Videowall Instructions

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Overview

The videowall in Sieg 322 is controlled through a touchscreen display (see below) located at the console at the rear of the room. S-VHS and DVD players are available at the console, as well as a network-connected workstation. Additional video hardware - an additional DVD player, DVCAM, HDCAM and BetacamSX decks are available in the back room. An HDTV stream from UWTV is also available through the HDCAM deck. .

Due to the complexity of the videowall's configuration, access to the back room is limited. Please contact Stephen Spencer or Rod Prieto if your videowall needs include access to one of the pieces of video hardware in the back room.

Touchscreen

The touchscreen display is located on the right side of the console table near the windows. If the display is dimmed, touch it with a finger to activate it. There are two rows of buttons on the left and right sides of the display, and a center area for additional mode-specific buttons:

The touchscreen buttons marked  PLAYER, AUDIO, and WALL  - don't control specific devices, but they allow easy access to audio and video controls for the videowall.

• The PLAYER button brings up a device selection screen, and then audio & video controls specific to the selected device.
• The AUDIO button brings up a device selection screen, and then audio controls specific to the selected device.
• The WALL button brings up the all-important "Mute on/off" button, which is used to show and hide the video signal(s) being displayed on the wall.  When the wall icon button is displayed in yellow, the wall is "ON".  A grey display indicates it is "OFF".

Using The Videowall

In general, the steps necessary to display some source on the videowall are as follows:

1. Prepare the source material (insert the tape / DVD, log into the workstation).
2. Make sure the wall is not muted.
3. Press the appropriate source button on the touchscreen display.
4. Select the subset of the videowall to be used for its display.
5. Use the control buttons on the touchscreen to control the audio and video of your source.

After a source is selected on the touchscreen, additional touchscreen buttons, first for selecting the area of the videowall to use, and then for controlling the source, appear in the center of the touchscreen.

In a bit more detail, here is a step-by-step tutorial for displaying a source (DVD, for example) on the wall:

1. Place the DVD media into the player at the console.
2. Press the "DVD2" touchscreen button.
3. Press the "SplitScreen" touchscreen button.
4. Select the area of the videowall upon which you wish to display the DVD content.
5. Use the player-specific interface buttons to control the player.

Two sources can be displayed on the videowall simultaneously.  It can only be done by assigning one source to the upper four left cubes (button one on the Split Format window) and assigning a second source to the upper four right cubes (button three on the Split Format window).  At this time it is not possible to assign sources to individual display cubes.  This will be addressed in the next iteration of fixes for the wall's control structure.

1. Press the "WALL" touchscreen button.
2. Press the "Mute on/off" touchscreen button (button display should go grey).
3. Press the "Close" touchscreen button.

Laptop Computers and the Videowall

A laptop computer can be connected to the videowall using the provided VGA cables located in the room.  At the console is a VGA switch that allows you to choose options A, B, or C.  Option A will display a laptop that is connected to the open VGA cable located at the console.  Option C displays a laptop connected to the VGA cable located at the front of the room.  This cable should be coiled next to the base speaker located to the right of the videowall screen.  Option B is used for another application and should not be selected.  You must set your laptop's display resolution to 1024x768 resolution @ 60Hz refresh. 

Please note that it sometimes may take several seconds for the wall to acquire the laptop's signal and sync it for display.

Computing & Communications HD/IP Video Feed, satellite TV and the VideoWall

Display of the HD/IP feed from C&C and the satellite TV feed is controlled through the HDCAM deck in the back room.  The display for either of these items is controlled by the HD deck button on the touch panel.   The default source will always be the deck if an HD tape is inserted.  If a tape is not present in the deck the default display will be the satellite.  At this time the satellite's audio is not automatically routed to the room's sound system when it is selected.  You must manually force the system to 'take' the signal through the AUDIO window.  Press the sat button when the window is up. 

The HD/IP is a special display and not accessible from the console.  If you wish to view or demonstrate the feed please contact Stephen Spencer or Rod Prieto at the email links above.

Technical Notes

This section of the document lists some notes useful for successful operation of the videowall.

• The networked workstation (or other computer connected to the wall) needs to be set to 1024x768 resolution @ 60Hz refresh. This is the maximum allowed by the wall's hardware.
• At times the wall may be 'frozen' on a particular source.  A quick fix is to select either DVD player and display it full screen on the wall.  If the wall resets itself correctly (and no disc is inserted into the player) you should see the player's built in screen saver (displaying INSERT DISC).  Wait a few seconds and verify that the screen saver is working (it should move) and then try selecting your source again for display.  If this fix does not work please contact Stephen Spencer or Rod Prieto for further assistance.

Last Updated: 26 March 2001

	Computer Science & Engineering University of Washington Box 352350 Seattle, WA  98195-2350 (206) 543-1695 voice, (206) 543-2969 FAX [comments to Stephen Spencer]