THIS IS A PROMOTED POST 

Hey, everybody! I’m Emily Holler, a new writer to rAVe, here with a recap of April’s SDVoE LIVE! episodes. I’m taking the reins from Steph Beckett for the month, so don’t kill me if I’m not as funny as her. Spoiler alert: No one is. Today, we’re going to be learning about network safety for AV pros and how to create effective remote presentations.

Let’s get started.

If you’re new here, SDVoE LIVE! is a TV show for the AV industry that combines humor, entertainment and education into one awesome segment every other Tuesday at 1 p.m. Eastern time. The show is hosted by Matt Dodd and Justin Kennington of the SDVoE Academy. Although the live show is the most fun to attend, in my opinion, you can rewatch the episodes via the SDVoE Alliance YouTube channel or read our previous recaps to catch up on all the fun. The aftershows are equally as entertaining and informative — to watch them along with the full SDVoE LIVE! episodes, you just have to create an SDVoE Academy account. Do that here.

Now, the main event: your download on episodes 10 and 11.

Episode 10: “Network Safety for AV Pros”

Network safety is a hot topic these days, what with hackers trying to break into our systems and all. But what do I know? I don’t even have a Post-it note over my webcam anymore, so I’m glad I got to learn from Dodd, Kennington and their guest Josh Srago — an attorney with a passion for tech policies. The episode centered around how to keep networks protected.

Here’s what the trio covered in episode 10:

• Why do we need basic security measures?
• Should end users be able to opt out of public security measures?
• Who is responsible for regulating security and protection policies?

Dodd played a cool (albeit slightly scary) snippet from an SDVoE Academy course, in which the notorious hacker Anonymous explains that he and his fellow hackers are constantly searching for weak and unprotected networks to infiltrate.

Well, I might be sleeping with one eye open tonight, but Dodd used the clip to go into the real issue here: manufacturers providing consumers with adequate levels of network protection because consumers aren’t pushing for it enough. Using the automotive industry as an example, Dodd said that protective measures should rank higher on the priority list than features.

“It’s completely non-negotiable that your AV-over-IP system has the following three security measures in place: encryption, authentication and vulnerability scanning,” Dodd said. “Without these, your AV and control data is wide open to theft.”

When Kennington joined Dodd on the SDVoE LIVE! “stage,” they lingered on the car analogy for a little longer, as Kennington pointed out that the most unsafe automobile on the market is still pretty darn safe. AV-over-IP systems should be the same way.

Then, they looked into an article that discusses privacy policies when it comes to public installations of AV systems, such as kiosks. They agreed that much of the general public doesn’t understand how their information is used with these types of systems and assumes that their data is being stolen. Dodd said that this is not the case.

“When we get that realization, I think we’re gonna be in a better place,” he said.

Then, Dodd and Kennington invited Srago to chime in. Srago led by discussing how his career in AV transformed into a passion for advocating for privacy and protection policies; this led him to study law at Santa Clara University, where he earned his J.D. in December 2020.

What I learned from Srago:

1. Room-scheduling systems might seem harmless, but they can lead to major security breaches. Hackers uncovering where meetings take place and who’s in those meeting rooms is like candy for them, and manufacturers need to be prepared for this.
2. It’s not the end users’ job to know how all of their AV systems work, but it is the contractor’s job. Because of this, contractors need to communicate to end users how they handle security and protection, and end users should be able to negotiate and discuss these terms.
3. There needs to be a voice for both end users trying to understand security policies and manufacturers trying to communicate these policies. Srago said that end users, contractors and legislation all have a part to play.

Rewatch SDVoE LIVE! episode 10, “Network Safety for AV Pros,” here.

Episode 11: “Practice What You Preach”

A behind-the-scenes episode? Say less. As someone who watched the “Schitt’s Creek” behind-the-scenes special post-finale no less than three times, this is right up my alley. In this episode, Dodd, Kennington and special guest Tim Albright of AVNation and Conference Technologies — who Dodd and Kennington said might be their most famous guest ever — talked about how SDVoE LIVE! works from the production side of things. The whole point of this behind-the-scenes look into the show was to get one point across: AV integrators should be the best remote presenters in the game.

Here’s what they covered:

• How to remain impactful in a world that’s not face-to-face
• Audience engagement
• Using AV technology to pull off a killer remote presentation

Dodd and Kennington brought in Albright to talk about how his company remains impactful in a highly remote world. Albright said that making interactions as personal as possible is important — if a meeting could’ve just been an email, then you’re not doing meetings right. (rAVe Editor-at-Large Sara Abrons is high-fiving Albright for that comment right now.) In the same vein, Albright said he’s been pleasantly surprised by how much engagement has come out of remote panels.

Then, in a riveting turn of events, Albright was standing right next to Dodd and Kennington! Or, it looked like it at least. Using green-screen technology in the SDVoE Academy studio, the trio showed us how it’s possible to make it look like three people in three completely different places could appear to be standing together at a relatively low cost, technologically speaking.

“My studio is here to show you that you don’t need a professional-level content creation studio like Matt has … this is a hole in the corner of my basement,” Kennington said.

When it comes to the actual art of presenting, all three agreed that practice makes perfect. Dodd said that while it looks like SDVoE LIVE! is just an unscripted version of him and Kennington joking around, a lot of time and practice goes into the filming of every episode.

Next, the three talked about some of the biggest videoconferencing misconceptions. Kennington said that one thing people often assume is that you need a wireless microphone to successfully pull off a remote presentation, but that using a wired microphone doesn’t take away any of that audio quality — and it saves money.

My biggest takeaways from the episode:

1. You don’t need a crazy budget or expensive AV technology to deliver an engaging and high-quality remote presentation. In fact, you can do so relatively cheaply.
2. To stay impactful is synonymous with staying personal. It’s important to keep in mind that, in any industry, the people on both sides of a presentation are human, and staying personable only makes your presentation stronger.

Rewatch SDVoE LIVE! episode 11, “Practice What You Preach” here.

Catch the next SDVoE LIVE! Episode on May 4 (episode details to be announced soon, per the SDVoE Alliance) by visiting SDVoE.org/Live. By clicking on the link, you can sign up for email reminders or download the event to your calendar. Don’t have an SDVoE Academy account yet? Use this link to make a free one before the next show: https://bit.ly/3oO1kWu.