Technical information

ManualsBrandsRunco ManualsCRT TVDTV-943

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Tweeker Use #53......................................................3

Naming Extron Interfaces........................................4

New Digital Graphic Interfaces for Projectors ........5

New Products ..........................................................6

Tech Corner ............................................................8

Unique Techniques: Courthouse of the Future ......10

New News..............................................................14

Big Changes in Cyberspace, Part II ......................16

In This Issue:

In our continuing series on the

“Battle of the Bands” at

INFOCOMM ’99 in Orlando,

Florida, we’ve moved the spotlight

to the Electrohome Blues Band. In

dapper suits and fedoras made by the

same company that manufactured the

Blues Brothers’ fedoras, the

Electrohome Blues Band kicked off

the live music at Point Orlando.

In the heat of Florida’s summer, the

Electrohome Blues Band played

R&B as well as the blues at Extron’s

Ship Wreck Bash. The band kept the

crowd cool with lively renditions of

Mojo, Meet Me With Your Black

Drawers On, Sweet Home Chicago,

and Stoop Down. Band members

included Wayne Bickley on drums,

Paul Comella on lead/rhythm guitar,

Jerry Dixon on lead/rhythm

guitar,

Grooving with the Electrohome Blues Band

continued on page 3

Extron’s New VSC 150 Advances

the Technology of Scan Conversion

Extron’s new VSC 150 high-resolution

computer-to-video scan converter is the

newest member of our VSC product line.

The VSC 150 provides the following new

features: variable horizontal & vertical

sizing, three user-selectable encoder filters

to adjust image sharpness, IR remote

control, RS-232 control with Extron’s

Simple Instruction Set™, and a rack-

mountable enclosure. The VSC 150 is

ideal for scan converting computer images

from up to 1152 x 900, horizontal scan

rates from 24 to 70 kHz and vertical scan

rates from 50 to 120 Hz, down to NTSC

or PAL video. Applications include video-

conferencing, recording, or viewing

computer-video images on a TV monitor

or other display.

APPLICATIONS

The VSC 150 is ideal for many applica-

tions, such as videoconferencing; video

production & editing; videotaping of computer-video; and

displaying computer presentations on NTSC or PAL displays.

Most videoconference presenters use computer programs when

they make presentations, so videoconferencing systems

frequently incorporate computers as video and/or audio sources

during a call. The computer outputs high-resolution computer-

video signals that are incompatible with the lower-resolution

video input on the videoconferencing unit. Computer-video

images must be scan converted to NTSC/PAL video images,

which are accepted by the videoconferencing unit. Once

computer-video images have been scan converted, they may also

be recorded on videotape.

continued on page 2

Summary of content (20 pages)

PAGE 1
NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 1999 VOLUME 10 NUMBER 6 Extron’s New VSC 150 Advances the Technology of Scan Conversion Extron’s new VSC 150 high-resolution computer-to-video scan converter is the newest member of our VSC product line. The VSC 150 provides the following new features: variable horizontal & vertical sizing, three user-selectable encoder filters to adjust image sharpness, IR remote control, RS-232 control with Extron’s Simple Instruction Set™, and a rackmountable enclosure.
PAGE 2
EXTRONEWS NOV/DEC 1999 VSC 150 continued from page 1 Hi Carol Hi Carol Two useful features of the VSC 150 are its IR remote control and genlock capability. During a videoconference, IR control allows the presenter to remotely make changes to the VSC 150, making the presentation more effective and efficient. The genlocking capability allows the VSC 150 to be genlocked with other devices for seamless vertical interval switching.
PAGE 3
EXTRONEWS NOV/DEC 1999 ExtroNews Battle of the Bands continued from page 1 ™ President Andrew Edwards V.P., Finance Ed Ellingwood V.P., Operations Bob Nichols V.P., Product Development Dave Pincek V.P., R&D Brian Taraci V.P., Engineering Steve Somers V.P., Human Resources Joanne Grush V.P., Information Technologies Ivan Perez Dan Rubicini on bass guitar, Bill Speer on keyboard, and Frank “B.B.” Weathers, Jr. as lead vocalist.
PAGE 4
EXTRONEWS NOV/DEC 1999 How Extron Names Interfaces by Jeff Gibson, Director of Sales To provide interfacing solutions for all of your A/V applications, Extron has created a complete line of interfaces over the years. With such a wide product range, the letters and numbers that make up an interface’s name might seem confusing until you understand how Extron’s numbering system works.
PAGE 5
EXTRONEWS NOV/DEC 1999 New Digital Graphics Interfaces for Projectors – Plugging into a Computer Very Near You by Steve Somers, V.P. Engineering Whether you are new to image projection technology or a “second-generation road warrior”, using digital displays that connect to digital data ports will rapidly become the norm. In barely the course of a year, flat panel desktop monitors are finding their way onto our desktops or at least into the preponderance of our next display purchase.
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EXTRONEWS NOV/DEC 1999 For more information on these, or any other products, contact your local Extron Representative at 714.491.1500 or 800.633.9876 (Extron USA) +31.33.453.4040 (Extron Europe) +65.226.0015 (Extron Asia).
PAGE 7
EXTRONEWS NOV/DEC 1999 DVS 150 NTSC/PAL/SECAM Video Scaler Extron’s new DVS 150 is a scaler that converts NTSC/PAL/SECAM video signals into high-resolution video with enhanced depth for viewing on digital displays such as LCD, DLP, and plasma monitors and projectors.
PAGE 8
EXTRONEWS NOV/DEC 1999 Setting Up a Scan Converter by Roger McCarten, Product Manager Properly setting up a scan converter can make all the difference in the world in respect to image quality. A little fine-tuning can make the difference between a poor image and a good image. To obtain the best image, certain adjustments should be made each time a scan converter is used in a new application. The sequence in which the adjustments are made is also important.
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EXTRONEWS NOV/DEC 1999 THE HORIZONTAL FILTER A B 1 2 3 Figure 1. Normal Setting Figure 2. Horizontal Low Setting Figure 3. Horizontal High Setting Figure 4. Vertical High Setting The horizontal filter adjusts how the scan converter processes pixel information across the horizontal plane. This feature is also referred to as “anti-aliasing”. As the horizontal filter is adjusted from narrow to wide, the scan converter changes how it samples.
PAGE 10
EXTRONEWS NOV/DEC 1999 Unique Techniques: Extron Switchers Help Create Courtrooms of the Future Travel time and expenses reduced. Evidence shared by all parties conveniently and quickly. All benefits of the state-of-the-art audio and video systems installed at the Fargo, ND United States Federal Courthouse and others across the nation.
PAGE 11
EXTRONEWS NOV/DEC 1999 Additional P/2 DA6 Plus units are used by the attorneys for adding their personal laptop computers to the system as video sources. The distribution amplifiers allow the attorneys to have local monitor outputs as well as an output used for connection into the courtroom’s A/V system for display. The P/2 DA6 Plus distribution amplifiers also distribute buffered outputs which maintain signal integrity over long cable runs. Todd Dudgeon, Deputy in Charge of the U.S.
PAGE 12
EXTRONEWS NOV/DEC 1999 Interfaces for Projectors continued from page 5 imager. When a match does not occur, some image information may be lost, or conversely, the image may not fill the projected screen area or undesirable artifacts may appear. In order for image resolution matching to occur, the analog signal must be converted to a digital representation of the image to drive the respective pixels of the imager(s). Here’s where it gets tricky.
PAGE 13
EXTRONEWS NOV/DEC 1999 you couldn’t get there and gave up? The inherent uncertainty in digitizing highspeed analog images along with its commensurate cost is the reason for going back to a digital interface. Think about it. Doesn’t it make sense to pass the digital information direct from the graphics card to the projector? Well, welcome to the new millennium. Not only is this desirable, but now it is technically possible at reasonable cost without giving up anything.
PAGE 14
EXTRONEWS NOV/DEC 1999 ExtroNews publishes information about new products that are relative to the Extron product line in the New News section. If you would like a new product to be reviewed for New News, please send a press release, literature, contact name and a four color slide or photo to: Pat Charlton, New News Extron Electronics 1230 South Lewis Street Anaheim, CA 92805 Phone: (714) 491-1500 ext.
PAGE 15
EXTRONEWS NOV/DEC 1999 RUNCO SANYO VIDIKRON Runco has recently introduced a new HDTV-capable CRT video projector, the DTV-943. The DTV-943 offers a horizontal scan frequency range of 15 to 50 kHz, a vertical frequency range of 37 to 210 Hz and an optical resolution of 10 line pairs/mm. It features an internal scaler, which automatically accelerates the scan rate of NTSC component, S-video or composite video to 38.8 kHz and can easily be bypassed when a computer or High-Definition signal is input.
PAGE 16
EXTRONEWS NOV/DEC 1999 Big Changes In Cyberspace, Part II As we discussed in the last issue, Extron’s Web site has undergone some interesting changes over the past few months. In the last installment, we covered the new features of Extron’s site search engine, as well as all of the product-related and technical information available on the site. This time we’ll take a look at ways you can tailor the site to your own personal preference.
PAGE 17
EXTRONEWS NOV/DEC 1999 Interfaces for Projectors continued from page 13 a lower cost, we can at least expect to get improved simplicity and quality when the interface is applied correctly. The most widely implemented version of this digital approach is referred to as the Digital Flat Panel interface, or DFP for short. Several projector manufacturers such as Proxima, Sharp, Compaq, Sanyo, NEC, Sony, and Infocus already offer the DFP interface on specific products.
PAGE 18
EXTRONEWS NOV/DEC 1999 Interfaces for Projectors continued from page 17 in a laptop. Remember, the DDC channel will need to tell the computer what you are driving. “That’s fine,” you say, “but I’ve got a more permanent installation for my projector and I want to take advantage of the digital performance along with plug and play.” The projector is to be ceiling mounted and the cabling to it must be over 50 feet. Oops.
PAGE 19
Break the Distance Barrier for Direct Digital Signal Distribution What is Direct Digital Technology? Direct Digital technology is a new form of video for computers which uses a direct digital video link between the computer's video output and the local monitor. With Direct Digital the video signal stays in digital form from the computer to the monitor, this maintains the original signal and image quality perfectly.
PAGE 20
EXTRONEWS NOV/DEC 1999 Extron’s 2000 Calendars Accompanying your Nov/Dec 1999 ExtroNews is Extron’s 2000 calendar, which conveniently displays all dates and locations for Extron School, Extron School On the Road, ICIA Schools, CEDIA Regional Education seminars, and industry-related trade shows. Also, Extron’s newest products are featured along the borders of the calendar.