James King and Steve Greenblatt welcome back Craig Underwood, Director of AV Engineering at Moravian University, to discuss his experience working with, learning, implementing, and supporting multiple control platforms within his campus. Craig Underwood can be found on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/caunderwood/ or as an instructor at Lebanon…

James King and Steve Greenblatt welcome Guest Craig Underwood, Director of AV Engineering at Moravian University, to discuss his AV journey, the expanse of his role at Moravian, and strategies for working effectively and efficiently while wearing many hats and balancing responsibilities. Craig Underwood can be found on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin…

James King and Steve Greenblatt discuss why communities exist, the value they provide, how their members benefit, and what having a community of AV programmers could mean for programmers throughout the industry. One of the core missions of Ask The Programmer is to build a community of AV programmers. If you would like to be part of the Ask The Prog…

James King and Steve Greenblatt welcome Jeff Hopkins, Technical Director, Crestron Services Providers, to discuss why programmers tend to be risk averse, the impact it has on them and the industry, and the benefit of expanding outside one's comfort zone. Jeff Hopkins can be reached at cspinfo@crestron.com. Crestron can be reached at crestron.com. T…

James King and Steve Greenblatt welcome Jeff Hopkins, Technical Director, Crestron Services Providers, to discuss his AV journey, opportunities for programmers and CSPs, and the value of trade shows to expand perspective and new ideas. Jeff Hopkins can be reached at cspinfo@crestron.com. Crestron can be reached at crestron.com. To join the conversa…

James King and Steve Greenblatt welcome back Hope Roth, Professional Services Engineer and UCI Specialist at Q-SYS, to discuss her work with WAVIT building opportunities and support for women in AV and programming. Hope Roth can be found on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hope-roth-0a44b8a/ and on the Q-SYS Communities: https://developers.qsc…

James King and Steve Greenblatt welcome Hope Roth, Professional Services Engineer and UCI Specialist at Q-SYS, to share her AV journey and discuss details of her automated dollhouse project and involvement with the Girl Scouts and STEMfest. Hope Roth can be found on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hope-roth-0a44b8a/ and on the Q-SYS Communiti…

James King and Steve Greenblatt discuss the current and future impact of AI in AV including the positive and negative effects of making products and systems smarter, leveraging efficiencies in projects and coding, and how AI can add value to AV professionals and organizations. To join the conversation or have your question answered on a future epis…

James King and Steve Greenblatt discuss the importance of system monitoring, the difficulties of delivering an effective solution, and why simply collecting data is misleading. To join the conversation or have your question answered on a future episode, leave a comment or reach out to us @AV_JamesKing or @stevegreenblatt on Twitter and be sure to i…

James King and Steve Greenblatt discuss what bloatware is, why it exists, the impact it can make, and how to make it manageable. To join the conversation or have your question answered on a future episode, leave a comment or reach out to us @AV_JamesKing or @stevegreenblatt on Twitter and be sure to include #AskTheProgrammer. The Ask The Programmer…

James King and Steve Greenblatt discuss strategies, techniques, lessons learned, and tips for training a team. To join the conversation or have your question answered on a future episode, leave a comment or reach out to us @AV_JamesKing or @stevegreenblatt on Twitter and be sure to include #AskTheProgrammer. The Ask The Programmer podcast can be fo…

James King and Steve Greenblatt welcome back Jamie Rinehart, Education Resources Director at the University of Missouri, Kansas City and Host of AV Superfriends podcast to discuss the value of both Configuration and Programming approaches for AV control systems. Jamie Rinehart can be contacted via email jamie@avsuperfriends.com. The AV Superfiends …

James King and Steve Greenblatt welcome Jamie Rinehart, Education Resources Director at the University of Missouri, Kansas City and Host of AV Superfriends podcast to discuss his AV journey, why understanding programming is important to him and his success, and how programming leads to creative solutions that address needs. Jamie Rinehart can be co…

James King and Steve Greenblatt welcome back Erin Maher-Moran from Johns Hopkins University to discuss her journey from one of her first podcast guest appearances on Ask The Programmer episodes 19 and 20 to becoming a podcast host of AVNation's EDTech podcast and an experienced content producer. Erin Maher-Moran can be found on X/Twitter @smearin_o…

James King and Steve Greenblatt mark three years of producing podcasts by welcoming back their first returning guest Erin Maher-Moran from Johns Hopkins University to discuss getting involved in the AV community, doing things that are new and uncomfortable, and how programmers can benefit from networking and building their presence. Erin previously…

James King and Steve Greenblatt discuss the age-old debate about how to fix an existing system that isn't working to a client's satisfaction. While it is easy to blame hardware and can be profitable to sell a brand new system, many times it's just the programming that needs to be updated, modified, or re-written. To join the conversation or have yo…

James King and Steve Greenblatt discuss the importance of identifying, understanding, and managing client expectations for programming projects including how programmers play a critical role in this process. To join the conversation or have your question answered on a future episode, leave a comment or reach out to us @AV_JamesKing or @stevegreenbl…

Steve Greenblatt speaks with Brittany DiCesare, Director of Sales and Operations at Control Concepts, regarding her unique perspective on the industry coming from a blend of technical and business focus. She discusses how to bridge the gap between technical-minded and business-minded AV professionals, what it takes to run a successful programming b…

Steve Greenblatt speaks with Neil Silver from LCD about his journey from being a technician for live events and theater to a lighting control programmer to a freelancer and an entrepreneur and owner of an independent programming and software development company. This episode was recorded from the Influencer Hub at ISE2024. Neil Silver can be found …

James King and Steve Greenblatt welcome back Marc Cholewczynski, Associate Director of Academic Technology Technical Services at Oregon State University, and host of AV Superfriends to discuss his take on standardization and its value in contributing to successful projects and system management. Marc can be reached via X (Twitter) @TheAVDiplomat, t…

James King and Steve Greenblatt welcome Marc Cholewczynski, Associate Director of Academic Technology Technical Services at Oregon State University and host of the AV Superfriends podcast, to discuss his journey in AV, what led him to learn control programming and audio configuration, and the value that understanding programming and configuration h…

James King and Steve Greenblatt discuss the pros and cons of single-brand vs. multi-product AV solutions. What makes each option viable or risky in various situations. To join the conversation or have your question answered on a future episode, leave a comment or reach out to us @AV_JamesKing or @stevegreenblatt on Twitter and be sure to include #A…

James King and Steve Greenblatt discuss what it takes to be successful in AV programming beyond the obvious of writing code including the value of well-rounded programmers. To join the conversation or have your question answered on a future episode, leave a comment or reach out to us @AV_JamesKing or @stevegreenblatt on Twitter and be sure to inclu…

James King and Steve Greenblatt answer a question from Cece Porter from Pace University about our favorite programming projects and why they were memorable. Cece Porter who appeared on episode 144 can be reached via email cp90067p@pace.edu and the Pace University AV Technology Club can be found on Instagram @paceavclub. To join the conversation or …

James King and Steve Greenblatt answer a question from Cece Porter from Pace University about how to explain technical aspects of programming to those who are not technical. The video discussed about making a peanut butter sandwich https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cDA3_5982h8 Cece Porter who appeared on episode 144 can be reached via email cp90067p@…

James King and Steve Greenblatt answer a question from Cece Porter from Pace University about advice for someone starting in programming. Cece Porter who appeared on episode 144 can be reached via email cp90067p@pace.edu and the Pace University AV Technology Club can be found on Instagram @paceavclub. To join the conversation or have your question …

James King and Steve Greenblatt discuss careers in the AV industry, the Pace University AV Summit, and how to the AV industry can attract more young people with Pace University Student Cece Porter and her instructors Rich Miller and George Chacko. Cece Porter can be reached via email cp90067p@pace.edu and the Pace University AV Technology Club can …

James King and Steve Greenblatt welcome back Rich Miller and George Chacko, the Bald AV Guys, to talk about their recent event at Pace University that brought together high school and college age students and AV professionals to create exposure for careers in the audiovisual industry. George Chacko can be found via email: gchacko@pace.edu and Linke…

James King and Steve Greenblatt discuss end-of-year reflection, highlights, and takeaways from 2023 along with holiday sentiments. To join the conversation or have your question answered on a future episode, leave a comment or reach out to us @AV_JamesKing or @stevegreenblatt on Twitter and be sure to include #AskTheProgrammer. The Ask The Programm…

James King and Steve Greenblatt discuss popular questions courtesy of ChatGPT including programming scalability, coding optimization, and programming best practices. To join the conversation or have your question answered on a future episode, leave a comment or reach out to us @AV_JamesKing or @stevegreenblatt on Twitter and be sure to include #Ask…

James King and Steve Greenblatt discuss how to get the best results and minimize surprises on your AV projects including the value of including programmers in the planning process. To join the conversation or have your question answered on a future episode, leave a comment or reach out to us @AV_JamesKing or @stevegreenblatt on Twitter and be sure …

James King and Steve Greenblatt welcome back Brian Magrogan, Senior Systems Programmer at Verrex, to discuss his insight on why programming can't overcome equipment and system shortcomings, what clients should expect from a working system, and how to give programmers more credit for their contributions. Brian Magrogan can be found on social media a…

James King and Steve Greenblatt speak with Brian Magrogan, Senior Systems Programmer at Verrex, about his career journey in AV, the responsibilities of an in-house programmer, and the value that programmers bring to projects and organizations. Brian Magrogan can be found on social media as @bmagrogan. Verrex can be found at verrex.com. To join the …

James King and Steve Greenblatt discuss the importance of professional development, resources for AV programmers to grow, and how non-technical skills can be a differentiator and secret weapon. To join the conversation or have your question answered on a future episode, leave a comment or reach out to us @AV_JamesKing or @stevegreenblatt on Twitter…

James King and Steve Greenblatt discuss how to identify red flags in projects and what to do about them so they don't result in bigger issues. To join the conversation or have your question answered on a future episode, leave a comment or reach out to us @AV_JamesKing or @stevegreenblatt on Twitter and be sure to include #AskTheProgrammer. The Ask …

James King and Steve Greenblatt discuss what impact AMX's recent announcement of the Muse platform and its adoption of modern programming languages have on AV programmers and software developers. For more information on the AMX Muse platform tune into our previous episode 134 and review the show notes for links to resources. To join the conversatio…

James King and Steve Greenblatt speak with Chris Backus, Director of the Integrated Technologies Group at Harman, about the recent release of the AMX Muse platform including the impact that its adoption of modern programming languages has on AV programmers and software developers. Chris Backus can be reached via LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in…

James King and Steve Greenblatt welcome back Marc LaVecchia, Owner BMA Software Solutions, to discuss how in-house and independent programmers can coexist, complement each other, and achieve success. Marc LaVecchia can be found on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/marc-lavecchia-3a9815/ and BMA Software Solutions can be found at www.bmasoftwares…

James King and Steve Greenblatt speak with Marc LaVecchia, Owner of BMA Software Solutions, regarding his journey in AV, how he went from sales to owning a programming company, and the value independent programmers offer the AV industry beyond programming. Marc LaVecchia can be found on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/marc-lavecchia-3a9815/ an…

James King and Steve Greenblatt discuss what it takes to be a successful programmer currently, how the programmer role has evolved, and what skills and knowledge are needed to be successful in the future. To join the conversation or have your question answered on a future episode, leave a comment or reach out to us @AV_JamesKing or @stevegreenblatt…

James King and Steve Greenblatt discuss what makes residential and commercial systems different and where they are similar including the approach, requirements, and what it takes to be successful. To join the conversation or have your question answered on a future episode, leave a comment or reach out to us @AV_JamesKing or @stevegreenblatt on Twit…

James King and Steve Greenblatt welcome back the Bald AV Guys, George Chacko and Rich Miller from Pace University and hosts of Cables, Coffee, and Curveballs, to discuss questions that include: How to learn programming even if you are not a programmer?, How software can overcome the need to regularly add hardware to systems?, and more. George Chack…

James King and Steve Greenblatt speak with the Bald AV Guys, George Chacko and Rich Miller from Pace University, about their background in AV, their relationship to programming, their podcast called Cables, Coffee, and Curveballs, and their efforts to educate those interested in the AV industry and create awareness for AV careers. George Chacko can…

James King and Steve Greenblatt welcome back Will DeWitt, Learning Environments Manager at the University of Southern California (USC), to discuss his questions about how to handle updating products to address security updates and avoid introducing challenges and what is the difference between a documented and undocumented API. Will Dewitt can be r…

James King and Steve Greenblatt welcome back Will DeWitt, Learning Environments Manager at the University of Southern California (USC), to follow up on his question in episode 67, "What is an API" and discuss how Will has used his understanding of APIs (application programming interface) since that recording in 2021. Will Dewitt can be reached via …

James King and Steve Greenblatt welcome Dan Ferrisi, Editor-in-Chief at Commercial Integrator, to discuss his question about the impact artificial intelligence (AI) has on system functionality, programming, and programmers. Dan's call to action was to email him dan.ferrisi@emeraldx.com if you would like the opportunity to share your perspective wit…

James King and Steve Greenblatt welcome Dan Ferrisi, Editor-in-Chief at Commercial Integrator, to discuss his question about whether programmers are successful in raising their profile in the in the AV industry and if so in what ways. Dan Ferrisi can be reached at @danferrisi on Twitter, LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/dan-ferrisi-55675a7/, an…

James King and Steve Greenblatt speak with Dustin Baerg from ProAVSchool regarding his AV journey, background as a programmer, motivation behind starting ProAVSchool, and how his work serves the programmer community. To receive Dustin's offer for the Ask The Programmer audience, visit https://owl.proavschool.com/asktheprogrammer for a handy little …

James King and Steve Greenblatt discuss the benefits, drawbacks, warnings, and value that come from sharing and repurposing programming and source code. To join the conversation or have your question answered on a future episode, leave a comment or reach out to us @AV_JamesKing or @stevegreenblatt on Twitter and be sure to include #AskTheProgrammer…

James King and Steve Greenblatt discuss the things to think about when closing out projects including successes, challenges, and areas for improvement. To join the conversation or have your question answered on a future episode, leave a comment or reach out to us @AV_JamesKing or @stevegreenblatt on Twitter and be sure to include #AskTheProgrammer.…