Symantec's pcANYWHERE
I was thrilled to have the opportunity to introduce pcANYWHERE to my classroom. It is an extremely friendly, simple program that allows my students to link to the other computers in the class and run them with the remote control processing that the program offers. The program lets users securely locate, access, and transfer information to and from any PC.
Unfortunately, it is so simple that there isn’t the opportunity for much of a detailed classroom lesson, other than remote controlling the host computer. I wish the user manual went into greater explanation and detail about the specific operation processes. The help files are short and to the point, and allow little opportunity for major analysis.
The nature of my Technology Studies program is to introduce my students to higher technologies, in the hope that they might develop an interest that will motivate them into a pursuit of higher vocational preparation. Therefore, I am always looking for ways to apply technology tools to lesson plans.
My second year class has created a one-hour modular study of pcANYWHERE for my introduction and first-year technology classes, allowing them to flow through the application in a step by step process. It appears to be working well.
My second year class is now attempting to link pcANYWHERE with a voice recognition program in our Digital Studies Module. It’s exciting to watch my students creatively research and develop with our resources.
I would recommend pcANYWHERE for personal use, but in my estimation, as a classroom learning instrument, its simplicity leads to learning limitations. It is a great tool for the instructor, because it allows me to run my classroom management computer at home for evaluation purposes, and it allows total access to remote office files. In addition, I feel further research and development effort is certainly warranted, as we will discover future applications for this product in the classroom.
Frank J. Koblar Englewood High School Technology Studies Inst. Jacksonville, FL fkoblar@aol.com | Contact Information Symantec Corp. Cupertino, CA (408) 253-9600 www.symantec.com |
This article originally appeared in the 05/01/2000 issue of THE Journal.