Volume 14, Issue 7 — April 8, 2021

rAVe ED [Education] — Volume 14, Issue 7

April 8, 2021 | Volume: 14 | Issue: 7

Scott Tiner has taught me a valuable lesson in the past year: If you want an AV product to exist, say so.

I’ve mentioned before (at least, I’m pretty sure I have) that Scott gave me a lot to think about during our first LAVNCH WEEK when he spoke of the symbiotic relationship among manufacturers, integrators and end users. He also asked a valid question: Why are manufacturers talking about what end users want in a product? End users should be able to say what they need — and everyone else should take note. His blog this week is about just that! He mentions a problem that many in the higher-ed industry desperately wish for a product to solve.

So, integrators and manufacturers: This is your chance! There is money on the table! I challenge you to get inventing. I’ll probably even write about the product you come up with.

Enjoy the rest of the newsletter, besties!

— Steph Beckett

COLUMNS

+ Inventory and Asset Management [Scott Tiner]

Recently, on the higher ed AV Slack channel, there was a discussion of what different people use for asset and inventory tools. Not surprisingly, there were a wide range of various options, but mainly the consensus was that most people have fiddled around with a spreadsheet or database and created their own system. No one felt that a suitable product existed on the market. If you are a manufacturer, software developer or integrator, let that statement sink in for a bit.

+ Resources for Becoming Your Best AV Self [Tom Kehr]

Like many of you, I tripped into this whole AV thing. My first lessons started in college, learning how to over-and-under wrap 50-foot mic cables and putting microphones away at the end of the day. When the school installed a new console in their auditorium in the spring of 1986, I met the integrator, David Bretzke, who sold them the new 48-channel console. That also turned into my first all-nighter. Thus began a two-year, part-time internship with David — and I soaked up everything I could. David was my first mentor, my first resource. But over the years, I’ve found many invaluable resources to build my knowledge upon — people, organizations, websites and papers.