I love making a deal. Boy do I ever. Negotiating is fun. Or at least it can be. I recognize that not everybody enjoys it. Truthfully, negotiating a deal is only fun if both sides are having a good time with it. Also, regardless of what you’ve read in Old School salesmanship books deal making […]

So I know that right off the bat this is going to sound biased, but trust me when I say that everything I’m about to share is backed up by actual research. When my CEO brought TelyLabs and their VCS option to the table, I had an overwhelming rush of anxiety fall over me.  “Another video […]

So this is a retread from my own blog, but I wanted to see if a wider audience drew some comments. . . I was reading an article on the Tucker Tuesday Blog about Magical Thinking and it inspired me to think a little about his question of whether an AV System that lives outside of […]

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 […]

In an astounding turn of events I have found myself in the market for a job. In my 13 years in AV and IT I have been digitized, publicized, patronized, chastised, (and even Super Sized occasionally at lunch time), but I have never been right-sized. . .until now. So far my AV community of friends […]

Many of my friends and followers of my Twitter feed, @AVPhenom, may have gathered that I ended up with a little bit of “unexpected” free time lately.  That left me with a touch of extra insomnia as well, and as such I turned to my old friend the DVR. I had Field of Dreams on […]

If you’ve ever met someone on Facebook who you’ve wanted to carry on an extended friendship with, the possibility of a “Skype” chat is likely to arise in conversation. Upon agreement, each party simply downloads the application on their PC or mobile device, one sends a connect request to the other, and in minutes they’re […]

It’s been two weeks since we announced the Avaya Video Collaboration Solution for IP Office at InfoComm 2013, and we’re seeing great traction in the market!  The Video Collaboration Solution offers simple, comprehensive and affordable video collaboration to small and mid-sized enterprises (SMEs). The solution integrates with Avaya IP Office, our flagship unified communications solution […]

WRITER’S NOTE: The identity of our current not-so-current cable provider has been poorly and ineffectually pixelated to give you the impression that I care about their identity being concealed. Which I do not.  Well AV ladies and AV gents, the time has come. In just a few minutes I will be getting up from my desk, getting […]

Last week I was talking with a rep I had just met from another channel. He mentioned that he had been employed with the manufacturer for almost four years now. These days that makes him a rarity on two counts: working directly for a manufacturer rather than a distributor or agent, and holding the same […]

Last week, the last of my original Squeezebox Classic units finally died, quietly in its sleep. I had two of the Classic units bought seven years ago, although when I bought them, they weren’t called Classic, they were still just “Squeezeboxes.” The first one died early last year, and after some initial poking around on […]

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 […]

More and more organizations are clamoring for ways to wirelessly share their Android tablet or iPad content up on the big screen (in their conference rooms, classrooms, etc.), but the available solutions are still few and far between. So I jumped when I got a chance to demo a promising solution from a little-known company […]

In my last post, I introduced you to Simon Sinek and his concept of the Golden Circle, which illustrates how inspirational companies set themselves apart. If you haven’t read it I encourage you read Part 1 first by clicking here. Manipulation is the way most companies try to convince people to buy their products. It […]

For all the success out there, I must take a few moments and see what is out there for me. Allow me to elaborate. I’ve worked in AV for over 18 years and have seen all the major changes that have come over the years. I have spent all my life in Technical Sales and […]

Construction budgets are tighter than ever these days, so architects and engineers rely on Building Information Modeling (BIM) to help the project team work together to detect design conflicts, to utilize systems space more efficiently and to create data-bases of system components and placed material. Detecting and correcting design flaws reduces the need for change […]

First let me say that InfoComm 2013 was hands down the best show I have ever attended since my beginnings in the AV industry dating back to Dallas in ’95 (great projector shootout by the way). The organization did a terrific job with its focused approach on cloud, unified communications, digital signage and especially BYOD. […]

My son is 12 years old (to be fair, he will be 13 in November, but I will keep him out of the teenage realm as long as I possibly can) and will be heading into 8th grade come September. He wants a cell phone.  And not just any old free from AT&T cell phone, […]

Did you notice the word “church” in the company name below the person’s name on their InfoComm badge? A lot of churches showed up at InfoComm to see what’s next on the technology horizon that they can fit into their budgets for the next fiscal year. And a lot of them left with the Post-Infocomm […]

What do the images below have in common? They are all people or companies that think, act and communicate in exactly the same way, and it’s the complete opposite of everyone else. The one you may not recognize is Simon Sinek. I’ll tell you more about him, but first a story. A couple weeks ago […]

A lot of people have an InfoComm 2013 recap. Most are written by AV professionals who were able to spend a lot of time walking the show floor. Those recaps are generally insightful, especially for those of us who weren’t able to spend a lot of time traversing the expansive Orange County Convention Center. I […]

Without much fan fare, Extron just started shipping a product that may well be the best classroom system switcher ever. Yes, ever. Before you think this is a paid-for plug, read on (since it’s not): The IN1608 is an eight-input (plenty for ANY classroom application) HDCP-compliant switcher that includes: Four HDMI inputs Two DTP inputs […]

As I travel around the country, visiting architects and meeting engineers and other designers, I often ask them if they use Building Information Modeling.  Most of them do. This 3D design, simulation and modeling technology has changed the way that architecture is practiced.  By using this tool, designers can create a 3D replica of what […]

And the saga continues in my quest to decide whether or not we are canceling cable at the end of July (when our contract with Schmime Schwarner Schmamble is up). It was announced today that the Watch ESPN and HBO Go apps have been integrated into the latest Apple TV update! I’ve mentioned before that […]

InfoComm 13 is over, and after 3 days on the floor there, I started asking myself if I found what I was looking for.   I made a comment that I was looking for three Howard Hughes-esque traits in manufacturers or their employees.  Those traits were Courage, Passion, and Innovation. I only received a couple nominations […]

In 2012, the third most profitable category of AV was power management. Trailing right behind signal management and control systems, power management is a cash cow for an AV integrator. It’s a no-brainer install — house fires are everyone’s biggest fear when they buy a new home. And, one of the leading causes of house […]

We’ve all read about how important it is for us as integrators to provide good thorough documentation packages for clients on our integration projects. After all, we’re creating something custom and unique for them, and they need to know how it works. I’ve seen various document packages from several integrators, and they’re getting better and […]

This installment of Employees Behaving Badly is a little different, in that this time the Career Limiting Decision isn’t one of mine! Here’s the thing about working on commission: You’re on commission! While being on straight salary means that you get paid the same no matter what, on commission you’ve actually got to, you know, […]

Required disclaimer: This represents the opinion and experience of me personally and does not represent any specific policy, law or official guidance. One of my wow moments of InfoComm 2013 was checking out two amazing products, which in my opinion are game changers in each of each of their specific markets. Spending time with QSC […]

Required disclaimer: This represents the opinion and experience of me personally and does not represent any specific policy, law or official guidance. Well the receptions are all but done, big parties are finishing up and ProAV geeks are starting to head back home! What will be the big lasting story of InfoComm 2013 and the […]

Required disclaimer: This represents the opinion and experience of me personally and does not represent any specific policy, law or official guidance. We teach our kids it’s not polite to point, but what if they have to annotate? Boeckeler Instruments, Inc booth (3513) developed a video overlay system that allows presenters to draw and point […]

AVPhenom has announced that he is considering a class action suit against the HDMI Consortium, citing an estimated $1.7 Million dollars in lost revenue in 2012 from the products revolving door standards. “It seems that HDMI allows manufacturers to draw 2-3 features out of a hat when deciding what to integrate into their cables”, said Phenom. […]