Manual for MathStat Technology Classrooms
This document does not really tell you how to operate the equipment, just
how to get it going. The DVD player and video play are standard
and you are on your own (ask a student, if you can't cope). The document
viewer is fairly obvious.
The Sympodium is too awesome for these feeble notes. You can load
the Smart Notebook software on your own computer and simulate it to your
hearts content and even prepare the notebooks that are used with the
Sympodium in advance.
Projector
The projector should be in standby mode at all times and is operated with
the remote in the desk. Each piece of equipment requires pressing the
correct remote button on the projector remote. The settings below specify
the button.
Press On (ie the On button on the remote) to turn the
projector on and Off to turn it off. See how easy it is! Well,
when you turn it of, the projector may not respond instantly, but be sure
it eventually does respond. When the bulb goes off you have done your duty,
the fan may continue to run but you do not need to worry about it.
Each of the following pieces of equipment is independent of the others, so
that only one can be viewed on the screen at a time. You can leave them
all on and operational, but you cannot mix the outputs to the screen.
Sympodium/Computer
| Computer: On | Sympodium:
On | Projector: RGB1 |
The Sympodium should be on in standby mode, but just in case, the power
button is in the upper right corner just above the screen itself, in 430
there is no obvious switch, just poke the plastic. The buttons across the
top allow you to easily switch between the pen being a mouse and being a
pen.
There are two pieces of software associated with the use of the Sympodium
- SMART BOARD which should run automatically. It allows you to
use the pen as a mouse or to write on the screen which you select using
the buttons across the top of the Sympodium. You can also "capture"
all or parts of the screen for the SMART Notebook (below). If you
need to access the program directly click on the icon on the desktop
that says SMART BOARD Tools.
Calibration: If the mouse cursor does not appear directly
under the pen point, you need to calibrate the pen. Open the SMART
BOARD Tools and choose Control Panel - a window appears
containing, among other things a box with the word "Orient" in it.
Select the box and touch the crosses as they appear on the screen.
- SMART Notebook which you start yourself or will start
automatically if you do a screen capture. This is a tool for
creating and recording you presentation as you go, or presenting one
you have prepared in advance. You can load the Smart notebook
software onto your own computer so that you can prepare notebooks in
advance.
Document viewer
| Viewer: On | Projector: RGB2 |
Lift up the lights on the side, if needed, and the camera. The camera is
released with a dark button at the base of the camera arm. The button is a
bit testy so, hang in there. You also have to press that button to fold
the camera back down. There is a lens cap!
The LAMP button changes the lighting and cycles through three settings
by repeatedly pushing it. The settings are
- the "upper" or side lamps for viewing things like books or papers
- the "lower" or lamp on the table for viewing overheads or the
TI-89 viewscreen
- off
If nothing shows up check the two buttons on the lower right side, INT/EXT
and MODE. If a light by the INT/EXT button is on (brightly), press the
button until all are off. The MODE should have the XGA light on.
You can use a calculator with the document viewer, but the ROOM lights
should be ON. It is better to use the TI viewscreen placed on the document
viewer with the lower light on because the overhead lights may put the
shadow of the camera across everything.
DVD player
| Player: On | Projector:
Video | Black Box: Button 1 |
The Black Box sits on top of the DVD and video players and has
four buttons. The first two control the DVD and video and the others
control nothing.
Video player
| Player: On | Projector:
Video | Black Box: Button 2 |
The Black Box sits on top of the DVD and video players and has
four buttons. The first two control the DVD and video and the others
control nothing.
Connecting a laptop
| Document viewer: On | Projector: RGB2 |
The laptop is connected by a VGA cable which should be in the desk with the
viewer or already attached to the viewer..
- Connect the cable from the video output on the laptop to one of the
the VGA-IN inputs on the Document Viewer on the back where all the other
wires are.
- Punch the INT/EXT button on the lower right side of the viewer
until the Ext1 or Ext2 light comes on depending on which of the VGA-IN
sockets you connected the laptop to.
You may have to select XGA or SVGA with the MODE button depending on the
resolution of the computer.