CSE 691, also known as The Bill & Melinda Gates Commons (or Gates Commons) is the premier meeting space in the Allen Center. It boasts roundtable seating for 32 with an additional 30 seats around the perimeter. It comes with a full A/V equipment complement that includes dual projectors, a plasma monitor, playback for DVD and VHS, recording of meetings through VHS and audio cassette as well as taking external sources like laptops and other video devices.

Control


All component control except for lights is done through the touch panel control unit at the front podium. Do not use the manual controls near the light switches, the remote controls for individual components, or the controls at the rear equipment rack unless instructed to do so.

Getting Started

Touch the touchscreen control unit loacted in the front podium to begin. You will be asked if you want to start up the A/V system. Touch YES. The next screen will give you four choices: Simple, Dual Projector, Plasma Display and Cancel. This is the touch panel HOME screen. Pressing the HOME button that is located on every device operations screen will bring you back to this screen.

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Simple: Displays attached computer or external video (S-Video only) on the left projector or the DVD, VCR or Cable on plasma monitor.
Dual Projector: Displays one (mirroring) or multiple sources on one or both projectors. You can also choose to display a single source on the right projector with this option.
Plasma Display: Displays one source on the wall mounted plasma monitor.
Cancel: Brings up the log out confirmation screen.

Audio Controls


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The audio controls are present on every device operations screen. They are located in the upper left corner of each screen and labeled Mics Volume and Program Volume. Controls increase or decrease the volume and mute it.
Mics Volume: Controls the volume of the podium microphone and the wireless handheld microphone only.
Program Volume: Controls all other device volume.

Simple Display Mode Screen Layout


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Podium Laptop 1/Podium Laptop 2: Connections are at the podium labeled respectively. They are VGA connectors. If you need DVI or Apple adapters, there are connectors located in the podium. Audio is a standard 3.5mm headphoe jack (TRS).
S-Video 1: External video sources require an S-Video output. Audio is a 2 channel RCA plug (left/right or white/red). Cables must be supplied by the user.
DVD: The DVD player is located in the back of the room in the A/V rack. Press the eject disk button and load your DVD or audio CD. Press the button again to close the tray. Basic controls are at the touch panel interface and include play, stop, pause, forward, rewind, chapter skip, chapter recall and menu.
VCR: The VHS VCR is located in the room in the A/V rack. Choose the VCR labeled Playback and insert your tape there. Basic controls are at the touch panel interface and include play, stop, pause, forward and rewind.
Cable: Basic controls at the touch panel include channel up and channel down and a numeric keypad for manually entering station channels.

Dual Projector Display Mode Screen Layout


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To turn on a projector, activate the source you want to display. This will also lower the appropriate screen. You do not need to activate both projetors in this mode.
Computers: Sames as Simple Display Mode
S-Video 1: Same as Simple Display Mode
S-Video 2: Not in use
DVD: Same as Simple Display Mode but displayed on projector
VCR: Same as Simple Display Mode but displayed on projector
Record VCR: The VHS Recording VCR is located in the back of the room in the A/V rack. Choose the VCR labeled Record and insert tape. Basic controls are at the touch panel interface and are similar as the VCR controls with the following exceptions. There is a set of sources that can be recorded on the left and a Record button to begin recording.
Cable: Same as Simple but displayed on projector
Cassette: The cassette player is located in the back of the room in the A/V rack. Basic controls are at the touch panel interface and include controls for play, strop, pause, forward and rewind.
Note about audio in Dual Display mode
Only one audio source can be routed to the room's PA system. An audio button is located in the sub-interface for each projector (in the lower inner corner). Pressing the button will bring up a list of sources that can be routed to the speakers.

Plasma Display Mode Screen Layout

Sources are similar to the descriptions in Dual Display mode

Other information

There are three other controls that are present on every device operations screen. These are located in the upper right hand corner of each screen.

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Displays: Manually chooses the display. It is not recommended that you use this control button. Instead use the HOME button to return to the Operation Mode screen and choose your display there. This will ensure that the specific components will get turned on or off to correctly display the source and play its audio.
Projection Screens: Manually chooses wich projection screen will be lowered. This control should only be used if you are bringing in an external projector (digital, slide, data or overhead) and not using one of the mounted ceiling projectors. Otherwise, use the HOME button to return to the Operation Mode screen.
Window Shades: Controls the room's window shades. There are two types of shades: Daylight and Blackout. The daylight shades will screen out roughly 50% of the external sunlight and provide some clarity for the projectors on bright, sunny days. The blackout shades block out considerably more light and provide greater brightness and clarity for the projectors. Pressing the down arrow button lowers the shades. Pressing the button again will stop the shades after a few inches of travel. Pressing the up arrow button will raise the shades.