Always nice to get back on a Monday morning (after a week off) to the feeling of belonging in your workplace, sharing the same vision, being cared for and caring right back.
Instead, first thing I got on my email was an automated note from high up that all of my .mp3 files had been automatically deleted on my web-drive and in my ‘phoenix’ backup (Phoenix is the horrible ‘you-must-all-be-the-same’ application which I steadfastly avoid by hibernating my PC rather than shutting it down and only rebooting offline). This is down to, ahem, the University identifying that these files may not be for study or Uni business. I can, apparently, get them back as long as they were acquired “legitimately” (their “”s not mine!) and are able to prove, through my supervisor, that they are OK (which I can’t really do as they’ve just been deleted ;o)
Needless to say they didn’t stop to ask whether I might be involved in strategic projects requiring .mp3 recordings, or podcasting for teaching and learning or actually listen to the bloody things!!! (sample text “Um, OK, this is James Farmer testing out Podcasting…” / “Today I’m talking to xxx xxxxxxx about competition law…” etc. etc. etc.)
We’ll see if I get them back or not… it would seem obvious but I wouldn’t bet me house on it!
(p.s. please remember this is a workplace-anonymous blog, if anything gets posted that indicates where I’m working then I’ll have to delete it / scrub the post… thankyou :O)
Update: Seems like ‘non-top-level’ admin are doing a good job with trying to get it reversed though… we shall see which side wins!
This reminds me of 20 years ago when, likewise, I came back from the holidays in the same rosy aura to find my locker broken into and all used tests and material that had been left lying around or thrown out during the semester (and that hoarder me had collected for perhaps some further use or rehashing) gone. An investigation led me to the coordinator himself, who only then, and only then, admitted to it on the grounds this was institutional material and I could not keep it. Had he explained and asked me to hand it to him, I might have even listened and agreed. It was and always is the authoritarianism in actions like these that makes me fume and reinforces my will to incorporate subversion :-)
Yes, it does make you feel like subverting it all as best as possible… but if their was nothing to subvert where would we be eh :O)