[news.sysadmin] Public/student terminal/PC rooms

aburt@isis.UUCP (Andrew Burt) (01/22/88)

Question for maintainers of public, e.g., student, terminals/pc access rooms:
How do you keep you equipment clean?  Around here the group that maintains
the machines ignores the problem, citing that janitors can't be trusted to
do the job.

Are keyboard covers common?  What do you use as cleaning solutions?

Any ideas appreciated; some of the machines around here are so grimy you
can't read the symbols on the keyboard keys!


-- 

Andrew Burt 				   			isis!aburt

              Fight Denver's pollution:  Don't Breathe and Drive.

steve@polyslo.UUCP (Steve DeJarnett) (01/23/88)

In article <2183@isis.UUCP> aburt@isis.UUCP (Andrew Burt) writes:
>Question for maintainers of public, e.g., student, terminals/pc access rooms:
>How do you keep you equipment clean?  Around here the group that maintains
>the machines ignores the problem, citing that janitors can't be trusted to
>do the job.
>
>Are keyboard covers common?  What do you use as cleaning solutions?
>

	We use an occasional weekend and some molecular cleaner (called FD
I believe) and some student assistants.  It doesn't take very long (a couple
of hours) and it keeps the terminals in good enough shape (not perfect, but
good enough).  I wouldn't trust our janitors either (they once had a key to
our machine room, and one of them wondered what the 'BREAK' key on our 
console did -- if you have a Pyramid 98xe with one processor, you know -- it
freezes the machine).  After that, we did our own vacuuming (why they ever did
in the first place is beyond me, but I wasn't here when that started).


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Steve DeJarnett		|    ...!ihnp4!csun!polyslo!steve	      |
| Computer Systems Lab		|    ...!{csustan,csun,sdsu}!polyslo!steve    |
| Cal Poly State Univ.		|    ...!ucbvax!voder!polyslo!steve	      |
| San Luis Obispo, CA  93407	|    					      |
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#include <std_disclaimer.h>

bobmon@iuvax.UUCP (Bobmon) (01/24/88)

<2183@isis.UUCP> aburt@isis.UUCP (Andrew Burt) writes:
->How do you keep you equipment clean?  ...
->Any ideas appreciated; some of the machines around here are so grimy you
->can't read the symbols on the keyboard keys!
->
->Andrew Burt 			   			isis!aburt
->
->              Fight Denver's pollution:  Don't Breathe and Drive.

Move outta Denver?   :-)

todd@uop.edu (Used to be robert) (01/24/88)

We had some janitors yank on a plug (wall plug, terminal room)
then in going to fix it...  zzzzZZZZAAPPPpp!!!

shorted out that one, blew the breaker...and the vax 11/785

needless to say, i hope they have isolated the vax by now!!

dave@lsuc.uucp (David Sherman) (01/25/88)

aburt@isis.UUCP (Andrew Burt) writes:
>How do you keep you equipment clean?  ...
>Any ideas appreciated; some of the machines around here are so grimy you
>can't read the symbols on the keyboard keys!

We had that problem after several years of use of our terminals
by staff and students.  I had a school-kid come in in his spare
time (at $5/hour, it makes a 14-year-old happy; he's the son of
someone who works here) and clean the terminals.  Each one takes
about an hour to clean properly.

To clean a keyboard, you pry off EVERY SINGLE KEYCAP and clean
them.  (I've found baby wipes are great for this purpose, since
they come with built-in alcohol.)  Then you open up the keyboard
and shake/vacuum/dust out the collected food and junk.  Cleaning
the screen and the outside of the terminal is relatively straightforward.
But it's definitely a job you want to give to someone else :-)

David Sherman
The Law Society of Upper Canada
Toronto
-- 
{ uunet!mnetor  pyramid!utai  decvax!utcsri  ihnp4!utzoo } !lsuc!dave

banshee@ucscb.UCSC.EDU.ucsc.edu (71006000) (01/26/88)

	Here at Santa Cruz, we employ students to keep the 
terminal rooms in good shape-- in return they recieve an 
account on one of the vaxen for personal use.  The main
machines are kept far out of harms reach.
	The people who spend hours in a lab will generally
keep it in fairly good shape.  Its the transients and then,
the late night gamers that cause the messes.


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nelson@sun1.soe.clarkson.edu (Russ Nelson) (01/27/88)

>aburt@isis.UUCP (Andrew Burt) writes:
>How do you keep you equipment clean?  ...
>Any ideas appreciated; some of the machines around here are so grimy you
>can't read the symbols on the keyboard keys!

Our service center uses a large ultrasonic cleaner.  We have 3500 machines
on campus; we can't afford to take all the keycaps off.
-russ

jc@piaget.UUCP (John Cornelius) (01/28/88)

In article <2183@isis.UUCP> aburt@isis.UUCP (Andrew Burt) writes:
 >Question for maintainers of public, e.g., student, terminals/pc access rooms:
 >How do you keep you equipment clean?  Around here the group that maintains
 >the machines ignores the problem, citing that janitors can't be trusted to
 >do the job.
 >
 >Are keyboard covers common?  What do you use as cleaning solutions?
 >
 >Any ideas appreciated; some of the machines around here are so grimy you
 >can't read the symbols on the keyboard keys!
 >
 >
 >-- 
 >
 >Andrew Burt 				   			isis!aburt
 >
 >              Fight Denver's pollution:  Don't Breathe and Drive.

We make students (but not faculty) wash their hands after going
to the  bathroom, eating or picking their noses.  Special locks
on the restroom doors are activated by the correct sequence of
water, soap dispenser, and  towel.   Positive reinforcement is
provided with cattle prods.

As far as I know their is no  way to keep peanut butter and jelly
off of key board except by choosing your clientele carefully.
Since that's not a real option Windex and 407 work pretty  well.
Use the directions on the bottle.


-- 
John Cornelius
(...!sdcsvax!piaget!jc)

dbraun@cadev4.intel.com (Doug Braun ~) (02/02/88)

In article <269@sun1.soe.clarkson.edu> nelson@sun1.ece.clarkson.edu.UUCP (Russ Nelson) writes:

>Our service center uses a large ultrasonic cleaner.  We have 3500 machines
>on campus; we can't afford to take all the keycaps off.

Do you IMMERSE them???

Doug Braun				Intel Corp CAD
					408 496-5939

 / decwrl \
 | hplabs |
-| oliveb |- !intelca!mipos3!cadev4!dbraun
 | amd    |
 \ qantel /

nelson@sun.soe.clarkson.edu (Russ Nelson) (02/03/88)

In article <1625@mipos3.intel.com> dbraun@cadev4.UUCP (Doug Braun ~) writes:
>In article <269@sun1.soe.clarkson.edu> nelson@sun1.ece.clarkson.edu.UUCP (Russ Nelson) writes:
>>Our service center uses a large ultrasonic cleaner.  We have 3500 machines
>>on campus; we can't afford to take all the keycaps off.

>Do you IMMERSE them???

Yes, all 3500 at once.  :-)  (Maybe I should Followup-To: talk.bizarre?)
But seriously, we're talking about Zenith Z-100s (which have unreliable
but nice to use keyboards).  The Z-100 has a built-in keyboard which is
removable from the machine.  The actual keyboard assembly is only 16" long.
The fluid in the cleaner is nonconductive, so we have no problems with
shorts.  You should see it work, gets ALL the crap off.

-- 
-russ
AT&T: (315)268-6591  BITNET: NELSON@CLUTX  Internet: nelson@clutx.clarkson.edu
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