TechBytes

• September 1 - October 3: STEMscopes Beginning of Year Assessment
• September 4-25: Amira Progress Monitoring
• September 16: Secondary Grading Window Opens
• September 25: Secondary Grading Window Closes/Grades Due

Chromebook vs. Dell Laptop - What's the Difference?

We've noticed that many helpdesk requests mention a "Chromebook," when the device in question is actually a Dell Windows laptop. Knowing which device you have helps us provide faster support!

Chromebooks (Lenovo 500e & Dell 3100)

• Assigned to students

• Run ChromeOS

• Quick to start up, lightweight, and simple for classroom use

• Lenovo 500e

• Dell 3100

Dell Laptop (Precision 5470)

• Assigned to staff

• Runs Windows 11

• More powerful than a Chromebook and better for multitasking

Tip: If you're submitting a tech ticket, please double-check which device you're using. It saves time and helps us resolve your issue faster.

Look for the Chrome Logo! This lets you know its a student chromebook

Starting September 22, 2025, YouTube videos in Canvas may start showing ads and recommendations. To keep your learners’ experience distraction free, please make sure any YouTube videos you use are added to Canvas Studio.

With the Player for Education integration, YouTube videos in Canvas Studio will stream:

• without distractions, recommendations, or links back to YouTube.
• with viewers remaining anonymous to YouTube through a “signed-out” viewing state.
• with captioning from YouTube to maintain accessibility.

Need help? Here are quick links to support you:

• Step-by-step migration guide
• FAQs
• Migration tool documentation - now available to speed up the migration process

Due to the way our applications work, it is important that students restart their Chromebooks daily. This means holding down the power button to turn off the device completely, then turning on the device and signing in with your username/password. Closing the Chromebook lid is not the same as restarting the device!

The new Lenovo Chromebooks have Camera Covers for privacy. If you notice the camera is not showing anything (when trying to scan a student's QR code, for example), please be sure the camera cover is not on. See pictures for more help.

Please be aware that the Help Desk is receiving a high number of calls. They are doing their best to help everyone needing support as quickly as possible, but we appreciate your patience during this busy time of year.

If your account was recently activated, please note that it can take 24-48 hours for all systems to sync, and longer in the event that your Aeries account also needs to be created.

If you are a new staff member in need of a device, please submit a Help Desk ticket with your request. The Help Desk team will verify eligibility and reach out to you with next steps.

There are currently longer than usual wait times for device checkouts. We appreciate your patience while waiting for a device.