NetSupport Launches Classroom Management Suite for Mac OS X and Linux

Monitoring student application use on NetSupport Assist for Linux.
Monitoring student application use on NetSupport Assist for Linux.

Ed tech developer NetSupport has released a new classroom management tool for Mac OS X and Linux, NetSupport Assist.

NetSupport products, which also include NetSupport Manager, NetSupport School, and NetSupport Notify, allow educators and administrators to monitor, support, and control individual computers in classroom and remote environments.

Compatible with the popular Windows-based classroom management suite NetSupport School, NetSupport Assist includes core classroom management functionality optimized for Mac and Linux laptops, desktops, and netbooks connected via wired or wireless networks.

With NetSupport Assist, teachers can see a thumbnail view of all computers in the classroom in real time, with visual indicators to show when student computers are running applications or accessing the Web. Teachers can then click on a thumbnail to access details and block specific actions, when appropriate.

Other features include:

  • The ability to monitor individual student screens;
  • Two-way chat with individual students;
  • A low-bandwidth mode for use on slower networks;
  • Presentation tools that allow the teacher to share his or her screen with students;
  • Instant assessment through polling features similar to those used in student response systems;
  • Screen blanking;
  • The ability to lock student keyboards and mice (individuals or the entire class);
  • Ability to capture screen grabs of students' systems;
  • Alerting; and
  • Remote administration, including logging out.

NetSupport Assist is available now. A free 30-day evaluation version can also be downloaded as of this week. Further information can be found here.

About the Author

David Nagel is the former editorial director of 1105 Media's Education Group and editor-in-chief of THE Journal, STEAM Universe, and Spaces4Learning. A 30-year publishing veteran, Nagel has led or contributed to dozens of technology, art, marketing, media, and business publications.

He can be reached at [email protected]. You can also connect with him on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidrnagel/ .


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