Keep some ziplock baggies handy to keep your pocket electronics dry if you have to go out in the rain or get caught in a rain band when you thought the sun had come out and it was safe. I keep a little towel in there so I can dry something and then seal it up to keep it that way. best iPad to Mac transfer Plasma, Television has vivid hues, quick refresh and wonderful contrast? Plasma TVs would be the TVs that largely most likely catch your eye when you stroll down the aisle within your nearby very best purchase. Plasma TVs have exceptionally vivid, unique and lively hues. But just like most excellent issues in lifestyle there exists a downside to contemplate. Plasma TVs have substantial electrical power usage as well as a fairly brief lifespan.
But on the other hand you could properly be acquiring a more recent kind of larger technological innovation Television nevertheless once again later on. Soon after all getting the newest Television engineering happens to be an important standing image in lots of if not most center course American residences. Should you only needed a Television you may of properly gone to Wal-Mart or Costco and bought an extremely acceptable photo older CRT Television really inexpensively. Some assessments have revealed which the capacity to get a plasma exhibit to demonstrate genuine black decreases by 13% around the primary 4 weeks. Above a period of time of the number of many years this might present blacks as mild grays inside your picture. The large energy usage might not bother you in the event you will not thoughts paying out somewhat far more for ones electrical bill, however the true concern just like in notebook personal computers may be the quantity warmth created and also the hurt carried out to those digital products as well as the display screen of your respective new and really high-priced plasma Television by that warmth. .
The warmth arises from the million small fluorescent tubes on the large glass substrate that generates the picture. This design and style is additionally component with the longevity problem. The large warmth created in a very little region uses up out the phosphors earlier than the phosphor on the classic CRT. And, in tying every thing collectively, this will also end result in picture burn-in specially on channels that exhibit their brand constantly while in the decrease appropriate corner. LCD TVs are considerably cheaper than plasma, but additionally are inclined to not have photographs which might be as sharp or vibrant. One other downside to LCD shows is the pixels are fairly sluggish to vary state. Quick heading objects including a hockey puck or baseball bat get blurred exactly where they could display much more crisply with a plasma or high quality CRT.
Projection TVs are one more choice. Projection Television technological innovation now makes considerably sharper, much more vivid photos that in earlier decades with deeper blacks that rival the CRT, and conquer the majority of the plasma and LCD shows. This can be the strategy to go for show dimensions of fifty inches or increased. The principle downside for just about any in the projection systems will be the lamp utilised since the mild supply. The standard metal halide projector lamp only lasts one thousand to 2000 hrs and may value a number of hundred bucks to exchange. Extended lifestyle span lamps referred to as ultra substantial efficiency (UHP) have just lately arrive within the marketplace that use mercury vapor as an alternative of argon and also have lifespan ranging from three,000 to ten,000 hrs. Most shoppers use their TVs on an common foundation of one,000 hrs a yr. Which means that in case the bulb is within the assortment of £ 300 - £ five hundred pounds the price of �running the projection Television?at a tough manual of one,000 hrs of use for each bulb is a number of hundred bucks a yr.
The projections of bulb longevity in many cases are completed in very best circumstance not situations not the normal set up exactly where the house owner could even impair the air flow of warmth unintentionally by Television and home furniture placement decided on because of the spouse for look fairly than digital longevity. Not so conceptually the projection Television bulbs look for being extremely proprietary bulbs offered through the projection Television producer. Bulbs for Sony projection TVs are created and dispersed only by Sony. You could discover a cheaper bulb say a Hitachi. Nonetheless it's a judgment phone. The Sony bulbs though far more high-priced are a lot far more well-liked and simple to seek out on eBay ?even utilised bulbs. But projection Television bulbs are extremely fragile and might not endure shipment by mail. Just like LCD show, producers are relocating toward large intensity LED technological innovation to exchange lamps and have lifespan measured in decades.
Naturally, that technological innovation is just not inexpensive, but costs really should arrive down because they turn out to be much more accessible within the subsequent a number of many years. About the horizon we will search ahead tothe subsequent tound on new large tech kind of TVs- SEDs. What exactly is SED? SED is Surface-conduction Electron-emitter Exhibit. These ought to be coming around the marketplace in about 2008/2009. Japan will most likely begin viewing them through the stop of 2007. These are a flat panel show, considerably such as the LCD shows now, but have traits resembling that in the CRT for contrast and picture good quality. This arises from foundation with the design and style: each and every pixel is essentially a little CRT.
It employs much less vitality than plasma given that it really is simpler to create an electron beam (as being a CRT does) than it really is to excite photons inside a fuel (because the plasma exhibit does). There's no creation screen of SED TVs nevertheless offered. Also there's no info nevertheless for other functionality or dependability aspects. Within the stop appreciate your buy. You might nicely obtain a plasma Television now, pay out it off, confess you actually loved the plasma Television and nevertheless buy nevertheless yet again the more recent SED Television to your residence for its greater, much more state-of-the-art photograph and like a standing image to your property. It in no way stops.
2011年10月13日 星期四
2011年10月12日 星期三
Optoma HD33
Few projectors leave me feeling as ambivalent about them as the Optoma HD33 ($1,500 street) does. On the one hand, I love it. It's an impressive projector at a bargain price, with 1080p resolution in 2D and 3D and superb image quality. On the other hand...well, it shows rainbow artifacts, the little red-green-blue flashes that single-chip DLP projectors tend to show when light areas move on screen. If you can ignore the rainbows (and people who aren't sensitive to the effect can), it's a slam dunk winner. If you see them as easily as I do, however, it's an impressive choice, but one that you should approach cautiously.
In some ways, the Optoma HD33 is following in the path of the Optoma HD20 ($1,000 street, 3.5 stars) that I reviewed two years ago. When the HD20 was introduced, it dropped the entry-level price for 1080p significantly, making HD projectors far more affordable. The HD33 does much the same for 3D 1080p projectors, which until now have been in the range of $3,000 and (mostly) up.
Both the HD20 and HD33 fall in the same budget home theater category as the Editors' Choice Epson PowerLite Home Cinema 8350 ($1,299 direct, 4 stars). The key difference is that the HD33 is the only one that offers 3D, much less 3D at 1080p. However, it also lacks some useful conveniences you'll find on the slightly less expensive 8350. In particular, it doesn't offer horizontal and vertical lens shift. The feature gives you much more flexibility for where you can place the projector by letting you move the image with lens shift adjustments rather than moving the projector.
As with the Optoma GT750E ($800 street, 4 stars) that I recently reviewed, the HD33 works with both DLP-link and RF glasses for 3D, and it comes with an external RF emitter that plugs into the VESA 3D port. RF glasses have the advantage of not needing a line of sight to the emitter, so they don't have to resync if you momentarily break the line of sight. Note that Optoma doesn't supply glasses with the HD33, so you might want to buy them at the same time as the projector ($100 each for the rechargeable Optoma models).
Aside from having to plug in the 3D emitter, setup is standard fare, with a 1.2x manual zoom giving you some flexibility in how far you can put the projector from the screen for a given size image. Connectors on the back include two HDMI ports, a VGA port for a computer or component video, three RCA phono plugs for component video, and one RCA plug for composite video. There are no audio ports. As is common with home theater project
Optoma rates the HD33 at 1,800 lumens, which could easily be too bright for theater dark lighting and the image size that's typical for a home theater. However, you can drop the brightness to a more appropriate level by switching the lamp from bright to standard mode, and save money on lamps at the same time by increasing the lamp life from a rated 3,000 to 4000 hours. The high brightness also lets the image stand up to some stray light if you want to use it in, say, a family room. I tested primarily with theater dark lighting using a roughly 78-inch wide screen, or 90-inch diagonal at 1080p's 16:9 aspect ratio.
For the 2D tests, I used both DVDs upscaled to 1080p and Blu-ray discs. In both cases, the image was superb in almost every way. The HD33 took our toughest test clips in stride, maintaining shadow detail (detail based on shading in dark areas) and avoiding other issues like posterization (colors changing suddenly where they should change gradually) in clips chosen precisely because they tend to bring out those problems. The only issue I saw was moderate noise showing in large solid areas, like a wall or the sky.
Beyond that, the HD33 delivered fully saturated color with a level of sharpness that made 2D images seem ready to pop off the screen. It also goes a step further, with its PureMotion feature, which adds interpolated frames to reduce judder, the slightly jerky motion caused by the standard 24 frames per second that film uses.
Quite simply, the feature works, with three settings to choose from. The highest level gives the smoothest motion, but adds distracting artifacts. I found the lowest level, which is the default setting, the best compromise, giving noticeably smoother than standard motion without artifacts.
In some ways, the image is almost too good. There's a clear visual difference between film and live video that's hard to pinpoint but easy to see. It's based on some combination of crispness of image, smoothness of motion and perhaps some other issues that aren't obvious. In any case, as I proved to my own satisfaction by playing with the HD33's PureMotion settings, removing judder goes a long way to making filmed scenes look like live video instead.
This is not automatically a good thing. For me at least, watching a movie that looks like live video is a little unnerving, with my subconscious screaming that it just doesn't look right. However, odds are that as movies increasingly go digital, they'll also go to a faster frame rate, and we'll all get used to that live video-like image. In the meantime, if the better image really bothers you, you can always turn PureMotion off.
In some ways, the Optoma HD33 is following in the path of the Optoma HD20 ($1,000 street, 3.5 stars) that I reviewed two years ago. When the HD20 was introduced, it dropped the entry-level price for 1080p significantly, making HD projectors far more affordable. The HD33 does much the same for 3D 1080p projectors, which until now have been in the range of $3,000 and (mostly) up.
Both the HD20 and HD33 fall in the same budget home theater category as the Editors' Choice Epson PowerLite Home Cinema 8350 ($1,299 direct, 4 stars). The key difference is that the HD33 is the only one that offers 3D, much less 3D at 1080p. However, it also lacks some useful conveniences you'll find on the slightly less expensive 8350. In particular, it doesn't offer horizontal and vertical lens shift. The feature gives you much more flexibility for where you can place the projector by letting you move the image with lens shift adjustments rather than moving the projector.
As with the Optoma GT750E ($800 street, 4 stars) that I recently reviewed, the HD33 works with both DLP-link and RF glasses for 3D, and it comes with an external RF emitter that plugs into the VESA 3D port. RF glasses have the advantage of not needing a line of sight to the emitter, so they don't have to resync if you momentarily break the line of sight. Note that Optoma doesn't supply glasses with the HD33, so you might want to buy them at the same time as the projector ($100 each for the rechargeable Optoma models).
Aside from having to plug in the 3D emitter, setup is standard fare, with a 1.2x manual zoom giving you some flexibility in how far you can put the projector from the screen for a given size image. Connectors on the back include two HDMI ports, a VGA port for a computer or component video, three RCA phono plugs for component video, and one RCA plug for composite video. There are no audio ports. As is common with home theater project
Optoma rates the HD33 at 1,800 lumens, which could easily be too bright for theater dark lighting and the image size that's typical for a home theater. However, you can drop the brightness to a more appropriate level by switching the lamp from bright to standard mode, and save money on lamps at the same time by increasing the lamp life from a rated 3,000 to 4000 hours. The high brightness also lets the image stand up to some stray light if you want to use it in, say, a family room. I tested primarily with theater dark lighting using a roughly 78-inch wide screen, or 90-inch diagonal at 1080p's 16:9 aspect ratio.
For the 2D tests, I used both DVDs upscaled to 1080p and Blu-ray discs. In both cases, the image was superb in almost every way. The HD33 took our toughest test clips in stride, maintaining shadow detail (detail based on shading in dark areas) and avoiding other issues like posterization (colors changing suddenly where they should change gradually) in clips chosen precisely because they tend to bring out those problems. The only issue I saw was moderate noise showing in large solid areas, like a wall or the sky.
Beyond that, the HD33 delivered fully saturated color with a level of sharpness that made 2D images seem ready to pop off the screen. It also goes a step further, with its PureMotion feature, which adds interpolated frames to reduce judder, the slightly jerky motion caused by the standard 24 frames per second that film uses.
Quite simply, the feature works, with three settings to choose from. The highest level gives the smoothest motion, but adds distracting artifacts. I found the lowest level, which is the default setting, the best compromise, giving noticeably smoother than standard motion without artifacts.
In some ways, the image is almost too good. There's a clear visual difference between film and live video that's hard to pinpoint but easy to see. It's based on some combination of crispness of image, smoothness of motion and perhaps some other issues that aren't obvious. In any case, as I proved to my own satisfaction by playing with the HD33's PureMotion settings, removing judder goes a long way to making filmed scenes look like live video instead.
This is not automatically a good thing. For me at least, watching a movie that looks like live video is a little unnerving, with my subconscious screaming that it just doesn't look right. However, odds are that as movies increasingly go digital, they'll also go to a faster frame rate, and we'll all get used to that live video-like image. In the meantime, if the better image really bothers you, you can always turn PureMotion off.
2011年10月11日 星期二
Panasonic projectors win CRN categories
Panasonic's projectors have come top of their category at the CRN 2011 Tech Innovator Awards.
The company's PT-DZ570 Series projectors came top in the Display-Projection category, thanks to their reliability and flexibility.
Panasonic's proprietary Vivid Color Control technology andLamp Modulation Drive System in a one-chip DLPTM projector allow the systems to produce bright and vivid colours with the help of the 4,500 lumens of brightness from the projector lamp .
In addition, the Daylight ViewTM Premium feature means that the gadgets can measure the surrounding illumination with a built-in ambient light sensor and correct the images in real-time.
Sheila O'Neil, vice-president of channel sales at Panasonic, commented: “These awards are a testament to our dedication to providing our channel partners and end-users with customised, innovative, reliable solutions to meet a variety of professional applications and environments.”
The projectors have the added benefit of a new cooling system that permits them to be used in ambient temperatures of up to 45 degrees Celsius. Combined with the dust-resistant design of the device, this helps lower maintenance costs and reduce downtime.
Even oncelamp replacement is required, there is no need to remove the whole projector from its mount as there is a convenient location near the back of the gadget that allows the lamp to be removed separately.
The company's PT-DZ570 Series projectors came top in the Display-Projection category, thanks to their reliability and flexibility.
Panasonic's proprietary Vivid Color Control technology and
In addition, the Daylight ViewTM Premium feature means that the gadgets can measure the surrounding illumination with a built-in ambient light sensor and correct the images in real-time.
Sheila O'Neil, vice-president of channel sales at Panasonic, commented: “These awards are a testament to our dedication to providing our channel partners and end-users with customised, innovative, reliable solutions to meet a variety of professional applications and environments.”
The projectors have the added benefit of a new cooling system that permits them to be used in ambient temperatures of up to 45 degrees Celsius. Combined with the dust-resistant design of the device, this helps lower maintenance costs and reduce downtime.
Even once
2011年10月10日 星期一
Panasonic Solutions Company Named a 2011 Tech Innovator by UBM Channel’s CRN
Panasonic Solutions Company, provider of collaboration, information-sharing and decision-support solutions for government and commercial enterprises, announced today that it has received two 2011 Tech Innovator awards from CRN in both the "Display-Digital Signage" and "Display-Projection" categories. CRN's 9th annual Tech Innovator listing celebrates vendors that have introduced new products or solutions to drive advances in the technology channel. Companies on this exclusive list recently implemented innovative methods to bridge the gap between current problems and solutions facing channel executives today.
Winner of the Display-Digital Signage category, the 103" TH-103VX200U Professional Plasma Display features superior image quality and world-class support and was designed for numerous applications allowing resellers access to new market opportunities including corporate and commercial environments, home theatres and screening rooms, digital signage, education and entertainment staging. With so many potential applications, the display is outfitted with a SLOT 2.0 function whereby different terminal boards may be inserted, providing compatibility with interfaces such as DVI4 and HD-SDI4, and facilitating use in a wide array of operating environments.
The plasma also has 8,192 equivalent steps of gradation boost detailed expression, making it possible to display full HD 3D images while also translating to a remarkably high-level of performance when displaying 2D images. The color expression that is achieved by 8,192 equivalent steps of gradation, and the smoothness with which it renders intermediate colors, combine to create tonal nuances that have never before been possible.
The display brings image quality and 3D-readiness to numerous applications to a new level with deep blacks, accurate colors and unmatched motion reproduction, making them perfect for displaying static images and motion videos, in both dark and well-lit environments. As a boon to resellers, there is no competitive consumer version available.
The PT-DZ570 Series projectors, winner of the "Display-Projection" category, provide the reliability and flexibility that resellers' customers are looking for in a number of environments including education, healthcare and corporate settings and features up to 4,500 lumens of brightness. It combines Panasonic's proprietary Vivid Color Control technology with a Lamp Modulation Drive System in a 1-chip DLPTM projector that produces bright and vivid colors. The exclusive Daylight ViewTM Premium feature measures surrounding illumination with a built-in ambient light sensor and corrects the image in real-time, producing clear, crisp images with remarkable depth - even in brightly-lit rooms.
A new cooling system allows the projector to be used in ambient temperatures up to 45°C (113°F) and combines with a dust-resistant design based on a sealed optical block to achieve a lamp and lamp air filter replacement cycle of 2,000 hours which greatly reduces maintenance hassles. This air filterless design significantly reduces the units' maintenance costs, eliminating the need to clean a projector filter after every few hundred hours of operation. When lamp replacements do becomes necessary, the convenient lamp location in the rear of the projector means that the device does not have to be removed from a ceiling mount for upkeep. These features reduce downtime and keep customers happy.
The PT-DZ570 Series projectors are equipped with 2x zoom lens and the horizontal/vertical lens shift feature that makes it possible to move the projected image without moving the projector. This enables IT professionals to install the PT-DZ570 Series projectors in the existing mount, saving time and money associated with new projector installation process.
"At Panasonic, we are dedicated to creating professional visualization devices that empower resellers to equip their customers with the right solutions to fit their needs," said Sheila O'Neil, Vice President, Channel Sales, Panasonic Solutions Company. "These awards are a testament to our dedication to providing our channel partners and end-users with customized, innovative, reliable solutions to meet a variety of professional applications and environments."
"In today's challenging business environment, it's more important than ever to discover, nurture and reward new ideas," said Kelley Damore, Vice President, Editorial Director for UBM Channel. "This year's Tech Innovator Awards recognizes technology companies that have used original methods or technologies to deliver cutting-edge products and partner support. We congratulate this year's winners on their success, and applaud them for breaking away from traditional thinking to create completely new and unique channel opportunities."
Winner of the Display-Digital Signage category, the 103" TH-103VX200U Professional Plasma Display features superior image quality and world-class support and was designed for numerous applications allowing resellers access to new market opportunities including corporate and commercial environments, home theatres and screening rooms, digital signage, education and entertainment staging. With so many potential applications, the display is outfitted with a SLOT 2.0 function whereby different terminal boards may be inserted, providing compatibility with interfaces such as DVI4 and HD-SDI4, and facilitating use in a wide array of operating environments.
The plasma also has 8,192 equivalent steps of gradation boost detailed expression, making it possible to display full HD 3D images while also translating to a remarkably high-level of performance when displaying 2D images. The color expression that is achieved by 8,192 equivalent steps of gradation, and the smoothness with which it renders intermediate colors, combine to create tonal nuances that have never before been possible.
The display brings image quality and 3D-readiness to numerous applications to a new level with deep blacks, accurate colors and unmatched motion reproduction, making them perfect for displaying static images and motion videos, in both dark and well-lit environments. As a boon to resellers, there is no competitive consumer version available.
The PT-DZ570 Series projectors, winner of the "Display-Projection" category, provide the reliability and flexibility that resellers' customers are looking for in a number of environments including education, healthcare and corporate settings and features up to 4,500 lumens of brightness. It combines Panasonic's proprietary Vivid Color Control technology with a Lamp Modulation Drive System in a 1-chip DLPTM projector that produces bright and vivid colors. The exclusive Daylight ViewTM Premium feature measures surrounding illumination with a built-in ambient light sensor and corrects the image in real-time, producing clear, crisp images with remarkable depth - even in brightly-lit rooms.
A new cooling system allows the projector to be used in ambient temperatures up to 45°C (113°F) and combines with a dust-resistant design based on a sealed optical block to achieve a lamp and lamp air filter replacement cycle of 2,000 hours which greatly reduces maintenance hassles. This air filterless design significantly reduces the units' maintenance costs, eliminating the need to clean a projector filter after every few hundred hours of operation. When lamp replacements do becomes necessary, the convenient lamp location in the rear of the projector means that the device does not have to be removed from a ceiling mount for upkeep. These features reduce downtime and keep customers happy.
The PT-DZ570 Series projectors are equipped with 2x zoom lens and the horizontal/vertical lens shift feature that makes it possible to move the projected image without moving the projector. This enables IT professionals to install the PT-DZ570 Series projectors in the existing mount, saving time and money associated with new projector installation process.
"At Panasonic, we are dedicated to creating professional visualization devices that empower resellers to equip their customers with the right solutions to fit their needs," said Sheila O'Neil, Vice President, Channel Sales, Panasonic Solutions Company. "These awards are a testament to our dedication to providing our channel partners and end-users with customized, innovative, reliable solutions to meet a variety of professional applications and environments."
"In today's challenging business environment, it's more important than ever to discover, nurture and reward new ideas," said Kelley Damore, Vice President, Editorial Director for UBM Channel. "This year's Tech Innovator Awards recognizes technology companies that have used original methods or technologies to deliver cutting-edge products and partner support. We congratulate this year's winners on their success, and applaud them for breaking away from traditional thinking to create completely new and unique channel opportunities."
2011年10月9日 星期日
Farewell to film at fully-digital Odeon
A NEW era for cinema in Harrogate is set to begin after the remaining 35mm-film projectors at the Odeon were replaced with digital versions.
The picture house on East Parade already had two digital screens but the remaining three have been upgraded this week allowing all five to begin showing better quality pictures with improved sound from today.
“It’s a shame that it’s the end of an era as 35mm has been going on for 100 years or so but it’s a case of going with the modern times,” said cinema manager Kevin Langford.
“Most films are on digital format now and having all screens digital will improve the picture quality for audiences, the sound has been upgraded and it means we can do other things – such as adding subtitles.”
The new digital projectors will also allow live-feeds to be shown on all five screens and the Odeon will keep a 35mm-film projector on-hand in screen one for showing any films unavailable in digital format.
Mr Langford added: “With digital projectors there’s scope to do more such as showing things like live operas, ballets and musicals.”
With 35mm-films, movies would be delivered to the cinema as a bundle of reels lasting around 20 minutes each and projectionists would be responsible for physically splicing them together along with advertisements and film trailers ready for screenings.
Now, under the new digital theatre management system, hard drives containing the full film are connected to a main computer and downloaded on to the system with adverts and trailers all added electronically from DVDs or USB memory sticks.
Technical manager Graham Bird, the Odeon’s chief projectionist, said: “I’ll miss the physical side of things – touching the film, running it through your fingers and holding it up to the light. With digital you can’t see it all work – it’s just a series of zeros and ones that’s converted to an image.
“But the new screens are fantastic – all the screen sizes are increasing with the exception of screen five and the sound is going to be much, much better.”
The picture house on East Parade already had two digital screens but the remaining three have been upgraded this week allowing all five to begin showing better quality pictures with improved sound from today.
“It’s a shame that it’s the end of an era as 35mm has been going on for 100 years or so but it’s a case of going with the modern times,” said cinema manager Kevin Langford.
“Most films are on digital format now and having all screens digital will improve the picture quality for audiences, the sound has been upgraded and it means we can do other things – such as adding subtitles.”
The new digital projectors will also allow live-feeds to be shown on all five screens and the Odeon will keep a 35mm-film projector on-hand in screen one for showing any films unavailable in digital format.
Mr Langford added: “With digital projectors there’s scope to do more such as showing things like live operas, ballets and musicals.”
With 35mm-films, movies would be delivered to the cinema as a bundle of reels lasting around 20 minutes each and projectionists would be responsible for physically splicing them together along with advertisements and film trailers ready for screenings.
Now, under the new digital theatre management system, hard drives containing the full film are connected to a main computer and downloaded on to the system with adverts and trailers all added electronically from DVDs or USB memory sticks.
Technical manager Graham Bird, the Odeon’s chief projectionist, said: “I’ll miss the physical side of things – touching the film, running it through your fingers and holding it up to the light. With digital you can’t see it all work – it’s just a series of zeros and ones that’s converted to an image.
“But the new screens are fantastic – all the screen sizes are increasing with the exception of screen five and the sound is going to be much, much better.”
2011年10月8日 星期六
York County planetarium hopes to retire old star ball
Watching a program in the Museum of York County's Settlemyre Planetarium is sort of like revisiting the past.
Two-dimensional static images float across the domed ceiling, lit with tiny star-like flecks of light. In one program, children take a trip through space on a cardboard rocket. Their voices play out the scenes, the subtle scratches of a recording and instrumental music playing underneath their voices.
With county leaders' approval, the decades-old planetarium equipment will be one step closer to being replaced with more modern digital equipment.
The upgrade would allow the planetarium to feature more than just space science programs, said Cate Crane, director of education for the Culture and Heritage Museums.
Ice worlds, the African Serengeti, oceans, cells and the immune system - even sea monsters from prehistoric ecosystems - are programs the museum could offer with a new planetarium, she said.
The Museums of York County might receive $150,000 in grant money to modernize the planetarium, replacing the star ball projector installed in the late 1970s.
Some of the support for the planetarium improvements - expected to cost more than $500,000 total - might come from hospitality tax dollars, which must be used for tourism-related projects.
The York County Council will consider approving the funds when it meets Oct. 17.
Museum staff have openly expressed the need for a new planetarium.
The bulky projector - which rivals the size of some prehistoric fossils -commands the middle of the planetarium floor, casting tiny lights on the domed ceiling above.
The contraption, however, fades out once the lights are dimmed and the program is rolling, and the machine still has some charms.
Unlike a digital projector, each of the 2,400 stars in the analog machine is drilled and lensed to provide the smallest, but sharpest pinhole stars.
A tiny arc light with a high current is so bright it casts light 30 feet onto the dome.
Digital hasn't matched that effect yet, said Glenn Dantzler, the planetarium's technician and docent since 1991. Though retired, Dantzler still comes by to work on the equipment and teaches the advanced astronomy classes for high school and college classes.
Several slide projectors with static images provide other visual effects for different themed programs. The images move around the dome for effect.
"In 1991 (the programs) were still wowing children," Dantzler said. "But with the advent of the Wii and the Xbox, it takes a lot more to wow them now."
Museum staff have been exploring digital options that would allow for "immersive reality, where you are inside the program," he said.
The museum, which supplements local schools with education programming, "can't make use of all the science content from science organizations because we can't support the technology," Crane said.
With an upgraded digital system, the planetarium will be able to support live feeds from weather and science organization's sites.
It will also allow the museum to participate in new partnership programs with museums of the Smithsonian Institution that work with prominent universities to create educational opportunities.
The museum also received some grant money already toward the planetarium renovations. Staff will continue to seek additional sources of support.
The star ball could find a second life with a new owner, Dantzler said. Star ball technology is still "extraordinarily accurate" in producing an precise sky.
Two-dimensional static images float across the domed ceiling, lit with tiny star-like flecks of light. In one program, children take a trip through space on a cardboard rocket. Their voices play out the scenes, the subtle scratches of a recording and instrumental music playing underneath their voices.
With county leaders' approval, the decades-old planetarium equipment will be one step closer to being replaced with more modern digital equipment.
The upgrade would allow the planetarium to feature more than just space science programs, said Cate Crane, director of education for the Culture and Heritage Museums.
Ice worlds, the African Serengeti, oceans, cells and the immune system - even sea monsters from prehistoric ecosystems - are programs the museum could offer with a new planetarium, she said.
The Museums of York County might receive $150,000 in grant money to modernize the planetarium, replacing the star ball projector installed in the late 1970s.
Some of the support for the planetarium improvements - expected to cost more than $500,000 total - might come from hospitality tax dollars, which must be used for tourism-related projects.
The York County Council will consider approving the funds when it meets Oct. 17.
Museum staff have openly expressed the need for a new planetarium.
The bulky projector - which rivals the size of some prehistoric fossils -commands the middle of the planetarium floor, casting tiny lights on the domed ceiling above.
The contraption, however, fades out once the lights are dimmed and the program is rolling, and the machine still has some charms.
Unlike a digital projector, each of the 2,400 stars in the analog machine is drilled and lensed to provide the smallest, but sharpest pinhole stars.
A tiny arc light with a high current is so bright it casts light 30 feet onto the dome.
Digital hasn't matched that effect yet, said Glenn Dantzler, the planetarium's technician and docent since 1991. Though retired, Dantzler still comes by to work on the equipment and teaches the advanced astronomy classes for high school and college classes.
Several slide projectors with static images provide other visual effects for different themed programs. The images move around the dome for effect.
"In 1991 (the programs) were still wowing children," Dantzler said. "But with the advent of the Wii and the Xbox, it takes a lot more to wow them now."
Museum staff have been exploring digital options that would allow for "immersive reality, where you are inside the program," he said.
The museum, which supplements local schools with education programming, "can't make use of all the science content from science organizations because we can't support the technology," Crane said.
With an upgraded digital system, the planetarium will be able to support live feeds from weather and science organization's sites.
It will also allow the museum to participate in new partnership programs with museums of the Smithsonian Institution that work with prominent universities to create educational opportunities.
The museum also received some grant money already toward the planetarium renovations. Staff will continue to seek additional sources of support.
The star ball could find a second life with a new owner, Dantzler said. Star ball technology is still "extraordinarily accurate" in producing an precise sky.
2011年10月7日 星期五
VDCDS Introduces New SSL Projectors for Simulation Training
Video Display Corporation is pleased to announce that its simulation division, VDC Display Systems (VDCDS), has launched two new display products for use in military and commercial flight simulators. Based on VDCDS's extensive experience of high resolution projector design, the SSL6250 and SSL6050 LED projectors have been successfully verified by independent experts to meet and/or exceed Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Level D full-flight simulator requirements, the strictest standard in use for full-flight simulation systems. Furthermore, as the design has no consumables or moving parts, it is virtually maintenance free.
Marcial Vidal, VDCDS President, states, "The SSL6250/6050 LED projectors were specifically designed for flight trainers and address most, if not all, recurrent lamp replacement and regular readjustment issues, thus providing sustained, dependable image use and quality."
The SSL6250/6050 LED projectors are professional-quality projectors designed and manufactured to VDCDS's exacting requirements for providing ruggedized solutions for use in mobile platforms specifically to withstand consistent industrial use. LED light sources, having an operating life of 50,000 hours, eliminate the need for frequent lamp replacement and set up associated with lamp-based projector systems.
The SSL6250/6050 projectors include VDCDS's new LED control module, which appreciably increases projector light output while retaining black level and LED long life. In addition, the new projectors feature motion blur reduction and Infrared (IR) illumination to stimulate Night Vision Goggles (NVGs) in a seamless display for day and night scenes necessary for demanding military trainers.
VDCDS's proprietary SSL light source with LED illumination control is ideal for multiple projector systems; providing a uniform display across all projectors, eliminating varying brightness and color problems associated with the aging of optical blocks, filters and individual lamps. Loss of training time typical in lamp-based projector systems due to lamp failure/aging will no longer be a factor. Additionally, the new SSL6250/6050 projectors offer low power consumption which directly translates to lower cooling needs and operational cost reductions.
Marcial Vidal, VDCDS President, states, "The SSL6250/6050 LED projectors were specifically designed for flight trainers and address most, if not all, recurrent lamp replacement and regular readjustment issues, thus providing sustained, dependable image use and quality."
The SSL6250/6050 LED projectors are professional-quality projectors designed and manufactured to VDCDS's exacting requirements for providing ruggedized solutions for use in mobile platforms specifically to withstand consistent industrial use. LED light sources, having an operating life of 50,000 hours, eliminate the need for frequent lamp replacement and set up associated with lamp-based projector systems.
The SSL6250/6050 projectors include VDCDS's new LED control module, which appreciably increases projector light output while retaining black level and LED long life. In addition, the new projectors feature motion blur reduction and Infrared (IR) illumination to stimulate Night Vision Goggles (NVGs) in a seamless display for day and night scenes necessary for demanding military trainers.
VDCDS's proprietary SSL light source with LED illumination control is ideal for multiple projector systems; providing a uniform display across all projectors, eliminating varying brightness and color problems associated with the aging of optical blocks, filters and individual lamps. Loss of training time typical in lamp-based projector systems due to lamp failure/aging will no longer be a factor. Additionally, the new SSL6250/6050 projectors offer low power consumption which directly translates to lower cooling needs and operational cost reductions.
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