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Live Remote Demo by Cindy Drozda

Emiliano Achaval

Emiliano Achaval

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Today we had one of the best live remote demos ever, by one of our own: Cindy Drozda. I was impressed, but not surprised by her professionalism and knowledge of the Vmix software. She can change cameras with just a quick tap of the wireless keyboard, and you don't even know how she's doing it unless you use Vmix. I usually keep some pencil and paper with me, to keep notes and also to write down anything that I see that could help whoever is doing the remote. I have to say; I could not find anything wrong with Cindy's demo. Also, we have done a lot of remote demos, over 10 I believe. For the first time, a box arrived before the demo from Cindy. She sent a little finial, that was the topic of the demo: "Fabulous Finials." She also sent four tools for us to see what she was using, business cards, a handout and she included a pre-paid label for us to send the box back! Since she has so many other topics, we would not hesitate to have her back. I can also wholeheartedly recommend her to anybody that is considering having a live remote demo. I would rate her demo a 10 plus. Thank you Cindy, we had a great time! Aloha.
@Bill Boehme Boehme I'm not sure where to post this. Feel free to move it. Thanks
 
We had a live emote demo by Mike Mahoney on February 28. We had some (figurative) wires cross when the topics we wanted covered wasn't what Mike thought that he was supposed to do. Nevertheless, Mike did an outstanding program, but not quite what I was hoping to see. This was our second live remote demo and our main problem is that the building we rent doesn't have Internet service so we have to depend on cellular data in a weak signal area. The audio was good most of the time, but Mike couldn't hear us other than one person with a mike so with about a hundred people on our end it was mostly a one way show. I would rate the video as poor. The frame rate was very low and there a number of freezes as well as loss of signal a couple times.

The demo that Alan Zenreich gave at SWAT showed the potential of live remote demonstrations, but our club clearly isn't there.
 
Bill,

If you like, I will be happy to work with your club to see if the bottleneck was on your end or on Mike’s end. Depending on the communication software used, there are a few things to tweak.
 
Interesting. What are the costs, if I may ask or do we need to contact the demonstrator? The chapter could make some extra money by selling popcorn and Raisinettes.
 
Cindy is doing a video demo for our group, NJ Woodturners, in May.
Since Alan is also a member of the group, we'll have someone who knows what they're doing on both ends. :-)
I'm looking forward to her demo, and am hoping I can make my finials even better.
 
The most remarkable wood turning demonstration I've ever seen was done by Cindy at the Rocky Mountain symposium. That year, they had a variety of lathe brands mounted on wheels so they could be swapped from room to room to suit the demonstrator's preference. Except Cindy. At her hometown club's symposium. She walked in to find a Powermatic up on wheels, so the usual spindle height of 44" was at least 47". Cindy herself is not much over that in height. Trooper that she is, she didn't blink but just went right ahead with her Fabulous Finial demo.

She made one of her beautifully delicate finials, perfectly, without breaking a sweat. Then she made the base/box. If you've seen her demo, you know she makes her boxes backasswards, trimming the recess to accommodate the already made tenon. It's nearly impossible to get a good fit doing it that way, but she did.

All the while, she was working above shoulder level! And with no loss of her positive, upbeat, appealing attitude. Amazing!
 
AlanZ said:
Emiliano... the momentum is building. Cindy has embraced the video tools, and is combining them nicely to support her teaching style.
Click to expand...
AlanZ said:
Emiliano... the momentum is building. Cindy has embraced the video tools, and is combining them nicely to support her teaching style.
Click to expand...
For those that don't know, I will mention that Cindy's success is because of Alan Z patience and willingness to teach anybody that wants to learn how to do live remote demos. Thank you, Alan, for all the countless hours you have spent teaching to so many of us learning how to do remote demos the best possible way.
 
Bill Boehme said:
So, Emiliano, are you saying that ... uh, teaching Cindy required a lot of patience? :D
Click to expand...
I have about 20 plus hours with Alan, I’m thinking that’s average. It’s not easy to run Vmix, Alan is very patience with all of us!
 
Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition! (I mean drone).
 
Bill Boehme said:
OK, I understand. Sometimes I'm a little slow. I attended Alan's demo at SWAT, but apparently my retention wasn't very good. I think that I did a memory dump when he launched the drone. That really caught me off guard. :D
Click to expand...
That’s funny. I heard about the drone. I should mention that vmix is not too hard. At first we are just not familiar with it. Like everything else, you need a little practice.
 
Emiliano Achaval said:
That’s funny. I heard about the drone. I should mention that vmix is not too hard. At first we are just not familiar with it. Like everything else, you need a little practice.
Click to expand...
The thing here is that as you add more equipment , such as a new USB mic, there are adjustments to be made. The program has some phenomenal possibilities which I learn some more every time I talk to Alan and I do not have near 20 hours but I do appreciate the fact that he is almost always available or will schedule a time to get back together.
This year our whole meeting atmosphere has been transformed using vMix and now two 50 inch TVs. Jimmy Clewes said this was the best meeting he had been to in a long time.
 
Gerald Lawrence said:
The thing here is that as you add more equipment , such as a new USB mic, there are adjustments to be made. The program has some phenomenal possibilities which I learn some more every time I talk to Alan and I do not have near 20 hours but I do appreciate the fact that he is almost always available or will schedule a time to get back together.
This year our whole meeting atmosphere has been transformed using vMix and now two 50 inch TVs. Jimmy Clewes said this was the best meeting he had been to in a long time.
Click to expand...
I finally decided to go for the HD version with unlimited inputs and Vmix call. I had about 16 inputs on my last meeting. 5 cameras, 2 microphones, one video, 2 photo slides, and a whole bunch of different camera combinations, PIP and more. With Vmix call you can bring in the club receiving the demo as an input, so you can record them too. There was no sound, I don't know if that has been fixed or if @AlanZ has found a solution for that. Vmix is an amazing software, you get a lot for what you pay. @Gerald Lawrence what brand splitter did you buy to be able both Tv's at the same time out of your laptop? ALoha from Maui
 
Emiliano Achaval said:
I finally decided to go for the HD version with unlimited inputs and Vmix call. I had about 16 inputs on my last meeting. 5 cameras, 2 microphones, one video, 2 photo slides, and a whole bunch of different camera combinations, PIP and more. With Vmix call you can bring in the club receiving the demo as an input, so you can record them too. There was no sound, I don't know if that has been fixed or if @AlanZ has found a solution for that. Vmix is an amazing software, you get a lot for what you pay. @Gerald Lawrence what brand splitter did you buy to be able both Tv's at the same time out of your laptop? ALoha from Maui
Click to expand...

We did not do a splitter . I got a GE force 1050 card in the computer (PC) and it has three outputs. Had to have an adapter for one as it is a HDMI display port. This allows to sent the display to two tv. The problem was then setting up the display so my desktop was on the monitor and the full screen was on both tv. really minor but time consuming.
 
Dean Center said:
Gerald, can you expand on how your meetings have changed as a result of remote demos? Thanks.
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Sorry it took so long to get back. We cannot at this time do the remote demos due to lack of Ethernet connection. What we have done is use a program called vMix to enable three cameras and one more input at the Basic HD level. For the new meeting place we had to purchase two tvs and that has enhanced our meetings significantly. All this allows PIP video and recording of the demo. Everyone is loving the new setup. Also can get closeup shots to show tool control and approach.
Yesterday we set up three lathes and had three cameras . One camera displayed on one tv and two on the other. This allowed the older members to sit and watch while everyone else gathered round lathes for demo and hands on time.
 
Dean, he
Dean Center said:
Gerald, can you expand on how your meetings have changed as a result of remote demos? Thanks.
Click to expand...

Dean: Our club has hosted 9 remote demo's now and have 3 more already booked. We do one every other month. Our membership loves them! Advantages are numerous. First, we used to blow our entire budget ($2k-$3k) once a year getting someone to a weekend workshop. Now for half that ($200-$300 each) we get to hear 6 different turners and no matter how good you are you learn something from each of them. The exposure to a wide variety of techniques and styles is beneficial to all. Second, scheduling demo's is one of the most difficult tasks for a club, especially smaller clubs like ours. With only 65 members, we only have about 5 or 6 people who have both the technical expertise, are good presenters and like doing it! Now we only have to get 6 local demo's per year instead of 12. Third, even with a live demo, everyone looks at the TV screen anyway! Same with a live remote, and unlike a youtube demo, remote demo's allow for interaction with the demonstrator and that's the advantage. Fourth, there is no cleanup! Just shut off the monitors and go home.

I wrote and article for More Woodturning Magazine last summer. It's written specifically for clubs thinking about this. Remote Demonstrations for clubs. You'll also see my list of current remote demonstrators. Second, I did a quick couple minute video of our club during Cindy Drozda's demo to our club in December. See it here: Central Arkansas Woodturners host Cindy Drozda

I'd be glad to discuss if you want more information
 
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