Remote Controls

• A remote control either sends out an infra-red signal (an invisible light wave that needs a line of sight between the remote and the device) or radio waves (a sound humans cannot hear).

• Waves of different sizes and patterns set off a range of specific instructions.  It is very simple technology that is simple and cheap to replicate.  Remotes that are either programmed or ‘listen’ to the original remote are very easy to set up.
• Media rooms in schools will have remotes for data projectors, motorized screens, air conditioning, the sound system and maybe even curtains.  In my last job, there was a dedicated person in each building to guard the remotes.  On paper, it looked reasonable.  The person was supposed to be available to run down with a remote, or be there five minutes before a presentation to set things up.  And of course the dedicated person never answered their phone and could never be found, so thirty people ended up looking at my laptop screen. 
• The incredibly expensive electronics all around us always went to waste, so my organization had training sessions for people to learn how to set up the electronics and the many highly complex remote controls (have you noticed that DVD players / TVs etc have hardly any buttons anymore on the device and most of them on the remote?)  This failed miserably also, because it meant the remote controls were now left in the room but chained to furniture (a really nice look for international visitors) so were available for anyone with half a brain to try to get the equipment working.  With at least 50 buttons on each remote, all with wonderfully ambiguous symbols, you never knew exactly what needed to be pointed at what.  So the everyday user ended up pressing every button in enough random patterns for a few minutes, which meant at least one piece of electronics was bound to have its permanent settings changed and therefore remain unusable for the whole presentation.  And since the data projector was on the ceiling, we had to wait until someone with enough OH&S training to come in with a cherry picker and reset it.  Or do what I did, which was shutting all of the doors, standing on the board room tables and poking the projector with a long stick that I stole from the next room. 
• So a good alternative is to buy every regular user a $5 remote control, program it for the only functions that are necessary to perform the most basic operations, and hide the original remote controls in a safe place.   Or set up the simple remote and chain it to the wall. 
• There are some great remote controls that can actually perform patterns of functions with different machines.  I saw one of these professionally installed in a media room once in a high school.  Press one button for movie mode, which would start the DVD, sound system, projector, close the curtains and start the air conditioning.  Press another button for the presentation mode, and the projector would switch to the laptop connection, the microphone on the lectern would turn on, a spotlight would come on for the speaker and the lights would dim but continue providing ambient light to the audience.   There was also a video conference mode, that would switch on the camera pointed at the whole room and activate the room microphones, and a theater mode, which was used for student plays and awards, with the microphones only above the stage activating.
• It all looked wonderful and expensive.  You can get remotes that will do all of these things for you with programmable buttons at your local electronic store, for about $900.  One of my friends bought once for his home, and he had his media computer, cable TV and all sorts of nerdy things connected.
• But you can do it cheaply with imported remotes.  Faster set up times mean less chances for students to get off-task.  Moving students from one room to another is always a perfect opportunity for misbehavior.  And equipment that never works is a great way to distract you for at least ten minutes. The students that aren’t starting a fight will be offering their support all at the same time, while you juggle five remotes.  Then everything works, except for one thing with bad batteries.  Well, you think it’s bad batteries, but it when you found good batteries and placed them in the remote, it still didn't work. Sounds like heaven to me.

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• Remote controls