Zing: An eBook Platform

What is Zing?

Zing is an eBook platform created by Schoolwide.  Schoolwide is an organization whose mission "is to improve student reading, writing and learning by increasing the tools teachers can use to teach effectively."  One of these tools is Zing and here is what it offers:

• Huge Selection: of trade book titles that students will want to read, including award winning titles, books and series from well-known authors, Spanish leveled books, and short texts, poems and articles
• Accessibility:  accessible on desktops, laptops, tablets, interactive white boards
• eLearning: full customizable teaching points within books to support students in developing the skills and strategies they need to comprehend texts
• Assessment: students progress monitoring and reporting to provide actionable data for teachers and schools
• Teaching Opportunities: supports whole class instruction, guided reading instruction, and independent reading in class or at home

To learn more about Zing, check out these two link:

Vimeo Video about Zing
Zing Website

Macbook: Keychain Issues After Changing Your Network Password

Since we have moved to a mixed device environment for our staff, one of the more common issues occurring is with the keychain when Macbook users change their DCDS password (this is a known issue from Apple when network passwords are tied to Active Directory.  There is a roadmap for a fix in future OS X updates).  If your password expired before you had a chance to change it or you did not follow the preferred method of changing your password provided in an earlier post then you may be encountering keychain popups.

To correct this, please follow these steps to update your keychain password:

1. Open the Keychain Access: Hold down command and space together to bring up the spotlight search field: Type in Keychain Access
2. From the Edit menu, choose: Change Password for Keychain "login"
3. Type your original password in the current password field
4. In the new password field, type the password that matches the current account password
5. Re-enter the newer password in the Verify field, then click ok

If this does not work, then you will need to reset the password keychain entirely by following these steps:

1. Open the Keychain Access: Hold down command and space together to bring up the spotlight search field: Type in Keychain Access
2. From the Keychain Access menu (words Keychain Access at the top left near the apple), choose Preferences
3. Click General, then click Reset My Default Keychain
4. Authenticate with your current/new account login password
5. Quit Keychain Access 
6. Restart your computer

Repost: Changing Your Network Password on a Macbook

If you are a Macbook user looking to change your network password, this post will show you the preferred way to change your password to AVOID KEYCHAIN ISSUES.  Unfortunately, there is a known issue when passwords are tied to an active directory (which ours is) that Apple is working on. Hopefully in future OS X releases this will be fixed and not a concern. In the meantime, if  you currently follow other methods to change your password on a macbook, you run the risk of keychain request pop ups.  (I will be providing details on how to reset your keychain password in a subsequent post titled "Macbook: Keychain Issues After Changing Your Network Password" for those of you whose password expired or you changed the password via another method and run into the keychain pop up):

1. Ensure you are onsite at one of our buildings
2. Launch your system preferences
3. Select users and groups
4. Select change password
5. Type in your old password
6. Type in a new password
7. Type your new password in again in the verify field
8. Select change password