Someone You Can Count On...

When it all goes wrong--all at once--and you are in way over your head, you need to be able to rely on someone that you know will get the job done. A single point of contact. Someone who is competent and will execute according to what is necessary to get things back on track. Relationships like these are very hard to come by and are becoming more rare as the technology in our lives gets more complicated.

If a company could offer this type of individual service--a professional relationship that allows me to lean on one person for support, before, during, and after my purchase--they would have me as a customer forever. Lets run with that for a minute...

Being able to offer this "one-neck-to-choke" is nearly impossible these days. With broadening product lines and incredibly demanding timelines, it seems like one person just can't handle the entire spectrum. Some companies have totally given up on the idea altogether. It's too expensive. Furthermore, where do you find even one person that has the capacity to fulfill this role, let alone an entire team.

Well, it wasn't easy. But, we found them and we offer them to our customers every day. Our K-20 account managers master this task. Their passion is education and their gifting is in building and keeping relationships. Driven by their desire to take care of each customer's needs, they continue to improve the services we offer and forge new friendships.

Our unique company culture of customer centricity is understandably attractive to clients, but also has been the focal interest of so many talented professionals. Without giving too much away, this is how we do it: We care. We want to help you and grow to be that person that you can always count on. On an individual basis, we strive to cover every angle to ensure that everything goes according to plan. However, when crisis rears its ugly head, you can depend on us to be there for you.

The SALTO Virtual Network

Violence on school campuses around the nation has created an urgent need to find the best solution for protecting students and faculty. Because campuses have a constantly changing population of students, faculty and visitors, adequate access control—controlling who has access to building entrances and interior doors—becomes the linchpin of school safety. Access control systems can provide the structure and security to deter problems before they occur.

However, traditional hard-keyed locks are inefficient and costly, requiring complicated systems of multiple locks and keys for different levels of access, as well as requiring the expensive and time-consuming re-keying of locks when a key is lost or stolen. In addition, it’s almost impossible to track who has accessed any door at any given time.

Electronic locks have addressed many of the problems of hard-keyed systems, but they present their own set of challenges: hard-wiring each door is often prohibitively expensive, and they still require door-to-door visits to re-program each door’s lock or to pull data on access. As a result, standard electronic locks are typically found only in corporate settings.

In response to the shortcomings of both systems, educational facilities across the globe, as well as security-conscious facilities such as Heathrow Airport in London, have turned to SALTO Systems for their unique solution to security needs. The SALTO Virtual Network offers all of the advantages of standard electronic locks, with increased efficiency and much lower overall costs. Users’ Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) cards, which communicate data over a series of online “hotspot” locks and offline electronic locks, link the network and transmit data back to the central terminal that maintains the network. This immediate communication means that lost or stolen cards can be deactivated and new cards activated instantaneously, doors can be locked or unlocked with the click of a button at the terminal, and audits of door access can be run in real time. If a visitor needs access to only certain doors, their card can be restricted to open only those doors. Access can even be restricted to a certain time limit, after which the card automatically becomes deactivated.

Because the interior door locks communicate wirelessly over the network, interior door locks do not require hard-wiring, which makes installation quick and inexpensive. Whereas a hard-wired electronic lock can cost between $3000 and $4000, the SALTO system costs approximately $750 per interior door. Because cards can be deleted from the system immediately, there is no need to re-key locks when a card is lost or stolen, or when a faculty member leaves, which saves schools’ money in the long term. The wireless nature of the system also allows enormous flexibility in coverage. A series of data relayers, in addition to the RFID cards, makes it possible to control access for any number of doors over any area of campus, no matter how large the size.

Kevin Shupenia, Chief Operating Officer of Logical Choice Technologies, explained why working with SALTO was such a natural fit. “With our teams installing equipment in schools on a regular basis, we’re well-versed in the challenges that schools face with security. I knew that the SALTO Virtual Network was something that schools would be enthusiastic about.”

For more information, visit www.logicalchoice.com.

- Brian B.

How Summer Killed the Projector

During the Summer break, it is easy to forget about projector maintenance. After all, very few people are in the building and most units are not being used. However, it is during these quiet Summer months, LCD projectors are most vulnerable to damage.

With no movement in the classroom and air conditioning units turned off, dust will gather on the top and inside of the projector. Dust will continue to amass all Summer long. When the projectors are finally turned on in the Fall, the small internal cooling systems will instantly choke on the accumulated dust. Often, air filters are left quite dirty at the end of the semester. The additional dust collected through the Summer dormancy finds its way past the filter and directly in contact with sensitive mirrors and lenses. This results in a hazy, distorted image as well as brightness and color degradation. In many cases, this can also damage the cooling fan and lead to overheating and a shorter lamp life. 

Most manufacturers consider damage caused by dust to be a maintenance issue, which is not covered under their warranty programs. In cases like these, they will charge for cleaning and repair.

Fortunately this scenario is easy to prevent, with a little help from your friends in Customer Care. 


Step one: clean your filter. We cannot stress this enough. Get up there and clean it. When in doubt, clean it out. There is no such thing as cleaning your filter too often. Before you start up your projector for the first time of the semester and before you say goodbye to it for vacation, clean the filter. OK...I think you get the picture. Clean your filter.


Step two: bag it before you go. You can protect the projector from dust by sealing a plastic bag around the whole unit. There is no need to dismount the projector for this. Most trash bags will work perfectly; just use masking tape to seal the bag and hold it in place.


Step three: clean your filter.


We hope this helps. Let us know what you think!


-Luke B.

Project Management – you’ve heard the term before but do you really know what it is?

Let’s start with the basics…the formal definition given by the Project Management Institute (PMI) is below (PMI is the organization responsible for creating and maintaining the global standard in Project Management methodology).

Project Management - “is the application of knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to project activities in order to meet project requirements.”

(PMI*, Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide), 4^th Edition, p. 6)

Now let’s put it in layman’s terms…when Project Management is applied correctly, it’s a lot like cooking a great meal. To do it well, you need to know what ingredients to add, how much of each, what temperature to set the oven or stove, how long to cook it, when to stir it, turn it,  or baste it, in conjunction with the correct timing to do so, and so on.  The cook did not just slop together whatever was lying around the kitchen; they took calculated steps at precise times to ensure the food tasted, looked, and smelled exactly as one would ideally expect it to.

It’s no different with project management – there are specific steps and processes that must be utilized at specific times.  For instance, you have to get the right people in the room before you can gather requirements. You have to gather requirements before you can write the scope. The scope of the project must be written up before you can faithfully estimate the material and labor required to achieve your goals. Of Course, you have to estimate the material and labor to set the budget…and it goes on.

In essence, like cooking, Project Management is as much an art as it is a science. 

Hopefully this has sparked your interest.  Stay tuned for the next installment when we’ll cover what makes Project Management important for customers as well as providers.

- Steve K.

Conquer Illiteracy, Fight With Tools

Letters alive™ has been our pride and joy. Having the opportunity to design software using cutting edge technology is the dream of every young programmer. But, building something so revolutionary that fills a need in the foundation of our educational system--this has purpose. Kids need help.

Literacy has always been an issue. The mastery of which opens doors to new ideas and innovative thinking. If we can find a way to conquer illiteracy in our global community, imagine what lies ahead. 

We believe we have found a path toward this goal. By engaging students in a way that captivates their attention, we can defeat illiteracy. Integrating technology into a lesson is not enough, we needed to build from the ground up. We incorporated methods that work like phonics and flashcards, however, we started with the technology that we know will grab their attention. Most importantly, we used teachers and early reading experts to help design the curriculum. This is how we know it will be successful for your class and for your students.

ABC recently reported on Letters alive™. What an honor. Take a moment to see what they had to say. 

If you believe, like we do, that this will have a positive effect on the literacy rate in our youth, please join us in sharing this on whatever social media platform you subscribe to.

ABC News | Reading software that will change the way students learn to read - FOREVER http://t.co/CucgaHZ #LettersAlive

If you want to add this curriculum to your classroom, click here to visit our Web Store designed specifically for Educators.

Thank you for your support! 

ISTE Convention in Philadelphia

The show has been a tremendous success. Our booth stays busy with activity throughout the day and there seems to be no end to the flow of people interested in learning more about the products we attest will exact change in the classroom. Our booth is both appealing and welcoming. Regardless of the fact that our location and orientation are less than ideal, we have been drawing large crowds and captivating their attentions with Letters alive. 


One would be hard pressed to find another exhibitor that has been able to gather and keep show attendees as effectively as we have. Our exhibit is 10 x 20. Not nearly enough room for large desks with comfortable seating--like some of the booths we compete with. We don't have promotional "events" or professional acts with choreographed dancers, singing and dancing to our company theme song. Yet, somehow, people are willing to forgo those comforts and entertainment and huddle together (10-15 minutes at a time!) to watch one person demonstrate what we DO have.


We have a product that has the potential to change everything. Educators see that. They are not only excited to discover what we have created, but, they want to participate in it's development. We receive suggestions like "You guys should work on Math and counting next" and "social sciences would really benefit from this type for interactivity." I even had a teacher tell me that she had a dream about Letters alive--that it was in book form and the characters leapt from the pages. 


Our passion for education and the reformation of classrooms through the proper implementation of technology is evident in everything we have done here. Between our success in demonstrating our product lines and the strengthening of our strategic relationships with our partners also attending ISTE, I am very proud to report that we are indeed "Taking the Hill."

The LCT Family - Randy Self (Head Mushroom)

Some call it the Design Studio and some call it the Mushroom Farm, but, it's inmates are all unique individuals. Inside, it’s always dark. And, if you aren’t careful, you could find yourself in the crossfire of one of their impromptu Nerf wars.

The hours are long and the work is filled with strict deadlines and high-pressure projects, so, relieving stress with a soft Nerf bullet or a practical joke played on a co-worker is understandable and a welcome relief.

The head of this unique group, Randy Self, is a very talented Designer and Art Director. He is not only a visionary, but, also a hands-on, skilled craftsman--one of the originators of the Letters alive™ software that is putting Logical Choice on the cutting edge of educational augmented reality curriculum.

But how did someone like Randy come to be the “head mushroom in charge” in Logical Choice’s Mushroom Farm?

Randy’s degree in Media Arts and Animation from the Art Institute of Atlanta enabled this Sandy Springs, Georgia native to get a job with a special effects company in Lawrenceville, GA. All too often, that job led to a misunderstanding with area police. At 4 am, Randy and co-workers would stop by the local QT to buy a drink and a hotdog while covered in the blood (corn syrup and food coloring) used to make their ghoulish designs look like they were bleeding. The manufactured body parts in the trunk of his car did little to alleviate the concerns of the peace officers. When paychecks started arriving sporadically, Randy decided that as much as he enjoyed his job, he needed to find one with regular income.

Randy joined Logical Choice after the gaming company he worked for laid off its entire staff. The project they were working on, a MMO (Massive Multiplayer Online) game which had an educational focus was almost  complete when it fell victim to a lack of financial backing. He began his career here as an installer where he lasted a whole day and a half before being introduced to the Customer Care Team. It was in that environment where he introduced our CEO, Cynthia Kaye, to Augmented Reality which led to the creation of Letters alive™.

The influence of his mother, a photographer, and his father, an engineer, prepared him for the path that his career would take here at Logical Choice. “My mom is a creative person who sees things in a creative way and taught me to do that, too. And, my dad is a step-by-step engineer who taught me to follow the steps and work logically,” Randy shared. “He also taught me to use power tools and build things. I had no idea there were people like plumbers and electricians and builders that you paid until I was older because I thought every project was done by father and son.”

Randy shared a little about what makes this company special. “Honestly, I love this company. There are companies that say they are family oriented, but, it doesn’t really work that way. Here, it feels genuine. We joke with each other and people actually get it and don’t get offended. We really are a family.” 

With his unique set of skills, quick wit, and fun sense of humor, Randy is an office favorite. He sees a bright future for Letters alive™ and future augmented reality products and software. “We can go anywhere. As we start dealing with it, we see what it can do – what the potential really is. There are opportunities for infinite expansion,” according to Randy. 

With the Head Mushroom, Randy Self, (alias Randolf Seawolf thanks to a nickname from C.K.), the journey is never boring, always enlightening and full of lots of laughter and Nerf bullets.

-Lisa K.

Teachers Cheer Letters alive™

Literacy professionals in attendance at the 55^th Annual Convention of the International Reading Association in Orlando were raving about Letters alive, the first classroom curriculum based on Augmented Reality technology. With the ultimate goal of teaching children to read, Letters alive allows students to interact with a kingdom of 26 entertaining, intelligent animals — each representing a letter in the alphabet — who virtually come alive in the hands of students. Here’s what some of the teachers who have used Letters alive have had to say:

“Letters alive is an amazing program!” —Rebecca, Pre-K Teacher

“The software is awesome! Very innovative and exciting!” —Janet, 17-year veteran kindergarten teacher

“The Letters alive curriculum is amazing! I love it!” —Jessica, Educational Consultant

“Letters Alive will undoubtedly aid in reading and developing comprehension. Great job, my fellow educators!!” —Robin, 21-year veteran 1^st-3^rd grade teacher

This groundbreaking supplemental curriculum is not only designed for pre-k and kindergarten classrooms, but it also targets specialized instruction within grades 1 - 5 for: ESL students (English as a second language), RTI students (Response to Intervention) and Special Needs students. Letters alive applies research-based, best practices of phonics curriculum, but in a way that has never been so engaging or so interactive for early learners.

The curriculum uses the same mind-blowing Augmented Reality technology implemented by the Imagineers at Walt Disney World. Accompanied by 94 Dolch sight word cards, the Letters alive creatures not only move and make sounds, but react intelligently as well. These animals not only possess the capacity to respond to students’ actions, but they also have the ability to answer their questions.

When the Letters alive cards are arranged to ask, “Can the frog swim?,” a projected image of Frankie Frog actually begins swimming! Next, have a child try “The frog can fly.” Then, Frankie will shake his head “No.” Let’s say a student puts down the cards to read, “The giraffe is red,” To the delight of your class, Gerdy turns from brown to red. By seeing the words in action, learning and retention becomes faster and stronger. As students encounter 3-dimensional characters like Gerdy Giraffe, Henry Horse or Frankie Frog, and see them respond to actions and questions, the students more quickly establish strong connections between the letters and the animals they represent. This includes understanding how letters sound phonetically and how they are used to form words. In addition, the students can easily learn the meanings of sight words and see how those words are used in sentences.

“Students learn best when you capture their imaginations,” said Cynthia Kaye, CEO of Logical Choice Technologies. “Then, they’ll not just be excited to learn; students will also be better able to retain and apply that knowledge. Letters alive directly involves students in what they’re learning on so many emotional levels. They get very involved in the learning process because the students want to see how the animals will react to the different sentences they build. As a result, it’s not just that the experience is effective and fun; it’s more effective because it’s fun.”

Letters alive provides a full school year of lesson plans that are aligned directly to the Common Core State Standards currently being adopted in 48 states. Augmented reality applications for educational purposes, like those utilized in Letters alive, hold the promise of immersing students in experiential learning environments—even at levels beyond early elementary—that were quite unimaginable until now.

To learn more about Letters alive, visit www.logicalchoice.com, or visit our web store at www.logicalchoicestore.com.


-Brian B.