Colfax schools upgrade wireless

Colfax school board July 13 voted to accept a bid from a company offering a wireless system that can better connect computers throughout the two school buildings.

The winning bid came from Aruba at $19,778.

The district does have wireless, but service is spotty in some locations in the two buildings.

“Our wireless environment wasn’t meeting the needs of the district,” said Margie Hamilton, district technology coordinator.

Hamilton said the new system will put an end to losing wireless connections when laptops are moved from class to class.

“The system will be integrated so that if someone is working with a wireless device in the library and they need to go down to a classroom they aren’t going to lose that connection,” Hamilton said.

A total of 325 computers are in use at the district, some of which are laptops.

Only laptops, some printers, and other wireless devices will hook into the new system, Hamilton said. This excludes desk computers, many of which are in the district’s computer labs.

The lab in the elementary school holds 28 computers; the lab in the junior high holds 29 computers, and the lab in the high school holds 30 computers.

In addition, a computer applications lab has 24 computers and a wireless lab has 24 laptops.

Most teachers have desk computers and laptops in their rooms.

“There’s a need for a connection all the time and it’s not necessarily by a wall plug,” Hamilton said.

She pointed out that while some of the computers in the schools don’t yet need wireless, the rapid development of technology could one day bring many devices in need of this type of connection.

Unlike dial-up or ethernet, wireless internet transmits data without wires connecting to the computer, much like a cell phone communicates with a cell phone tower.

The Colfax system comes with 22 access points, devices that put out the wireless signal. With so many access points, this coverage will ensure Colfax students and teachers can get coverage anywhere in the buildings.

These access points will be fixed inside classroom walls through the high school building and down the hall of the elementary building, Hamilton said.

Aside from Aruba, two other companies bid for the project; Cisco had a bid of $36,441 and Ruckes’ bid was $15,937.

Hamilton said she recommended Aruba because their bid was more comprehensive than Ruckes but less than Cisco’s.