Troubleshooting Christie Roadster 18K Projectors

I was setting up a Christie 18K projector yesterday, and encountered a fixable error in the field and wanted to share my troubleshooting process.

While aligning internally generated test patterns, the image began to flicker from White to Cyan then blanking the image intermittently.  The image then went black, and I received this error:

"TI Engine Com Err, Attempting to Comple"

I did a complete power down, disconnect and reboot, a couple of times, and still got the same error message.  I called up the Christie Tech support, and got some advice on troubleshooting the issue(Thanks John!).  He provided me with an internal troubleshooting pdf, and I got to work cracking the projector open.  

FYI, you must remove any eye-bolts or the 3-point mounting hardware on the top of the projector before removing the top lid.  Unscrew the 6 screws on the top of the case with a phillips head screwdriver.  You only need to do a quarter turn of these screws, and they stay attached to the lid(don't try to screw them all the way out!).

Now that you are inside the unit the fun begins.  Look for any loose cables or any strain that may be affecting connections.  I found a couple suspect connectors and did my best to make sure they were properly seated.  I powered it back up and everything came back to normal working order.

You can download the specific Christie-Lamp-Technology-Mercury-vs-Xenon-Technical-Guide.pdf here:

https://mega.co.nz/#!6Q4BkJQC!kYBBvRoywWGpt74DkVa4_fDtwJmbp2rIEzdmpAwfguE

Of particular interest for this problem, look to diagrams on page 23 and 47.

SoundFlower - The Missing OSX Audio App you always needed.

I cannot sing their praises enough.  SoundFlower is a fantastic OSX app, and for the AV/VJ community, it is an absolute necessity.

It allows you to pass audio output. back into the internal audio mix with 64 internal virtual channels.  

Soundflower is a Mac OS X kernel extension that enables audio to be passed between applications. It acts as a virtual audio device, with both inputs and outputs. With it, any audio application can send and receive audio.

Initial support for the development and maintenance of Soundflower was provided by Cycling '74. Stewardship has now been passed to Rogue Amoeba, and we're providing hosting of the latest version.

Soundflower is an open source project. Code for the Soundflower project is now hosted on GitHub.

Download Soundflower

Let me know how you use it!

4K VS. UHD - My Two Cents

I routinely see people recommending 4K(4096x2160) over UHD (3840x2160) without any and justification other than the slightly larger horizontal resolution.  Unfortunately this introduces another new aspect ratio to support, and I would maintain that supporting the new aspect ratio will require equipment investment at an unnecessary cost.

While it depends on the purpose, for compatibility's sake, 3840x2160p is a common 16:9(1.77:1) aspect-ratio standard and really should be the spec(Digital Cinema people excepted). Current HD resolutions down-scale(1920x1080 and 1280x720) uniformly due to the harmonic pixel sampling of the conversion. Coming from 4096, you have to squish it to fit on 16:9 playback, and now all your circles are ovals. If you are going to project your images, getting custom screens that are 1.89:1 are going to be a bitch, as 16:9 screens are the de-facto standard for manufacturers(Fast Fold/Stumpfl). If its for mapping or going to a 4096(1.89:1) destination, sure, but you loose all compatibility with the already existing 16:9 format infrastructure for current output devices. Until people start adopting the new wider-screen format, your nice 4096 content will have to be non-optimally downscaled and letterboxed.

Stick to 16:9 and save yourself the headache.

Image via MadCatz

Python Scripts for Troubleshooting Video System Networks

I've decided to share a couple of the Python scripts I've written that I use when video engineering in case any of your could find them useful.

1.  SubnetScanner - This script allows you to scan all the available IPs within a subnet(255.255.255.x) to see which IPs are alive and active on a particular subnet.  Defaults to 192.168.0.x

2. Quality of service - I use this script to troubleshoot network communication issues.  It pings an IP server continually at a set duration helping your to find hunt down intermittent signals.  I then stress test the cables and physical connectors to see if I can introduce a loss of signal.

Let me know if you would like to contribute or if you'd like to see any specific features implemented.

Generating Vector Graphics using Chemical Reaction-Diffusion Systems

Test of using Chemical Reaction-Diffusion Systems to generate vector art(in this case the ShowBlender logo) via chemical synthesis.

Quartz: Kineme Plugin bug in OSX Yosemite 10.10 FIXED!

Found this update the other day on a forum, and chased down the New Plugin.

"Kineme Data Tools on OS 10.10 Yosemite requires a updated version of the Plug-In. Matti Niinimäki has compiled a working version of the Plug-In available here > http://mansteri.com/download/code/DataTools.zip   "  

Via the Facebook Quartz Composer Group.

Mirror Link

B-Roll - Moon over Golden Gate Bridge at Sunrise - 4K GoPro

Caught this footage during Sunrise on a clear morning on the San Francisco Bay.  
Shot on a GoPro 4K, compressed with .h264.

You can download a copy from Archive.org, but be warned, 4k files are pretty hefty(even with the h.264, a 5 minute clip is 5 GB).

Contact Us for Licensing!

Video Toys: Kal-EYE-doscope strange live video renderings

I made a very strange thing today.

4K Go-Pro Test Footage - Alcatraz

Beautiful day in San Francisco on the Bay. Taking a moment to look at Alcatraz on a sunny day was quite a treat.  Testing out the new 4K Go Pro setup.  Thought you guys might want to see some real-world 4k GoPro footage to test with. Cheers! 
You can find a 1080p version on Youtube, or you download the giant 4.9GB Pro-Res 422 file via Archive.org or bittorrent.  

Technical Details - Full 4K 3840x2160@30fps ProRes422

IATSE Local 16 - Stewards Report Macro is Now Open Source!

ShowBlender is proud to announce that we've open-sourced our IATSE Local 16 Stewards Report Macro.   Developed for use by IATSE Local 16 Job Stewards, this excel spreadsheet will ingest Job Report PDFs, and populate a useable excel Stewards Reports for inputting worker’s hours.  

Download Excel sheet(.xlsm)  from Github .  Download Instructions Here.

Source Available at:

https://github.com/SerialForBreakfast/IATSE-Local16-StewardsReportMacro

Technical Specs:

Windows-Only Macro-Enabled Excel Spreadsheet with VBScript to parse PDF data via Adobe Acrobat Reader.

Originally Developed by Joe McCraw of ShowBlender LLC. 

Website:  Http://www.ShowBlender.com/

e-mail:  joe@showblender.com

Feel free to update and improve upon this software.  

Offered, in good faith, as Open Source Software, to my Brothers and Sisters of IATSE Local 16.

In Solidarity,

Joe

Download link

Instructions

Particle Flocking Test Render - Live

Using Cinder to Live-Render a 2D Particle System.  Particle Vector direction is indicated by the particle 'tail.'  Particles repel from one another, while being drawn into a semi-stable gravitational oscillation.

Reaction Diffusion Test Render 2

Quasi-Particles in a Three-Dimensional Three-Component Reaction-Diffusion System

C. P. Schenk, A. W. Liehr, M. Bode, and H.-G. Purwins

http://www.uni-muenster.de/Physik.AP/Purwins/RD/Literatur/hlrs1999.pdf

I love the look and feel of this reaction diffusion system.  Would be perfect for a Scientific conference visuals!  

Contact us for more info!

BestPatterns - A Cross-Platform Open Source Test Pattern Generator

BestPatterns - A Cross-Platform Open-Source Test Pattern Generator for use in A/V setups. The goal is to create a flexible tool that allows a A/V operator to quickly verify signal quality, resolution/scaling, and aspect ratio.

Current Features:  Full-Screen Raster, Live Pixel Count(H/V), Grids, Circle, and RGB.

Next Features I'm going to add are Convergence, Gradients, Grey Steps, Phase, EDID Info, add ControlP5 library for UI.

Let me know of any features you'd like to have added.

Built using Processing. hosted on Github feel free to contribute!

Here is a link to the current Processing Sketch.

I want to verify the Exported binaries on a couple of systems before they are released publicly.

E2 - Event Master Toolset Software Available now!

On 12/4/14 Barco silently released the GUI software for the Encore 2.  The Event Master Toolset is used in the setup and operation of the soon to be released sequel to the Encore line of switchers.  Supporting 4K with 28 inputs and 14 outputs (eight PGM, two Multi-viewer and four scaled AUXs), the E2 is going to play a crucial role in the future of Live Event Visuals

You can find a link to the Windows-Only Binaries from the Barco FTP site here:

ftp://ftp.folsom.com/Image%20Processing/E2/Event%20Master%20Toolset/Beta/Event%20Master%20Toolset%20Rev%20120414%20Setup.exe

Mirror Here:

https://mega.co.nz/#!yA4S1RZS!eBr6EaC_JfdiWxQMhibT8nWTdcVZMywxPY8htvjG47U

Let us know about your experience with the program.  It's sure to have some quirks.

Have fun!

Proof of Concept: Chemical Reaction-Diffusion Systems

First Proof of Concept - Belousov–Zhabotinsky

I'm interested in novel ways to create and interact with visuals.  Nature produces an astonishing array of designs and patterns.  We hope to explore the possibilities of incorporating real-world phenomena as sources of Motion Graphics.  I've been working with some Chemical Reaction-Diffusion Systems recently. I found a Auto-catalytic Self-oscillating 'chemical clock' known as the Belousov–Zhabotinsky reaction which ended up making some interesting patterns.

First in a series of investigations into using reaction-diffusion systems as seeds for live event visuals.

Live 3D Transformation Using Realtime Data from WiiMote Via Bluetooth

Here is the first proof of concept for interfacing our Procedural Generations Motion Graphics software with the WiiMote.  

Works pretty well so far.  There is a balance between data sensitivity and aesthetics which turned out to be the real challenge in this experiment.  This iteration of the software smoothed the output from the WiiMote which makes the video look a lot better, but decreases the latency a tad.  

The Singing Comet

But one observation has taken the RPC scientists somewhat by surprise. The comet seems to be emitting a ‘song’ in the form of oscillations in the magnetic field in the comet’s environment. It is being sung at 40-50 millihertz, far below human hearing, which typically picks up sound between 20 Hz and 20 kHz. To make the music audible to the human ear, the frequencies have been increased by a factor of about 10,000.  

The music was heard clearly by the magnetometer experiment (RPC-Mag) for the first time in August, when Rosetta drew to within 100 km of 67P/C-G. The scientists think it must be produced in some way by the activity of the comet, as it releases neutral particles into space where they become electrically charged due to a process called ionisation. But the precise physical mechanism behind the oscillations remains a mystery.

ESA

As if you were not sufficiently astonished by us landing a spacecraft on a comet hurtling through space, it turns out that the comet is singing us a song!

As a test of ShowBlender's Audio Visualization tools, I ran the Comet's Song through a audio responsive kaleidoscopic motion graphics iterator of a photo of the comet.  It has some great looking textures, and makes some fun pareidolia(A Dragons head, faces etc).  

-Youtube

Something neat to see while you listen to the cosmic rhythms!  

You can download a copy of the OSX application to play with!

ShowBlender-ACometsSong.zip

Mach Banding Illusions and our Visual Perception of Gradients

Have you ever noticed the appearance of an extra bright area at the edge of a gradient, or a darker looking area at the border between shapes of differing brightness?

Take a look at this video:

Mach Banding Illusions demonstrate some interesting aspects of how our visual systems process information.  We often describe the eye like a camera, and in certain ways, it is an accurate model.  Unfortunately our visual system is not a camera, and we don't always interpret light in direct accordance with photon reception.  This demonstration will show the effects Mach Banding, and the process of Lateral Inhibition which induces the phenomenon.  Gradients like the one in the example don't occur naturally in nature.  Gradient detection in the real-world likely evolves from our visual system attempting to use lighting gradients as indicators of an object's depth/shape.   We use software to induce and enhance the Mach Banding effect for easier identification.

This process has a bigger impact than one may first imagine.  In the Healthcare Industry, for example, Mach Banding can create false positives in medical imaging/diagnostics due to incorrectly perceived levels brightness in gradients.  Lives have been lost due to incorrect analysis/interpretations of perceived highlighting, increasing the contrast and sharpness of gradient edges, introduced by gradient Mach Banding.  With appropriate knowledge of Mach Banding, healthcare professionals can avoid misdiagnosis by referencing the original image through waveform, vectorscopes, or histogram monitoring to ensure that the perceived brightness accurately reflects actual image brightness.

• How do you think that graphic design could be used to emphasize this visual effect?  
• Can Mach Banding be used to emphasize/accent 3d modeling/shading?
• Could you imaging using projection mapping gradients to accentuate or de-accentuate form details/edges?

You can Find a link to the OSX Mach Banding Simulation Application we made here:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/pwieclnlqykvkjn/MachBanding.zip?dl=0

1.  Download, extract, and run the app(it looks best in Fullscreen due to color sampling/scaling).

Bonus Easter Egg:  You can press 'h' in order to view a histogram of the rendered image which shows the luminance of the image live, in real-time.

Further Reading:

Salience of Mach bands as a function of the relative linearity of the luminance gradient stimulus.   http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC21849/figure/F2/

Procedural Generations - 3 Display Audio Response Test

Demonstration Machine Specs:  MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Mid 2014), 2.6 GHz Intel Core i5, 8 GB 1600 MHz DDR3, Intel Iris 1536 MB.

This is the first test of incorporating audio responsive elements(in this case via the mic input) to the Procedural Generations Native-OSX Application Product Line.   As audio input volume fluctuates, our software responds visually, in this case by modulating certain aspects of our motion graphics in compelling ways.  We have the ability to isolate Low-Medium-High frequencies separately to create visual compositions that reflect the acoustic dynamics of live audio inputs.

In this case, all three displays driven by a single i5 Retina Macbook using 3 different instances of Procedural Generations software.  2 External 1080P displays(via HDMI and Thunderbolt->HDMI), as well as the internal Retina 2560x1600 monitor, a staggering 8-Megapixel(8243200!) @60FPS! 

Live Audio Visualizers have a wide variety of live event applications.  We will develop efficient(native OSX applications) motion graphics applications for your specific live event.  

For example, we can work with your talent, to create an interface with their:

• drum machines(via MIDI and TouchOSC)
• lighting commands(via DMX or ArtNet)
• using network commands over ethernet(Non-blocking/Event Driven).

Future improvements(currently in development) include Audio Input routing(improving latency, sensitivity, and accuracy), and integration with MIDI, and TouchOSC events.

Let us know what you think!

Cellular Automata Test

Proof of Concept, Using Conway's Game of Life to generate or de-generate shapes, in this case ShowBlender.

Does anyone have experience with Reverse Cellular Automata, or, more practically, generating stable patterns(Still lifes/Oscillators/Spaceships/Garden Of Eden) using Conway's Game of Life or other cellular automata techniques(Critters/Highlander/Block cellular automaton is a better option)? Any math majors understand Curtis–Hedlund–Lyndon Theory enough to explain it to me?