas campaign web site has passed. It received a total of 5284 suggestions on how Ireland can get out of the economic downturn. These ideas will be examined by staff from four prominent accounting firms leading to an action plan which will be presented to the government. The web site was visited 48000 times over the last 4 weeks. One of the suggestions was to build a four lane bridge between Ireland and Wales.
www.ideascampaign.ie
31/03/09 - Hosting 365 has criticised Fianna Fail's decision to move the hosting of its web site to a US hosting company. At a time when the government is supposed to be kick-starting the economy, why is it taking a €12000 contract from an Irish company and giving it to an American company?
www.fiannafail.ie
31/03/09 - Have you signed up to www.affluence.org, the latest social networking site? The only problem is you must be worth $3 million or more or have an annual income of at least $300,000 before being invited to join. The site already has 20,000 members.
31/03/09 - A web site claiming to offer a free year-round tan has received over a million hits. Check out www.computertan.com
31/03/09 - Researchers have uncovered a vast global computer espionage network, based mainly in China, which hacked into computers and stole documents from government and private offices in 103 countries. Cyber-spies employed trojan horse software, disguised as common software programmes such as Word. Once they infiltrated the systems, they gained control using malware – software they installed on the compromised computers. The cyberspy system, called GhostNet was used to hack into the foreign ministries of Iran, Bangladesh, Latvia, Indonesia, Philippines, Brunei, Barbados and Bhutan. A Nato computer was also being monitored.
20/03/09 - Check out this video of a guy who builds a PC with 24 solid state hard drives
20/03/09 - A computer programmer from Finland who lost his finger in a motorcycle accident has had it replaced with a prosthetic finger containing a USB drive. By peeling back the nail, he can plug his finger into a USB port! Click here to see a picture.
19/03/09 - If you see a black car with camera equipment cruising past your house, do not fear it's only Google collecting data for it's new street view feature. Steet view will give a panoramic view of any point along a city street. Using a PC or web phone, users will be able to zoom in on particular details such as the name of a shop or restaurant. The faces of pedestrians in the images will be blurred as will be the vehicle registration plates. Initially, Google intends to cover Dublin, Cork, Galway, Limerick and Waterford.
12/03/09 - Due to the economic downturn, Eircom is reviewing its investment in the next level of broadband networks. The original plan was to upgrade the core network from copper wire to fibre optic cables at urban centres and regional towns. This would give connection speeds of up to 24Mbits per second
12/03/09 - Ryanair has become the first airline in the world to switch to 100% web check-in. After October 1st, there will not be any Ryanair check-in desks at airports.
10/03/09 - Hewlett Packard is to create 500 jobs at its base in Leixlip, Co Kildare. The multi-lingual technical support centre will employ a range of people and 300 jobs are to be brought online immediately. No harm in sending your CV in!
09/03/09 - A new website www.ideascampaign.ie has been set up by a journalist in an effort to get the public's ideas on how to get out of the economic downturn. The website, which received 1000 ideas and messages of support in the first 24 hours, is staffed by IT and PR people who were made redundant because of the recession. It is also being supported by a network of volunteers.
05/03/09 -Komplett.ie are offering a 5% discount to customers who return old computer equipment that is still working. They are offering the discount in an effort to promote recycling.

26/02/09 - Tommy Collison, a 14 year old schoolboy from Limerick was among the winners at the fourth annual Irish Blog Awards. Check out his blog at www.trusttommy.com

Other blog winners were

www.mamanpoulet.com for the current affairs category

www.nialler9.com for music reviews

The full list of awards can be seen on http://awards.ie/blogawards/
19/02/09 - New York governor, David Paterson, has proposed a 4% tax on Internet downloads.
13/02/09 - An email storm has caused the Dail computer system to crash. The mail storm was caused by a million messages sent by campaigners seeking to have a vaccine for cervical cancer reinstated and was organised by Today FM DJ, Ray D'Arcy. TDs and other staff were unable to access their email and their Blackberry phones ground to a halt.
13/02/09 - Google have launched a new service called Latitude, which tracks your mobile phone using GPS technology. Once you download the Latitude software to your phone, you can allow your friends to track your exact position using Google maps. Some companies have already begun to use this technology to track the location of employees who have company mobile phones.
13/02/09 - Internet Explorer 8 is now available as a Beta download
09/02/09 - Now that radio has gone digital, there are an increasing number of interesting stations to listen to on your PC. Check out the following stations:

www.lastfm.com - this station builds a profile of your preferences and then plays music that it thinks you will like

www.blipfm.com - similar to lastfm but you can also build your own playlists and interact with other Blip users

www.muzu.tv - An Irish based online video site that allows users to build their own playlists and TV channels with videos of their favourite artists
09/02/09 - From the beginning of April, tracks downloaded from iTunes will work on all MP3 players. Currently, iTunes downloads only work on iPods. There are 10 million tracks available to download on iTunes but you still can't get The Beatles.
02/02/09 - Email is 40 years old this week! In 2008, we sent each other 60 billion emails every day. How did we ever manage to communicate with each other before email was invented???
02/02/09 - Steven Troughton-Smith, a 20 year old DCU student, has developed a game called Lights Off for the iPhone. iTunes new Apps Store allows people to upload programs they have developed themselves. If anyone downloads it, Apple gets 25% of the revenue and the developer gets 75%. Steven made $1000 in the first day of sales of Lights Off.
29/01/08 - Internet users face having their connections shut down if they continue to download music illegally, following an agreement reached between Eircom and four major record companies in the High Court. Under the "three strikes and you're out" system, customers downloading music illegally from peer to peer networks such as limewire will receive two warnings and will then be disconnected if they continue to download illegally.
28/01/09 - Are you a twitterer? Twitter is the latest social networking site set to overtake MySpace, FaceBook and Bebo. One of the attractions of Twitter is that each post is restricted to 140 alpha-numeric characters, about 20 to 25 words, which cuts out a lot of waffle. Some companies are already selling their products through Twitter. Barrack Obama and Britney Spears currently use twitter. Check out www.twitter.com
28/01/09 - In a recent survey, a Sunday Business Post journalist bought an Olympus DS-30 digital dictaphone online for €65, including delivery. The cheapest he could find the same product for in an Irish store was €200. (It has since been reduced to €180). It just goes to show that there is a lot of money to be saved by shopping online without having to drive 130km to Northern Ireland.
16/01/09 - If you have an IPod or mobile phone capable of playing video, you can now watch videos in 640x480 resolution using a pair of MyVu crystals which simply plug into your Ipod or phone. To see a picture, click here.
14/01/09 - The introduction of incredible new networking devices continues! The Slingbox allows you to connect wirelessly to your TV and watch it through your PC, Laptop or mobile phone in another room or in another country. Click here to see a picture. The Slingbox is currently on sale in Peats for €249.
13/01/09 - According to a recent study, use of the Google search engine is an environmentally unfriendly activity. A single Google search emits the same amount of carbon dioxide as boiling a kettle. This is because Google accesses multiple servers in response to each user search.
09/01/09 - If you're into listening to music through your PC, you can broadcast this wirelessly to any other room in the house using a transmita WiFi transmiter. The WiFi transmitter plugs into your music source, which can be any device with a standard 3.5mm mini-jack. You then set up the receiver in another room and plug in the speakers. Click here to see a picture.
09/01/09 - Intel have started to release flash based hard drives for PCs. As these drives have no moving mechanical parts, they are much faster than the traditional hard drives with read write heads and platters. Expect to pay €600 for an 80Gb hard drive. To see a picture, click here.
09/01/09 - Intel have released the Corei7 processor, incorporating a new design where all 4 processors cores sit on the same piece of silicon. The i7 has an integrated memory controller instead of the usual arrangement where the memory controller is part of the Northbridge on the motherboard. The i7 has 1,366 contact pins and uses socket. LGA 1366. To see a photo, click here.
09/01/09 - Asus have launched a bamboo laptop. According to Asus, bamboo is as strong as conventional cases and is more environmentally friendly. Click here to see a picture.
08/01/08 - There was a major announcement about jobs in Dell today. For a full report click here.
23/12/08 - Motherboards with two processors sockets have started to appear on the market. Click here to see a photo.
07/11/08 - Barrack Obama's clever use of the Internet as means of promotion during the election has been quoted as one of the important factors which contributed to his success.
25/09/08 - Be careful what you put on your BEBO or Facebook page. In a recent survey, 75% of companies said that they check employees social networking pages when they ring in sick. Companies are also checking social networking sites of job applicants to see if there is anything that contradicts what they said in the interview.
17/09/08 - New students in DIT can get a virtual taste of student life by logging on to Second Life which contains a virtual representation of the college. DIT now runs student orientation sessions through Second Life.
11/09/09 - Google is backing a project to bring Internet access to millions of people in Africa. This project will see the launching of 16 satellites to make the Internet available to unconnected parts of the world.
09/09/08 - John Brady, a former computer programming student, has set up a carpooling web site for commuters. Swiftcommute.ie has an algorithm that matches carpoolers based on their map co-ordinates.
05/09/08 - Google have developed a new web browser, called Chrome. This is expected to give Internet Explorer serious competition over the next few years. Chrome also has an in-built operating system. Some analysts are predicting that this could be the beginning of the end for Microsoft domination. You can download a beta version of Chrome from the Google web site.
05/09/08 - Computer maker Dell is seeking to sell all of its manufacturing plants worldwide and has approached contract computer manufacturers.
03/09/08 - Check out www.searchme.com. This is a new search engine with an interesting twist! It was developed by a person who used to work for Yahoo.
24/07/08 - Fed up of waiting in doctor's waiting rooms? If you have a 3G Video Phone, you can access the services of 3G Doctor at anytime from anywhere in the world. All you need to do is set up an account on the 3Gdoctor web site and then prepay using paypal or a credit card.
www.3gdoctor.com
22/07/08 - Edenbee is a new social networking site where people can share ideas on how you can reduce your carbon footprint.
www.edenbee.com
18/07/08 - If you need to get your laptop repaired, check out Electro Repair at South Great George's street. They charge a flat fee instead of charging by the hour and won't charge for time spent on a problem if they can't fix it. For a quote, phone 01-6751873.
15/07/08 - Wondering where the nearest wi-fi hotspot is? Get yourself a wi-fi t-shirt. The logo on the shirt lights up when you're in range of a wireless network! Check out www.firebox.com
10/07/08 - Dell have announced that by 2010, all it's PCs will use 25% less electricity.
10/07/08 - iTunes users have been targeted in Phishing attacks. An email asks the iTunes user to correct a problem with their account by inputting their credit card number, security code, social security number and mother's maiden name.
04/07/08 - Microsoft's replacement for Vista - currently codenamed Windows 7 is due to be released in early 2010.

04/07/08 - Microsoft have given XP an extension until 2010 but only on low cost desktops such as the Eee PC. Existing users of XP will continue to receive product support from Microsoft until 14 April 2009.
24/06/08 - A new website, novena.ie, will stream live novena services online. Members of the cyber congregation can also light a virtual candle which flickers into life at the click of a mouse.
24/06/08 - According to a government report, Ireland will have 100% broadband coverage by the end of 2010 and will have speeds comparable to the rest of Europe by 2012. This is a difficult target for Ireland to achieve as 40% of the population live in rural areas and less than 10% live in apartments, unlike many European countries where populations tend to live in densely-populated urban environments.
17/06/08 - Half of the complaints by people who purchased products on-line are related to delivery problems, according to the European Consumer Centre Network. For further information, check out www.eccireland.ie which has an electronic owl, named Howard, who (or should I say hoo) will tell you whether a web site is fraudulent or not

16/06/08 - Check out Richard Keanes redpebble web site. Richard is a former student of the college who went on to do an advanced web design course. He now runs his own web design business.
www.redpebble.ie
09/06/08 - A 27 year old man was told to pay his victim - a 16 year old girl - €3000 or go to jail after posting offensive messages on the schoolgirl's BEBO page. The prosecution was brought under the 1951 Post Office Amendment Act.
05/06/08 - Microsoft will stop selling XP licences on June 30th. This decision is proving to be extremely unpopular given that Vista is now considered to be Microsoft's most unpopular operating system ever.
29/05/08 - try-it.ie is a new web site that has an online library of assistive technologies. The web site will provide electronic aids on loan to users with disabilities so that they can try them out before purchasing them.
28/05/08 - Have you calculated your carbon footprint yet? Log onto www.change.ie
26/05/08 - A proof reader in a New York firm had been sitting dead at his desk for 5 days before anyone asked if he was feeling ok. His boss said that as the employee was always first in each morning and the last to leave at night that nobody noticed.
20/05/08 - You've heard of YouTube. Well now there's GodTube! Complete with a virtual bible and prayer wall.
www.godtube.com

19/05/08 - Two postgraduate students from Belfast have managed to pay their college fees and pay off their loans by charging people for the privalege of redefining the meaning of words on their web site - www.thebigwordproject.com
Why anyone would pay for this beats me but the two lads have sold more than 4500 words through their site. They charge a dollar a letter. The bulk of sales have been to the U.S.
12/05/08 - SPAM is celebrating it's 30th birthday. The first email marketing message was sent on 3rd May 1978 to 400 people via ARPANET and won it's sender much criticism from recipients.
09/05/08 - The first legalised home computers have gone on sale in Cuba but a ban on Internet access remains. The desktop PCs cost over 21,000 pesos (€500). The average wage is €13 a month.
06/05/08 - Microsoft have given up in their attempt to take over Yahoo. This means that Google will continue to be the world's dominant search engine.
29/04/08 - There are now 221 million Chinese Internet users, making them the most numerous web-surfers on the planet.
22/04/08 - Four Bank of Ireland laptops containing personal details of over 10,000 customers. The information on the laptops includes names, addresses, financial details and some medical records of the bank's life assurance customers. None of the stolen information was encryted although lesser forms of security, such as passwords, were used.
17/04/08 - Hundreds of people bought tickets to New York on the Aer Lingus web site when Aer Lingus advertised flights to New York for €5 in error. Aer Lingus later cancelled all the €5 tickets that had been sold.
03/04/08 - Experts have blamed the demise of the HD DVD format on the inclusion of Blu-ray support in the Sony Playstion 3 console. Blu-ray DVD players will now become standard on all PCs.
02/04/08 - 31% of all Irish households now have a broadband connection.
01/04/08 - Hackers have broken into the jobs.ie server and stolen the personal details of job applicants. The clients whose CVs were stolen are at risk from identity theft and phishing.
20/02/08 - A laptop stolen in New York contains personal details of 171,000 Irish blood donors.
12/02/08 - makeITsecure is a new website sponsored by the Irish government and the government of Northern Ireland. It has lots of useful information on PC security, phishing, viruses, firewalls, spyware etc. Check it out.
06/02/08 - Microsoft are to make a multi-million dollar bid for the Yahoo search engine in an attempt to compete with Google.
05/02/08 - Under a new EU directive, records of e-mails and internet chat messages sent and received by Irish residents, and the times they log on and off the Internet, will have to be stored for three years. The content of messages will not be retained, but information specifying who sent and received all email and chat messages, the date and time and the size of the message will be retained. IP addresses of senders and recipients will also be retained. Ireland received warning letters from the EU in December because it is 3 months late in implementing this directive.
01/02/08 - 75 million people in the Middle East and India are without Internet access due to a ship which severed an underwater communications cable off the coast of Egypt while trying to moor in bad weather.
14/01/08 - Windows XP Service Pack 3 is due for release in the first half of 2008. SP3 will include over 1000 hotfixes and patches that have been issued by Microsoft over the past 3 years.
In relation to Windows Vista, Microsoft have released Service Pack 1. However, tests have shown that it doesn't improve Vista's performance.
18/12/07 - Starting in January, Dell will be selling PCs in shops. This is the first time ever that Dell PCs will be available on the high street.
12/12/07 - An expert has predicted that virtual reality websites such as Second Life may trigger an exodus of people seeking to "disappear from reality".
12/12/07 - Western Digital, one of the world's largest hard drive manufacturers, have introduced technology that stops PC users sharing files on websites such as bittorrent.
12/12/07 - Secondary school teachers are to be given special training to help them to recognize "BEBO Bullying".
07/12/07 - It may be the end of the book as we know it! A new device called "The Kindle" is a handheld electronic book reader. It has a six-inch screen with a hard drive that can store 200 books and a battery that lets you read for up to 30 hours. Available on amazon.com

07/12/07 - Some techie xmas gift ideas:

Chumby - a squeeable clock/photo viewer which also plays mp3's and has Internet access: www.chumby.com

Asus Eee PC 701 - A laptop PC for €325: www.expansys.ie
03/12/07 - Lost anything recently? Your Step by Step Databases book perchance? You can search for it on www.lost.ie - a new website where incredibly honest people who have found stuff, give their contact details.
21/11/07 - The personal data of 25 million people and 7.25 million families across the UK has been lost. The Metropolitan Police are now leading the search for two disks containing details of the UK's entire child benefits database. (I guess they should have made a backup!!!)

13/11/07 - Radiohead's new album sold 1.2 million copies in it's first week of release. The album is only available on the Radiohead website. It's up to the purchaser to decide how much they want to pay for the album. People can download it for free if they want.
26/10/07 - 50% of Irish households now have an Internet connection but only 13% have Broadband.
23/10/07 - Facebook, the social networking website, now has 132,000 registered Irish users. Employers are getting increasingly worried about the length of time employees are spending on sites such as BEBO and Facebook. Facebook allows you to make contact with people you have known in the past. Check out www.facebook.com
22/10/07 - Laptops worth €17,500 were stolen from the Department of Finance last week.
15/10/07 - Radiohead have turned the music industry on it's head by releasing their album online and allowing fans to pay whatever they think it's worth.
10/09/07 - The next version of the Ipod will allow users to download music from ITunes without having to use a PC
10/09/07 - 600,000 people in Ireland now have access to Broadband
06/09/07 - At last, an authentic Irish search engine! Check out www.doogle.org

08/05/07 - Internet Election Fun! Click the following links:
08/05/07 - Rumour has it that Microsoft are going to take over Yahoo! This is seen as an attempt at competing with Google.
01/05/07 - A number of politicians are trying to connect with younger voters by setting up BEBO pages. Dun Laoghaire's Barry Andrews has a page at www.bebo.com/Profile.jsp?
MemberId=3886304407
Fine Gael also have BEBO pages. Senator John Paul Phelan's page is at www.bebo.com/Profile.jsp?
MemberId=3308432507
Fine Gael have got into trouble with the Industry Music Rights Association (IMRA) by using Westlife's Flying Without Wings as background music to some of their BEBO pages. IMRA are saying that Fine Gael must pay royalties because of this.
23/04/07 - Dell have announced a global carbon-neutral initiative promising to plant trees to offset the carbon impact of the electricity needed to power PCs.
17/04/07 - Sixty Five percent of Americans polled said they spend more time with their home PC then their spouse or significant other.
04/04/07 - Cybersquatters were quick to buy domain names after David Beckham's move to the Los Angeles galaxy football team. One enterprising squatter manage to secure www.beckhamgalaxy.info and www.beckhamgalaxy.com. These sites were then used to redirect users to pay-per-click adverts.
02/04/07 - Blu-ray optical disks and drives have been released on the market. Blu-ray disks are set to replace DVDs in the near future. Blu-ray gets it's name from the blue-violet laser used to read and write from the disk. The capacity of a blu-ray optical disk is 25 Gb for a single layer disk and 50 Gb for a dual layer disk. Amazon.com are selling movies in blu-ray format ranging from $13.49 to $19.97. If you want to install a blu-ray re-writer in your PC, Peats are selling them for a mere €859 each!
30/03/07 - Hackers have broken into the computer system of TK MAXX and have stolen credit card numbers belonging to thousands of TK MAXX customers.
27/03/07 - 100 million people are now using Internet Explorer 7.
27/03/07 - A new search engine, cranky.com, has been launched targeting the over 50's. It is designed to simplify web searching by processing requests from the perspective of a 50-year old.
26/03/07 - HGS (Hitachi Global Storage) are hoping to release the first 1TB (terabyte) hard drive before the summer. It is expected to retail at about €300.
23/02/07 - Sales of the Nintendo Wii games console have overtaken the Sony Playstation and Microsoft's X-BOX.
07/02/07 - Dublin City Council are planning to set up a WiFi network in Dublin city centre. This would allow anyone with a laptop, PDA or Internet enabled phone to access the Internet for free in the city. The system will work off "hotspots", which is an area offering WiFi (wireless network) access at selected locations such as libraries, hotels, conference centres, cafes and public buildings. The estimated cost of the WiFi project is between €12 million and €20 million.
02/02/07:  A new word for your dictionary - a "cyberbully" is a person who threatens or intimidates others on a social networking web site, such as Bebo.

31/01/07:  PC World are no longer stocking floppy disks due to lack of demand!

30/01/07:  Windows Vista, Microsoft's replacement for XP launches today. It has features that will allow parents to stop their children viewing certain web sites as well as restricting computer use to certain time periods. So if you don't eat your dinner, you wont be accessing the Internet! It has built in anti-spyware and a new interface called Windows Aero (Authentic, Energetic, Reflective and Open). Who comes up with this stuff?
Apple are already complaining that it looks very like it's MAC OS X operating system. There are also potential problems with transferring downloaded music onto other devices becuse of the digital rights management system which is part of Vista. It looks like it's a very hardware hungry operating system and will probably not work on your PC unless you have shed loads of RAM!









9 Upcoming Events
21/05 Spreadsheet Methods Exam and Project deadline Register for exams and projects using the sign up sheets, which are on the wall outside the classroom door
22/05 Database Methods Exam and Project deadline
23/05 Computer Architecture and Systems Exam and Project deadline
24/05 Information and Communication Systems Exam and Projects deadline
25/05 Systems Support Exam and Project deadline
25/05 The Performing Arts students are putting on a production of 'I do not like thee Dr Fell' by Bernard Farrell on Friday 25th May at 13:30 in the gym.
28/05 Project deadline for PC Design and Assembly
29/05 Project deadline for Web Authoring
29/05 Building the Future seminar: This event aims to help graduates with disabilities polish their job seeking skills and give them some important tips on successfully adjusting to the world of work and building a fulfilling career. The Seminar is running at Citi building, 1 North Wall Quay, Dublin 1
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Date Item  
17/05/12 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the Data Processing is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
16/05/12 A recording of this morning's System Support lecture on Hard Drives is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
15/05/12 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
14/05/12 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
11/05/12 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the Data and Information and Data Processing is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
10/05/12 A recording of this morning's System Support lecture on Hard Drives is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
09/05/12 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
08/05/12 A recording of the final Computer Architecture Revision lecture is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
08/05/12 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
04/05/12 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the Data and Information is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
03/05/12 A recording of this morning's System Support lecture on the Foxconn P55A socket 1156 motherboard and on hard drives is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
02/05/12 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
01/05/12 A recording of this morning's Computer Architecture lecture on Communication Systems and Operating Systems is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
01/05/12 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
30/04/12 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
27/04/12 A recording of the last 20 minutes of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the The Internet is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
26/04/12 A recording of this morning's System Support lecture on Hard Drives is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
25/04/12 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
24/04/12 A recording of this morning's Computer Architecture lecture on Communication Systems is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
24/04/12 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
23/04/12 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
20/04/12 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the The Internet is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
19/04/12 A recording of this morning's System Support lecture on Hard Drives is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
18/04/12

AHEAD have just announced the opening of applications for 5 weeks paid work experience with ESB for Office Administration. Closing date for applications is 1st May. Talk to Georgina if you are interested in this position. For more details, see the AHEAD web site.
18/04/12 A recording of yesterday's Computer Architecture lecture on Communication Systems is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
17/04/12 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
16/04/12 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
06/04/12 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the The Internet is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
05/04/12 A recording of this morning's System Support lecture on Hard Drives is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
04/04/12 A recording of yesterday's Computer Architecture lecture on Hardware is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
03/04/12 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
02/04/12 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
30/03/12 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the The Internet is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
29/03/12 A recording of this morning's System Support lecture on Hard Drives is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
27/03/12 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
23/03/12 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the Computer Software is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
22/03/12 A recording of this morning's System Support lecture on Wireless Networking is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
21/03/12 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
20/03/12 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
16/03/12 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the Computer Hardware and Software is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
15/03/12 A recording of this morning's System Support lecture on Wireless Networking is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
12/03/12 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
09/03/12 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the Computer Hardware is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
08/03/12 A recording of this morning's System Support lecture on Wireless Networking is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
06/03/12 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
05/03/12 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
02/03/12 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the Computer Hardware is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
01/03/12 A recording of this morning's System Support lecture on Wireless Networking is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
28/02/12 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
27/02/12 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
24/02/12 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the Computer Hardware is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
23/02/12 A recording of this morning's System Support lecture on Wireless Networking is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
22/02/12 Videos of this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
22/02/12 Videos of Monday's database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
20/02/12 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
18/02/12 Videos of this week's Web Authroing lecture are now on bitsoflearning. It's early days yet so the quality may not be great. The file sizes are quite big so unless you have a fast broadband connection, the files may take a while to download. Make a cup of tea while you're waiting!
17/02/12 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the Data Capture Form Project is now on bitsoflearning.
16/02/12 A recording of this morning's System Support lecture on Wireless Networking is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
15/02/12 There will be a delay in sending out this week's payslips. You will get paid on Thursday but you won't get your payslip until next week.
14/02/12 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
13/02/12 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
10/02/12 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the Internet and Search Engines Project is now on bitsoflearning.
09/02/12 A recording of this morning's System Support lecture on Wireless Networking is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
08/02/12 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
07/02/12 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
03/02/12 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the Software Project is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
02/02/12 A recording of this morning's System Support lecture on Networking is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
01/02/12 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
31/01/12 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
30/01/12 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
27/01/12 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the Information Systems Project is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
26/01/12 A recording of this morning's System Support lecture on Networking is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
25/01/12 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
24/01/12 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
01/12/11 A recording of this morning's System Support lecture on the Networking Project is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
30/11/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
29/11/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
25/11/11 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the Hardware Project is now on bitsoflearning.
24/11/11 A recording of this morning's System Support lecture on the Networking Project is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
23/11/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
22/11/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
18/11/11 Well done to everyone who did exams or handed up projects this week. Overall the standard was very high.
11/11/11 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on Data Processing is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
10/11/11 A recording of this morning's System Support lecture on Networking is now on bitsoflearning.
09/11/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
03/11/11 A recording of this morning's System Support lecture on the Networking Project is now on bitsoflearning.
02/11/11

Congratulations to Philip who has successfully built an Intel i5 based PC and installed it in the classroom.

ASRock H61M

The ASRock motherboard has SATA 3 and 2 x USB 3.0 external connections. Although it only has 2 DIMM slots, we've installed 4Gb 1333Mhz RAM in each slot, giving 8Gb of very fast RAM. The i5 quad core processor uses socket LGA1155 and runs at 3.30Ghz. The 1Tb SATA 3.0 hard drive has a transfer rate of 6Gbits/sec. We're using the onboard VGA controller. As this motherboard also has onboard DVI and HDMI graphics, an interesting project for the future would be to hook up a monitor to the DVI and HDMI connections. We haven't used the PCIe expansion slots so there's scope for future upgrades there. As it's PCI Express 2.0, the larger x16 slots operate at 8 Gbit/sec and the smaller x1 slot operates at 0.5 Gbit/sec. We now have 4 Intel based systems in the classroom.
02/11/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
01/11/11 A recording of this morning's Computer Architecture and Systems lecture on Communication Systems and Operating Systems is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
01/11/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
28/10/11 A recording of this afternoon's Info/Comms lecture on Data and Information is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
28/10/11 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on The Internet is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
27/10/11 A recording of this morning's System Support lecture on the Networking Project is now on bitsoflearning. A very limited number of Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
26/10/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
25/10/11 A recording of this morning's Computer Architecture and Systems lecture on Communication Systems is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
25/10/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
24/10/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
19/10/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
19/10/11 Smartboard slides from yesterday morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
18/10/11 A recording of this morning's Computer Architecture and Systems lecture on Technical Terms and Communication Systems is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
17/10/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
14/10/11 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on The Internet is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
12/10/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
11/10/11 A recording of this morning's Computer Architecture and Systems lecture on Technical Terms is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
11/10/11 A recording of last Friday's Info/Comms lecture on The Internet is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
11/10/11 A recording of last Thursday's Systems Support lecture on the Assemble PC project is now on bitsoflearning.
11/10/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
10/10/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
04/10/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
07/09/11 A recording of this morning's System Support lecture on the Processor for laptops and desktops is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
06/09/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
06/09/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
05/09/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
02/09/11 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on The Internet is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
02/09/11 An up to date version of the Student Handbook is now on bitsoflearning.
01/09/11 A recording of this morning's System Support for Desktops revision lecture on the Processor is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
31/08/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
30/08/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
29/08/11 I have updated the IT Timetable to include Customer Service, Monday's Tech Rota time, Tuesday's Tech Rota Team meeting and Thursday's Tech Support meeting.
29/08/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
26/08/11 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms Revision Lecture is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
25/08/11 The canteen is now available all day (from 8:30am onwards) for tea, coffee or just a general chill-out space.
25/08/11 Mary Roche is the new Transitions Facilitator for the Business Studies department. Mary will be working with students who are due to finish in the college, helping them prepare for job applications, interviews and progression to further training.
25/08/11 A recording of this morning's System Support for Desktops revision lecture on the Processor is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
24/08/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
23/08/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
22/08/11 Welcome back everyone. For those of you who followed by holiday blog, you will have noticed that I never updated it. Most of my holiday was spent away from electricity sources!
21/07/11 A recording of this morning's System Support for Desktops lecture on the Processor is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
19/07/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
18/07/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
14/07/11 A recording of this morning's System Support for Desktops lecture on the Processor is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
11/07/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
01/07/11 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on Computer Hardware is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
30/06/11 A recording of this morning's System Support for Desktops lecture on the Processor is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
28/06/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
27/06/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
24/06/11 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on Computer Hardware is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
23/06/11 A recording of this morning's System Support for Desktops lecture on the Processor is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
22/06/11 A recording of this morning's Computer Architecture and Systems lecture on the Operating System is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
20/06/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
17/06/11 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the History of Computing is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
16/06/11 A recording of this morning's Laptops and Mobile Computing lecture on Smartphones is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
15/06/11 A recording of this morning's Computer Architecture and Systems lecture on Data Communications and Operating Systems is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
15/06/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
13/06/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
10/06/11 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on Data Capture Forms is now on bitsoflearning.
09/06/11 A recording of this morning's System Support for Desktops lecture on the Processor is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
08/06/11 A recording of this morning's Computer Architecture and Systems lecture on Data Communications is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.

08/06/11

 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
07/06/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
03/06/11 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the Email and Address Books is now on bitsoflearning.
02/06/11 A recording of this morning's Laptops and Mobile Computing lecture on Smartphones is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
01/06/11 A recording of this morning's Computer Architecture and Systems lecture on Data Communications is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
01/06/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
31/05/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
30/05/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
27/05/11 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the Internet and Search Engines Project is now on bitsoflearning.
26/05/11 A recording of this morning's System Support for Desktops lecture on the Processor is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
25/05/11 A recording of this morning's Computer Architecture and Systems lecture on Technical Terms and Communication Systems is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
25/05/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
24/05/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
20/05/11 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the Operating Systems Project is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
19/05/11 A recording of this morning's Laptops and Mobile Computing lecture on Smartphones is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
19/05/11 A recording of yesterday's Computer Architecture and Systems lecture on Technical Terms is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
19/05/11 Smartboard slides from Wednesday's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
17/05/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
16/05/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
13/05/11 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the Information Systems Project is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
12/05/11 A recording of this morning's final System Support for Desktops lecture on the Motherboard is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
11/05/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
09/05/11 A recording of this morning's Computer Architecture and Systems lecture on the Computer Architecture Project is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
09/05/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
06/05/11 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the Security Project is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
05/05/11 Congratulations to Michael Phelan, Martin O Keefe and Thomas Crosby who have successfully completed 8 FETAC modules leading to the Level 5 Certificate in Information Processing.
05/05/11 A recording of this morning's System Support for Desktops lecture on the Motherboard is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
05/05/11 A recording of the Netbooks lecture from Thursday 21st April is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
04/05/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
03/05/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
23/04/11 I couldn't upload Thursday's Netbooks lecture to bitsoflearning as I seem to have run out of server space. I'll sort that out when I get back. In the meantime, hope you all have a great Easter break. Don't eat too many Easter eggs. See you on Tuesday 3rd May.
20/04/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
15/04/11 CSS lecture notes, assignments and solutions are now on bitsoflearning. Click here to view them. I will be adding to these over time. Slow progress though.
15/04/11 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the Ergonomics Project is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture. I have selected the next level down in terms of quality on the digital recorder this week. The file size of 17Mb is still quite large though. You might want to go for a cup of tea while waiting for the lecture to download. Next week, I'll reduce the recording quality again. Eventually, we will get the file to a manageable size.
13/04/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheet lecture are on bitsoflearning.
12/04/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheet lecture are on bitsoflearning.
11/04/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
08/04/11 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the Hardware Project is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture. The new digital recorder is creating very big file sizes so you might be waiting a while for this week's lectures to download. I will try to improve this over the coming weeks.
08/04/11 A recording of this morning's Laptops and Mobile Computing lecture on Netbooks is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
06/04/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
05/04/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheet lecture are on bitsoflearning.
04/04/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
01/04/11 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the Hardware Project is now on bitsoflearning. This is the first lecture in the current series of lectures, which will run from April to October.
31/03/11 The network is back up and running! A recording of today's Systems Support lecture on The Motherboard is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
25/03/11 A recording of today's final Info/Comms lecture on Data Processing is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
22/03/11 Photos of my cross country skiing trip to Norway last December are now on bitsoflearning.
22/03/11 A recording of this morning's Laptops and Mobile Computing lecture on Troubleshooting and Maintenance is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
21/03/11 A recording of Monday's Info/Comms lecture on The Internet is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
16/03/11 A recording of last Monday's Info/Comms lecture on The Internet is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
16/03/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
15/03/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheet lecture are on bitsoflearning.
14/03/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
11/03/11 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on The Internet is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
10/03/11 A recording of this morning's System Support for Desktops lecture on Installing a New PC is now on bitsoflearning.
09/03/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
08/03/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheet lecture are on bitsoflearning.
07/03/11 A recording of this afternoon's Info/Comms lecture on The Internet is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
07/03/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
04/03/11 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on Computer Software and the Internet is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
03/03/11 A recording of this morning's Systems Support for Desktops lecture on the Motherboard, incorporating exploding processors, the latest funky RAM for gaming PCs and processor specs from the Intel website, is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
02/03/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
01/03/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheet lecture are on bitsoflearning.
28/02/11 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on Computer Hardware and Software is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
28/02/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
25/02/11 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on Computer Hardware is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
24/02/11 A recording of this morning's Systems Support for Laptops lecture on Troubleshooting and Maintenance is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
23/02/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
22/02/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheet lecture are on bitsoflearning.
22/02/11 A recording of yesterday's Computer Architecture lecture on Data Communications is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
21/02/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
18/02/11 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on Computer Hardware is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
17/02/11 The college has qualified for the Green Flag award, which is given to organisations who efficiently recycle waste products, such as paper, cups etc. Congratulations to everyone who was involved in this.
17/02/11 A recording of this morning's Systems Support for Desktops lecture on the Motherboard, incorporating DDR, DDRII and DDRIII RAM, is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
16/02/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
14/02/11 Right, bitsoflearning is ticking over again. I'm back after a fairly serious illness. I must be getting old! Things will gradually get back to normal. Lectures will happen as normal this week and I'll do a few monthly reviews. However, please don't hand up any projects until next week as I don't have enough energy for correcting yet. Good to be back though. There's only so much daytime TV you can watch before you begin to feel like a vegetable!
14/02/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
21/01/11 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on Computer Hardware is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
20/01/11 A recording of this morning's Systems Support for Desktops lecture on Motherboards is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
20/01/11 This week's Tech Rota tasks have been updated on the whiteboard at the back of the classroom. Alan will be facilitating next week's practical sessions which will be on laptops.
19/01/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
18/01/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheet lecture are on bitsoflearning.
18/01/11 A recording of yesterday's Computer Architecture lecture on Data Communications is now on bitsoflearning.
17/01/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
14/01/11 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on Computer Hardware is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
13/01/11 A recording of this morning's Systems Support for Laptops lecture on Troubleshooting and Maintenance is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
12/01/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
11/01/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheet lecture are on bitsoflearning.
10/01/11 A recording of this morning's Computer Architecture on Operating Systems is now on bitsoflearning.
07/01/11 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the Internet and Search Engines, Email and Address Books and Data Capture Form Projects is now on bitsoflearning.
07/01/11 A recording of this morning's Systems Support for Desktops lecture on Motherboards is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
05/01/11 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
04/01/11 Welcome back everyone. Hope you had a great Christmas. Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheet lecture are on bitsoflearning.
21/12/10 Well folks, it's snowing heavily and more snow is forecast overnight. The temperature is not going to rise above zero, so travelling to college tomorrow will be difficult, especially if you're travelling from outside Dublin. I'll leave it up to you guys, whether you want to come in or not. We may not be able to do our Mario's XMAS lunch tomorrow. It depends on how many people are here. If it doesn't go ahead, we can always do it in January instead. Anyway, wrap up and stay warm!
20/12/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
17/12/10 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the Software Project is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
16/12/10 A recording of this morning's Systems Support for Laptops lecture on Troubleshooting and Maintenance is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
15/12/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
14/12/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
13/12/10 A recording of this morning's Computer Architecture lecture on Operating Systems is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
13/12/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database Methods lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
10/12/10 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the Data Security Project is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
09/12/10 A recording of this morning's Systems Support for Desktops lecture on Motherboards is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
07/12/10 The date for the Computer Architecture exam has been changed to Tuesday, January 25th.
07/12/10 The Central Statistics Office are recruiting 5000 Census Ennumerators. For more information go to www.census.ie
07/12/10 There are some gremlins in the system today! The sliding automatic doors at the main college entrance have gone on strike. To exit, press the green button on the right. To enter, alert reception staff by jumping up and down and they will let you in.
07/12/10 The lift is out of order again!
07/12/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
06/12/10 A recording of this morning's Computer Architecture lecture on Data Communications is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
06/12/10 The current cold-snap is forecast to continue until Thursday when temperatures are predicted to rise to a balmy 6 degrees. Footpaths in the Sandymount area are currently treacherous.
06/12/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
03/12/10 The lifts are working again. However, there is a small problem with the lift when users enter it on the ground floor – there is a 25 sec delay between pressing the button to the 1st floor and the lift actually moving to the that floor.  Don't worry, you're not stuck! Just count to 25!
03/12/10 Toilets are working again. Yipee!
02/12/10 Latest Update
The current situation is that the college will be open for students on Friday 3rd December with classes running as normal . The forecast is that it will be dry for the rest of Thursday. Very cold tonight with temperatures ranging between -6C and -4C predicted. A spell of sleet and snow may affect the Dublin area on Friday morning, followed by a dry and cold afternoon.
01/12/10 Update
Due to deteriorating weather conditions in the Dublin area, staff were sent home from college this morning at 10:30am. Before coming to college tomorrow, students should ring 2613400. There will be a recorded announcement giving information about college opening hours. For up to date weather and transport information, go to www.transport.ie
29/11/10 Important
Before coming in to college on Tuesday 30th November,students should ring to check that the college will be open. Heavy snow is forecast for the Dublin region on Monday night. For general information, go to www.transport.ie
29/11/10 A recording of this morning's Computer Architecture lecture on Hardware is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
29/11/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
25/11/10 A recording of this morning's Systems Support for Laptops on Troubleshooting and Maintenance is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
23/11/10

Important Points from last week's staff meeting

  • The college will be acquiring a defibrillator in the coming months
  • The stage in the gym is due to be updated in the new year. New lighting and sound equipment will be purchased. This will benefit the Performing Arts course
23/11/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheet Methods lecture are now on bitsoflearning
22/11/10 As you've probably noticed, the lift is still out of order. The  problem is with wear & tear of some of the older components and, given the age of the lift, trying to find replacement parts is proving to be challenging. An engineer will be on site later today. Hopefully, he will resolve the problem.
22/11/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
19/11/10 Congratulations to Michael who completed his 20th tech rota job for the Systems Support module this week. I think you might deserve an extra pint and a bag of chips this weekend Michael!
19/11/10 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the Information Systems Project is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
19/11/10 A recording of yesterday's Systems Support for Desktops lecture on Motherboards is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
17/11/10 I can't believe that I'm putting a notice about Toilets on bitsoflearning but here goes! The toilets have been blocked a lot lately as you've probably noticed. This is because people are disposing of wipes (e.g. baby wipes) in the toilets. Putting wipes down a toilet causes them to get blocked. As long as everyone uses the toilet paper provided then everything will be ok. This is the end of today's public health broadcast, brought to you by the bitsoflearning team.
16/11/10 A recording of last Thursday's System Support for Laptops lecture on Troubleshooting and Maintenance is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
16/11/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheet Methods lecture are now on bitsoflearning
15/11/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database Methods lecture are now on bitsoflearning
10/11/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning
10/11/10 Due to technical problems on the server side, bitsoflearning was off-line yesterday. Fortunately, it's back up and running now.
09/11/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheet Methods lecture are now on bitsoflearning
08/11/10 The FETAC Extern has left the building! Congratulations to all IT and Programming students who submitted modules for my subjects. All results have been approved. The FETAC Extern was very impressed by the quality of submitted work. Well done everyone! Treat yourself to an extra half of a biscuit (plain and not chocolate, mind you) with your tea tonight.
08/11/10 There has been a change to the staff meeting on Friday. It is now starting at 13:30. Classes will run as normal on Friday morning. College will finish at 12:30 on Friday.
08/11/10 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the Ergonomics Project is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
08/11/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database Methods lecture are now on bitsoflearning
05/11/10 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the Storage Project is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
04/11/10 There will be a film crew in the college over the next number of weeks. Most of the filming will take place downstairs.
04/11/10 A recording of this morning's System Support for Desktops lecture on Motherboards is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
04/11/10 Smartboard slides from yesterday's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
02/11/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheet Methods lecture are now on bitsoflearning
26th Oct to 29th Oct Sign in sheet for Computer Maintenance students is in the Computer Programming classroom. Have a good week everyone and don't work too hard. I will be thinking of you all as I fall off my mountain bike!
22/10/10 A recording of this morning's lecture on the Computer Architecture Project is now on bitsoflearning.
20/10/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning
19/10/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheet Methods lecture are now on bitsoflearning
18/10/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
14/10/10 Due to FETAC corrections, there will be no classes in the IT and Computer Maintenance classroom tomorrow (Friday 15th).
13/10/10 Smartboard slides from Monday's Database Methods lecture are now on bitsoflearning
08/10/10 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the Hardware Project is now on bitsoflearning.
07/10/10 A recording of this morning's lecture on Motherboards is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
04/10/10 Smartboard slides from today's Info/Comms lecture on exam technique are now on bitsoflearning.
30/09/10 There will be no classes on Friday for IT and Computer Maintenance students as I have to work on a FETAC project. The classroom won't be available for students.
30/09/10 A recording of this morning's System Support (Laptops) lecture on Wireless Networking is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
28/09/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheet Methods lecture are now on bitsoflearning
27/09/10 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on Data Processing lecture is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
27/09/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database Methods lecture are now on bitsoflearning
24/09/10 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on Data Processing lecture is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
23/09/10 A recording of this morning's System Support (Laptops) lecture on Wireless Networking is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
21/09/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheet Methods lecture are now on bitsoflearning
20/09/10 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on Data Processing lecture is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
20/09/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database Methods lecture are now on bitsoflearning
17/09/10 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on Data and Information/Data Processing lecture is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture. There will be an extra lecture next Monday 20th September at 11:00am in room 14a.
16/09/10 A recording of this morning's System Support (Desktops) lecture on Motherboards is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
15/09/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning
14/09/10 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on The Internet/Data and Information is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture. There will be an extra lecture next Tuesday at 11:00am in room 14a.
14/09/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheet Methods lecture are now on bitsoflearning
13/09/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database Methods lecture are now on bitsoflearning
10/09/10 If you intend doing the Spreadsheet Methods, Database Methods or Info/Comms exam in early October, please sign your name on the relevant registration sheet outside the IT and Computer Maintenance classroom door.
10/09/10 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on The Internet (including references to archaic Irish laws and "De North Side") is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture. There will be an extra lecture next Tuesday at 11:00am in room 14a.
09/09/10 Dates for the Database Methods, Spreadsheet Methods and Info/Comm Systems exams are now in the events calender. Click the "Click to Expand" link at the top of this web page to see all the dates.
08/09/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
07/09/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
06/09/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
03/09/10 Today's Info/Comms lecture on The Internet is now on the bitsoflearning site. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
02/09/10 A recording of this morning's System Support (Desktops) lecture on Safety is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
31/08/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's spreadsheets lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
30/08/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's database lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
26/08/10 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on The Internet is now on bitsoflearning. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
24/07/10 I have updated the Computer Theory books in the classroom. We now have the 2011 editions of Computer Concepts and Computing Essentials. These books are very good for computer theory and have lots of very good illustrations. They also come with DVDs. I also bought a book specifically on Netbooks. The books are on the filing cabinet behind my desk and can be used in class. Please remember to put them back when you are finished.
24/07/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's spreadsheets lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
23/07/10 Welcome back everyone! Having survived massive floods in the Himalayas and a major trip over the handlebars of my mountain bike in Scotland, I reckon I'm ready for anything the college can throw at me this term!
19/07/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
16/07/10 There's a bit of a room change going on at the moment. Accomodation services and Step Up are swapping classrooms.
16/07/10 Unfortunately, the quality of recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture is really bad as the microphone battery is nearly dead. You can however listen to the equivalent lecture from last year by going to the Info/Comms Podcasts page and clicking the link that brings you to podcasts from October 2009 to March 2010. It's lecture number 4, titled "Hardware devices (part 3), System Software, Application Software, Introduction to the Internet".
09/07/10 Due to the Computer Architecture exam, there will be no Database Lecture next Monday morning. Also the classroom will only available to students doing the exam. The classroom will be open again from 11:30am onwards.
09/07/10 A recording of this morning's Computer Architecture lecture on Data Communications is now bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
08/07/10 A recording of this morning's lecture on Wi-Fi Networks is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
07/07/10 A recording of this morning's Computer Architecture lecture on Operating Systems is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
06/07/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's spreadsheets lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
05/07/10 Smartboard slides from this morning' database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
02/07/10 Congratulations to Michael, Thomas and Philip who have completed very successful work experiences in DCU, Marx Computers and MicroPro Computers.
02/07/10 A recording of the first section of this morning's Computer Architecture lecture on computer hardware is now on bitsoflearning. The powerpoint slides from this lecture are also available.
02/07/10 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on storage devices is now on bitsoflearning. The powerpoint slides from this lecture are also available.
01/07/10 The batteries in my dictaphone ran out today so I don't have a recording of the Wireless Networking lecture. Doh! The powerpoint slides are on bitsoflearning though.
29/06/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's spreadsheets lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
28/06/10 Smartboard slidesfrom this morning's database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
25/06/10 A recording of this morning's Info-Comms/Architecture lecture on computer hardware is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
22/06/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's spreadsheets lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
21/06/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's database lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
18/06/10 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on Hardware is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
16/06/10 Due to the Sandymount Community fair on Friday, there will be very limited parking available in the college. Also, classes will finish at 12:00 on Friday. We will have our Info/Comms lecture as usual.
15/06/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
28/05/10 Best of luck to Vinnie who finished on the IT and Computer Maintenance course this week.
28/05/10 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the Software, Internet and Search Engines, Email and Address Books and Data Capture Form projects is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides from this lecture are also available.
27/05/10 A recording of this morning's Laptops and Mobile Computing lecture on wireless networking is now on bitsoflearning. Powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
26/05/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Web Authoring lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
25/05/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheet Methods lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
24/05/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Database Methods lecture on now on bitsoflearning.
21/05/10 Congratulations to Michael who is finishing his six weeks work experience in DCU today.
21/05/10 A recording of today's Info/Comm System's lecture on the Information Systems project is now on bitsoflearning. The powerpoint slides are also available for this lecture.
20/05/10 A recording of today's Laptops and Mobile Computing lecture on Wireless Networks is now on bitsoflearning. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
20/05/10 Smartboard slides from yesterday's web authoring lecture are now on bitsoflearning.
18/05/10 The staff meeting due for Wednesday morning has been cancelled at short notice. Classes will begin at 9:00am and we'll have a Web Authoring lecture as normal.
18/05/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's spreadsheets lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
17/05/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's database lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
14/05/10 Congratulations to Russ Gittins, who has passed the Cisco CCNA Networking for Home and SmallBusiness exam. Russ was a student on the IT and Computer Maintenance course a couple of years ago.
14/05/10 A recording of this mornings explanatory talk on the Computer Architecture Project and Marking Scheme is now on the bitsoflearning site.
14/05/10 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the Security Project is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
11/05/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's spreadsheets lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
10/05/10 A link to the Computer Architecture page has been added to the bitsoflearning main menu. Visit this page to download the Computer Architecture project brief and marking scheme.
07/05/10 A recording of today's Info/Comms lecture on the ergonomics project is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
06/05/10 A recording of this morning's Laptops and Mobile Computing lecture on Components and Upgrading is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
05/05/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's web authoring lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
04/05/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Spreadsheets lecture on Functions are now on the bitsoflearning site.
30/04/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's Info/Comms lecture on the Storage Devices project are now on the bitsoflearning site.
29/04/10 A recording of today's Laptops and Mobile Computing lecture on Batteries and Power Management is now on the bitsoflearning site. The Powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
28/04/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's web authoring lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
27/04/10 External FETAC verification is now complete for my subjects. There were no issues. External verification is still taking place for other subjects. Once the entire verification process is complete, I will be able to give out the results.
27/04/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's spreadsheets lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
27/04/10 Smartboard slides from yesterday's database lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
23/04/10 All FETAC modules from the Business Studies department have passed the internal verification process. The external verifier will be checking IT subjects on Monday. Hopefully, it will be white smoke at 4pm!
23/04/10 There is a problem with backups on the server at the moment. Make sure you back up any important files on a memory stick!
22/04/10 James Rikkard, from head office, is looking for ideas for Equality and Diversity week, which will be held in June. Ideally, each class should put forward its own ideas of what they would like to see included in the week of activities.
Current ideas include inviting someone the Equality Authority to speak, and a possible workshop on bullying
22/04/10 A recording of today's Laptops and Mobile Computing lecture on Batteries and Power Management is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
20/04/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's spreadsheets lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
19/04/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's database lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
16/04/10 A recording of today's Info/Comms lecture on the Hardware Project is now on the bitsoflearning site.
15/04/10 A recording of today's lecture on Laptop Basics is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
14/04/10 Smartboard slides from yesterday's Spreadsheets lecture and today's Web Authoring lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
12/04/10 Smartboard slides from today's database methods lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
02/04/10 A recording of yesterday's first lecture in Laptops and Mobile Computing is now on the bitsoflearning site. Powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
31/03/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's web authoring lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
30/03/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's spreadsheets lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
29/03/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's database lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
25/03/10 Well done to everyone who did FETAC exams this week or who submitted FETAC projects. I'll have provisional results some time next week.
25/03/10 A reminder that there are no classes for Business Studies students on Friday 26th March as it's FETAC Correction day. Students will be "working from home" on that day.
12/03/10 I'm off skiing for the week. The life of an instructor is not easy! Noel will be looking after things in my absence. See you all on Monday 29th March for FETAC exam week.
11/03/10 A recording of this morning's System Support revision lecture on RAM and BIOS/CMOS is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
10/03/10 Smartboard slides from today's web authoring lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
09/03/10 Smartboard slides from yesterday's database methods lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
05/03/10 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on Data Processing is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
04/03/10 Exam Registration sheets are on the wall outside the classroom door. Make sure you sign up for any FETAC exams you intend doing in March.
03/03/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's web authoring lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
01/03/10 NO CLASSES TOMORROW (Tuesday) FOR BUSINESS STUDIES STUDENTS. Don't say I didn't tell you!
26/02/10 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture is now the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
25/02/10 Due to staff training there will be no classes on next Tuesday, 2nd March.
25/02/10 A recording of today's System Support lecture on Networks is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
24/02/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's web authoring lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
23/02/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's spreadsheets lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
22/02/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's database lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
19/02/10 A recording of today's Info/Comms lecture on The Internet is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available
18/02/10 A recording of today's System Support lecture on Networks is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
17/02/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's web authoring lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
16/02/10 Due to a driver update problem with the smartboard yesterday, I was unable to put the slides for the database lecture on the bitsoflearning site.
16/02/10 Smartboard slides from today's spreadsheets lecture on lookup functions are now on the bitsoflearning site.
16/02/10 Last Friday's Haiti appeal raised €1000! Thanks to everyone who contributed books, DVDs and CDs and to everyone who bought stuff.
12/02/10 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on The Internet is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
11/02/10 A recording of this morning's System Support lecture on Networks is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
09/02/10 Smartboard slides for this morning's spreadsheets lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
09/02/10 Due to a staff meeting, classes will finish at 10:30am tomorrow.
08/02/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's database lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
05/02/10 Congratulations to Vincent who passed the final module for his ECDL certificate today.
05/02/10 A recording of today's Info/Comms lecture on the Internet is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available
04/02/10 The downpipes on the main college building are being replaced today Thursday 4th and Friday 5th.  As a result some car parking spaces will need to be blocked off during this time. This will affect any students who drive to college.
04/02/10 A recording of today's System Support lecture on Networks is now on the bitsoflearning site. The Powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
03/02/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's web authoring lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
02/02/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's spreadsheets lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
01/02/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's database lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
29/01/10 A recording of this morning's Info/Comms lecture on Hardware, Software and The Internet is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
28/01/10 A recording of today's System Support lecture on the PSU is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
27/01/10 Best of luck to Ronan who finishes in the college today!
27/01/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's web authoring lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
25/01/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's database lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
22/01/10 A recording of today's Info/Comms lecture on hardware devices is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
20/01/10 There is a vacancy for a Web Systems Analyst in the Rehab Group head office in Sandymount. A printout of the job ad is on the classroom wall next to the door. Closing date is Friday 29th January.
19/01/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's spreadsheets lecture are on on the bitsoflearning site.
18/01/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's database lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
15/01/10 A recording of today's Info/Comms lecture on hardware is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
14/01/10 A recording of today's System Support lecture on the Power Supply Unit is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
13/01/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's web authoring lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
12/01/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's spreadsheets lecture are on on the bitsoflearning site.
11/01/10 The snow is melting! Everything is pretty much back to normal in the college.
11/01/10 Smartboard slides from this morning's database lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
08/01/10 Snow is forecast for the Leinster area on Saturday and Sunday. Depending on how bad it is, travel to the college may be affected. If I have any news I will post it here. In the meantime, light the fire, wrap up warm and maybe have a hot whiskey or two.
07/01/09 College is open tomorrow. However, it's up to you whether it's safe to come in or not. There won't be any lectures as it will be very quiet. People are welcome to come in and work on the PCs. The canteen will be open and a light lunch will be provided.
07/01/09 As the college was very quiet today, I spent the day making System Support crosswords. If you're snowed in and bored out of your mind, click here to try a crossword or two.
06/01/10 Smartboard slides from today's web authoring lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
05/01/10 There is a vacancy for a Help Desk Technician, based in Swords, on the FAS website.
05/01/10 Smartboard slides from todays spreadsheets lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
04/01/10 Happy new year everyone! Smartboard slides from todays database lecture are now on the bitsoflearning site.
25/12/09 Have a great Christmas everyone! See you all on the 4th January.
24/12/09 There is a vacancy for an Asset Recovery Service Technician in Rehab Recyling, Tallaght. The closing date is Friday 8th January 2010. For anyone interested in this position, a print out of the job advertisement is next to the door of the IT and Computer Maintenance classroom.
22/12/09

There is a new version of the Business Studies timetable. The only changes are to subjects not taught by me, which are as follows:

  • Thomas is teaching Enterprise Development on Mondays and Tuesdays in room 13 at 13:30
  • Roisin is teaching Customer Service in room 13a on Tuesday at 10:50
  • Thomas is teaching ECDL on Thursday at 13:30 and Friday at 10:50 in room 13
  • Word Processing classes switch from Friday afternoon to 9:00am Friday morning in room 13a

To see the updated timetable, click the IT Timetable link in the menu. I'm hoping to have an interactive timetable sometime in the new year.
22/12/09 Smartboard slides from this week's Database and Spreadsheet lectures are now on the bitsoflearning site.
18/12/09 A recording of today's Info/Comms lecture on the History of PCs is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
17/12/09 A recording of today's System Support lecture on the Power Supply Unit is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
15/12/09 The SmartBoard is finally here! It will take me a while to get used to using it but I will be recording slides from the Spreadsheets and Databases lectures each week. Click here to see my first attempt. There is also a permanent Spreadsheets Lectures link in the menu on the left.
09/12/09 There will be limited canteen services on Thursday 10th and Friday 11th. Tea and scones will be available for the morning break. Soup and sandwiches will be available at lunchtime.
07/12/09 Sustainable Energy Ireland will be carrying out an energy audit of the college in the new year.
04/12/09 A recording of today's Info/Comms lecture on the Software Applications project is now on the bitsoflearning site.
03/12/09 Today's System Support lecture on the Expansion Bus is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available. This was the last of 4 lectures on the expansion bus. Next week's lecture will be on the PSU.
27/11/09 I won't be in the college on Monday. Noel will be looking after things in my absence.
27/11/09 Today's Info/Comms lecture on the Information Systems project is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
26/11/09 Today's System Support lecture on the Expansion Bus is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
26/11/09 The toilets are working again!
20/11/09 A recording of today's Info/Comms lecture on the Security project is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
19/11/09 A recording of today's System Support lecture on the Expansion Bus is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
13/11/09 A recording of today's Info/Comms lecture on the Ergonomics Project is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
13/11/09 A recording of Thursday's System Support lecture on the Expansion Bus is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
11/11/09 The FETAC verifier has left the building! None of the grades for my subjects were marked down. Some grades were marked up from Merits to Distinctions. Well done to everyone who completed FETAC modules.
10/11/09 Ann Murphy is a new R.O. who as started working in the college this week. Gemma Boogle, who is also an R.O. will be also be working in the college soon. Ann and Gemma are replacing Pamela and James, who left recently.
06/11/09 A recording of today's Info/Comms project on the Storage Devices project is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
05/11/09 The server will be powered down at 2pm tomorrow (Friday) so back up all your work and copy anything you're currently working on to a memory stick.
23/10/09 I'm on holidays until Monday 2nd November. Noel will be looking after stuff in my absence.
23/10/09 A recording of today's Info/Comms project on the Hardware Project is now on the bitsoflearning site.
23/10/09 A recording of this Thursay's System Support lecture on BIOS and CMOS is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
15/10/09 A recording of today's System Support lecture on BIOS and CMOS is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
09/10/09 A recording of today's final Info/Comms lecture on Data Processing is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
08/10/09 A recording of today's Info/Comms lecture on Data Processing is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
08/10/09 A recording of today's System Support lecture on RAM is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
06/10/09 The sign up sheet for exams is outside the door of the classroom. Make sure you sign up for any exams you want to do.
02/10/09 A recording of today's Info/Comms lecture on Data Processing is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
01/10/09 A recording of today's Info/Comms lecture on Data Processing is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
01/10/09 A recording of today's System Support lecture on RAM is no on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
25/09/09 Recordings of today's Info/Comms lectures on Information Systems and Data Processing are now on the bitsoflearning site. Powerpoint slides for both the Information Systems lecture and the Data Processing lecture are also available.
25/09/09 Painters will be working on the outside of the upstairs windows starting from Monday 28th. So don't be alarmed if you see a strange man outside the window, as you work on your PC!
24/09/09 A recording of today's Info/Comms lecture on Information Systems is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
24/09/09 A recording of today's System Support lecture on RAM is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
23/09/09 James Goulding, who has been doing IAPs with IT and Computer Maintenance for last 2 years, is leaving on Friday. All the best James!
22/09/09 Eoghan Keegan will be teaching Customer Service on Mondays and Fridays for the next 4 weeks. These classes will be held in room 10.
22/09/09 Smoke detectors will be installed in the toilets soon. So no more sneaky cigarettes!
18/09/09 A recording of this week's second Info/Comms lecture is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available. We are now finished Unit 4: The Internet. Next Thursday, we'll start on Unit 1: Data and Information.
17/09/09 A recording of today's Info/Comms lecture on the Internet is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
17/09/09 A recording of today's System Support lecture on Floppy Drives is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
15/09/09 An external network consutant is working on the college network today. The network should be fully operational tomorrow.
15/09/09 For the next 5 weeks, there will be an additional Info/Comms lecture at 11:00am on Thursdays. There will be a sign language interpreter available for each of these lectures.
15/09/09 System Support lecture is at 9:00am on Thursday. This lecture will take place at 9:00am in future.
11/09/09 From next week on, I plan to do two Info/Comms lectures each week so that we can cover the course before the exam. Which day the extra lecture is on depends on availability of Sign Language Interpreters.
11/09/09 A recording of today's Info/Comms lecture on The Internet is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
10/09/09 A recording of today's final System Support lecture on Hard Drives is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
08/09/09 FETAC exams are coming up already! I will be posting the dates on the bitsoflearning site soon.
08/09/09 The college is in the process of recruiting a new Finance instructor for the Business department. The new instructor will be working in room 10 (next to the Tech Support department).
08/09/09 The network was down yesterday. Nobody was able to access their My Documents folder. That's working today but there's still some problems.
08/09/09

If you are going to gym tomorrow for the President's address, there are a few important points to note:

  • Nobody will be admitted to the gym after 11:15
  • Don't leave during the President's speech
  • Use of camera phones or cameras in general is not permitted. Only 1 official photographer is allowed.
  • Turn off your mobile phone or put it on silent.

Festivities continue in the gym after lunch in the form of a concert featuring internationally famous pop stars.
04/04/09 Today's Info/Comms lecture on The Internet is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
02/09/09 You will have noticed that email and Internet has not been working in the college. Normal service will be resumed soon. Do not adjust your TV. In the meantime, we'll just have to talk to each other!
02/09/09 There are two new instructors in the college. Susan Hayes is the new intstructor in Foundation 1. Aine Nally is the instructor on the Access course for school leavers.
02/09/09 I have a new toy for the IT and Computer Maintenance course. All will be revealed next week.
02/09/09 The student's union office is moving to the glass partition room at the end of the corridor. Once this happens, monthly reviews will be taking place in Paul Coulter's office (next to Enda's office). Paul will be moving downstairs. All of this is to facilitate the new Access Course for school leavers which will be located in what was the Common Room. Confused?
01/09/09 Welcome back everyone. Hope you all had a great holiday.
31/07/09 Have a great holiday everyone! See you all on Monday 31st August. Needless to say, I won't be updating bitsoflearning over the next 4 weeks!
29/07/09 There will be no hot lunch in the canteen tomorrow. Soup and sandwiches will be available though. The canteen is closed on Friday.
29/07/09 A new access course for school leavers is starting in the college in September. It will be located in what is now the student common room.
24/07/09 Today's Info/Comms on Sound and Software is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
23/07/09

Today's System Support lecture on hard drives is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
22/07/09 The Drop-In centre will be open in College Start for the first 2 weeks of the holidays. There will be Internet Access, newspapers, tea, coffee and chat!
20/07/09 Nine days left to the holidays! Not that I'm counting, of course.
20/07/09 Due to FTP problems, updates to bitsoflearning have been patchy over the last few days. The problem seems to be sorted now.
20/07/09 Biz Talent showcase is on this Friday at 11:00am in the Business Administration classroom.
20/07/09 Last Friday's Info/Comms lecture on Hardware is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
16/07/09 Today's System Support lecture on Hard Drives is now on the bitsoflearning site. Powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
15/07/09 There haven't been any updates to bitsoflearning this week due to the fact that my PC died first thing Monday morning. A good start to the week! I know I'm always going on about backups but my last backup was on 29th May. So much for practising what you preach! Fortunately, because most of my stuff was on the network server, I didn't lose much - just my Internet Explorer favourites, my address book in Outlook Express and any documents I had saved on the desktop. So when you see the Synchronizing icon when you're shutting down your PC, it's worth waiting while all your files are copied to the server!
15/07/09 The Biz Talent Showcase will be on Friday 24th July at 11:00am in the Business Admin room.
15/07/09 There will be a night out at the dogs at Shelbourne Greyhound Stadium on Thursday July 30th. Contact Ed in the Business Admin room for details.
10/07/09 A recording of today's Info/Comms lecture is now on the bitsoflearning site. The Powerpoint slides for this lecture are also available.
09/07/09 The batteries in my digital dictafone ran out after 8 minutes so there's no recording of the third and final lecture on The Processor. Lecture notes and questions are on the bitsoflearning site though.
07/07/09 Noel is on holidays until Monday 20th July.
06/07/09 Carol Baxter from the Equality Authority will be giving a talk to students tomorrow 7th @ 1.30 in the Gym.
06/07/09 It's International Cuisine Week in the canteen so you can stuff your face with food from a different country every day!
06/07/09 A reminder that the Focus Group is on tomorrow afternoon at 3pm in 13A.
06/07/09 Sports Day is on this Wednesday, starting at 10am. Everyone is welcome to attend even if you just want to watch. There will be no classes after 10am on sports day. BBQ at lunch time. Hopefully, the weather will be good.
03/07/09 A recording of today's Info/Comms lecture on the History of Computers is now on the bitsoflearning site. The powerpoint slides from this lecture can also be downloaded.
02/07/09 Today's lecture on The Processor is now on the bitsoflearning site.
02/07/09 Next Tuesday 7th July at 3pm, Enda Connolly is running a Focus Group for Business Studies students in room 13A. He will be looking for views of the students on the college - what's good, what's bad, what could be improved etc. It would be good if there were one or two students from IT and Computer Maintenance at this.
02/07/09 Next week is International Cuisine Week in the canteen. There will be food from a different country each day and a BBQ on Wednesday. Rumour has it that the food is free at the BBQ but don't quote me on that!
30/06/09 Anyone interested in performing in the Biz Talent Showcase should give their names to Thomas in room 13 by Thursday of this week.
19/06/09 A recording of todays' Info/Comms lecture on the final four projects is now on the bitsoflearning site together with the powerpoint slides. Next Friday we will be starting lectures on Hardware and Software in preparation for the exam in October.
18/06/09 The powerpoint slides for this week's lecture on The Processor are now on the bitsoflearning site. Due to popular demand, the System Support powerpoint questions now include the answers. This only applies to the lectures we have covered to date - Safety, The Motherboard and The Processor. I will add the answers to the other lectures as we cover them.
18/06/09 A recording of this week's System Support lecture on The Processor is now on the bitsoflearning site.
12/06/09 A recording of this week's Info/Comms lecture on security together with the Powerpoint Slides is now on the bitsoflearning site.
12/06/09 The up to date version of the IT Timetable is now on the bitsoflearning site. This includes the Roisin's new Customer Service classes on Monday and Friday mornings and Gina's Networking Q&A session on Wednesday morning. eBusiness will not be running for the moment but will probably be back after the summer holidays.
12/06/09 For anyone who was attending Networking classes with Gerry, Gina will be doing a Networks Q+A session in the Tech Support room every Wednesday from 10:50am to 12:15pm.
12/06/09 Starting from next Monday, Roisin will be teaching Customer Service at 9:00am in Room 10. Anyone who was attending Gerry's Customer Service classes can go to this. Roisin will also be teaching Customer Service on Friday at 9:00am in room 10.
11/06/09 The canteen is only open for morning break on Friday 12th. There will be no lunch.
No food will be served in the canteen next week. You can bring in your own lunch and eat it in the canteen if you want. Tea and coffee will be available.
08/06/09 I will be doing a powerpoint presentation on my mountaineering trip to Nepal this Wednesday at 1:15pm in the gym. Everyone is welcome to attend!
05/06/09 A recording of this weeks Info/Comms lecture on the Ergonomics project together with the powerpoint slides is now on the bitsoflearning site.
04/06/09 A recording of today's Support Lecture on Motherboards is now on the bitsoflearning site. Up to date powerpoint slides and questions for this lecture are also available.
29/05/09 Enjoy the good weather bank holiday weekend everyone. If you get bored you can always listen to a lecture!
29/05/09 Powerpoint slides for this week's System Support lecture on motherboards as well as powerpoint slides for the Info/Comms Systems lecture on the Information System project are now on the bitsoflearning site.
29/05/09 Recordings of this week's System Support lecture on motherboards and this week's Info/Comm Systems lecture on the Information Systems project are now on the bitsoflearning site.
29/05/09 Vinnie brought in his Asus Rampage motherboard last week and gave a short talk about it. Click here to listen to Vinnie talking about the Rampage motherboard.
29/05/09 Alan Churchill's report for PC Design and Assembly is now on the bitsoflearning site. I had the report up as a single file but it didn't download very well as it was over 50Mb. I've divided the file into 10 separate pages, each of which can be individually downloaded. Click here to access Alan's report.
28/05/09 Best of luck to Gerry who finishes tomorrow. Gerry has been teaching Networking, eBusiness and Customer Service in the Business Studies department for the last 9 months.
28/05/09 Thomas has ECDL exam results for anyone who did ECDL exams recently. To save Thomas from getting snowed under with requests, you can ask for your results immediately before or after the allocated ECDL class for IT and Computer Maintenance which is on Friday at 10:50am.
26/05/09 We will be showing the film Mamma Mia in the Computer Programming room on Friday afternoon. This film has subtitles.
26/05/09 Recordings of last week's System Support lecture on Motherboards and the Info/Comms lecture on the storage devices project are now on the bitsoflearning site.
21/05/09 An up to date version of the powerpoint lecture on Motherboards is now on the bitsoflearning site.
19/05/09 Recordings of last week's System Support lecture on safety and the Info/Comms lecture on the hardware project are now on the bitsoflearning site. As the batteries were running out in the dictaphone, the sound quality isn't great but it's still understandable.
18/05/09 For those of you doing Information and Communication Systems, the hardware project is due this Friday.
12/05/09 I'm still in one piece after Nepal though I didn't meet the Yeti. It will probably take me a while to catch up with the work done by everybody while I was on holidays but I'll get there eventually.
10/04/09 Enjoy the Easter break everyone. College reopens on Monday 20th April. I will be away for 3 weeks until Monday 11th May, assuming I don't have a run-in with a Yeti. Noel will be looking after things while I'm away.
03/04/09 There is an Science Open Day (including computer related courses) in DIT on Saturday 4th April from 10:00am until 1:00pm. For further information, click here.
02/04/09 Today's final System Support lecture is now on the bitsoflearning site.
02/04/09 Due to the System Support exam, there will be no classes in the IT and Computer Maintenance room tomorrow morning. The classroom will be available as normal in the afternoon.
02/04/09 Club Pathos is on at 1:30pm today in the gym.
02/04/09 Microsoft are offering free software to students and teachers on the web site www.dreamspark.com. Check it out! By the way this site can only be accessed using Internet Explorer.
01/04/09 Virus Alert! Beware the shape virus. If you see a circle, square or star on your PC, switch it off and immediately and inform tech support.
30/03/09 IT and Computer Maintenance exams start this Friday. The first exam is System Support which starts at 9:15am and runs for 2 hours.
30/03/09 Last Friday's Info/Comms lecture is now on the bitsoflearning site. This was the last lecture before the exam. I am currently in talks with a major record label who want to release an Info and Comm Systems Greatest Hits album.
26/03/09 This week's System Support lecture on Computer Networks is now on the bitsoflearning site.
25/03/09 Congratulations to Philip who built his PC and installed it in the Foundation 2 class. This is the third PC build that includes a blu-ray drive and a HD enabled graphics card.
23/03/09 A person from the Data Protection Commission will be giving a talk tomorrow (Tuesday) at 11:00am in room 12.
20/03/09 Recordings of this week's System Support lectures are now on the bitsoflearning site.
19/03/09 Congratulations to Jarlath who completed his 20th tech rota job today.
18/03/09 Best of luck to Chris who finished in college on Friday.
13/03/09 Congratulations to Kevin who built a new PC and installed it in the Fastrack to Employment classroom. This is the second PC in the college with a blu-ray drive.
13/03/09 This weeks Info/Comms lecture on the final bit of the Internet and on Data and Information is now on the bitsoflearning site.
12/03/09 We will be showing the Pirates of Silicon Valley in room 12a at 13:15 tomorrow (Friday). This film is a dramatisation of the lives of Bill Gates (Founder of Microsoft) and Steve Jobs (Founder of Apple). All the Business Studies instructors will be at a meeting tomorrow afternoon.
12/03/09 An updated version of the gym timetable is now on the bitsoflearning site. Click the Gym Timetable link in the menu to see the new timetable.
12/03/09 Recordings last week's System Support and Info/Comms lectures are now on the bitsoflearning site. Sorry about the delay but my sound card has packed up.
09/03/09 The weekly Business Studies departmental meeting has been switched to Monday to facilitate Communications students. The Tuesday Communications class will now continue until 12:15.
06/03/09 There will be a workshop on Walking for Fitness next Tuesday from 2:30pm to 4:00pm in the gym. Tea and Coffee will be available.
04/03/09

It's FETAC exam time again! Dates for exams in my subjects are as follows:

Friday 3rd April: System Support
Monday 6th April: Database Methods
Tuesday 7th April: Spreadsheet Methods
Wednesday 8th April: Info/Comm Systems
Wednesday 8th April: Work Experience portfolio deadline
Wednesday 8th April: Web Authoring project deadline
Wednesday 8th April: PC Design and Assembly deadline

All exams start at 9:15am. A sign language interpreter will be available for the Database Methods and Spreadsheet Methods exam.

If you would like to do any of these exams, sign away your life at the entrance to the IT and Computer Maintenance classroom.
02/03/09 Due to a staff meeting, classes on Wednesday will start at 11:00am.
02/03/09 Internationally famous author, and Booker Prize winner, Roddy Doyle, will be speaking in the gym tomorrow after the morning break.
26/02/09 For health and safety reasons, the college is closed tomorrow. There will be no classes and no Word Processing exam. Classes will resume on Monday.
26/02/09 We will be showing The Van in the computer programming room on Friday at 1:15pm. This film is subtitled.
23/02/09 There is a vacancy for a Field Service Technician in Marx Computers. Details are on the Marx Computers website.
23/02/09 For those of you doing FETAC Word Processing, there will be an exam on Friday.
23/02/09 There will be a meeting of the book club tomorrow to prepare for Roddy Doyle's visit to the college next week.
20/02/09 I won't be in class on Monday morning, 23rd February, as I will be on a manual handling course. So there won't be any Database Methods lecture this week.
16/02/09 Congratulations to Vincent who has built his PC and successfully installed it in the Foundation 2 classroom. This PC is the first in the college to have a Blu-ray player. It also has a graphics card with Full-HD capability.
13/02/09 For anyone doing the PC Design and Assembly module, there is now a sample budget and PC Assembly report on the bitsoflearning site, courtesy of Alan Churchill. If you are downloading these files in college, it is better to use Firefox.
13/02/09 Closing date for applications to the Tech Support job is 4pm today.
13/02/09 This week's System Support and Info/Comms lectures are now on the bitsoflearning site.
11/02/09 ECDL exams start next Monday, 16th February and will run each day until Thursday.
10/02/09 There are vacancies for 2 Sales and Marketing assistants in Rehab Recycling, Tallaght. If anyone is interested in these positions, I can give you more detailed information.
06/02/09 Recordings of this week's System Support and Info/Comms lectures are now on the bitsoflearning site.
04/02/09 There is a vacancy for a Technical Support Assistant in the Technical Support Department of the college. This is a Community Employment position. Closing date for applications is Friday 13th February. The ad is on the Business Studies notice board.
02/02/09 FETAC have agreed to change part of their new assessment system. This means that instead that instead of March 11th being the last date for exams, we can now have April 9th as the last date of exams. Incidentally this was the original date I had set. So, pressure off - an extra four weeks to complete projects and prepare for exams.
29/01/09 Congratulations to John who completed his 20th tech rota job today.
29/01/09 We will be showing the Rocky Road to Dublin on Friday at 1:20pm in the Computer Programming room. This is a documentary made in 1968 about life in Ireland. It was banned when it came out first.
28/01/09 FAS will be conducting interview skills sessions in the college every Wednesday afternoon. The interviews will take place remotely using the new video conferencing system. If you would like to avail of this service, you need to book the session with Valerie.
28/01/09 Mark Pollock, who gave a presentation in the gym last November, has become the first blind person to reach the South Pole. He completed the final stages of a 1,000km ski race yesterday evening and spent the last night of the race sleeping in a tent at minus 40 degrees Celcius. Mark said that he ate "endless chocolate" but still lost several stone in weight.
27/01/09 IKEA are now hiring for their Dublin store which will be opening this year. This may be a good opportunity for jobs or work experience. Log onto www.ikea.ie/dublin. You can apply online or by submitting your CV. Anyone looking for work experience should send in their CV, accompanied by a cover letter.
26/01/09 A big thank you to Kenneth who finished in Tech Support on Friday after 3 years.
23/01/09 On the last Friday of each month, we will be showing a DVD in the Computer Programming room. Next Friday it's The Rocky Road to Dublin, starting at 1:20pm.
23/01/09 Due to a change in the FETAC system of assessing exams, the current situation is that the last day for "Summer" exams is 11th March. This puts pressure on everyone - both instructors and students. The VEC colleges are currently refusing to implement the new FETAC system.
14/01/09 DIT are holding an open evening for prospective students next Tuesday 20th January between 5:00pm and 7:30pm in DIT Aungier Street. If anyone is interested in attending the open evening, I have a form which you will need to fill out.
13/01/09 Refurbishment work started on the visitors toilets today. This work will take about 2 or 3 weeks to complete.
09/01/09 Best of luck to John who is moving to the Computer Programming course on Monday.
07/01/09 Now that the downstairs toilets have been refurbished, work has commenced on the upstairs toilets. I am told that the work will take 3 to 4 weeks to complete.
07/01/09 Congratulations to Chris who completed his 20th tech rota job before the Christmas holidays.
06/01/09 OK everybody. The cruddy background music and decorations have been removed from the site. Bah Humbug!
05/01/09 Robert Jordan will be giving a talk on "Making the most of your money" tomorrow (Tuesday) at 10:50am in room 12.
17/01/06 ECDL exams are on the 13th, 14th and 15th of February. To register for an exam, you must put your name on the list, on the Business Studies noticeboard, before January 27th