Exhibit Multimedia Blog by point2explore

Summer is here! Are your kiosks ready for things to heat up?

For many of our customers, the summer is a very busy time at their facilities.  Some run summer camps, some are located in summer tourist “hot spots”, etc.  Between the increased usage and the temperature (especially if you don’t have air conditioning), your kiosks and electronic exhibits should be prepared properly.

 

Keeping Cool!  One of a computer’s worst enemies is extreme heat and even though you may have air conditioning, your computer can get overheated easily.  Some of the ill effects that heat can cause are burnt out processors or other components and the unseating of boards (like RAM).  The most common cause of overheating is fan failure (both inside the computer and inside the kiosk).  Sometimes fans (like anything else) just die.  But other times they are so clogged up with dust and “gunk” (a technical term) that they are ineffective and eventually burn out.  Bottom line, check and clean your fans to prepare for the summer months and while you are at it, give the entire kiosk and computer a clean up.

 

Prepare to collect summer data.  Many kiosk programs collect data.  Before a busy period is a great time to archive the data collected to date and clear out the data file.  By starting fresh for the summer, you will be collecting data without mixing it in with the data that has already been collected.  When you retrieve your data after the summer, you will have data pertaining only to the summer months.  Also, when you retrieve the summer data, you can clear out the summer data and start collecting data from the “school year”.  If your kiosk program does not collect data, we at point2explore can help by setting up data collecting on your kiosk or computer.  This data is very valuable to track program usage, etc. 

 

Promote future events!  If summer is your busy season, why not promote your fall events during the summer.  If you get a lot of local visitors, why not promote your upcoming summer events.  Your kiosk is a great way to do this.  Many of the kiosk systems we sell include a “button” for news or upcoming events.  We set up an easily editable template so that our customers can add news, events info, donor recognition, etc. any time they want.  For more info on setting up your computer kiosk to update data, see our previous submission to this blog titled “Update text and photos on your kiosk with PowerPoint!”

 

Do you have any kiosk prep tips to share?  Please comment by clicking on the COMMENTS link below.

If you are interested in adding features and functions to your current computer kiosks, give us a call at 973-882-9411 or email us at info@point2explore.com.

 

Chris Meyer
President
CD Meyer, Inc./point2explore

AAM Conference

This past weekend was the annual conference for the American Association of Museums.  I believe that this is the largest conference and exposition in the country for this market.  Even considering the current economic turmoil, the exhibit hall was filled with vendors and museums sharing their wares and offerings.  We were among the vendors exhibiting and met many new prospects and saw many customers.

This year we introduced several new products.  Our newest game, Order Sorter, allows players to drag and drop a group of images into the correct order.  Our new kiosk design, the Glacier Bay, is unique in that it’s base is designed with a transparent opening allowing our customers to fill this area with fun objects that will compliment the exhibit (i.e. plastic bottles for a recycling exhibit). 

Our most exciting introduction has to be our new i-Viewer “Do It Yourself” interactive, touch screen program product.  In an effort to address the current economy and assist customers in having a more hands on approach to their interactive programs, we are expanding our “DIY” product line.  These products are easy to use and very affordable.

The exhibit floor didn’t offer much in “new” technology but we did have some interesting meetings with some unique hardware vendors about possible collaborative products that could be very exciting.  The 3D movies that were shown by several vendors were great and my daughter (who joined me for the show) really loved the creative playground equipment.

If you are interested in our new products, visit our web site at www.point2explore.com.  If you have any questions or comments on our new products or the AAM show, please take a moment to post a comment here by clicking below.  We’d love to hear from you!!

Chris Meyer
President
CD Meyer, Inc./point2explore

Digital Signage, What’s New?

Last month I attended the Digital Signage Expo in Las Vegas. The conference seems to be growing steadily each year and it’s a great place to evaluate hardware, software and services pertaining to this growing industry.  On top of that, the seminars are a great place to see what others are doing, how they’re doing it, and what they are using.

This year there were several areas of obvious progress.  First, and most obvious, the size and brightness of screens.  At times I felt the need for sunscreen even though I was sheltered from the desert sun.  It really is amazing to see all of the huge, bright digital displays vying for your attention. 

The SaaS, or Software as a Service, model is also growing.  The idea is that customers don’t have to purchase software up front, they license software based on a monthly fee.  This concept certainly helps with initial capital investment which allows for faster and better implementation.  I walked the floor with a client who is starting up several small signage networks and she definitely appreciates the SaaS model.

Digital Signage software has also progressed quickly this past year.  I saw innovative features added to creation and design products.  I also saw some very impressive multi screen support which really allows for a dynamic signage solution.

Surprisingly, the biggest area of need is still content.  Every where you go you hear of the need for content.  Many new digital signage network managers quickly realize the work involved in keeping the signage fresh.  Although there was a content area on the exhibit floor, there were really very few companies offering content solutions.  That being realized, it was encouraging to us at CD Meyer/point2explore because we have been developing a line of digital signage content products.  In the coming months, we will be rolling out our “plug and play” content library.  We’re really excited to expand our offerings and already have a lot of interest in our products.  If you are interested in our digital signage products, keep an eye on our new web site at www.fuelsignage.com.

If you have any questions or comments on our review of the 2009 Digital Signage Expo, please take a moment to post a comment here by using the form below.  We’d love to hear from you!!

Chris Meyer

President

CD Meyer, Inc./point2explore

2008 in Review

Well, another year behind us.  And for us at CD Meyer, 2008 marked our 20^th anniversary in business.  In my efforts to put a “retrospective” together for our annual holiday party, I was reminded how much has changed in the past 20 years.  The animations we created for video 20 years ago were created on a $25,000 computer system.  The first interactive programs we developed were distributed on floppy disks.  Video tape formats like ¾ inch, 1 inch, betacam, D2 and others have come and gone.  Looking back, the 1990s brought us our first web site project, our first digital video projects and our first touch screen kiosk project.  Who knew we’d still be doing those things over a decade later.  All in all, it was great to look back and all of us here are looking forward to what the future holds for us.

2008 also was a year where we made a leap in the size of the museum projects we handle.  We got our biggest museum exhibit project to date from the City of Highlands, California. We designed a complete, sculptured exhibit wall for the City of Greenville, North Carolina. And we were awarded a very large museum exhibit project for the New Jersey State Museum.

Now we look ahead to 2009 and hope to build on the successes of the past.  In the next couple of months, we will be releasing new software products and a new kiosk design.  We also will be further developing our new product line for the digital signage market, fuelsignage.com.  We’ll also do our best to provide relevant and useful information on this exhibit multimedia blog.  Thanks to all of our readers and have a happy and healthy 2009!

If you have any questions or comments on our review of 2008, please take a moment to post a comment here by using the form below.  We’d love to hear from you!!

Chris Meyer

President

CD Meyer, Inc./point2explore

Giving Thanks (for Kiosk Project Support)!

With Thanksgiving right around the corner, I was inspired to address some of the ways an interactive kiosk program can be used to offer a big “Thank You” to the project’s supporters, donors, and sponsors.  Although letters, plaques and the like are appropriate, you may have an opportunity to do more in response to the generosity you have received. 

One of the easiest and most visible ways to let your visitors know about the support you have received is to place a thank you note or logo on a screen saver.  A screen saver (or attract screen) is typically designed to attract attention and make a connection with the visitor.  You’ll definitely want to display a call to action (i.e. Touch the Screen) but you can also use this space to promote the program’s content and thank a supporter.  This works well with a single donor or sponsor, especially if they have a logo.  I have many customers who simply place their own logo on their screen saver.  I’d suggest there are better uses of that “real estate” if your kiosk is residing in your facility.  Your visitors have already walked past your signage, probably seen your collateral, and know where they are.  So why brand your kiosk with self promotion. 

Another great way to show appreciation in a touch screen interactive program is to create an “about this kiosk” or “about our sponsors” link.  This will give you an opportunity to give details about the support you have received.  You can even include photos, logos and videos.  Why not video tape an interview with the donor explaining why he or she feels so strongly about your organization or project?  You can also include a link with more information on how others can support programs or projects. 

For those with very large sponsors or those with ongoing fundraising campaigns, you might consider a kiosk or interactive wall for that sole purpose.  I’ve seen large walls of plaques, paths of brick pavers and many other very large exhibits of thanks.  The drawback with these types of things is the space limitation.  With an interactive kiosk, screen wall or projection, the content can be continually added to without any physical space expansion.  Photo montages, video interviews, etc. can all be on display in a large, dedicated format to offer a “huge” thank you to those who have been most generous to you. 

One last note on this type of thanks.  Although I believe that most “givers” do so for selfless reasons, there is a part of each of us that loves the recognition.  It is possible that a prospective donor, supporter, or sponsor will see the way you show your appreciation.  This may inspire more giving, allowing you to do more programs and projects with little of your own resources.

If you have any questions or comments on “giving thanks”, please take a moment to post a comment here by using the form below.  We’d love to hear from you!!

Chris Meyer

President

CD Meyer, Inc./point2explore

Exhibit Kiosks Need a Rest too!

I often get asked if a kiosk should be left on all the time or turned off daily.  My short answer is “turn it off.”  But understanding the reasoning behind this answer could serve helpful to exhibit managers and designers.

Well, the most obvious reason for turning your touch screen or electronic kiosks off is to conserve electricity.  Why waste the money and energy powering a computer, monitor, and other peripherals when they are not being used.  Some might say that it’s just too time consuming to close the programs and shut down, then start the computer  and software the next morning.  We have found, while using all different operating systems, that shutting down our kiosk computers with a simple power down does not cause any problems with the systems.  I know it goes against what you’ve been taught about computers, but for kiosk computers, dedicated to this one task, it should not be a problem.  As far as the start up, a properly set up kiosk computer will automatically start up all required software upon power up.

Another good reason to turn off your kiosk computers is to clear out the random access memory (RAM).  For inexperienced programmers, it is pretty easy to develop a software program that will gradually fill all of the system’s RAM.  This is often called a memory leak.  This happens most often when several programs run on a single machine and some kind of menu program opens programs that are not properly closed causing multiple “copies” of the program to run in memory.  A single program can do the same thing with processes that are not cleared when completed.  When your RAM is filled, your system will stop responding.  Shutting down the computer will clear the memory completely so you can start fresh when restarted.

If you are using an LCD screen (or multiple LCD screens), you also want to give that piece of equipment a rest.  Although LCD displays do not burn, they do have a memory (See our previous blog entry on LCD vs. Plasma).  If your kiosk software displays static screens for long periods of time, your LCD will remember that image and you will see a ghosted image.  Simply turning off the LCD will give the liquid crystals an opportunity to reset, removing the ghosted image.

Even though all of our point2explore kiosk systems are completely tested for memory leaks and set up to minimize screen burn or memory, we highly recommend turning off kiosk computer hardware when not in use.  At a minimum, it’s good for the computer and it’s good for your pocketbook.

If you have any questions or comments on turning exhibit kiosks off, please take a moment to post a comment here by clicking the “Comments” link below.  We’d love to hear from you!!

Chris Meyer
President
CD Meyer, Inc./point2explore

Green Kiosks. Can your touch screen kiosk be environmentally friendly?

With the growing concern for environmentally friendly solutions for just about everything we use every day, I thought it would be worthwhile to consider how to be more earth friendly when planning your touch screen computer kiosk exhibits.

 

Is it really possible to reduce the carbon footprint of your “new” kiosk?  Well, I believe so, and here are some things to consider.

 

Re-use:  Probably the best thing you can do for the environment is to re-use something instead of replacing it with new.  That goes for cars, household items, and office supplies, so why not computer-based exhibits?  Used computers are readily available.  Corporations and individuals are constantly upgrading their systems and would love to spare the landfill from the added waste.  Although there will be some work involved in preparing the computer for use, once set up properly you should get good use out of a used system.  Most of our point2explore software products will run well on older, used computer systems.  As far as the kiosk housing goes (the case, or furniture part), there are also a couple of things to consider.   You may be able to find a used kiosk from museums, corporations, or on-line sources.  If you are not trying to match other exhibit elements or if the design doesn’t concern you, this may be a good solution.  You can also forego the furniture element and use a panel PC which can be mounted on the wall or placed on a table or shelf, saving the building materials all together.

 

Save energy:  Although I don’t recommend that you set up the computers in your exhibit so that they are in “power save” mode, there are a couple of things you can do to save electricity.  First, make sure that you plug in only the hardware components that you are actually using (i.e. do not connect speakers if your program does not use sound).  Second, turn the system off completely when not in use (at night, etc.).  Third, if you are using an LCD screen, set the screen brightness only as bright as you really need for your venue.

 

Why don’t we recommend “power save” mode?  In order for your educational touch screen kiosk to actually educate your audience, it needs to be readily accessible.  Power Save mode on your computer will turn off hardware components to save energy.  This sounds great until your visitors try to use the system and it doesn’t react quickly because it has to “turn on” before it can respond.  This delay can cause frustration.

 

Educate:  This one can certainly do the most for our planet.  Why not develop a program to educate your visitors on how to live a “greener” life?  Think about how much of a difference your visitors could make if they were made aware of how easy it is to live “greener.”  The electricity used in your kiosk would be well “invested” into promoting greener lives on our beautiful planet.  Many of our point2explore touch screen games can easily be customized to educate your visitors about green living.

 

If you have any questions or comments on green kiosks, please take a moment to post a comment here by clicking the “Comments” link below.  We’d love to hear from you!!

 

Chris Meyer

President

CD Meyer, Inc./point2explore

 

 

point2explore is product line of customizable touch screen kiosk programs including interactive games and informational programs.  point2explore products are currently running in over 70 museums and have been used in corporate events across the country. Visit our web site at www.point2explore.com.

A Sound Solution

Most people in the market for a touch screen kiosk probably put little thought into the sound options available.  To be completely honest, 90% of the museums and corporate customers who purchase touch screen kiosks from us are perfectly happy with the standard, “built-in” speakers we provide.  But in some cases, there is a need for special consideration in the area of sound.

Before we get into special circumstances, I’ll give some pointers to kiosk “do-it-yourselfers” for setting up a basic sound solution for a standard kiosk.  Forgive me if some of this seems like common sense, but I’d rather not assume anything.  If you are building or buying a kiosk, you will want amplified speakers.  Non-amplified speakers (typically the ones that do not need AC or DC power) will not produce the volume needed for a public setting.  You will want a volume control that can be accessed pretty easily so that you can adjust for different scenarios.  Keep in mind that most amplified computer speakers have the volume control right on the speakers, so if you want added convenience in volume control, you can purchase a separate volume control that plugs in between the computer and the speakers and will give you easier access to the volume.  Finally, make sure that the sound can get out of the kiosk.  You can simply drill holes in the kiosk in front of the speakers or you can get louvered faceplates or other durable screens.  Plan ahead and this will be very easy.

Now let’s discuss some special circumstances.  Let’s say that you intend to put your kiosk in an area of your museum or venue that is particularly quiet, where the sound of the kiosk will be a great distraction or annoyance.  You can replace the standard amplified speakers with vandal resistant headphones or a handheld audio stick (like a phone receiver).  These work very well and good ones are easy to clean.  Just make sure that they are secured to the kiosk so you don’t end up supplying the community with free audio equipment.  We offer a number of solutions like this if you need a source.

Some museums and corporate venues are extremely noisy or have a number of sound emitting exhibits.  In these cases you probably want a directional audio solution so that the sound produced by the kiosk is directed to a specific and small area (like right in front of the kiosk).  There are a number of solutions for these scenarios including overhead sound “cones”, sound “pads” that go on the ground and direct sound up, and super directional speakers that send the sound out in a very “pointed” direction.  Again, if you need help with a special sound scenario, we’d be glad to help.

So there are some sound solutions to many of the audio concerns we assist our clients with from project to project.  If you have any questions or comments on sound solutions you’ve tried or are interested in, please take a moment to post a comment here by clicking the “Comments” link below.  We’d love to hear from you!!

Chris Meyer
President
CD Meyer, Inc./point2explore

point2explore is product line of customizable touch screen kiosk programs including interactive games and informational programs.  point2explore products are currently running in over 70 museums and have been used in corporate events across the country. Visit our web site at www.point2explore.com.

Digital Signage Expo Download

Last week I attended the Digital Signage Expo in Las Vegas and thought a brief download of the event might be helpful to some of our readers.  So here it goes.

If you like looking at big screens, this is the place for you.  Overall, the show really didn’t have much “new” to offer (based on last year’s show).  The screens were bigger and there were more companies offering networked solutions, but in my opinion, not much new.  Here are a few highlights.

Biggest Screen – Mitsubishi displayed its 140 inch LED screen which by far was the biggest screen in the place.  Although it was an LED, from a relatively small distance, it looked really good.  I wouldn’t buy it to watch movies on, but for signage, it was big, bright, and beautiful.

Wettest screen – although I did see some screens that were being sprayed with water to show that they would withstand rain, the wettest screen was Alive Promo’s display that is a waterfall with messaging projected onto the water.  Very cool and eyecatching.

3D? – Well, 3D displays were at the show last year, but this year Philips seems to have perfected it.  Their 3D displays blew away the competition (in my opinion).  The 3D images really popped without glasses of any sort.  The images were clear and didn’t make you nauseous if you moved slightly out of its range of vision.  I also saw a holographic display that was cool but not ready for real use (hopefully next year!!!).

There seemed to be a number of new options for touch screen interfaces that looked very interesting.  We are currently evaluating what we have seen and if any of the new products look to be viable for our clients, we will make that information available.  We’re always looking of new products to offer, so stay tuned.

In speaking with an associate of mine, he mentioned that it is very clear how important the creative development is and how few experienced creative development companies there are around.  So if you are using digital signage or are considering it, let me save you some time looking for a creative development company and recommend us!  We have been developing many types of media that is used in many signage sites.  We’re glad to consult for any size project.

If you have any questions or comments on the DS Expo or new signage hardware options, please take a moment to post a comment here by clicking the “Comments” link below.  We’d love to hear from you!!

Chris Meyer

President

CD Meyer, Inc./point2explore

point2explore is product line of customizable touch screen kiosk programs including interactive games and informational programs.  point2explore products are currently running in over 60 museums and have been used in corporate events across the country. Visit our web site at www.point2explore.com.

Happy New Year!! Let’s talk about resolutions.

New Year’s resolutions?  Naaah.  Let’s discuss screen resolutions. 

First, let’s get some definitions down.

Resolution - The degree of sharpness of a computer-generated image as measured by the number of pixels across and down on a display screen.

Pixel - The basic unit of the composition of an image on a television screen, computer monitor, or similar display.  Basically, one “dot” of light is one pixel.

CRT – Cathode Ray Tube, the big, thick tube displays that were the only options before flat panels came around.

LCD – Liquid Crystal Diode flat panel displays (see our blog entry from July 2007 titled LCD vs. Plasma for more info).

Plasma Display – Another type of flat panel (again, see the July 2007 blog entry for more info)

Aspect Ratio – The ratio of the height of an image to its width.  4:3 aspect ratio is the “old standard” for TVs and computer displays (not wide screen).

Let’s start easy with CRT displays.  I say easy because for the most part, the screen resolutions of CRT displays don’t vary much in comparison to other screen types.  For the most part, computer CRTs are all sized based on a 4:3 aspect ratio. CRTs resolutions are flexible with a fixed upper limit.  The most common resolutions for these monitors are 1024x768 and 1280x1024 but they can go over 1600x1200 depending on the particular unit. 

LCDs and Plasmas are less “standard” as far as aspect ratio.  Nowadays we are seeing many different wide screen formats with resolutions from about 480x234 to more than 2560x1280.  Although you can “change” resolutions on these displays, the quality really suffers unless you are set at the native size for that particular hardware. 

So why do you care?  Well if you are preparing a program or slideshow for your exhibit or for display, it will always look its best when it’s designed at the correct resolution.  If you are using a CRT display, your best bet is to find the highest resolution that the display can support and build your application at that EXACT size.  For Plasmas and LCDs, you want to build your application at the native screen resolution for your particular display.  Beware, flat panels can stretch your application to fill the screen.  This is most often seen on widescreen televisions displaying a non-HD or non-widescreen video source.  You probably have seen your favorite TV personality looking a bit “wider” than usual.  These displays can distort your applications also.  So your perfectly circular logo can appear more like an egg.

Another note for all you PowerPoint users, preparing your inserted images for the correct resolution will do wonders for your presentations.  I have seen both extremely low and extremely high resolution images used in PowerPoint presentations.  Very low resolution images will look very grainy and blurry.  Very high resolution images will make your presentation and effects run slowly and will make your file size overly large.  Don’t think that by using high resolution images you are displaying better quality on your screen.  As we have discussed here, computer displays can only display a limited resolution and the use of any images of higher resolution forces the computer to interpolate the pixels.  The best looking images in a PowerPoint will be the ones that are sized from high resolution source files to the exact size they will be displayed on the screen.  It can be tricky to figure out, but well worth the effort.

Do you have any screen or image resolution questions?  Any experiences worth sharing?  Please take a moment to post a comment here by clicking the “Comments” link below.  We’d love to hear from you!!

Chris Meyer

President

CD Meyer, Inc./point2explore

point2explore is product line of customizable touch screen kiosk programs including interactive games and informational programs.  point2explore products are currently running in over 60 museums and have been used in corporate events across the country. Visit our web site at www.point2explore.com.