General Stimulus Features
Multi-modal Stimulus Delivery
Presentation can deliver 2-d images, 3-d graphics, compressed video, and audio - all at the same time. Play multiple videos and multiple sounds, mixed with any number of many graphical elements. You are only limited by the power and speed of your computer system.
Power and Precision
Presentation takes advantage of modern PC gaming technology to provide powerful and flexible stimulus displays, while at the same time accurately logging all stimulus and response events. The foundation of Presentation and all features are designed and implemented with precision in mind.

General Visual Stimulus Features

Multiple Graphical Elements
Arbitrarily many graphical elements of any type may be combined or displayed simultaneously - video, 3D, images, generated 2D graphics.
Vertical Refresh Synchronization
All display changes are synchronized with the vertical refresh of the video signal. Event times for visual events are the start of the scan signal containing the change.
Rapid Presentation and Frame Control
For most types of stimuli, the display can be changed on every vertical refresh. Stimulus scheduling can be done to achieve desired refresh count durations.
Any Resolution
You may run at any display resolution that your video card supports.
Transparency
Transparency can be used and applied to all types of visual stimuli - images, generated 2d graphics, 3d graphics, even videos.
Color Profile Control
Presentation can apply a color profile (icm) to control the color balance of your display. You can even programmatically alter the video card color calibration table at run time.
Multiple Independent Stimulus Displays
In addition to an experimenter control screen, you may have arbitrarily many stimulus displays displaying independent stimuli, depending on your hardware.
Custom Distance Units
All visual stimulus related parameters for an experiment may be specified in pixels, or in your own custom units, including visual angles.

2D Visual Stimuli  [see a demo]

Images
Load images from a variety of formats.
Text
Generate text in any installed font. Unicode is supported.
Ellipses
Generate ellipses with variable size, orientation, and color, including transparency.
Annuli
Generate annuli with variable size, orientation, and color, including transparency.
Polygons
Generate polygons with variable size, side count, line color, line width, line corner types, and fill color, including transparency.
Arbitrary Lines/Shapes/Arrows
Generate arbitrary shapes and arrows with variable lines, line width, line color, arrow head types, line corner types, line color, and fill color, including transparency.
Checker Circles
Generate checker circle graphics with variable inner radius, outer radius, ring count, slice count, and colors. The highly optimized generation code is extremely fast.
Circular Gradients
Generate circular gradients or rings with variable period, phase, and colors. The highly optimized generation code is extremely fast.
Gaussians
Generate gaussians with variable width, and colors. The highly optimized generation code is extremely fast.
Linear Gradients
Generate linear gradients or lines with variable period, phase, orientation, and colors. The highly optimized generation code is extremely fast.
Radial Gradients
Generate radial gradients or wedges with variable count, phase, and colors. The highly optimized generation code is extremely fast.
Combinations
Combine multiple graphics by masking, multiplying, averaging, adding, or min/max.
3D Visual Stimuli

Multiple 3D Objects
Display arbitrarily many 3D elements placed and oriented in space.
Camera Control
Control the camera position and direction. Create animations through the 3D space.
Lighting Control
Control lighting properties of each object, and create light sources or different types placed and oriented in 3D space.
Texture Control
Apply textures to surfaces of 3D objects.
Import 3D Models
Load and display stored 3D models.
3D Shapes
Generate planes, spheres, cylinders, cuboids, and cones.
Stereoscopic Display
Video card support can automatically produce alternating frame stereo displays from your 3D stimuli. For stereo devices with 2 inputs, you can use multiple stimulus displays to completely control the image to each eye.
Compressed Video Stimuli  [see a demo]

Multiple Formats
Display compressed video using any DirectShow compatible codecs installed on your system.
Playback Control
Seek, start, stop or pause videos at specific times or video frames.
Multiple Simultaneous Videos
Play multiple videos simultaneously, depending on hardware performance.
Detailed Logging of Frames
Optional detailed logging of video playback, including duration, frame count, or even exact times for each frame.
Speed Control
Specify video speed (without audio) by frequency, or refreshes per frame.
Size/Location Control
Control video size and screen location.
Mix with Other Stimuli
Display other 2D or 3D stimuli, and get input while videos are playing.
Custom Display
Control video display precisely including mapping to 3D objects, and using transparency.
Kinect Video Streaming
Video and depth data can be captured from the Kinect in real time and presented onscreen in resolutions up to 1280 x 960. See a video demo here.
Auditory Stimuli  [see a demo]

Multiple Sounds
Play multiple auditory stimuli at the same time. Loop auditory stimuli indefinitely.
Accurate Start Time Reporting
Sub-millisecond playback accuracy can be achieved for reported sound start times depending on hardware.
Up to 8 Speakers with Attenuation Control
Independently attenuated and route multiple channels to up to 8 speakers, depending on hardware.
Windows Volume Control
Automatically reset, or control at runtime the Windows volume setting.
Cue Events
Generate events and port output from cue events stored in the wavefile.
Simple Sound Generation
Generate Linear combinations and products of sine waves, gaussians, and lines.
Force Feedback Stimuli

DirectX Compatible Device Support
Control force motors and effects on DirectX compatible force feedback devices.
Multiple Effect Types
Use constant, ramp, periodic, or condition forces, depending on device capabilities.
Response Monitoring

Button Press Responses
Monitor button press or release responses from multiple devices at all times, even during high-rate stimuli.
Axis Positions
Programmatically access position information from joystick and mouse devices.
Multiple Mice
Simultaneously monitor and distinguish multiple mouse devices.
Multiple Keyboards
Simultaneously monitor and distinguish multiple keyboard devices.
HID Devices
Monitor and distinguish multiple mouse or keyboard-like HID USB devices.
DirectX Compatible Devices
Monitor button press responses and access axis information for DirectX Compatible controllers.
Port Devices
Interpret code events from any supported port devices as button press responses.
Sound Thresholding
Generating response events by thresholding audio input data. Audio data following events can optionally be saved to disk.
Extension Devices
Plug-ins can be written to add built-in support for responses devices that Presentation does not natively support.
Keyboard Input
Special functions allow collection of entered text, with optional automatic display, and detailed logging. (This is in addition to specific keyboard keys treated as response buttons.)
Sound Recording
Record audio input data at specified times and store to disk.
Movements as Responses
Use movement times from Kinect for response.
Speech Recognition
Treat specific verbal responses as unique response "buttons". See more at the speech recognition page.
Programmability

Presentation Control Language
Simple programming lanuage allows complete programmatic access to all Presentation features allowing arbitrarily complex experiments to be implemented.
Full Featured Editor
The built-in multi-tab editor for programming experiments includes syntax highlighting, code completion, and method call hints.
Customizable GUI
You may create a customized GUI so your research assistants, participants, or students can easily change the values of parameters within the experiment. See a video demo here.
Response Dependent Behavior
Automatic classification and pairing of stimuli and responses makes feedback easy, and programmability makes arbitrary response dependent behavior possible.
Automated Features
Set up stimulus sequences with specified timing and run them automatically. Classification and pairing of stimuli and responses can be done automatically.
Python Interfacing
The Presentation Python interface provides complete control over Presentation from your Python programs, including during the experiment. Thus, you can effectively program your experiment in Python while still using all of Presentation's features. See a video demo here.
Timing

Designed for Precision
Presentation has a great variety of features for visual and auditory stimulus delivery, response monitoring, and interfacing. Presentation is specifically designed to allow simultaneous use of all of these features while still maintaining precise stimulus delivery and accurate event logging. For example, play multiple sounds, present multiple visual stimuli changing every vertical refresh, produce synchronized port output, and monitor responses occurring any time, all at the same time. If there are any performance issues for a particular system for a demanding experiment, you can address them beforecollecting data.
Time Measurement Uncertainties
Presentation is architected from the ground up to detect system interruptions that affect the accuracy of time measurements. For all logged events, Presentation reports a system uncertainty value that reflects the accuracy of the time measurement for that event. This ensures that system interruptions or other Presentation functions do not compromise time measurement without notification. Typical uncertainty values are in the tenths of milliseconds range. Combined with knowledge of the display, audio, and response hardware timing characteristics, you can ensure accurate timing of your experiment.
Data Reporting

Detailed Logging
Data files contain time and system uncertainty measures for all logged events. You control what is logged and how it is identified. In addition to analysis, you can use this data to ensure the accurate presentation and monitoring of your stimuli and responses on every run.
Event Classification
Automatically classify and associate stimuli and responses at run time, or use flexible post-processing features for general classification of events and computation of performance measures.
Data Formatting
Flexible post-processing features allow you to produce custom formatted data files with only the information you need for input into your analysis tools.
Custom Data Files
Programmatically write data files during an experiment to store whatever you like.
Interfacing

Port Input Monitoring
Presentation will store values and times for signals received on supported ports. Those values can be accessed during the experiment as well as saved to data files.
Event Port Output
Automatically send signals from supported ports synchronous with specified stimuli and responses.
Standard Parallel Ports
Digital I/O port control (TTL value output, and polled input), and hardware interrupt handling for built-in parallel ports.
Standard Serial Ports
Data output and input including programmatic sending and receiving of data strings.
National Instruments Devices
Digital I/O port control (TTL value output, and polled input), monitoring of pulse triggered counters, single value analog output, and programmatic analog input monitoring.
Measurement Computing Devices
Digital I/O port control (TTL value output, and polled input), and monitoring of some pulse triggered counters.
Programmatic TCP/IP
Send and receive text data programmatically to a server over TCP/IP.
Eye Tracker Interface
For eye tracking systems with a Presentation extension, receive real time eye tracking data and produce gaze dependent stimuli.
Data Port Extensions
Immediately transmit detailed event information.
Execution Options

Mobile
Run Presentation experiments on mobile devices. Create experiments in Presentation, and run them on Apple or Android devices.
Presentation IDE
The main Presentation application is used to develop and run experiments.
Package Player
The Package Player offers a simplified interface for running securely packaged experiments (see below).
Command Line and Shortcuts
The command line launcher application can be used to run experiments, or parts of experiments from the command line, scripts, or shortcuts.
Programmatic Control
The Presentation Control API allows you to load and run Presentation experiments programmatically from your own program.
Experimenter Feedback
When using multiple monitors, or during non-visual experiments, Presentation can display customizable feedback to the experimenter. Report progress, performance, or anything you like.
Experiment Management Features

Secure Packages
Presentation experiments may be packaged into a single file for distribution. Experiment control files are encrypted, and all files are validated each time the experiment is run.
Package Player
The Package Player is a simplified application for executing securely packaged experiments.
Data Encryption
Presentation can optionally encrypt experiment data files, including programmatically written text files. Graphical and command line decryption utilities are installed with Presentation.
Automatic FTP Upload
Presentation can automatically upload all data files produced during an experiment to your FTP server.
Experiment Licensing
An experiment license allows the execution of one experiment at a time on an unlimited number of computers connected to the internet. The licensed experiment can be switched at any time during the duration of the license.
Extensibility

Extensions
Presentation extensions are "plug-ins" which add functionality to Presentation. Some Presentation extensions are available from 3rd parties, such as device manufacturers. In addition, anyone can write a Presentation extension using the Presentation SDK. Presentation can interface with several types of extensions described in this section.
Response Device Extensions
This type of extension adds built-in support for response devices that Presentation does not natively support.
PCL Extensions
This type of extension adds custom data types to the Presentation Control Language (PCL). This allows completely customized interfaces to external software or hardware.
Workspace Extensions
This type of extension implements a generalized interface to external software. It allows sending commands to external software and the importation of graphic or sound data into Presentation at run time.
Workspace Extension for Matlab
The workspace extension for Matlab allows running arbitrary commands or scripts in the Matlab engine, and importing graphic or sound data into Presentation at run time. This extension is also open source.
Eye Tracker Extensions
This type of extension provides access to eye tracker data at run time, and interaction with the eye tracking system.