"Foldback" on the cheap

[TimW]

I'm trying to come up with a cheap solution to a "foldback" display for the praise team. Using Easy Worship 2009. No budget for the normal way of handling foldback.

One thing I can do is place a laptop computer on the first pew facing the praise team (easily visible to them). There can be no cables or wires coming from it.

Any ideas on displaying what I'm sending to the projector on the screen of this laptop via wifi?

Thanks.

[MediaGuy]

If it's feasible (no budget can be interpreted different ways), it would be much better (and less maintenance or operator intensive) to get an old VGA-TV converter, radio-shack wireless AV system (<$100, I can't remember) and an old TV... come off the projector with the transmitter, right down to the TV ...except you've got to have power - nuts. I tried.

Getting the same screen on the laptop vs the projector is actually more expensive than what I mentioned above. but a laptop screen seems incredibly small for your application, anyway.

[Gracetech]

You can run VNC to the laptop from your projection computer and display the correct screen on the laptop. The refresh will be a bit slow but outside of that it should be good. When i say slow refresh it really only affects video playback.

crt

[petereit]

Originally Posted by TimW

No budget for the normal way of handling foldback

Well, how about thinking a bit outside of the budget box?

• Who wants the foldback display? (Answer: choir.)
• Does anyone in the choir have a cheap secondary graphics card sitting in a box at home (or at work? or in an unused PC?)
• If not, how much does it cost for a cheap secondary graphics card for the EasyWorship PC?
• Does anyone in the choir have a cheap CRT monitor sitting unused at home (or at work?)
• If not, how much would it cost to buy one (answer: $10 at a garage sale)
• How much would it cost for a VGA cable long enough to reach?
• How many in the choir would be willing to skip a lunch (or Starbucks) once or twice and contribute the money to the foldback display project?

If you can get through that whole list and you still don't have the resources you need for a foldback display, then the choir doesn't want one bad enough for you to be worrying about it.

[tedanderson]

Sometimes requests like that make me feel like this guy:



Overall your situation falls into the "Cheap-Safe-Functional" principle where you can only choose 2 of those qualities but you can't have all 3. Also, I'm thinking that if you displayed it on a laptop, would it be large enough for everyone on the stage to see it?




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[TimW]

Thanks to all for kicking this around. I think we're going to table this for now.

Our front pew is only a few feet from where the praise team stands, but having any sort of monitor there for them means they would be looking down, rather than at the congregation.