Would you pay to train your competitor? PTT of Florida, LLC does…sort of. PPT is a temporary employment company that provides manual labor, professional crew, and rental equipment for lighting, sound, and rigging primarily for live events.
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Trusses are best neither seen nor heard. They float in the theatrical limbo behind the high scrim curtains, the orchard for lighting and sound and video nodes. As far as people are concerned, the truss is a way station, a place you go to work with or on one of those nodes and scamper back down as soon as you're done. The truss is a stop on the theatrical technology train, not a destination.
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I'm currently prepping for another New Year's Eve event here in Las Vegas, and this year I am up to my eyeballs in video content. I've been plotting the lighting design, attending meetings and making budget refinements, but the most creative part of the preparation so far has been selecting video content for the party. Sounds easy, right? Well, it is, for the most part, but there are a few items on my checklist that help make the process flow smoother, so I thought I'd share them with you.
Read More »This is the time of year when business columns turn their attention to tax strategies for the coming year. The lighting, projection and staging businesses are heavy with freelance professionals and that's a topic that's right in their wheelhouse. However, 2011 is going to be a wild ride for freelancers when it comes to both taxes and healthcare legislation. For starters, we nearly started the New Year with a lot of uncertainty about what the actual tax rates are going to be.
Read More »As we enter each New Year, many resolutions are made that center around losing weight, breaking bad habits, finding love, etc. I thought it would be much better to provide a list of resolutions aimed at the Automated Lighting Programmer. So here are eleven resolutions to help you with your craft.
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Thomas Edison invented the fuse more than a hundred years ago. Three days later, it blew and was subsequently bypassed with an aluminum-coated gum wrapper.
That last sentence is pure conjecture and has no basis in fact. Some might say it's an outright lie but I prefer to think of it as poetic license. That's when a writer is allowed to tell blatant lies with impunity. So please don't impugn my poetry.
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When I was a young man, I toured with the Talking Heads. They were a "new wave" band with a big following and a light show that was out of the ordinary. The show consisted of all white light – no gels, except for one song where the rear cyc turned red, and all tungsten fixtures except for one HMI 2.5k fixture we used once. Wherever we went, there was always some older stagehand who would question what we were doing at the time and then remark, "Well, I guess we just did it differently in my day."
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GoboMan has recently acquired a new laser cutting system for manufacturing custom gobos. The laser cutting system enables the production of accurate laser cut custom gobos with a shorter turnaround. The company's U.S.-based operation is using the new laser system, which is safe to operate and has low power consumption – benefits that can be duplicated in other manufacturing locations, according to the company, which invites dealer queries sent to customerservice [at] goboman.com.
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High Resolution Systems introduced four sizes and prices for its Universal Device Controller (UDC), a software-based platform that allows control of devices using IP (TCP/UDP) or serial (232/422/485) protocols. The options offer a scaleable path to the full-featured UDC.
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Synthe FX has updated Luminair for iPad to version 1.1, adding support for external MIDI control, the OSC protocol and the ability to send DMX over Wi-Fi via sACN E1.31. With external MIDI input, Luminair users can now turn any MIDI controller into a DMX lighting console.
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Analog Way's new Smart Edge is a high-resolution seamless switcher with dual output edge blending. It offers 10 universal analog inputs including two fitted with DVI and two fitted with HD-SDI, 100% digital processing, and it outputs digital and analog signals in SDI, DVI and VGA (RGBHV).
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The new GefenPRO 3G SDI fiber optics extender from Gefen offers a long-range method of extending any 3G SDI source. The transmitter/receiver system is packaged in a small dongle format designed for rugged construction with a small footprint. Sender and receiver units are connected to the 3G SDI source and the remote destination up to 12.4 miles (20 kilometers) away.
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