[Usittne] The annual BBQ

[Karen J Perlow]

Hey Crystal et al
sorry to be one of the previous deadbeats who didn't respond, but I can't make
it regardless of the cool location change.
Dimmer workshop sounds cool
Thanks
& have fun
Karen

Quoting Crystal Tiala <tiala at mindspring.com>:

> Dear members of USITT NE, friends and everyone else on this 
> listserve,  (Don't delete this email, this means you!)
>
> In this email:  need your response on the BBQ and on the Dimmer Basics class.
>
> It is time for the annual BBQ coming up on August 23rd.   The last 
> email I sent about the BBQ did not get much of a response with only 3 
> people saying they could come and 1 person a maybe. (Thanks for 
> responding  to that one John, Keith, Ron and Janice.)   We all 
> discussed at the March meeting that having it at a state park or 
> other open location may be better than at my house.
> I am hoping that if we make this a more fun location that I will get 
> a better response from all of you.
> So below are 4 options for you.  I would like to know if you would be 
> interested in going and which location works best.  (For those in 
> Boston, there may be carpooling options if I know who is going.)
>
> Option 1:
> Cape Light Opera Company in Falmouth on the Cape may have an 
> available lawn.  It is closing night of their last show, A Little 
> Night Music, if you could buy a ticket and see the show that same 
> day.  Its a beautiful area  to be a tourist, however, traffic and 
> distance may be a factor for some of you. It takes about 1 1/2 hours 
> from Boston.
>
> Option 2:
> Darlene Anastas has just purchased the farm she talked about at the 
> last meeting.  It is in Lakeville which is sort of between Boston and 
> Providence, RI.
> She says, " If people will forgive the work in progress then great, 
> come on down.  I also have access to Long Pond for swimming.  Bug 
> spray and sun block are a must.  People would need to bring some form 
> of chair as I have tables but lack chairs.  One of the fields can be 
> lit for night time.  Lots of land to roam, set up games, or sit and 
> relax.  Just a little on the primitive side at the moment.    The 
> farm is  located at 21 Highland Road, Lakeville, MA."
>
> Option 3:
> Cochituate State Park is a beautiful park with swimming, accessible 
> restrooms, kayak and canoe rentals, lots of shaded tables and some 
> open fields.   Beautiful spot and easy to get to in Natick.  
> Drawbacks:  $5/car for parking, no alcohol and may get really crowded 
> on a weekend if the weather is good.  Park Directions
> Cochituate State Park is located in the greater Boston area in 
> eastern Massachusetts.
>> From East or West: Massachusetts Turnpike (Rte. I-90) to exit 13, 
>> Rte. 30 east. Park is on the right.
>
> Option 4:  Same old thing at my house in West Roxbury.
>
> Your choice!  PLEASE RESPOND!
>
> One more thing:
> Limelight has sent information an a possible Basic Class in dimmer 
> and DMX problem solving issues.  (Thanks Bill and Greg for this and 
> sorry my response has been so slow.)
> The outline is below.  Perhaps a workshop sometime during leaf season 
> would be great and we can be leaf peepers as well as get an education.
> I would like to know who is interested in this.  You said you were 
> interested back in March so don't be shy now.
>
> Thank you,
> Your Chair.....
> Crystal
>
> Dimmer Basics 101 (and more)
> 1) Overview of discussion and disclaimer
> 2) Dimmer Evolution
>            A) Variable Power Resistors
>            B) Variable Transformers
>            C) Other Methods
> 3) Safety in the Field
> 4) Ohm’s Law and Power Formula
> 5) Modern basic dimmers and how they work
>            A) Basic components in a dimming circuit and what components do
>                        I) Resistor
>                        II) Capacitor
>                        III) SCR
>                        IV) Triac (& Diac)
>                        V) Choke
>                        VI) Switch
>            B) A look at the typical load (incandescent lamp)
>                        I) Cold filament vs. warm filament
>                        II) Pre-heating
>                        III) The human element of perception
>            C) Circuit Diagrams/Schematics
> 6) Getting more than we asked for
>            A) Radio Frequency Interference (RFI)
>                        I) How does it happens?
>                        II) How is it reduced?
>            B) Power Harmonics
>                        I) Non-linear loads
>                        II) What are Harmonics?
>                        III) Odd harmonics in the neutral
>                        IV) Transformer Problems
> 7) I don’t know the words so I hum
>            A) Where is that buzz coming from?
>                        I) Lamp filaments
>                        II) Chokes
>                        III) Wiring
>            B) Noise in the audio system
>                        I) Use of common mode rejection for low level signals
>                        II) Distance and right angles
>                        III) Isolation Transformers
> 8) Resistance verses Inductance
>            A) How can we tell if our load is inductive?
>            B) What happens to the core (due to non-linear loads)?
>            C) What works better for inductive loads?
>                        I) Fixed series resistor
>                        II) Rheostat
>                        III) Multi-Tap Transformer
>                        IV) Variac
>            D) Special Case: Synchronous Motors
> 9) Let’s Get Advanced
>            A) A look at some Diagrammatics/Schematics
>            B) Simple voltage control
>            C) Let’s add a Comparator
>            D) The Introduction of the SSR
>            E) Dimming curves for your specification
>                        I) Linear
>                        II) Square
>                        III) S Curve
>                        IV) True Power
>                        V) Exponential Ramp
>                        VI) Relay
> 10) Reverse Phase Control
>            A) Theory of Operation
>            B) Review of Triacs and SCRs
>            C) Different components with different features
>                        I) Transistors
>                        II) FETs
>                        III) IGBTs
>                        IV) GTO thyristor
> 11) Digital Dimming
> 12) Power Requirements & Balancing Your Loads
> A) What Type Do I Have?
>                        I) Single Phase
>                        II) 3 Phase
>                        III) How do I measure the Voltage?
>            B) How Much Power Do I Have To Work With?
>                        I) Finding Current Ratings & What They Mean
>                        II) What are YOU going to be drawing?
>                        III) What is the TOTAL load ?
>                        IV) How do I balance the loads?
> 13) Different Control Methods & Protocols
>            A) Voltage control
>            B) Analog
>                        I) AMX 192 (USITT)
>                        II) D54 (Rank Strand)
>            C) Digital
>                        I) PMX (Pulsar) EIA232
>                        II) CMX (Colortran) (Precursor to DMX)
>                        III) SMX (Rank Strand)
>                        IV) MicroPlex (Leprecon)
>                        V) DMX (USITT)
> 14) Troubleshooting
> A) Look at the “BIG PICTURE”
> B) What does work and what doesn’t
>            C) Divide & Conquer
>            D) Only change one thing at a time
>            E) Is the part bad?
>            F) Self fix or “Qualified Field Service Technician”
>            G) Common failures and what to look for
> 15) Hands on – You find the problem
>            A) SAFETY FIRST
>            B) Basic Tools
>            C) Replacing parts
>            D) Testing
> 16) Review
>
> Crystal Tiala
> tiala at mindspring.com
> EarthLink Revolves Around You.