Dear IRIS Technologies:

I wanted to compliment you on your exceptional product. Our facility at the University of Wisconsin recently installed a 16 x 16 Video Commander.

Our situation was that we had outgrown our 12 x 12 router. At the time, we had a real need to increase our capacity. I had also observed that many of the students who operated our old router were confused by the concept of patching--we would have students creating feedback loops or accidentally canceling out each other's patches in the middle of productions. And those students experiencing problems were among the very few who weren't intimidated by the concept of "patching." Anyway, I attributed most of the confusion to the alphanumeric codes associated with patching on the old router. It just wasn't very intuitive.

I considered quite a few different products to meet our needs for ease of use and increased capacity, but I was intrigued by the user-friendly graphic interface of the Video Commander and decided to go for it. We added a second frame of audio just so we could address the human interface issue and remain within the budget we were given to work with (we also wanted stereo switching, but didn't quite have the money for everything). With IRIS Technologies' simple, clear documentation and some assistance from Rich in your Tech Support department, I had the Video Commander installed in less than one full morning.

Since then, Video Commander has performed well beyond my highest expectations. We have had no technical problems whatsoever; in fact, the system and software are incredibly stable. I am amazed at the ease with which my students have picked up the patching on the Video Commander. I used to reserve an entire class period to teach patching on the old router, but now I can have students comfortably patching with about five minutes' worth of instruction! I'm also happy to report the disappearance of patching anxiety--I don't know of a single student who is afraid to use our Video Commander. This is a huge contrast to the small handful before who were brave enough to even try to use the old router. These days, the most common mistake is probably not clicking "Done" after setting up a new patch. Sheesh! The students in our television production club have made it their priority to earn the money necessary to add the second audio frame as soon as possible (you guys interested in buying some cookies or brownies?).

Anyway, thanks for a great product!

Thomas E. Frantz
Director of Instruction & Information Technology
University of Wisconsin-Fox Valley