Go to the Archives!CARMA Frequently Asked Questions
CARMA is a multimedia recording, archiving and web-presentation service available to all units of the University that captures, preserves and distributes presentations over the World Wide Web.
Do I need to make a reservation?
Our staff is sometimes able to record an event with a few hours notice, but an advanced reservation is usually necessary.
How do I schedule a recording?
Call us at 734-647-5462 or visit our web site at http://carma.umich.edu.
What kinds of events can you record?
CARMA can record most presentations, including special lectures, conferences, workshops, seminars and classes.
The CARMA team brings a portable recording system to the site and sets up the equipment. We bring microphones for the presenter and for the audience, a high-quality video camera and a computer to collect the data, along with a unit that captures images of the slides.
We can record presentations almost anywhere in Washtenaw County, and in some locations outside the county. Contact us for details.
The cost for a typical recording is approximately $400 per hour for a single event, with a reduced hourly cost for a series of presentations that use a common setup or location. For example, a single event with three hour-long talks is about $1,000, a ten-week series of 90-minute talks about $4,500, and a thirteen-week course of 3 one-hour lectures per week is about $13,000.
This charge covers the time of the staff and the resources required for recording, processing, archiving and serving, along with the maintenance of the data archive.
Are there additional charges for storing or distributing my lecture?
No. The one-time fee includes long-term storage and streaming of multiple viewing formats.
Can I see examples of a recorded lecture?
Please see our web site, http://carma.umich.edu, to see examples of web lectures and learn more about this new service.
Do I need anything special to watch a lecture?
All that is needed to view lectures is a free copy of RealPlayer or Flash player, a web browser and a computer with audio output connected to the Internet.
Can someone off campus view the lectures?
The lectures can be made available to anyone on the Web.
Can I limit the access to my recorded lecture?
Access to the recorded lectures can be limited to only the students in a specific class or to only people with a U-M uniqname login account.
How long will it take to make my lecture available on the web?
Typically one business day.
How long will my lecture be available on the web?
A minimum of five years, after which we will transfer the data to the Deep Blue archive service.
Can my lectures be downloaded for off-line viewing?
The instructor or presenter decides whether or not lectures may be downloaded.
Who owns the recording of the lecture?
All recordings are owned by the client or the presenter per standard University of Michigan copyright policies.
Yes. We do not need to install any software or hardware on the presenter's computer. We capture images of the slides from the signals sent to the projector.
Can you record my church group/boy scout troop/service club?
No, carma only provides services to University-affiliated organizations.
At additional cost, we can convert lecture recordings into formats that can be written to other media (within limits of the technology).
Can you edit a recording before posting it on the Web?
At additional cost we can perform basic editing, such as adding slides, changing slides, editing audio and video recordings, incorporating pre-recorded video, combining multiple sequences and splitting presentations into multiple segments.
A Lecture Object is composed of the high-quality audio and video recording, along with presentation slides and other images displayed on an LCD projector and snapshots of board work, with the timing information to automatically synchronize these items.
Campus Automated Rich Media Archiving
Is there someone I can talk to if I have more questions?
Yes. Call 734-647-5462 or send a message to carma-service@umich.edu.
