AV - Learning Commons Technology: Active Learning Classrooms (ALCs)

These instructions are pertinent for the following rooms in Grainger Hall: 2210M, 2210N, 2210R, 2210S, & 2210U. Otherwise known as the ALCs. These rooms are most often used in their combined configurations, making them 2210MN, and 2210RS. 2210U is a standalone room and does not combine with another room.

These rooms, unlike all other classrooms in Grainger Hall, do not have a podium computer present. As such, some kind of mobile device is required for sharing content on the in room displays. Instead of a projection screen, the rooms have multiple wall mounted monitors, two per room, so four when two rooms are combined. These monitors can be connected to either with an HDMI cable and the appropriate adapter at one of the rooms wall plates, or wirelessly using an application called "Mersive Solstice". There is one wall plate per display, and they are located directly beneath the displays. How to use either of these options will be explained further below. 

About the Control Panel:

The wall mounted control panel will allow you to send your content from your device to the displays in the room. Either one, two, or all four of the displays can be played at any one time. The steps below will guide you on how to do this. 

The control panel interface has three pages: the normal Standby page, Combine the Rooms? page, and the Input page.

Operating the Control Panel:

1. If the panel is displaying the WSB logo in a red background it is in standby mode. To wake it up, you need to touch the screen.
2. The panel wakes up and display’s the question as to whether or not you want to combine or separate the rooms.
3. If you are scheduled for 2210MN or 2210RS, you'll want to press the option to combine. If you are scheduled for only 2210M, 2210N, 2210R, or 2210S, you'll want to select No Separated. Which to pick will also be made more obvious by whether or not the wall to seperate the sides of the room has been put in place.
   1. In the bottom right will be the cancel button. If you touch it, the control panel will go back to sleep mode with the WSB logo displayed on a red background. To use the room you'll need to select either of the other two options.
   2. If you select “Yes Combine”, you will be able to control what is displayed on all four wall displays in the room from either of the two AV control panels.
   3. If you separate the rooms, by clicking “No Separated”, you will be able to control only the two monitors closest to the AV control panel. The other two displays can be controlled separately from their own control panel in the same way.
4. Now on the input page, you can choose what you'd actually like to display.

Input Page:

1. Under “Input Mode” you have the options of Single Displays, All Displays, and Video Mute.
   1. “Single Displays” will give you two options, Wall Plate, or Wireless Video. Selecting Single Displays -> Wall Plate will mean every individual HDMI wall plate will be projected to the display it is directly beneath. As such, you will need 2 or more HDMI cables to properly utilize this option. Similarly, Single Displays -> Wireless Video, will make each monitor its own wireless connection option. This is most useful for the purpose of collaboration or students sharing their work with the class/instructor.
   2. “All Displays” also allows you to choose between Wall Plates and Wireless Video, but this mode is meant for instructors who will primarily be lecturing, and do not need the possible collaboration aspect of the Display Displays option. Pressing All Displays -> Wall Plate, will project any single wall plate you plug your laptop into via HDMI to all 2 or 4 monitors depending on if the room is combined. Similarly, All Displays -> Wireless Video, will replicate one wireless connection across all 2 or 4 displays. Both of these options would allow someone using the room to display their single device across all available displays.
      1. The Learning Commons Front Desk on the 2nd floor has HDMI cables if you do not have your own, and require one.
   3. “Video Mute” will fully black out the displays so that viewers cannot see what is on your computer screen. While turned on, it will highlight yellow. You will need to press Video Mute again to turn it off.
2. Finally, there is the volume slider at the far right that you can use to increase or decrease the volume of whatever input you have selected by moving the slider up or down.

Mersive Solstice

Once you've selected either All Displays -> Wireless Video or Single Displays -> Wireless Video, something like this will appear on all of the displays in the room.

This is the Main Mersive Solstice page. In the top left is the device name, beneath it is the rotating 4 digit pin which will be important later. In the top right hand corner will be a string of numbers, connect to UW Net Wifi, open up your preferred browser, and plug those numbers in your address bar. Once you've done so, you'll be greeted by a web page like the one below. 

Click "Get the App" and you will automatically download the most compatible version of the Mersive Solstice App to your computer. Install that application.

Once it's done installing, you can open the application and get to the main connection page. In the "Quick Connect" search bar at the top, once again type in that string of numbers. Once you hit enter, you'll be asked for a PIN, this is the PIN I mentioned earlier that lives in the top left of the Main Mersive Solstice screen, underneath the device name. When you are asked for this PIN, it will increase in size on the display. Enter that PIN and you'll be connected and ready to go.

Make sure to disconnect from the Solstice before you leave, otherwise you may unintentionally stay connected to it for some time after leaving the room.