About 10 years ago a colleague of mine found a reproducible way to run commands as administrator on any windows machine that enabled shares or IIS. He provided Microsoft with full details on how to do it. Then he was raided by the Feds 2 days later, as he was apparently a "dangerous hacker". He didn't even let us know how he did it though - just Microsoft. Fortunately his Dad was a senior policeman, and knew the right people (lawyers) to get some sense in the situation. Microsoft is not to be trusted in it's dealings with the law.

Austudy and Abstudy are different because the situations are radically different. Many Aboriginal people expect to be worked as slaves, beaten and raped in schools. They don't trust us white teachers with their children - after all, that is what happened to them when they went to school. The Austudy paperwork is not suited to people with extended relationship groups, with communal property concepts and relatively fluid addresses.

The so called "extra benefits" for the Indigenes are about equity - providing the opportunity for equality, not equality in itself. Comparing it to the "affirmative action" of the US is misinformed, as there has never been an indigenous African American culture, although there is an interesting hybrid culture in Florida.

I was one of those students who used pen and paper in lectures, and I have to agree that it's a more effective way of learning. I did take the time to add additional notes later to "decode" what wasn't legible.

My approach was to get down everything on the board and as much as possible that was said - including student questions and interjections.

This certainly worked for me - I had a GPA of 7, won scholarships, University Medals and Distinguished Scholar awards.

My son (who is in a special school for gifted students) uses a TabletPC. Except for the slippery feel, it seems to be the best of both worlds. Once the handwriting recognition is trained, you have the kinaesthetic sensory input of handwriting, the ability to make diagrams and formulae, and the clarity of formatted text. It will be interesting once the technology matures.

Can someone mod up this AC's posts? I assume that he's AC for professional reasons. It's good to have clear, correct interpretation of the law here in Oz for those who don't live in God's own country.

The catch in Queensland is that unless you are using the MOI (mandated operating interface) you are screwed. Using Firefox? Sorry, can't help you. OO.org? Same thing. Not Outlook? Then it's your fault you have an email issue. Does AVG show a virus? Not a mandated scanner, so you are NOT infected. Try using squeak in the classroom, and you get slapped. Don't use linux, or cygwin etc. In fact any non-approved software can (and often will) be deleted if your laptop is dropped into Information Services, as your problem is put down to "non-mandated software" as the 1st option.

This clearly makes support simpler, but can make teaching more challenging, especially if you want the kids to use computers as tools for thinking, and not just document management systems.

Being disabled, I find the caps-lock key very handy. My right hand does not work properly, and typing things like "B.M. Forester" is much easier than holding down the shift key. I have never used AOL.

I'm looking at getting a spinal neurostimulator fitted myself in about 12 months. The idea that unknown people could alter the signals in my CNS is scary. Apart from your scenario, what if it's turned off when driving? The chances I could concentrate with all the pain coming back at once have to be slim.

If I got the script for epilepsy then it would be free. Unfortunately this is not the case.

If the question was asked by someone in the UK this would not be the case. In civilised countries access to health care is not predicated on wealth. I get neurosurgery 4 times a year and it costs me nothing. I stay in hospital at least 3 weeks a year in addition to this and it costs me nothing. My monthly visits to my GP cost me nothing. My Neurontin costs me $5 per month. I have no health insurance other than that which I am guaranteed by being a citizen of a humane society.

Yes, you do have a say. I contributed to the Green Paper on the Service Card, which was in danger of being owned by Motorola and Gemsmart. It was people like me, giving valid clear technically correct explanations of the failings of that "backdoor ID card" that resulted in it being a no-go. When have YOU been a part of the process - there's nothing to stop you! Have you petitioned parliament? Written to your local member? Shown up to ALP branch meetings and asked polite, informed but pointed questions? It's when everyone says "we have no power over the people we elect" that we give up our power. Fact is that if enough people go on record (by the 3 means I listed above) then politicians listen, purely out of self interest.