Getting Started with DongleControl Projector

DongleControl Projector is presentation software built for churches. It uses a staging system — you preview every slide before your congregation sees it. No surprises on Sunday morning.

Download & Install

  1. Head to donglecontrol.com/downloads and grab the installer for your platform (macOS, Windows, or Linux)
  2. Run the installer — no special permissions or dependencies needed
  3. Launch DongleControl Projector

First Launch

When you open the app for the first time, you’ll see the three-panel layout:

PanelPurpose
Left — ThumbnailsYour slides listed as clickable thumbnails
Middle — Staged PreviewLarge preview of the slide you’re about to show (yellow border)
Right — Live OutputWhat your congregation currently sees (green indicator)

The middle panel shows what’s staged (only you see it). The right panel shows what’s live (on the projector).

Set Up Your Library

Your library root is the folder where DongleControl looks for presentations, images, and media files.

  1. Open Settings (gear icon)
  2. Set your Library Root to a folder on your computer (e.g., Documents/Church Media)
  3. DongleControl will scan this folder for supported files

Create Your First Event

  1. Click the + button in the toolbar to add sections to your service
  2. Add a Scripture section — search for a verse and it becomes slides automatically
  3. Add an Image section — drop in your welcome slides or announcement graphics
  4. Arrange sections in your service order by dragging them

The Staging Workflow

This is the core of DongleControl:

  1. Click a slide in the thumbnail list — it appears in the staged preview (yellow border)
  2. Press Space — the staged slide goes live to the projector (green indicator)
  3. Press ↓ to advance to the next slide, ↑ to go back
  4. Press Space again to send the new slide live
  5. Press Esc to clear the projector (black screen)

That’s it. Stage → Preview → Go Live. Navigate with ↑ ↓, send live with Space. Your congregation never sees anything you didn’t intend.

Pro tip: If you press Space when the staged slide is already live, DongleControl automatically stages the next slide (or jumps to the next section). So you can run an entire service just by pressing Space repeatedly.

Next Steps