Audio-Visual Center Glossary

(The links take you to pictures or specifications which open in a new browser window.)

Use these terms and you can hardly go wrong.

Services-

Cablecast: We broadcast media from the AV Center to your classroom through the campus closed circuit cable system. You fill out a form at our office or online for this service.

Delivery/Pick-up: Faculty fill out a form at the AV Office or online for us to deliver and pick-up equipment to your classroom. A form must be filled out for each delivery you need.

Over-the-Counter: You come to AV to check out equipment or media.

Equipment:

COMPUTERS:

Laptop: We provide Apple iBooks and Windows laptops. They all have Microsoft Office (Word, Excel & Powerpoint). You hook them to a Data Projector to display on a classroom screen.

Data projector: This allows you to project the image from a laptop or desktop computer onto a classroom screen. We have lots of different names for them, but if you ask for it by this name, we'll know what you mean.

Ethernet cable: Connects from OUR computers to the campus ethernet system. Ask for one if you're using our computers to access the internet. WIRELESS ACCESS IS SPORADIC IN CLASSROOMS.

Floppy Disc: A small (3.5 inch) diskette that holds a limited amount (1.44 megabytes) of data. We no longer support floppies.

Zip Disc: A large floppy. It is meant to store large amounts (100 megabytes) of data. We no longer support Zip Drives.

VIDEO:

Multimedia cart: A four-wheeled cart with a VHS VCR, DVD player, a Laserdisc player, TV tuner, amplifier, speakers and a projector on top. We can hook a laptop or video overhead to the projector. A very flexible piece of equipment, kind of like a classroom console on wheels.

Camcorder: Okay, this may be the definition of obvious, but they are used for video recording. Sometimes you say VCR when you mean Camcorder. We have VHS, SVHS and Digital Video.

VCR: Plays VHS tapes only. This is just the VCR, it will connect to the TV in your classroom. Comes in a handy carrying case. We need to know what room you're in so we can give you the right cables to hook it up.

DVD Player: This is a portable unit that can be attached to any TV or console. Let us know what room you'll be in so we can give you the right cables.

VCR/DVD Multiplayer: This little gem can do it all: VHS tapes, commercial DVDs, DVD-R, CDs, CD-R, CD-RW, mp3s, wma, photo CDs. We will need to know what classroom you will be using it in, to assure that the correct cables are included.

TV/VCR: You'd think this was pretty self-explanatory, but people often get VCR and TV/VCR mixed up.

AUDIO:

CD/Cassette: This does three things: play CDs and cassettes in stereo and records cassettes in stereo. It does not come with a microphone. Please ask for one.

Phonograph: We still have a few of these. They are old and have not had a new stylus in quite a while. But they are a surprisingly refreshing trip through the way-back machine.

Sound system: This is a powered amplifier built into a speaker case. It is mono. We also have what is called a "slave" speaker which doubles the output. Some ways to use it:

• Ask for a wireless microphone to amplify your voice. Add a "slave" speaker to really get their attention.
• Ask for a cassette player to amplify music or speech recordings. Ditto the "slave".
• Hook it up to a laptop to hear sound files associated with Powerpoint. Ditto the ditto.

  PROJECTION EQUIPMENT:

Overhead Projector: To project transparencies on to a classroom screen.

Opaque Projector: To project opaque pages (from newspapers and magazines) on to a classroom screen.

Video Overhead/Document Camera: Uses a video camera perched on a overhead arm to take a video picture of whatever is underneath it. You need a data projector to get the image on the classroom screen. Works very well with our multimedia cart.