So you’re sold on the idea of using PromptDog teleprompter software, but there’s just one problem . . . you don’t have anyone available to help with the shoot and you need to fly solo.

In a professional studio setup, there’s normally 5 people employed on a shoot that involves a teleprompter . . . the camera operator, an audio technician, the presenter, the director and the teleprompter operator.

But for many of our clients, that’s not the case. They need to perform all those tasks simultaneously on their own.

So how does one person achieve what normally takes five?

The short answer is that it requires more than just mental dexterity . . . it requires some special equipment as well.

The first item is something that will be supplied with any modern camcorder by default (if it’s not you may want to reconsider your choice of camera) . . . a remote control.

With your remote in hand (or at least handy to your position as presenter in front of the camera), you have start/stop control at the push of a button.

Controlling PromptDog is a little more challenging, since you will often be in a standing position, some distance from the computer running the software.

But by the miracle of modern technology, it is possible with the Gyration Air Mouse Elite

 

The Gyration Air Mouse lets you control software on your computer (PC/Mac) even when the mouse is not grounded on a flat surface. That means you can use it when standing!

You can have fantastic cursor control even in mid air thanks to a special jitter control built to smooth out tracking across the screen.

It also has three programmable buttons AND you can program hand gestures using the bundled Motion Tools software.

Check it out. Highly recommended.

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Q&A Session

by admin on April 16, 2010

Here’s the answers to customer queries about PromptDog that seem quite prevalent recently:

Q: Can I purchase my PromptDog license without a credit card?

A: Yes, you can use a PayPal account to generate a one-time use credit card number that can be used to make the purchase.

Q: Is there a way to run the 2nd (talent) monitor fullscreen?

A: Yes . . . the talent window resizes automatically as you resize the operator window.

Q: I can’t use 2nd (talent) monitor because I’m getting a Windows error message that says the mirrorfont has not been installed. How do I fix this?

A: When PromptDog opens, it tries to install the special mirror font on your computer by saving it in a file in your Program Files. It’s like that your system is blocking the program from doing so because your user account does not have permission to write to that folder.

Restart your computer and logon as the Administrator. Right click your “Program Files” folder (usually in C: drive) and un-check the ‘read-only’ attribute.

Note: Permissions can cause the same problem on Mac OS X.

Q: In the system requirements, it says you need a reliable internet connection. Do I need to be connected to the net to run the program after purchasing a license?

A: No, you do not need to be connected to the internet to run PromptDog. Only when registering or purchasing the product.

Hope this helps. If you have questions of your own, please let us know via our contact form.

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QTV MVP-11 Teleprompter Monitor

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Okay, so you know that you need a teleprompter for some projects . . . but you’re curious about how they actually work. I could send you to sleep with a written explanation . . . or I could just have someone show you in 60 seconds:

 

 
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