FB4 Released!

[cyberb0b]

I think that it will be easier for a Laserist to control and understand conventional dmx equipment than the other way around.

[norty303]

I disagree. A lot of people working in the industry are simply 'techs' and as such have an acumen for technology (try learning 4 or 5 types of lighting desk in a reasonably intimate way)
Personally, I'm some decades now as both sound and lighting tech and 6 or 7 years or something with the lasers. I'm open to new things. But even knowing what I do, I STILL think ILDA analogue is the right way to control lasers. Just because Pangolin have made it possible (and let's face it, it was possible with the QM and the FB3-SE and look how those have killed the industry...) doesn't mean it's going to be the death knell of the industry.

[edison]

It lowers for sure the bar to learn how to control projectors and pangolin and showtacle doing some good things in this field. However together with the increasing power of projectors i expect accidents to happen. Its a side effect when things come more accessable for the average person. The price is also drives this side effect for a huge part. That is why i,m in favour of some kind of regulations like doing a safetycourse to obtain a license. That way the average guy will get more aware of the danger and without it you can,t go out there and shoot 10 watt static beams into the crowd. Projectors are like guns and the average people can,t handle the resposibillity. Norway recently banned all pointers so hope europe and the netherlands will follow soon. But back to the topic, good work pangolin for taking things to the next level. I will order one for a test to play with for sure

[White-Light]

.

The second amendment states that everyone in the US should be able to defend itsself and have easy access to buy and own a gun without a licence. Well we sure know how great that is. Guns can be bought widely and cheap. so the result is lots of murders and shootings at schools etc. Great that accessebillity!!!

Actually I believe, (sure the US guys will chip in here), that in many states there's a 7 day wait on handguns whilst background checks are carried out.

Equally, most of the issues with guns in the US arise not through ownership but lack of security, (not an issue in Europe), and the proliferation of illegal weapons (also an issue in Europe - handgun crime actually increased by 40% in the UK following the handgun ban: http://www.politics.co.uk/reference/gun-crime . So much for the banning everything will make us all safe theory!).

So your analogy isn't a very good one.

Whereas I do agree that high power projectors make the potential for accidents greater, it's not the answer simply to stop people from owning projectors.

A far better way of dealing this would be via education and better "snap" inspection of commercial installations to ensure compliance with IDLA standards.

Personally, I still think the ILDA 10x Standards should be pursued and adopted as lens aren't the answer to everything and there is evidence to support the change. I'm a great believer in the principle that if you make it possible to run bright lasers legally and safely, then clubs won't be as tempted to run illegal levels.

[planters]

Personally, I still think the ILDA 10x Standards should be pursued and adopted as lens aren't the answer to everything and there is evidence to support the change. I'm a great believer in the principle that if you make it possible to run bright lasers legally and safely, then clubs won't be as tempted to run illegal levels.

I agree. The real issue should be public safety and not government interference to protect my turf.

The problem with the gun legislation is that it is always couched as a public safety issue. Who the hell want's to hurt children (or puppies), but the ramification of this interference is that it threatens to disarm completely or practically honest citizens. Many ask, especially in Europe, "why do you need a gun" or "so I guess you want a hand grenade too"? The answer is that there are threats that the police are only involved in during the aftermath. And, in the long run, governments are fallible and corrupt. Look around the world and through history, there isn't a country where a ruling class hasn't brutalized its people; some of them or all of them. Like the saying "a well armed society is a polite society", a government that fears its people is better than the reverse.

[norty303]

"a well armed society is a polite society"

Do you believe that to be the case? Or indeed that it is MORE polite than an unarmed society?

I guess it has parallels with lawful punishments as deterents (death sentence, life inprisonment, etc) being shown to not be good deterrants from people committing certain crimes - not just in the States, but worldwide.

Or are people still impolite, but then the final outcome is people waving firearms about rather than a bit of fisty-cuffs in the car park?

[swamidog]

Like the saying "a well armed society is a polite society", a government that fears its people is better than the reverse.

living our lives in accordance with principles invented by science fiction authors is how we got scientology...

[sbk]

Guys, isn't this thread about the release about the Pangolin FB4? Just sayin'...

I had it in my hands at Prolight&Sound and it's looking promising!

The only thing I'm still not sure (like everyone actually) is how to manage the interlock signal, still to be clarified. It would be cool if we could use one pair of unused cable coming from a single emergency push button and replicated to every FB4 on the stage...

[norty303]

Well, until there's some more information to be shared, we may as well keep the thread alive with small talk...

[slicklasers]

I have a feeling that no one answering questions about about the interlock/e-stop means that it is still going to require another cable run for it, which would be a pain in the ass for everyone who wires into the ILDA pins for the E-stop.