Computers scare us: Are the IT Crowd in your school - Cardiff Council

Just off the phone from a call where a school has asked IT to install a tiny plugin so that they can get along and do some chemistry teaching. It hasn't happened, I'm unable to help and feel frustrated. It's not the first call of the kind nor a first experience: science teachers in the most relaxed of schools cannot get software installed.
It was for this reason that I made my own software easily accesible over the web - trying to rid the need for a plugin is pretty hard (eg try doing without say, Flash) - but clearly we must try harder.

If anyone has asked their IT deparment to install something and it hasn't happened, please spare a thought for what they have to do. This 'bounce' from an email to Cardiff Council shows the IT department have their hands full. I am so glad they are finding things to do:

From: MIMEsweeper@cardiff.gov.uk
Sent: 22 March 2006 12:38
Subject: RE: Invoice - Course Description

Cardiff Council - Images policy
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Your e-mail bound for:
x

Subject - Invoice - Course Description


YOUR E-MAIL HAS BEEN DELIVERED TO THE INTENDED RECIPIENT.


An image attachment was detected (such as .jpg, .bmp or .gif), which may
be part of a Powerpoint (PPT) file or E-mail background.


A copy of your E-mail has been held in accordance with Cardiff Council's
ICT security policy, and Audit will routinely check these images to
assess their appropriateness.


Any technical queries, please contact the ICT Helpdesk on 029 2087 3333.


Any queries regarding this policy, please contact the Authority's Audit
Manager on 029 2087 2275.

We can't work IT, maybe you can: Places where an IT department's talents have no beginning - Dundee

-----Original Message-----
From: purchase.ledger@dundeecity.gov.uk
Cc: purchase.ledger@dundeecity.gov.uk
Attachments:
Subject: Dundee City Council

Please note :-
The Dundee City Council payment remittance for the date shown is attached. (IGNORE the headers.txt file). With most email systems you should be able to double click the '.html' attachment and view the Remittance Advice.
If you have problems viewing directly from your email system, save the '.html' and the 2 '.gif' files to a directory on your Hard Drive and then double click the '.html' file from there.

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If you are using Microsoft Outlook and our attachments fail to appear, click the FORWARD button on your toolbar, in most cases the attachments are then available to view.
* Outlook ***************

If you have any problems with this email please email purchase.ledger@dundeecity.gov.uk and we will try to help. If you have any queries about the content of the email you can email as above or phone Dundee City Council on 433135 and ask for the purchase ledger team.
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Dundee City Council recipients please note:
PS IT IS IMPORTANT THAT YOU REMOVE THE EMAIL FROM YOUR INBOX IN TEAMWARE. PLEASE DELETE ONCE YOU'VE COPIED IT TO YOUR HARD DRIVE
OR MOVED IT TO YOUR OFFLINE FOLDERS.
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