Thursday, April 5, 2018

Tech Tips from Tech Pros

Barrington 220's own Technology Support Team is always at your service during the school day at x. 1500. We occasionally ask our Techs to pass along Tech Tips based upon the issues they are seeing most often across the district. Take a look below at these great tech tips!

From Kim Martinez

iPad not charging?

  • Are you using the iPad charger that was assigned to you? An iPhone charger will not charge your iPad correctly. 
  • Is it plugged into a power strip? Plug it directly into the wall outlet.  If the wall outlet is controlled by a light switch, make sure the switch is turned on.

If the issue still continues, bring the iPad charger in so that we can troubleshoot the issue.

From Adam Fajnor

Not a Fan of the Fan

When using your MacBook Air and your fan starts to run loud, search Activity Monitor on your Mac and see if an application is overusing computing power (CPU usage). If it is, you can quit or force quit the application in the top left corner with the X.



Having many, many browser tabs open can also be a reason for the fan to start running loud. Solve this issue by closing some of your tabs.

From Justin Edge

Restarting May be the Answer

Is your computer sluggish or acting up? A simple restart may be all you need to do to fix some common issues. Like us, our computers need some rest. Fortunately, a restart only takes about 30-45 seconds and can completely revitalize your computer.

To restart your computer:

  • Make sure you save all the work you are currently working on.
  • Click the Apple logo  in the top-left corner of your screen.
  • Select Restart from the dropdown window.


Select Restart one more time to confirm the restart.

Please note: If you have any pending software updates that require a restart, these will run once you click the restart button. Always be sure your computer is plugged in to power and you are able to leave your computer uninterrupted while the software updates complete.

From Jason Bryant

Elegant Renaming

Ever need to rename a bunch of files on your MacBook Air, but don’t have the time? Have the Finder do it for you! Just select a group of files and then select Rename either from the right-click contextual menu or from the drop-down button marked with a cog icon in Finder windows.

When you do, you get the option of adding text, replacing text, or applying a format such as a name and an automatically incrementing counter.


From Charlie Parkinson

Save Electricity...and Your Projector Bulb

Are you leaving your class for more than 20 minutes? Please remember to turn off your projector to save the life of the bulb. Your projector will stay brighter and the bulb will last longer.

From Josh Beatty

Avoid the Papercut Printing Notification 

The Papercut client will show a notification any time it loses communication with the Papercut server. To avoid these work-interrupting notifications when using your Mac outside the district, you can close the Papercut client. Look for the Papercut icon located in the menu bar in the top-right portion of your screen. Right click on the icon and select Exit from the drop-down menu. To launch Papercut when you return to work, you can either restart your Mac or click the Papercut icon located on the right side of you Dock.

If Papercut stops working while you are in the district, closing and reopening the application will often resolve the issue.


From Derrick Kovell

Audio/Video Solutions

When playing a video from your computer and there is little to no sound, be sure to check the following settings:

  • the computer’s volume level
  • the volume level of the video (see below)
  • the speaker in the room and possibly the projector



From Kaitlyn Pankiewicz

Passwords & Where to Change Them

In Barrington 220, most staff members have 3 passwords that they may use on a daily basis. Here are some tips on how to change those passwords if they are forgotten or expire.

Staff members have a network password used for Schoolwires, Infinite Campus, Schoology, Windows computer logins, etc. Should you have an issue logging in to one of these systems with your password, please go to our Self Service Password Reset site, https://sspr.barrington220.org/.  When trying to change your password, you will be asked to answer a few security questions. If you have any difficulties setting up your SSPR account, please call Tech Support at x.1500 and we’ll assist with the account creation as well as the password reset.

Your Google password is separate from your network password. This is your password to access Google services including Gmail/email, Google Docs, Sheets, Slides, Calender, Drive, etc. If you’ve forgotten your password you can click the “Forgot password?” link on the Google password page and follow the prompts provided. You can also see your building LTA to assist with a Google password change or call Tech Support at x.1500.

The third password to keep in mind is the password to your MacBook Air laptop. This was set-up when you received your MacBook Air. If you are able to login and want to change your password, You can go into System Preferences > User & Groups > Change Password. If you forget your password a Tech will be happy to assist with a password change by calling x.1500.

No comments:

Post a Comment

Popular Recent Posts