Does Google know where you are? No? Are you sure?

In case I forget what I did last Wednesday, Google remembers

We don't always realise what we are agreeing to when we check boxes in our apps. If a web service asks you 'Remember your location?', don't expect it to forget a convenient time later. Google, to take an example, has something called Location History. It's not a secret, but nor do they advertise the fact like you might think.

If you have chosen to let Google know your location, and there all sorts of legitimate reasons, like finding your way using Google Earth or Maps, it will have kept that record. Have a look here.  If you have more than one login, check each one individually (my school Google doesn't track me, my personal one does, when I let it). In retrospect, you can think 'of course they know that' but it can come as an unwelcome reminder that the Net doesn't suffer from the amnesia we humans are prone to.

As the map above reveals, I was at school last Wednesday. At least, with my aging phone, they weren't spot-on with the precise location, but I can see when I visited Hillside or Lower School TO THE SECOND.

The good news is if you don't like it you can erase the past or switch it off into the future. The option is right there on the same page as the map and calendar (see left).

It is a matter of personal taste whether you like this or not. Google (or Apple, or your GPS) is only remembering what you have told it, after all. The important thing is to know what you are sharing and the consequences of keeping it or erasing this information.

The sound of Yoga

It seems that some, maybe most, of the Thinkpad laptops microphone options are wrongly set. Here is how to DIY it. Steve will help you if that's too intimidating, but you CAN do it.

Stage 1: Test if the microphone is correctly set up

1. Open the Sound Recorder by searching in the programs (Window key + S).
2. Record your voice.
3. Play it back.
4. If the recording is fine, you're done. The instructions below my still improve things though.
5. But if the recording is so hissy that you can barely understand what is said, there is a way to fix that.

Stage 2: Changing the microphone settings

1. Open up Control Panel (Window + S)
2. Sound
3. Click on Recording Tab
4. Click on the Microphone
5. Click Properties at the bottom right of the window
6. Click on Advanced
7. Select DVD quality recording from drop-down
8. Unselect Enable Audio Enhancements
9. Click Apply
10. Click OK
11. Try recording again with Sound Recorder or another option and see if it works

The Yoga is here

Thank you to all of the MS colleagues who came to collect their laptops and made it a festive occasion. I look forward to hearing what you like and don't like about it and how I can help you to learn more about your new device.

As we said at the meeting, the laptops have a basic set of programs which we expect most teachers will need. Other programs which are not needed by every teacher are available to install at the ISL Kiosk. This is a webpage from which you can install other programs as you wish. The link is only available in school at the moment because of the licenses. The link is the long line of green text below which you can paste into your browser (you can only access this when you are on the school network).
file:///N:/AS%20Faculty/IT_Support/Software_Kiosk/Software_Kiosk.html

Please let Jason know if there are programs which you would like to have be able toinstall on the laptop via the Kiosk. You are the administrator of your machine and so can install programs from other sources too. But, of course, we are allowed only to install programs which we are legally entitled to (no pirates and only free or paid software for which you have the licence).




The slideshow at the top of the post will grow to become a Yoga Thinkpad self-training module. For now, you could try the quiz on slide 6, as have a couple of colleagues  (I am the only one to score 100% up to this point and that was on my second attempt even though I wrote it).

Testmoz is one of several online tools (no login required) where you can very easily design tests which self-mark (or get the class to make tests for each other while revising?).


I am grateful for the patience of the rest of the staff who are yet to get their laptop (August is not too far away!).


Thank you to Gilbert for dealing with the first annoying issue which has come up. If you are being bugged by the Switch between apps notification, there are ways to remove it temporarily or permanently described here.