BUENA PARK, CA—Yamaha Commercial Audio Systems is launching Audioversity, a series of regional expos. The first event will take place at Soundcheck Nashville August 11-12. The specialized event is geared toward audio professionals and all those interested in gaining in-depth knowledge and hands-on experience of any and everything Yamaha and NEXO.

Audioversity will feature digital mixer training seminars, panel discussions with leading industry professionals, NEXO and Yamaha speaker listening demos featuring live music, hands-on line array rigging demonstrations, acoustic prediction software presentations, clinics featuring audio networking, portable sound applications from small to large, and systems solutions. The Yamaha state-of-the-art Rolling Showroom will also make a special appearance.

MOSES LAKE, WA—The Moses Lake School District has chosen Hitachi Software StarBoards for its student curriculum for all grade levels and subject areas. Purchased through Troxell Communications, the school has allocated over 100 Hitachi FXDUO-77 model StarBoards along with the Hitachi CP-A100 3LCD ultra-short-throw projector as part of the Hitachi CPA100+FXDUO bundle. Moses Lake has also deployed the new StarBoard Software 9.0 for Mac on the StarBoards in many classrooms within the district.v

CHICAGO, IL—NEC Display Solutions has made its full VUKUNET digital signage software management platform available free of charge to any network operator. The CMS solution was originally made available to networks that registered for ad-serving and to clients buying NEC Display products. Those restrictions have now been removed and any network, regardless of what display panels they use or whether or not they will make programming time available for VUKUNET-served ads, can take advantage of the free CMS.

Green Scene

ROCKLEIGH, NJ—The new InfoComm Sustainable Technology Environment Performance (STEP) rating system is being developed by the AV Sustainability Task Force, of which Crestron is a member. The first of its kind, the task force will address the contribution and responsibility of the AV industry to sustainable building, focusing on the efficient use of energy, processes, and materials. David Wilts, Crestron director of integrated building technology (IBT), will serve as a founding member. Wilts, a LEED Accredited Professional (AP), has extensive experience in integrated IP-based building control and intelligent energy management system design.

The mission of the task force is to develop a rating system and certification program that will apply to the entire project process, including design, installation, implementation, and operation of AV systems. As part of the task force, Crestron will help write all the sustainability standards for each project phase, including post-occupancy.