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2010 is a year of significant change for GRAL. At the end of 2009, Michael announced his resignation from the Computer Coordinator position with GRAL. In January, the League determined that an upgrade to our Team Manager and Meet Manager software was in order (as the software was outdated by 2 full versions, which meant we were no longer eligible for Technical Support from Hy-Tek). The new software was purchased, and installed on the GRAL laptops that had been "rented" to teams over the past 5 seasons. Preventative maintenance was performed on each of these laptops, and additional software was installed to allow remote access for training and troubleshooting software issues. Ownership of these laptops was transferred to the teams that had been "renting" these laptops in April. In April, a consultant from Hy-Tek was hired to meet with GRAL. The consultant has a long history with Hy-Tek, and officiating with USA Swimming. He has helped many new clubs and leagues (both summer and year-round), and is frequently consulted to assist established clubs improve their processes and keep current on technology. This 5-hour meeting was very informative, and we look forward to implementing many of the process improvement suggestions over the next 2 seasons. At the end of April, we learned that one of our Clubs will not be in existence in 2010. As a result, GRAL will have an odd number of teams in 2010 which means that each week there will be one tri-meet. Also, at the April GRAL meeting, completely revised Time Starndards were approved for the 2010 season. |
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2010 GRAL Computer Support |
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In 2010, Christy Evanko (Pebble Creek), and Jim Spevak will be your GRAL Computer Support Team. Christy will provide training and support for the "East" teams, while Jim will provide training and support for the "West" teams. Jim will also be responsible for coordinating, distributing, and maintaining all League data. You may contact Christy and Jim via
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with your support related questions. If you are having issues with the software itself (ie will not install, can not update...), you may need to contact Hy-Tek Technical Support. Hardware issues are the responsibility of each Club.
 We will be utilizing Google's gBridge remote access software to provide "hands-on" troubleshooting/assistance. gBridge is a free software program that allows you to send an invitation to someone else with gBridge, and grant them different rights to your computer. This will allow Christy and I to see exactly what you are seeing on the screen, and allow us to "drive" your computer from our location. gBridge requires 1.) an Internet connection, and 2.) a gmail account. You can create a new gmail account just for this purpose. If you are using a GRAL laptop, this software has already been installed on your computer, and an account already setup. If you would like this timesaving option for support, please visit www.gmail.com to setup a gmail account (if you don't already have one), then visit www.gbridge.com to download and install the software.
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Prior to the 2005 season, GRAL purchased laptops and charged Clubs an annual "rental" fee equal to 1/5 the cost of the laptop purchase price, plus an initial deposit fee. 2009 represented the 5th season that these laptops were used. In accordance with the original plan, GRAL offered Clubs that had "rented" these laptops the option of taking ownership of these laptops (in "as-is" condition, with no warranty). In April, all of the laptops were distributed to these Clubs. GRAL is no longer in the laptop "rental" business. |
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