Linux/Unix in the classroom

[Vince McHugh]

Jerry,

   I took several Unix\Linux classes at the Manchester
Technical college in New Hampshire. The way that they
kept hardware cost down was to use removeable hard
drives. So the lab had X amount of PCs but 4 or more
different hard drives for each. The hard drives were
labeled A thru D or G. The hard drives I worked on
were even dual boot. Setting them up as dual boot was
part of the Linux class. Then the other class taught
on Windows used them as well. 

   It's not a perfect solution, it requires the
students respect other students work. It may require
the prof. to enforce that mutual respect. But it sure
seems that The Manchester Technical college squeezes
all they could out of each PC.

    I think there was an article in the Linux Journal
a year or so back on setting this kind of enviornment
up. It may have been Linux Magazine, I'm not 100%
sure. but I did read a good article on it.

    Regards,
 Vince McHugh
   
--- Jerry Feldman <gaf at blu.org> wrote:
> On Fri, 17 Jan 2003 13:31:46 -0500
> Derek Martin <gnhlug at sophic.org> wrote:
> 
> > I'm not sure what the issue is, but it would be
> pretty inexpensive for
> > them to build and maintain a Linux box for this
> purpose.  If they're
> > committed to teaching Unix course material, not
> having a Unix server
> > is a logistical nightmare, for both students and
> professors.  My
> > experience with colleges is that they rarely
> listen to what the
> > students want, especially during budget crunch
> times...  but if I were
> > a professor finding myself in that situation, I
> would lobby hard to
> > make sure the appropriate resources were
> available.
> 
> > Well, I can see where you're coming from, but IMO
> this solution lacks
> > a very important aspect of learning Unix: getting
> the feel of a real
> > Unix system.  Yes, many of the same programs are
> available for Cygwin,
> > but you're still using them on a Windows machine. 
> I think this
> > provides an experience that's somewhat lacking...
> They had one machine for use in their Linux on the
> Desktop course. Part
> of the problem is that they have 4 campuses:The main
> Boston Campus,
> Dedham, Burlington and Downtown Boston. By having a
> dual boot or VMWare
> solution would solve the problem. That would give
> the students the look
> and feel of a Unix system. (I demoed that to the
> Asst. Dean). But, since
> they use their backroom Unix system now, CYGWIN is a
> significant step
> up. Personally, I would like to install Linux or
> FreeBSD on all of the
> classroom systems, but it aint going to happen.
> 
> -- 
> Jerry Feldman <gaf at blu.org>
> Boston Linux and Unix user group
> http://www.blu.org PGP key id:C5061EA9
> PGP Key fingerprint:053C 73EC 3AC1 5C44 3E14 9245
> FB00 3ED5 C506 1EA9
>  
> 

> ATTACHMENT part 2 application/pgp-signature 



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