Students a DAB hand with technology

Year 14 pupils Ryan Hardy and Adam Heggarty were called upon to assist Monkstown man Eric Marks with an IT problem last week.

Mr Marks, who is in his 80s and a wheelchair user, is a regular radio listener.

A staff member from Ulidia said: “[Mr Marks] had recently purchased a modern DAB digital wifi radio to expand his range of stations to include worldwide broadcasts.

“Unfortunately when it came to the setup and configuration of the radio, it was proving complicated as Mr Marks also likes to listen to the radio in his garage, where his wifi signal is too weak to connect to his router.

“He sought advice and purchased some wifi range extenders but was unsure of how to connect everything together.”

With his broadband provider unable to help, Mr Marks contacted the constituency office of East Antrim Alliance MLA, Stewart Dickson.

“We were aware of the high quality of IT education provided by Ulidia Integrated College and got in touch with the school to see if there was anything they could do to help,” Mr Dickson said.

“I was delighted that they were able to do so.”

After hearing of the issue from Ulidia principal Eugene Martin, Ryan and Adam went along to meet Mr and Mrs Marks with the school’s IT technician, Mr McVeigh.

“After correctly diagnosing the problem, the trio proceeded to get everything set up as per Mr Marks’s requirements,” added the school’s spokesperson.

“Ryan and Adam commented that Mr and Mrs Marks were a lovely couple and it was a pleasure to be able to help them get the best from the DAB radios they had bought.”