A2Z HUD camera system

One of the issues identified during classes last year was the problem of my being in multiple places inworld and in real life simultaneously. There is no easy solution for that except to get expert assistance for one or other function and to let things take their course, i.e. let students work out their own problems collectively and independantly in the first instance.

As I am stressing the use of SL for team-working, I intend organising students into groups and bringing them inworld to their appropriate group base using SLURLs. Each base will have its own orientation and work area and is hence quite large. The areas need to be kept separate to avoid text chat overlap so moving my avatar around would be time-consuming and remove me from circulation.

An alternative is to use something like the A2Z Labs HUD Camera System. This allows you to position cameras in multiple locations and monitor them from a central location. The cameras allow you to see, chat and listen to the students next to the selected camera. The system can also list the names of the students at each location and teleport your avatar there if required. None of this goes beyond the bounds of what SL does "out of the box" with a little scripting but L$999 provides a lot of convenience for those not wanting a customised solution.

The box contains a single HUD. This rezzes the cameras as well as controlling their operations. I was a little perplexed at the absence of documentation initially but there is a nice HUD help overlay (above) that got me started until such time as I found the documentation in the tools menu. You also need to enable Disable Camera Constraints on the SL Advanced menu and, if possible, crank up the draw distance under Preferences.

To date the system has worked very nicely. The main limitation has been the draw distance so that not everything rezzes in all locations. Occasionally the system failed to respond initially when the avatar camera was detached before the system started. You also need to remember to switch the system off before moving your avatar. The documentation warns that your chat can carry 50 m -- I assume this refers to the 20 m talk distance applied in a notional sphere around the camera. On that basis it might be better to go for vertical overhead views to avoid inadvertent chat leakage to other groups. The 20 m issue, of course, is the stimulus for platform-based solutions such as Deckah's Decks.

I'm a little uneasy about using such quasi-surveillance cameras as I don't want to inhibit the students. CamSync is more overt but less readily used, I suspect, with a large inexperienced group. It would be nice if there was a "summon the teacher" option though that should be easy enough to implement. Does this mean I will be more inworld and less available in the lab? We shall see...