Tips for Using the Library Auditorium for Presentations and Classes

The Library Auditorium has state-of-the-art equipment for use in making presentations. For courses which require students to make presentations to the class, the following are guidelines to help the process run more smoothly. If you have any questions about any of the following guidelines, please contact the library. Thank you!

Create your presentation

It is recommended that you use widely available presentation software, such as PowerPoint for your presentation. If you use additional programs to import media into your presentation, be sure that you test your presentation in the library auditorium BEFORE making the actual presentation.

Save your presentation to a CD

It is recommended that you save your file to a CD. The library auditorium laptop does not have a floppy drive, so a 3.5” floppy disc will NOT work. You may also save your file to your network drive or a USB key, but it is HIGHLY recommended that you try this out in advance of your presentation. Not all USB keys work on all laptops and we cannot guarantee that you will be able to access your network drive at the time of your presentation.  It is best to access files saved elsewhere before presentation time and save them to the laptop’s desktop. They can be deleted afterward.

Reserve the Library Auditorium

Contact the library as soon as possible to reserve the date and time that you will be giving your presentation. This should be done far in advance to ensure that the auditorium will be available when you need it. (You do not need to reserve the auditorium if you are making a presentation during a class meeting and the class meets regularly in the auditorium.)

Reserve a laptop computer

It is also recommended that you reserve the library laptop that is set up specifically for auditorium use. If you plan to use the library laptop, reserve it at the same time you reserve the auditorium. If you choose to use your own laptop, you should come in the day before your presentation to make sure that your laptop will work with the system. The steps below apply to any laptop.

Set up the equipment at least 15 minutes before your presentation

On the day of your presentation, come to the library circulation desk with your student ID to check out the library auditorium laptop. You will also need to pick up the remote for the auditorium LCD projector and the keys for the black, metal equipment cabinet at the front of the auditorium. Even if you use your own laptop, you will still need to come to the circulation desk for the remote and keys.

Connect the computer, but DO NOT TURN THE COMPUTER ON YET!

In the auditorium, there are several small tables one of which can be used to sit the laptop on. Unpack the laptop and attach the power supply/cord to the back. Find the large grey cable labeled LCD PROJECTOR that will be lying near the black cabinet. The connector on the end of this will only fit one of the ports on the laptop. Connect the cable to the laptop. If you need network/internet access, there is also a cable labeled NETWORK located in the same area as the projector cable which can be plugged into the proper port on the laptop. If you have sound as part of the presentation, connect the cable labeled COMPUTER AUDIO to the proper audio out jack on the laptop. Unlock the black cabinet and make sure that button #2 on the black box is pressed down. Plug the laptop’s power cord into the power strip/reel in the bottom of the black cabinet.

Turn on the ceiling-mounted LCD projector

Point the LCD remote at the projector on the ceiling and push the “ON” button. Once you see that the projector is on (the buttons on the bottom of the projector light up and a blue screen will begin projecting on the screen after it warms up), push the “input 2” button on the remote.

Open the laptop and turn it on

As the computer boots, the LCD projector will pick up the laptop’s signal and begin projecting what is on the laptop screen. The library laptop is set to boot directly to the desktop with no need to log on. The laptop already has MS PowerPoint loaded, so all you need to do is open the file.

After the presentation

After the class or presentation is over, delete any files you copied to the laptop’s desktop and turn the projector and laptop off. Unhook the cables, pack up the laptop (with the power supply/cord), and lock the black cabinet. Return the laptop, cabinet keys, and LCD remote to the circulation desk. Please make sure that you leave everything the way you found it and take your personal items with you.