Scala Digital Signage

It's been very busy at Scala recently, with tradeshow season in full swing. Here are some updates on how we've been doing. It's an exciting time in the digital signage industry, and the development in tradeshows in general reflect this!June 29, 2007 -Scala Demonstrates Global Leadership at the 2007 In-Store ShowMay 28, 2007 - Scala to Attend Computex Taipei 2007May 24, 2007 - Aquaria and Scala Steve Elsnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15707019124035243535noreply@blogger.com0

Today, while working on some new additions to the Scala web site, I realized that "Scalability" begins with "Scala". You, like me, know how some seemingly trivial coincidence can set in motion a whirlwind of thoughts and ideas. And the more you think about this phrase like I just did, the more you can see how true it really is!Scala InfoChannel is known in the industry for its rock-solid Steve Elsnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15707019124035243535noreply@blogger.com3

According to The Register, a new directive this week orders the federal government to only deploy Windows with certain specified security measures implemented, with the level of detail going right down to the level of specific registry settings. Resellers and system integrators that intend to sell Windows-based solutions to the federal government will have to ensure that their solutions meet the Steve Elsnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15707019124035243535noreply@blogger.com0

DailyTech seems to think so. They are trickling on to the market, currently at a high cost, but as the technology evolves and economies of scale come into play, we might have some fast, cool (temperature-wise), and energy efficient storage in our own equipment.As the tech is still in its early forms I don't know how long it will be before they can be used in digital signs, but their resistance toSteve Elsnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15707019124035243535noreply@blogger.com0

Visit APB News for this artcle pontificating the proliferation of digital signage worldwide, now and in the fhttp://www2.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gifuture.One passage in particular jumped out at me:The Malaysian networks mentioned here all use Scala equipment “because it is an enterprise-strength system that can be [either] used for one location or scaled to hundreds of locations country-wide and Steve Elsnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15707019124035243535noreply@blogger.com0

Not intented for digital signage, but the gadget featured in this CNet article shows promise as an ebook reader. The distinctive characteristic of Polymer Vision's Readius is that its display is rollable! This is the kind of form factor I'm hoping will find its way to digital signs sometime in the future. Currently, the eInk displays only have 16 shades of gray and update too slowly for what the Steve Elsnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15707019124035243535noreply@blogger.com0

The report linked above is only available with a subscription, but according to their summary page "Western European Resellers expect a price decrease of 10.7% for LCDs and 8.4% for PDPs in 2007 and there is no change in sight for the next years."I risk sounding like a broken record, but it bears repeating: we're headed for a perfect storm in the digital signage industry. If predictions like Steve Elsnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15707019124035243535noreply@blogger.com0

Intel has revealed a bit about their forthcoming 45nm chip technology. New materials are being used to reduce transistor leakage, a limitation that increases as transistor densities increase. In the digital signage industry, we tend to push the envelope. Our ideas and concepts sometimes outpace the development of available hardware necessary to make our ideas into reality and it's nice to see Steve Elsnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15707019124035243535noreply@blogger.com0

Recently we had reports going around that claimed outdoor advertising is a roadside distraction but in the headlines yesterday and even on Good Morning America today we see a case study in outdoor advertising gone wrong.Small electronic LED signs representing characters from the Cartoon Network's Aqua Teen Hunger Force have been placed in cities across the United States for about two weeks, Steve Elsnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15707019124035243535noreply@blogger.com0

Scala will be present at the Screen Expo Europe, Earls Court, London. Come check us out at Stand B23. From the press release:Scala will be teaming with Scala Certified Partner DigiSigns.co.uk to present the world's most widely deployed Digital Signage software platform in the world. With over 30,000 licenses in use around the globe, Scala's InfoChannel® is recognized as the leading Digital Steve Elsnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15707019124035243535noreply@blogger.com0

I've added a new area to the Scala home page called "Resources". This will serve as a repository for all kinds of information about the digital signage industry from various sources. The inaugural content concerns "Retail Signage" and is a great starting point for this area, so please head on over to the Scala home page for more information.There will be more resources being added to this area inSteve Elsnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15707019124035243535noreply@blogger.com0

Check out the Scala Home Page and take a look at the new videos available for streaming. These videos will also be available for download at full size; stay tuned and I will update this post with the location.Steve Elsnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15707019124035243535noreply@blogger.com0

One of the advantages of virtualization that I did not mention in my last post about disruptive technologies is the remote administration possibilities. You can remotely log in to the guest operating system just like any machine, over RDP or perhaps VNC, but virtualization also allows you to connect to the host machine, if it's configured to allow it. The key advantage here is that it allows you Steve Elsnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15707019124035243535noreply@blogger.com0

David Strom from ITNews.com.au writes an interesting piece on 5 technologies he thinks we should keep an eye on during 2007, including a few of my personal favorites: RFID, advanced graphics, and server virtualization. Do they have the potential to be disruptive?Let's get back to basics and discuss disruptive technology, or really, disruptive innovation. This is a term dating back to 1997 when Steve Elsnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15707019124035243535noreply@blogger.com1

This article from Ryerson University's unofficial student newspaper (nice site, BTW) mentions how Scala digital signage is being used to keep the students informed. Most interesting, however, is the reference to a system they implemented in the 1970s, long before Scala came about:Brad Fortner, the RCC program director of operations & technology, who is responsible for the RCC screens said, “My Steve Elsnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15707019124035243535noreply@blogger.com0

New to Scala.com: Dick Trask, Scala's Director of Marketing, writes an informative article about planning for future expansion in your signage network. You may think you only need 10 players, but when choosing your signage platform be sure to take into account that you may have some growth in the future.For companies considering deploying a digital signage system it is very important to look intoSteve Elsnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15707019124035243535noreply@blogger.com0

Mediox, Inc. mentions Scala in their press release discussing interactive multimedia restaurant trays. This sounds like an interesting concept. I have a number of questions though:How is durability achieved - these will be carried, dropped, shuffled around, soiled, cleaned, and possibly stolenWon't there be food placed on top of the tray? I'm sure they account for this, and it will be fascinatingSteve Elsnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15707019124035243535noreply@blogger.com3

BBC News reports that a UK company is building a plant that will manufacture flexible plastic-based electronic circuits.The firm is working on "control circuits" that sit behind screens on electronic displays. In particular, it is working on the electronic circuitry for "electronic paper" displays.While I constantly hammer on the idea of ubiquitous displays that can fit any space large or small, Steve Elsnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15707019124035243535noreply@blogger.com0

Following up on a previous post about SMS and Scala digital signage, I thought I might point out an example of someone that has a solution: BlueFire Digital. Their approach seems to be to use Bluetooth and SMS to allow your signage network to send content to mobile devices, and I can imagine that their solutions can be used in many creative ways. While I haven't seen one in action yet, they are Steve Elsnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15707019124035243535noreply@blogger.com0

I'm still digesting this one, and I thought it interesting enough to pass along. Peter Gutmann wrote up an analysis of the costs to the computer industry that may stem from Windows Vista's content protection capabilities. His summary:Windows Vista includes an extensive reworking of core OS elements in order toprovide content protection for so-called "premium content", typically HD datafrom Steve Elsnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15707019124035243535noreply@blogger.com0