Last Friday, we installed the brand-new TalkShow  from NewTek. (From what I was told, Microsoft got the first unit and we got the second.)  This is a combination computer/video terminal that allows live broadcast of Skype conversations.

Additionally, it allows queueing of Skype calls so we can instantly switch from one call to the next.

Installation took a couple of hours, plus a long call to Newtek Support, who was very helpful. The one thing I've learned so far is that the box supports 720p and 1080i - both of which are required for broadcast. But it does not support 1080p - which is required for webstreaming.

We are currently planning on running the output of TalkShow into a Blackmagic Design Teranex to provide format and frame rate conversion. 

If you want to see what a TalkShow looks like in real-life, tune into the Digital Production Buzz on Thursday (6 PM PDT) and watch.  We are as interested as you are to see how well this works.

(I'll write a full review of the TalkShow after we get some more experience with it.)

Tom Coughlin is an engineering consultant specializing in storage. Every year, he puts out a new survey asking for comments on how creative folks plan to use storage in the coming year. It's called the "2015 Digital Storage in Media Survey."

Tom writes: "This survey is intended for media and entertainment professionals and is designed to determine the industry's digital storage needs and expectations for the capture and creation of raw content, editing and post production, distribution of content, digital archiving as well as digital conversion and preservation.

"The results of this survey will be used to create the Coughlin Associates report on Digital Storage for Professional Media and Entertainment. A summary of the survey results will be made available to Members of the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE) and other survey participant sources. The survey will stay open until April 30, 2015. 

"For more information on Coughlin Associates go to www.tomcoughlin.com."

If you want to influence the products that get developed, I encourage you to take this survey. It won't take long and all of us benefit:

Link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/5NXY95W

OK, so maybe I'm an overly-proud parent.

But, thanks to Megan Paulos and Brianna Murphy, we've put together a tour of my new offices and studio.

In this movie, we go behind-the-scenes. In the future, we'll be showcasing what this new studio can create.

Watch the video here.

This article was suggested by a question from a reader.

Duncan wanted to know how to pan all the voice-over audio to the left channel, while all the rest of the mix was panned to the right channel.

It isn't hard to do, but it certainly isn't obvious. This article explains how to do it.

There is a very cool set of tools buried deep inside Motion 5 that allow you to use audio to generate on-screen animation.

This is done using Parameter Behaviors.

In this article, I explain what Parameter Behaviors are, where they are located and how to use them to create exciting animation without doing very much work. (By the way, a tip of the hat to Mark Spencer, who first showed me this trick.)

I wrote this article two weeks ago and, for whatever reason, it disappeared into my website without leaving a trace.

So, I want to mention it to you again.

This is a VERY cool and useful technique to apply a one or more effects to a range of clips, yet adjust them from a single setting.

I find myself using this constantly to apply the Broadcast Safe filter or other effects. It is far faster than a compound clip and easier to make changes.

Even if you never create effects, you should read this article; just to learn what's possible.