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Touch Panel Classrooms

This guide covers classrooms with a color touch screen at the instructor station. Rooms vary — some have one projector, some have two or three projectors or LCD displays, and the source buttons differ slightly — but every touch panel room works the same way: wake the screen, pick a source, pick a display.

Start the system

  1. If the screen is dark or shows the college logo, touch anywhere on the screen to wake it and open the main control page.
  2. If the displays are still powering up, you'll see a System Starting screen with a progress bar. When the bar fills, the system is ready. Projectors can take a minute or two to warm up.

Pick a source

The buttons down the left side of the screen are your sources. Exact buttons vary by room, but typically include:

  • Instructor PC (sometimes labeled INST PC, Computer or iMac) — the computer built into the station. Make sure it is powered on.
  • Laptop — your own device. After pressing Laptop, choose the connection you plugged into (HDMI or VGA). Make sure your laptop is set to output to an external display, and if you're using VGA, connect the audio cable to your headphone jack.
  • Doc Cam — the document camera. Extend the camera arm and press its power button before selecting it on the panel.
  • Blu-Ray — the disc player (plays standard DVDs as well). Selecting it brings up on-screen playback controls.

Some rooms have additional sources such as AirMedia (wireless projection), Cable TV, a CD player or an auxiliary video input. Separate written instructions are provided in rooms with AirMedia.

Pick a display

After selecting a source, tell the system where to show it:

  • Touch one of the display buttons along the top of the screen (for example Left Proj, Center Proj, Right Proj, or the LCD buttons). Displays turn on automatically when selected. Repeat with another source to set up other displays.
  • Or touch Send To All at the bottom to send your source to every display in the room.
  • Touch Audio Only to send just the sound of your source to the speakers, with nothing on screen.

In some rooms (for example the 5001–5015 range at Foothill), you'll first choose a window layout — single image, or dual image with two sources side by side — and then assign a source to each window.

Volume and microphones

  • Use the Volume arrows on the right side to adjust the room speakers, and Mute to silence them.
  • If your laptop is the source, also check the laptop's own volume.
  • Rooms with a wireless or podium microphone have a Mic (or Mics) button that opens the microphone volume and mute controls.

Blank the screen temporarily

Touch Display Mute or Projector Mute to blank the image while the system stays on — useful during a quiz or discussion. Touch it again to bring the image back.

Muting is not the same as turning off. Display or projector mute only hides the image — the projector lamp is still running. When class is over, turn the system off as described below.

Turn the system off when you leave

  1. Touch Power in the top right corner.
  2. Touch System Off (some rooms ask you to confirm with Yes).

Turning the system off protects the projector lamps and saves energy. Please turn the system off at the end of class.

Need help?

The Help button on the panel shows a summary of these steps. In case of hardware failure, call the ETS Call Center at (408) 864-8324 (x8324) — see Multimedia classroom support for the emergency options, and always leave a callback number.