Information for Edoovillages (Schools)

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Edoovillages are the schools where laptops are deployed. Labdoo focuses on equipping schools because:

  • Schools have their own organized community.
  • Classrooms are managed by teachers who can help monitor the good use of the laptops. The role of the teachers is also important to help Labdoo recycle laptops once they no longer work.
  • Schools typically have electricity and access to the Internet (even in remote areas thanks to the expansion of wireless communications). They also provide waterproof and secure shelters.
  • Working with schools also simplifies the coordination of dootrips, as many people who travel to poor communities visit schools during their trips.

In order to create a new edoovillage, the potential recipients will need to fill in the Labdoo laptop request form.

When an edoovillage is created, the recipients receive a kit containing at least:

  • An edoovillage dashboard from where the inventory of contributed devices can be managed and tracked.
  • An entry in the list of Labdoo edoovillages.
  • A web album in the edoovillage's space where pictures of the activities with the laptops can be uploaded.

To help reduce electronic waste, a main obligation of the laptop recipients is to report back to Labdoo.org every six months the list of laptops in their inventory and the status of those laptops (working or not working) and to facilitate the process of recycling the laptops once they no longer work through the Labdoo's social network-based recycling mechanism. This reporting processes are referred to as Global Inventory Checks (GICs).

Managing Your Edoovillages

The Labdoo Aid Social Network provides a set of dashboards to help you manage your edoovillages (e.g. inventory management, configuration of automatic notifications on new correlated events, photo albums, etc.). Please read the section about Edoovillages under the general Labdoo Platform Manual to learn more about how you can make the best use of the Labdoo tools.

Edoovillage Requirements to Receive Dootronics

To receive dootronics, a potential edoovillage needs to satisfy the following main requirements:

  1. Since Labdoo focuses on 'spreading education', an edoovillage must basically be a school or an educational center. In some occasions we can make exceptions and provide laptops to other organizations like hospitals or clinics, but most of the accepted edoovillages are actually schools.
  2. Edoovillages are asked to find travelers (dootrippers) willing to travel from any of the hubs to their location. This requirement is important to ensure the project is logistically viable. Labdoo is sending laptops to a very large number of schools, so having the schools themselves find the travelers helps speed up the implementation of the project and makes it feasible and sustainable. While Labdoo can also help find travelers, it is generally required that the school provides the first travelers on their own.
  3. The school must be capable of keeping laptops in a secure place to ensure they won't be damaged by harsh climate conditions (rain, dust, heat, ...) nor stolen.
  4. Once accepted, schools need to fill in the edoovillage request form and provide pictures of the school and the official school / NGO certificate in order to initiate the project.

Laptops with no batteries

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Unless the battery is in good condition and can hold up charge well, we purposely remove the battery from the laptop.

There are several reasons for that.
1. The used battery that came with the used laptop is typically reaching toward the end of its
life cycle. Very often, the old battery causes problems to power up the laptop. (Tip: If you have a problem powering on the laptop or if there's a warning message about battery problems when you turn it on, try to remove the laptop battery to see if the problem goes away.)

2. Old batteries are one of the most poisoning eWaste items. Since many schools may not have the capacity to properly dispose of eWaste, removing the laptop battery helps reduce eWaste.

3. The laptop battery is quite heavy, and many airlines don't allow laptop batteries to be in the checked luggage together with the laptop. The volunteer has to carry the battery separately with their carry-on suitcase, which is an extra burden to the traveler.

Not including the old battery reduces the CO2 footprint and also eases the traveler’s life in a
great deal.

The Labdoo laptops are most often used in the classroom setting, and most of the classrooms do have power outlets. We decided not to include the batteries on the laptops we sent out unless the battery is in excellent condition.
You can find further information on why and how to dispose safely of old batteries in this article from thunderboltlaptop.com
We hope you found the above explanation useful, and we are looking forward to seeing you share pictures of your students enjoying the laptops.

Educational Software

Labdoo.org uses:

  • Educational software suitable for students of all ages (from preschool to high school)
  • Add-ons to provide barrier-free access for blind or handicapped users
  • Offline wikis and manuals so that educational content can be accessed even without Internet connection
  • Virus scanner ClamAV and other tools

Labdoo laptops are not limited to the default programs and tools provided by the Ubuntu operating system. By installing the prepared Labdoo images for Cloning or the installation scripts you can add more useful educational content. You can also download additional software by using the Ubuntu Software Center if your laptop is connected to the Internet.

If you have any questions on how to use these applications, please ask them to the Labdoo Global Support team as explained in the following page: https://www.labdoo.org/content/what-if-i-want-receive-aid-lgs-support-teamu.

  1. Educational software
  2. Each Labdoo device comes with educational software for children of all ages. There is educational materials for levels from preschool to high school. The computer is also equipped with barrier-free access to help handicapped or blind users.

    Edubuntu is a collection of free educational programs that volunteers and developers around de world put together. Below you can find a brief description on some programs. You can find more detailed information at www.edubuntu.org and at http://wiki.ubuntuusers.de/Edubuntu.

  3. Game Collections
  4. GCompris, Childsplay and Omnitux are educational game suites for children aged 2 to 10. The suites contain arithmetic, spelling, letter, word-finding and memory games. The goal is to promote learning through game playing.

  5. Gcompris
  6. Gcompris contains more than 100 games and educational programs to help children learn in a fun way. There is a brief description of some of its key features below.

    Icon Menu Description
    Discover the computer Learn computer parts in different games.
    Go to the discovery games Discover colors, sounds, the world and more.
    Puzzles Learn logic, memory, puzzle, tossing, and patience.
    Games panel Pastimes like chatting, drawing games...
    Mathematics Learn how to count, how to calculate and about geometry.
    English Learning English alphabets, reading, hangman game and more.
    Science activities Learn electrical circuits, the water cycle, the operation of a lock...
    Strategy games Pastime like chess, tic-tac-toe, Oware and balls in a line.

  7. Astronomy and Geography
  8. Program Descriptions Program name Screenshot
    Celestia Celestia is a program which allows you to move virtually through space and visit other planets, stars and galaxies. celestia-gnome
    Marble Marble is a desktop globe. The program is similar to Google Earth. It is simple, yet very sophisticated and powerful. It supports a variety of other programs including OpenStreetMap and can reproduce it on its globe or on map view. marble
    Stellarium Stellarium is a planetarium program. stellarium
  9. Graphic and Construction Software
  10. Program Descriptions Program name Screenshot
    Dia Dia is a diagram editor that provides a variety of options available to create attractive charts. Besides being able to place the objects scale-free, graphics can be included. dia
    FreeCAD FreeCAD is a parametric 3D modeler made primarily to design real-life objects of any size. Parametric modeling allows you to easily modify your design by going back to your model history and changing its parameters. FreeCAD is open-source and highly customizable, scriptable and extensible. FreeCAD
    Freeplane Freeplane is a program to create mind maps. freeplane
    Gimp GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation Program) is a free and open-source raster graphics editor used for image retouching and editing, free-form drawing, converting between different image formats, and more specialized tasks. [Update 20.04 LTS] gimp
    GnuPaint GnuPaint is a simple paint program, which is based on xpaint. gpaint
    Inkscape Inkscape is a vector-based graphics program like Adobe Illustrator, Freehand, CorelDraw or Xara X. The application provides a very user-friendly interface, which remains intuitive and clear in spite of its many functions. inkscape
    LibreCAD LibreCad is a very powerful free program for two-dimensional CAD drawings. You can create various technical drawings such as plans for buildings, interiors, mechanical parts or schemas and diagrams. librecad
    Pencil Pencil can create traditional hand-drawn animations (cartoons). It supports both bitmap and vector graphics. pencil
    PLM Practice how to program in Java, Python, Scala etc. PLM
    TkGate TkGate is a digital circuit simulator. Manuals in ~/Public/manuals-ubuntu/English/TKGate_2_0 TkGate
    Tux Paint Tux Paint is a simple drawing program for young children. Images can be painted using stamps, brushes etc. tuxpaint
    VYM VYM (View Your Mind) is an easy-to-use application for creating mind maps. vym
  11. Mathematics and Statistics
  12. Program Descriptions Program name Screenshot
    GeoGebra GeoGebra is a free geometry software with which the mathematical properties of geometry, algebra and calculus can be drawn. geogebra
    Jfractionlab Educational program to practice fractions Jfractionlab
    KAlgebra KAlgebra is a mathematical computer program. Its basis is the language of content MathML, which can be used to describe the structure of a formula. It can run arithmetic and logical operations and two-and three-dimensional graphs are shown. kalgebra
    KmPlot KmPlot is a program to visualize mathematical functions. kmplot
    Lybniz Lybniz is a simple program for visualizing mathematical functions. lybniz
    TurtleArt A LOGO-like tool for teaching programming TurtleArt
    Tux Tux of Math Command, also known as TuxMath, is a math coach, with which basic arithmetic can be practiced. The gameplay is based on the arcade classic Missile Command. Tux must save cities by solving mathematical problems before the destruction. tuxmath
    Xabacus Simulation of the ancient calculator XAbacus
    XaoS XaoS is a program which creates fractal graphics in real time. XAbacus
  13. Physics
  14. Program Descriptions Program name Screenshot
    Step With Step you can learn and feel how physics works. You place some bodies on the scene, add some forces such as gravity or springs, then click "Simulate" and Step shows you how your scene will evolve according to the laws of physics. step
  15. Games
  16. Program Descriptions Program name Screenshot
    Atomix Atomix is a game to preassemble molecules from individual atoms. The gameplay is based on the AMIGA game Atomix. atomix
    biniax2 Colorful Logic game with arcade and tactics modes. atomix
    Bumprace BumpRace is a simple arcade game. You have to get from the start to the finish line without crashing into the blocks. atomix
    eBoard, Gnuchess, Crafty (chess) eboard is a graphical chess program which can function as an interface to Internet chess servers such as FICS and to chess engines such as Crafty. Gnuchess and Crafty are the matching chess engines. eboard
    Frozen-Bubbles FColorful 3D rendered penguin animations. The game idea is similar to Tetris. frozen-bubbles
    gbrainy gbrainy is a platform to train memory, arithmetical and logical capabilities with many sorts of different exercises of many difficulty levels. gbrainy
    GCompris GCompris is a collection of games for children. It combines a variety of games on various topics for different age groups. Thus, it contains for example GCompris Games on mathematics (small 1x1), colors, skill, working with computers etc. Recommended age 3 +. gcompris
    Kanagram Kanagram is a word game in which it is necessary to solve a mystery. A word is decoded by clever conversion of the given letters. kanagram
    Kartoffelknülch KTuberling is a program with several background images (tuberling, Egypt, the moon, Christmas, etc.) available so their designs can be modified. ktuberling
    Ltris LTris is a very polished Tetris clone, which offers three types of games. The classic mode, a figures mode, where different figures appear every level, and a multiplayer mode. LTris is highly configurable through its menu system. ltris
    lbreakout2 lbreakout2 is a game similar to the classic breakout, featuring a number of added graphical enhancements and effects. You control a paddle at the bottom of the playing-field, and you need to destroy the bricks at the top by bouncing balls against them. ltris
    minetest Minetest is an open-world game, inspired by Minecraft. In a randomly generated world, raw materials are used to create tools and shape the environment. minetest
    Neverball Neverball is simple: you have to collect all the coins using a ball, but you control the floor, not the ball... ri-li
    Ri-li Ri-li is a skill game where you have to move a wooden train set by following the right course of different rail networks. The goal is to collect the different cars distributed throughout the level. ri-li
    Scratch With Scratch, you can program your own interactive stories, games, and animations — and share your creations with others in the online community. sratch
    Supertux SuperTux is a classic 2D jump 'n run side-scroller game with a style similar to the original SuperMario games. supertux
  17. Language Learning
  18. Program Descriptions Program name Screenshot
    Parley Parley is a vocabulary trainer. The vocabulary is extensive and the game offers a variety of settings around the goal of creating word lists that will allow you to learn. parley
    Anki Anki is an alternative tool to Parley. Ready to use vocabulary and learning decks can be downloaded from here https://ankiweb.net/shared/decks/ anki
  19. Keyboard trainer
  20. Program Descriptions Program name Screenshot
    Tux Typing Tux Typing helps children to learn how to write through playful touch. Recommended age 5 +. tuxtype
  21. Music
  22. Program Descriptions Program name Screenshot
    Gtick, KMetronome Gtick and Kmetronome are a software metronomes. Gtick, KMetronome
    Tux Guitar Program to edit and view sheet music, especially for guitar. Tux Guitar
    Solfege Ear training software to help you practice intervals, chords, scales and rhythms (manuals in Public/manuals-ubuntu) Solfege
    Piano Booster Piano Booster is a new way to learn the piano just by playing a game. Piano Booster
    VMPK Virtual MIDI Piano Keyboard VMPK
  23. Office Applications
  24. Program Descriptions Program name Screenshot
    Microsoft Teams for Linux [Update 20.04 LTS] Microsoft Teams for Linux is a client that includes chat, meetings, and video for home learning. The service is integrated into the Office 365 Office suite with Microsoft Office and Skype. Teams is part of the Labdoo image for cloning and was included in 2020, during the corona crisis, to make home schooling easier since many schools use Teams for distributed lessons. Microsoft Teams for Linux
    Skype [Update 20.04 LTS] Microsoft Skype has been preinstalled on Labdoo computers since the release of 20.04 LTS. Skype also provides instant messaging services. Users can text, send videos, voice messages and images. Skype also allows video conference calls. Skype
    LibreOffice Suite LibreOffice is a powerful office suite; its clean interface and powerful tools allow you to unleash your creativity and grow your productivity. LibreOffice embeds several applications that make it the most powerful, free and open-source office suite on the market: Writer, the word processor; Calc, the spreadsheet application; Impress, the presentation engine; Draw, our drawing and flowcharting application; Base, our database and database frontend; and Math, for mathematical equations. LibreOffice Suite
    LibreOffice Writer Writer has all the features you need from a modern, full-featured word processing and desktop publishing tool. It's simple enough for a quick memo, but powerful enough to create complete books with contents, diagrams, indexes, and more. Feel free to concentrate on your message, while Writer will make it look great. writer
    LibreOffice Calc Calc is the spreadsheet program you've always needed. Newcomers find it intuitive and easy to learn. Professional data miners and number crunchers will appreciate the comprehensive range of advanced functions. Wizards can guide you through choosing and using a comprehensive range of advanced spreadsheet functions. You can also download templates from the LibreOffice template repository, for ready-made spreadsheet solutions. calc
    LibreOffice Impress Impress is a truly outstanding tool for creating effective multimedia presentations. Presentation, edition and creation is flexible, thanks to different editing and view modes: Normal (for general editing), Outline (for organizing and outlining your text content), Notes (for viewing and editing the notes attached to a slide), Handout (for producing paper-based material), and Slide Sorter (for a thumbnail sheet view that lets you quickly locate and order your slides). impress
    LibreOffice Draw Draw lets you produce anything from a quick sketch to a complex plan, and gives you the means to communicate with graphics and diagrams. With a maximum page size of 300cm by 300cm, Draw is an excellent package for producing technical drawings, general posters, etc. Draw allows you to manipulate graphical objects, group them, crop them, use objects in 3D and much more. draw
    LibreOffice Base Base is a full-featured desktop database front end, designed to meet the needs of a broad array of users. But Base also caters to power users and enterprise requirements, and provides native-support drivers for some of the most widely employed multi-user database engines: MySQL/MariaDB, Adabas D, MS Access and PostgreSQL. In addition, the built-in support for JDBC- and ODBC-standard drivers allows you to connect to virtually any other existing database engine as well. base
    LibreOffice Math Math is the LibreOffice suite's formula editor, that can be invoked in your text documents, spreadsheets, presentations and drawings, to enable you to insert perfectly formatted mathematical and scientific formulas. Your formulas can include a wide range of elements, from fractions, terms with exponents and indices, integrals, and mathematical functions, to inequalities, systems of equations, and matrices. math
    Firefox Firefox Internet Browser is also useful to read local, off-line educational content. Firefox is the default browser. firefox
    Netsurf Fast and easy to use internet browser netsurf
    pdf Split and Merge PDFsam is our free and open source desktop application to split, merge, extract pages, rotate and mix PDF files. pdfsam
    pdf shuffler PDF-Shuffler helps the user to merge or split PDF documents and rotate, crop and rearrange their pages using an interactive and intuitive graphical interface. pdfshuffler
    Thunderbird [Update 20.04 LTS] Mozilla Thunderbird is a free and open-source[11] cross-platform email client, news client, RSS, and chat client developed by the Mozilla Foundation. Thunderbird is an email, newsgroup, news feed, and chat (XMPP, IRC, Twitter) client. The vanilla version was not originally a personal information manager (PIM). However, the Mozilla Lightning extension, which is now installed by default, adds PIM functionality. Additional features, if needed, are often available via other extensions. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mozilla_Thunderbird Thunderbird


  25. Kiwix, Xowa, Kolibri Offline reader and tools for educational content
  26. Labdoo computers come with preinstalled programs to read offline content, such as Kiwix. It allows you to access offline wikis and learning content without being connected to the Internet. Depending on the language, availability and size of the hard drive, Labdoo will have already preinstalled some learning content. Using the tools a lot of additional OER - Open Educational Resources, license-free learning content can be downloaded in different languages.

    The programs mentioned below are already preinstalled on "cloned" Labdoo computers, mostly in the language of the target country. There may be more or less content, depending on the size of the disk-drive. They can be found:

  • locally on a Labdoo computer in the folder /home/labdoo/Public
  • online on the server of the tools developer
  • on our FTP server http://ftp.labdoo.org/download/install-disk/wiki-archive/
Program Descriptions Program name Screenshot
kiwix (since end of 2020) Since end of 2020, cloned IT donations are coming with the Kiwix tool. In the folder /home/labdoo/Public/kiwix/wikis you will find preinstalled learning content (zim and meta files). Further learning content can be downloaded from the web. Note: All users these saved in the aforementioned folder, but these new folders must be opened once or else theis content will not appear on the list. To activate new contents for another user, click on the folder symbol at the upper right corner, navigate to the above folder and click on the content to activate it.
A great feature of Kiwix - if you click on the 3 dots (...) in the upper right corner, you can start the Kiwix server. An IP address is displayed and it can be used by other computers, cell phones or tablets to get connected, read the learning content on their devices and learn using it.
kiwix
kiwix Add-On for Firefox (since end of 2020) The preinstalled Kiwix add-on in Firefox will display zim archives for Kiwix. This allows you to access the zim archives with learning content in the folder /home/labdoo/Public/kiwix/wikis. However, this browser extension does not offer all the functions of the Kiwix app; the browser plug-in is still in beta phase. kiwix plug-in Firefox
Xowa (until end of 2020) Until the end of 2020, Labdoo used Xowa as a tool to display offline wikis http://xowa.org/. Since then, Xowa was replaced by Kiwix to clone images.
If you want to continue using Xowa, you can install it, set it up manually and load wikis from the Xowa server yourself. Labdoo also removed the Xowa archives from its FTP server at the end of 2020. Instead, the most common zim archives for Kiwix are still available on our FTP server.
xowa
Kolibri Another tool for offline content is Kolibri, based on mySQL database. It comes preinstalled, but not configurated.
Download content from: https://catalog.learningequality.org/#/public
kolibri
  • Additional Programs
  • Program Descriptions Program name Screenshot
    alsamixer The program alsamixer is a tool to access all ALSA settings provided for the sound card. Frequent settings, which cannot be directly accessed with the X-user interface, are deactivated or down-regulated. With Alsamixer you can quickly find and activate these settings. alsamixer
    calibre Calibre is a cross platform program to manage and convert e-books calibre
    Laby Laby is a program to learn the programming in OCaml, Python, Lua, Ruby, Prolog, C or Java. An ant has to be moved safely through a maze without stepping into spider webs or other traps. laby
    Nanny Nanny Parental Control is an application to monitor and control what children are allowed to do on the PC. nanny
    Kino Kino is a simple video editor for GNU / Linux, which also offers the ability to directly program the videos from the camcorder to take screenshots ("capture"). kino
    ScolaSync Graphic tool to copy data to or from a set of USB storage media ScolaSync
    Scribus Scribus is a desktop publishing program. It is used to create professional layouts, and it is similar to Adobe PageMaker, QuarkXPress or Adobe InDesign. scribus
    ARandR ARandR is a tool to configurate the monitor settings, e.g., a second monitor or a Beamer. ARandR
    Audacity Audacity is a free, open-source and easy-to-use graphical audio editor and recorder. audacity
    KRDC KRDC is a VNC client / desktop sharing application, compatible with RDC Remote Desktop for Windows. A remote computer can be operated using VNC. The screen content of another computer is displayed on the local computer. Mouse and keyboard entries are sent back from the local computer (here the client, also called the viewer) to the remote computer (the VNC server runs on the host). krdc
  • Virus scanner ClamAV (ClamTK)
  • Linux doesn’t normally need a virus scanner due to the Linux security concept. There are very few (not to say - none) viruses in Linux desktop. Nevertheless, some companies still offer virus scanner for extra security, for example to protect the file server being used by Windows clients.

    Some edoovillages also request a tool to be able to scan a USB drive and remove any possible virus from it. ClamAv is recommended for this purpose (ClamAV is automatically installed if you are using the installation scripts or cloning images).

    To serve the purpose, we recommend the license free, open-source virus scanner called ClamAV
    https://help.ubuntu.com/community/ClamAV (You can use ClamTK to start the program).

    More modules and the virus signatures may need to be installed in order to run the program smoothly. Therefore, please run either the installation script for Labdoo FTP site ( http://ftp.labdoo.org/download/install-disk/installskripts/installscript... ) or use the cloning images since all the programs are already preinstalled in the images.

    Parts of this wiki content is based on text and graphics taken from www.edubuntu.org and http://wiki.ubuntuusers.de/Edubunt

    Educational content, OER (Open Educational Resources)

    Video Tutorials

    English Video Tutorials

    German video tutorials are here https://www.labdoo.org/de/content/video-tutorials.

    All videos can be also watched and downloaded from here:

    How to log in to a Labdoo computer
    User concept (labdoo, student, guest)

    EN: https://youtu.be/hJTWPJMptus
    Download (FTP):
    18.04 LTS: http://ftp.labdoo.org/download/Public/videos/en_login_18_04_LTS.mp4
    20.04 LTS: http://ftp.labdoo.org/download/Public/videos/en_login_20_04_LTS.mp4

    Introduction to MATE desktop
    Introduction and overview to the MATE desktop, especially explaining the details for Labdoo project.

    EN: https://youtu.be/DGDYFMOXOho
    Download (FTP): http://ftp.labdoo.org/download/Public/videos/en_MATE-desktop.mp4

    Settings MATE desktop
    MATE desktop settings and adaptations

    EN: https://youtu.be/oVML9C4y1eE
    Download (FTP): http://ftp.labdoo.org/download/Public/videos/en_MATE-settings.mp4

    Educational software
    Overview about educational, Office and other software that come with a Labdoo computer

    EN: https://youtu.be/OdNTr0RmsJw
    Download (FTP): http://ftp.labdoo.org/download/Public/videos/en_software.mp4

    Educational content
    Introduction to educational content coming with Labdoo computers (Wikis, manuals, language training etc.)
    This educational content is available offline (without any internet connection), but can be combined with online content, if web access is possible.

    EN: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3U9mB8YYINE
    Download (FTP): http://ftp.labdoo.org/download/Public/videos/en_content.mp4

    LXDE desktop overview and settings
    LXDE desktop (Lubuntu) overview and settings

    EN: https://youtu.be/TgWKQxhF1zQ
    Download (FTP): http://ftp.labdoo.org/download/Public/videos/en_LXDE-desktop-settings.mp4

    Xowa Offline Wiki Tool
    Introduction to Xowa offline wiki tool, to get offline access to more than 800 wikis in various languages

    EN: https://youtu.be/bKnvQbKDyPU
    Download (FTP): http://ftp.labdoo.org/download/Public/videos/en_Xowa.mp4

    alsamixer and hardinfo - useful Linux tools
    Useful tools for Linux computer to adjust volume, microphone and audio settings (alsamixer) and to get information about the installed hardware (hardinfo)

    EN: https://youtu.be/VFsQS5iYkeo
    Download (FTP): http://ftp.labdoo.org/download/Public/videos/en_LXDE-desktop-settings.mp4

    Labdoo solution for refugees in German
    To support refugees and integration projects in the German speaking countries (D-A-CH) we prepared a special solution: Labdoo's laptops now come with educational content and software for refugees (e.g., Xowa wiktionaries in the most common languages spoken by the refugees who arrive to the D-A-CH countries, German language courses, software etc.). Cloning the image PAE64_16_04_LTS_refugees_DE to a laptop will install these content and solution.

    Der Link: https://youtu.be/gaUDq0wrpoY
    Download (FTP): http://ftp.labdoo.org/download/Public/videos/de_refugees_DE.mp4

    For technicians

    Online FTP server: Adaption to school / country, language, keyboard, drivers etc.
    Offline local: Adaption to school / country, language, keyboard, drivers etc.


    Online FTP server: Change system files hosts and hostname
    Offline local: Change system files hosts and hostname


    Online FTP server: How to use scripts / automatic installation of software or content etc.
    Offline local: How to use scripts / automatic installation of software or content etc.


    Why Labdoo Uses Linux

    EN

    Educational Tux

    If you receive Labdoo laptops, we strongly recommend to not overwrite the installation with Windows and to leave the installed Operating System Linux in place. There are many important reasons for that:

    • Linux is between 50-100% faster than Windows. Installing Windows can make your laptop much slower.
    • Linux is an open and free software. This is an incredibly powerful property. This basically means that people can freely use all the software provided by Linux without worrying about license violations. It means that you can fire up the Ubuntu Software Center and install any of its thousands of applications for free. This aspect is really important for schools and students, because it provides freedom to access powerful educational applications.
    • Many Windows versions are or will soon be out of support (XP, Vista or Windows 7). This means that they will no longer be maintained and updated. The laptop you are receiving is fully updated and patched with a long-supported version.
    • Labdoo's software comes with more than 300 educational applications in addition to the Firefox web browser, Skype, VLC, or the Libre Office Suite that offers all the Microsoft Office's functions.
    • Labdoo laptops come with more than 1,000,000 eBooks, videotutorials and Wiki Pages preinstalled, even in your local language. If you install another operative system, you will lose all this content
    • Labdoo supports through its Global Support Program (LGS) only the laptops that keep the original Labdoo software. You can find all the Labdoo video tutorials on the Desktop in the folder "Videos" and you can also find manuals in the folder "/home/labdoo/Public/how-to-start"
    • Separated user and permissions concept: The creation of 3 different users -Teacher (labdoo) Student (student) and Guest (guest) eases enormously the learning process and the sharing of the laptop between students.
    • You still can still use Windows applications through Wine and VirtualBox if you really need to, please continue reading below if you want to know how.
    • The Look and Feel of a Labdoo laptop is almost identical to that of a Windows machine. Because we understand that you may be used to Windows operating systems, we've tuned Labdoo laptops to have a very similar user interface.
    Choose the Desktop Layout
    Desktop Layout "Redmond"
    Desktop Layout "Cupertino"

    If the above is still not convincing enough and if you'd like to install another operating system different than Linux to your Labdoo laptops, you can still do so. Labdoo does not impose any restrictions on the software you run on the computers provided that you can ensure that the laptops are being used for educational purposes.

    If you want to change the operating system (OS) but the laptop needs to travel internationally, we recommend you to install the basic, license free (L)Ubuntu in the laptop, and then you can have the edoovillage install their desired OS locally. A basic OS is needed to travel abroad because the international travel rules require laptops to be able to boot into an OS.

    If the laptop does not travel internationally and you want to have your own OS, then it is recommended to deliver the laptop without any OS. Just format the hard drive by using the 'shred' command.

    Please make sure all software and OS installed in Labdoo devices are NOT violating any copyrights or laws. As explained above, this is the reason Labdoo.org strongly encourages using open and license-free OS and software such as (L)Ubuntu.

    Use Windows under your Linux Laptop

    If you need to run Windows applications, you can still use one of the following options with a Labdoo machine:

    • Wine is a free tool, enabling Windows applications (exe) to run on Linux. Using Wine you are able to run many programs on Linux, even those developed for the Microsoft Windows OS. Wine can be used without installing the Windows OS. Of course, you will still need to buy or own the necessary licenses for these programs. Read more here https://www.winehq.org/, and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wine.
    • Installing multiple operating systems using VirtualBox

      If the laptop comes with more than 2 GB RAM, you can consider using Virtualbox, a tool that allows you to install another operating system like Windows next to (or on top of) Linux. By doing so, you will be able to run (L)Ubuntu as the host OS and Windows, or other operating systems, as a guest OS at the same time.

      You also need to fulfil the legal and license regulations on the guest OS that we mentioned above. The images provided by Labdoo for cloning laptops come with a preinstalled Virtualbox. There is also an installation script to install Virtualbox and its extensions for a Linux OS available.

    Download handout as odt or pdf


    Windows is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries.
    VirtualBox is a registered trademark of Oracle Corporation in the United States and/or other countries.

    How to Start a Labdoo Laptop?

    EN

    User Accounts and concept

    Each Labdoo laptop comes with the Ubuntu operating system preinstalled (release names: xx.04 LTS; xx = 2018, 2020 etc.) and with 3 users already created, ready to use:

    • student: is a standard user account for students. The user student is not administrator, just a standard user. The password for this user is labdoo (you can change the current password or not.)
    • guest: is an account which doesn’t require a password to log in. All data will be automatically erased after the user logs off from this account
    • labdoo: has super user rights / is administrator! labdoo is an administrator account and has all the access rights on the computer. Working under this account without a proper knowledge may crash the system! Therefore, it is recommended to have only teachers know the password of the user labdoo. The password is labdooadmin.

    The letters of the password should match with the character set of the keyboard (latin letters and what you see on keyboard). Using other keyboards with, non-latin characters might lock you out of the computer.

    Important: The keyboard layout can be changed manually at the time of log-in (see below). The system setting of the keyboard layout can be changed via the system file / etc / default / keyboard. Labdoo recommends storing the keyboard layout of the delivered computer in this system file (WYSIWYG).

    User log in,
    select user
    Login Screen
    Auswahl User
    Choose a
    Desktop

    Select a
    user language
    (after log in)

    Select a
    keyboard layout

    Settings for visually
    impaired users (optional)


    Click on "Desktop Layout",
    adapt desktop layout (20.04 LTS and higher)
    Select desktop layout
    Desktop Layout "Familiar" (MATE, same as in 18.04 LTS)
    Desktop Layout "Redmond"
    Desktop Layout "Cupertino"

    Important: the keyboard layout used when logging in will be set during the installation process of (L)Ubuntu. If you installed a computer using images for cloning this will be the German keyboard (DE). Otherwise, the keyboard layout used to install (L)Ubuntu will be the one to remain. To change the layout after logging in, open a terminal (press Strg/CTL + Alt + T at the same time) and type sudo nano /etc/default/keyboard (press Enter). Next, change the keyboard code, (e.g., EN for English, FR for French, ES for Spanish etc.). You can optionally add the code of a specific country in the following line between the 2 quotation marks (z.B. CH for Switzerland). Then store the file (Strg/CTL + Alt + O (Enter), next Strg/CTL + Alt + X). You will NOT modify the keyboard layout you have used after having already logged in. This can be changed using the setting or the keyboard layout icon in the upper task bar (MATE) or lower task bar (LXDE).

    Desktops MATE or LXDE

    Two desktops are preinstalled on most Labdoo laptops - MATE and LXDE.

     MATE Desktop is the recommended desktop, but it needs more resources (hardware requirements) than LXDE. If your computer begins to slow down, try out LXDE. You can switch them when logging in.
     LXDE asks for less hardware resources and runs fast even on older hardware.

    The computer remembers which desktop each user chose last time and will start this desktop. If you want to change to another desktop you have to switch before logging in. The recommended desktops are Lubuntu (LXDE) and MATE session.

     MATE desktop
     LXDE desktop

    To change the password → System Tools → users and groups → +Add (to add a new user) or change → password "labdoo“ → change it → ok

    Manage Groups → to group users (e.g., group labdoo)

    To Start a Program

    There are many useful, fun and educational software and games installed. To start a program:

    Click on the lower left corner on the Lubuntu icon (similar to Windows XP) → “Education” or "game“ → click on the program you want to start it.

    In the folder “/Public”, you will find a lot of useful reference manuals, such as OER, Offline wikis, e-books etc.

    The icons for a video tutorial and an offline Wikipedia (Xowa) are available on the desktop.

    Optional: Desktops (user interfaces)

    Labdoo laptops come with Lubuntu (Linux operating system based on Ubuntu) and the LXDE and MATE desktops. LXDE and MATE are fast and easy-to-learn user interfaces. They can be installed on older laptops with at least 512 MB RAM and they will still run fast.

    Adjust languages, regional formats and keyboard settings

    Depending on the country where the edoovillage is located, you may want to install one or more additional language(s) or keyboard(s).

    You can adjust the language settings by selecting Preferences → Language Support. You may get messages like “Language support not completely installed, install now”. Click on "Yes" and continue the installation.

    In the next window select Install/Remove languages → select the language(s) needed → Apply → Apply System-Wide.

    The new languages will show up in the language list (as shown above). Lubuntu will use the first language that appears in the table, then go to the next one, and continue. If no languages matched, English will be used as default language.

    To change the priority of the languages → select and hold the right mouse button on the new language → move the language to its position and release the right mouse button → click "Apply System-Wide". The new language will be used after logging out and then logging in again or after rebooting the computer.

    Regional formats

    You can also adjust the local currency, notation of numbers, date and time, if available. Click on the tab “Regional formats“ and select the format as shown in the list → Apply System-Wide.

    Keyboard settings

    You may be able to skip this step if the laptop was cloned with images. Otherwise, you have to add a panel item to the task bar by clicking with right mouse button on the task bar → Add / Remove Panel Items → +Add → select "Keyboard Layout Handler" → +Add → optional: move the item position within the task bar by clicking "Up" or "Down".

    Right click on the symbol "DE" (keyboard layout handler) in the task bar (another country abbreviation may be shown) → Keyboard Layout handler Settings → Remove the hook "Keep system layout", if activated, otherwise, you won’t be able to add new layouts) →

    +Add → Add a new keyboard layout
    -Remove → Remove a keyboard layout
    ↑Up → Move a keyboard layout entry in the list up
    ↓Down → Move a keyboard layout entry in the list up

    The maximum number of keyboard layouts is 4.

    Customize Look and Feel

    You can change the Lubuntu graphical user interface (GUI), e.g., make it more look like Windows (if you want).

    In order to activate a different Look and Feel click on the Lubuntu-start button in the left bottom corner of the screen → Preferences → Customize Look and Feel → select in the tab widget e.g., the theme Win10 light or another theme you like → click on the icon theme and select Windows 10 or other icons you like → close the window.

    To undo / switch back to default Look and Feel just select another theme (Lubuntu-default) and icon theme (Lubuntu) - or other layouts that you like.

    You have to get used to some settings of this "Windows" theme (remember, it is NOT Windows, it is Linux / Lubuntu, but it looks more similar to Windows).

    Manuals, video tutorials and more

    You can open the folder /home/labdoo/Public/ for more manuals, video tutorials, offline wikis, etc. The icon of a video tutorial is placed on the desktop. You can watch it by using Firefox or other media player (view -> 1/2 size, zoom +/-).

    Install codecs for multimedia, film and DVD

    If your computer was installed using an image for cloning you will find on each desktop a script installscript-codecs.sh. Legal Notice Patent and copyright laws operate differently depending on which country you are in. Please obtain legal advice if you are unsure whether a particular patent or restriction applies to a media format you wish to use in your country. Without executing this script, you will not be able to watch videos or DVDs.
    This script will install restricted codecs and restricted software for multimedia applications. Proceed only if you are sure that you want to install these codecs and restricted software. Your computer must be connected to the internet while executing this script.

    Programs for blind or visually impaired users

    On the desktop you will find the icon of a magnifier. Click on it and you will get a magnifier which will follow your mouse. In the panel you will now see another magnifier icon. Right mouse click on that icon to open a settings menu.

    Other programs for handicapped users are:

    program description program name screen shot
    Orca Screen reader; Wichtig: to toggle Orca on / off please press at the same time Alt + Super/Windows + o. To configurate Orca, open a terminal (User labdoo) -> type orca -s (Enter). Orca
    pico2wave Tool to read marked (high-lighted) text in any document. To toggle pico2wave on / off press the keys Alt + Super/Windows + p at the same time. Mark the text before, then press these keys and the text will be read out loud. If the piece of marked text is too long, an error will be reported. pico2wave
    Elinks Text-based web browser, running in a terminal (link on desktop). Elinks

    More information on solutions for handicapped users can be found here https://www.labdoo.org/content/programs-handicapped-users-barrier-free.

    Set volume

    In the panel you will find an icon to mute or turn the volume up or down. Clicking on that icon will open a dialogue (mute, volume up or volume down). But there are much more settings for volume, microphone etc., which can only be accessed by a program called alsamixer:

    Program Descriptions Program name Screenshot
    alsamixer The program alsamixer is a tool to access all ALSA settings provided for the sound card. Frequent settings, which cannot be directly accessed with the X-user interface, are deactivated or down-regulated. With Alsamixer you can quickly find and activate these settings. Open a terminal (press Ctl/Strg + Alt + t at the same time), type alsamixer (enter). Now you can adjust the volume settings, move the keys ← → to move to the next channel, ↑ ↓ to turn the volume up or down. alsamixer

    Printer settings, CUPS
    A printer can be added and administrated by clicking System Tools → Printers → + Add a printer. Most printers, as far as they are connected to the computer or to network (LAN), will be recognized automatically.

    For a more complex solution there is Cups (Common Unix Printing System), the most common print tool for Linux. Most printers can be used, jobs and spools administrated using CUPS. CUPS comes with an integrated web server. This server can be used to set up and manage a printer. Open a web browser and open: http://localhost:631. Only the user labdoo is allowed to access this page. In case a printer is locally connected to a computer you can allow access for another computer to this printer via LAN.

    Help function F1, manual
    By pressing the key F1 or help in the menu bar most programs will open a window and a manual for this program will show up.

    Reset and restore user student
    A student should log in as guest or as user student, but never as user labdoo (only teachers, administrators should use it). But even if you log in as user student, some menu bars or icons might be deleted by mistake. Everything can be "repaired", but you have to know how - and this knowledge might be missing at schools. But we offer a good solution for that - on the labdoo user's desktop you will find a script restore_user_student.sh (Double click to start the script, run in a terminal). But be careful! This script will delete every(!) data / document stored or reset every setting configurated since you received the laptop! So, make sure all data needed is assured! Sometimes this script is also helpful if you want to remove all of the data before giving the computer to another user.


    Log in as administrator labdoo
    labdoo: is administrator (admin, "Super User")! This means that the user labdoo has all access rights, e.g., for updating, installing additional software and educational content etc. But as the admin you can accidentally "destroy" the laptop so that it does not start and can no longer be used, especially when users have none or poor experience with IT and Linux. And if the computer is "destroyed", the closest Labdoo hubs who can help with a reinstallation or give support are far away. That could become a real problem.
    Therefore, sign up only as user labdoo, if you act carefully and already have experience with the administration of computers. Otherwise, it is better to log in as user student, who has not the administrator rights, but can also use all programs and content - and has less chances to destroy a computer by mistake.
    The password to log in is at delivery labdoo (for all systems being delivered with Lubuntu 18.04 LTS or former releases, until about spring 2020). From Lubuntu 20.04 LTS ff. (starting about summer 2020) the password will change to labdooadmin. However, you should change this password immediately once you receive the computer at your school / project, because the user labdoo has administrator rights and only the teachers / maintainers and experienced users should have access as admins!

    Have fun learning and playing with your Labdoo laptop!

    The Labdoo team

    Keyboard Layout


    [Please print and attach this sheet to your dootronic shipment to ensure that the recipient knows how to use the computer. To print this sheet, click on 'Printer-friendly version' at the bottom of this page. Make sure to print it using the double page option in your printer settings to minimize the amount of paper used. Also, please print only one copy of this document for each group of laptops shipped together.]

    Useful links keyboard layouts

    http://ascii-table.com/keyboards.php
    http://commons.wikimedia.org

    http://dominicweb.eu/african-keyboard/ - a free keyboard for Android phones and Windows-running computers allowing to type in all the African languages that are based on the latin script.

    You can also enclose a print-out of specific keyboard layouts with the laptop. Here is a collection of frequently used keyboard layouts http://ftp.labdoo.org/download/documents/material/keyboard%20layouts/

    Language
    German ESC Bild ↑ Bild ↓ Druck Ende Einfg Entf Pause Pos 1 Strg
    English ESC page (up) page (down) print end Ins Del pause Home CTRL Backspace Shift Caps Enter
    French Échap ImpÉc Fin Inser Suppr Pause CTRL ← Suppr arrière Maj Verr Maj ↩ Entrée
    Polish / Polski ESC Obraz ↑ Obraz ↓ Drukuj Koniec Insfg Del Przerwa Poz. 1 CTRL
    Немецкий (RU) ESC Изобр ↑ Изобр ↓ Печать Конец Вставка Удаление Пауза Поз 1 Ctl
    Spanish ESC Re Pág Av Pág Impr Fin Insert Supr Pausa Inicio Ctrl Retroceso Mayús Bloq Mayús Entrar
    Німецька (UA) ESC Зобр ↑ Зобр ↓ Друк Кінець Вставка Видалення Пауза Поз 1 Strg

    Responsibilities when Receiving a Dootronic


    [This page is part of the 'Dootronics Welcome Package' which can be found in this page.]

    Dear Laptop receiver:

    We are very pleased to have the opportunity to contribute to your project by providing technology to help bridge the digital divide.
    With every right comes responsibilities. Technology, when adequately used, can provide very powerful means to aid those that are most in need. But if used improperly, it can also damage our environment. By receiving the above items, you are automatically accepting to abide by the following Labdoo global responsibilities:

    (1) The items received will be used only for the purpose described by your organization at the time you solicited this donation. If you intend to use it for a different purpose, you will contact first the Labdoo team at contact@labdoo.org.

    (2) In the case that an incidence occurs to any of the received items, you will contact the Labdoo team by going to https://www.labdoo.org/content/labdoo-global-support-lgs and writing on that wall your incidence, including the tagging number of the laptop(s) related to the incidence and a brief explanation. The following incidences must always be reported:

    (2.1) At the end of the life of any of the received items, so that the item can be properly recycled.
    (2.2) When an item breaks, malfunctions or in case there is any change in its status.

    (3) Every six months, please write also a message to the wall at https://www.labdoo.org/content/labdoo-global-support-lgs with the list of laptops that you have and their status (working or not working). If we do not hear from you, Labdoo won't be able to provide more educational laptops and tablets for your project.

    (4) Labdoo laptops are offered for free for educational purposes. In return, you agree to not use the laptops for commercial reasons and you agree not to charge any fee for the usage of the laptops.

    We thank you for your commitment to make our world a better place and we wish you the best of luck in your humanitarian mission.

    The Labdoo Team.

    Start a Laptop Request

    Thank you very much for your interest in Labdoo and in starting a laptop request for an edoovillage. The request can be presented by a single person, an association, or the school/project itself, as long as it helps children and young adults gain access education.

    The Labdoo guidelines do not allow to contribute computers to a specific person, only to organized public/private projects or schools, and the contributions have to stay within the edoovillage. All dootronics (laptops, tablets, etc.) are tagged via their online registration and have a unique Labdoo ID number.

    To be able to accept a request, it's important for us to verify that the project is feasible and that there will be enough resources to successfully accomplish it. For instance, requesters and supporters should demonstrate to have travelers willing to carry the laptops to the destination (we call these dootrips) or otherwise demonstrate that there is a fair chance to find such traveling resources. All edoovilages are listed in this dashboard.

    Please fill in the edoovillage request form that you will find in the Labdoo toolkit and send it over email to the Labdoo hub that will be taking care of your project. If you do not know your assigned hub yet, then you can use the Labdoo contact form to reach out to Labdoo. Send the request form together with pictures taken from the area, town, school and the children to one of our hubs.

    Please reach out to us at least +/- 3-4 weeks before the departure of a traveler (dootripper), so we have time to prepare the laptops (dootronics).

    Labdoo.org is only able to provide educational laptops because we receive them from donors around the world. It is difficult to tell in advance when the request will be fulfilled, but everybody can help shorten the delivery time by talking about the Labdoo project to friends, family, coworkers and their local community in general, or by talking to their local press and starting a call for laptop donations. There are many things you can do to help spread education around the world.

    Homeschooling tools

    [Note: If this page reaches you in printed form, the links are incomplete. You can find the original page on the web at https://www.labdoo.org/content/homeschooling-tools]

    Due to the Corona / COVID-19 situation, digital teaching / homeschooling is becoming more popular. As Labdoo receives an increasing number of requests for IT donations from schools and projects for students, Labdoo images are now coming with some of the below mentioned tools preinstalled or, if not, users can easily install those themselves. Most Labdoo's IT donations are delivered with the Labdoo learning environment based on Ubuntu / Linux (Images for cloning). To allow pupils' best usage of these donated computers, they can be integrated as seamlessly as possible into the school or web server environments of schools.

    Microsoft Teams 365 Clients, Teams for Education, Microsoft Teams for Linux

    Microsoft Teams is available for different devices. An initial overview is provided by the Teams homepage https://www.microsoft.com/microsoft-365/microsoft-teams/group-chat-software. A quick start manual for Teams can be downloaded here (PDF) https://pulse.microsoft.com/uploads/prod/2020/03/Microsoft_Teams_Quickst...

    Teams for Linux

    Since 2020, Teams for Linux is preinstalled in the Images for Cloning 20.04 LTS (start icon on the desktop and in the taskbar): https://www.microsoft.com/microsoft-365/microsoft-teams/download-app#des...
    If you want to install Teams yourself on another Linux computer: Download the above link to download the appropriate version to install for Ubuntu. deb, save the downloaded file on your computer, start the installation with a double click and follow the instructions.

    Additional Information:
    https://websiteforstudents.com/how-to-install-microsoft-teams-on-ubuntu-...

    Jitsi

    Free video conferencing via Jitsi https://jitsi.org/. There are different ways to use Jitsi on various devices: https://desktop.jitsi.org/Main/Download.html or https://jitsi.org/downloads/

    • for Ubuntu https://wiki.ubuntuusers.de/Archiv/Jitsi/ (it is not included in the standard Ubuntu repositories; i.e., you have to add an additional package source and then install it; not recommended due to security reasons). But if you want it is easy, follog the instructions using the above link,
    • Using Jitsi in a browser https://meet.jit.si/ without installing any software, (recommended) .
    • or as an app for tablets and mobile phone (https://jitsi.org/downloads/, go to your device's app store (Android or iOS).

    Access to video conferencing tools via browser

    Teams / Office 365 can be used via a browser without installing software. Various browsers are preinstalled on Labdoo computers for this purpose, including Firefox and Netsurf. One disadvantage will be that not all functionalities are available, such as e.g., video telephony. This requires the installation of the Teams frontend software on your device.

    If a school uses a web server-based solution and allows access via browser (e.g., iServe, Zoom, etc.) everything is prepared on hand and ready to be used. You only have to connect to the school server or the zoom server in the browser and, if necessary, log in with the student's login and password.

    There is also an extension available for Firefox for Zoom https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/zoom-new-scheduler/.

    If your school uses other tools, please contact Labdoo. We will check for you whether this learning tool is also available for Linux and, in case of high demands, if Labdoo might include those in the images for cloning.

    Zoom as an app for Linux computers or tablets

    As an alternative to browser access, Zoom also offers an app for tablets or computers (Linux https://zoom.us/download?os=linux, then select: Linux type = Ubuntu, architecture = 64 bit and version = 14.04 +; download, save, then open the Downloads folder, double-click on the .deb file, follow the instructions and install).

    For tablets, you can download Zoom for iOS https://apps.apple.com/us/app/id546505307 or for Android https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=us.zoom.videomeetings .

    What Labdoo cannot contribute

    Everything "around a computer", such as printer, scanner, online access / provider contract, network, etc. is not provided by Labdoo, but must be procured or commissioned by the user. We also advise to use online access via mobile phone contracts carefully, because their data volume is used up quickly and, in most cases, limited. Joining digital school video lessons might consume a large amount of data. So, for permanent and high data volume a fast internet access makes sense (WiFi, cable, DSL).

    All mentioned product names and trademarks are the property of their respective owners.