Who can use the vislab? Can I bring a class in to use the lab? What can I do in the vislab that I can't do on my PC? How do I get access to the lab? What help can I expect? What software is available on the lab computers? What changes will be made in the vislab in the next year? How can I find out more about the future of visualization? Where can I find that big tiled display system I've heard about? Who can use the vislab? The NUIT Visualization Lab (Vislab) is available to all Northwestern University faculty and students. The lab can be used for faculty or student research. It also can be used for student class projects. There are four stereo workstations for individual use. The stereo output of the workstations can be routed to a large stereo wall for individual immersive visualization or group projects. Small classes or seminars that require stereo display can use the lab. Back to top Can I bring a class in to use the lab? The vislab is available for small classes. The space and setting in the room is limited. For classes, the maximum number of people is about eight. The use of the lab can be coordinated with one of the nearby classrooms if desktop space is required. Back to top What can I do in the vislab that I can't do on my PC? All the computers in the lab can display stereo video. That is, they display a separate image to the right and left eye, which allows the user to easily see 3-dimensional information. All the computers can do this stereo display to a desktop CRT monitor using LCD shutter glasses. The output of any computer can be routed to a large (10-foot by 8-foot) stereo projection display. By using lightweight, polarized glasses, a single user or group can see data in stereo. Back to top How do I get access to the lab? You can contact us by phone or email. The contact information for the lab and its staff are available on our contact page. You can also just stop by to talk to one of the staff weekdays 10:00 am - 5:00 pm. If you want to schedule a tour or demonstration for an individual or small group, we would be happy to provide one on Fridays 2:00 - 5:00 pm. For demonstrations, please contact us first to discuss what we can show you. Back to top What help can I expect? The staff of the lab can provide training to use the desktop and group visualization systems. If you need to use non-commercial software, we will be happy to do install it on the computers. For some projects, you may have data sets to visualize, with no specific software in mind; we can consult with you on how to use the existing software to carry out your visualization. For other projects, we can develop of adapt software for use on our visualization system. If a project requires significant software development, we will contribute to preparing grant proposals to support such development. Back to top What software is available on the lab computers? We have software of various types installed on our computers; a complete listing is available from our software page. Software is categorized into general areas of astronomy, chemistry and general visualization. We do not limit our software to any academic discipline; astronomy and chemistry are our first research areas we have dealt with. Let us know what you need and we can add a new area for you or your group. Currently, we have computer hardware systems that run Sun Solaris, Windows XP and Red Hat Linux. Back to top What changes will be made in the vislab in the next year? The vislab with its four stereo computers and stereo display systems are our first step. In the next year, we will be adding to our facility. This may involve adding additional hardware to our stereoscopic systems or creating large pixel displays (larger than 1280 x 1024). We are interested in discussing with NU faculty and students any visualization needs you have, so we can evolve in a way that empowers you to more effectively use advanced visualization. Back to top How can I find out more about the future of visualization? Starting in the fall quarter 2006, we will be hosting a seminar series on visualization. A schedule will be posted on our website: http://vislab.northwestern.edu. Additionally, we have reserved an office space next to the lab to demonstrate visualization systems (hardware and software). We will be inviting vendors to loan us systems for evaluation; these will be coordinated with the seminar series. Back to top Where can I find that big tiled display system I've heard about? Pixzilla was created in the Vislab, but at the end of the summer of 2006, it was moved to the NU Library's Information Commons. It is freely available for use there during library hours. Back to top