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Problem with connection and projecting content


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I will preface this by saying my experience with Watchout is very limited, we (at a university) are also looking at hiring someone to come in to take a look at the system but are also trying to troubleshoot at the moment as well. Any advice would be great. 
 
We have the production computer in the house and one display computer in the catwalks between two projectors. We've pinged the Ethernet connections and those all look good between all components. Both projectors powered on just fine and when the IP address is used in a window on the production computer we are able to see them and select the correct input and power them on/off from the production computer. There is a data cable from each projector to the display computer and a third data cable to the monitor connected to the display computer. We can get the watchout logo on the display computer screen but once the data cables to the projectors are plugged in we lose the watchout logo from the display screen, and haven't been able to send anything to the projectors. In the watchout program we've typed in the data port number in the staging area and it accepted the connection, but after closing the window and then opening the staging window again it was back to red and had lost the connection.  
 
We tried switching ports on the display computer and then went though to try one display port at a time to see if we could have even one projector working versus both. We were not able to have anything projected, watchout logo or other. We also switched to a different computer for the display computer and tired all of the same variations again and still couldn't get it to work. We've double checked all the settings that is recommended by Watchout for the production computer, and everything was set correctly on the production computer.
 
The last set of error codes is in a link below. 
 
 
 
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  • Moderator

Some additional basic information please ...   btw WATCHOUT Production = watchmaker

What version of WATCHOUT?

When you go to watchmaker's Window menu and select Network, does your Display computer show up?

wo55-network_win-assign_display_clsuter_

If so, what is displayed in each of the four fields? 

In watchmaker's Display dialog, what is entered in the field marked Computer: ?

watchcube_using_display_name.png

In watchmaker's File menu,  PreferencesGeneral tab, what is entered in the Display Cluster Name: and  Display IP Number Prefix: fields? (it is ok and probably good if they are blank)

wo55-preferences_cluster_name.png

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  • Dataton Partner

I'm a bit confused with the displays and projectors. How many outputs are you using on your display computer? Which type of graphic card are you using? Are you using active adaptors from DP to HDMI/DVI? Some graphic cards, e.g. AMD Radeon Pro, can only use two outputs with passive adaptors. If you use more, you will need to use active adaptors!

Sending a ping to the display computers will only check whether the computer is reachable over the network. WATCHOUT uses various ports, some of those being dynamically numbered broadcast ports. If your network blocks UDP/broadcast you will be able to ping the computer but not to use WATCHOUT. The "Test connection" button in Jim's mail (next to the greenOK field) is a better way to check the network. This button will check that WATCHOPOINT is on and that the ports are open.

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Thank you both for the replies back!

I did follow the instructions from the first post and checked the display computer settings for the cluster and IP address. Everything was set correctly. I finally did get ahold of the last person who setup the system and had a conversation with him about it. Turns out with the type of graphic card and settings in the display computer, he used passive cables and not active cables for the cable run from the display computer to the projectors. Given that the distance isn't too long and we're only using two projectors we swapped out to passive cables and were able to have the projectors show content. 

Thanks!

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57 minutes ago, link said:

... I did follow the instructions from the first post and checked the display computer settings for the cluster and IP address. ...

You are better off if you do not use the IP address in the Display dialog, it is preferred to use the WATCHOUT Computer Name. The user guide still has legacy informant that misleads one to believe using the IP address in the Display - Computer field is valid. It is for legacy reasons, i.e. That was true prior to v5.5 and the manual does not make that clear. Granted,  issues with using the IP address there in newer versions have been cleared up, but it is still better to use the Computer name.

No harm in using Windows fixed IP addresses, still use the computer name in the Display dialog.

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35 minutes ago, jfk said:

You are better off if you do not use the IP address in the Display dialog, it is preferred to use the WATCHOUT Computer Name. The user guide still has legacy informant that misleads one to believe using the IP address in the Display - Computer field is valid. It is for legacy reasons, i.e. That was true prior to v5.5 and the manual does not make that clear. Granted,  issues with using the IP address there in newer versions have been cleared up, but it is still better to use the Computer name.

No harm in using Windows fixed IP addresses, still use the computer name in the Display dialog.

I'm curious why Computer name is preferred over IP address. Does it really make a big difference whether you identify the display on computer name or IP address?

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