Longer spring break due to computer virus

by Morgan Sanders

As students will be sad to find out, school will be extended one week this year in order to fix the computer system. The computers crashed Friday, March 30 due to excessive playing of computer games. 

An undisclosed individual was playing a game and accidentally downloaded a virus onto the computer. The virus spread via the server the students use to login to computers and infected first the main server, then each user, leaving every computer in an unstable state. 

The virus rendered Time Machine useless, the program used to restore the computers to a previous state to clear virus, giving the infection open reign in every part of the computer system. 

This virus also crashed JMC, the program where teachers store their grades and take attendance. Teachers will have to keep grades and attendance on paper until the server is rebooted, then update JMC after the system is restored.

In order to repair the system, the entire server and every computer must be shut down and the main server must be cleared of all infections. Then, each user must be individually cleaned and their files restored.

Finally, each computer’s hard drive must be analyzed and cleaned, one by one, by a computer expert coming down from Des Moines, Dr. Dennis Waldork, Ph.D. 

“It’s just a huge mess,” Waldork said. “This kind of virus rarely hits, but when it does, the repercussions are massive.”

The computers will be fixed April 10-13, giving the students a long spring break. Instead of the shorter scheduled break from April 5-9, students will be let out early April 4 at 2:30 and will not return until 8:30 on April 16. 

To make up for the lost days, an extra week of school will be added to the end of the year.  Instead of ending classes on May 17, the school year will now end on May 24.

School authorities will be establishing two major new measures to prevent a similar event from happening again in the future. 

First, a new, advanced anti-virus will be purchased using the money originally designated to install new heating and air conditioning to protect the server.

Next, students will no longer be able to play online video games on the computers without the express permission of the tech department. Those caught infringing upon this rule will lose computer privileges for the remainder of their high school career.

April Fools!

This is the April Fools edition of the Montezuma Blue and White! None of the stories in this edition  are to be taken seriously. Sit back and 

enjoy!