Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.
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How to Create an Active Shooter Alert
Sometimes it seems like the only news we see nowadays is of mass shootings. Gun violence is everywhere, from schools to public places. It’s more important than ever before for an emergency communication system to be able to address this kind of emergency with an active shooter alert that provides detailed instructions so that everyone…
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Why You Should Use Your Emergency Communication System Every Day
Emergency Communication: An Unfortunate Necessity While it would be nice to live in a world where emergency communication wasn’t necessary, it’s unfortunately not the world we live in. Every organization, from schools to companies should have some kind of emergency communication system. Even the Gotham Police Department has the Bat Signal and the Bat Phone.…
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Every Classroom Should Have a Camera
What Are the Concerns About Cameras in the Classroom? Cameras are everywhere. They’re in our computers and phones. They’re in stores and in cars. In schools, they’re in the hallways, cafeteria, gymnasium, and the playground. Video cameras are a major part of the overall conversation about what can be done to keep students and staff…
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How to Close Messages
Closing a message removes it from active status and, if archiving has been set up in the Message Editor, sends it to the Archives. Messages that do not have archiving set up will disappear when closed. Closing a message will also stop any additional features of the message, including text or media on signs, signal…
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Omni – Safety, Security, and Communications All in One
Recent emergency events such as school shootings have shown that emergency communication systems need to be more than just audio PA because a fire alarm can drown out an audio announcement. An emergency communication system needs to be both text and audio, as well as have cameras and signal lights to be more effective. But…
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Complete Guide to the User Database Manager
User Directory Navigation Browse: Click to browse a full list of all users Find: To find a user by name, clear out the last name or first name field, enter the appropriate name, then click find. If there are multiple users with that same first or last name, make sure the cursor is in the…
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Secure Emergency Communication Systems Prevent Misuse
The recent increase in school shootings (more school children have died in the US this year as of writing than service members in the military) has also seen an increase in perpetrators making use of the school’s emergency communication system for their own nefarious purposes. The suspects at both Marjory Stoneman High School in Parkland,…
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PA Needs to Be Both Audio and Visual
In emergency situations, audio PA alone often isn’t enough to convey emergency communications to those who need it. For example, in the recent tragic events at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, one of the first acts done by the shooter was to pull the fire alarm, which caused many students and teachers…
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How to Change Comm Control Preferences
The Communication Control, or Comm Control, screen is where users can set how they want to be contacted. It is accessible either from the User Directory or from the User Database Manager by clicking on the Comm Control button in the upper right corner of the window. Either location will take you to the Communications…
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How to Set Up User Devices
User devices are personal devices or contact methods by which a user can be personally reached. These include e-mail addresses, phones, PC Alert, and text devices such as pagers or cell phones. Text Devices (cell phones and pagers): each device requires a license that can be purchased from MessageNet Systems. The license is per device,…
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