THE SWITCHABLE SHOW.Imagine beginning your art class with the school's cable TV news program and projecting your lesson with titles and an outline of the day's class (which you have previously created on your computer) on a large screen TV. Next, you show a video clip A short video presentation. of a famous artist working with the media your students are studying. To show and discuss more examples of the possibilities of that media, you select images from a laserdisc An earlier optical disc used for full-motion video and interactive training. It was introduced in the late 1970s and became obsolete in the 1990s. Videodisc systems based on a stylus were introduced (see CED), but only the optical-based LaserDisc survived, although never very popular. with a barcode reader See bar code reader. . You complete your introduction (using your camcorder for closeups) with a live demonstration that is simultaneously displayed on the television screen. It is possible to use multiple methods of presentation on your television screen without spending half your class time rearranging cords. It takes only one prior setup and one or two simple devices. Along with the usual art equipment I have a Power Macintosh See Power Mac. (computer) Power Macintosh - Apple Computer's personal computer based on the PowerPC, introduced on 1994-03-14. Existing 680x0 code (both applications and device drivers) run on Power Macintosh systems without modification via a Motorola 68LC040 emulator. 7100/80 AV and peripherals, a laserdisc player, a VCR VCR: see videocassette recorder. VCR in full videocassette recorder Electromechanical device that records, stores on a videotape cassette, and plays back on a TV set recorded images and sound. , a 27" color television, and a camcorder. Effective Presentations Visuals are a very important and necessary part of teaching art. I use slides and large reproductions, but there are some lessons in which I like to vary presentations with selections from laserdiscs, CD-Roms, videos, and closeups of art techniques (such as pencil shading) using the camcorder. Classroom interruptions for switching from one piece of equipment to another are eliminated by attaching all the cables through a video selector (programming) selector - 1. In Smalltalk or Objective C, the syntax of a message which selects a particular method in the target object. 2. An operation that returns the state of an object but does not alter that state. box. I purchased one at an electronics store for less than forty dollars. It has five inputs and two outputs, but other configurations are available at different prices. Configuring the Equipment The two outputs go to the VCR and to the The output to the VCR enables me except the one from the videotape. The inputs for my setup as follows: VCR [right arrow] VCR CABLE [right arrow] SCHOOL CABLE TV AUX2 VIDEODISC PLAYER AUX1 [right arrow] COMPUTER VIDEO ANT [right arrow] CAMCORDER. The video cable from the camcorder must go to an box first (less than $30), and then RF Cable from this box attaches to the video selector box. Even More Possibilities Although my own situation is in a school and in the same class-all day it would be possible laptop computer to the cart holds the other equipment everything somewhat portable. A surge protector A device that provides protection against power surges. See surge suppression. See also traffic surge protection. is also recommended for all of this expensive equipment. Besides giving you almost unlimited presentation possibilities in a limited time frame, this method allows you to present visuals in normal room light. This "switchable show" can enhance student interest and make your teaching a little less complicated once it is setup. All you have to do to switch from one source to another is push a button! Gayle Londeree is art department chair at Lake Region High School in Eagle Lake, Florida Eagle Lake is a city in Polk County, Florida, United States. The population was 2,496 at the 2000 census. As of 2004, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau is 2,493. . |
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