Individual Playback

The IMC’s Playback Room is open for anyone to use - from faculty on down to undergraduates (with no restrictions - they don’t need your permission). It is a large room with 16 carrels equipped for viewing media. Each carrel has equipment installed in it. Twelve have Mini-DV/DVCAM VCRs and 4 have Mini-DV/VHS dual VCRs in them and all carrels have DVD players in them. All carrels also receive the UT Cable TV Channels. To use the equipment in any of these carrels, just come in, go to a carrel, and get started. Please let us know if you need any help.

Simultaneous Multi-student Playback

All 16 carrels receive 6 different signals from 6 remotely controlled VHS VCRs in the control room next door. Each of those VCRs is controlled by one of 6 different remote controls and viewed on one of 6 different TV channels. Thus, you can watch one of the 6 different channels or all of the 16 carrels can watch the same thing simply by tuning the TV monitors to the same channel. This is especially useful if you have a lot of students who have to watch the same tape by a deadline.

We simply put the video in the VCR, give the student the channel’s remote control, and they go in the playback room to watch the tape (using headphones of course). They can also just ask to view one of the channels which is already playing a video and tune their monitor to the channel they want.

[Note - The carrels in this room are A GOOD PLACE TO GIVE STUDENTS AN EXAM.]

Putting Media on Reserve

We also have an area set aside in the archive for faculty and graduate students to leave audio cassettes, video cassettes, or DVDs (or copies of them) ON RESERVE for students (usually undergraduates) to use in the playback room. All they need to do is come to us and request the tape by name and we play it in the playback room for them.

Be sure they know the name of the tape they need.

To leave tapes on reserve, simply fill out a Reserve Tape Label Info form (available as a PDF file).

Small, Semi-private Playback Room

The IMC's main playback room can be used by anyone in the College, with no restrictions, but this small playback room is available only for faculty, graduate students and staff. Undergraduates can only use the small playback room with the direct permission of a faculty member or graduate student.

This small room-within-a-room can be reserved for two people to view and discuss media without using headphones. It has DVD player and VHS/SVHS, mini-DV,Hi-8, and Betacam SP VCRs for you to use.

To use it you must first make a reservation. Ask at the IMC front desk. Please only reserve it for as long as you will need it, so that it is available for as many people as possible each day.