One great thing about having young children is that they keep you on top of all the latest technology trends. My son, CJ (10) became a wrestling fan last year. Every Monday and Friday night he is glued to the television watching the latest episode. And the company is truly a marketing and entertainment genius. […]

In July of this year, I wrote about the uses we have found at Bates College for the iPad mini as a troubleshooting tool.  In that article, I wrote mainly about using the iPad as a portable touch panel for a technician. We continue to build on that success and have found more new and […]

In January of 2014, we will be hosting a grand opening of our new Digital Media Center. This is a fabulous space that includes top line editing suites, a professional studio and a Mac computer lab. It is an amazing place for our students to be creative and experience new ways to communicate. We decided […]

One year ago I wrote my first column for rAVe Publications. What a fun year it has been. I have been fortunate enough to have heard from dozens of people with feedback, comments and questions about my articles. Even my daughter got in on the fun a few months back. We had a conversation that […]

Recently, a couple of events got me thinking about some interesting and creative ways to use digital signage in our educational facilities. The first conversation was with a colleague from George Mason University. We were talking about digital signage and he was telling me that at his location the AV department has nothing to do […]

In the November edition of rAVe Ed I wrote about video over IP taking the next step.  In it I wrote about Crestron’s release of their DMCO streaming cards.  Rather than re-writing it all here, go take a look at the column.  Oh, and leave a comment about what you think. While you are reading […]

I realize I am a little late to the party here, but I have to give credit where credit is due.  I recently purchased a Logitech Harmony remote.  The reason was two fold: first, I thought the Touch device seemed kind of cool and second, I was tired of always having to get the TV […]

On October 1st of this year, Crestron Electronics sent out a press release that its DMCO 7-series streaming card for DigitalMedia was now shipping. This card was not a huge surprise to the industry, as it had been rumored/discussed since InfoComm of 2012. In addition, the technology had been seen by many people in Crestron’s […]

I promise you: I do not hate the Today Show. In fact, I watch it every morning (obviously, as I am writing about it AGAIN!). This time however, it is not necessarily a complaint about the Today Show, but an observation about technology, AV in particular. This morning on the program, they were again in […]

In my last two columns for rAVe DS, I referenced a terrific column from Keith Kelsen. Both months, I have suggested you go and read his column before you read mine. I am doing the same this month, go give it a read now if you have not yet read it. This month I want […]

Several years ago I wrote a blog about class capture, and the expense of the systems that existed. I was frustrated that these systems cost so much money. I had been trying to bring class capture into my institution for a couple of years, and could not justify the cost. The systems that we looked […]

In 1989 Will Smith sang. “Parent’s Just Don’t Understand”.  Certainly not a new sentiment among teenagers and parents.  After all, us old (yes, I now have to put myself in this category) people simply don’t get the younger generation of today.  To some degree this is true, and we just have to deal with it. […]

After my first article on relationships, I had all kinds of people offer me thoughts and feedback. It was fantastic, because I really like to see what others in the industry are thinking. It is clear to me that lots of people, including both Technology Mangers and integrators are thinking about these issues. A couple […]

In my August column for rAVe DS I referenced a terrific column from Keith Kelsen. Last month I suggested you go and read his column before you read mine. I am doing the same this month: Go give it a read now if you have not yet read it. This month I want to discuss […]

If anyone is a regular reader of my columns or blogs, they know that Bates College, where I work, is a Crestron house. This summer I was able to work with some products from AMX. Specifically, we had the DVX-3155HD presentation switcher, along with the Modero MXT-1000 touch panel. I was able to configure these […]

As I sat down to write my blog today. My mind kept going a certain way. Our orientation starts on Labor Day.   Which means we have entered the fray.   September will go by in a flash, We have started the 50 yard dash. So here is an Ode to all my Tech Manger […]

After my August article on the possibilities that exist when Security and AV teams get together, I got a lot of feedback.  Many people were really excited about the possibilities and wanted to know more.  I even got a call from the people at Advance Technology (ATI), who I wrote about, and they are interested […]

In the July edition of rAVe DS, there was a fantastic article by Keith Kelsen. If you did not get the chance to read this article last month, it is worth a read now. If you did read it last month, it is worth a reread. Go ahead, do it now, I will wait. OK, […]

In July of this year, one of our local sales and integration firms, Advance Technology Inc. (ATI), won the Installer of the Year award from Security Sales & Integration Magazine. You can check out the news release here. What struck me about the article is that ATI is using some sophisticated tools for remote maintenance […]

A few weeks ago I had the ability to visit the Boston Museum of Science with my family.  Truthfully, I was not very excited about spending a gorgeous day in Boston stuck inside.  However, my opinion quickly changed.  I was simply amazed at how the MOS can take difficult, hard to learn principles and make […]

I am excited to have been given the opportunity to think about and write about digital signage in education for rAVe [Publications]. I have scratched the surface on this topic previously, in my March rAVe ED column. In that column I addressed some of the differences between the educational market and the commercial market with […]

We have all felt that tension that builds when a big event is happening, and your AV is the star of the show. Have you done enough to make sure it does not fail? There is a pit in the knot of your stomach when it is high stakes, like a board meeting, or other […]

Anyone who knows me knows that I love my job. I always tell people that my job is like Christmas every day. If it is not a new product I am learning about, programming or testing out, then it is a problem to solve. Most mornings, I really don’t know what to expect on any […]

Have you tried those eggs benedict from the B-Line Diner over at the Peabody yet? If not, you need to — it is my best advice of this InfoComm. Here are a few more things to check out before you leave the show floor for good.  Or, if you have already left, check it out […]

Are you like me, sitting at work wishing you were at InfoComm? I decided this year that I was going to dedicate half of every work day to InfoComm even though i am not present at the show. Lucky for us, rAVe makes this very easy to do. Frankly, except for the missing out on […]

I realize it is cliche to write about InfoComm in June (or May or April for that matter). Rather than a standard “what to expect,” I hope to take a slightly different approach to this column. First, I have some advice for the technology managers who are reading this column, then I have some advice […]

One of the things that continues to amaze me about today’s educational systems is how difficult they are to truly change. Before I go any further, let me say that I love teachers, educators and administrators. Like literally, I love them. My mother, father, aunt (four of them), uncles and wife have all been teachers […]

In 2002, under the direction of then-Governor Angus King (now a U.S. Senator), the state of Maine started a 1:1 laptop initiative with its middle school students. In a nutshell, the MLTI (Maine Learning Technology Initiative) program funded the cost of laptops for all middle school students. An RFP was created and the winning bidder was Apple. For […]

Unless you have had your head in the sand over the past several weeks, you are aware of the dust up created by Crestron and their switcher “comparison.” If you are lucky enough to have had your head in the sand, catch up right now by reading my last blog. OK, are you back? Well, round three is now over […]

I am not the first person to write about this and surely I won’t be the last.  But, heck it is too tempting to leave alone.  In January,Crestron posted a video on their website that they purported to be a fair comparison of digital switching.  In the video, they blew away the comparable Extron switcher in both timing […]

In December, I wrote a column on how Bates College went from Zero to Streaming in 10 Days. The article was a hit and I turned it into a webinar forInfoComm. This week I spoke at the NERCOMP (@NERCOMP) annual conference. I shared the stage with Aaron Coburn and Marcus DeMaio from Amherst College.  We each gave a short introduction to what […]

First, let’s address the title of this blog. It’s a follow-up to my article in this month’s rAVe ED about using Skype and other consumer level video conferencing software. In reviewing comments that I received online and in email, the point of my article synthesized in my mind even more. You see, it does not matter whether you use […]