This document provides recommendations for request for proposal (RFP) and contract language that state education agencies can use to specify their requirements for access to test item banks. An item bank is a repository for test items and data about those items. Item banks are used by state agency staff to view items and associated data; to…

This article justifies classifying the TI-Nspire CAS Touchpad as a mobile device for grades 8-16 mathematics classrooms equipped with a Navigator system. The 2010 Horizon Report: K-12 indicates virtually every secondary school aged child has some sort of mobile device. Yet, many school policies ban the use of mobile devices, preventing students…

The cost of an item of information in a storage system is defined as the sum of an initial cost, a time dependent cost, and a usage cost. Item usage is assumed to follow a simple exponential obsolescence pattern. A decision rule for the economic holding time of an item in storage is derived from the model and based on a policy of minimizing the…

This first installment of four-part "Online/Database Laserdisk Directory" reports on aspects of laserdisks including: product name; product description; company name; conpatibility information; type of laserdisk (compact disc read-only-memory, videodisk); software used; interface with magnetic media capability; conditions of usage;…

Discusses the superiority of vertical filing of maps in compressor-style vertical units over horizontal filing in drawers, emphasizing such factors as physical protection of the collection, ease of filing and retrieval, and efficient use of space. Disadvantages of vertical filing are also reviewed. (Author/JL)

Focusing on the 5-1/4" floppy disk commonly used with microcomputers, this guide to magnetic disks gives a description of their physical appearance and how they function as information storage devices and provides suggestions for their care and maintenance. A glossary of disk-related terms is included. (EAO)

Technology that once involved a scary, mysterious machine the size of a small house now fits on desktops and commonly appears in offices, schools, and homes. Computers allow for processing, storing and transmitting data between two or more people virtually anywhere in the world. They also allow users to save documents, presentations, photos and…

Federal agencies are increasingly using electronic means to create, exchange, and store information, and in doing so, they frequently create federal records: that is, information, in whatever form, that documents government functions, activities, decisions, and other important transactions. As the volume of electronic information grows, so does…

Cloud computing is the latest paradigm shift for the delivery of IT services. Where previous paradigms (centralized, decentralized, distributed) were based on fairly straightforward approaches to technology and its management, cloud computing is radical in comparison. The literature on cloud computing, however, suffers from many divergent…

When the author was brought on as CIO of Westmont College in October 2008, the president, Board of Trustees, and campus environment made it clear that technology needed a major overhaul to meet the college's growing requirements. Also, these changes needed to happen without significantly increasing the IT budget or staff. Marketing Charts…

Defines a hash coding model for non-unique search keys and derives the expected number of accesses needed to retrieve all desired records from a computer storage device. (Author)

This detailed look into proper diskette maintenance presents general precautions on temperature, humidity, lifespan, labeling, storage, and disk drive maintenance. The Apple UniDisk 3.5 disk drive is described, tips on purchasing diskettes are presented, and information on specific data retrieval and backup software and diskettes is included. (MBR)

Describes how planned storage and organization of industrial arts tools and materials help solve a teaching problem. (GR)

A new approach to records management reduces the volume of paperwork while preserving information of value. (Editor)

Describes how many colleges plan for information retrieval after a disaster, but that for some small ones the cost is prohibitive--and not all professors keep copies of their work. (EV)