Portable Apps – a Lifesaver
I have to constantly straddle the security vs the practicality restrictions with students using school owned devices. Software restrictions, account and filesystem permissions all constantly ensure that ones time is often spent trying to circumvent the security you put in place yourself.
Portable apps are applications which can run entirely without installation. They range from pirated versions of Office and Adobe CS4, through to open-source ported solutions like OpenOffice. OpenOffice is an excellent ‘thing’ to have around when dealing with students work. It will open almost any file that you need, from the pesky MS Works files, through to the old school WordPerfect.
Very handy!
