I get really happy about the little things that help me get work done faster in the studio. Oh sure, it’s fun to break out a new sound that allows me to explore uncharted territory – that’s always a rush. I’ve lost days at a time to finding all of the nuance and subtlety in sound textures, whether it’s a new synthesizer or a modeled acoustic instrument. But when I find a new way to get something done that makes *every* day go faster, I get really excited. It’s a double-benefit – I get through the mundane tasks which in turn gives me more time to focus on the creative stuff. The following is a perfect example:
Synergy is a freeware application that has been available in PC and Unix circles for many years. I’ve actually used it in my previous life in IT. The core function is to move the mouse (and keyboard control) across multiple desktop machines as though the monitors are attached edge-to-edge in one large contiguous screen. The head engineer at SmartAV suggested that I install it in the studio not only for controlling both of my audio workstations, but also to use it to occasionally control my Tango console, which runs on an embedded form of Windows XP. The really cool thing is that Synergy allows you to define the width of the boundaries between screens, so if you have a funky setup like mine, you can still configure things to ‘line up’ when the mouse moves from screen to screen so that the pointer moves smoothly between computers.
Notice how the two screens of the Tango console (and extension bay) are wider than LCD screen of the main audio workstation. Likewise, the second screen above (which also functions as a video monitor when I switch it to the HDMI input) is offset from the main screen in order to both make room for the center channel speaker and to swivel out to the right of the console area in order to serve as a prompter for ADR sessions. This is nowhere near the “standard” case of having all screens the same size aligned edge to edge. Fortunately, Synergy knows how to handle this kind of odd situation…
Notice that the full length of the main monitor (Q6600) matches to the Tango at about the 25% and 75% points. So, there are two “links” defined between the two screens that tells Synergy how to track the transition. The same goes for the upper screen – where 0%-50% of the 22″ LCD overlaps with 67%-100% of the top edge of the 30″ centerpiece LCD.
With all of this defined, the mouse tracking is seamless and automatic. And the keyboard sends to the same machine where the mouse is active. When the mouse and keyboard are *not* pointed at the main screen, it’s actually sending position data on the other machines over the local network connection. No more groping for a KVM switch to toggle between DAWs. No more diving behind the console to connect a keyboard and mouse in order to install a new firmware set or change a setting. It *all* works as one contiguous workspace, which is a real treat. All I have to do is slide the mouse pointer onto the desired desktop and go to work on it. It’s a remarkably simple workflow enhancement that’s causing me to re-think the studio configuration in new and interesting ways.
It seems kind of silly that something so simple could make such a big difference. Even more interesting is the fact that the technology has been around for more than 10 years, and I’m just now getting back around to re-discovering it. The fact that it seamlessly connects all of my workspaces – from the touch screen console control surface up to the secondary monitor makes it feel brand new again. There’s a lesson in there somewhere about thinking “out of the box”, but right now I’m having too much fun with my “new” studio to ponder it too much. Now it’s time to set about finding new and interesting ways to get new and interesting work done.
