AccessGrid at Indiana University

A personal AccessGrid node. Display, camera, microphone and speakers. AccessGrid runs on both Linux and Windows. Camera, microphone and speakers shown are available as a set for approximately $500.

To quote the AccessGrid site, "The Access Grid supports group-to-group communication via high-speed networking over the Web. It provides high quality audio and real-time video to provide interactive experiences for users at multiple sites. All the hardware featured is off the shelf and readily available at a reasonable cost so that you can successfully set up your own Access Grid Node site."

The AccessGrid was developed at Argonne National Labs. The AccessGrid website http://www.accessgrid.org/ has the software (freely downloadable) and information on how to set up your own AccessGrid node.

AccessGrid software relies on good multicast communication between end-points (known as 'nodes') and high-bandwidth. To help visualize how well multicast is working between network nodes, a 'beacon' can be used. The NLANR beacon site http://beacon.dast.nlanr.net/ is the one that we use.

AccessGrid nodes can be of any size, from personal nodes (nicknamed 'pigs' for Personal Grid nodes) that require little more than a desktop PC with a camera and a microphone*, to room-filling environments with large screen and audio facilities. For users just wishing to receive AccessGrid 'presentations', the camera and microphone can be ommited and any desktop computer can be used.

Approximate cost for a personal node (as shown in the picture) is $500, for a camera, echo cancelling* microphone and speakers. This of course in addition to a regular desktop or laptop computer.

As well as audio and video for an AccessGrid meeting, it is possible for the particpants to use certain applications at the same time with common data. These are known as shared applications. Examples of such shared applications that are available for AccessGrid, and that we have available in the IRI are:

• Shared Presentation - Microsoft Powerpoint presentations/slides. One participant is the 'master' and loads the presentation to the venue, other participants merely open the shared application and see the same presentation
• Shared Browser - A web-browser that shares the navigation of web-sites, so all participants see the same pages at the same time.
• Shared Movie Player - Typically Windows Media Player to play MPEGs and AVIs simultaneously for all participants. In the same way as the presentation, one participant loads the movie and everyone will see it play when one participants starts the movie.
• Shared Question / Answer tool - A simple tool that allows a presenter to receive questions in written form from participants without the need for them to say anything, creating a more formal atmosphere.

To have AccessGrid meetings, users connect to what are called 'venues'. These venues are virtual 'rooms', identified by a URL the same as any web-page and are maintained on Venue Servers. Users that connect to the same room or venue can talk and see each other in real-time, enabling discussion and presentation. To aid in presentations it is possible for users to share a PowerPoint presentation and also a web-browser session, so the head of the conference can change slides or web-pages and the ir changes/inputs are automatically reflected on the computers of users in the conference, regardless of where they are physically located in the world.

Indiana University hosts a Venue Server, and any number of rooms can be created on it. This means any group of people at Indiana University and around the world can get together, virtually speaking, for colaborative meetings.

It is possible to record meetings using a tool developed here at IU called AGVCR. AGVCR is a recording and playback tool designed to work with the AccessGrid and record the audio and video of a conference in a way that is easily played back at a later time. Users can make their own recordings and put those recordings on a CD/DVD to hand to someone else to watch, without the other person even needing to install any software on the machine they view it on.

AGVCR features

• Simple, easy-to-use interface with DVD or VCR-like operations (forward, skip, rewind, slow-mo, time-search)
• Single program executable (supporting GTK libraries needed, can be stand-alone)
• Record and play back to multicast or unicast network addresses
• Editing of files - make new files out of sections of another, i.e. dubbing.
• Participant list - see who was in a conference and filter recording, playing or editing down to each individual RTP source.
• Encryption - record secure venues and play back to them
• File compatibility between all platforms (Linux, Windows, Mac OS X). Record on one, play on all.
• Can be run without installation, from CD/DVD (using the standalone run-time support files).
• Telnet capable interface, for possible remote/server usage.
• Timer-recording/playback for unattended operation once configured.
• Integration with AccessGrid Venue Client via AGVCR Launcher.
• Windows installer and Mac .app bundle for easy deployment

The main AccessGrid node in the IRI

Document camera and PC VGA output scan converter

Facilities we have in the IRI for AccessGrid meetings include:

• AccessGrid node that uses 4 LCD projectors, to back-project on a 5' x 6.5' screen. Two stereo speakers flank the screen for sound output. An echo cancelling* microphone is used on the conference table to capture conversation from the group or presenter. Seating for 12.
• Document camera for quickly sharing small printed items over an AccessGrid meeting.
• Scan-conversion device for VGA output to video stream suitable for broadcast over AccessGrid. i.e. a computer's output can be displayed over the AccessGrid.

You can reserve time on this AccessGrid node here.

For more information about the AccessGrid, demonstrations of its uses and for discussions on cost and installations, please contact Derek Piper or at 812 856 0111.

An echo cancelling conference microphone, approximately $600

Echo cancelling microphones are important in order to use the AccessGrid effectively since there exists the possbility of feedback from the proximity of the speakers to microphones. Echo-cancellation uses some electronics to remove the sound coming out of the speakers from any sound that is being captured from the microphone, the result the local voices we want to transmit. The only down-side to these microphones is cost, typically many times more than a standard microphone.