Digital Projectors and the Wii

[Karen Brooks-Reese]

Hi, everyone. I'm new to this group, and looking forward to the
discussions!

We've offered gaming at the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh - Main for
several years now, but this fall we are branching out to all the
branches. We are doing this by purchasing two Nintendo Wiis and two
PS2s which will circulate between branches.

The problem is, a few of our libraries do not have television sets. I
am planning to purchase a projector for those libraries to use, but
I'm wondering if anyone has experience using a projector with a Wii.
Which ones are compatible? I'm concerned that it will be difficult to
set up the sensor with the projector, since it has to plug into the
console and the console has to plug into the projector and the cord
isn't that long! Has anyone tried the wireless Wii sensors? Which
one? Anything else I need to think about?

Thanks in advance for your help,

Karen Brooks-Reese
Teen Services Coordinator
Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh

[Beth Gallaway]

I've used a projector and put the sensor on a podium blocking off the
wire with a row of chairs facing out from each side. It has gotten
knocked over a couple times and seems none the worse for the wear.

--
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
___
{o,o}
|)__)
-"-"-
Beth Gallaway, Library Trainer / Consultant
informatio...@gmail.com
website: http://informationgoddess29.com
cell/text: 603.247.3196
AOL IM: rimeswith0range
Skype: informationgoddess29
Second Life: Cerulean Vesperia
Wii: 8757 0699 3605 2965

[SueS.]

I've also hooked the Wii to a projector and set the sensor bar on a
chair across from the projector. You can use the remotes pretty well
if you stand just off center. Blocking the wire with chairs is a great
idea, they do have a wireless sensor bar as well.
Sue
Librarian
Marlboro Library
Hudson Valley, NY

[Karen Brooks]

What kind of projectors have you all used with the wii?  I looked at the Optima Ezpro that's recommended on the library success wiki, but it doesn't look like it's available anymore.

 

Thanks,

Karen

 

broo...@gmail.com

[Eli Neiburger]

It really doesn't matter what kind of projector you use, any projector that has video inputs will work just fine with a Wii.  The wireless sensor bars also work great; the Wii's 'sensor' bar isn't really a sensor at all.  It's just a pair of infrared (IR) lights that the camera in the front of the wiimote looks for.  In the heady early days of wii fandom there were people who figured out that a pair of birthday candles gave off enough infrared for the wiimote to work perfectly.

 

The wireless sensor bars are great because you can then put the wii anywhere in the room; even taped to the pole that holds the projector or something silly like that.  You can then tape the wireless sensor bar to the top or the bottom of the screen.  You can even get two of them, tape off one end of each, and position them further apart to better work on a big screen.  The only trick is standing the right distance away for good control.

 

One thing that can affect the Wii is a true plasma screen (not just a big LCD) which tends to throw off more IR than any other type of screen.  Or, if you have some incandescent light (or reflected sunlight) that is shining at the players, that can throw off the wiimotes too.  In extreme situations, if you're using a rear-projection screen or have a very shiny display surface, the IR from the projector bulb may get picked up by the wiimote too and can make the pointer jump around a bit.

 

However, there's a really easy way to diagnose wiimote control problems; in the wii settings, go to sensor bar, then sensitivity.  It will show you live what IR sources the wiimote is seeing as you point it around, so you can figure out what might be the problem.  You can also adjust the sensitivity until it only see the two lights of the sensor bar which may help you filter out interference.  Note that you rarely have to mess with this at all, but if your event is about to start and the pointer isn't working, that's the thing to check.

 

Good luck with your events!

 

-eli

[Megan Johnson]

Eli said : “You can even get two of them, tape off one end of each, and position them further apart to better work on a big screen.”

 

What a great idea! I hadn’t thought of doing that, thanks for the tip!

 

Megan Johnson

Teen Services Librarian

Rochester Hills Public Library

500 Olde Towne Road

Rochester, MI 48307

Phone: 248-650-5683

Fax: 248-650-7131

---

broo...@gmail.com <BR

[Yanni Cooper]

Regarding wireless sensorbars. If you know how to solder you can make one for a little cheaper then the cost of a commercial wireless sensor. I put one together for about $20 worth of parts from radioshack.
I used this guide
http://jonpeck.blogspot.com/2006/12/wii-diculous.html
when I made mine, but you could just as easily use this one
http://www.makezine.com/blog/archive/2006/11/how_to_make_you_8.html
and there are a couple of other DIY guides out there if  you google for it.

Max range was about 30' which is a good 10' further then the regular sensor bar...