333: A Dongle Has Entered the Courtroom

In Episode 333 of The AV Life, Tim Van Woeart may be temporarily off camera, but the crew has no trouble keeping the show moving. Renee Benson checks in from the road as InfoComm preparation ramps up, sharing the pace and pressure of visiting customers ahead of major product announcements. Brandy Johnson joins the conversation with her usual energy, humor, and road-tested perspective, while Murphy Daley gives an update on the continued momentum around The AV Project Manager Handbook, including plans for an audiobook, a possible course, and the idea of making project management more accessible to AV professionals who may not learn best by reading alone.

The conversation moves from practical project management into full AV Life chaos in the best possible way. Murphy’s PM Minute focuses on the value of every project team member understanding just enough about everyone else’s role to improve handoffs, respect timelines, and reduce friction. From there, the crew dives into a very AV-adjacent courtroom story involving Elon Musk, OpenAI, a monitor, a dongle, and a group of lawyers trying to solve what every AV person has seen before: the room is ready until someone actually has to connect something. The episode wraps with a more serious higher ed discussion about the recent Canvas disruption, teaching continuity, Princeton’s move to require exam proctors again, and the broader question of how institutions should rethink learning, assessment, and academic integrity in a world where AI tools are now part of the landscape.

Topics Discussed

1. Tim’s camera trouble and the rare host blackout episode
2. Renee’s road schedule ahead of InfoComm
3. New product launches and pre-show customer preparation
4. Murphy Daley’s AV Project Manager Handbook momentum
5. Plans for an audiobook version of Murphy’s book
6. Turning the book into a course or training resource
7. The PM Minute: learning enough about other roles to improve project handoffs
8. AV project teamwork, respect, boundaries, and cross-training light
9. The Elon Musk, OpenAI, monitor, and dongle courtroom story
10. Courtroom AV standards, or the lack of them
11. InfoComm planning, HETMA activity, and hydration reminders
12. Rumors about InfoComm locations and Vegas versus Orlando
13. Rutgers, Canvas recovery, and teaching continuity
14. Business continuity thinking in higher education technology
15. Princeton, AI-assisted cheating, and the return of exam proctors
16. Whether traditional assessments are becoming too easy to hack with AI
17. Lockdown browsers, phone collection, and exam room controls
18. Why academic integrity may require redesigned learning experiences
19. The need for future AV Life episodes on AI, teaching, and continuity
20. Inviting more voices into future AV Life conversations

The AV Life is a Higher Ed AV Media production. More at higheredav.com.

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Twitter (X) – https://twitter.com/TVanWoeart

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