The G-Scribe is a graphics software designed for creating and managing visual content for various applications. The software offers a user-friendly interface and a wide range of tools for creating graphics, text, and animations. It also enables users to import and manage media files, creating a complete solution for visual content creation and management.
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Copyright © 2007 Harris Canada Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.
Harris Canada Systems, Inc., 26 Peppler Street, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada N2J 3C4
SOFTWARE LICENSE AGREEMENT
1. NOTICE.
THIS IS A CONTRACT. BY INDICATING YOUR ACCEPTANCE BELOW, YOU ACCEPT ALL THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF THIS AGREEMENT. IF
YOU DO NOT AGREE WITH THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF THIS AGREEMENT, DECLINE WHERE INSTRUCTED, AND YOU WILL NOT BE ABLE
TO USE THE SOFTWARE. Harris Canada Systems, Inc. IS WILLING TO LICENSE THIS SOFTWARE TO YOU ONLY ON THE CONDITION THAT YOU
ACCEPT ALL OF THE TERMS CONTAINED IN THIS LICENSE AGREEMENT.
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This is a license agreement and NOT an agreement for sale. We continue to own the copy of the software installed by this program and any other copy that you are authorized by this Agreement to make (the "Software"). Your rights to use the Software are specified in this Agreement, and we retain all rights not expressly granted to you in this Agreement. Nothing in this Agreement constitutes a waiver of our rights under any copyright law or any other law.
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Introducing G-Scribe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Set Up Your System for G-Scribe Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
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G-Scribe Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
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Animation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 263
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3D FlyBy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 321
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Sequencer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 389
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Frame Grab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 445
Media Store . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 459
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Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 597
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Glossary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 625
Technical Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 686
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Inscriber ® G-Scribe ™ is a powerful software program that consists of a suite of broadcast quality graphic and output tools. Use G-Scribe to create, animate, manage, and output your on-screen layouts. The flexibility of
G-Scribe allows you to use the software tools in a way that fits your specific work environment.
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Figure 1-1. CG Tool Open in G-Scribe
The G-Scribe tools work together to provide a complete graphics solution.
See the following table for details on the tools.
Table 1-1. G-Scribe Tools
G-Scribe Tool Description
CG Creates still, roll, and crawl layouts for video output. Use the extensive text effects to create unlimited custom looks for your layouts.
for details.
Table 1-1. G-Scribe Tools
G-Scribe Tool Description
Animation Editor Animates elements of your CG layout. Apply preset filters and effects to your objects and create templates to assign standard motion to all your layouts.
for details.
3D FlyBy Imports scenes from 3D software packages, like Maya, where you can add titles and graphics that fly with your surfaces as the scene plays in real-time from G-Scribe.
for details.
Sequencer
Media Store
Manages the playlist, applies transitions, and assigns output triggers. Use the flexible output options to take a single event or to output an entire playlist.
See ”Sequencer” on page 389 for details.
Creates a database of media files so you can organize your media by show, time scheduling, subject, or any other category. Includes extensive search functionality so you can quickly find media files and output layouts in real-time.
for details.
Frame Grab
Paint (option)
Captures a single frame from an incoming video signal and saves it as a still image. You can apply video filters to your frame grab to quickly improve the image quality.
for details.
Creates and edits images while maintaining alpha information. Use the layers to quickly composite images for professional on-screen graphics.
for details.
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The Clip option and G-Scribe utilities provide additional functionality to your software program. See the following table for a description of G-Scribe’s additional functionality.
Table 1-2. G-Scribe Features
Feature Description
Clip option A purchase option that supports clip playback in G-Scribe.
You can play clips as full-screen layouts or as moving textures on CG objects. The Clip option also allows you to import media objects to a layout and then animate the objects in the Animation Editor.
See ”Clip Objects” on page 165 to get started with clips.
Other video clip functionality is discussed throughout the
CG chapter.
Strata
Compositing
A G-Scribe utility that allows unlimited layers per channel and each layer can support stills, graphics, videos, text and animations.
Open Strata by selecting Start > All Programs > Harris >
Inscriber Strata Utility > Inscriber Strata Utility.
See ”Strata Configuration Utility” on page 101 for more
details.
Overlay A G-Scribe utility that allows you to easily insert and hide clocks, timers, still or animated logos, bugs, channel IDs, lower thirds, and more. You can control three additional layers of graphics on top of your current output in the
Overlay utility.
Open Overlay by selecting Tools > Overlay.
See ”Overlay” on page 91 for more details.
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Table 1-2. G-Scribe Features
Feature Description
ViaBuilder A G-Scribe utility that creates animations from a series of individual animation frames created with an external animation program. When exporting your animation, save the frames as 32-bit .tga files and ViaBuilder will maintain the animation’s alpha. Import .via animations into G-Scribe to use in your CG layouts as media objects or moving textures.
Open ViaBuilder by selecting Start > All Programs > Harris
> G-Scribe > Utilities > ViaBuilder.
For information on using ViaBuilder, select Help > Contents in the ViaBuilder utility.
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G-Scribe allows you to save individual layouts or entire playlists as a single file optimized for video output.
Any image, video, and font files used in your layouts are saved as referenced files. When you save your working files in G-Scribe the path to any image or video files is saved, rather than a copy of the image or font file. Since G-Scribe uses referenced files, it is important that you setup your system properly before you start creating playlists and layouts in G-Scribe.
Setup your system before you start working in G-Scribe to ensure that transferring G-Scribe layouts or playlist files to another system is easy. Since
G-Scribe references all image and video files used in your layout, you should save all of your resources in a central folder on your D:\ drive. If you move the file to another system, you must place the folder on a drive with the same letter
(in this case the D:\ drive).
1 Use My Computer or Windows Explorer to navigate to the D:\ drive on your G-Scribe system.
2 Select File > New > Folder to add a new folder to your D:\ drive. You should store all your image and media files used in your layouts in the new folder.
3 Give the folder a meaningful name, like GScribeLayoutFiles. When you start working in G-Scribe you should save all your resource files in this folder.
If you setup your system with a central folder for storing all of your layouts, playlists, image files, and media files you ensure that transferring layouts to other systems is easy.
The following graphic displays a sample central folder located on the system
D:\ drive.
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Figure 1-2. Sample Central Work Folder
If you reference media files from various locations on your system rather than from a central folder, it becomes difficult to ensure all of your referenced files will transfer with your layout or playlist.
Transfer Your Central Folder to a New System
To move the central folder, complete the following steps.
1 Navigate to your central G-Scribe resource folder located on your D:\ drive.
In the previous example, you would navigate to D:\GScribeLayoutFiles.
2 Right-click on the folder and select Copy.
3 Navigate across your local network to the new system.
4 Open the D:\ drive on the new system.
5 Select Edit > Paste.
You must place the folder on a drive with the same letter as your original system—in this example, drive D:\.
After you place the folder on the D:\ drive of the new system, open the layout or playlist in G-Scribe. All referenced files should display properly.
Note:
You can also transfer the folder using a CD-ROM or jump drive by placing the copied working folder on the external device. Then you can move the folder from the CD-ROM or jump drive to the new system.
You can save individual layouts, or save the entire playlist.
Save Individual Layouts
You can save individual layout files as .scribe files.
To save your layout as a .scribe file, select File > Export > Export CG Layout from the CG module. The layout saves with a .scribe file extension.
The .scribe file is your working layout file. Generally you will save all of your layouts as .scribe files, which include the following features.
• Saves all of your layout information.
• Saves a referenced file path to any media and font files used in the layout.
• Contains animation data.
Note:
In 3D FlyBy, you can save your surfaces in the 3D Surface Editor as
.scribe files. The file contains the surface objects and dimensions.
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Save the Playlist
You can save your entire playlist as a .scribelist file.
To save your playlist as a .scribelist file, select File > Save from any G-Scribe tool. The playlist saves with a .scribelist file extension.
The .scribelist file is your working playlist file. Generally you will save all your playlists as .scribelist files, which include the following features.
• Saves all of your playlist information, including the information for each layout in your playlist.
• Saves all output information set in Sequencer.
• Saves a referenced file path to any media and font files used in the playlist.
• Contains animation data.
You can open legacy .icg and .ins files in G-Scribe. Once you open the file in
G-Scribe, save the file with the .scribe or .scribelist extension.
Note the following limitations of legacy files.
• Legacy clock layouts will convert to a still layout.
• Text colors may look a bit different.
• With the improved accuracy of text placement, you might notice subpixel shifting.
• Legacy draw panels are not support in G-Scribe layouts.
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As you work in different G-Scribe tools, the general layout of your workspace remains the same, making it easy to learn G-Scribe operations. Every G-Scribe tool includes the toolbars, the playlist, the
Program/Preview palette, Attributes palette, and the Scrapbook. As you switch from one G-Scribe tool to the next, the options remain in the same location on your computer screen.
Playlist Main toolbar
Program/Preview palette Attributes tabs Scrapbook
Figure 1-3. G-Scribe Workspace
The toolbars provide shortcuts to G-Scribe actions. You have access to the Main toolbar from every G-Scribe tool. CG, Sequencer, and Media Store also have toolbars that allow you to perform actions specific to that tool.
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The Main toolbar is available in all G-Scribe tools and allows you to perform common Windows tasks, as well as switch between the G-Scribe tools.
New Save Copy Undo CG
Media Store
Frame Grab
3D FlyBy
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Open Cut Paste Redo
Sequencer Paint (option)
Animation Editor
Help
Figure 1-4. Main Toolbar Buttons
For a description of the Main toolbar buttons, see the following table.
Table 1-3. Main Toolbar
Button Description
New
Open
Save
Opens a new playlist.
When you click the New button you are prompted to save the current playlist. G-Scribe switches to the CG tool when you start a new playlist.
Launches the Open dialog where you can select an existing playlist (.scribelist file) to open.
When you click the Open button you are prompted to save the current playlist. G-Scribe switches to the CG tool when you open a playlist.
Opens the Save As dialog where you can save the current playlist to your central working folder, or in another location.
See ”Make Transferring Layouts Easy” on page 26 for details
on working folders.
Table 1-3. Main Toolbar
Button Description
Cut
Copy
Paste
Makes a copy of the selected object and removes the object from the workspace. You can paste the object in your workspace.
Available for CG, Animation Editor, and Paint.
Makes a duplicate of the selected object, leaving the original object in the workspace. You can paste the duplicated object in the workspace.
Available for CG, Animation Editor, and Paint.
Places the cut or copied object into your workspace.
Available for CG, Animation Editor, and Paint.
Cancels the last action you made.
Undo
Redo
CG
Recreates the canceled action.
Switches to the CG tool.
To switch to the CG tool, you can also select Tools > CG or press the F6 key.
Sequencer Switches to the Sequencer tool.
To switch to the Sequencer tool, you can also select Tools >
Sequencer or press the F11 key.
Media Store Switches to the Media Store tool.
To switch to the Media Store tool, you can also select Tools
> Media Store or press the F9 key.
Animation
Editor
Switches to the Animation Editor.
To switch to the Animation Editor, you can also select Tools
> Animation Editor or press the SHIFT+F6.
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Table 1-3. Main Toolbar
Button Description
Frame Grab Switches to the Frame Grab tool.
To switch to the Frame Grab tool, you can also select Tools
> Frame Grab or press the F7 key.
Paint
(option)
3D FlyBy
Switches to the Paint tool.
To switch to the Paint tool, you can also select Tools > Paint or press the F8 key.
Switches to the 3D FlyBy tool. This button is unavailable until you import your external 3D animation from the CG tool (File > Import > Import 3D Animation).
To switch to the 3D FlyBy tool, you can also select Tools >
3D FlyBy.
Help Opens the G-Scribe online help where you can quickly access specific help topics and reference information.
The playlist contains a series of layouts that you can sequence for output. You can access the playlist layouts in every G-Scribe tool.
The following table describes how each G-Scribe tool uses the playlist.
Table 1-4. Playlist Functionality
G-Scribe Tool Playlist Function
CG Use CG to create layouts and place the layouts in the playlist. Select an empty slot in the playlist, and then create a layout in the CG work area. Your current layout fills the selected slot in the playlist.
Selecting a new slot clears your CG work area and allows you to add a new layout to the playlist.
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Table 1-4. Playlist Functionality
G-Scribe Tool Playlist Function
Sequencer Use Sequencer to group playlist layouts and apply separate triggers for each group of layouts if necessary.
The Sequencer options also allow you to apply a duration and transition to playlist layouts.
Once you setup your output controls, you can use the options in Sequencer to run the playlist.
Animation Editor Use the Animation Editor to animate the CG layouts in the playlist. After adding an animation layout to the playlist in CG, you can switch to the Animation Editor and add motion effects to the layout objects.
3D FlyBy Use 3D FlyBy to place imported scenes from external 3D software programs into the selected slot in the playlist.
Select a new slot to import another animation to your playlist.
Media Store Use Media Store to place media from your Media Store databases, your G-Scribe system, or your computer network directly in the playlist as a full-screen layout.
Paint (option)
Frame Grab
The Paint tool does not work directly with playlist.
You can transfer the Paint layout to CG using the
Scrapbook. See ”How Do I Use the Scrapbook?” on page 35
for details.
The Frame Grab tool does not work directly with the playlist.
You can output the frame directly from Frame Grab, or transfer the grabbed frame to CG using the Scrapbook.
See ”How Do I Use the Scrapbook?” on page 35 for
details.
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The playlist uses drag and drop functionality, which allows you rearrange layouts by dragging them to a new location in the list. The options located directly below the playlist allow you to control the placement of layouts and provide options to output your layouts.
See
”Create a Playlist” on page 396
and
”Edit Playlist Options” on page 397
for more details.
The Program/Preview palette allows you to preview your layouts and to view the current layout playing on the program channel. When you output the playlist, the Preview palette displays an image of the next layout, and the Program palette displays an image of the current layout on the program channel.
Preview/Play Single Layouts
You can take an individual layout by dragging the layout to the palette.
• To play a layout immediately on the program channel, drag the layout from the playlist to the Program palette.
• To preview a layout immediately on the preview channel, drag the layout from the playlist to the Preview palette.
Clear the Preview/Program Channel
Use the Program/Preview palette to clear the contents of the program or preview channel.
• To clear the program channel, press the CLR button above the Program palette.
• To clear the preview channel, press the CLR button above the Preview palette.
Clear preview channel.
Clear program channel.
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Figure 1-5. Clear Program and Preview Channels
Dual Channel Systems
If you have a dual channel system, the Program/Preview palette controls the two program channels.
You can use the Channel buttons on the Program palette to assign the selected layout to a channel.
Use buttons to select channel.
Figure 1-6. Program Palette with Dual Channel System
The Attributes palette is available at the bottom of the workspace and includes options for the current G-Scribe tool.
Use the options on the Attributes palette to edit the selected object in the workspace and to apply options specific to the current G-Scribe tool.
The Scrapbook is temporary holding place for layouts, frame grabs, styles, library items, and other G-Scribe elements. Use the Scrapbook to transfer objects between G-Scribe tools, or to transfer layout styles and elements between CG layouts.
Scrapbook Options
Right-click on the Scrapbook to view the Scrapbook menu. The available menu options change depending on the selected object and the G-Scribe tool you are working in.
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Table 1-5. Scrapbook Menu
Option Function
Add
Use
Copies the selected item and places it in the Scrapbook.
Available in Paint and Media Store.
• Paint: Places the selected Scrapbook item in the workspace.
• Media Store: Opens the Build Media Store dialog where you can add the item to a media database.
Use
Background
Available in CG.
Copies the selected item to the background layer of the current layout, replacing the existing background.
If you cannot see the background:
1 Right-click on the CG workspace and select Change
Background.
2 In the Set Background dialog, decrease the values in the
Transparency fields.
Use Texture Available in CG.
Places an image of the selected Scrapbook item on the selected graphic object.
1 Select the graphic object in the CG workspace.
2 Select Use Texture from the Scrapbook right-click menu.
Use Layout/
Title
Available in CG when the selected Scrapbook item is a layout.
Replaces the current layout with the selected Scrapbook layout.
Table 1-5. Scrapbook Menu
Option Function
Use Logo
Delete
Clear All
Copy to
Clipboard
Paste from
Clipboard
Info
Available in CG.
Fills the selected logo object in CG with the Scrapbook item.
The current logo object is replaced by the Scrapbook item.
1 Select the logo object in the CG workspace, or use the
Logo tool to draw a logo object.
2 Select the Use Logo from the Scrapbook right-click menu.
Removes the selected item from the Scrapbook.
Removes all items from the Scrapbook.
Copies the selected item to the Windows clipboard.
Adds the item on the Windows clipboard to the Scrapbook.
Opens the Scrapbook dialog that displays the disk space used by the Scrapbook and the number of Scrapbook items.
Save the Scrapbook Contents
When you close G-Scribe, by default the items in the Scrapbook are not saved.
Every time you open G-Scribe, the Scrapbook is emptied.
To save Scrapbook items when you close the program:
1 Open the inscribe.ini file located in your G-Scribe program folder.
2 Add the following lines to the inscribe.ini file.
[Scrapbook]
ClearOnBoot=FALSE
MaxSize=250000000
MaxFileSize=200
3 Save the inscribe.ini file.
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Save Individual Scrapbook Items
G-Scribe also includes a setting to save individual Scrapbook items. The item is saved to disk as an Inscriber .vii file.
1 Open the Preferences dialog (File > Preferences).
2 On the Project tab, select the Write Scrapbook Items to Disk option.
3 Click OK to apply the setting and close the Preferences dialog.
4 Close the G-Scribe application so the setting is applied.
5 Open the G-Scribe application again.
6 Add items to the Scrapbook.
7 To save an individual Scrapbook item, right-click on the Scrapbook and select a Use option. The Save As dialog opens where you can save the
Scrapbook item as an Inscriber .vii file.
Before you start using the G-Scribe program, you should set up your preview channel, program channel, and make sure you have the right settings in the XD-200 Control Panel.
The available preview options depend on your system setup.
Set Up VGA Preview
To use a VGA preview, you need to connect your second monitor to your system and set up your preview in Windows.
1 Turn off your system.
2 Connect the second monitor to the DVI on the back of the system.
Connect second monitor to DVI for VGA preview.
Figure 1-7. Connect Monitor to DVI
3 Restart the system.
4 On the Windows desktop, right-click and select Properties.
5 In the Display Properties dialog, switch to the Settings tab.
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6 If necessary, position the 1 and 2 monitor icons to match the following image.
Figure 1-8. Position Monitor Icons
7 Select the 2 monitor icon.
8 Select the Extend My Windows Desktop onto this Monitor checkbox.
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9 Click Apply.
Figure 1-9. Extend Windows Desktop
10 Click the Advanced button. The NVIDIA options open.
11 Click the Start NVIDIA Control Panel button.
Figure 1-10. Start NVIDIA Control Panel
12 In the NVIDIA Control Panel, make sure the Advanced View is selected.
Figure 1-11. Select Advanced View
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13 Click the 3D Settings option. The 3D Settings display.
14 In the Appearance section, click the Manage 3D Settings option.
Figure 1-12. Select Manage 3D Settings
15 Select Custom from the Global Presets list.
16 Select the appropriate option from the Feature list.
• If you have a Quadro FX 1500/4500, select the Hardware Acceleration feature, and then select Single Display Performance Mode as the setting.
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Figure 1-13. Quadro FX 1500/4500 Option
• If you have a Quadro FX 4600, select the Multi-Display/Mixed GPU
Acceleration feature, and then select Single Display Performance Mode as the setting.
Figure 1-14. Quadro FX 4600 Option
17 Click Apply to save the settings.
18 Restart your system.
Configure VGA Preview
After you set up your VGA preview, you can configure your preview settings in the XD-200 Control Panel.
1 Open the XD-200 Control Panel (Start > Programs > Harris > GScribe >
Configuration Utilities > Phoenix Control Panel).
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2 Near the top of the window, click the Preview Control Panel button.
Figure 1-15. Click the Preview Control Panel Button
3 Use the options in the Preview Configuration window to set the resolution of your preview device.
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Figure 1-16. Preview Configuration Window
4 Click Apply to apply the changes.
5 Click Back to close the window and return to the XD-200 Control Panel.
6 Click the Close button in the XD-200 Control Panel.
Dual Channel G1 and G3 Systems
Dual channel G1 and G3 systems allow you to use the second XD-200 video board for your preview output if you are not using both boards as a program channel.
Dual channel system.
Figure 1-17. Two XD-200 Boards
1 To set one board for preview, open the Strata Compositing utility (Start >
All Programs > Harris > Inscriber Strata Configuration Utility > Inscriber
Strata Configuration Utility).
2 Click Next on the first and second screens, until the Assign Outputs screen displays.
3 Select the board you want to use for output.
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4 From the Designation drop-down list beside the board, select Preview.
Figure 1-18. Strata Utility Preview Setup
5 Click Next through the remaining screens to apply the setup.
G-Scribe Offline Systems
No preview is available for G-Scribe Offline.
The available options for your program channel depend on your system setup.
Single Channel Systems
Single channel G1 and G3 systems include one XD-200 video board for your program output.
Dual Channel Systems
Dual channel G1 and G3 systems include two XD-200 video boards. You can set one of the XD-200 cards as your primary program channel.
1 To set one of the XD-200 boards as the primary program channel, open the XD-200 Control Panel (Start > All Programs > Harris > G-Scribe >
Configuration Utilities > Phoenix Control Panel).
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The two cards are listed in the Detected Video Cards list. The first card is the primary program channel.
2 To switch the cards, so the second card becomes the primary program channel, click the Swap Cards button.
Figure 1-19. Switch Primary Program Channel with Swap Cards Button
G-Scribe Offline Systems
The Desktop Video is available to view output for G-Scribe Offline systems.
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G-Scribe can output both Standard Definition (SD) and High Definition (HD) video formats. For single channel systems you can operate in one mode at a time, either SD or HD. For dual channel systems you can operate both channels in the same mode, or you can use the HD/SD Down Conversion option in the XD-200
Control Panel to output one channel in SD and output the other channel in HD (Start > All Programs >
Harris > G-Scribe > Configuration Utilities > Phoenix Control Panel). See
for details on the Down
Conversion option.
Since SD and HD layouts have different formatting, SD layouts cannot be used when working in an HD program output, and vice versa. In order to use SD layouts in an HD program, the SD layout must be converted to match the HD format prior to creating the program output. The same is true if you want to use
HD layouts in an SD program output.
Native Resolution and Frame Rate are two important criteria to consider when converting between SD and HD formats.
refers to the resolution at which a TV or monitor is designed to display images. Image signals higher or lower than a specified native resolution must be converted to be displayed accurately. For example, the native resolution of an SD image is 720x480 and must be upconverted to display on an HD monitor, which has a native resolution of 1920x1080 or
1280x720.
Although G-Scribe outputs SD in both 4:3 and 16:9 aspect ratios, the native resolution is the same; 720x480. When the lower resolution SD image is upconverted to match an HD format (1920x1080 or 1280x720), some of the sharpness of the original image is lost as the pixels are increased in size, not in number, to fit the larger display. In contrast, downconverting from HD to SD results in a sharper image quality as more pixels fill a smaller display.
It is good practise to start with a larger 1920x1080 image and scale it down to
720x480, rather than scale up a smaller image.
refers to the number of frames per second (fps) that are displayed on a TV or monitor. The frame rate is 30 fps (NTSC) and 25 fps (PAL). There are two output displays available:
• Interlaced - SD 720x480 (480i NTSC), SD 720x576 (576i PAL), and HD
1920x1080 (1080i).
• Progressive Scan - HD 1280x720 (720p).
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In Interlaced, a frame is divided into two fields, with each field containing half the number of scanning lines of a complete frame. For NTSC, the second field is scanned 1/60th of a second after the first field; for PAL, the second field is scanned 1/50th of a second after the first field. These two fields are displayed in rapid succession on a TV or monitor. In progressive scan, the complete frame is scanned every 30 fps (NTSC) and 25 fps (PAL).
Interlaced is the most common output for HD (1080i), as it has higher native resolution. However, progressive scan (720p) provides better picture quality when editing with filters and effects that affect motion, including rotating a frame or compositing live-action video with special effects.
You should create archives of all your SD and HD Inscriber layouts before conversion. You might need to edit the layouts for aesthetic quality when converting between the 4:3 SD aspect ratio and the 16:9 HD aspect ratio.
Select how your graphic elements are scaled when you convert layouts from SD to HD.
1 In your Inscriber HD product, select File > Preferences.
2 Switch to the Character Generator tab.
3 Select one of the following Scale Types: Letterbox, Crop, or Size-To-Fit.
• Letterbox: SD (4:3) to HD (16:9). Scales and centers the SD image to fill the height of the new workspace without changing the 4:3 aspect ratio. This results in black bars on the left and right of the SD image in the HD frame.
• Crop: SD (4:3) to HD (16:9). Scales and centers the SD image to fill the width of the new workspace without changing the 4:3 aspect ratio. This results in cropping the top and bottom of the SD image in the HD frame.
• Size-To-Fit: SD (4:3) to HD (16:9). Scales the SD image to fit the new workspace by pulling or stretching the image to fill the HD frame. This results in a slightly distorted image.
• Size-To-Fit: SD (16:9) to HD (16:9). Scales the SD image to fit the new workspace by zooming the image to fill the HD frame without changing the aspect ratio. This results in a slightly lower quality image as the pixels increase in size to match the larger frame.
4 Click OK to save your preferences and close the dialog.
5 Open your SD template or playlist. A message indicates that the file will be converted, and then displays the progress.
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6 When the conversion is complete, save the new HD template or playlist. If required resave using another name to distinguish the HD file from the SD file.
The template files (.scribe) are editable, and the graphic elements within are scaled individually when converted from the 4:3 SD aspect ratio to the 16:9 HD aspect ratio. Where an element is a vector graphic, the scaling is seamless.
Where an element is a raster graphic such as a bitmap, the scaling may be subject to certain limitations imposed by the nature of raster graphics. A playlist file (.scribelist) is composed of raster graphics and may be subject to the same limitations.
Some graphic design elements are known to be unsuitable when converted from
SD to HD.
• Rendered video clips (Via file) are not resized on conversion between SD and HD.
• An SD Via file is too small and is in the wrong position in the HD monitor.
• An HD Via file is too large and is in the wrong position in the SD monitor. It will only display on the top left corner of the monitor.
• Active texture used on characters or draw objects is not resized on conversion from SD to HD. The active texture may not be visible on the character or object in the HD graphic.
• SD bitmaps used as backgrounds for HD output are distorted or
“stretched” to fit the monitor.
• SD bitmaps mapped onto graphics are resized to fit the HD monitor, but the results are grainy.
If you intend to use both SD and HD templates, you should maintain a set in both formats if you use a lot of raster graphics and you find results of conversion unsuitable.
If you are working exclusively with SD, consider creating all your layouts in the
SD 16:9 aspect ratio, as this will make the transition easier should you upgrade to an SD/HD switchable system in the future. Working in SD 16:9 allows you to see how your layouts work in the HD world.
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The XD-200 Control Panel lets you configure standard definition and high definition SDI inputs and outputs and reference source. The XD-200 Control Panel displays the status associated with different configurations and allows you to view a test pattern to ensure your configuration is working properly.
You can use the XD-200 Control Panel, to configure up to two XD-200 boards.
The control panel allows you to save multiple configurations for each board.
These steps outline the basic steps for using the XD-200 Control Panel. See the following topics for details on specific tasks.
1 Open the XD-200 Control Panel (Start > All Programs > Harris >
G-Scribe > Configuration Utilities > Phoenix Control Panel).
2 To configure a video card, select a video card in the Detected Video Cards list. Information about the selected card displays in the Video Card Details section.
Figure 1-20. XD-200 Control Panel
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3 View information about your Inscriber applications and the current signal status in the General Details section.
4 Click the Input/Output button to set your broadcast standard (High Definition or Standard Definition).
5 Click the Reference In/Mixer button to set the genlock source, mixer mode, and keying settings for the video card.
6 Click the Audio button to set your audio input, mixer, and output settings.
7 Click the Test Pattern button to select and output a test pattern.
8 To save the current settings, click the Saved Configuration button.
9 Enter a name for the configuration in the Save Configuration As field.
10 Click the Save button.
11 To open a saved configuration, click the Saved Configuration button.
12 Select a configuration from the Current Configuration list.
13 Click the Load button.
You can create, save, and switch between different video card configurations.
1 Select a video card in the Detected Video Cards list.
2 Use the buttons below the Video Card Details section to configure the video card.
• General Details: view information about your Inscriber and InfoCaster applications and the current signal status.
• Input/Output: set your broadcast standard (High Definition or Standard
Definition).
• Reference In/Mixer: set the genlock source, mixer mode, and keying settings for the video card.
• Audio: set your audio input, mixer, and output settings.
• Test Pattern: select and output a test pattern.
3 Click the Saved Configuration button.
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4 Type in a name for your configuration in the Save Configuration As field.
Figure 1-21. Save a Configuration
5 Click Save beside the Save Configuration As field to save the current configuration.
6 To open a saved configuration, click the Saved Configuration button.
7 Select a configuration from the Current Configuration list.
8 Click the Load button.
You can view which Inscriber applications are installed on your system, which applications are currently running and the status of the selected video card and reference signals.
1 Select a video card in the Detected Video Cards list. The Detected Video
Cards list displays the status of the reference signal.
• Green: Signal is genlocked to the source.
• Yellow: Signal is present.
• N/A (gray): Signal is not available.
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2 Click the General Details button.
• The Inscriber applications that are currently running are listed in the
Running Applications window.
• The Signal Status window displays the status of video input, bypass relays and the output signal for both fill and key channels.
You can select your broadcast standard (High Definition or Standard
Definition) and set whether the card will be used for input and output, or for output only.
1 Select a video card in the Detected Video Cards list.
2 Click the Input/Output button.
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Figure 1-22. Input/Output Configuration Options
3 In the Configuration section, select your configuration options. See the following table for details.
Table 1-6. Configuration Options
Option Description
Configure for Both Input and Output
Configures the XD-200 for both input and output functions.
Use Key Input for Live DVE of Frame Grab
Sets the key input for the live DVE or frame grab operations. This option is available for
SD only.
This checkbox is available when you select the above option.
Configures the XD-200 for output only.
No Input Required, Only
Output
Enable Ancillary Data
Input/Output
Enable Timecode Input
In SD, allows your Inscriber application to read/write video data to lines 17-20 on both fields. This option is NTSC specific and has no effect in PAL.
In HD, reads/writes vertical ancillary data packets from/to the SDI video stream.
Sets your Inscriber application to read the timecode from the XD-200. If you do not have a timecode signal connected to the card, make sure the checkbox is cleared.
In the Video Cards list colored indicators mark your timecode status.
An orange light indicates that timecode is present but not enabled. A green light indicates a valid timecode.
4 In the Input/Output Standard section select whether the video card will broadcast in High Definition or Standard Definition.
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5 Select the video display standard in your environment from the Display
Standards drop-down list.
6 Select the Use HD/SD Downconversion checkbox to generate your CG content in HD, and have your system output both HD and SD feeds.
Note the following configuration points.
• Optimal configuration is to have an HD video feed going into the first board and an SD video feed going into the second board.
• Both feeds must be genlocked.
• The two feeds must have the exact same frame rate. For example, 1080i
29.97 & NTSC, or 1080i 25 & PAL, or 720p 59.94 & NTSC, or 720p 50
& PAL.
HD/SD downconversion configures G-Scribe for single channel HD (to match board 1). Any graphics that play out through G-Scribe are output in
HD on board 1 and simultaneously resized and output in SD on board 2.
To determine how the graphics are resized select an option from the
Downconversion Mode drop-down list.
• Anamorphic: Resizes the graphics horizontally so all pixels are still visible in the SD feed.
• Center Cut: Displays the center portion of the graphic without displaying the left or right sides.
• Letterbox: Scales the graphic so the 16:9 aspect ratio is maintained.
Bars are placed at the top and bottom of the screen to maintain the ratio.
7 Select the Bypass checkbox if you want to send the input video through to output without compositing any graphics.
8 In the Memory Tuning section, use the DCM phase shift value to control the phase of the signal that the FPGA uses to communicate with the DDR memory. In most cases a value between 350 - 400 is appropriate.
Note:
Generally, you will not need to adjust the default value. However, if you notice vertical lines across your output try applying a new number.
9 Set the horizontal and vertical timing for the video input.
• Enter a horizontal timing value in the Horizontal Delay field. The value is measured in microseconds, where 1 is approximately 1 microsecond.
• Enter a vertical timing value in the Vertical Delay field. The value is measured in lines, where 1 is approximately 1 line.
10 Click the Apply Changes button to apply the settings to the current configuration.
Synchronize your devices by selecting your genlock source and a backup reference sequence for synchronization.
The Detected Video Cards list at the top of the control panel displays the status of the reference signal.
• Green: Signal is genlocked to the source.
• Yellow: Signal is present.
• N/A (gray): Signal is not available.
1 Select a video card in the Detected Video Cards list.
2 Click the Reference In/Mixer button.
Figure 1-23. Reference In/Mixer Configuration Options
3 In the Reference In Settings section, select the genlock source in your environment: SDI Input 1, SDI Input 2, Tri-Level, Bi-Level, or Free Run.
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Note:
SDI Input 1 refers to the fill input, marked SDI IN on the back of the system.
SDI Input 2 refers to the key input, marked SDI KEY IN on the back of the system.
4 Select one of the following options in the Reference In Settings section to set the reference sequence for synchronization if a reference sequence fails.
For example, if you select Reference In > Input > Free Run and the
Reference In fails the XD-200 falls back to the live input, and if the live input fails the XD-200 falls back to free run mode.
Note:
Depending on your configuration, some options may not be available.
5 Determine how to handle the output of a restored signal by selecting one of the following options.
• Maintain the Fallback as Reference: Sets the XD-200 to continue to output the fallback reference in after the signal is restored.
If the XD-200 falls back to free run during signal loss, when the signal is restored you may notice a glitch in the output. To avoid any disruption in output, you can select this option and continue using the fallback reference in.
• Revert Back to the Original Signal: Sets the XD-200 to output the original reference source when the signal is restored.
6 Click the Apply Changes button to apply the settings to the current configuration.
Set the mixer output and downstream keying type.
1 Select a video card in the Detected Video Cards list.
2 Click the Reference In/Mixer button.
3 In the Mixer Settings section, select the mixer standard for your environment.
• Select Live Input to output the video signal only for testing or frame grabs.
• Select Mix Over Live Input to output mixed video and graphics for pass through keying (internal key).
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• Select Graphics Only to output a key and fill signal for downstream keying (external key).
4 In the Downstream Keying section, configure the output fill channel by selecting either the Shaped or Unshaped option.
Overall performance is better when Shaped is selected. You should only select the Unshaped option if you use an older keyer that only accepts unshaped input.
5 Click the Apply Changes button to apply the settings to the current configuration.
Use the Audio button to access the audio options for the XD-200 where you can configure your audio settings.
When you select an option in the Input, Mixer, or Output section details are provided in the description box near the bottom of the control panel.
1 Select a video card in the Detected Video Cards list.
2 Click the Audio button.
Figure 1-24. Audio Configuration Options
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3 In the Input section, use the options to select where you are receiving the audio: Discrete AES input or Embedded input.
4 To capture incoming discrete or embedded audio from the XD-200, select the Enable Audio Capture checkbox. Depending on the capabilities of your capture application, you can route this audio through Phoenix or capture it to disk.
5 Select the Secondary Input Mix Mode checkbox to mix all audio inputs and output them on audio output 1.
For example, if your system is configured with 4 stereo pairs, stereo inputs
2, 3, and 4 will be mixed with stereo input 1 and any program audio from the software, and then output on audio output 1.
6 In the Mixer section, select one of the following options.
• Live input only.
• Mix software audio over live input.
• Software audio only.
• No output.
7 In the Output section, use the options to setup your audio output configuration.
• Discrete AES
• Embedded + Discrete AES
• No output
8 If you have a monitor jack on the back of your XD-200, you can adjust the volume of the jack using the Monitor Level option. Decrease the value to decrease the volume.
9 View the status of your audio setting in the Embedded Audio Status and
Discrete AES Input Status sections. To check your status you can loop your input to your output.
10 Use the Channel Formatting section to select your channel setup options:
4 Stereo Pairs, 5.1 Surround + 1 Stereo Pair, or 7.1 Surround.
Note:
The Channel Formatting options are only available for HD.
11 Click the Apply Changes button to apply the settings to the current configuration.
You can select and view a test pattern to test your configuration.
1 Select a video card in the Detected Video Cards list.
2 Click the Test Pattern button.
Figure 1-25. Test Pattern Options
3 Select one of the test pattern options.
4 Click View. The test pattern you selected is sent to your output device so you can test your configuration.
5 Click Stop to stop the output of the test pattern.
You can save the current configuration settings.
1 Click the Saved Configuration button.
2 Type in a name for your configuration in the Save Configuration As field.
3 Click Save beside the Save Configuration As field to save the current configuration.
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After you have saved your XD-200 video and audio settings, you can load the configuration from the Current Configuration list.
1 To open a saved configuration, click the Saved Configuration button.
2 Select a configuration from the Current Configuration list.
3 Click the Load button.
The configuration settings load in the XD-200 Control Panel.
You can load an existing video card configuration and make changes to it.
1 To open a saved configuration, click the Saved Configuration button.
2 Select a configuration from the Current Configuration list.
3 Click the Load button.
4 Make any changes to the configuration of video cards on your system by selecting a video card in the Detected Video Cards list.
5 Use the buttons below the Video Card Details to configure the video card.
6 To save the updated configuration, click the Saved Configuration button.
7 Ensure the correct configuration name is listed in the Save Configuration
As field.
If you want to change the name of the configuration, enter a new name in the Save Configuration As field.
8 Click Save.
You can delete a video card configuration from the Phoenix Control Panel.
1 Click the Saved Configuration button.
2 Select the configuration from the Current Configuration drop-down list.
3 Click the Delete button. All of the video card's configuration settings will be removed from your system.
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To give you the playback flexibility you need, G-Scribe is equipped with several output options that are outlined in this chapter. G-Scribe includes a variety of output options that allow you to create a workflow specific to your environment. Your choice of output may impact how you work in G-Scribe. Review the playback solutions described in this section to decide how you can make G-Scribe work best for you.
The playback capabilities in G-Scribe allow you to output layouts from any
G-Scribe tool, output the playlist from Sequencer, or output using a G-Scribe utility. The following table provides an overview of the available options.
Table 2-1. G-Scribe Output Options
Output Option Description
Global Output
Sequencer Output The Sequencer output options are available in
Sequencer only, and control the output of the entire playlist.
For details see
”Sequencer Output” on page 70 .
Navigate Dialog
The global output options allow you to preview or take a layout from any G-Scribe tool (CG,
Sequencer, Media Store, Animation Editor, Frame
Grab, Paint, and 3D FlyBy).
For details see
.
The Navigate dialog is available in any G-Scribe tool and allows you to quickly select and take layouts using your keyboard.
For details see
”Navigate Dialog” on page 73 .
Shot Box Palette The Shot Box palette is available in Sequencer and Media Store, and allows you to select and output single events or media files.
For details see
”Shot Box Palette” on page 75 .
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Table 2-1. G-Scribe Output Options
Output Option Description
RapidFire
Overlay
The RapidFire feature is available in CG and
Sequencer and allows you update and take layouts with the speed you need for live coverage.
For details see
The Overlay utility controls the output of CG objects saved as .scribe files. Overlay displays the objects on their own layer over the current running playlist.
For details see
Strata Compositing The Strata utility plays what appears to be separate channels, as one channel on output. This enables real-time compositing of multiple virtual channels into a single physical channel.
Use Strata to schedule and play events independently on separate layers at the same time.
For details see
”Strata Configuration Utility” on page 101 .
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The global output options are always available in G-Scribe, whether you are working in CG, Sequencer,
Media Store, Animation Editor, Frame Grab, 3D FlyBy, or Paint. Look through the options to find the best output solution for you.
The following table describes the global output options available in
G-Scribe.
Table 2-2. G-Scribe Output Options
Task Options
Preview a single layout before going to air
Take a single layout to air
To preview a single media file on your preview channel, drag the layout from the playlist to the Preview palette.
Stop output immediately
Use any of the following options to output a single layout.
• Select the layout in the playlist and press ENTER on the keyboard number pad. Pressing ENTER outputs the layout, but does not load the next event in the playlist to the preview channel.
• Double-click on the layout thumbnail in the playlist.
• Drag the layout from the playlist to the Program palette. The Program palette is always available in
G-Scribe.
To stop output immediately press the Pause key. The current layout freezes on-screen. You can click the CLR button above the Program palette to clear the on-screen display.
To stop output after the current event completes playback, click the Stop button on the Run tab in
Sequencer. See ”Stop Playback” on page 72 for details.
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If you have a dual channel system, you can send your layouts to channel 1 or channel 2. Use the playlist or the Program palette to select the channel. The
Program/Preview palette controls two program channels when you have a dual channel system.
• Playlist: Use the Channel drop-down list to select the channel for the layout.
Use drop-down list to select channel.
Figure 2-1. Channel Drop-Down List
• Program palette: Use the Channel buttons on the Program palette to assign a channel to the selected layout.
Use buttons to select channel.
Figure 2-2. Channel Buttons
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When you have a dual channel system, you can output two layouts simultaneously. One layout plays on channel 1 and one layout plays on channel 2.
To output two layouts simultaneously:
1 Select the first layout in the playlist and assign the layout to channel 1.
2 Press SHIFT+MINUS (-) key on the number pad to setup the event.
3 Select the second layout in the playlist and assign the layout to channel
2.
4 Press SHIFT+MINUS (-) key on the number pad to setup the event.
5 To take both events, press the ENTER key on the number pad. The first layout plays on channel 1 and the second layout plays on channel 2.
Set first layout to play on channel 1.
Set second layout to play on channel 2.
Figure 2-3. Set Up Layouts on Separate Channels
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You can clear the content of program channel or the preview channel using the Program/Preview palette.
• To clear the contents of the Preview palette, click the CLR button above the Preview palette.
• To clear the contents of the Program palette, click the CLR button above the Program palette.
Clear preview channel.
Clear program channel.
Figure 2-4. CLR Buttons Clear Channel Content
Sequencer includes options for changing the output speed of rolls and crawls, and for playing your page-formatted (multi-page) rolls and crawls.
Change Roll/Crawl Output Speed
You can change the speed of a roll or a crawl during output using keyboard shortcuts.
• To increase the roll/crawl speed, press ALT+SHIFT+Page Up.
• To decrease the roll/crawl speed, press ALT+SHIFT+Page Down.
Pause Roll/Crawl Playback
You can pause the playback of rolls and crawls using the PAUSE key.
1 During the roll/crawl output, press the PAUSE key to pause the output.
2 Press the PAUSE key again to resume output.
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Sequencer is a powerful G-Scribe tool that allows you to prepare events for output, prepare the playlist for output, select trigger types for output, and run the entire playlist. The following instructions describe how to output your playlist in Sequencer. You can find these instructions, and information on all the
Sequencer options in the chapter
.
The Run tab includes the output options for Sequencer, and is only available after you move the playlist online. When you switch to Online mode, Sequencer renders your events and prepares them for output. After all the events are rendered, the Run tab becomes available.
Move Online
To move online:
• Click the Offline/Online toggle button on the toolbar.
Figure 2-5. Offline/Online Toggle Button
When you click the Offline button G-Scribe moves the current playlist online, and the button changes to read Online. You can click the
Online/Offline button again to move offline.
• Press CTRL+SHIFT+O.
Move Offline
To move offline:
• Click the Offline/Online toggle button on the toolbar.
When you click the Online button G-Scribe moves the current playlist offline, and the button changes to read Offline. You can click the
Online/Offline button again to move online.
Figure 2-6. Offline/Online Toggle Button
• Press CTRL+SHIFT+O.
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You can use the Preview button on the Run tab to preview the selected event.
1 Select the event you want to preview.
2 If you need to, press CTRL+SHIFT+O to move online and access the
Run tab.
3 Switch to the Run tab.
4 Click the Preview button. The event displays in the Preview palette and on your preview monitor.
Figure 2-7. Run Tab
Use the Take buttons on the Run tab to take a single event.
1 Select the event you want to take.
2 If you need to, press CTRL+SHIFT+O to move online and access the
Run tab.
3 Switch to the Run tab.
4 Use the one of the following options to take your event.
• Click the Take Down button ( ) on the Run tab to take the current event and load the next event to the preview channel. You can also use the PLUS (+) key on the number pad for the same effect.
• Select the event in the Sequencer playlist and press the PLUS (+) key on the number pad. Pressing the PLUS (+) key outputs the layout and loads the next event in the playlist to the preview channel.
If you select a new event in the sequence and press the PLUS (+) key, the previously setup event will take to air. Set up the selected event by pressing the number pad MINUS (-) key. Then press the number pad PLUS (+) key to output the event.
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• Click the Take button ( ) on the Run tab to take the current event without loading the next event to the Preview Channel. You can also use the ENTER key on the number pad for the same effect.
Use the Run Job button on the Run tab to run the playlist from the selected event.
1 Select the event where you want to start playback.
2 If you need to, press CTRL+SHIFT+O to move online and access the
Run tab.
3 Switch to the Run tab.
4 Click the Run Job button.
Use the Stop button on the Run tab to stop output after the current event completes playback.
1 Switch to the Run tab.
2 Click the Stop button. Output stops after the current event completes playback.
Note:
To stop playback immediately, press the Pause key. The current event freezes on-screen. You can click the CLR button above the Program palette to clear the screen.
When your playlist is online and you have started playback, you can switch to the Run tab to monitor your output activity.
The Run tab displays the current time code, the amount of time elapsed for the running playlist, the amount of the time left to complete playback, and the amount of free RAM currently available.
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For quick event selection and playback, use the Navigate dialog. The Navigate dialog is available in any
G-Scribe tool and greatly improves your ability to respond to demanding on-air situations.
To output an event using the Navigate dialog, complete the following steps.
1 To open the Navigate option, press CTRL+SHIFT+J (or Playlist >
Navigate).
If you do not have the Show filename in Job Strip option selected in the
Preferences dialog (File > Preferences) a message displays. Click Yes to enable the option.
Figure 2-8. Show Filename Message
2 In the Navigate dialog, select an event by entering the event number in the dialog.
Enter event number.
Figure 2-9. Event Number in Navigate Dialog
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3 Use the keyboard to select, output, and delete events in the playlist.
See the following table for details.
Table 2-3: Navigate Dialog Options
Task Shortcut Key
Go to event
Take event
Delete event
Close Navigate dialog
• keyboard ENTER
• number pad ENTER
• DELETE key
• ESC key
You can use the Shot Box to quickly select playlist layouts or Media Store files. Once you locate the layout or media file, you can assign the item to a Shot Box button for quick recall, or output the selected item.
The Shot Box palette is available in the Sequencer and Media Store tools.
To select a playlist layout with the Shot Box, you can quickly enter the layout number in the Shot Box Number field. Entering the layout number selects the layout slot in your playlist. For example, if you enter 3, G-Scribe selects the layout in slot three.
1 Select File > Open to load your playlist. All playlists have a .scribelist file extension.
2 Select File > Preferences to open the Preferences dialog.
3 Switch to the Project tab and clear the Show Filename in Job Strip checkbox. When this checkbox is cleared, the layout numbers display in the playlist rather than the file names.
4 Click OK to close the Preferences dialog.
5 Switch to Sequencer (Tools > Sequencer).
6 On the Shot Box palette, click the Store/Play toggle button to read Play.
• When the button reads Play G-Scribe selects playlist layouts.
• When the button reads Store G-Scribe selects files in Media Store.
Store/Play button
Figure 2-10. Store/Play Button on Shot Box Palette
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7 Enter the layout slot number in the Shot Box Number field.
Note:
When you enter the layout slot number, G-Scribe selects the layout in the appropriate playlist slot. For example, if you enter
5, G-Scribe selects the layout in slot five. If you move the layout or place a new layout in slot five, G-Scribe selects the new layout.
8 To select the layout, press ENTER on the main keyboard—not the number pad ENTER key.
Note:
If you press the number pad ENTER key, the layout plays on your program channel. The number pad ENTER key immediately outputs the selected layout.
To select a media file from Media Store, you can enter the image thumbnail number in the Shot Box Number field. Entering the image thumbnail number selects the appropriate media file in the Media window.
1 In G-Scribe, switch to Media Store (Tools > Media Store).
2 On the Shot Box palette, click the Store/Play toggle button to read
Store.
Store/Play button
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Figure 2-11. Store/Play Button with Store Selected
• When the button reads Store, G-Scribe selects media files in Media
Store.
• When the button reads Play, G-Scribe selects playlist layouts.
3 Select the Browse or Build folio containing the media files you want to select. The folio’s media files display in the Media window.
See
”Set and Browse Set Folios” on page 505
for details on folios.
4 Enter the media thumbnail number in the Shot Box Number field.
5 To select the media file, press the ENTER key on the main keyboard— not the ENTER key on the number pad.
The number pad ENTER key performs the following actions when the
Store/Play toggle button reads Store.
• If the Shot Box LRN button is not selected, the number pad ENTER key outputs the selected layout.
If a Shot Box palette program channel button is selected, the layout outputs to the selected channel. If no program channel button is selected, the layout outputs to the program channel specified for the file on the Media Store module Transition tab.
Figure 2-12. Program Channel Buttons on Shot Box Palette
• If the Shot Box LRN button is selected, the number pad ENTER key adds the selected layout to the playlist.
You can assign media files from the Media window to a Defined button on the Shot Box for immediate output. There are four available defined buttons that are labeled 1 - 4. You can click on the button at any time to output the media file in real-time on the program channel.
1 In G-Scribe, switch to the Media Store tool (Tools > Media Store).
2 Select the Browse or Build folio containing the media files you want to add to the Shot Box button. The folio’s media files display in the Media window.
See
”Set and Browse Set Folios” on page 505
for details on folios.
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3 Drag the media file to one of the available yellow buttons on the Shot
Box, labeled 1 - 4.
Defined buttons
Figure 2-13. Defined Buttons
4 In the message dialog, click Yes to confirm that you want to assign the media file to the button.
5 To output the media file, click the Shot Box button. The program channel plays the selected media file immediately.
The Shot Box palette allows you to quickly output your playlist layouts and
Media Store files.
• To preview the selected item, click the Preview button on the Shot Box palette.
• To output the selected item, click the Take button on the Shot Box palette.
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RapidFire™ allows you to perform layout operations with the speed you need for live event coverage. You can operate RapidFire with keyboard commands to quickly take, clear, recall, and update your layouts. To make output even easier, use the Auto Text feature to insert commonly used text with greater accuracy and speed. The RapidFire Keyboard option provides additional keys that perform standard commands, allowing operators to work more quickly and effectively.
You can use RapidFire to quickly perform layout operations, including the following.
• Read a layout from the playlist or registry.
• Write a new or modified layout to the playlist.
• Write a modified layout to the registry. (You cannot create new registry entries using RapidFire.)
• Take a layout to air.
• Clear all output or individual Strata layers.
• Clear a layout.
• Read a layout from Media Store.
• Write a layout to Media Store.
• Read a layout from the working directory.
• Write a layout to the working directory.
• Add Auto Text to a layout. For information on the Auto Text feature, see
”Update a Layout with Auto Text” on page 87
.
Set up the conditions for the proper operation of RapidFire.
Before Launching RapidFire
Verify the following conditions.
• Ensure that RapidFire is enabled on the Tools menu, Tools > RapidFire.
When you enable RapidFire, the keys on the number pad are reprogrammed to perform RapidFire operations. To return to normal function, you must disable RapidFire on the Tools menu.
• Ensure that NumLock is on for the number pad.
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• If you are using RapidFire in the Sequencer module, ensure that all your groups are expanded. RapidFire does not work correctly when
Sequencer groups are collapsed.
Open RapidFire
To open RapidFire, perform one of the following actions.
• Press F10.
• Type a number on the number pad.
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Docked RapidFire Dialog
Undocked RapidFire Dialog
Figure 2-14. RapidFire Dialog - Docked and Undocked
By default, the RapidFire dialog is docked below the playlist.
If you enter a number using the number pad, the number is displayed in the text field in the RapidFire dialog.
To undock the RapidFire dialog:
1 Drag the RapidFire dialog from its default location. For example, drag the dialog onto the workspace. The undocked RapidFire dialog displays on top of the G-Scribe window.
You can drag the RapidFire dialog anywhere on your screen.
To dock the RapidFire dialog:
1 Drag the RapidFire dialog to the playlist.
Hide the RapidFire Dialog
To hide the RapidFire dialog:
1 Click the RapidFire dialog text field.
2 Press the ESCAPE key.
Note:
Hiding the dialog does not disable RapidFire on the Tools menu.
You can access RapidFire functionality using the following methods.
•
Keyboard. You can operate RapidFire with keyboard commands. See
”RapidFire Keyboard” on page 618 . For a
complete list of G-Scribe shortcut keys, see
• RapidFire dialog.
Docked RapidFire Dialog
When the RapidFire dialog is docked, use the RapidFire Menu button to access key RapidFire functionality.
1 In the RapidFire dialog, click the Menu button.
Figure 2-15. RapidFire Dialog Menu
2 From the menu, select a RapidFire command.
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Undocked RapidFire Dialog
The undocked RapidFire dialog provides single-click access to key
RapidFire functionality.
1 In the RapidFire dialog, click a button.
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Figure 2-16. Undocked RapidFire Dialog
Perform a RapidFire Operation
You can perform most RapidFire operations with a single keystroke (if you purchased the RapidFire Keyboard option), shortcut key, or mouse click.
To perform some operations, you must specify a layout, template, or other item for the operation, for example, a template to read from the registry. For these actions, complete the following two steps.
1 Specify an item, for example, a layout or an Auto Text string.
• Enter the item number in the RapidFire text field using the number pad.
2 Specify an operation using one of the following methods.
• Press a shortcut or RapidFire keyboard key.
• Click a command in the RapidFire dialog.
For a complete list of RapidFire shortcut keys, see ”RapidFire” on page 615 .
For a complete list of the RapidFire keyboard keys, see ”RapidFire
Scratch Layout
RapidFire automatically creates a layout at the bottom of the playlist called
Scratch.vii that is used for all RapidFire operations. For example, layouts are read into the Scratch.vii layout whenever a read operation is performed, and the contents of the Scratch.vii layout are used for write operations.
You can specify the working directory in which RapidFire reads and writes layout files. RapidFire also writes template layout files added to Media
Store to the working directory.
1 Open the InsertText dialog using one of the following methods.
• Press SHIFT+AUTO TEXT using the RapidFire keyboard.
• Click Config in the RapidFire dialog.
Figure 2-17. InsertText Dialog
2 Specify the directory in which to read and write layout files (.scribe files) using one of the following methods.
• Enter the path in the Save Directory field.
• Click the Browse button, and then navigate to the directory. Click
OK.
3 To read and write layouts in the working directory, select the Load
From Working Directory checkbox. Otherwise, RapidFire loads template layouts from and writes layouts as templates in Media Store.
4 Click OK.
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The following sections describe a typical workflow using RapidFire.
Create a New Playlist Using Registry Templates
1 Using the number pad, enter the number of the registry item to retrieve, for example, 101.
RapidFire opens automatically. If RapidFire does not open, ensure that it is enabled on the Tools menu, Tools > RapidFire.
2 Press F2 to load the layout from the registry.
A Scratch.vii layout is automatically created and placed in the playlist.
Template 101 is loaded from the registry and copied to the Scratch.vii layout.
3 Change the layout if required.
4 Using the number pad, enter a number to use as a name for the layout, for example, 213.
5 Press the RapidFire RECORD LAYOUT key (or F5 on the standard keyboard) to write the layout.
The layout in Scratch.vii is written to the playlist.
Send a Layout in the Playlist to Air
In this sample scenario, a two channel system is configured with two program channels: the first is assigned to video board 1 for previewing and the second is assigned to video board 2, which is the air channel.
1 Using the number pad, enter the number of the layout in the playlist to retrieve, for example, 213.
2 Press F4 to read the layout from the playlist.
The layout is copied to Scratch.vii, and opened for edit.
3 Ensure that the output channel for Scratch.vii is set to the channel 1, to take the layout to the preview channel. To change the output channel for the current layout to 1, press the RapidFire STRATA 1 key (or
CTRL+1 on the standard keyboard).
4 After you complete any updates, press the RapidFire TAKE key (or the number pad ENTER key).
The updated layout 213 is output to the preview channel. The original layout 213 remains unchanged.
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5 Press the RapidFire SWAP key (or the number pad FORWARD SLASH key [/]) to swap channels 1 and 2 and put the graphic on the air channel.
Note:
On a one channel system, press the RapidFire SETUP key (or MINUS
SIGN on the number pad) to preview the graphic in the Program/
Preview palette, and then the RapidFire TAKE key (or the number pad ENTER key) to take the graphic to air.
Modify a Layout in the Playlist
1 Using the number pad, enter the number of the layout in the playlist to retrieve, for example, 213.
2 Press F4 to read the layout from the playlist.
The layout is copied to Scratch.vii, and opened for edit.
3 When the updates are complete, ensure that the RapidFire text field contains the number of the layout you are editing, for example, 213.
4 Press the RapidFire RECORD LAYOUT key (or F5 on the standard keyboard) to update the original layout with your changes.
Modify a Registry Template
Note:
You cannot create new registry entries using RapidFire.
1 Using the number pad, enter the number of the registry item to retrieve, for example, 101.
2 Press F2 to load the layout from the registry.
3 Edit the layout.
4 When the updates are complete, ensure that the RapidFire text field contains the number of the template you are editing, for example, 101.
5 Press F3 to update the registry template with your changes.
Create a New Layout Using a Layout in the Working Directory
1 Ensure that the Load From Working Directory option is selected in the
RapidFire menu. See
.
(If the RapidFire dialog is undocked, click its Config button and then ensure that the Load From Working Directory checkbox is selected in the InsertText dialog.)
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2 In the RapidFire text field, enter the filename of the layout (without the
.scribe file extension) to load from the working directory, for example, layout1.
3 Press SHIFT+F4 to load the layout from the working directory.
The layout is copied to Scratch.vii, and opened for edit.
4 Change the layout if required.
5 Using the number pad, enter a number to use as a name for the layout, for example, 214.
6 Press the RapidFire RECORD LAYOUT key (or F5 on the standard keyboard) to write the layout.
The layout in Scratch.vii is written to the playlist.
Write a Layout to the Working Directory
1 Create a layout.
2 Ensure that the Load From Working Directory option is selected in the
RapidFire menu. See
.
(If the RapidFire dialog is undocked, click its Config button and then ensure that the Load From Working Directory checkbox is selected in the InsertText dialog.)
3 Using the number pad, enter a filename for the layout, for example, layout1.
4 Press SHIFT+RECORD LAYOUT on the RapidFire keyboard (or
SHIFT+F5 on the standard keyboard) to write the layout to the working directory.
The layout in Scratch.vii is written as a layout (.scribe file) in the working directory. For information on controlling the directory in which layout files are created, see
”Set the Working Directory” on page 83 .
Create a New Layout Using a Media Store Template
1 Ensure that the Load From Working Directory option is not selected in
the RapidFire menu. See Figure 2-17 on page 83 .
(If the RapidFire dialog is undocked, click its Config button and then ensure that the Load From Working Directory checkbox is cleared in the InsertText dialog.)
2 Using the number pad, enter the media number of the Media Store template layout to retrieve, for example, 1001.
Note:
Media Store displays a T icon in the top right corner of template layout thumbnails.
3 Press SHIFT+F4 to load the template layout from Media Store.
The layout is copied to Scratch.vii, and opened for edit.
4 Change the layout if required.
5 Using the number pad, enter a number to use as a name for the layout, for example, 214.
6 Press the RapidFire RECORD LAYOUT key (or F5 on the standard keyboard) to write the layout.
The layout in Scratch.vii is written to the playlist.
Write a Layout to Media Store as a Template
1 Create a layout.
2 Ensure that the Load From Working Directory option is not selected in
the RapidFire menu. See Figure 2-17 on page 83 .
(If the RapidFire dialog is undocked, click its Config button and then ensure that the Load From Working Directory checkbox is cleared in the InsertText dialog.)
3 Using the number pad, enter a number to use as the media number for the template in Media Store, for example, 2001.
4 Press SHIFT+RECORD LAYOUT on the RapidFire keyboard (or
SHIFT+F5 on the standard keyboard) to write the layout to Media
Store.
The layout in Scratch.vii is added as a template layout (.scribe file) in the current Media Store database. For information on controlling the directory in which template layout files are created, see
”Set the Working Directory” on page 83 .
Use the Auto Text feature to update your layout with commonly used text from a text file. The text file contains text entries and determines where the cursor moves after you insert the string.
Create an Auto Text File
Use the following instructions to create a text file to use with the Auto Text feature.
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\u
\d
\t
\n
\\
1 Open a text editor such as Notepad or Wordpad.
If you purchased the RapidFire Keyboard option, press
CTRL+ALT+AUTO TEXT to launch a text editor.
2 Create a text file where each line has the following format.
[Number][TAB][Text][Modifier][CR]
For example, a text entry looks like:
53 Hooking\d
• [Number] is any number. Each number in the file must be unique.
• [TAB] is the tab character.
• [Text] is a single line of text.
• [Modifier] is one of the text modifiers listed in the following table.
You can enter text modifiers anywhere in the line of text, including the beginning and end.
• [CR] is a carriage return.
Table 2-4. Modifier Descriptions
Modifier Description
Enters a tab character
Enters a carriage return
Presses the UP ARROW key
Presses the DOWN ARROW key
Inserts a backslash (\) character
3 Save the file as a text (.txt) file with the same filename as the associated playlist (.scribelist) file. You must save the text file in the same folder as the associated playlist.
Note:
If you launched the text editor using the RapidFire Keyboard
CTRL+ALT+AUTO TEXT shortcut key, the file is automatically saved correctly.
Insert a Text String from the Auto Text File
To insert a text string from the Auto Text file associated with your playlist:
1 Place your cursor in the text line of your CG layout where you want to insert the text.
2 In RapidFire, use the number pad to enter the number of the text string to insert.
To view the Auto Text strings available for the playlist, perform one of the following actions.
• Press SHIFT+AUTO TEXT using the RapidFire keyboard.
• Click Config in the RapidFire dialog.
The InsertText dialog lists the Auto Text strings.
Figure 2-18. List of Available Auto Text Strings
3 Insert the Auto Text using one of the following methods.
• Press the RapidFire AUTO TEXT key.
• Click Auto Text in the RapidFire dialog.
The specified Auto Text string is inserted at the cursor position in the text line of your CG layout. If the Auto Text string ends in \n, the cursor drops to a new text line directly below the current line.
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If you purchased the RapidFire Keyboard option for G-Scribe, you received the custom RapidFire keyboard designed for sports and live event coverage.
For information on the RapidFire keyboard, see
”RapidFire Keyboard” on page 618 .
The default template loads when you clear the Scratch.vii layout.
1 Open the InsertText dialog using one of the following methods.
• Press SHIFT+AUTO TEXT using the RapidFire keyboard.
• Click Config in the RapidFire dialog.
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Figure 2-19. InsertText Dialog
2 In the Default Layout field, enter the number of the default template.
3 Click OK.
Overlay enables real-time layering of CG objects, independent of content displayed in CG or the playlist.
Overlay allows clocks, timers, crawl tickers, station IDs, and logos to display on one of three independent output layers. You can control the display of objects manually in Overlay while any other event sequence is running.
The Overlay application controls the output and display of clocks, logos, and other layouts independent of other event sequences running in
G-Scribe.
The following steps outline the basic Overlay workflow.
1 Create your clock, crawl, logo, or other layout in CG.
2 Export the layout as a .scribe file (File > Export > Export SCRIBE File).
3 Open Overlay (Tools > Overlay).
4 Click the line beside the 1 button.
5 Click the Setup button.
Figure 2-20. Click the Setup Button to View Open Options
6 Click Choose and open the .scribe file. The file loads in Overlay.
7 Click on the numbered button beside the item, so it turns yellow.
8 Click the Take button. Overlay displays the layout on the program channel.
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In Overlay you can open your CG items, updated tagged text lines, add and remove items, and save and load sets of items. The following topics describe these features in detail.
Tag Layout Text for Updates
In the CG module of your G-Scribe product, you can label your text objects using tags. Once you label a text object with a tag you can change the tagged text in Overlay.
Tagged text is useful for immediate updates. For example if you tag a text area in the layout for displaying a game score, you could easily change the score in Overlay before you air the layout.
1 To tag text in CG, select the text line in your layout.
2 Click the News Edit button.
Figure 2-21. News Edit Button
3 In the News Edit dialog, G-Scribe automatically labels the text with the place holder text. To change the label name, enter a name for the tag in the Tags field and click Add.
The text line in your layout is labeled with the tag name.
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Figure 2-22. Add Tags to CG Layout
4 Click the X button to close the dialog.
Note:
Even if the label disappears in the CG workspace, the tag is still added to the text line.
5 Save the layout as a .scribe file (File > Export > Export SCRIBE File).
6 Open Overlay (Tools > Overlay).
7 Click on the line beside the 1 label.
8 Click the Setup button.
9 Click Choose and open the .scribe file. The file loads in Overlay.
Figure 2-23. Three Files Loaded in Overlay
Update Tagged Text in Overlay
After you open the .scribe file containing the tagged text, you can update the text in Overlay for quick updates.
1 Select the tagged item from the Items list in Overlay.
2 Click the Tags button to display the tagged text fields.
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3 Update the text beside the tag label. When you change the text, the line turns yellow, indicating the update.
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Figure 2-24. Update Tagged Lines in Overlay
4 Click the Render button to update the text. The yellow line returns to white, indicating the updates are complete.
Add/Remove Items
The Overlay application loads and outputs CG objects saved as .scribe files.
The .scribe file contains information on how the layout item looks, the position of the layout item, and other formatting options.
1 After creating your objects in CG, save the layout as a .scribe file (File
> Export > Export SCRIBE File).
If you are saving an animation layout, save the layout in the Animation
Editor as a .via file (File > Import/Export Animation).
2 Open Overlay (Tools > Overlay).
3 Select the line beside the 1 button label.
4 Click the Setup button.
5 Click Choose and open the .scribe file. The file loads in Overlay.
6 Select the line beside the 2 button label.
7 Click Choose and open the .scribe file. You can open up to three
.scribe files at one time.
The preview window displays all opened .scribe files in order from top
(top of the list) to bottom (bottom of the list). The top layout overlaps any layouts below. You can change the top to bottom order by selecting an item and dragging it up or down in the list.
8 To replace an item with another .scribe file, select the item you want to replace from the list, click the Choose button, and then select the new file in the Open dialog.
9 To remove an item from Overlay, select the file from the list and then click the Delete key on your keyboard.
Save a Set of Items
Once you have multiple layouts opened in Overlay, you can save the list of items as a single .overlay file. Saving the list allows you to group related files together. When you open the .overlay file, all the .scribe files open in
Overlay.
1 Add your three items to Overlay by selecting a line, clicking the Setup button, and then choosing a file.
2 To save the list of items as one file, select File > Save Set and save the list in the Save As dialog.
Load a Set of Items
After you save a set of items in Overlay, you can load the .overlay file for output.
1 To load a list of items, select File > Load Set.
2 Open the .overlay file in Open dialog.
You can use the options in Overlay to delay the output of an item, advance or delay the clock time, fade items on/off, and loop crawl or animation items.
Fade Item On/Off
Use the Fade options to fade an item on and off screen. By default items cut on and off.
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1 Select an item from the list.
2 Click the Setup button to expand the setup options.
3 To fade the item on screen, check the Fade In checkbox.
4 Enter the duration of the fade in frames.
5 To fade the item off screen, check the Fade Out checkbox.
6 Enter the duration of the fade in frames.
7 If you want the duration of the fade out to equal the duration of the fade in, select the Lock button. When you select the Lock button, the fade values remain equal.
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Figure 2-25. Fade Item On/Off Screen
Delay On-Air Display
You can delay the on-air display of any item in the item list. Overlay delays the display by the set number of frames.
1 To delay the on air display of an item, select the item in the item list.
2 Click the Setup button to expand the setup options.
3 Enter the number of frames that you want to delay the item in the
Display Delay field.
Loop a Crawl/Animation
Crawl and animation items include a loop option that loops the item continuously.
1 Select the crawl or animation item from the list.
2 Click the Setup button to view the setup options.
3 To loop the crawl or animation continuously, check the Continuous
Loop checkbox.
Overlay includes a number of options for playing your events. The following table describes the output options available in Overlay.
Figure 2-26. Output Options in Overlay
Table 2-5. Overlay Output Options
Output Option Description
Numbered buttons Sets the show/hide state of the item. A white number marks an item set to hide on the program channel. A yellow number marks an item set to display on the program channel.
Flashing Indicator Indicates the item's show/hide state has changed. The indicator stops flashing the next time you take the item.
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Table 2-5. Overlay Output Options
Output Option Description
Take button
Status Indicators
All On button
All Off button
Reset checkbox
Applies any changes to the show/hide state. If you set an item to display, clicking Take displays the item on the program channel. If you set an item to hide, clicking Take hides the item on the program channel.
When you take a timer that is set to display, the timer plays on the program channel at its last running state.
• If the timer was not running, clicking Take displays the timer at the first frame. The timer does not start running until you click the Play button.
• If the timer was already running and you hid the timer, clicking Take displays the running timer.
Displays the on-air status of the item. If the item is running, the status light turns green. If the item is not running, the status light is red.
Displays all of the items in Overlay on the program channel.
Hides all of the items on the program channel.
Resets all of the items on the program channel to the first frame after you click Take. Each item resets to the first frame and resumes playback.
Output Items
You can easily output items in Overlay using the output options. This topic describes the output options for all items except timers. For information on playing timers, see
1 Click on the numbered button beside the item to show or hide the item during output.
• A white number marks items hidden during output.
• A yellow number marks items displayed during output.
A flashing indicator beside the number indicates the item's show/hide state has changed. The indicator stops flashing the next time you take the item.
2 Click the Take button. The Take button applies any changes to the show/hide state.
• If you set an item to display in step one, clicking Take displays the item on the program channel.
• If you set an item to hide in step one, clicking Take hides the item on the program channel.
The status indicators change when you take an item. If the item is running, the status light turns green. If the item is not running, the status light is red.
3 To quickly display all the items on the program channel, click the All
On button. To quickly hide all the items on the program channel, click the All Off button.
4 To reset the items on the program channel to the first frame, check the
Reset checkbox and then click the Take button. Each item resets to the first frame and resumes playback.
Output Timers
You can easily output times in Overlay using the output options and run buttons. This topic describes the output options for timers only. For
information on playing other items, see ”Output Items” on page 98
.
1 Click on the numbered button beside the timer so it is yellow. A yellow number marks items that display during output.
A flashing indicator beside the number indicates the item's show/hide state has changed. The indicator stops flashing the next time you take the item.
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2 Click the Take button. The Take button applies any changes to the show/hide state.
• Since you set the timer to display in step one, clicking Take displays the timer on the program channel. The timer displays at the first frame, but doesn't start counting until you click Play.
• If you had set the timer to hide in step one, clicking Take would hide the item on the program channel.
3 Click the Play button to start the timer counting-up or counting-down.
4 Click the numbered button beside the timer to hide the item, and then click Take. Overlay hides the timer.
5 Click the numbered button again and then click Take. Overlay displays the timer. The timer is still running.
6 Click the Pause button to pause the timer.
7 Click Play to resume the timer.
8 Click Stop to stop the timer from counting and to reset the timer to the first frame.
Using the Strata Configuration Utility option, you can set up virtual channels, which appear as separate output channels in G-Scribe. You assign the virtual channels to layers on your output. This enables real-time compositing of up to five virtual channels into a single physical channel. Use Strata to schedule and play events independently on separate layers at the same time.
Strata is a utility that controls the output and display of your Inscriber applications. Using Strata, you can easily assign any of G-Scribe, G-Store, titleOne, Automation Interface, and Overlay to layers on one or two channels. Events can be scheduled and played independently on separate layers without interfering with each other.
Strata automatically detects your Strata-enabled applications and the number of boards on your system.
When Strata is installed on your system, you can assign your applications to virtual output channels, and assign virtual channels to layers on your video board output.
1 Open the Strata Utility by double-clicking the Strata icon on your desktop.
The utility will look different depending on how your system is configured.
2 On a two channel system, you can assign one board to be a preview channel and the other a program channel, or both to be program channels.
3 Assign your Strata-enabled applications to video boards.
The application instances correspond to the virtual output channels available in your application. For example, if you set up three G-Scribe application instances in the Strata Utility, three output channels are available in the G-Scribe application. For some applications, such as
Overlay, only one instance is available.
You can assign multiple instances to the same video board and assign instances to both video boards (on a two channel system).
4 Arrange the layers for each video board.
Note:
In a configuration of five layers, layer one is the top-most layer and layer five is the background layer.
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5 If you designated a video board for previewing (on a two channel system) or have a USB adapter that provides an external video head, select which applications can use it for previewing.
6 Click the Finish button to save your configuration.
7 Create your layouts.
8 If you set up multiple application instances in Strata, assign events to channels. Output channels in your application correspond to application instances in Strata. For example, output channel 1 in your application corresponds to application instance 1.
• In the G-Scribe Sequencer module, select a channel by clicking a
Program button on the Event Editor tab.
Figure 2-27. Program Buttons on the Event Editor Tab
• In the G-Scribe CG module, select an event in the playlist and select a channel in the Program/Preview palette.
• In Automation Interface, the available channels are listed for each event. If the layers are listed by letters, 'A' corresponds to layer one,
'B' corresponds to layer two, and so on.
9 Output your layouts. Output displays on the corresponding layers of the assigned video boards. a Click the Online toggle button on the toolbar to go online. When the button is selected, you are online.
b On the Run tab in Sequencer, click the Run Job button to run your job from the selected event.
c Use the SPACEBAR to trigger the next event.
d To stop output, click the Stop button on the Run tab.
The following sections describe how to use the Strata Utility to configure your output.
Welcome Screen
The Welcome screen provides an overview of the Strata Utility.
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1 Read the overview.
2 Click the Next button.
Detect Installs Screen
Strata automatically detects your Strata-enabled applications and the video boards on your system.
1 In the Applications Detected area, verify that all your applications are listed.
Figure 2-28. Detected Applications
If an application is not listed, refer to your manual for tips on troubleshooting.
2 In the Outputs area, verify that all your broadcast-quality video boards are listed.
Figure 2-29. Detected Video Boards
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3 In the Designate Audio area, select the audio board to use for audio output (if your system has an audio board).
Figure 2-30. Designate Audio Card
4 Click the Next button.
Assign Outputs Screen
Two Channel Systems Only - If your system has multiple video boards, you can use both for outputting program broadcasts, or assign one for previewing and one for outputting program broadcasts.
1 For each video board on your system, select Preview or Program to designate its use. On a two channel system, you can designate at most one preview channel.
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Figure 2-31. Designate Program and Preview Channels
Note:
A video board designated for preview provides only still previews, and is not available for program output.
2 Click the Next button.
Note:
Designated output is supported with G-Scribe and G-Store products only. This settings has no effect on Automation Interface, Overlay, or other applications.
Configure Applications
You control the number of application instances to use for each application.
The application instances correspond to the output channels available in your application. For example, if you set up three G-Scribe application instances in the Strata Utility, three output channels are available in the
G-Scribe application. For some applications, such as Overlay, only one instance is available.
1 In the Applications area, select an application in the Applications List to view the allowable application instances.
Figure 2-32. Available Application Instances
2 For each application instance to use, select the instance in the
Application Instances area from the Application Layers list, and then click the Add to List button.
3 Two Channel Systems Only - In the Applications List area, for each application instance in the Application Layer list select a board to designate the output board. (On a later screen, you will assign the application instances to layers on the video board.)
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Note:
Do not assign application instances to a video board designated for previewing
Figure 2-33. Designate Video Board for Application Instances
4 To remove an application instance, select it in the Applications List area and then click the Remove from List button.
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Figure 2-34. Remove Application Instances
5 Repeat steps 1-4 for each Strata-enabled application.
6 Click the Next button.
Configure Channels - Program Channels Screen
Events can be scheduled and played independently on separate layers without interfering with each other.
1 In the Output Assignment area, you can review and change the video output board for your virtual channels (application instances).
Figure 2-35. Review Video Board Assignment
2 To adjust the order of the application instance layers on your video boards, select an application instance and then click the Up or Down
Arrow button.
Figure 2-36. Adjust Layer Assignment
Note:
In a configuration of five layers, layer one is the top-most layer and layer five is the background layer.
3 Click the Next button.
Configure Channels - Preview Channels Screen
If you designated a video board for previewing on the Assign Outputs screen (two channel systems only) or have a USB adapter that provides an external video head, you must select which applications can use it for preview.
Note:
The external video head must be configured during your G-Scribe installation.
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1 In the Applications List area, select the checkbox for each application that will use the video board/external video head for preview.
Figure 2-37. Select Applications for Preview
2 Click the Next button.
Note:
The preview functionality provides only still previews.
Summary Screen
Review the Strata configuration before you close the Strata Utility and save the configuration.
1 For each video board, verify the order of the layers in the Layer
Assignment area.
Figure 2-38. Review Layer Assignment
2 Confirm that the correct applications can use the video board/external video head designated for preview.
Figure 2-39. Review Applications for Preview
3 Click the Finish button.
The configuration is saved and the Strata Utility closes.
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CG is a full-featured character generator that creates still, roll, crawl, and animation layouts for display to video. Create layouts by adding objects to the CG workspace, customizing the object attributes, and setting their position and layering. Layouts can be created from scratch or can be based on pre-made templates.
Switch between modules using the buttons on the toolbar or the options on the
Tools menu:
• Click the CG button in the Main toolbar.
• Select Tools > Character Gen.
• Press the F6 key.
The CG workspace contains the tools for creating your CG layouts, as well as the tools for outputting your layouts and for transferring resources between layouts and between other modules.
Main Toolbar CG Toolbar
Playlist
CG Workspace
Tools
Palette
Library
Palette
Scrapbook
Program Channel
Attributes
Palette
CG Editor Toolbar
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Table 3-1. The CG Workspace
Workspace Area Description
CG Toolbar
CG Workspace
Tools Palette
CG Editor Toolbar
Attributes palette
Library Palette
The CG toolbar allows you to configure your layouts and your display. It also helps you navigate between the objects in the
CG workspace.
Create your layout by adding and positioning text, graphic, logo, clock, and
Port objects in the CG workspace. You can also add a background to the layout. The workspace shows what your layout looks like as you work.
Use the text, graphic, logo, clock, and
Port tools from the Tools palette to draw objects in the CG workspace.
The Tools palette also contains the
Pointer and Selection tools, which allow you to select and transform your objects.
The CG Editor toolbar contains tools to help you position, transform, and layer the objects in the CG workspace.
The tabs in the Attributes palette help you change the attributes and appearance of your objects. To display the contents of a tab, click the tab name.
Manage your styles and media with the
Library palette. The Style Library helps you maintain a consistent look for your layout objects, and the Media Library stores commonly-used images, clips, clocks, and Port objects.
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Create your layout within the CG workspace. The CG workspace displays the layout as it will appear on your output, with a grey checkerboard pattern representing the video transparent areas.
Layouts are made up of layout objects which you customize and position within the CG workspace.
Right-Click Menus
Right-click the CG workspace to view contextual right-click menus. These menus contain useful options for configuring the workspace.
If you right-click a layout object, the menu displays options for working with that particular object.
Cut/Copy/Paste
Layout objects can be cut, copied, and pasted within the
CG workspace. Use the following methods to cut, copy, and paste objects that are selected in the layout:
Cut
• Click the Cut, Copy, and Paste buttons in the Main
Toolbar.
Copy
• Select Edit > Cut, Edit > Copy, or Edit > Paste.
• Use the standard shortcut keys CTRL+X, CTRL+C, and CTRL+V.
Objects are pasted at the center of the CG workspace.
Paste
Undo/Redo
CG contains unlimited Undo/Redo steps to help you correct mistakes. Use the following methods to undo and redo your actions:
• Click the Undo and Redo buttons in the Main Toolbar
• Select Edit > Undo or Edit > Redo.
Undo
Redo
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• Right-click the CG workspace and select Undo or Redo.
• Use the standard shortcut keys CTRL+Z and CTRL+Y.
The Tools palette contains tools for adding text and graphic objects to your layout.
Some of the buttons in the palette contain multiple tools. If the tool you are looking for is not visible in the Tools palette, hold the left mouse button on the visible tool.
When the flyout menu appears, click the tool you want to use.
Table 3-2. Text and Graphic Tools
Icon Name Icon Name
Pointer Round Rectangle
Selection
Text Field
Text Constrained Field
Logo
Vertical Text Field
Paragraph Field
Fixed-Width Paragraph
Field
Text Path
Wedge
Vertical Text Constrained
Field
Vertical Paragraph Field
Vertical Fixed-Width
Paragraph Field
Spline
Polygon
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Table 3-2. Text and Graphic Tools (Continued)
Icon Name Icon Name
Arc Port
Oval
Rectangle
Round Corner Rectangle
Clock
Horizontal Guide
Vertical Guide
In most cases, add objects to your layout by selecting a tool and either clicking in the CG workspace or drawing boundaries for the object.
A layout consists of all the components of an output screen. In CG you combine various objects to create layouts. These layouts are then output to video.
Create new layouts by pressing the Add Default
Event button at the bottom of the Playlist. Your
CG workspace shows the new layout.
When you launch G-Scribe a default layout is already created for you.
Layout Objects
Layouts contain objects that display customized text and graphics. CG offers six basic object types for you to use in your layouts: text objects, graphic objects, logo objects, clocks, ports, and a layout background.
Create Objects
Add text and graphic objects to layouts by selecting the appropriate tool, placing the object in the layout, and defining its contents and appearance.
Logo and clip objects can also be added to your layout using the Media
Library. See ”The Media Library” on page 195
.
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Table 3-3. Layout Objects
Component Description
Text Objects Text objects contain the text in your layout. You can constrain a text object to keep its size constant, or allow it to grow as more text is added. Paragraph text objects can contain multiple lines of text. You can also create text paths and vertical text.
You can attach data tags to text objects. Data tags allow you to quickly update objects and to attach objects to external data sources.
See
to learn more about text objects.
Graphic Objects Graphic objects are shapes such as rectangles and circles. Use the graphic object tools to create simple shapes, polygons, lines, and splines for your layout.
See
”Graphic Objects” on page 148 to learn more
about graphic objects.
Logo Objects Logos are a special class of objects. They display imported images that can be tinted and can contain alpha transparency.
See
”Logo Objects” on page 155 for details on
understanding and using logos in your layouts.
Clip Objects
Clocks
Use clip objects to add full resolution, uncropped video clips to layouts.
See
”Clip Objects” on page 165 for more
information.
CG comes with pre-defined digital clocks and digital timers.
See
”Clock Objects” on page 159 for more
information about clocks.
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Table 3-3. Layout Objects (Continued)
Component Description
Ports
The Layout
Background
You can install and use RTX Port applications within CG. Port objects connect to RTX Port applications, allowing you to add sophisticated
RTX objects to your layouts.
See
The layout background is an object that cannot be edited with the Pointer or Selection tool.
Backgrounds can consist of colored backgrounds, images, or video clips.
See
”Layout Backgrounds” on page 217 for more
information.
Move Objects
Use the Selection and Pointer tools to select and move your objects. You can also group your objects, which maintains their spacing when they are moved.
To learn how to change the position, spacing, and orientation of your objects, see
”Manage Objects” on page 199 .
Object Appearance
Most objects consist of four different elements: a face, one or more edges, a depth, and a shadow. In most cases each element can also include a sheen. Change the attributes of the elements to customize the appearance and shape of the object.
Create complex text and graphic styles by applying “treatments” to elements. You can store styles in the Style Library, and apply them to other objects in other layouts.
•
To learn about object elements, see ”Object Elements” on page 168
.
• To learn about element treatments, see
”Element Treatments” on page 175
.
• To learn about the Style Library, see
”The Style Library” on page 191
.
Layout Types
The layout type determines how your work displays on video. You can select one of four different layout types, depending on the type of layout you are creating.
To change the layout type, select a type from the Title
Type drop-down list in the CG toolbar.
Table 3-4. Layout Types
Layout Type Description
Still
Roll
Crawl
Still layouts are static screen images that contain text and graphic objects. Some common types of still layouts are lower thirds, corner logos, and full screen layouts.
Rolls scroll text and graphic objects up or down the screen. Generally, rolls are used for credit sequences.
You can prevent a layout object from scrolling by clearing the Scroll with Crawl/Roll checkbox.
Multiple roll layouts can be combined into a single multi-page roll. See
”Create Multi-Page Rolls” on page 401 for details.
Crawls display a running line of text, such as an announcement or a warning, across the screen. Crawls are not limited to a single line of text and can be placed anywhere on the layout. You can prevent a layout object from moving by clearing the Scroll with
Crawl/Roll checkbox.
Multiple crawl layouts can be combined into a single
multi-page crawl. See ”Create Multi-Page Crawls” on page 403 for details.
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Table 3-4. Layout Types (Continued)
Layout Type Description
Animation Animation layouts allow you to turn a CG layout into an animation in the FX module. See
for details.
See
”Create Layouts” on page 246 for more information about layouts and
layout types.
Templates
Templates allow you to save and reuse standard layouts. These layouts can be used over and over again, and are ideal for those situations where you have a basic layout with one or two elements that change frequently.
Once you have created a standard layout you can save it as a template. The next time you need to use the layout, select the template from the
Templates drop-down list in the CG toolbar, make any necessary changes, and save the modified layout.
Templates include anything you put in a layout, from a simple lower third
definition to a complex layout full of logos and other graphic objects. See
”Templates” on page 247 for details.
Use CG markers and guidelines to help place your text and graphic objects.
The Display Options menu shows or hides guides and markers in the CG workspace.
Guides and markers do not appear when layouts are output.
1 Click the Display Options button on the CG toolbar. The
Display Options menu appears.
2 Select a menu option to show a marker or guideline.
3 Clear a menu option to hide a marker or guideline.
You can also show, hide, and modify layout markers by right-clicking on the
CG workspace and selecting an option from the right-click menu.
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Guides
Horizontal and vertical guides help you position your layout objects. Select the Display Options > Show All Guides option to display the guides in the
CG workspace.
To add a horizontal guide to your layout, select the
Horizontal Guide tool in the Tools palette and click the CG workspace. A horizontal guide is created.
To add a vertical guide select the Vertical Guide tool and click the CG workspace.
If the Snap to Guides option is checked in the Display
Options menu, objects in your layout snap to the horizontal and vertical guides when the objects are moved.
You can move a guide by selecting it with the Pointer or Selection tool and dragging it to another location. To delete a guide, select it and press the
DELETE key.
Screen Grid
The screen grid allows you to snap objects to the grid for easier alignment.
Select the Display Options > Screen Grid option to display the grid in the
CG workspace. The grid does not appear on your layout output.
To change the color, size, and transparency of the screen grid, select Display Options > Edit
Screen Grid. The Screen Grid Editor sets the size and appearance of the grid. Click the Reset button to use the default settings.
If the Snap to Grid option is checked in the Display Options menu, objects in your layout snap to the grid when they are moved.
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Video Safe Title Area
The video safe title area consists of 80% of the output screen, measured from the center of the screen outward in all directions. The video safe marker provides a guideline for placing text and graphic objects.
To display the video safe title area, select the Display Options > Show 4:3
Title Safe Area. If you are working on a 16:9 layout you can choose to display either a 4:3 or a 16:9 video safe title area.
If the Snap to Title Safe Area option is checked in the Display Options menu, objects in your layout will to the video safe title area when they are moved.
Select Display Options > Edit Video Safe Area to change the size and color of the video safe title area. See
”The Video Safe Title Area” on page 255 .
Adjust Workspace Zoom
Zoom your layout display in or out to help you edit and position objects in your CG workspace.
Select a zoom level from the Zoom drop-down list in the
CG toolbar.
• Select a value from 25% to 400% to zoom your layout display in or out.
• To zoom in so that your selected object fills the visible CG workspace area, select the On Selected option.
• To zoom so that your layout fills the entire visible
CG workspace area, select the Full Screen option.
• Select 100% to return your layout to the normal zoom level.
Drag the scrollbars on the edges of the CG workspace to view layout areas that are off the edge of the workspace.
Move Workspace Elements
To move a toolbar or palette to a new position, click the edge of the workspace element and drag it to a new position in the workspace. Drag elements back to their original locations to snap them back into place.
CG offers a variety of text objects suited to specific needs in your layouts. Text objects can be constrained to keep their lengths constant and they can contain multiple lines of text. You can also create text paths and vertical text.
Use the appropriate text tool from the Tools palette to add a text object to a layout.
Table 3-5. Text Object Tools
Icon Tool Description
Text Field
Text Constrained
Field
Paragraph Field
Fixed-Width
Paragraph Field
Text Path
For single lines of text. The field expands as text is entered. Pressing ENTER creates a new Text Field.
For single lines of text. The field's width is constrained and the text gets smaller to fit the field. Pressing ENTER creates a new Text Constrained Field.
For multiple lines of text. The field expands as text is entered. Pressing
ENTER creates a new line within the field.
For multiple lines of text. The field's width is constrained and the text gets smaller to fit the field. Pressing ENTER creates a new line within the field.
For single lines of text on a complex path. See
”Text Path Objects” on page 129
for more information.
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Table 3-5. Text Object Tools (Continued)
Icon Tool Description
Vertical Text For vertical text fields containing characters that are stacked on top of each
other. See ”Vertical Text Objects” on page 130
for more information about vertical text.
To create a new text object in a layout:
1 Select the appropriate text tool from the Tools palette.
2 Use the tool to add a text object to the CG workspace.
• When using an unconstrained text tool (like the Text Field or
Paragraph Field tool) click the CG workspace to create the text object.
• When using a constrained text tool (like the Text Constrained Field or Fixed-Width Paragraph Field) click and drag in the CG workspace to place the text object and define its length.
The new text object is added to the layout. The object contains a blinking text cursor.
Figure 3-1. A New Text Constrained Field
Use the Selection tool to edit the text inside text objects.
1 Select the Selection tool in the Tools palette.
2 Click a text object to place a text cursor inside.
If the object already contains text you can select a range of text by holding down the CTRL key and dragging over the text.
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3 Enter your text. The way the object handles text depends on whether it is constrained or unconstrained.
• If the text object is unconstrained, it expands to the right to fit your text.
• If the text object is constrained, the text gets smaller to fit within the object.
Figure 3-2. Add Text to a Constrained Text Field
Pressing ENTER while editing a paragraph text object (like a Paragraph
Field or a Fixed-Width Paragraph Field object) adds a new line to the text object.
Figure 3-3. Add Lines to a Fixed-Width Paragraph Field
Pressing ENTER while editing a single-line text object (like a Text Field or a
Text Constrained Field object) creates a new text object below the one being edited.
Figure 3-4. Add a New Single-Line Text Object
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Change the Selection/Edit Mode
There are two modes you can use when working with text objects: Selection
Mode and Edit Mode. Press the SPACEBAR and ESC keys to switch between the two modes.
• When you select a text object with the Pointer tool you are automatically placed in Selection Mode. In Selection Mode the entire object is selected. This is useful if you want to move, rotate, or change the attributes of the entire object. Press the
SPACEBAR to switch to Edit Mode.
• When you select a text object with the Selection tool you are automatically placed in Edit Mode. In Edit Mode a text cursor is placed within the text object, allowing you to select and edit the text inside the object. Press the ESC key to switch to Selection Mode.
It can be useful to insert logos and video clips into text objects. Inserted media adopt the style and size of the object text and they stay within the text as the object is moved.
Feature Note
You can use video clips only if you have the Clip option enabled on your system.
1 Select the Selection tool in the Tools palette.
You must use the Selection tool to insert media into text objects.
If you use the Pointer tool instead, the media is applied to the face of the text object. See
”Image Treatment” on page 179 to learn about
adding a logo to the face of an object, and see
Treatment” on page 182 to learn about adding a video clip to the face of
an object.
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2 Select the text object you want to insert the media into. A blinking text cursor appears inside the object
3 Switch to the Media tab of the CG Libraries palette.
If the media you want to use is not already stored in
one of the library boxes, see ”The Media Library” on page 195 to learn how to add media to the Media
Library.
4 Grab the media box containing your media and drag it to the text object.
5 Drop the media in the object. The media appears at the beginning of the first line of text, with the blinking text cursor after it.
Figure 3-5. Insert a Logo into a Text Object
To quickly move the media to another location in your text object:
1 Hold the SHIFT key and press the LEFT ARROW. Your media is selected.
2 Press CTRL+X to cut the media.
3 Move your text cursor to where you want to insert the media.
4 Press CTRL+V to paste the media. The media remains in the Windows clipboard so you can continue to paste the media into other text objects if necessary.
The Character Map helps you copy and paste special characters into your text objects. It is also a reference for the keystroke codes that reproduce special characters on your keyboard’s number pad.
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Choose Tools > Character Map to open the Character Map window. The window displays all of the characters available for your current font.
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Figure 3-6. Character Map Window
Single-click on a character to see a larger image of it. The Keystroke information displayed in the window’s status bar tells you how to enter that character directly with the keyboard’s numeric keypad.
For instance, if the Keystroke information is
Alt+0229
, hold down the ALT key and type
0229
on the numeric keypad to type that character when you are in the CG module.
Copy Characters
When you double-click a character in the Character Map window it is added to the Characters to Copy field. Click the Copy button to copy the characters to the clipboard.
To add the copied characters to a text object, position your text cursor within the object in the CG workspace and press CTRL+V. The characters are copied from the clipboard into the text object.
Advanced View
Check the Advanced View checkbox to view different character sets, change the way the characters are grouped, and search for characters by name or by
Unicode value.
Use the Text Path tool to place text along a complex spline path.
1 Select the Text Path tool in the Tools palette.
2 Click the CG workspace to place the first point of the text path.
Figure 3-7. Place the First Point of a Text Path
3 Click the CG workspace to place the rest of your points. The spline is drawn in your workspace and a text cursor appears at the end of the spline.
Hold the SHIFT key while clicking to make your point part of a curve instead of a straight line.
Figure 3-8. Add Points to a Text Path
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4 Edit the spline path’s points as necessary.
• To move one of your points, position the Text Path tool or the
Selection tool over the point until it becomes an arrow, then drag the point to a new position.
• To delete a point, position the Text Path tool or the Selection tool over the point until it becomes an arrow, then double-click the point.
• To change the curvature of a point, position the Text Path tool or the Selection tool over the point until it becomes an arrow, then hold the ALT key and drag the point’s control handles. This creates convex and concave curves on either side of the point.
You can continue to select and move the control points as long as you hold the ALT key.
Figure 3-9. Edit a Text Path’s Control Points
5 Enter your text on the spline path.
Figure 3-10. Add Text to a Text Path
Vertical text objects are used mainly for double byte languages such as
Chinese, Japanese, and Korean, but they can be used with any language and any font. They allow you to enter characters from top to bottom and left to right on a layout.
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To add a vertical text object to your layout use the appropriate vertical text tool from the Tools palette.
Table 3-6. Vertical Text Object Tools
Icon Tool Description
Vertical Text
Field
For single lines of text. The field expands as text is entered, with the text itself remaining a fixed size. Pressing
ENTER creates a new Vertical Text
Field.
Vertical Text
Constrained Field
For single lines of text. The field’s height is constrained and the text gets smaller to fit the field. Pressing ENTER creates a new Vertical Text Constrained
Field.
Vertical
Paragraph Field
Vertical
Fixed-Width
Paragraph Field
For multiple lines of text. The field expands as text is entered. Pressing
ENTER creates a new line within the field.
For multiple lines of text. The field’s height is constrained and the text gets smaller to fit the field. Pressing ENTER creates a new line within the field.
You can toggle your text objects between horizontal and vertical text:
1 Select a horizontal text object.
2 Switch to the Attributes tab in the Attributes palette.
3 In the Paragraph section of the Attributes tab, click the
Vertical Orientation button. The horizontal text object changes to a vertical text object.
4 To switch vertical text to horizontal text, click the Horizontal
Orientation button in the Paragraph section of the Attributes tab.
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You can also toggle the orientation of text objects by right-clicking them and choosing Vertical Text Orientation or Horizontal Text Orientation from the right-click menu.
You can choose to show or hide the text baseline for selected text objects.
The letters in most fonts sit directly on the baseline, and the descenders extend below the baseline.
To show or hide the text baseline, click the Display
Options button and select or clear the Text Baseline option.
Use the controls in the Attributes tab to change text options such as font style, rotation, text size, alignment, and spacing. You can also customize the way your object behaves when text is added to it and what happens when ENTER and TAB are pressed.
The Attributes tab contains a Paragraph tab and a Text Object Properties tab. Click either tab to display its options.
Text Font
A font is a complete set of type in a particular face. The face is the design of the font. Some fonts contain standard alphanumeric characters, while other fonts contain only special symbols.
The fonts on your system are available for all Windows applications and they are specific to each computer. If you work on multiple computers you need to be sure that the same fonts are installed on each one.
To change the font for your text objects:
1 Select a text object.
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To select only some of the text in your object, select the
Selection tool in the Tools palette, hold the CTRL key, and drag your cursor over the text you want to select.
2 Switch to the Attributes tab of the Attributes palette.
3 In the Formatting section of the tab, open the Font drop-down list. The fonts that are installed on your system are displayed in the list.
4 Select the font you want to use. Your selected text changes to the new font.
Figure 3-11. Change a Text Object’s Font
5 Click the Style buttons in the Paragraph section of the Attributes tab to apply different font styles to your text.
Table 3-7. Font Styles
Button Description
Click the Bold button to switch to the bold variation of your selected font. If the font does not have a bold variation, CG automatically thickens the text for you.
Click the Italic button to switch to the italicized variation of your selected font. If the font does not have an italicized variation, CG automatically slants the text for you.
Click the Underline button to underline your text.
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Table 3-7. Font Styles (Continued)
Button Description
Click the Small Caps button to apply small caps to your text.
All lower case letters in your selection change to upper-case letters displayed at a percentage of the normal upper case size. Upper case letters, numbers, and punctuation symbols are not affected.
Font Size
You can change the size of the text inside your text object, and you can also change its aspect ratio to make it wider or narrower.
1 Select a text object.
To select only some of the text in your object, select the
Selection tool in the Tools palette, hold the CTRL key, and drag your cursor over the text you want to select.
2 Switch to the Attributes tab of the Attributes palette.
3 In the Formatting section of the tab, use the Size and Aspect Ratio controls to change the height and width of your text.
• To change both the height and width of your selected text enter a new value in the Size field.
• To change only the width of your selected text enter a new value in the Aspect Ratio field. Higher values make your text wider and smaller values make your text narrower.
When text expands beyond the current height or width of a text object, the object formats its text depending on the constraints in its text object properties.
Table 3-8. Default Text Object Behavior when Resizing Text
Text Object Type Behavior
Text Field The size of Text Field objects is not constrained. Objects become larger or smaller to fit the size of the text inside.
Table 3-8. Default Text Object Behavior when Resizing Text
Text Object Type Behavior
Text Constrained Field The width and height of Text Constrained Field objects are constrained. If the text becomes too tall to fit inside the object, the text grows wider as its size increases. If the text becomes too wide to fit inside the object, the text grows taller.
You are unable to increase the size or aspect ratio of text that completely fills a Text
Constrained Field.
Paragraph Field
Fixed-Width Paragraph
Field
The size of Paragraph Field objects is not constrained. Objects become larger or smaller to fit the text inside.
The width of Fixed-Width Paragraph Field objects is constrained, but the height is not. If the text becomes too wide to fit within the paragraph the text wraps to the next line, creating a new line if necessary.
To customize the behavior of text objects, see
”Text Object Properties” on page 137 .
Relative Embellishments
By default the size of an object’s embellishments (edge, depth, and shadow) remain constant as its size changes. Select the Relative
Embellishments checkbox in the Paragraph section of the Attributes tab to scale an object’s embellishments as its size changes.
Text Alignment
Use the Attributes tab to change the alignment of your text.
Note:
The text within Text Field objects cannot be aligned because the text always fills the object.
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1 Select a text object.
2 Switch to the Attributes tab of the Attributes palette.
3 In the Paragraph section of the tab, click the Alignment buttons to change the way your text lines are aligned.
Table 3-9. Text Alignment
Button Description
Click the Align Left button to align your text to the left edge of the object.
Click the Align Center button to center your text inside the object.
Click the Align Right button to align your text to the right edge of the object.
Text Leading
Leading refers to the amount of space between lines of text. In CG, leading is the number of scan lines between the lowest possible descender in one line and the highest possible ascender in the next line. The value in the
Leading field in the Paragraph section of the Attributes tab represents the number of scan lines used between lines.
Text Kerning
The kerning value determines how much space is used between pairs of characters. Kerning is measured as the number of pixels added to or subtracted from the normal character spacing for the current font.
Kerning lets you adjust the spacing between one or more letters, which is useful for displaying characters with very wide ascenders or descenders.
Kerning can also be used to achieve special typographic effects.
To change the kerning after a single character, select the character and change the value in the Kerning field. To change the kerning between all of the characters in a text object, change the value in the Kerning field with no characters selected.
Right-to-Left Text Objects
To assign right-to-left text processing for a text object, check the Text
Direction is Right to Left checkbox.
The CG module automatically detects the regional text-entry method of your Windows setup, but checking this checkbox adds additional processing to the object such as right-to-left punctuation.
Use the Text Object Properties options to customize your text object behavior:
1 Select a text object.
2 Switch to the Attributes tab in the CG Attributes toolbar and click the
Text Objects Properties section.
3 Change the settings in the Text Object Properties section to customize the behavior of your selected text object.
Lock the Object Height
Select the Lock Object Height checkbox to prevent the text field’s height from changing as more text is entered. When checked, new lines of text are added to the text field by shrinking the height of the existing text.
You can also lock an object’s height by right-clicking it and choosing
Constrain > Lock Object Height.
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Lock the Object Width
Select the Lock Object Width checkbox to prevent the text field’s width from changing as more text is entered.
When checked, additional controls set how the object behaves when text fills the text object:
• When the Constrain Text to Width control is checked the text in the field gets narrower to fit new text. Otherwise, any new text is placed outside the field and is not displayed unless the object is enlarged.
• The Enable Word Wrapping radio button appears when the text object’s height is unlocked. When word wrapping is enabled your text is wrapped to a new line when you type beyond the edge of the field.
You can also lock an object’s width by right-clicking it and choosing
Constrain > Lock Object’s Width.
Create New Text Object with Enter
When the Create New Text Object with Enter checkbox is checked, pressing the ENTER key creates a new text object below the current text object.
Otherwise, pressing ENTER creates a new line within the existing text object.
Create New Text Object with Tab
When the Create New Text Object with Tab checkbox is checked, pressing the TAB key creates a new text object to the right of the existing text object.
Otherwise, pressing TAB moves the text cursor to the next tab stop within the existing text object.
See
”Tabs in Text Objects” on page 144 for information about tabs.
Cursor
Use the Cursor drop-down list to set the way the text cursor behaves when you select the text object.
• When the Insert Cursor is chosen, the text cursor appears within the text object when it is selected. This is useful for fields that need to be frequently edited without being completely re-written. The Insert cursor is the default cursor.
• When the Auto-Erase cursor is chosen, all of the text within the text object is selected when you click the object. This is useful for fields that are frequently re-written, such as sports scores.
• When the Lock Content cursor is chosen you will be unable to edit the text within the text object. You can unlock the object again by selecting it and choosing a different cursor.
Every CG object is surrounded by an outline rectangle with grab handles at each corner and at the midpoints. Drag these grab handles to change the size of the object. For more precise sizing use the controls in the Text
Object Properties section of the Attributes tab.
Figure 3-12. Resize Text Objects with Grab Handles
To change the size of an object with its grab handles:
1 Select one or more text objects in the CG workspace.
2 Select the Pointer tool or the Selection tool from the Tools palette.
3 Click and drag one of the grab handles to resize the object. Use the midpoint grab handles to resize only the vertical or horizontal dimension of the object, and use the corner grab handles to change both the height and width. When you release the mouse button CG redraws the object to the new size. The handle opposite to the one you dragged remains anchored.
To maintain the object’s aspect ratio, hold the SHIFT key while dragging the grab handle.
To keep the object centered while changing its size, hold the ALT key while dragging the grab handle.
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To change the size of an object with the Attributes tab:
1 Select one or more objects in the CG workspace.
2 Switch to the Attributes tab in the Attributes palette.
3 Click the Text Object Properties section of the tab.
4 Change the values in the Height and Width fields.
The object formats your text depending on the constraints of its text object properties.
Table 3-10. Default Text Object Behavior when Resizing Object
Text Object Type Behavior
Text Field The size of Text Field objects is not constrained. The size and aspect ratio of the text changes to fit the size of the object.
Text Constrained Field Increasing the height or width of a Text
Constrained Field does not change the size of the text inside the object.
If the height or width of the object is decreased so that the text can no longer fit inside, the text’s size and aspect ratio change to fit inside the object.
Paragraph Field
Fixed-Width Paragraph
Field
The size of Paragraph Field objects is not constrained. The size and aspect ratio of the text changes to fit the size of the object.
The height of a Fixed-Width Paragraph field cannot be changed by dragging its handles.
When the width of the object is changed, the text inside will wrap to best fit the inside of the object, adding or removing paragraph lines as necessary. The size of the text itself does not change.
To customize the properties of your text objects, see ”Text Object
Use rows when you need to create tables and leaderboards.
Rows are specially grouped text objects that can be easily edited and duplicated using shortcut keys and the Row menu. Click the
Row button in the CG Editor toolbar to access the Row menu.
Create a New Table
1 Create the first row of your table by aligning several text objects to the same baseline, one object for each column. You can either nudge the objects into position or align them with the Alignment menu (see
”Align Objects” on page 204 ).
Figure 3-13. Four Text Objects
2 Hold the SHIFT key and click each text object, until all objects are selected.
3 Group all of the objects into a row using one of the following methods:
• Click the Row button in the CG Editor toolbar, then select Make Row from the menu.
• Press the CTRL+ENTER shortcut key.
The objects become individual cells in the first row of the table.
4 With one of the cells in the first row selected, create additional rows using the Duplicate Below option in the Row menu. You can also create a row above your table with the Duplicate Above option.
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Each time you select the Duplicate Above or Duplicate Below option a new row is added to the top or bottom of the table. The cells in the rows line up with the cells in the other rows, forming table columns.
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Figure 3-14. Table with Four Rows
Edit Row Text
Select a table cell with the Selection tool (or double click it with the Pointer tool) to edit the cell’s text.
When you are finished editing the cell’s text, press the DOWN ARROW key to move to the next cell, or the UP ARROW key to move to the previous cell.
Change Cell Attributes
More than one cell can be edited at one time. Hold the SHIFT key and click cells to select multiple cells, or draw a selection boundary around the cells you want to edit.
Since you can edit multiple cells at one time you can easily select and modify the properties of entire rows, columns, or blocks of cells. For example you can change the justification of each column, the text style of the top row, and the color of a block of table cells. By selecting and modifying multiple cells you can quickly create an attractive table or leaderboard with complex formatting.
To change the Attributes of one or more cells, right-click a cell selection and select Cell Attributes. You can choose whether to constrain the width or proportion of the cell and you can set the cell’s cursor type. For more
information about text attributes and cursor types see
Figure 3-15. Table Formatted with Multiple Selection
Swap Rows
You can swap rows in a table using the Select and Swap options.
1 Select a cell in one of the rows.
2 Click on the Row button in the CG Editor toolbar and choose Select
Row. You can also right-click in the cell and choose the Select Row option.
3 Select a cell in the row that you want to swap.
4 Click on the Row button and choose Swap. The two rows change position in the table.
Manage Rows
Use shortcut keys to manage table rows.
Table 3-11. Shortcut Keys for Row Management
Shortcut Key Behavior
CTRL+SHIFT+C
CTRL+SHIFT+X
CTRL+SHIFT+V
Copies the entire row to the clipboard.
Cuts the entire row, placing it in the clipboard.
Pastes the row at the bottom of the table.
CTRL+SHIFT+ALT+V Pastes the row at the top of the table.
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Table 3-11. Shortcut Keys for Row Management (Continued)
Shortcut Key Behavior
CTRL+SHIFT+UP
ARROW
CTRL+SHIFT+DOWN
ARROW
Moves the row up and swaps it with the row directly above.
Moves the row down and swaps it with the row directly below.
Unmake Rows
To ungroup the cells in a table, right-click in a cell and choose Unmake
Row from the right-click menu. The cells in your table break apart into separate text objects.
To spell check the text in a layout, right-click the CG workspace and select
Spell Check from the right-click menu.
You can also spell check a specific object by right-clicking it and choosing
Spell Check from the menu.
To help you position and align text, all text objects except Text Paths can contain tab stops. The CG Ruler above the CG workspace displays the tab stops for your currently selected text object.
How your text cursor behaves when you press the TAB key depends on the text object's attributes and the way the tab stops are configured. See
Object Properties” on page 137 for information about Text Object
Properties.
If the text object is set to create a new object when the TAB key is pressed, pressing the TAB key creates a new text object to the right of the existing object. Otherwise, the text cursor moves to the next tab stop within the text object. If there are no tab stops defined, the text cursor moves approximately 10 pixels away from the current position.
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Show or Hide Tab Stops
You can choose to show or hide the tab stops within your currently selected text object.
1 Click the Display Options button in the CG toolbar.
The Display Options menu opens.
2 Select the Tab Stops option. Your tab stops display as vertical yellow lines within any selected text objects.
Tab Stop Marker
3 To hide the tab stop markers, open the Display Options menu and clear the Tab Stops option.
Add a Tab Stop
Add tab stops to your text objects by clicking in the CG Ruler. You can also use the Tab Editor dialog for more precise placement of multiple tabs.
To add a left-aligned tab stop with the CG Ruler:
1 Select a text object.
2 Click the mouse cursor within the CG Ruler to add a left-aligned tab stop at that location.
To add a tab stop with the Tab Editor:
1 Click the Modify Tab Stops button on the CG
Editor toolbar, then select the Modify Tab Stops option. The Tab Editor opens.
2 In the Tab Details section of the dialog select the position and alignment of the tab stop.
3 Click the Plus button to add the tab stop to the Tab List.
4 Click the Close button to close the Tab Editor.
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Modify a Tab Stop
You can modify tab stops in your text objects by dragging tab stops within the CG Ruler. You can also use the Tab Editor dialog for more precise editing of your tabs.
To modify the position of a text object’s tab stops with the CG Ruler, select a tab stop in the CG Ruler and drag it to a new position.
To modify a text object’s tab stops with the Tab Editor:
1 Click the Modify Tab Stops button in the CG Editor toolbar, then select the Modify Tab Stops button. The Tab Editor opens.
2 In the Tab Editor, select the tab stop you want to modify in the Tab
List.
3 Click the Left arrow button. The tab stop’s position and alignment information appears in the Tab Details section of the dialog.
4 Change the position and alignment of the tab stop in the Tab Details section.
5 Click the Right arrow button to replace the selected tab stop with the new tab details.
6 Click the Close button to close the Tab Editor.
Overlapping Tab Stops
You can choose whether text is allowed to overlap the text in other tab stops.
1 Select a text object.
2 Click the Modify Tab Stops button in the CG Editor toolbar, then select the Modify Tab Stops option. The Tab Editor opens.
3 In the Tab Editor select the Text may Not Overlap on the Tab Stops checkbox to prevent your text from overlapping. If you try to enter aligned text that will overlap the text in another tab stop, the text is automatically adjusted to prevent the overlap.
4 To allow your text to overlap, clear the Text may Not Overlap on the
Tab Stops checkbox.
5 Click the Close button to close the Tab Editor.
Delete a Tab Stop
Delete tab stops in your text objects either by dragging them off the CG
Ruler or by using the Tab Editor.
To delete a tab stop with the CG Ruler:
1 Select a text object.
2 Select a tab stop in the CG Ruler and drag it off the edge of the ruler.
To delete tab stops with the Tab Editor:
1 Click the Modify Tab Stops button in the CG Editor toolbar, then select the Modify Tab Stops button.
The Tab Editor opens.
2 In the Tab Editor, select the tab stop you want to delete in the Tab List.
3 Click the Delete button. The tab stop is deleted from the list.
4 Click the Close button to close the Tab Editor.
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Graphic objects are used to add colorful broadcast elements behind text, such as lower thirds and panels.
Use the graphic tools in the Tools palette to create
Oval
Round Corner
Rectangle
Wedge Spline simple shapes such as ovals, rectangles, wedges, and arcs. The polygon and spline tools allow you to create more complex objects that consist of multiple bezier curves.
To add a graphic object to your layout, use the appropriate tool from the Tools palette. In most cases
Rectangle
Round
Rectangle
Arc Polygon you add graphic objects to a layout by selecting a tool and drawing the object in the CG workspace.
CG provides a variety of simple shapes that can be quickly added to your layout. You can create rectangles, wedges, arcs, ovals, round rectangles, and round corner rectangles.
Table 3-12. Simple Shape Tools
Tool Name Tool Name
Rectangle Oval
Wedge Round Rectangle
Arc Round Corner Rectangle
To create a new simple graphic object in a layout:
1 Select the appropriate graphic tool from the Tools palette.
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2 Click and drag in the CG workspace to place, size, and orient the graphic object.
• To center the graphic where you clicked in the CG workspace, hold the ALT key while dragging. Otherwise, the point you clicked becomes one of the graphic’s corners.
• Hold the SHIFT key while dragging to constrain the graphic’s aspect ratio to 1:1. This ensures that circles and squares are perfectly constrained.
• To change the horizontal or vertical orientation of the graphic, drag the selected handle through the opposite boundary of the graphic.
The graphic flips in the direction you drag.
Figure 3-16. Add a Rectangle to the Layout
Corner Trim
You can set the corner trim percentage for Round Corner and Clipped
Corner Rectangle objects. Larger values create larger corners.
Figure 3-17. Round Corner Rectangles with 20% and 40% Corner
Trim Values
To change the corner trim for Round Corner and Clipped Corner
Rectangles:
1 Select a Round Corner Rectangle or a Clipped Corner Rectangle.
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2 Switch to the Attributes tab of the Attributes palette.
3 In the Formatting section of the tab, change the Corner Trim value.
Use the Polygon tool to add custom-made polygons to a layout.
1 Select the Polygon tool in the Tools palette.
2 Click the CG workspace to place the first point of the polygon.
Figure 3-18. Place the First Point of a Polygon
3 Click the CG workspace to place the rest of the points. The boundary of the polygon draws between the points.
Hold the SHIFT key while clicking to make a point part of a curve instead of a straight line.
Figure 3-19. Add Points to a Polygon
4 To change the curvature of a point, position the Polygon tool or the
Selection tool over the point until it becomes an arrow, then hold the
ALT key and drag the point’s control handles.
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This creates convex and concave curves on either side of the point. You can continue to select and move the control points as long as you hold the ALT key.
Figure 3-20. Edit a Polygon’s Control Points
5 To move one of the points, position the Polygon tool or the Selection tool over the point until it becomes an arrow, then drag the point to a new position.
6 To delete a point, position the Polygon tool or the Selection tool over the point until it becomes an arrow, then double-click the point.
Closed Beziers
To remove the fill from a polygon, switch to the Attributes tab of the
Attributes palette and change its form to Closed Bezier. The Polygon becomes an outline.
To return the fill to the polygon change its form to Filled Bezier.
Use the Spline tool to add lines and splines to a layout.
1 Select the Spline tool in the Tools palette.
2 Click the CG workspace to place the first point of the spline.
3 Click the CG workspace to place the rest of the points. The spline is drawn in the workspace.
Hold the SHIFT key while clicking to make the point part of a curve instead of a straight line.
4 To change the curvature of a point, position the Spline tool or the
Selection tool over the point until it becomes an arrow, then hold the
ALT key and drag the point’s control handles. This creates convex and concave curves on either side of the point. You can continue to select and move the control points as long as you hold the ALT key.
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5 To move one of the points, position the Spline tool or the Selection tool over the point until it becomes an arrow, then drag the point to a new position.
6 To delete a point, position the Spline tool over the point until it becomes an arrow, then double-click the point.
Line Width
Use the Attributes tab to change the width of spline and closed bezier lines.
1 Select a spline or closed bezier object in the CG workspace.
2 Switch to the Attributes tab of the Attributes palette.
3 Change the Line Width value.
Line Ends
You can select three different line end types for spline objects. This setting determines the shape of the line ends and how far they extend beyond the control points.
The differences between line ends are more obvious for splines with large line widths.
Butt
Round
Square
Figure 3-21. Three Different Line Ends
To change line ends:
1 Select a line or spline object in the CG workspace.
2 Switch to the Attributes tab of the Attributes palette.
3 Select a Line End from the drop-down list.
• Butt: The line stops directly on the first and last control points.
• Round: The line extends beyond the first and last control points with a rounded contour.
• Square: The line extends beyond the first and last control points with a square contour.
Every CG object is surrounded by an outline rectangle with grab handles at each corner and midpoint. Use these grab handles to change the size of the object.
1 Select a graphic object in the CG workspace.
2 Select the Pointer tool or the Selection tool from the Tools palette.
3 Click and drag one of the handles to resize the object. Use midpoint grab handles to resize only the vertical or horizontal dimension of the rectangle, or use corner handles to resize both the horizontal and vertical dimensions. When you release the mouse button, CG redraws the object to the new size. The corner or midpoint opposite to the one you grabbed remains anchored.
To maintain your object’s aspect ratio, hold the SHIFT key while dragging the grab handle.
To keep your object centered while changing its size, hold the ALT key while dragging the grab handle.
If you want more precise sizing use the controls in the Attributes tab:
1 Select a graphic object in the CG workspace.
2 Switch to the Attributes tab of the Attributes palette.
3 In the Formatting section of the tab, use the Width and Height controls to change the height and width of your graphic.
Relative Embellishments
By default the size of your object’s embellishments (edge, depth, and shadow) remain constant as the object’s size changes. Select the Relative
Embellishments checkbox on the Attributes tab to scale your object’s embellishments as its size changes.
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Once you have created a graphic object you can change its form using the
Attributes tab.
1 Select a graphic object.
2 Switch to the Attributes tab of the Attributes palette.
3 Use the Form drop-down list to select a new form for the graphic object.
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Logos are commonly used for station identification images, corporate logos, or product logos. They let you add complex images with detailed alpha information in your layouts.
If the CG graphic tools are not sufficient to allow you to create a graphic layout, you can use
Paint or a third-party program to create a graphic and add it to your layout.
Logos are special graphic objects that can mix the face color with a bitmap image. You can scale and position logos anywhere in the layout. Any alpha transparency in the logo is maintained, allowing you to add edge, depth, and shadow elements which follow the logo’s contour.
Logos can also be inserted inside text objects using the Selection tool and the Media Library. See
Media into Text Objects” on page 126 for more details.
You can add logo objects to your layout by either drawing the logo object with the Logo tool or by dragging images from the Media Library.
To add a logo with the Logo tool:
1 Select the Logo tool from the Tools palette.
2 Click and drag in the CG workspace to place, size, and orient your logo object.
• To center your logo where you clicked in the CG workspace, hold the ALT key while dragging. Otherwise, the point you clicked becomes one of the logo’s corners.
• Hold the SHIFT key while dragging to constrain your logo’s aspect ratio to 1:1.
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3 Switch to the Attributes tab of the Attributes palette.
4 In the Logo Details section of the tab, click the Add button and select the image file you want to use for your logo. The image is applied to your logo object.
Figure 3-22. Add a Logo Object
To add a logo object from the Media Library:
1 Switch to the Media tab of the CG Libraries palette.
If the logo you want to use is not already stored in one
of the library boxes, see ”The Media Library” on page 195 to learn how to add media to the Media
Library.
2 Grab the media box containing your logo and drag it to the CG workspace.
3 Drop the logo in the CG workspace. The logo object is added to your layout.
Clicking a library box in the Media Library adds a full-sized logo object to your layout.
Logo objects allow you to add edge, depth, and shadow embellishments which follow a logo’s alpha information.
Many software packages let you create an alpha channel for your images. If your logo contains an alpha channel, CG reads this information and applies it to the logo object
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allowing you to add edges, depths, and shadows which recognize the logo’s transparent areas.
To learn about adding embellishments to your objects, see ”Object
.
Tint the original color of the image by mixing it with a treatment. The tint options for logo objects are on the Face tab.
1 Select a logo object.
2 Switch to the Face tab of the Attributes palette.
3 Select a treatment in the Treatment drop-down list. For more information about treatments see
”Element Treatments” on page 175
.
4 Set the color and sheen for the object’s face.
5 Change the mix between the logo image and the face color by dragging the Mix slider. You can also enter a value in the mix field. 0% shows only the logo image and 100% shows only the face color.
Figure 3-23. A Logo Image Mixed with a Radial Gradient Treatment
You can change a logo’s image by adding a new image file on the Attributes tab, or by right-clicking the logo and choosing the “Change Image” option.
An object’s Constraint method sets the way a logo image is placed within the object’s boundaries, and how it behaves when the object is resized. Use the Attributes tab to change the Constraint method.
1 Select the Logo tool in the Tools palette.
2 Click and drag in the CG workspace to place, size, and orient the empty logo object.
3 Switch to the Attributes tab of the Attributes palette.
4 In the Logo Constraints section of the tab select a Constraint method.
These methods determine how the logo object behaves when you apply an image file to it.
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Table 3-13. Logo Constraint Methods
Button Description
The logo image is sized to fill the object.
The object becomes the size of the logo’s image file.
Maintaining the object’s current width, the lower boundary of the object moves to fit the image file.
Maintaining the object’s current width, the upper boundary of the object moves to fit the image file.
Maintaining the object’s current height, the right boundary of the object moves to fit the image file.
Maintaining the object’s current height, the left boundary of the object moves to fit the image file.
5 In the Logo Details section of the tab, click the Add button and select the image file you want to use for the logo. The image is applied to the logo object according to the Constraint method.
6 If you change the size of the logo object, selecting a Constraint method changes the object boundaries or the image size accordingly.
The clock objects that come pre-defined with
G-Scribe were created with RTX development tools. Use these clock objects to create digital clocks and digital timers in your layouts.
Feature Note
If you purchased the RTX Ports option you can use other custom clocks created with the
RTX development tools. See
”Port Objects” on page 163 to learn how to use RTX
applications in G-Scribe.
Use the Port/Clock tool to add digital clocks and digital timers to your layouts.
1 On the Tools palette, right-click the Port/Clock tool.
2 From the right-click menu, select the clock you’d like to add. You can add a digital clock or a digital timer.
3 Click and drag in the CG workspace to define the size constraints of the clock. The clock is added at the size and position you specify.
Digital clocks and digital timers allow you to select a font for the clock object. You can also set the appearance of the font’s face, edge, depth, and shadow.
Use the Attributes tab in the Attributes palette to set the appearance of your selected clock object.
Face and Edge
Switch to the Face and Edge tab within the Attributes tab to change the appearance of your clock’s face and edge.
1 Select the clock’s font from the Font Face drop-down list.
2 Select the font’s face color from the Face Color drop-down list, and drag the transparency slider to set the face’s transparency. You can also enter a value in the Transparency field. 0% is completely opaque and
100% is completely transparent.
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3 Set the width of the font’s edge using the Edge Width field.
4 Select the font’s edge color from the color drop-down list, and drag the transparency slider to set the edge’s transparency.
Depth and Shadow
Switch to the Depth and Shadow tab within the Attributes tab to change the appearance of the clock’s depth and shadow.
1 Set the size and angle of the clock’s depth property using the Depth field and the Angle field.
2 Select the depth's color from the Color drop-down list, and drag the
Transparency slider to set the face's transparency.
3 Set the offset and angle of the clock’s shadow using the Shadow Offset field and the Angle field.
4 Set the shadow's blur with the Blur control.
5 Select the shadow's color from the Color drop-down list, and drag the
Transparency slider to set the shadow's transparency.
Scale Clock
In the Attributes tab, change the width and height of the clock using the
Width and Height fields. Clear the Maintain Aspect Ratio checkbox to change the width and height of the clock independently.
You can also select a constraint method. These methods determine how your clock object behaves when its size is changed.
Table 3-14. Clock Constraint Methods
Button Description
The clock content is sized to fill the object.
The object becomes the size of the clock content.
Table 3-14. Clock Constraint Methods (Continued)
Button Description
Maintaining the object’s current width, the lower boundary of the object moves to fit the clock content.
Maintaining the object’s current width, the upper boundary of the object moves to fit the clock content.
Maintaining the object’s current height, the right boundary of the object moves to fit the clock content.
Maintaining the object’s current height, the left boundary of the object moves to fit the clock content.
Switch to the Digital Clock Format tab within the Attributes tab to set the display options for the selected digital clock.
Table 3-15. Digital Clock Format Options
Option Description
Hour Format
Time Format
Display Leading
Zero
Separator
Select the 12 Hour Clock option to display the clock in 12 hour format, or select the 24 Hour Clock option to display the clock in 24 hour format.
Sets the format for the clock. The default clock format is hours:minutes:seconds (hh:mm:ss).
Select to always display the hour with two digits. For example, if the current time is 9:14 the clock displays
09:14.
Sets the separator for the clock. The default separator is a colon.
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Table 3-15. Digital Clock Format Options (Continued)
Option Description
AM Position
AM Symbol
PM Symbol
Sets where the AM/PM text appears. The default position is Right.
Select the AM symbol from the drop-down list.
Select the PM symbol from the drop-down list.
Switch to the Digital Timer Format tab within the Attributes tab to set the display options for the selected digital timer.
Table 3-16. Digital Timer Format Options
Option Description
Counter Format Sets whether the timer counts up or down.
Time Format Sets the format for the timer. The default timer format is hours:minutes:seconds (hh:mm:ss).
Display Leading
Zero
Select to always display the hour with two digits. For example, if the current time is 9:14 the clock displays
09:14.
Separator Sets the separator for the timer. The default separator is a colon.
Sets the starting time for the timer.
Start at
End at
Count Until Next
Take
If the timer is set to count up, select an ending time with the End at drop-down lists.
When checked the timer will continue to count until the layout is taken offline.
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If you purchased the RTX Ports option you can expand the capabilities of your layouts by adding Port objects. Port objects display layers of data created in their associated RTX applications.
RTX Port applications are created with the RTX development tools. To learn how to create Port applications for CG, see the G-Scribe Port Option documentation that came with your RTX software.
Before CG can use a Port object, the object’s RTX Port application must be installed on the system.
1 Make sure G-Scribe is closed.
2 Install the RTX Port application.
3 Launch G-Scribe. The Port object associated with the RTX Port application is now available in the CG Tools palette.
1 In the CG Tools palette, right-click the Port/Clock tool. A menu appears with a list of the installed RTX Port applications.
If your system has no installed RTX Port applications or the Port option is not enabled, the Tools palette contains the Clock tool instead of the
Port/Clock tool and the right-click menu shows no ports.
2 From the right-click menu, select the Port object to add.
3 Use one of the following methods to add the Port object to your layout:
• For Port objects that are constrained to a certain size, click the CG workspace. The Port object is added with its top left corner positioned at the mouse cursor.
• For unconstrained Port objects, click and drag in the CG workspace to define the size constraints of the Port. It is added at the size and position you specify.
Port objects can be designed with custom interfaces. If the Port object provides an interface, switch to the Attributes tab of the CG Attributes palette. The options in the tab allow you to customize the Port.
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Some Port applications allow you to change the scale of Port objects. Use the Attributes tab to change the scale of Port objects with unconstrained sizes or aspect ratios.
If your Port object’s size is unconstrained, change the width and height of the object using the Width and Height fields. If its aspect ratio is unconstrained, clear the Maintain Aspect Ratio checkbox to allow the
Width and Height to be changed independently.
You may also be able to select a constraint method. These methods set how the Port object behaves when its size is changed.
Table 3-17. Port Constraint Methods
Button Description
The Port content is sized to fill the object.
The object becomes the size of the Port content.
Maintaining the object’s current width, the lower boundary of the object moves to fit the Port content.
Maintaining the object’s current width, the upper boundary of the object moves to fit the Port content.
Maintaining the object’s current height, the right boundary of the object moves to fit the Port content.
Maintaining the object’s current height, the left boundary of the object moves to fit the Port content.
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Use clip objects to add full resolution, uncropped video clips to layouts.
Video clips can also be applied as Active
Textures to existing objects in your layouts.
See
”Active Texture Treatment” on page 182 for
more information.
Feature Note
You must have the Clip Option enabled on your system before you can use clips and
Active Textures
An appropriate codec must be installed on your system before you can play video clips.
There are many different ways of encoding video clips, and video clip
“codecs” allow your system to decode particular clip types. Computer operating systems come with some pre-installed codecs, but some specialized codecs must be purchased from third-party companies and installed on each system in order to play back those codec types.
CG supports any codec that is installed on your computer. For instance, if your computer has access to the codec for playing back a particular type of
.avi file, CG will also be able to play that type of .avi.
CG also supports matte .avi files which include transparency information.
By setting a clip’s playback options you can keep or ignore the transparency.
You can add clip objects by either applying a clip to the face of an existing object or by inserting clips with the Media Library.
To learn how to insert video clips inside text objects, see ”Insert Media into
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To add a new full resolution clip to your layout:
1 Switch to the Media tab of the CG Libraries palette.
If the video clip you want to use is not already stored in one of the library boxes, see
Library” on page 195 to learn how to add media to
the Media Library.
2 Double-click the media box containing the video clip. A new clip object is added to your layout with the video clip applied to its face.
To add a clip object to the face of an existing object:
1 Select an object in your layout.
2 Switch to the Face tab in the Attributes palette.
When you apply a clip to the face element of an object, all the other elements will adopt the clip as well.
3 Select the Active Texture treatment from the Treatment drop-down list.
4 In the Color section of the tab, click the Add button and select the video clip you want to use. The clip is applied to all of the elements in your object.
Clip Playback Options
Use the Face tab’s Texture section to set how your clip is played.
• Enter a Start Delay for the clip to prevent the clip from playing until the delay has elapsed.
• Select the Ignore AVI Transparency checkbox to ignore an alpha channel in matte .avi media files.
• Select the Invert Field Order checkbox to invert the field order of your clip. You may need to do this if your clip appears jerky when you play the layout.
• When the display time of the layout is longer than the clip length, the clip automatically loops. To stop a clip from looping once it has finished playing clear the Loop the Playback checkbox.
Clip Alignment and Transparency
Since clips are usually full resolution objects it is not usually necessary to change the clip object’s alignment or transparency. By default clips are aligned to the object’s face and 100% opaque.
When video clips are being used as Active Textures the alignment and transparency of video clips become more important. See
and
”Select Active Texture Transparency” on page 184
to learn how to change the alignment and transparency of a clip.
Use one of the following methods to change the video clip assigned to a clip object:
• Select the clip object and add a different video clip using the Face tab in the Attributes palette.
• Select the clip object and click the new video clip in the Media Library.
• Right-click the clip object and select the Change Media option.
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Every object in your layout consists of four different elements: a face, one or more edges, a depth, and a shadow. In most cases the elements can also include a sheen.
Edge
Sheen
Face
Depth
Shadow
Figure 3-24: Object Elements
Customize the appearance of these elements by adjusting their settings and applying treatments to them.
When you change the size of an object, the size of the object’s depth, edges, and shadow remain constant. Select the Relative Embellishments checkbox on the Attributes tab to scale an object’s embellishments as its size changes. Since Relative Embellishment sizes are set according to the object’s size, they are generally much smaller than they are when Relative Embellishments is cleared.
The face is the actual shape of the object. It is the top element of the object unless it is overlapped by one or more inside edges.
Use the Face tab to change the appearance of selected objects.
• Select a treatment from the Treatment list. The treatment you select determines the color, image, and active texture choices available for the face. See
”Element Treatments” on page 175
to learn how to use treatments.
• Create a sheen for the object’s face using the Sheen section of the tab.
See
”Sheen Elements” on page 173 to learn how to create sheens.
Edge elements completely surround the face of the object. You can add up to ten edges to your object, and they can either overlap the face or extend beyond the face.
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Use the Edge tab to add, edit, and remove edges for selected objects. By combining edges you can turn multiple objects into a complex shape with one or more continuous edges.
Edges cannot be added to Port objects.
Add an Edge
Each edge in an object can either overlap or extend beyond the face, and each edge can have its own sheen element.
The object’s edges are displayed in the Edge tab’s Defined Edges list. The edge at the top of the list is the innermost edge, and the edge at the bottom is the outermost edge.
Innermost
Edge
Outermost
Edge
Add
Edge
Remove
Edge
Figure 3-25. The Defined Edges List
The Settings and Sheen sections of the Edge tab allow you to edit the properties of the currently-selected edge.
To add an edge, click the Add Edge button. A new edge is added to your object. New edges automatically become the outermost edge and appear at the bottom of the Defined Edges list.
Figure 3-26. Add a Black Outside Edge to a Graphic Object
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Edit an Edge
You can rearrange your edges, set their widths, add sheens, and add treatments to them. You can also set how they behave when the object is resized.
To edit an edge, select it in the Edge tab’s Defined Edges list and use the controls in the Settings section of the tab.
1 Set the position for an edge:
• Select the Outside Edge radio button to display the edge outside the object’s face and any other outside edges. If you switch an edge from the inside to the outside of an object it automatically becomes the outermost edge.
• Select the Inside Edge radio button to display the edge inside an object’s face and any other inside edges. If you switch an edge from the outside to the inside of an object it automatically becomes the innermost edge.
2 Enter the width of the edge in the Edge Width field.
3 Select a treatment for the edge from the Treatment list. The treatment determines the color, image, and active texture choices available for the edge. See
”Element Treatments” on page 175 to learn how to use
treatments.
Create a sheen for the edge using the controls in the Sheen section of the
Edge tab. See ”Sheen Elements” on page 173
to learn about sheens.
Remove an Edge
To remove an edge from an object, select the edge you want to remove in the Defined Edges list and click the Remove Edge button. The edge is removed and the other edges move to fill the gap if necessary.
Combine Edges
By default the edges of objects overlap the faces and edges of the objects beneath them. Use the Combine Edges button to bring several objects together onto one layer, causing their edges to disappear behind the overlapping faces.
This is most effective when you have overlapping graphic objects with identical face and edge settings. Combining their edges creates the appearance of a composite object with a combined edge.
A circle placed behind a rectangle. The rectangle’s edge overlaps the circle.
The circle’s edge and the rectangle’s edge are now combined.
Figure 3-27. Combine Edges
To combine the edges of objects, select two or more objects and click the Combine Edges button in the CG
Editor toolbar. The edges of the objects disappear where their faces overlap.
Combining the edges of two or more objects moves them all to the same layer. If you need to bring the combined objects forward or send them backward in the layer list, be sure to select all of the combined objects before you change their layer. See
”Layer Objects” on page 210 to learn
about layering your objects.
To stop an object from combining its edges, select it and move it up or down a layer. The object moves ahead or behind the other objects, separating its edges.
The depth element extends away from an object at an angle, giving it the appearance of thickness and depth. The depth element can have a sheen applied to it.
Use the controls on the Attributes palette’s Depth tab to change the depth properties of selected objects.
1 Set the total distance of the depth element using the Depth control.
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2 Choose to place the depth inside or outside of the object’s outer edges.
• Click the Inside button to position the depth element inside any outer edges defined for the object. The edges surround the depth element.
• Click the Outside button to position the depth element outside the edges of your object. The depth extends outwards from the object edges.
3 Select a treatment from the Treatment drop-down list. The treatment determines the color, image, and active texture choices available for the depth. See
”Element Treatments” on page 175
to learn how to use treatments.
Create a sheen for the object’s depth using the Sheen tab inside the Depth tab. See
”Sheen Elements” on page 173 to learn about sheens.
Figure 3-28. Add Depth to Text Objects and a Logo Object
The shadow element appears behind all the other elements in an object. It is a color or pattern that is offset from the face and edge by a specific number of pixels.
Shadows add depth to flat 2D objects and provide an additional way of adding visual interest to your layouts.
Use the Shadow tab’s Settings section to change an object’s shadow properties.
1 In the Settings section of the tab, set the offset distance of the shadow element using the Offset control.
2 Set the shadow’s blur with the Blur control. A greater value produces a softer, more diffuse shadow.
3 Use the Glow control to set the amount of glow in your shadow. A larger glow value spreads the shadow out from beneath your object in all directions.
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4 Use the Angle control to change the angle of the shadow.
5 Select a treatment from the Treatment drop-down list. The treatment you select determines the color, image, and active texture choices available for the shadow. See
”Element Treatments” on page 175 to
learn about treatments.
Create a sheen for the shadow using the Sheen section of the Shadow tab.
See
”Sheen Elements” on page 173 to learn how to create sheens.
Figure 3-29. Add a Blurred Shadow to the Graphic Objects
A sheen refers to a band of color that cuts through an element, like a focused highlight. You can add a sheen to any of the visible elements in an object except elements using the active texture treatment.
1 Select an object.
2 Select the element you want to add a sheen to by switching to the Face,
Edge, Depth, or Shadow tab.
3 If you are adding a sheen to an edge, select the edge you want to edit from the Defined Edges list.
4 Use the controls in the Sheen section of the tab to define the element’s sheen.
• Select the Apply Sheen checkbox to add a sheen to the element. To remove the sheen, clear the Apply Sheen checkbox.
• Click the Color drop-down list to select the color for the sheen.
• Use the Width control to set the width of the sheen.
• Use the Offset control to set the offset of the sheen. Offset determines the sheen’s position on the element. Higher offset values move the sheen toward the top of the element, and lower values move the sheen toward the bottom. An offset of zero places the sheen in the middle of the element.
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• Use the Angle control to rotate the sheen.
• If you are adding a sheen to an edge element, click the Apply to All
Existing Edges button to add an identical sheen to all of your object’s edges.
Figure 3-30. Add a Rotated Blue Sheen to a Graphic Object
One treatment can be applied to each element in a layout object. These treatments dictate the color, image, and Active Texture choices available for the elements they are applied to.
A treatment can also be applied to the layout background. See
”Layout Backgrounds” on page 217
.
• The Solid Color treatment adds a single color to an element.
• The Linear Gradient, Radial Gradient, and 4 Color Gradient treatments add a mix of colors to an element.
• The Image treatment adds an image file to an element.
• The Active Texture treatment adds a moving image to an element. You must have the Clip Option activated on your system before you can add Active Textures and clip objects to your layouts.
• The None Treatment makes an element completely transparent.
• You can add Beveled Edge and Tube Edge treatments to edge elements.
To apply a treatment to an object:
1 Select one or more objects in the CG workspace.
2 Select the element you want to edit by switching to the Face, Edge,
Depth, or Shadow tabs in the Attributes palette.
3 If you are editing an edge, select the edge you want to edit from the
Defined Edges list.
4 Select the treatment you want to apply from the Treatment drop-down list.
Use the controls in the tab to customize the treatment. See the sections below for an explanation of the controls for each treatment.
Mix and Manage Colors
Customizing treatments often involves choosing one or more colors. Click a color drop-down list to select a color using the
Color Palette. See
”The Color Palette” on page 187 for
information about choosing, creating, and managing colors for your layouts.
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Transparency
Many treatments allow you to set a transparency value with a slider control. Drag the slider to the right to select 100% transparency
(completely invisible), and drag it to the left to select 0% transparency
(completely opaque).
You can also enter a transparency percentage in the number field.
Solid Color
Use the Solid Color treatment to apply a single color to an element.
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Figure 3-31. The Solid Color Treatment
The controls for the Solid Color treatment are in the Settings section of the
Edge, Depth, and Shadows tab. They are in the Color section of the Face tab.
1 Click the Color drop-down list to select a solid color with the Color
Palette.
2 Drag the Transparency slider to change the transparency of the element.
Linear Gradient
Use the Linear Gradient treatment to apply a two-color linear gradient to an element. Linear gradients shade from one color to another in a straight line.
Figure 3-32. The Linear Gradient Treatment
The controls for the Linear Gradient treatment are in the Settings section of the Edge, Depth, and Shadows tab. They are in the Color section of the
Face tab.
1 Select the colors for the linear gradient: a Click the first Color drop-down list to select the first color for the gradient. By default the first color is applied to the top of the element.
b Click the second Color drop-down list to select the second color for the gradient. By default the second color is applied to the bottom of the element.
c Use the first Color slider to set how far from the top of the element the gradient begins.
d Use the second Color slider to set how far from the bottom of the element the gradient ends.
2 Enter values in the Transparency fields to set the transparency of the first and second colors.
3 Increase the number of Gradient Steps to make the gradient repeat one or more times on the element. This creates a “bar” effect as the gradient repeats.
4 Use the Angle control to rotate the gradient.
Radial Gradient
Use the Radial Gradient treatment to apply a two-color radial gradient to an element. Radial Gradients shade from one color to another within a growing circle.
Figure 3-33. The Radial Gradient Treatment
The controls for the Radial Gradient treatment are in the Settings section of the Edge, Depth, and Shadows tab. They are in the Color section of the
Face tab.
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1 Select the colors for the radial gradient.
a Click the first Color drop-down list to select the first color for the gradient. By default the first color is applied to the center of the element.
b Click the second Color drop-down list to select the second color for the gradient. By default the second color is applied to the perimeter of the element.
c Use the first Color slider to set how far from the center of the element the gradient begins.
d Use the second Color slider to set how far from the perimeter of the element the gradient ends.
2 Enter values in the Transparency fields to set the transparency of the first and second colors.
3 Increase the number of Gradient Steps to make the gradient repeat one or more times on the element. This creates a “bull’s-eye” effect when the gradient repeats.
4 Color Gradient
Use the 4 Color Gradient treatment to apply a four-color gradient to the element. Four-color gradients shade between four colors, with one color in each corner of the element.
Figure 3-34. The 4 Color Gradient Treatment
The controls for the 4 Color Gradient treatment are in the Settings section of the Edge, Depth, and Shadows tab. They are in the Color section of the
Face tab.
To set the colors and transparencies for the four corners of the element, follow these steps for every region:
1 From the Region list, select the region of the element that you want to apply a color to.
The first region is in the upper-left corner of the element, the second is in the upper-right corner, the third is in the lower-left, and the fourth is in the lower-right.
Region Region
1 2
Region
3
Region
4
2 Click the Color drop-down list to select the color for the region.
3 Use the Transparency slider to set the transparency of the region.
The none treatment makes the element totally transparent. This is useful when you need to have space reserved for an element but no element visible within that space.
Figure 3-35. The None Treatment Applied to the First Edge of an
Object
Select the None treatment from the Treatment drop-down list. Your element becomes completely transparent.
Use the Image treatment to apply an image to the element. The image can be tinted and aligned in various ways.
Figure 3-36. The Image Treatment
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Add an Image Treatment to an Object
You can quickly apply an image to a face element using the Media Library.
Use the Edge, Depth, or Shadow tab to apply an image to other elements in an object.
To apply an image to an object’s face using the Media Library:
1 Select the Pointer tool in the Tools palette.
You must use the Pointer tool to apply an image treatment to text objects. If you use the Selection tool instead, the logo is
2 Select the object you want to edit.
3 Switch to the Media tab of the CG Libraries palette.
If the logo you want to use is not already stored in one
of the library boxes, see ”The Media Library” on page 195 to learn how to add media to the Media
Library.
4 Grab the media box containing your logo and drag it to the object.
5 Drop the logo in the object. The image is applied to the object’s face.
To apply an image to an object’s face, edge, depth, or shadow without using the Media Library:
1 Select an object in the CG workspace.
2 Select the element you want to edit by switching to the Face, Edge,
Depth, or Shadow tabs.
3 If you are editing an edge, select the edge you want to edit from the
Defined Edges list.
4 Select the Image treatment from the Treatment drop-down list.
5 If you are editing an edge, depth, or shadow element, switch to the
Settings section of the tab.
6 Click the Add button and select the image file you want to use. The image is applied to the element.
Align the Image
Image files can be aligned to the element in various ways.
• To re-size the image so it completely fills the element, select the Fit to
Shape option from the Display drop-down list.
• To tile the image instead, select either the Tile to Shape or Tile to
Layout option from the Display drop-down list.
When an image is tiled to the layout, it is positioned relative to the boundaries of the layout. Otherwise it is positioned relative to the object’s boundaries.
Set the position of the tiled image with the Position drop-down list, then refine the position by changing the X and Y Offset values.
Change the size and transparency of the image with the Scale and
Transparency controls.
Tint the Image
Tint the color of the image by mixing it with a linear gradient. Linear gradients shade from one color to another along a straight line.
To configure the linear gradient and tint settings use the controls in the
Tint section of the tab.
1 Select the settings for the linear gradient.
a Click the first Color drop-down list to select the first color for the gradient. By default the first color is applied to the top of the element.
b Click the second Color drop-down list to select the second color for the gradient. By default the second color is applied to the bottom of the element.
c Use the first Color slider to set how far from the top of the element the gradient begins.
d Use the second Color slider to set how far from the bottom of the element the gradient ends.
e Increase the number of Gradient Steps to make the gradient repeat one or more times on the element. This creates a “bar” effect when the gradient repeats.
f Use the Angle control to rotate the gradient.
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2 Change the mix between the image and the linear gradient by entering a value in the Mix field. -1.00 shows only the image and 1.00 shows only the linear gradient.
The Active Texture treatment applies a moving image to text or graphic objects. Active Textures are usually looped video clips which add texture and motion to several objects in a layout.
You can only apply one Active Texture to each object, and you are not able to use any other treatments on the object.
Feature Note
You must have the Clip Option activated on your system before you can use Active Textures and video clips in your layouts.
Add an Active Texture Treatment to an Object
You can apply an Active Texture to an object with the Media Library or the
Face tab.
To apply an Active Texture to an object using the Media Library:
1 Select the Pointer tool in the Tools palette.
You must use the Pointer tool to apply an Active Texture treatment to text objects. If you use the Selection tool instead, the Active Texture is inserted into the text object. See
”Insert Media into Text Objects” on page 126 to learn about inserting Active Textures
into text objects.
2 Select the object you want to edit.
3 Switch to the Media tab of the CG Libraries palette.
If the Active Texture you want to use is not already stored in one of the library boxes, see
Library” on page 195 to learn how to add media to the
Media Library
4 Grab the media box containing the Active Texture and drag it to the object.
5 Drop the Active Texture in the object. The Active
Texture is applied to all the elements in the object.
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To apply an Active Texture to an object using the Face tab:
1 Select an object in the CG workspace.
2 Switch to the Face tab in the Attributes palette.
When you apply an Active Texture to the face element, all of the other elements will adopt the Active Texture as well.
3 Select the Active Texture treatment from the Treatment drop-down list.
4 In the Color section of the tab, click the Add button and select the
Active Texture file you want to use. The file is applied to all of the elements in the object.
Align the Active Texture
Use the Face tab to set the alignment for the Active Texture.
• Select the Align to Layout radio button to align the Active Texture to the upper-left corner of the element. This option allows multiple objects to show different portions of a large Active Texture, depending on their layout positions.
• Select the Align to Object radio button to align the Active Texture to the upper-left corner of the element. All objects using this texture and alignment option show the same section of the texture, regardless of their layout position.
Active Textures aligned to layout Active Textures aligned to object
Figure 3-37. Two Objects with Different Active Texture Alignments
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To re-size the element so it is the same size as the Active Texture file, click the Resize to Fit Texture button.
Select Active Texture Transparency
Every element in an object can have independent transparency settings for the Active Texture. You can set independent transparencies for the four corners of the element.
To set the Active Texture transparency for an element, switch to the Texture section of that element’s tab.
1 Click the Region drop-down list to select the corner you want to set the transparency for. To set the transparency for the entire element, select the “All” region.
2 Set the transparency for the region with the Transparency slider.
Set Active Texture Options
Use the Face tab’s Texture section to set how Active Textures are played.
• Enter a Start Delay for the Active Texture to prevent the texture from playing until this delay has elapsed.
• Select the Ignore AVI Transparency checkbox to ignore an alpha channel in matte .avi files.
• Select the Invert Field Order checkbox to invert the field order of your media. You may need to do this if the Active Texture appears jerky when you play the layout.
• When the display time of the layout is longer than the Active Texture clip, the texture automatically loops. To stop a texture from looping once it has finished playing clear the Loop the Playback checkbox.
You can apply two special treatments to object edges.
Beveled Edge
Beveled text gives standard two-dimensional characters a three-dimensional look. Beveling involves shading text with color and transparency so that it appears three-dimensional. When the bevel colors shade from a darker
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layout background to a lighter object face, the beveled edge makes the object appear to “press out” from the background.
Figure 3-38. Beveled Edges with Bevel Values of -0.50, 0, and 0.50
1 In the Settings section of the Edge tab, select the bevel colors for your selected edge.
a Click the first Color drop-down list to select the first color for the edge. The first color is applied to the inside of the edge, closest to the face.
b Click the second Color drop-down list to select the second color for the edge. The second color is applied to the outside of the edge.
c Use the first Color slider to set how far from the inside of the edge that the color gradient begins.
d Use the second Color slider to set how far from the outside of the edge that the color gradient ends.
2 Enter values in the Transparency fields to set the transparency of the first and second colors.
3 Use the Bevel control to set the apparent curvature of the bevel. Lower values make the bevel appear to be concave and greater values make the bevel appear convex.
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Tube Edge
The Tube treatment gives edges a rounded appearance. The edges appear to be “tubes” surrounding the object’s face.
Figure 3-39. Tube Edges with Bevel Values of -0.50, 0, and 0.50
1 In the Settings section of the Edge tab, select the tube colors for the selected edge.
a Click the first Color drop-down list to select the first color for the edge. The first color is applied to the middle of the edge.
b Click the second Color drop-down list to select the second color for the edge. The second color is applied to the perimeter of the edge, closest to both the face and the outside of the edge.
c Use the first Color slider to set how far from the inside perimeter of the edge that the color gradient begins.
d Use the second Color slider to set how far from the outside perimeter of the edge that the color gradient ends.
2 Enter values in the Transparency fields to set the transparencies of the first and second colors.
3 Use the Bevel control to set the thickness of the tube. Lower values make the tube thicker and higher values make the tube thinner.
The Color Palette gives quick access to pre-defined colors. You can customize the palette by adding new colors and you can save and load your customized palettes. The colors you add to the Color Palette are automatically saved with your layouts.
Open the Color Palette by clicking on a color drop-down list.
The Color Palette stores all of the pre-defined and custom colors for the current layout. You can quickly apply these colors to CG elements.
The Color Palette opens when you click a color drop-down list. The palette displays color chips for all the predefined and custom colors in the layout.
Select one of the color chips to apply the color to the selected CG element. To apply the most recently used color, select the
Default color chip.
To create a new color instead of selecting an existing one from the palette, click the More Colors button at the bottom of the Color Palette. The Color
Dialog opens. The Color Dialog contains controls for choosing new colors.
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The pre-defined and custom colors for the layout appear at the bottom of the Color Dialog.
Color Selector Color Slider
Color Model
List
Value Fields
Color Selection
Box
Color Picker
Figure 3-40. The Color Selector
In the Color Dialog use one of three color models (HSV, RGB, or HLS) to select colors. You do not have to fully understand the models in order to select colors. With a bit of practice you can find a color using any of the color definition systems.
In all three color models, color definitions are the result of three values.
When you modify one value, the range of possible colors that can be achieved using the other two values changes, so the color display changes as well. Use the Color Selector and the Color Slider to get close to the color definition that you want and then change the three values numerically until you reach the specific color.
Table 3-18. Color Models
Color Model Description
HSV Hue, Saturation, and Value. This model often appeals to artists and others who work with pigments. It describes colors in terms of tint (hue), tone
(saturation), and shade (value).
Table 3-18. Color Models (Continued)
Color Model Description
RGB
HLS
Red, Green, and Blue. This model is an additive model where the amount of red, green, and blue are added together to determine the final color.
Hue, Lightness, and Saturation. Unlike HSV, the HLS color model represents saturation and lightness as independent values.
Use the Color Model drop-down list to change the color model, and press the buttons beside the Value Fields to assign a variable to the Color Slider.
For example, select the RGB Color Model and click the G button to assign the G variable to the Color Slider. Use the Color Slider to change the assigned variable’s value, and use the Color Selector crosshair to change the values of the other two variables.
You can also use the Color Picker tool to select any color visible on the screen. Grab the Color Picker icon and drag it around your operating system’s desktop. Release the mouse button to select the color of the pixel that the Color Picker is on top of.
To modify a color that has already been defined in the Color Palette, click a color chip at the bottom of the dialog. The Color Slider and the Color
Selector crosshair move to reflect the values of the chosen color.
Once you have chosen a color with the Color Dialog you can add it to the color palette. This is useful if you frequently use the same customized colors in your layouts.
Click the Add to Palette button in the Color Dialog to add a color to the color palette. The new color appears at the bottom of the palette, allowing you to quickly use it again without needing to recreate it.
If you use the Color Palette often, organize the colors in the palette by deleting and replacing the colors you don’t need. You can start with a fresh palette by clicking the Clear button in the Color Dialog.
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To delete a color, select it in the Color Dialog and click the delete button.
It is removed from the Color Palette.
To replace a color:
1 In the Color Dialog select the color chip you want to replace.
2 Use the controls in the Color Dialog to create a new color.
3 Press the Replace button. The color chip you selected is replaced.
Color Palettes are automatically saved with your layouts, but you can save frequently-used Color Palettes for use in other layouts.
In the Color Dialog window choose to save or load Color Palettes:
• Click the Save As button to save a Color Palette to a .palette file.
• Click the Load button to load a .palette file. The current Color Palette is replaced by the loaded palette.
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Styles are sets of attributes for CG objects. Attributes include the sizes, fonts, colors, and treatments of object elements.
The Style Library collects and organizes the styles in your layout. It provides a quick and easy way to re-use styles within CG without needing to recreate them for every object. By building a list of commonly-used styles you can apply a standardized look to the text and graphic objects in a layout.
The Style Library also lets you transfer styles between the layouts in your playlist, and your styles can be saved and loaded using the Styles Library
Manager.
To access the Style Library, switch to the Styles tab of the CG Libraries palette.
All the styles display according to your current view settings. Hold the mouse cursor over a style to view the style’s number, name, and attributes.
Once you have set the attributes and treatments of an object, add the object’s style to the Style Library.
1 Select the text or graphic object in the layout.
2 On the Styles tab of the CG Libraries palette, select Menu > Add Style to Library. The Style Name dialog opens.
3 Give the style a number and a name.
4 Click OK. The style is added to the Style Library.
Figure 3-41. Add a Style to the Style Library
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Once you have added a style to the Style Library, you can apply the style to other objects in the layout.
Select the objects you want to apply the style to and use one of the following methods:
• Click the style in the Style Library.
• Right-click the style in the Style Library and select Apply Style.
• Within the Style Library, select Menu > Apply Style.
• Drag the style from the Style Library and drop it on the object. This method works if you have only one object selected.
If you want all new objects to be created with a specific pre-made style, set that style as the default style. Within the Style Library, right-click a style and select Set as Default Style. All new objects are created with the default style.
Style Thumbnails
Click the Thumbnails button to view the styles as a series of numbered thumbnails. Click the List View button to view the styles as a list of smaller thumbnails, with style number and style name information included.
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Figure 3-42. The Style Library’s Thumbnail and List Views
Style Range
By default the Style Library displays only the styles for the current layout.
Within the Style Library, select Menu > View All Styles to display the styles for all the layouts in the playlist.
Select Menu > View Selected Layout’s Styles to return to the default setting.
You can update, reorder, and delete the styles in the Style Library. Styles can also be added to the Global Style Library, which contains a library of styles for your current template registry.
Update a Style
To update a style stored in the Style Library, select an object with the new style attributes, right-click the style you want to update, and select Update to Current Style. The style changes in the library to reflect the new attributes.
Updating a style does not affect any objects in your layout that use the old style attributes.
Reorder Styles
Styles can be dragged to new positions within the Style Library. When you grab a style chip and drop it in another position, the style moves to the new position.
The style chip’s number does not change when it is moved.
Delete a Style
To delete an unwanted style, right-click it in the Style Library and select
Delete Style from Library. The style is removed.
Use the Global Style Library to build a collection of styles that you need to use with a particular template registry.
Template registries are collections of templates and styles which are used to create layouts. By adding templates and styles to template registries you can better organize and share styles within different projects. For more information about registries see
”Template Registries” on page 250
.
To add a style to the Global Style Library, right-click the style in the Style
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Library and select Add to Global Style Library. The style is stored in the global library and can be loaded into any other layout.
Open the Global Style Library to load a style:
1 Select Menu > Open Global Style Library. The Global Style Library opens.
2 Select the template registry you want to use from the drop-down list. If the registry is not in the drop-down list, click Open and navigate to the correct .templates file.
3 Select the style you want to load from the list of styles.
4 Click the Load button. The style is added to your layout’s Style Library.
Manage Global Style Libraries
Since Global Style Libraries are saved with template registries, you can use the Registry Manager to share styles between different registries.
1 To open the Registry Manager, select Menu > Open Registry Manager.
The Registry Manager opens.
The left and right sides of the Registry Manager allow you to open two different registry files simultaneously. The current registry is automatically loaded into the left side of the window.
2 Click the Open button above the right list to open the template registry you want to copy styles to or from.
3 Select the Text Style Library option from the drop-down lists below both lists. The Global Style Libraries for both registries are displayed.
4 Select the styles you want to copy, then click the Copy Left or Copy
Right button to copy them to either registry.
See
”Template Registries” on page 250 for more details about using the
Registry Manager.
Use the Media Library to create a standardized collection of images, video clips, clocks, and Ports. The Media Library makes it easy to re-use media within
CG without needing to repeatedly import media files. It also allows you to quickly drag media objects into your layout, into existing layout objects, or into layout backgrounds.
You can use the Media Library to transfer media between the layouts in a playlist. When you save a layout the Media Library is saved with it.
To access the Media Library, switch to the Media tab of the CG Libraries palette. The stored media is displayed according to the current view settings.
Hold the mouse cursor over a media box to see the file location, name, and type of the media.
Feature Note
You must have the Clip Option enabled on your system before you can add video clips to layouts or the Media Library.
Add image files and video files to the Media Library using one of the following methods:
• Right-click a library box and select Add Media to Library.
• Click the Plus button at the bottom of the Media tab.
• Within the Media Library, select Menu > Add Media to Library.
When the Open dialog appears, select the image files or video files you want to add and click the Open button. The media is added to the library.
You can add Port objects to the Media Library by dragging them from the
CG workspace and into the library. You can also select a port and select
Menu > Add Selected Port to Library.
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Add a Logo Object
Logos are special graphic objects that mix a face color with a bitmap image.
They are commonly used for station identification images, corporate logos, or product logos.
To add a logo object to a layout with the Media Library, grab the media box containing the logo and drag it to the CG workspace. The logo object is added to the layout. You can also double-click a library box in the Media
Library to add a full-sized logo object to the layout.
See
”Logo Objects” on page 155 for information about adding
embellishments, tints, and constraints to logos.
Add a Clip Object
Clip objects are commonly used to add full resolution, uncropped video clips to layouts.
To add a new clip to a layout with the Media Library, grab the media box containing the clip and drag it to the CG workspace. The clip object is added to the layout. You can also double-click a library box in the Media
Library to add a full-sized clip object to the layout.
See
”Clip Objects” on page 165 for information about setting clip
alignment, transparency, and playback options.
Feature Note
You must have the Clip Option enabled on your system before you can add video clips to layouts or the Media
Library.
Add an Active Texture Treatment to an Object
Add a video clip to an object element to apply a moving image to text and graphic objects. Active Textures are commonly looped video clips used to add texture and motion to several layout objects.
To apply an Active Texture to an object using the Media Library:
1 Select the Pointer tool in the Tools palette.
2 Select the object you want to edit.
3 In the Media tab of the CG Libraries palette, grab the media box containing the video clip and drag it to the object.
4 Drop the Active Texture in the object. The Active Texture is applied to all the elements in the object.
See
”Active Texture Treatment” on page 182 for information about setting
Active Texture alignment, transparency, and playback options.
Feature Note
You must have the Clip Option enabled on your system before you can add Active Textures to layouts or the Media
Library.
Insert Media into Text Objects
Video clips and image files can be inserted into text objects. Inserted media adopts the style and size of the object text and they stay within the text as the object is moved.
To insert media into a text object using the Media Library:
1 Select the Selection tool in the Tools palette.
2 Select the text object you want to insert the media into. A blinking text cursor appears inside the object
3 Within the Media Library, grab the media box containing the media and drag it to the text object.
4 Drop the media in the object. The media appears at the beginning of the first line of text, with the blinking text cursor after it.
See
”Insert Media into Text Objects” on page 126 to learn how to move and
duplicate media within text objects.
Add Media to the Background
To add media to the background of a layout, select the media you want to apply and click the Apply to
Background button at the bottom of the Media Library.
See
”Layout Backgrounds” on page 217 to learn more about layout
backgrounds.
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By default the Media Library displays only the media for the current layout.
Within the Media Library, select Menu > View All Media to display the media for all the layouts in the playlist.
Select Menu > View Selected Layout’s Media to return to the default setting.
To delete unwanted media, right-click it in the Media Library and select
Delete Media from Library. The media is removed.
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CG provides many ways of selecting, arranging, and organizing the objects in your layouts. Objects are selected with the mouse or with the keyboard, and they can be easily moved, aligned, and distributed.
They can also be grouped in order to maintain their position.
Use the Layer buttons in the CG Editor Toolbar to change the layering of your objects, to control the way they overlap in the layout.
Sometimes it is easiest to select and edit large numbers of objects in a tree view. Use the Layout Tree
View window to select, layer, lock, duplicate, name, and delete objects.
You must select objects before you can modify or position them in the layout. CG provides a Pointer tool to help you select and manipulate objects, and a Selection tool to give you more control over the text and control points within the objects.
When you double-click an object you automatically switch to the Selection tool.
Table 3-19. The Pointer and Selection Tools
Pointer Tool Selection Tool
Overview
Graphic
Object
Selection
Moves, modifies, rotates, duplicates, and scales objects.
Moves, modifies, rotates, and scales objects. Selects control points and text.
Selects the entire object.
Selects the entire object.
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Table 3-19. The Pointer and Selection Tools (Continued)
Pointer Tool Selection Tool
Spline
Object
Selection
Text Object
Selection
Duplicate
Objects
Selects the entire object.
Selects the object and automatically displays all the control points within the spline. Drag the control points to edit the spline shape.
Selects the entire object.
Selects the object and automatically places a text cursor inside the object. Hold the CTRL key and drag the mouse cursor to select a range of text.
Hold the ALT key and drag an object to duplicate it.
Objects cannot be duplicated with the
Selection tool.
Select Objects with the Mouse
Use the Pointer or Selection tool to select objects.
1 Select either the Pointer or Selection tool.
2 Select an object. The object is outlined with a selection boundary.
Figure 3-43. A Selected Object
If you select a text object with the Selection tool, a text cursor is automatically placed in the text. If you select a spline object with the
Selection tool, the control points in the spline are automatically visible.
Otherwise, the entire object is selected.
To select a range of text within a text object, hold the CTRL key and drag the Selection tool over the text you want to select. You can also hold the SHIFT key and press the LEFT ARROW and RIGHT ARROW keys to expand the text selection.
Figure 3-44. Select a Range of Text
3 To select the next object in the layout, click the Next button in the CG toolbar. To select the previous object click the Previous button.
4 If you want to select multiple objects so you can change their position or attributes simultaneously, hold the SHIFT key as you click the objects. You can also draw a selection boundary around the objects you want to select.
Next
Previous
Figure 3-45. Select Multiple Items with a Selection Boundary
In large layouts with overlapping objects it is sometimes easiest to select
objects with a tree view. See ”The Layout Tree View” on page 212 for more
information.
Select Objects and Text with the Keyboard
Use the ARROW keys and the TAB key to quickly navigate between objects in a layout.
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1 Select an object with either the Pointer or the Selection tool.
2 Use the ARROW keys to navigate between objects or to navigate within paragraph objects.
• If the entire object is selected, press the DOWN
ARROW key to select the next object in the layout.
Press the UP ARROW key to select the previous object in the layout.
• If the text cursor is within a paragraph object, press the DOWN
ARROW key to move down through the paragraph lines and press the UP ARROW key to move up through the lines. When the cursor is on the last line, press the DOWN ARROW key to move to the next item in the layout. Pressing the UP ARROW key when the cursor is on the first line selects the previous item in the layout.
To select text within a text object, hold the SHIFT key while pressing the ARROW keys. A range of text is selected.
3 Use the TAB key to navigate between objects.
Switch the Selection Mode before using TAB to navigate between text objects, otherwise a tab stop is added to your text.
a When your text cursor is blinking in a text object, press the ESC key to switch to Selection Mode. Your text cursor is removed from the text object.
b Press the TAB key to move to the next object in the layout, and press the SHIFT+TAB key to move to the previous object in the layout.
c If you want to edit a selected text object, press the SPACEBAR to enter Edit Mode. A text cursor appears in the text object, allowing you to edit the text.
There are several ways to position and orient the objects in a layout. They can be moved with the Pointer and Selection tools, the keyboard, the
Position fields, or the Nudge buttons.
Their spacing relative to each other or to the layout can be changed with the Alignment and Distribution menus.
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Move Objects
Move objects in the CG workspace with the Pointer and Selection tools, the keyboard ARROW keys, and the Nudge buttons. You can also select an exact position for your objects by entering values in the Position X and
Position Y fields.
• Use the Pointer and Selection tools to quickly drag selected objects within the layout.
• Enter new X and Y coordinates for selected objects by typing values in the
Position fields in the CG Editor toolbar.
If more than one object is selected, the coordinates are based on the top-left object in the selection.
The Position X value is the distance from the left edge of the layout.
Position Y is the distance from the top edge of the layout.
• Use the Nudge button in the CG Editor toolbar to move selected objects by a certain number of pixels in either a horizontal or vertical direction.
a Enter the number of pixels to nudge by in the Pixel Shift field.
b Nudge the selected objects using the Nudge button in the CG
Editor toolbar.
• The Nudge button displays the last nudge direction you used.
Click the Nudge button to nudge the selected objects in that direction.
• To nudge in a different direction, click the arrow beside the
Nudge button and click the Nudge Left, Nudge Right, Nudge
Up, or Nudge Down button in the flyout menu.
• Use the ARROW keys to move selected objects either horizontally or vertically.
• Press the ARROW keys to move the objects one pixel at a time.
• Hold the SHIFT key while pressing the ARROW keys to move the objects 10 pixels at a time.
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• Hold the CTRL key while pressing the ARROW keys to move the objects by the number of pixels specified in the CG Editor toolbar’s
Pixel Shift field.
Align Objects
Use the Align menu or the Attributes tab to quickly align objects to the safe title area or to each other.
Align center to object Align left to safe title area
Figure 3-46. Align Objects
To align objects in a layout:
1 Select the objects you want to align in the CG workspace.
2 Access the alignment controls with one of the following methods:
• Click the arrow beside the Alignment button in the CG
Editor toolbar to open the alignment menu. By clicking directly on the Alignment button you can also quickly align objects using the last-used alignment type.
• If at least one of the selected objects is a graphic object, switch to the Attributes tab of the Attributes palette. There are alignment controls in the Alignment section of the tab.
3 Select the type of alignment you want to use:
• Select the Align to Object radio button to align the objects to their own horizontal and vertical boundaries.
• Select the Align to Layout button to align the objects to the safe title area boundaries. See
”Video Safe Title Area” on page 122 for
information about displaying and modifying the safe title area.
4 Click an alignment button.
Table 3-20. Align to Object Options
Button Description
Align Left to Object: The objects move horizontally so their left boundaries are aligned with the leftmost object.
Align Center to Object: The objects move horizontally so their center axes are aligned with the center of the selection.
Align Right to Object: The objects move horizontally so their right boundaries are aligned with the rightmost object.
Align Top to Object: The objects move vertically so their top boundaries are aligned with the topmost object.
Align Middle to Object: The objects move vertically so their center axes are aligned with the middle of the selection.
Align Bottom to Object: The objects move vertically so their bottom boundaries are aligned with the bottommost object.
Table 3-21. Align to Layout Options
Button Description
Align Left to Safe Title Area: The objects move horizontally so their left boundaries are aligned with the left edge of the safe title area.
Align Center to Safe Title Area: The objects move horizontally so their center axes are aligned with the center of the safe title area.
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Table 3-21. Align to Layout Options (Continued)
Button Description
Align Right to Safe Title Area: The objects move horizontally so their right boundaries are aligned with the right edge of the safe title area.
Align Top to Safe Title Area: The objects move vertically so their top boundaries are aligned with the top edge of the safe title area.
Align Middle to Safe Title Area: The objects move vertically so their center axes are aligned with the middle of the safe title area.
Align Bottom to Safe Title Area: The objects move vertically so their bottom boundaries are aligned with the bottom edge of the safe title area.
Align Left to Center of Safe Title Area: The objects move horizontally so their left boundaries are aligned with the center of the safe title area.
Align Right to Center of Safe Title Area: The objects move horizontally so their right boundaries are aligned with the center of the safe title area.
Align Bottom to Middle of Safe Title Area: The objects move vertically so their bottom boundaries are aligned with the middle of the safe title area.
Align Top to Middle of Safe Title Area: The objects move vertically so their top boundaries are aligned with the middle of the safe title area.
Distribute Objects
Use the Distribution menu or the Attributes tab to automatically adjust the spacing between objects in a layout.
Objects before distribution Objects after Selected Objects
Top distribution
Figure 3-47. Distribute Objects
To distribute objects in a layout:
1 Select the objects you want to distribute in the CG workspace.
2 Access the distribution controls using one of the following methods:
• Click the arrow beside the Distribution button in the CG
Editor toolbar to open the Distribution menu. You can also quickly distribute objects using the last-used distribution option by clicking directly on the button.
• Switch to the Attributes tab in the Attributes palette. The distribution controls are in the Distribution section of the tab.
3 Select a distribution option.
Table 3-22. Distribution Options
Option Description
Selected Objects Left: The objects move horizontally so their left boundaries are evenly spaced.
Selected Objects Right: The objects move horizontally so their right boundaries are evenly spaced.
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Table 3-22. Distribution Options (Continued)
Option Description
Selected Objects Bottom: The objects move vertically so their bottom boundaries are evenly spaced.
Selected Objects Top: The objects move vertically so their top boundaries are evenly spaced.
Selected Objects Horizontal Center: The objects move vertically so their horizontal centers are evenly spaced.
Selected Objects Vertical Center: The objects move horizontally so their vertical centers are evenly spaced.
Lock Objects
You may want to lock the position of certain objects to prevent them from being moved accidentally.
To lock the position of an object, right-click the object in the CG workspace and select the Lock Position option. Unlock an object by choosing the Unlock Position option.
You can also lock objects using the Layout Tree View. See
View” on page 212 for more information.
If you want a selected object to stay motionless on a roll or crawl layout, select the object, switch to the Attributes tab, and clear the Scroll with
Crawl/Roll checkbox. This option is only available for objects that are completely on the first page of the layout.
For more information about layout types, see ”Create Layouts” on page 246 .
You can rotate objects using the Rotate buttons, the Attributes tab, or the
Rotate tool.
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To rotate selected objects:
• Click the Rotate Right and Rotate Left buttons in the CG
Editor toolbar to rotate objects 90 degrees.
• In the Formatting section of the Attributes tab in the
Attributes palette, change the value in the Rotation field.
Rotate
Right
For text objects, the Rotation field is on the Text Object
Properties section of the Attributes tab.
Rotate
Left
• Position the Pointer or the Selection tool near the object’s handle until it turns into the Rotate tool. Click and drag the object clockwise or counter-clockwise.
Figure 3-48. Rotate Objects with the Rotate Tool
To flip graphic objects, grab one of the object’s handles with the Pointer or
Selection tool then drag the handle through the object’s opposite boundary.
The object flips across the boundary.
Select a handle Drag the handle across its opposite border
Figure 3-49. Flip a Graphic Object
Gradients
, Images, and Active Textures do not flip with the objects.
You cannot flip text objects.
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Layers allow you to overlap the objects in a layout. Each object is on its own layer unless you combine the edges of several objects.
A logo object ahead of the text objects
A logo object behind the text objects
Figure 3-50. Send a Semi-Transparent Logo Object Backward
The background object is always on the bottom layer, but the other objects in a layout can be moved forward and backward with the Layer buttons and the right-click menu.
When you select one or more objects and click a Layer button in the CG
Editor toolbar, the objects move forward or backward according to the button selected.
Table 3-23. Layer Buttons
Button Description
Bring to Front: Moves the selected object in front of all the objects in the layout.
Bring Forward: Moves the selected object in front of the object currently ahead of it.
Send to Back: Moves the selected object behind all the objects in the layout. You cannot move an object behind the layout’s background.
Send Backward: Moves the selected object behind the object currently behind it.
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You can also move objects by right-clicking them and choosing Bring to
Front or Send to Back from the right-click menu.
When the edges of objects are combined, all of the combined objects move to the same layer. To change the layering of combined objects while still maintaining their edge appearance, be sure to select all the combined
objects before changing their layer. See ”Combine Edges” on page 170 to
learn more.
In large layouts with overlapping objects it is sometimes easiest to change object layers in a tree view. See
”The Layout Tree View” on page 212 .
The objects in a layout can be grouped together to help you maintain the spacing of the text and graphics. When an object in a group is moved, all the objects within the group are moved as well.
Group Click the Group button in the CG Editor toolbar to group two or more selected objects. If you click the Group button when both a group and an ungrouped object are selected, all the selected objects are grouped together.
When you select one object in a group, the entire group is
Ungroup surrounded by a boundary but only the object you clicked on is selected. The selected object is surrounded with a white boundary while the unselected objects have a blue boundary.
Figure 3-51. Three Grouped Objects with Only One Selected
All of the objects in a group move together when one of the objects is moved. Changes to object attributes only affect selected objects.
Click the Ungroup button to break apart the selected object’s group. If the selected object is part of more than one group, only the most recently created group is released.
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In large layouts with overlapping objects it is sometimes easiest to edit the layout with a tree view. The tree view displays all of the objects in a layout and allows you to select them, change their z-order, lock them, duplicate them, and delete them.
You can also assign News Tags to text objects by changing their default names. Use tags with News Edit to quickly modify the content of tagged objects. See
.
The objects in the Layout Tree View are arranged by z-order, allowing you to quickly see which objects are ahead of other objects.
Select Tools > Layout Tree View to open the Layout Tree View window. The objects in the layout are displayed in the Layout Tree View list. On your output, objects that are higher in the list are displayed in front of objects that are lower in the list.
Front
Object
Locked
Objects
Back
Object
Layer
Buttons
Delete Button
Figure 3-52. The Layout Tree View
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The names of the objects are displayed in the list. If you haven’t given the objects a name or assigned News Tags to them, the objects have a default name.
Each object has an object type icon:
Table 3-24. Object Type Icons
Icon Description
Regular text objects without News Edit tags.
Graphic objects.
Text Objects with News Edit tags assigned to them.
Click the Menu in the Layout Tree View window to change the size of the object type icons. Select Menu > Large Icons to make the icons larger and select Menu > Small Icons to make them smaller.
Select Objects
When you select an object in the Layout Tree View, the object is also selected in the CG workspace. To select the previous object in the list press the UP ARROW key. Press the DOWN ARROW key to select the next item in the list.
Use the CTRL key to select multiple objects. You can also select multiple objects by holding down the SHIFT key and pressing the UP ARROW and
DOWN ARROW keys.
Change Object Names
You can change the default names of any objects in the Layout Tree View list.
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News tags are automatically added to objects when their default names are changed. Use tags with News Edit to quickly modify the content of tagged
objects. See ”Use Tags” on page 224 .
To change the name of an object, double-click it in the Layout Tree View list and give it a new name. You can also rename an object by right-clicking it in the Layout Tree View list and choosing Rename from the menu.
A News Tag is automatically added to the object when you first change its default name.
Change Object Layers
Objects are arranged by z-order in the Layout Tree View list. Objects that are higher in the list are displayed in front of objects that are lower in the list.
Change the z-order of the objects by dragging them in the list or by clicking the layer buttons.
• Drag selected objects up or down the list. Drag objects higher in the list to bring them forward, and drag objects lower in list to send them backward.
• To use the layer buttons, select the object you want to move and click one of the layer buttons at the bottom of the Layout Tree View window.
Table 3-25. Layer Buttons
Button Description
Moves the selected object in front of all the objects in the layout.
Moves the selected object in front of the object currently ahead of it.
Moves the selected object behind all the objects in the layout.
Table 3-25. Layer Buttons (Continued)
Button Description
Moves the selected object behind the object currently behind it.
Duplicate Objects
The Layout Tree View allows you to quickly duplicate the objects in a layout by copying, cutting, and pasting them.
Press CTRL+C to copy selected objects in the Layout Tree View, or press
CTRL+X to cut them. You can also right-click the Layout Tree View and select Cut or Copy.
To paste objects in the Layout Tree View, select an object in the Layout
Tree View list, right-click the Layout Tree View window, and select one of the following options:
Table 3-26. Paste Options
Option Description
Paste
Paste Below
Pastes the objects above the currently-selected object.
Pastes the objects below the currently-selected object.
Paste Replace Replaces the currently-selected object with the copied or cut object. This option is not available when multiple objects are being copied or cut.
Lock Objects
Use the Layout Tree View to lock the objects in the layout. Locked text objects can still be selected and edited, but they cannot be moved. Locked graphic objects cannot be selected, edited, or moved.
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To lock one or more selected objects, right-click the Layout Tree View window and select Lock Position. The objects are locked and display a lock icon in the Layout Tree View list.
Delete Objects
To delete an object in the Layout Tree View, select an object from the list and click the Delete button.
The object is deleted.
Layout backgrounds are video transparent by default, but you can use a color, image, or Active Texture treatment to block the video signal.
Video transparent areas in layouts are marked by a fill pattern. In the example below, all of the areas filled with the grey checkered pattern are transparent when the layout is taken to video. The pattern is not included in the final rendered image, it simply shows you where the live video feed appears while you work on the layout.
Figure 3-53. A Layout Without a Visible Background Treatment
Unlike other parts of layouts, backgrounds are special objects that cannot be selected with the Pointer or Selection tools. Use the Set Background dialog to edit backgrounds.
To open the Set Background dialog, click the
Background button on the CG Editor toolbar and select the Set Background option. You can also open the Set Background dialog by right-clicking the CG workspace and choosing the Change
Background option.
Within the Set Background dialog, select the treatment you need to use from the Treatment drop-down list. Treatments dictate the color, image, and Active Texture choices available for the background.
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• The Solid Color treatment adds a single color to the background.
• The Linear Gradient, Radial Gradient, and 4 Color Gradient treatments add a mix of colors to the background.
• The Image treatment adds an image file to the background.
• The Active Texture treatment adds a moving image to the background.
• The None treatment makes the background completely transparent.
Once you have chosen a treatment, use the controls in the Set Background dialog to customize the treatment’s appearance. The controls for background treatments are similar to those described in
Treatments” on page 175 , with the exception of the Image treatment.
Use the Image treatment to apply an image file to your background. The options available for image backgrounds are slightly different than the options available for other objects.
Select the Image treatment from the Treatment drop-down list, then click the Add button and select the image file you want to use. The image is applied to the background.
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Figure 3-54. An Image Treatment Applied to the Background
Align the Image
To align the image in the background, click the Size As radio button to re-size the image so it completely fills the background, or click the Tile the
Image radio button to tile the image at its original size. The image is aligned to the upper-left corner of the layout.
Image Transparency
Set the transparency of the background image’s regions with the
Transparency controls.
1 Select the background region you want to set the transparency for.
• Select All from the Transparency drop-down list to set a uniform transparency for the entire background.
• Select Top Half to set the transparency for the top half of the background.
• Select Bottom Half to set the transparency for the bottom half of the background.
2 Set the region’s transparency by dragging the Transparency slider, or enter a value in the Transparency field. 0% is completely opaque and
100% is completely transparent.
3 Set the angle of the transparency by changing the value in the Angle field.
To remove a background from a layout, click the Background button on the
CG Editor toolbar and uncheck the Show Background option.
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News Edit lets you quickly update layout text and logos. You can update text without having to type it in each time, so you don’t have to worry about formatting or spelling. Logos can be updated using commands sent from Automation Interface.
By adding tags to layout text you can link text objects to external data sources. You can also use tags to allow G-Scribe operators to edit text objects without being able to modify the rest of the layout.
Figure 3-55. News Edit
The options in News Edit let you quickly update the text in a layout.
Open News Edit
Click the News Edit button on the CG Editor toolbar. News Edit opens in a separate window and remains on top of your CG interface until you close the window.
Use the Content section of the tab to add, display, and manage the names and phrases that you want to use in the layout. Use the Tags section of the
tab to label and quickly update the objects in the layout. See ”Use Tags” on page 224
for more information about tagged objects.
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Select News Edit Tables
The names and phrases you define are stored in one or more News Edit
Tables. These tables are stored within G-Scribe’s template registries. To learn more about registries see
”Template Registries” on page 250 .
By default, the Content list displays the items stored in the first News Edit
Table within the current template registry. This table is called “0 Import
Text” and is where text is automatically stored when you select the “Import
News Edit Table” option.
You can select a different News Edit Table by selecting a different source from News Edit’s Source drop-down list. The items in the selected News
Edit Table become available in the Content list.
Figure 3-56. Select a News Edit Table
Create a News Edit Table
Use the Template Manager to create a new News Edit Table in the current template registry.
1 Select File > Template Manager > News Edit Tables. The Template
Manager opens and displays all the News Edit Tables available for the currently selected template registry.
If you want to work with a different template registry, click the Open button and navigate to the .templates file you need to use. See
”Template Registries” on page 250 for more information about
registries.
2 Click the Add button to add a new News Edit Table to the template registry. The Add News Edit Item dialog opens.
3 Enter a number and name in the Add News Edit Item dialog and then close the dialogs.
The new News Edit Table automatically contains the Content items that are within the first News Edit Table in the template registry.
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Add Items to the Content List
The Content list contains a list of items stored in the currently selected
News Edit Table. These items are typically names, places, and other phrases you frequently use in your layouts.
To add new items to News Edit’s Content list, enter the text into the
Content field and press the Add button. The text is added to the list as a new item, and is also added to the currently selected News Edit Table.
Note:
When you import a News Edit Table (see
”Import a News Edit Table” on page 223 ), the “0 Import Text” News Edit Table is automatically
overwritten. If you plan on importing News Edit Tables in the future, do not add items to the “0 Import Text” News Edit Table. Instead, create a new News Edit Table and select it in the Content Source drop-down list before adding items.
Update Layout Text
Use the Display button to update the text in a text object.
1 Select the text object you want to update.
2 In News Edit, select the text you want to use from the Content list. The text appears in the Content field, where you can edit it if necessary.
3 Click the Display button. The text object updates to display the text in the Content field.
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Figure 3-57. Update Layout Text
You can also update text by selecting a text object and double-clicking a text entry in the Content list.
Append All
To insert the entire Content list of items into the currently selected text object, click the Append All button. Each term appears on a new line within the text object.
You can maintain multiple News Edit Tables for layouts which require different names and phrases. The News Edit Tables are stored within one or
more template registries. See ”Template Registries” on page 250 for
information about loading and saving registries.
Import a News Edit Table
Sometimes it’s easier to import a News Edit Table than it is to add each
Content item individually. News Edit Tables can be created in a simple text editor like Windows Notepad.
1 Enter a list of terms in a text editor. To open the Notepad text editor in Windows, select
Start > Programs > Accessories
> Notepad.
2 Save the list of terms as a .txt file.
3 In CG, select File > Import >
Import News Edit Table.
4 Import the .txt file. The Template Manager opens after you import the file.
The “0 Import Text” News Edit Table now contains the imported text.
5 In the Template Manager, click the Add button to create a new News
Edit Table. The Add News Edit Item dialog opens.
6 Enter a number and name for the list in the Add News Edit Item dialog and click the Add button. The new News Edit Table appears in the list.
It contains the contents of the “0 Import Text” table.
Rename a News Edit Table
To rename or renumber a News Edit Table, select it in the Template
Manager list and click the Rename button.
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Delete a News Edit Table
To delete a News Edit Table, select it in the Template Manager and click the Delete button.
In CG, tags are used to label text objects. They allow you to give names to objects and to quickly edit and change the text using only News Edit. Tags also allow you to connect text objects to external data sources, and to update logos with the Automation Interface application.
Tags
Figure 3-58. Tags Added to Two Text Objects
The tag labels do not appear when you output the layout. They appear in the CG workspace for your reference only.
View/Hide Tag Labels
Use the Display Options menu to show or hide the tag labels in a layout.
1 Click the Display Options button on the CG toolbar. The
Display Options menu appears.
2 Select the News Tags option to show tag labels.
3 Clear the News Tags option to hide tag labels.
Add Tags
Tags are added to objects with either News Edit or the Layout Tree View.
To add tags using News Edit:
1 Select a text or logo object in the CG layout.
2 Click the News Edit button in the CG Editor toolbar. News
Edit opens.
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3 In News Edit, enter a tag label in the Tags text box and then click Add.
The tag is applied to the object.
4 Select another text or logo object in the layout to add another tag. Do not use duplicate tag names in a single layout.
See
”Change Object Names” on page 213 to add tags with the Layout Tree
View.
You can update tagged objects using the following methods.
Table 3-27. Tagged Object Update Methods
Method Description
News Edit Window Select content items within G-Scribe’s News Edit window, applying the updated content to the tags you select.
External Data Source When you edit the content items within an external data source, the associated tagged objects are updated. See
.
Overlay Application You can update tagged objects within the
Overlay application. See XXX.
Automation
Interface Application
If you are using Automation Interface, see the
Automation Interface User Guide to learn how to create compatible layouts and send updates to tagged layout objects.
Inscriber MOS
With the Inscriber
®
MOS interface option,
Journalists in a newsroom pool can update tagged objects within their newsroom computer system clients.
If you are using Inscriber MOS, see the Inscriber
MOS User Guide for more information.
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Update Objects with News Edit
When objects are tagged you can quickly change their content using only
News Edit.
1 Click the News Edit button in the CG Editor toolbar. News
Edit opens.
2 Select the tag of the object you want to change in the Tags list.
3 In the Content list, select the content item you want to use. The item appears in the Content field where you can edit it if necessary.
To add new items to the Content list, type new information into the
Content field and click the Add button.
4 Click the Display button. The object updates to display the information in the Content field.
You can also update an object by selecting a tag and double-clicking an item in the Content list.
Image Insertion Commands
Use image insertion commands to apply new image files to layout objects.
These commands can be used with all tagged object update methods.
• For logo objects and objects that contain image treatments or Active
Texture treatments, enter the full file path to the image you want to apply. For example,
C:\Images\ZXYLogo.tga
.
If the object already has an image assigned to it, you can use another image file in the same folder by entering a relative file path. For example,
ZXYLogoSmall.tga
.
• If the image file is in the Media Library, reference it by number for logo objects, text objects that contain inserted images, and objects that contain image treatments or Active Texture treatments. The Media
Library number follows two number symbols (##).
For example, if the image is number five in the Media Library, enter
##5
.
• To insert images by file path within text objects, use the ## command, followed by the image path enclosed in double quotes. For example,
##”C:\Images\Flags\Canada.tga” Team Canada
.
• When updating layouts with Automation Interface, you can also specify a new image file path using any command that allows you to modify tag contents within a layout.
Note:
Video clips will display as stills if they are applied to logo objects.
Change Tag Label Appearance
Use the News Tag Editor to change the appearance, size, and location of tag labels. Click the Display Options button on the
CG toolbar and select Edit News Tags from the drop-down list.
The News Tag Editor opens.
Use the controls in the editor to change the color, transparency, size, and location of the tag labels.
Figure 3-59. The News Tag Editor
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If you purchased the ODBC option, the Open Database Connectivity (ODBC) protocol allows different programs to share information held in database applications.
The ODBC option allows a database to feed information direction into CG. You set up the CG layout with tagged fields and the information from the database flows directly into the layout.
A database can be as simple or as complex as necessary. A single layout can use data from multiple sources. CG connects the databases to the layout so you can display information in any layout you create.
When making a database connection, the steps depend on the type of database and connection you are setting up. The basic workflow is:
1 Create a database to use with CG.
2 Add the database to the system list using the Windows Data Sources option. You can also link a layout directly to a text file without using the
ODBC drivers.
3 Create a layout in CG.
4 Use News Edit to tag the text fields for the data and to connect the layout to the database.
5 Format the ODBC data.
6 Save the layout to the network file server and play as needed.
7 Update the database whenever you need to update the displayed data.
Data is transferred to the layout as it’s loaded into Sequencer, or at set intervals while you are using the file.
Note:
Each computer using the layout must have a path set between it and the data source. Use the ODBC Administrator to connect your CG and data source.
You can use any database compatible with the Microsoft ODBC database protocol, including an Excel spreadsheet or a text file, with CG.
If the database uses an MS Office application, you can use external data sources without an MS Office setup on your computer if you install MDAC
(Microsoft Data Access Components). With this package you can view, run, and edit a layout but you cannot make modifications to the database.
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You must have access to the correct database application to modify the tagged fields within a layout or change the data source. For example, if the database was created using Access 2000, your computer must also use
Access 2000.
If the database is on a different system and the database computer is shut down, CG cannot access the database. For best results the database should reside on the same computer that you are using for output.
To create a text file database, see ”Create a Text File Database” on page 230 .
To create a database with a database application:
1 Using your database application, enter data into the database table.
2 Give the table a name.
• If you are using Excel, complete the following steps: a Highlight all the table data.
b Select Insert > Name > Define.
c Enter a name for the table.
d Click the Add button.
• If you are using Access, assign a name to the table when you create the table.
3 Save the table.
4 Add the database to the ODBC system list. See
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Create a Text File Database
You can use a text file with the ODBC option rather than using an actual database application. Set up the text file like a database table by adding multiple columns to the file.
Column
Headings
Column
Entries
Figure 3-60. A Sample Text File Database
To create a text file database:
1 Open a text editor like Windows Notepad (Start > All Programs >
Accessories > Notepad)
2 Enter the first column heading.
3 Press the TAB key and enter the second column heading.
You do not need to use tabs as delimiters between the columns. You can use commas or a custom delimiter. See
for information about how to set up a delimiter.
4 Enter the remaining column headings, using the TAB key to move to the next column.
5 Press ENTER to move to the second line.
6 Add the first entry under the first column heading.
7 Press TAB to move to the second column, and add the column entry.
8 Add the remaining column entries, using the TAB key to move to the next column.
9 Continue adding the column entries in each new line, using the TAB key to move to the next column.
10 Link the text file database to the layout either directly or through the
ODBC system list. See
”Link Directly to a Text File” on page 236 and
”Add a Text File to System List” on page 232
.
Once a database has been created, add it to the ODBC system list so that
CG can read the database content.
Add a Database to System List
To add an Access or Excel database to the system list:
1 In Windows, open the Data Sources (ODBC) option.
• Windows XP view: Start > Settings > Control Panel >
Administrative Tools > Data Sources (ODBC)
• Windows Classic view: Start > Control Panel> Administrative Tools
> Data Sources (ODBC)
2 Select the User DSN tab or the System DSN tab.
• The User DSN tab registers the database for the current logged-on user. If somebody else logs on to the computer, the database is unavailable.
• The System DSN tab registers the database in a global location on the computer and is visible for any logged-on user.
3 Click the Add button to open the Create New Data Source dialog.
4 Select the driver from the list for your database.
• If you are connecting to an Access database select Microsoft Access
Driver (*.mdb).
• If you are connecting to an Excel spreadsheet select Microsoft Excel
Driver (*.xls).
5 Click the Finish button to add the selected driver to the system and to continue with the database setup.
6 In the new dialog enter a name for the data source.
7 Select the external data source.
• For Access data, click the Choose button. In the dialog, navigate to and select the database. Clear the Read Only checkbox if necessary.
• For Excel data, click the Select Workbook button. In the dialog, navigate to and select the spreadsheet. Clear the Read Only checkbox if necessary.
8 Click OK in all the dialogs until you return to Windows.
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9
Create the CG layout that will access the database, as described in
”Create a Tagged CG Layout” on page 234
Note:
You must connect each computer that runs a layout with ODBC tagged fields to the data source separately. After making this connection, you will not need to go through the procedure again unless the file path to the data source changes.
Add a Text File to System List
Once you set up a text file database, add the file to the ODBC system list so the CG can read the text file content.
Before doing this you must set up a layout with data tags, as described in
”Create a Tagged CG Layout” on page 234 .
To add a text file to the ODBC system list:
1 Within CG, click the News Edit button on the CG Editor toolbar. News Edit opens.
2 Click the Configure External Data Source button. The Select
Text Source dialog opens.
3 Select the Text File radio button and click OK.
4 In the Select Text Access dialog, select Read Data Through ODBC
Driver and click OK.
It is also possible to link text files directly to a layout without using the
ODBC system list. See
”Link Directly to a Text File” on page 236 for
more information.
5 In the next dialog click the Browse button and select the text file.
6 Enter a name for the data source in the Data Source Name field.
7 Select the User DSN radio button or the System DSN radio button.
• User DSN registers the database for the current logged-on user. If someone else logs on to the computer, the database is unavailable.
• System DSN registers the database in a global location on the computer. It is visible for any logged-on user.
8 Click Next.
9 In the next dialog select a delimiter (column separator) from the
Delimiter list. Tab is the default delimiter but you can select Comma,
Fixed Length, or Custom and enter a custom delimiter in the Custom
Delimiter field.
10 Select the Column Header checkbox if you want to use the text in the first line of the text file as the database’s column headings.
Figure 3-61. A Tab-Delimited Text Source with Column Headings
11 Click Next.
12 The next dialog displays the data type contained in each column of the text file. If you want to change the data type, click a column name and select a new data type from the drop-down list.
13 Click Next.
14 The final dialog displays the text file arranged in a table format. Click the Finish button. Now the text file will be treated just like a table in
Access or Excel.
15 Link the table to the CG layout as described in
.
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In CG, tags label text objects within a layout. The grey labels in the layout are the tags. You must add tags to the text objects before you can connect them to database tables.
To add a tag to a text object:
1 Select a text line in the CG layout.
2 Click the News Edit button in the CG Editor toolbar. News
Edit opens.
3 In News Edit, enter a tag label in the Tags text box and then click Add. The tag is applied to the text line.
Tags
See
”Use Tags” on page 224 to learn more about tags.
Set Up a Layout with Columns
Layouts that display database text in columns are useful when you want to generate a list of database table entries, like a list of television shows or a team’s win/loss record.
If you follow the “row-column” naming convention for the tags in a column,
CG will automatically link up all the rows within the column.
Note:
To create a layout with multiple rows and columns, the text objects need to contain “placeholder” text. This text is replaced by your database content when you take the layout to air.
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First, use text objects to create text placeholders in a table. Create text placeholders for as many rows and columns as you want to display.
Figure 3-62. A Table Containing Placeholder Text
Label each placeholder with a tag using the “row-column” naming convention (1-1, 1-2, 2-1, 2-2, and so on).
Figure 3-63. Tags Added to the Text Objects
When you link the database to the layout as described in ”Link Layout to
Database” on page 235 , you only need to link the sources for the first row of
text objects (in this example, just 1-1, 1-2, 1-3, and 1-4). CG automatically links the data for the remaining rows.
To link ODBC sources, text files, and XML files to the tagged layout, click the News Edit button in the CG Editor toolbar, then click the Configure External Data Source button within News
Edit. The Select Text Source dialog opens.
Link to ODBC Database
Before linking to an ODBC database you must first add it to the ODBC system list, as described in
”Add Database to System List” on page 231 .
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1 In the Select Text Source dialog select the ODBC option, select the name of the database from the Database list, and select the name of the table from the Table list.
If you are linking to a text file using ODBC, the name of the database is the data source name you entered when you added the text file to the system list, and the name of the table is the name of the text file.
2 Use the When Data Expires or No Data Available options to set what displays when data is expired or no data is available.
• Select the Don’t Show Item option if you do not want to play tagged text that has expired.
• Select the Show Custom Message option if you want to display a message when the data has expired. Enter a custom message in the field.
3 Click OK. The Select Database Items window opens. See
Text for Output” on page 239 to continue selecting your data for
output.
Link Directly to a Text File
You can link a layout directly to the content in a text file. Use this procedure to link a layout to a text file that is not set up as a data table. This type of text file does not need to be added to the ODBC system list.
When you link directly to a text file in this way, the text file cannot use tabs to separate text entries, and the data cannot be refined or formatted.
1 In the Select Text Source dialog select the Text File option.
2 Use the When Data Expires or No Data Available options to set what displays when data is expired or no data is available.
• Select the Don’t Show Item option if you do not want to play tagged text that has expired.
• Select the Show Custom Message option if you want to display a message when the data has expired. Enter a custom message in the field.
3 Click OK. The Select Text Access dialog opens.
4 Select Read Data Directly From the Text File and click OK. A new dialog opens displaying a list of the layout’s data tags, allowing you to select a data source for each tag.
Figure 3-64. Choosing Text Files for Your Layout Tags
If you used the “row-column” tag naming convention as described in
”Set Up a Layout with Columns” on page 234
, only the tags for the text objects in the first row are displayed. CG automatically selects tags for the other tagged text objects.
5 Click the Choose button for the first data tag. A new dialog opens.
6 In the new dialog, select Local Files Browsing if you want to select a text file on your local computer, or select HTTP/FTP Files Browsing if you want to select a text file from a server using HTTP or FTP.
7 Click OK.
8 If you selected HTTP/FTP Files Browsing, the Internet File Browser dialog opens. Complete the following steps: a Enter the address of the HTTP or FTP site in the Current Path field
(the path must start with HTTP:// or FTP://).
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b To log onto the site anonymously, select the Anonymous radio button. Otherwise select the Name radio button and enter a name and a password.
c Click the Go button beside the Current Path field. The contents of the site directory are displayed in the Directory list.
9 Select the text file you want to link to. You are returned to the Select
Text Source dialog.
10 Continue to select text files for each data tag.
To preview the content of a text file select a data tag from the drop-down list.
11 Click OK in the dialogs to return to CG. CG outputs the selected text files during playback.
Link to an XML Source
You can link a layout to an XML source. For example, you can link to an
RSS data feed which sends the latest updates to the layout.
1 In the Select Text Source dialog, select the XML/RSS option. The XML
Data Source Setup dialog opens.
2 Enter a name for the XML source in the Data Source name field and click OK.
3 Use the Select Data Source structure to select the fields from the XML file that you want to display.
a Click the plus signs to expand the file structure in the XML Data
Structure section.
b Select a data type that you want to appear in your layout.
c Click the right arrow button to add that data type to the Data
Source Structure section.
Figure 3-65. Add XML Data Types
4 Click OK. You are returned to the Select Text Source dialog. After a few seconds the Select Database Items window opens. See
Table Text for Output” on page 239 to continue selecting data for
output.
Select the table text for output in the Select Database Items window. The
Select Database Items window lists the data available in the selected table.
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1 In the Select Database Items window, link the data tags to table columns by selecting a column name from the Source Column list. The
Source Column list links the selected column information to the tag displayed beside it.
Data
Tag
Source
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Figure 3-66. Data Tags Linked to Source Columns
2 Select a column from the Sort list to determine which column the
ODBC option uses to order the display of information. If you do not select a sort column, the text displays in the order listed in the table.
3 If you want to sort the data, select the ascending or the descending option located beside the Sort list to determine if the selected column is sorted in ascending order or descending order.
• Columns with numerical data are sorted from smallest number to largest (ascending order) or largest number to smallest (descending order).
• Columns with textual data are sorted alphabetically from A to Z
(ascending order) or in reverse alphabetical order from Z to A
(descending order).
4 Use the Selection Criteria section to set specific table entries for output.
a Select the AND option or the OR option from the first list to help set the playback criteria.
AND: Displays the table entries that meet the criteria set in the current row and the row above. The table entries must have the attributes of both rows.
OR: Displays the table entries that meet the criteria set in either the current row or the row above. The table entries must have at least one of the row’s attributes, but not both.
b Select a column heading from the Column list for the selection criteria. The Operator and Value condition applies to the selected column.
For example, if you select “REPORTER” “Equals” “Janet Murphy,” the result is any table entries with “Janet Murphy” in the
“REPORTER” column.
Selection Criteria
Table Entry
Result
Figure 3-67. Set Specific Table Entries for Playback c To clear all the information in the Selection Criteria section, click the Clear button.
d You may want to apply the same selection criteria to all of the tags in your layout. Instead of setting the selection criteria for every tag, check the Apply Conditions to All Tags checkbox.
5 To view the data selected for output, click the Refresh button. The
Results area displays the table entries sorted for output.
6 You can customize the SQL statement by clicking the Edit Query button.
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7 If you do not want to apply special formatting to specific table entries, click OK on all the dialogs to return to CG. CG outputs the selected table entries from your data source during playback.
If you do want to apply special formatting, see
”Format Specific Data” on page 242
The Format window allows you to apply special formatting to specific words or numbers in your table.
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Figure 3-68. Add a Prefix with the Format Window
To start formatting data, click the Advanced Formatting button in the Select
Database Items window.
1 Select a column from the Column list to determine which column entries in the database table are formatted. You can apply special formatting to each column if necessary.
• To format numeric data, select an option from the Thousands
Separator, Decimal Point, and Decimal Places lists. These options are only visible when your column contains numeric data.
• To format date data, select an option from the Date/Time Format list. This option is only visible when your column contains date data.
• To display a string of text before each column entry during output, select the Add Prefix checkbox and enter the text in the text box.
• To display a string of text after each column entry during output, select the Add Suffix checkbox and enter the text in the text box.
2 Click OK in all the dialogs to return to CG. CG outputs the selected table entries from the data source during playback.
If you make frequent, standard changes to objects in your layouts, save the changes in one or more macros. Macros record the buttons you press while editing objects in the CG module. By assigning macros to shortcut keys you can quickly repeat these edits on a variety of objects.
To open or close the Macro window, select Tools > Macros.
Figure 3-69. The Macro Window
The buttons you press in the CG toolbars are recorded, as well as any shortcut keys and right-click menu selections.
Not everything you do in the CG module can be recorded. Keep the following restrictions in mind when recording a new macro:
• Mouse movements in the CG workspace (such as selecting objects, resizing objects, and moving objects) are not recorded.
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• Only changes made to objects within the CG module are recorded.
• If you record a change to an object’s treatment options (such as its color and transparency), you can only apply those changes to other objects that use the same type of treatment.
When changing treatment options in a macro, include a treatment type change in the macro to make sure the object you apply it to uses the same treatment.
• Changes to edges are specific to the object’s edge number. If you play them back on an object with fewer edges you may not see the changes.
• Changes to layout display options (such as showing or editing the safe title area) are not recorded.
Click the Record button in the Macro window to start recording a macro. The Macro Control Window opens with options for stopping, pausing, and canceling the recording.
Figure 3-70. The Macro Control Window
Any changes you make to the layout’s objects using the CG module’s toolbars and right-click menus are recorded.
Pause Recording
Click the Pause Recording button to pause the recording process. This is useful if you do not want certain layout changes to be recorded.
Click the Pause Recording button again to resume recording.
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Stop and Save Macro
When you are finished recording the macro click the Stop Recording button. The Record New Macro window opens, allowing you to name the macro and assign a shortcut key to it.
The shortcut key can be any available function key from F1 to F12, combined with the CTRL, SHIFT, or
ALT keys.
If you do not want to assign a shortcut key to the macro select the None radio button. Otherwise select the Function Key radio button, select a function key from the drop-down list, and select the checkboxes for the
CTRL, SHIFT, or ALT keys.
Click OK when you have finished setting the macro name and shortcut key.
Note:
Some key combinations are already used by CG or by Windows. If the shortcut key you select is reserved you are prompted to select a different key combination when you click the OK button.
To edit a macro’s name or shortcut key, select the macro in the Macro window and click the Edit button. A dialog opens allowing you to edit the macro.
Once saved, macros are available in the Macro window’s list. To play back a macro select it in the list and click the Play button. The macro’s actions are applied to any selected objects in the CG layout.
You can also play a macro by pressing the shortcut key assigned to it.
To delete a macro, select it in the Macro window and press the Delete button.
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CG layouts can be created from scratch or they can be based on pre-made templates that you create and store in one or more template registries. Layouts can also be exported and imported in a variety of layout formats.
To create a new layout within the current playlist, press the Add Default Event button at the bottom of the Playlist. The CG workspace shows the new layout.
To quickly format the layout using a pre-defined template, select a template from the Template drop-down list in the CG toolbar. See
for more information.
You can create four types of layouts within CG: stills, rolls, crawls, or animations. To change the type of the selected layout, select a type from the Title Type drop-down list in the CG toolbar.
Still Layouts
Still layouts are static screen images that contain text and graphic objects on top of a background. Some common types of still layouts are lower thirds, corner logos, and full screen layouts.
Roll Layouts
Rolls scroll text and graphic objects up or down the screen. Generally, rolls are used for credit sequences and consist of multiple vertical pages of text.
After you have selected the Roll title type and added some text to the layout, a vertical scrollbar appears on the edge of the CG workspace. Use the scrollbar to move up and down the layout. As you add more text to the layout the vertical size of the layout increases.
See
”Prevent Objects from Rolling or Crawling” on page 208 to learn how
to keep objects motionless in a roll layout.
Multiple roll layouts can be combined into a single multi-page roll using the
Sequencer module. See
”Create Multi-Page Rolls” on page 401 .
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Note:
If you import text for a roll layout, the imported text must not exceed
40 pages.
Crawl Layouts
Crawls display a running line of text, such as an announcement or a warning, across the screen. Crawls are not limited to a single line of text and can be placed anywhere on the layout.
After you have selected the Crawl title type and added some text to the layout, a horizontal scrollbar appears on the bottom of the CG workspace.
Use the scrollbar to move left and right within the layout. As you add more text to the layout the horizontal size of the layout increases.
See
”Prevent Objects from Rolling or Crawling” on page 208 to learn how
to keep objects motionless in a crawl layout.
Multiple crawl layouts can be combined into a single multi-page crawl using
the Sequencer module. See ”Create Multi-Page Crawls” on page 403 .
Note:
If you import text for a crawl layout, the imported text must not exceed 40 pages.
Animation Layouts
Animation layouts allow you to turn a CG layout into an animation using the
FX module. Once you’ve created the layout, switch to the Animation Editor and add animation effects. See
”Animation” on page 263 for details on
animating layouts.
Every layout in CG is based on a template. Templates let you define standard, commonly used layouts for projects. They contain anything you put in a layout, from lower third definitions to complex full screen layouts using logos and other graphic objects. They can also contain Style Library and Media Library information.
If you define all the media, styles, text objects, and graphic objects you need for a project in advance and save them as a template, you can ensure that layouts created with the template use exactly the same colors and formats.
When you create a new layout, CG uses the first template in the current template registry to format the layout. By default this layout (called “0
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Default layout”) is blank, with a small selection of styles and media library objects.
You can use more than one template registry within CG. For information about template registries see
”Template Registries” on page 250
.
Select a Template
To select a template for a layout, click the Template drop-down list in the
CG toolbar. A list of all the templates in the current template registry appears. Hover your mouse over the template names to display a thumbnail for each template.
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Figure 3-71. Select a Template from the Template Drop-Down List
Click a template name to load the template into the layout. Modifying a layout does not modify the template that the layout was based on.
The Template drop-down list can also be opened by pressing the CTRL+R key.
Create a Template from a Layout
Use the Template Manager to add your own layouts to the current template registry.
1 Open the layout in CG.
2 Open the Template Manager by clicking the Template
Manager button in the CG toolbar.
You can also open the Template Manager by choosing File >
Template Manager > CG Layouts or by pressing the CTRL+SHIFT+R key.
3 Click the Add button to add the current layout to the Template
Manager. The Add dialog opens.
4 In the Add dialog, number the template and include a name or description. When numbering the template make sure you do not overwrite other templates by using an existing number.
5 Click the Add button to close the Add dialog. The new template is added to the template list.
6 Click the Close button to close the Template Manager.
Update a Template
If you want to replace an existing template with an updated layout:
1 Open the updated layout in CG.
2 Open the Template Manager by clicking the Template
Manager button in the CG toolbar.
3 Select the template you want to update.
4 Click the Update button. The current layout information replaces the selected template.
Manage Templates
Use the Template Manager to keep the templates organized in the registry.
In the Template Manager dialog:
• Click the Delete button to delete the selected template.
• Click the Rename button to rename or renumber the selected template.
• Add a text memo to a template by selecting it and entering a note in the Memo field.
Create Playlists with the Template Manager
The Template Manager allows you to build an entire playlist using either the keyboard or the mouse.
You can immediately select a template by typing its number in the Template
Manager’s Quick Pick field. The corresponding thumbnail is highlighted immediately, and the template is selected.
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You can load an event in three ways using the Template Manager:
• Click the Load button to load the selected template into the current playlist event. You can also press ENTER or ALT+L.
• Click the Load Down button to load the selected template into the next available playlist event. You can also press SHIFT+ENTER or ALT+W.
• Click the Load More button to load the selected template into the next available playlist event, and then keep the Template Manager open so you can continue selecting and loading templates. You can also press
CTRL+SHIFT+ENTER or ALT+E.
Select a Different Template Registry
To change the current template registry, click the Open button in the
Template Manager and navigate to the .templates file you want to use. The drop-down list at the top of the Template Manager window stores the recent registry files for easy access.
CG has a default template list, or registry file, called inscribe.templates.
This file is located in your G-Scribe application folder. You can use more than one registry file when working with CG.
The Registry Manager is a utility that helps you organize registry files. It allows you to create new registries, manage existing registries, and copy templates between registries.
Open the Registry Manager
To open the Registry Manager, first open the Template Manager window by pressing the Template Manager button in the CG toolbar, then click the Registry Manager button in the Template
Manager window. The Registry Manager opens.
The left and right sides of the Registry Manager allow you to open two different registry files simultaneously. The current registry’s templates are automatically loaded into the left side of the window.
To view a preview of a template, click a template in one of the lists. It is displayed in a thumbnail at the bottom of the screen.
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Create a New Registry File
Select File > New to create a new blank registry file. A .templates file is created in the folder you specify, and the registry is automatically loaded into the right side of the Registry Manager.
Open a Registry File
You can open a registry file into either the left side or the right side of the
Registry Manager window.
Click the Open button above the list you want to use and navigate to the
.templates file. The file’s templates are loaded into the list. The drop-down list at the top of the list stores the recent registry files for easy access.
Copy Templates Between Registries
You can copy templates from either the left or right lists using the Copy Left and Copy Right button.
1 Make sure you have both the source and the target lists opened in the left and right sides of the Registry Manager window.
2 From the source list, select the templates you want to copy. Hold the
SHIFT key while clicking to select multiple consecutive templates in the list, and hold the CTRL key while clicking to select multiple non-consecutive templates.
3 To copy the templates from one list to another, use one of these methods:
• Drag the selected templates into the other list.
• Press the Copy Left or Copy Right button to copy the templates to the other list.
Copy Options
If you are copying over templates with the same number, the Copy Options dialog automatically opens. You can also set copy options by clicking the
Copy Options button in the Registry Manager.
Specify the way you want the templates renumbered in the target list:
• Renumber Item Coming from Source Database. Select this option to assign the first available number to the source list’s template.
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• Renumber Item in Target Database. Select this option to assign the first available number to the target list’s template.
• Write Over Target Database Item. Select this option to delete the template in the target list before copying.
• Skip. Select this option if you are copying a group of items and you do not want to copy templates with duplicate numbers.
You can also set Prompt Options:
• Prompt Before Renumbering or Replacing. Select this option to have the Copy Options dialog open every time you copy a template.
• Automatically Renumber or Replace. Select this option if you always want templates copied with the chosen copy option. You can change the copy options in the future by clicking on the Copy Options button in the Registry Manager.
Move Templates
Select Move > Right to Left or Move > Left to Right to move selected templates from one list to another.
Manage Templates
Use the Registry Manager to delete, rename, and renumber templates.
• Press the Delete button to delete the templates selected in a list.
• Press the Rename button to rename and renumber the templates selected in a list.
Back Up Template Registries
If you want to keep a backup copy of a template registry, use Windows
Explorer to duplicate the .templates file you want to backup.
You can import a formatted text file into CG that automatically creates a multi-layout playlist using available templates. The text file contains formatting information that tells CG to use specific template numbers, and contains tagged text that replaces the default template text when the playlist is created.
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See
for more information about tagging the objects in your layouts.
Creating a playlist using a text file consists of two steps:
1 Creating a formatted text file.
2 Importing the text into CG
For this example we will create a playlist containing three layouts. All three layouts will be based on a template that contains the text tags “Reporter” and “Location.” This template is #10 in our example template list.
Figure 3-72. Template #10 in the Template Manager
Create a Formatted Text File
1 Open a text editor, like Windows Notepad.
2 On the first line enter “template=” and the number of the template you want to use, for example: template=10
You can use the Template Manager within CG to verify the template number.
3 On the second line enter the tag you want to fill, followed by an equals sign and the text you want to fill it with. For example:
Reporter=Janet Murphy
4 Repeat step 3 on subsequent lines for any more tags you want to fill in the layout. For example:
Location=City Hall
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5 To create another layout, press ENTER twice and then enter the template number, tags, and replacement text again.
6 Repeat step 5 to create more layouts. Make sure all the layouts have spaces between their entries. This is what the finished text file looks like in our example: template=10
Reporter=Janet Murphy
Location=City Hall template=10
Reporter=Victor Atlas
Location=Community Center template=10
Reporter=Kim Le
Location=Miller Park Pagoda
7 Save the text file.
Import the Formatted Text File
In CG, select File > Import > Import Text File and navigate to the folder where you saved the formatted text file. Select the text file and select the
Job Creator radio button at the bottom of the Open dialog.
When you click the Open button, CG creates the playlist based on the instructions in the text file. The templates are loaded and their tags are filled as specified.
Event Names
You can specify names for your layouts by adding “eventname=” lines to your text file. This example gives each layout a specific number for its name: template=10 eventname=20
Reporter=Janet Murphy
Location=City Hall template=10 eventname=30
Reporter=Victor Atlas
Location=Community Center
template=10
Reporter=Kim Le
Location=Miller Park Pagoda template=10
Reporter=Janet Murphy
Location=Community Center
When a number is specified, the layout is created with that number. In the above example the first layout is named “20” and the second is named “30”.
If a new layout doesn’t have an event name, and it follows a layout with a specific number, the new layout’s number automatically follows from the proceeding layout’s number. In the above example the third layout is named
“31” and the fourth is named “32”.
You can also give alphanumeric names to layouts. The following example creates a layout called “sports”.
template=10 eventname=sports
Reporter=Janet Murphy
Location=Recreation Center
By default the video safe title area is the center 80% of the layout area.
Within this area, text and graphics will be displayed on any standard TV monitor. Outside of this area some monitors may cut off some or all of the layout. The video safe title area is a useful reference when you want to be sure that your layout will be properly displayed on all types of TV monitors.
To display the video safe title area, click the Display Options button on the CG toolbar. In the Display Options menu, select
Show 4:3 Title Safe Area. If you are working on a 16:9 layout you can choose to display either a 4:3 or a 16:9 video safe title area.
If the Snap to Title Safe Area option is checked in the Display Options menu, objects in your layout snap to the video safe title area when they are moved.
Edit the Video Safe Title Area
Select Display Options > Edit Video Safe Area to change the size and color of the video safe title area.
The Video Safe Area Editor dialog opens, allowing you to change the color
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and size of both the 4:3 and 16:9 safe title area.
Figure 3-73. Video Safe Area Editor
CG lets you import text files, News Edit tables, Subtitle .ebu files, .scribe files, and animations. You can also export images, sequence text files, subtitle text files, .scribe files, and Subtitle .ebu files.
All the import and export options are found in the File > Import and File >
Export menus.
Import and Export CG Layouts
CG Layouts are .scribe files which contain editable layout information,
ODBC connections, and transitions. They save a referenced file path to any media and fonts used in the layout, and they also save animation data.
To export a layout as a .scribe file, select File > Export > Export CG Layout.
Import Text Files
Text files are imported into the selected line at the current cursor position.
CG understands end of line markers, unless you are importing text into a crawl layout.
Imported text files must be in plain text format (ASCII, ANSI, MS-DOS text, etc.)
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CG creates subtitles by importing text files using one of three file formats: subtitle-only, timecoded subtitles, and EBU format. You can also use the CG subtitle features to do versioning.
You can use three different subtitle file types in CG.
Table 3-28. Subtitle File Types
File Type Description
Subtitle-Only
Timecoded
Subtitles
EBU Format
A text file containing subtitle text only. A blank line separates each subtitle page.
A text file containing subtitle text and timecode information. Time in and out codes separate each subtitle page.
A text file containing subtitles and timecode using standard EBU N19 formatting conventions.
Prepare Subtitle-Only Files
Use any text editor or word processor to create a subtitle-only file. Save the file as DOS/ASCII or plain text. These files have a .txt extension.
To create a subtitle-only file, enter the text in a text editor. You can put as many lines of text on each page of subtitles as you require. Use a blank line to separate the subtitle pages. CG starts a new layout in the playlist whenever it encounters a blank line.
The following example sets up three pages of subtitles. The first page will have one line of text while the second and third will have two lines of text.
Richards comments on her Italian travels.
“Every trip is a memorable one! Of course you can’t have all the comforts when you’re on the road...
but the fans are so enthusiastic. And that means a lot when you’re far away from home.”
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When CG imports the text it begins to fill the layout from the bottom up, so single line subtitles are placed on the bottom line of the layout.
As an alternative to dividing the text into lines you can enter each page of subtitles into one long line of text. Use the Lock the Object Width and
Enable Word Wrapping text object properties to break each page into text lines. You still need to signal new layout pages with blank lines in your text file.
Timecoded Text Files
You can import text files that contain both subtitles and timecodes. These files are the same as subtitle-only files except that each subtitle page is separated by in and out time codes.
The following example shows three pages of subtitles:
Richards comments on her Italian travels. <00:37:27:02>
<00:37:30:14>
“Every trip is a memorable one! Of course you can’t have all the comforts when you’re on the road...
<00:37:43:01> <00:37:46:22> but the fans are so enthusiastic. And that means a lot when you’re far away from home.” <00:37:50:22>
<00:37:53:09>
Timecodes use the following format: <hours:minutes:seconds:frames>. The opening and closing angle brackets are required. The timecodes represent the actual times that the subtitles appear in the video. When you import the subtitles into CG, it converts the timecodes into the following components: time in, duration, wait, and time out.
EBU Subtitle Files
CG supports the EBU file format for subtitles with non-overlapping timecode. CG ignores any other elements of the EBU specification. When creating EBU-based subtitle files, make sure that the editor follows EBU guidelines.
When you import subtitles into a playlist, CG uses a fresh copy of the current template for each subtitle page. You probably want to design a custom template for subtitle projects. For example, you may want to have two lines of centered text at the bottom of each page.
When designing a template, make sure that there are enough blank lines to handle each subtitle page in the imported text file. Otherwise some of the imported text may not appear on screen.
To save a template in the Template Manager:
1 Open the Template Manager by clicking the Template
Manger button in the CG toolbar.
You can also open the Template Manager by choosing File >
Template Manager > CG Layouts or by pressing the
CTRL+SHIFT+R key.
2 Click the Add button to add the current layout to the Template
Manager. The Add dialog opens.
3 In the Add dialog, number the template and include a name or description. When numbering the template make sure you do not overwrite other templates by using an existing number.
4 Click the Add button to close the Add dialog. Your new template is added to the template list.
5 Click the Close button to close the Template Manager.
To access the new subtitle template click the Template drop-down list in the
CG toolbar. Click the template in the drop-down list to load it into the CG workspace.
Before you import a subtitle file, make sure you select the subtitle layout template from the Template drop-down list in the CG toolbar.
1 Choose to import the subtitle file.
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• To import a text-based subtitle file, select File > Import > Import
Text File. In the Open dialog select the Subtitle Format radio button.
Select this radio button when importing subtitles
Figure 3-74. Import a Text-Based Subtitle File
• To import an EBU-based subtitle file select File > Import > Import
EBU Subtitle File.
2 Locate and select the file containing the subtitles.
3 Click Open to import the text file. The
Subtitle Import dialog appears. After the text import process is complete, save the playlist by choosing File > Save.
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When you import a timecoded or EBU-formatted file, CG automatically converts the timecodes into a format that it can use. The timecodes for each subtitle get converted into the following timing components: time in, duration, wait, and time out. You can take these subtitles to video without any modification or editing.
If you need to view or modify the timing components, use the Sequencer module. See
”Event Duration” on page 418 .
CG includes an option to export subtitles and timecodes to a text file. You can edit the file and import it back into CG. This feature is useful when creating multiple versions of a video, each in a different language.
For example, suppose you want to subtitle a video in English, French, and
Spanish:
1 Import a subtitle-only file containing subtitles in the original language into CG, as described in
”Import a Subtitle File” on page 259
.
2 Using the Sequencer module and a timecode source, add time codes to the subtitles. Take the job to video to make sure that all the subtitles are timecoded correctly. Remember that a translator will be using the subtitles as source material. Make sure the subtitles are of an appropriate length for translating.
3 Select File > Export > Export Subtitle Text File and export the subtitles.
The exported file is in the timecoded subtitle format, similar to the following:
Richards comments on her Italian travels. <00:37:27:02>
<00:37:30:14>
“Every trip is a memorable one! Of course you can’t have all the comforts when you’re on the road...
<00:37:43:01> <00:37:46:22> but the fans are so enthusiastic. And that means a lot when you’re far away from home.” <00:37:50:22>
<00:37:53:09>
4 Give the file to a translator who will translate the subtitles into a different language. The translator can edit the file using any ASCII text editor. When editing, the translator replaces the original text with the translated text, leaving the timecodes as they are. You can reuse the existing timecodes for each translation.
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5 The translator saves the file in an ASCII DOS or TEXT format and returns it to the studio.
6 Import the translated file into CG as described in
. A new playlist is created using the translated text and the timecodes in the text file.
Animation Editor is a special module that enhances the functionality of CG to include animation creation and playback. Animation Editor takes the two-dimensional (2D) text and graphics created in CG Editor, and animates them by flying them in virtual three-dimensional (3D) space.
You can easily switch between modules using the buttons on the toolbar or the options from the Tools drop-down menu.
To switch to Animation Editor, use one of the following methods.
• On the toolbar, click the FX button.
• Select Tools > Animation Editor.
• Press SHIFT+F6 on the main keyboard.
In order to access the Animation settings, you must set the layout type to
Animation before switching to Animation Editor. From the Layout Type drop-down list on the CG toolbar, select Animation.
If you click directly on the FX button on the main toolbar, without setting the layout type to Animation, G-Scribe will confirm that you want to convert the layout to an animation. If you select yes, the program switches to the
Animation Editor module and you are not given the chance to change the transition settings. However, you can switch back to CG Editor at any time to change the transition settings. See
"Animation Settings" on page 275 for
details.
All Inscriber animations are based on CG layouts. Create a layout in CG
Editor, then switch to Animation Editor to set up motion paths.
The Animation Editor interface has the following components:
• FX Workspace
• Preview Toolbar
• Attributes Tabs
• FX Palette
• Right-click Menu
• Preview/Program Palette
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Playlist FX workspace
FX palette
Tools
Actions
Views
On-screen preview
Preview/Program palette Attributes palette Preview toolbar
Figure 4-75. Animation Editor Interface
Scrapbook
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FX Workspace
The FX Workspace is the work area where you can set up motion paths based on the text and objects created in CG Editor. This workspace can display every motion path in an animation at once, so it’s easy to set up parallel keyframe positions and timing. The special drag-and-drop functionality of Animation Editor lets you position objects anywhere on screen using only the mouse.
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Figure 4-76. FX Workspace
Preview Toolbar
The Preview toolbar, also called the Scrubber, is located on the bottom of the FX workspace. This toolbar allows you to preview the animation in wireframe mode, without rendering and saving. With the toolbar, you can preview the whole animation or preview from the current frame in time. The toolbar includes a Time Slider that allows you to scroll (or scrub) through time in Animation Editor. See
"Preview Motion Paths" on page 286 for
details.
Figure 4-77. Preview Toolbar
Attributes Palette
Many of the main key controls in Animation Editor are located on tabbed pages. The tabs are Placement, Shape, Filter, 3D Effects, Spline, Time, and
Templates. To switch between tabbed pages, click the tab name. Animation
Editor brings the contents of the tab you clicked on to the front of the display.
Figure 4-78. Animation Attributes Tabs
Table 4-29. Animation Attributes Tabs
Tab Description
Placement
Shape
Filter
3D Effects
Spline
Time
Templates
Contains the options to adjust the keyframe behavior on a particular axis such as; Position, Orientation,
Spins, and Offset.
Extend, Skew, and Scale the shape of a keyframe in this tab.
Apply special effects to the keyframe with
Transparency, Crop, Mosaic, Luminance, and Tint.
Contains pre-defined motion effects such as; Squish,
Flop, Peels/Curls, Blinds, Twist, Shatter, Ripple,
Torus, and Blackhole.
Controls how an object moves from one keyframe to the next.
Adjusts the time between keyframes, the path length, and the start and end frames of a path.
Contains pre-set effects for your animation paths, including Placement, Shape, Filters, 3D Effects, and
Timing information.
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FX Palette
The FX palette is divided into three parts: tools, actions, and views. The
Tools palette is a duplicate of the tools on the Placement and Shape
Attributes tabs and provides fast access to these tools.
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Figure 4-79. FX Palette
Action options can only be accessed from this palette. Action options are advanced functions that reset your paths or keyframes back to their former state. These options include reset shape, reset keyframe, reset object, and reset placement, as well as options to reverse the direction of the current path or all paths.
View options change how paths are displayed in Animation Editor. You can limit the paths that appear, or switch from rendered bitmap to wireframe view. See
for details.
Table 4-30. FX Palette
Icon Name
Tools
Move (Position)
Spin
Scale
Skew
Actions
Reset Placement
Reset Keyframe
Full Frame
Reverse Path
Views
Display All Paths
Snapshot of All Objects
Icon Name
Rotate (Orientation)
Offset
Extend
Twist
Reset Shape
Reset Object
To Infinity
Reverse All Paths
Display Text Outlines
Snapshot of Current
Object
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Right-Click Menu
You can access the Tools options by positioning the cursor anywhere over the FX workspace and pressing the right mouse button.
This menu contains the Tools available on the FX palette. You can also use this menu to copy, cut, paste, and perform certain keyframe actions. A checkmark indicates which tool is currently active.
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Figure 4-80. Animation Right-Click Menu
Program/Preview Palette
The Program/Preview palette allows you to view contents on the Preview and Program channels. The Preview channel is the video channel used to preview video before you send it to the Program channel. The Program channel is the video channel used to broadcast or send to tape.
The basic idea behind Animation is to change the way text and objects appear over time. You start with the still text and graphic objects created in CG Editor, then switch to Animation Editor to set up the objects in various stages of change over a particular duration. In Animation, simply make duplicate copies of the text and graphic objects (called keyframes), then create changes in motion, color, movement, or transparency at each keyframe. When you play back this sequence of keyframes, the text and objects change gradually as they move through each keyframe along the motion path.
All animations are based on CG layouts. The following procedure shows how to create a basic animation. Detailed information on how to use
Animation Editor is covered throughout this chapter.
1 Create and format your text and objects in CG.
2 Select Animation from the Layout Type drop-down list in CG.
3 Click the Effect Settings button on the toolbar to open the Transition
Settings dialog and select how you want the layers to pass to
Animation.
4 Click on the Animation button on the main toolbar.
5 Select an object or line of text in the FX workspace, and press INSERT to add a new keyframe.
Add as many keyframes as you want for each object.
6 Select the Move tool from the FX Palette, and then drag and drop the keyframe(s) anywhere on the screen.
7 Use the options in the Position, Shape, and Filter tabs to change how the object appears over time.
8 Use the options in the Time and Spline to adjust the timing and smoothness of each path.
9 Select Go > Render Animation.
10 Go online to make the animation fly.
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Motion is created when an object moves through a series of points along a path. This path is called the spline. The events that make up the points along which the object moves, such as the start and end points, are called keyframes. Every object moves smoothly between keyframes along a particular path. The transitional values between keyframes are called frames. The spline path is made up of both keyframes and frames.
To create a path, you need to define both a starting keyframe and an ending
keyframe, as well as any points of change in between. See "Keyframes" on page 277
for details.
Keyframe
Frames
Keyframe
Figure 4-81. Animation Spline Path
An animation is created by changing objects over time. The series of still frames becomes animated as changes are made throughout the timeline. In the FX workspace you can see every moment in time for the animation. This is important for aligning objects at a particular point in time.
A track view of the timeline is presented on the Time tab. This view is useful for changing the length of the spline path, or shifting the entire timeline forward or backward without working with individual keyframes.
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See
for details on setting the timing for each animation path.
Timelines
Figure 4-82. Animation Path Timelines
In CG Editor, only two dimensions come into play: height and width. These dimensions are represented by the X axis and the Y axis; all the text and graphic objects created in CG are flat two-dimensional objects. You enter another dimension when you switch to Animation. The text and graphics that were once only two-dimensional now operate in a 3D space. This third axis, called the Z axis, represents the depth of your text and graphics in the workspace. In Animation, all objects, even objects that have only height and width, exist in this 3D space.
Y axis
Z axis
X axis
Figure 4-83. XYZ Axes
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Animation Tools are Move (Position), Rotate (Orientation), Spin, Offset,
Extend, Skew, Twist, and Scale. Select a tool in any of the following ways:
• Click the tool on the FX palette.
• Click the tool on the Placement or Shape Attributes tabs.
• Right-click the FX workspace and select a tool from the menu.
When you select a tool, the cursor changes to reflect which tool is active.
Table 4-31. Animation Tools
Icon Name Icon Name
Position (Move) Orientation (Rotate)
Offset
Extend
Skew
Spin
Twist
Scale
Whether you select a tool from the right-click menu, FX palette, or
Attributes tabs, you apply a tool in the same way:
1 Select the tool you want to use.
2 Click the keyframe you want to change and drag to adjust the keyframe.
3 Hold down the 1, 2, or 3 keys while dragging to constrain the change to a particular axis.
• Press 1 while dragging to constrain the X axis.
• Press 2 while dragging to constrain the Y axis.
• Press 3 while dragging to constrain the Z axis.
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When your CG layout is complete and you are ready to create motion paths, you need to define your layout as an animation, and then switch to Animation Editor. You also need to decide how Animation
Editor must deal with each object and each object in your layout.
Once you create the text and graphic objects in CG, they are sent to
Animation Editor with all formatting and style information intact. Before switching to Animation Editor, you need to decide whether you want to animate objects and characters individually or as a group.
To select animation options for each object in your layout:
1 Click the Effect Settings button on the toolbar to open the Transition Settings dialog.
2 Select either Export as a single group object or Send as individual object.
Figure 4-84. Animation Transition Settings
Export as a Single Grouped Object
This option groups every item in the layout into a single object.
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Send as Individual Objects
This option puts every graphic object and text line on a separate path. With this option, you can either treat the text as lines or as individual characters.
By selecting to treat text as individual characters, you can animate each character separately.
If you have text or objects in a layout and you do not select an option, the
Treat text as lines default setting is applied.
When you create your layout, you need to plan how text and objects work together in your animation. For items that will remain static, it’s good practice to set them to Export as a single grouped object in the Transition
Settings dialog. Or, you might want to fly the characters in one word separately, and have all remaining words fly whole. In this case, you need to
Treat text as individual characters for the one word, and then Treat text as lines for the remaining words.
If you want to display large characters in Animation Editor, it is best to start out with large characters in CG Editor. While you can increase character size in Animation Editor using the Scale tool, scaling up can produce degraded character quality. In order to maintain the best quality, start out with larger characters in CG and then scale them down in Animation.
You can change the font and style attributes of your text and objects at any time, but you have to switch back to CG Editor to do so. In CG, you can change, add, or delete your text and objects.
When you switch back to Animation Editor, all existing paths are preserved and the rendered bitmap shows the updated text and objects. All new objects are placed on a separate path, and all deleted objects are completely removed.
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Keyframes refer to the significant events that make up the path along which the object moves, such as the start and end points. A path with only one keyframe is the same as a static display. For movement, you need a minimum of two keyframes.
There are three places to insert a new keyframe: before the selected keyframe, after the selected keyframe, or at the current frame in time.
To add a keyframe before or after a keyframe:
1 Select the keyframe you want to add a new keyframe to.
2 Select Edit > Insert Keyframe > Before Selected Keyframe to insert a new keyframe before the current keyframe.
or
3 Select Edit > Insert Keyframe > After Selected Keyframe to insert a new keyframe after the current keyframe.
When you insert a keyframe before or after, the number of frames in the entire motion path increases by 1 second (30 frames NTSC / 25 frames PAL) before or after the current keyframe.
Keyframe inserted Before
Original
Keyframe
Original
Keyframe
Keyframe inserted After
0 frames
30
0 frames
30
Figure 4-85. Keyframes Inserted Before and After Original Keyframe
When inserting a keyframe at the current frame in time, the keyframe plays no part in where the new keyframe is inserted. Instead, the new keyframe is inserted at the current frame in time, as indicated in the Current Frame field and by the Time Slider on the Preview toolbar
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To insert a new keyframe at specific frame in time:
1 Move the Time Slider on the Preview toolbar to the desired location in the animation path.
or
2 Enter a frame number into the Current Frame field
3 Select Edit > Insert Keyframe > At Current Frame to insert a new keyframe.
0 frames
15 frames
30
Figure 4-87. Keyframe Inserted At Current Frame
You can press INSERT on the main keyboard or select Insert Keyframe from the right-click menu instead of using the Edit menu options. Whether the keyframe is inserted before, after, or at the selected keyframe depends on the default on the Edit > Insert/Paste Defaults menu.
When you first launch Animation Editor, the default is set to After Current
Keyframe. You can change the default by selecting Edit > Insert/Paste
Defaults and selecting the desired option. The option with the checkmark beside it is the current default. The Edit menu options override the default.
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Figure 4-86. Keyframe Preview Toolbar
When you insert a keyframe at the current frame, no additional frames are added to the spline, so the motion path does not become longer. If the current frame in time is a keyframe, the Insert Keyframe > At Current Frame option is unavailable. In the following example, a new keyframe was inserted at frame 15.
Original
Keyframe
Keyframe inserted At
Original
Keyframe
If you want to insert a keyframe without having to select a menu item or constantly reset the default settings, use the following shortcut keys. You can insert a keyframe before, after, or at the current keyframe with a simple keystroke.
• SHIFT+INSERT places a keyframe before selected keyframe.
• CTRL+INSERT places a keyframe after selected keyframe.
• ALT+INSERT places a keyframe at current frame.
Insert keyframe shortcut keys override the default setting.
You can delete a selected keyframe by using the following options:
• Press DELETE on the main keyboard.
• Select Edit > Delete Keyframe.
• Select Delete Keyframe from the right-click menu.
You cannot select a path with only one keyframe when in Animation Editor; you must be in CG Editor to delete a single keyframe.
You can cut, copy, and paste the selected keyframe(s) by using one of the following options:
• Edit > Cut, Edit > Copy, or Edit > Paste.
• Select Cut, Copy, or Paste from the right-click menu.
• Use shortcut keys CTRL+X (cut), CTRL+C (copy), or CTRL+V (paste).
If you have an Animation layout with only one keyframe, you must switch to
CG to remove it.
There are several paste options on the right-click menu in Animation
Editor.
• Paste Replace replaces the current keyframe with the one from the clipboard. The timing of the keyframe does not change.
• Paste New creates a new keyframe from the clipboard before, after, or at the selected keyframe (depending on the Edit menu default setting).
• Paste At inserts the clipboard keyframe at the current frame in time
(regardless of the selected keyframe).
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Once you have added keyframes for each item in your animation, you need to reposition and assign attributes for each keyframe to create the desired spline path. To move a keyframe:
1 Select the Position tool from the Placement tab or from the Tools palette.
2 Select the keyframe.
3 Drag the keyframe to the new position, or enter a number value in the
XYZ axes on the Position tab.
Select the Position Tool
Before you start selecting, dragging, and dropping keyframes, you need to make sure the Position tool is selected. Select the tool from the Tools palette or the Placement tab. The Position tool is selected when the cursor contains the arrow and crosshairs, as in the graphic to the right.
Select the Keyframe
The easiest way select a keyframe is to click the keyframe you want to move.
However, if you are working with multiple keyframes that overlap, you may have a hard time determining whether you have selected the right keyframe.
To select the keyframe without clicking it directly:
1 Select the path name from the drop-down menu located to the left of the Attributes Palette.
2 Enter the keyframe number in the Key# field, or use the left/right arrows to select the key number.
Figure 4-88. Keyframe Selection
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Animation Editor indicates the number of frames between the previous and current keyframe and the number of frames between the current and next keyframe to help you specify precise frames on the timeline.
Drag-and-Drop Positioning
The easiest way to move a keyframe is to click and drag it to a new location on the screen.
Only keyframes within the safe title area are included in the render, but you can place keyframes outside this area to create a fly-in or fly-out effect.
Absolute Positioning
If you need absolute positioning to line up keyframes, use the Position fields on the Placement tab. In Animation Editor, position is defined by the
X, Y, and Z coordinates. The X coordinate marks the horizontal position, the Y coordinate marks the vertical position, and the Z coordinate marks the depth. The center of the screen is (0,0,0) and positions are measured outward from the center point or focal point.
Figure 4-89. Keyframe Positioning
The easiest way to line up keyframes is to position the first keyframe, check the X, Y, and Z fields for its position, then select the next keyframe and enter the same information for the axis you are trying to line up. For example, enter the same number value in the X axis for all keyframes to align them along the same horizontal line.
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Determine the Keyframe Order
The first keyframe in a path has a circled number 1 in the middle of it (see
) This number refers to the order in which the keyframes
appear. Movement always begins at keyframe 1, then moves along the path to number 2, 3, and so on.
Figure 4-90. Keyframe Labels
If you want to reverse the order of keyframes, click the Reverse
Path button on the FX palette. The keyframe labels change to reflect their new order in the path. When you preview the animation, the keyframe previously labeled 1 is displayed last in the motion path instead of first.
When you have an object with two keyframes, the path between the keyframes is always a straight line. If you add a third keyframe to the path,
Animation Editor creates a bezier curve between the keyframes. If the three keyframes on the same X axis, the path will be a straight line. However, if you move the keyframes slightly out of alignment, the curve becomes obvious.
Figure 4-91. Bezier Curve
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Animation Editor offers several different display options to help simplify your workspace. These options include Display All Paths, Display Text Outlines, Snapshot of Current Object, and Snapshot of All
Objects. Display options are all located on the bottom row of the FX palette.
By default, Animation Editor displays all paths in wireframe view with the current point in time rendered for each path. This provides a snapshot of the animation at the current frame in time. You can change and combine the display options at any time to suit your needs.
Table 4-32. Animation Display Options
Option Function
Display All Paths Shows an overall picture of how paths in the animation interact.
Display Text Outlines Shows how text paths in the animation interact.
Snapshot of Current
Object
Snapshot of All
Objects
Shows detail work where you need to see a fully rendered snapshot of the selected path(s).
Shows fine detail work where you need to see exactly what the fully rendered object will look like at a particular frame, and in relation to other objects.
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Display All Paths shows every path in an animation. Use this option if your paths are fairly simple with minimal overlap. Otherwise, the display can get complicated and you may have a hard time figuring out which path or object is selected. When this option is not enabled, you only see the selected path.
Figure 4-92. Display All Paths
Display Text Outlines provides only a wireframe view of your objects. Select this option instead of Snapshot of Current Object or Snapshot of All
Objects for a less cluttered display. You will not be able to see the CG formatting of your images.
Figure 4-93. Display Text Outlines
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Snapshot of Current Object provides a fully rendered snapshot of the current frame in time for the selected path only. Use this option to view the rendered snapshot so you can see what your objects will look like at a particular frame. Rendering on the fly slows down your display slightly, and does not represent the true time it takes for the objects to travel along the path. For optimal speed performance, do not select this display option.
Figure 4-94. Snapshot of Current Object
Snapshot of All Objects provides a fully rendered bitmap of the current frame for all paths in your animation. Snapshot of Current Object and
Snapshot of All Objects are radio buttons, so you can only select one display option at a time. As with Snapshot of Current Object, viewing the path with this option selected slows down the display.
Figure 4-95. Snapshot of All Objects
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It is important to preview your animation, even when you make a minor change. When one keyframe is changed it can affect the entire spline, timing, and movement of the path, as well as the interaction of objects.
The term preview refers to viewing the animation in Animation Editor on the computer screen, not on your frame buffer. A preview produces only a wireframe outline of the path, so you are not able to see exactly what text and objects look like at each frame. However, the preview provides accurate timing and spline information and does not require rendering, so you can view changes quickly and easily. You need to render an animation only when you want to do a take. To save time, just preview the results on your computer screen.
The Preview toolbar, also called the Scrubber, is located on the bottom of the FX workspace. It provides different options for previewing an animation on the computer screen. These options include previewing the whole animation or only from the current frame, and also include controls to jump to a specific frame in a path.
Previous
Keyframe
Next
Keyframe
Time Synched
to Keyframe
Play
Current
Frame
Rewind to Start
Previous
Frame
Time
Slider
Next
Frame
Forward to End
Play in
Reverse
Play from
Current Frame
Figure 4-96. Preview Toolbar Controls
The Time Slider
The Time Slider gives you a visual representation of where you are at any point in time in your animation. You can select any frame in the animation by dragging the time slider to the desired location.
When you have more than two keyframes in your animation, the location in time of each keyframe is indicated by small vertical marks along the bottom of the Time Slider.
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Play Controls
Many of the preview toolbar controls do not actually run through an animation path; they jump the preview to a particular frame, so you can see exactly what each path looks like at that frame. Only three of the controls run a preview: Play, Play Reverse, and Play from Current Frame.
Table 4-33. Play Controls Functions
Button Function
Play Plays the entire animation, starting at the first keyframe and moves forward in time to the last keyframe, and then resets back to the beginning.
Play in Reverse Plays the entire animation in reverse, starting at the last keyframe, and moves backward in time to the first keyframe.
Play from
Current Frame
Plays the animation starting at the current frame in time and moves forward to the last keyframe, and then resets back to the current frame.
Play and Stop Function
The green Play button previews the animation from the beginning. While the preview is running, the Play button turns into a red Stop button. You can click the Stop button to stop (or pause) the preview at any point along the path. To continue the preview from the current paused frame, click the
Play from Current Frame button. The preview starts from the paused frame, plays to the end, and then resets back to the paused frame. If you click the
Play button again, the preview starts back at the first frame, plays the entire animation, and then resets back to the paused frame.
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Use the controls on the Preview toolbar to preview an animation. Use the
Preview options to determine how the preview is displayed. Select Go > Go
Options to access to preview options.
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Figure 4-97. Go Menu Options
Table 4-34. Preview Options
Option Description
Show Trails
Selected Object
Only
Leaves a wireframe trail of each frame in the path.
(Useful for judging the smoothness of a spline curve)
Clip to Screen Limits the display of the preview to the screen area only.
(Useful if you want to know exactly what objects, or how much of an object, will appear on the video screen)
Render on Screen Previews the entire animation.
(Useful when you need to see exactly what the fully rendered object will look like at a particular frame, and in relation to other objects)
Previews only the selected path in the animation.
Motion templates are preset effects that you can apply to any object in Animation Editor. Templates include all placement, shape, filter, spline, and time information for a path. Templates do not include the text and objects created in CG Editor. You can add your own templates to the motion registry, import or export templates as you need them, or you can use the preset templates.
All template settings are located on the Templates tab. Options include adding, appending, or overwriting the position and shape information of the keyframes currently in the path, inserting the template at the start or end of the selected path, and setting the duration and start time.
Template
List
Registry
Management
Preview Registry
Template
Preview Template Applied
to Layout
Figure 4-98. Templates Tab
Template Options
The Template List includes all preset templates, as well as any custom templates you may add to the registry. To select a template from the list, click it.
The Template Preview window provides a view of what the template looks like. To preview a template:
1 Select a path in the FX workspace.
2 Select a template from the list.
3 Click the Template tab above the preview window, and then the green play button to the right to see how the template works.
4 Click the Applied tab and then click the play button to see how the template works with the selected path.
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Motion templates take the text and graphic objects created in CG Editor and create an animation path for each object based on the information in the template. You can apply a template to an individual character, a single path, multiple paths, or all paths in a single animation.
Apply to Individual Charaters
In Animation Editor, you can apply a template to individual characters in a word or line of text.
To apply a template to individual characters:
1 In CG Editor, select the Treat Text as Individual Characters radio button on the Transition Settings dialog.
2 Switch to Animation Editor.
3 Select any single character within a word or text line.
4 Click the Select Word/Line button to choose the entire word or text line.
Select
All Objects
Select
Word/Line
Figure 4-99. Object Selection
5 Click Select Word/Line again while on the same single character to apply a template only to that individual character.
6 Click Apply.
7 Click the Play button on the Preview toolbar to view the results.
Apply to All Ojects
You can apply template effects to all objects in the layout.
To apply a template to all objects:
1 In CG Editor, select the Treat Text as Lines radio button on the
Transition Settings dialog.
2 Switch to Animation Editor.
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3 Click on the FX workspace.
4 Click the Select All Objects button.
5 Click Apply.
6 Click the Play button on the Preview toolbar to view the results.
To switch between applying templates to either individual characters or all objects, you must adjust the export settings in the Transition Settings dialog in CG Editor.
Apply to Multiple Paths
In Animation Editor, you cannot use SHIFT or CTRL to select multiple paths. Instead, use the Count field to apply a template to multiple paths.
Enter the number of paths you want the template applied to in the Count field. The template is applied to the selected path, plus the next paths that equal the number set in the Count field.
For example, if you have six paths, but you want to apply the template to paths 2, 3, 4, and 5 only, select path 2 in the FX workspace and set the number in the count field to 4. The template is applied to paths 2 through
5, but not 1 and 6.
Staggering starts each path after a set number of keyframes. For example, if you have five paths and you set the stagger value to 10, the first path begins at the Start frame, the second path begins 10 frames later, the third begins
20 frames later, and so on. Use this option if you want to fly multiple objects or individual characters on screen, spaced evenly apart in time.
To stagger a template, follow this example:
1 Set up five paths containing two keyframes
2 Switch to the Time tab, and click on the first path.
3 Switch to the Templates tab, and select a template from the preset list.
4 Type 5 in the Count field, 0 in the Start field, 30 in the length field, and
10 in the Stager field.
5 Click Apply.
6 Click on the Play button in the Preview toolbar to view the results.
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Before you apply a template to a path, you need to select the combination of options that determine how and where along the path the template is applied, as well as the total length and start frame for the path.
Template options must be set when applying a template. You need to define the Start frame and length of the resulting path. The following subtopics describe the Overwrite, Append, Insert, and Timing options.
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Figure 4-100. Template Options
Overwrite deletes all information, including keyframes, in the selected path
(except the object itself), and applies the template instead. Overwrite behavior depends on whether you select the Relative or Absolute option.
These options determine where the template is inserted in the selected path.
If you select Relative, the template attributes are applied, and the current keyframe position stays the same. Relative maintains the position of the selected keyframe and applies the template relative to this starting position.
With this option, you can insert the template at the beginning or end of the selected keyframe.
If you select Absolute, all the preset keyframe attributes from the template are used. Absolute ignores the size and position of the current keyframes in the original path and forces the keyframes into the preset template attributes.
The Append option adds the template effect to the existing selected path.
All previously set information, including keyframes, remains intact. Append behavior depends on whether you select the Beginning or End option. If you select Beginning, the template effect is added prior to the first keyframe. If you select End, the template effect is added after the last keyframe.
Insert options affect where the template is inserted into the current path.
The options are Beginning and End, and the results they produce are dependent upon the entire original path rather than on the selected keyframe.
If you select Beginning, the template is inserted before (at the beginning of) the original path. If you select End, the template is inserted after (at the end of) the original path.
You can also set timing options for the template, including the Start frame, the Length of the path, and whether you want to Stagger the template.
Table 4-35. Timing Options
Option Result
Start Frame Starts the path at a particular frame in time.
(Similar to shifting the entire path forward in time using the slider on the Time tab)
Length Sets the duration for the path in frames before you click
Apply.
(If you change the length after applying the template, keyframes are added)
Clip Length button
Stagger
Forces the length of the path to match the value set in the
End field on the Time tab.
(If you select the Clip Length button, the Length field is unavailable. You cannot edit this field until you clear the
Clip Length button. If you wish to adjust the length without clearing the Clip Length button, you can change the value in the End field on the Time tab)
Sets each path to start a set number of frames apart in time.
(Available only if applying the template to more than one path)
Each template has a preset order in which keyframes appear. To reverse the preset order, select the Reverse checkbox. This option is useful if the effect in the template is set to fly on-screen but you really want the effect to fly off-screen, or vice versa.
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You can combine multiple preset templates to create your own custom template. Use the Append, Insert, and Timing options to determine how the combined templates work together in the new animation path.
The preset templates take the text and graphic objects created in CG Editor and make a path for each object based on the information in the template.
Since the templates include all placement, shape, filter, spline, and time information for a path, you can create complex custom paths using only a single keyframe or object. For example, when you insert a template at the beginning or end of the original single keyframe or object, additional keyframes from the templates are automatically added to create an animation path.
To combine multiple templates to a path:
1 Select the keyframe or path from the FX workspace
2 Select a template from the Templates list.
3 Select Append. The Overwrite option deletes all information in the selected path (except the object itself), and applies the template instead.
4 Select Relative to maintain the selected keyframe’s start position.
Absolute applies the template’s default start position.
5 Select Beginning or End for the placement of the template in the path.
6 Click Apply. The attributes from the applied template are now stored in your animation path.
7 Select another template from the list and apply it to the beginning or end of the same path.
8 Continue selecting and applying preset templates until you have created the desired effect. It is good practise to use the Template
Preview window before you apply the template to see how it will look in the animation path.
See
to adjust the timing of you animation.
See
"Motion Template Registry" on page 295 for information on saving your
custom templates.
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The motion template registry is designed to make it easy to manage frequently used effects. Instead of using the preset templates, you can add your own templates to the registry. You can import and export templates as you need them. You can also adjust the preset templates to make them fit your needs. The registry management buttons are all located on the Templates tab.
Update Delete Export
Add Rename Import
Figure 4-101. Registry Management Buttons
If you are working with multiple paths, you can include a single path or all paths in one template. Make sure you set all the placement, shape, filter, spline, and time information for all the paths before you add the template to the registry.
To add a new template:
1 Select the Templates tab on the Attributes Palette.
2 Select the path or paths you want to include in the template.
3 Press the Add button. The FX Template dialog asks whether you are including the selected path or all paths in the new template.
Figure 4-102. FX Template Dialog
4 Press Yes to add a single path to the template, or No to include all paths.
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5 Enter in a name and number for the new template in the Add Template pop-up.
Figure 4-103. Add New Template
6 Click OK to save the new template in the registry.
When you add a template to the registry, you need to assign a name and number to the template. Once in the list on the Templates tab, the template is sorted by number, and you need to be able to recognize the contents by its name. Naming conventions are especially important if multiple users are sharing a registry. Make the name intuitive enough that all users can tell what information the template contains without having to preview it.
To rename a template, simply click the Rename button and enter a new name in the field provided. You can also change the order in which templates appear in the list by changing the template number.
Figure 4-104. Rename Template
You can make changes to a template’s placement, shape, filter, spline, and time information after it has been added to the registry. To update a template without changing the name:
1 Select the template and make the desired changes in the FX workspace.
2 Press the Update button. The FX Template dialog opens and prompts you to select Yes or No to determine which paths to include.
3 Once selected, the Update pop-up appears and prompts you to confirm that you want to update the selected template.
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4 Click Yes to update the template.
Figure 4-105. Update Template
If there is a template in the registry that you no longer use, just select it and click the Delete button to remove it from the list. The Template Manager pop-up prompts you to confirm that you want to delete the selected template.
Figure 4-106. Delete Template
If you delete a template, the remaining templates are not renumbered, so there may be a gap in the numbering. To change the numbers, click Rename and change the number for each remaining template.
For each preset template in the list, all Animation Editor options were set when the template was added to the Registry. A template may be close to, but not exactly, what you want.
To adjust a preset template:
1 Select and apply the desired template.
2 Make any changes to the placement, shape, spline, time, and filters in the FX workspace.
3 Press the Add button to include the template in the list under a new name.
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A spline is a curve that determines how an object moves from one keyframe to the next. When you add keyframes, a series of frames connects the keyframes. The sum of the frames, from the first keyframe to the last keyframe, defines the spline.
Figure 4-107. Spline Tab
In Animation Editor there are three spline curves for every path: the
Position spline, the Rotation spline, and the Shape spline. Each spline has it’s own tension, continuity, and bias value. By default, the Position spline is selected. You can only see the Position spline in the FX workspace. You have to imagine the other two splines, although you can see the effects of a change in any spline at any point in time in the preview.
Animation Editor always tries to create the smoothest path between keyframes, anticipating how an object must move in order to arrive cleanly at the next keyframe. In most cases, a change at one keyframe affects the spline two keyframes before and two keyframes after the keyframe you alter.
For some properties such as rotation and spin, you may not want Animation
Editor to anticipate the motion, or you may need to slightly adjust the movement into a keyframe. You may also want to create abrupt changes in motion such as bounces.
Change the Spline Properties
Each spline consists of three properties: tension, continuity, and bias. The values for each property are represented on the Spline tab by a slider bar.
To change a spline property:
• Drag the slider bar to the left to decrease the value.
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• Drag the slider bar to the right to increase the value.
• Enter a value for each spline property directly into the number field located beside the slider.
The maximum and minimum values are +/- 5.00. The result of the
value depends on the property you are changing. See "Tension,
Continuity, and Bias" on page 300 for details.
Spline sliders
Figure 4-108. Spline Sliders
There are three ways to reset the Tension, Continuity, or Bias values back to the default:
• Double-click the slider.
• Click the reset button to the right of the slider.
• Double-click the Tension, Continuity, or Bias number field.
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Every spline has three properties: Tension, Continuity, and Bias. To make a change to any spline, you must first select the correct spline. Then you can adjust the Tension, Continuity, or Bias values for the selected spline. The best way to understand these properties is to experiment with your own spline paths.
A change in any of these properties is most obvious on a keyframe that is between two other keyframes.
Tension adjusts the rigidity of the spline, allowing you to tighten or loosen the curve. The default tension is set to 0.00, so you have to adjust this value up or down to change the tension.
• Drag the Tension slider right to increase the tension on the curve, thereby tightening the spline. The spline curve effectively turns itself inside out when you drastically increase the tension.
• Drag the slider to the left to decrease the tension and make the curve much more slack. The spline spreads out and is now shaped like a horseshoe.
illustrates the different tension values on a simple three point spline curve.
-5 -1 0 +1 +5
Figure 4-109. Spline Tension
Changing the continuity of a spline affects the smoothness of the path coming into and out of the keyframe.
• Drag the continuity slider to the left to increase the continuity. An increase in continuity creates a swooping effect coming into and out of the keyframe.
• Drag the slider to the right to decrease the continuity. A decrease in continuity creates a bumpy effect coming out of the previous keyframes, and going into the next keyframe. Decreasing the continuity creates a sharp corner or quick change of direction in the spline.
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illustrates the different continuity values on a simple three
point curve.
-5 -1 0 +1 +5
Figure 4-110. Spline Continuity
Bias weights the motion coming into or out of a keyframe. Animation Editor averages the two values, and creates an even motion. An increase in bias weights the average toward the motion coming out of the keyframe. A decrease in bias weights the average toward the motion coming into the
illustrates the different bias values on a simple three
point curve.
-5 -1 0 +1 +5
Figure 4-111. Spline Bias
You can adjust the tension, continuity, and bias in conjunction with the Ease
In and Ease Out values to create very dramatic transitions into and out of the keyframe. Adjust the Ease In value to increase or decrease the speed into the selected keyframe. Adjust the Ease Out value to increase or decrease the speed coming out of the selected keyframe.
Adjusting these values increases or decreases the number of frames between keyrames. Click the Reset button to set the default frame value back to 50.
Figure 4-112. Spline Ease In and Out of Keyframes
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Since time is measured in frames, the timing of your animation depends on the number of frames in each path. You can adjust the length, point in time at which the path runs, amount of time between keyframes, or the start and end frames of the path. The Time tab provides a track view of every path in an animation.
The Track Sliders represents where the motion occurs on the track.
Path Start Frame
Path End Frame
Path Duration
Total Animation Duration
Animation End
Track Sliders
Figure 4-113. Time Tab
In the FX workspace, time is captured, allowing you to see every moment in time for the animation. For preview purposes, the current point in time for each path is outlined in green in the FX workspace, and you can scroll through time using the Time slider on the Preview toolbar.
Figure 4-114. Preview Toolbar Time Slider
To adjust the length of an animation path, simply add or subtract frames across the entire path or between keyframes. The are a number of ways to change the length of a path.
• Enter a frame value in the Path Start Frame or Path End Frame fields.
• Enter a precise number of frames in the Path Duration field.
• Drag the right edge of the Track Slider to the right, or the left edge to the left, to increase the length of the path.
• Drag the right edge of the Track Slider to the left, or the left edge to the right, to decrease the length of the path
The numbers in the Path Duration and Total Animation Duration frame fields change as you adjust the length of the path.
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You can shift a path in time by entering a new start time in the Path Start
Frame field, and a new end time the Path End Frame field. In order to maintain the current length of the path you must change both the start and end times by the same number of frames.
Instead of shifting the animation path by entering new start and end frames, you can simply click the center of the Track Slider, hold down the left mouse button, and drag it to the left or right. The entire path moves along the timeline, while the number of frames in the path remain the same.
The numbers in the Path Duration and Total Animation Duration frame fields remain the same as you shift the path, but the Animation End will change according to the new path position.
Keyframe markers appear as small diamonds on the Track Slider for each path. You can change where a keyframe occurs in the path by clicking on the keyframe marker and dragging to the left or right to change its location. As you drag the marker, the number in the Frame field to the left of the timeline identifies the current frame. Changing where a keyframe occurs in the path does not change the duration of the path, but it does change the number of frames between keyframes.
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All controls for setting the timing of motion paths are located on the Time tab. The controls are the Track
Sliders, Path Start Frame, Path End Frame, Path Duration, Total Animation Duration, and Animation End.
The timeline of an animation consists of Track Sliders for each object in the animation. The length of a Track Slider is measured in frames. By default,
Animation Editor adds one second (30 frames) between inserted keyframes.
Each path in an animation has its own Track Slider and the name of the path is labeled; each path is totally independent of the Track Sliders for other paths in your animation. Use the vertical scroll bar to the right of the Track
Sliders to see all the paths in your animation.
Drag the edge of the Track Slider to the right or left to increase or decrease the length of the path. You can also enter frame values in the Path Start
Frame or the Path End Frame fields. See
"Adjust the Length of a Path" on page 302 for details.
There are two types of options on the Time tab: options that apply to the entire animation, and options that apply to the current path only.
Table 4-36. Time Options
Option Effect
Total Animation Duration • Sets the total number of frames in the animation.
• Indicates how long the entire animation will take
Animation End
Path Start Frame
• Indicates the frame furthest along in time for all paths in the animation.
• Sets the start frame of the path.
Path End Frame
Path Duration
• Sets the end frame of the path.
• Sets the duration for the path in frames.
The Lock Path option locks the path in place in the workspace.
Once a path is locked, you cannot move or edit its attributes or position.
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Push pins leave a path on the screen until the entire animation is complete.
When the push pin is pointing down (pinning the path in place), the path remains on screen until the end of the animation. When it is pointing sideways, the path disappears when it reaches its last frame. All paths are pinned by default.
Figure 4-115. Push Pins
Adding a pause between keyframes forces Animation Editor to stop and hold at a keyframe for a set number of frames before the path continues on to the next keyframe. Select a keyframe, then add the number of frames to pause in the Pause field. The number in the Animation End and Total
Animation Duration frames fields change because the number of paused frames is added to the total length of the path.
Figure 4-116. Keyframe Pause
The Zoom In and Zoom Out buttons can make editing the timeline easier. For example, if you are working with long paths that contain hundreds of frames, there is not enough space to display the entire timeline at once and you will have to use the horizontal scroll bars to see the entire timeline. Instead, click the Zoom Out button.
Animation Editor reduces the amount of space filled by the timeline on the
Time tab. Using these options does not affect the length of a path.
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When you rotate, spin, or offset an object, you are really adjusting the behavior of the keyframe on a particular axis. The controls for all of these properties are located on the Placement tab, as well as on the
FX palette. You can only change one property at a time, but you can apply every property to a single keyframe.
Figure 4-117. Placement Tab
In three-dimensional space, the depth of your text and graphics in the workspace is represented by the Z axis. Every frame in a path is defined by coordinates on the X, Y, and Z axes. In Animation Editor, you can change the Position, Orientation, Spins, and Offset in all three dimensions.
To adjust the Position, Orientation, or Offset, click a keyframe, and hold down the left mouse button while dragging it up, down, left, or right to change the shape. Changing a value on the Z axis can make an object seem to come closer or move farther away from the surface.
To constrain a change to the Z axis only, use one of the following options:
• Hold down the left mouse button along with the
Z
key while dragging the keyframe.
• Hold down both the right and left mouse buttons while dragging the keyframe.
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When adjusting the behavior of the selected keyframe on a particular axis,each control and tool button on the palette contains a right-click menu. The right-click menu lets you reset the field values, and control how the behavior is applied to the keyframes.
• Apply to all keyframes.
• Apply to all Forward adjusts all keyframes after and including the current one to the end of the path.
• Apply to all Previous adjusts all keyframes up to and including the current one in the path.
You can rotate any keyframe around the X, Y, or Z axes individually, or in any combination of the three. Select the
Orientation tool, then drag left, right, up, or down to get a combination of rotation on the X, Y, and Z axes. You can also enter the rotation degree in the X, Y, or Z fields. You can rotate a keyframe up to +/- 359° on each axis. If you want more than one full rotation, use the Spins control.
Spinning a keyframe forces it to tumble end over end around a particular axis. Select the Spins tool, then click the keyframe to spin and drag up to create a clockwise spin, or drag down to create a counter-clockwise spin. You can also enter the number of spins in the X, Y, or Z fields.
Note:
When you set a spin, the spin occurs
the keyframe, on the spline leading into the keyframe, so make sure you have the right keyframe selected. The number of spins you enter will be evenly divided across the number of frames between the keyframe you use to spin and the preceding keyframe.
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Offset moves the focal point from the center of the keyframe to a new location. Select the Offset tool and drag the keyframe up or down to offset the Y axis, drag the keyframe left or right to offset the Y axis, or hold down both mouse keys while dragging to offset the Z axis. You can also enter the offset in the X, Y, or Z fields.
How Offset Affects Rotation
Offset is only a factor when you are working with Orientation or Spins.
Animation Editor rotates an object around a pivot point. By default, this pivot point is at the center of the keyframe. When you change the offset, you are changing the location of a keyframe relative to the pivot point, which is fixed. You are moving the keyframe away from the pivot point so that it orbits around the offset point.
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You can change the shape of a keyframe in three ways: Extend, Skew, and Scale. The controls for all of these properties are located on the Shape tab, as well as on the FX palette. You can only change one property at a time, but you can apply every property to a single keyframe.
Figure 4-118. Shape Tab
While you can fly a 2D object in 3D space, you cannot alter its shape in three dimensions because the true shape of the object exists only in two dimensions: X and Y. That is why there is no Z coordinate field for any of the properties on the Shape tab.
When changing the shape of a keyframe, each control and tool button on the palette contains a right-click menu. The right-click menu lets you reset the field values, and control how the behavior is applied to the keyframes.
• Apply to all keyframes.
• Apply to all Forward adjusts all keyframes after and including the current one to the end of the path.
• Apply to all Previous adjusts all keyframes up to and including the current one in the path.
The Object View right-click menu lets you preview your shape adjustments in Flat View or 3/4 View. The Object View Slider adjusts the level of object zoom.
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Extend stretches the keyframe, adding an equal amount of area to each side so that the center point does not change. A value greater than 0 makes the keyframe wider or taller, and a value less than 0 makes the keyframe smaller. You can extend the keyframe on both axes, one axis at a time.
• Drag left or right to extend the keyframe on the horizontal or X axis.
• Drag up or down to extend the keyframe on the vertical or Y axis.
Skew slants the keyframe on one or both axes. Drag the keyframe up or down to skew the keyframe on the Y axis. Drag left or right to skew the keyframe on the X axis.
The following table shows the result of applying the skew tool in various ways to a particular axis.
Table 4-37. Skew Results
Axis Drag Affects keyframe...
X axis left
X axis right
Y axis
Y axis up down
Top skews left and bottom skews right.
Top skews right and bottom skews left.
Right skews upward and left skews downward.
Right skews downward and left skews upward.
Scale resizes an object relative to its original size. The values in the X and Y axis fields are directly related to the amount by which object dimensions are increased or decreased. For example, a value of 0.5 in the X axis and 1.5 in the Y axis will make the object half the original length and one and a half times the original width.
Select the Lock button to modify the X and Y axis values together, maintaining the aspect ratio as you scale. Clear the Lock button to scale the
X and Y axis individually.
You can only modify the X and Y axis individually by entering a number value; dragging the object maintains the original aspect ratio.
• Drag right or down to increase the keyframe size.
• Drag left or up to decrease the keyframe size.
Filters are special effects that you can apply to a keyframe to change the way an object looks over time. All filters are applied at a specific keyframe, initiating a change from one keyframe to the next. Filters include
Transparency, Crop, Mosaic, Luminance, and Tint. All filters are located on the Filter tab.
Figure 4-119. Filter Tab
When applying filters to a keyframe, each control and tool button on the palette contains a right-click menu. The right-click menu lets you reset the field values, and control how the behavior is applied to the keyframes.
• Apply to all keyframes.
• Apply to all Forward adjusts all keyframes after and including the current one to the end of the path.
• Apply to all Previous adjusts all keyframes up to and including the current one in the path.
Transparency changes the alpha value of an object over time, so you can fade an object in or out between keyframes. The value you set is a percentage of complete transparency; the lower the value, the more opaque; the higher the value, the more transparent. If you have three keyframes and you set the transparency value for the first keyframe to 100, the second keyframe to 50, and the third keyframe to 0, the object appears to gradually fade in over time. Transparency values range from 0% to 100%.
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Crop cuts off or reveals a percentage of an object over time. You can set a different crop value for each side of an object. Crop values on all sides range from 0% to
100%. If you set a crop on more than one side, the values can bump into each another. Select the Lock button to modify all sides at once. Select a combination of individual Lock buttons (one for each side) to crop specific sides at the same time. Clear each Lock button to modify sides independently.
Mosaic creates a resolution reduction effect which transforms objects into large blocks. In turn, the blocks are made somewhat transparent which blurs them slightly.
The Mosaic effect is often used to block out and a person’s face on video to hide their identity.
The Blur effect creates a soft blur, transforming all hard edges into softened edges. The more Blur you apply to edges, the softer the edges become. You can set Blur on an object’s width independent of its height one pixel at a time. Or, you can increase or decrease blur on both the width and height of an object at the same time using the Lock button. Select the Lock button to blur the width and height together. Clear the Lock button to soften object edges independently.
Tint adjusts the color values of an object over time. This effect allows you to gradually change the saturation of your object from black and white to color, or to change the object from one color to another between keyframes.
Minimum and maximum values for Tint, Hue, and
Saturation are +/- 255.
Luminance adjusts both the brightness value and the contrast value of an object over time. You can use
Luminance as a lighting effect where the light seems to move from one letter to another, or one object to another over time.
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3D Effects apply pre-defined motion effects to your animation. The 3D effects are located on the 3D
Effects tab and include the following motions: Squish, Flop, Peels/Curls, Blinds, Twist, Shatter, Ripple,
Torus, and Blackhole. The 3D Effects tab displays thumbnail folders of the available motion effects.
Figure 4-120. 3D Effects Tab
Each 3D effects folder contains individual thumbnails showing a variety of motion options. To view the animated variations for a particular 3D effect, simply select that folder.
Figure 4-121. Animated Thumbnails
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Before you apply 3D effects to your animation, you need to select the options that determine how and where along the path the effect is applied.
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Figure 4-122. 3D Effect Options
Insert Options
Insert options affect where the 3D effect is inserted into the current path.
The options are Start, Over, and End, and the results they produce are dependent upon the entire path rather than on the selected object.
If you select Start, the effect is inserted at the beginning of the path. If you select End, the effect is inserted at the end of the path. If you select Over, the effect is applied over the entire path, without removing any other attributes of the path.
Apply All
Select the Apply All button if you want to apply the 3D effect to every path in your animation. This button is useful when you have many paths in the workspace.
Animate
Select the Animate button to view an animated variations of the 3D effect.
Reverse an Effect
Select the Reverse button to apply the reverse motion of the variations to your path. The animated thumbnails display the effect in reverse order.
Stagger an Effect
With the Stagger option you can set each path in your animation to wait a certain number of frames before playing the 3D effect. For example, if you have seven paths and you set the stagger number to 5, the first path displays the effect at the start frame, the second path displays the effect 5 frames later, the third path displays the effect 5 frames later, and so on.
The Stagger option is unavailable until you enter a number greater than 1 in the count field, because this option only applies to an animation with more than one path in it.
Remove an Effect
Select the Remove Effect button to easily remove the effect from your animation.
Go Back
Select the Go Back button to return to the main 3D Effects folders.
1 Select a path by using one of the following methods.
• Use the Selection tool to select an object in the FX workspace. The entire path is automatically selected.
• Select the path name from the drop-down menu located to the left of the Attributes Palette.
Figure 4-123. Path Selection
2 Switch to the 3D Effects tab.
3 Select an animated 3D effect thumbnail to display the pre-defined animated variations.
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4 Select the Start, Over, or End to determine the position of the effect along the path. You need to set these display options before selecting the 3D variation.
5 Click on an animated variation to apply the 3D effect to the path.
6 Click on the Onscreen Preview button below the Tools palette to preview the effect.
When you apply a 3D effect to your path, additional keyframes that contain the 3D effect information are added to the path. Depending if you apply the
3D effect to the start, end, or over the path determines whether the additional keyframes are added to the start, end, or throughout your path.
When you adjust the duration of the 3D effect, you need to adjust the frames between these additional keyframes.
1 Select your path.
2 Switch to the Time tab.
3 Use the Keyframe field and arrows in the drop-down menu to select the second keyframe containing your 3D effect information.
The position of the keyframes containing the 3D effect information depends on whether you applied the effect to the start, end, or over the animation path.
• Additional keyframes are positioned at the start of the path if you applied the effect to the start of the path.
• Additional keyframes are positioned at the end of the path if you applied the effect to the end of the path.
• Additional keyframes are positioned throughout the path if you applied the effect over the path.
4 Adjust the value in the Frame field. Adjusting the frame value adjusts the frames between the selected keyframe and the preceding keyframe.
• Decrease the number in the Frame field to increase the speed between the selected keyframe and the preceding keyframe.
• Increase the number in the Frame field to decrease the speed between the selected keyframe and the preceding keyframe.
5 Select the next keyframe in the path and adjust the value in the Frame field. Continue to repeat this step until you have adjusted the frames between all of the keyframes containing your 3D effect information.
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Rendering is the final step in creating an animation, but you can render an animation at any point.
Rendering calculates all placement, shape, filter, time, and spline information for every frame in the animation and produces a .via file containing the information. There are several settings that can affect how the animation is rendered, as well as several ways of starting the render.
By default, all paths are included in the render. You can omit paths from the render using the Render Path option. This option is useful when you want to render for testing purposes, but previewing the animation on the computer screen does not provide enough information. You may only want to render the path you are working on. The Render Path checkbox is located on the Time tab. Each path in the animation has its own Render Path checkbox. Click the Render Path checkbox beside the path you want to omit from the render. When the checkbox is cleared, the path is not included in the render; when the checkbox contains an X, the path is included in the render.
Include in render
Exclude from render
Figure 4-124. Render Path Option
Note:
Keyframes located outside the FX workspace are not included in the render. This reduces render time and the amount of RAM consumed, but still produces the desired effect.
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There are three render options available in Animation Editor.
• Select Go > Render Animation to render the animation.
• Select Go > Take Last Rendered to take the last rendered animation even if changes have been made in the FX workspace since the last render.
• Press ENTER on number pad to render and take the animation. If no changes have been made since the last render, it only takes the animation without re-rendering it.
The render engine renders the animation frame by frame. As each frame is rendered, Animation Editor moves through the timeline and displays a rendered bitmap of each frame in Animation Editor. Render time depends upon the complexity, length, and number of paths in the animation.
You can render from within Animation Editor, or you can wait until you go online to render. When you click the Online toggle button in Sequencer, the Render Engine launches and renders all previously unrendered animations. If your animations are particularly long or complex, this can cause a significant delay. To avoid this delay when going online, render your animations while in Animation Editor.
After you have set the desired placement, shape, filter, spline, and time properties to the motion paths, you are ready to render your animation.
1 Select Go > Render Animation.
2 Press ENTER on the number keypad to take the animation to the program channel.
3 Switch to Sequencer, and select the animation in the Event List.
4 Click the Online toggle button to set G-Scribe to online mode.
5 Open the Run tab in the Attributes Palette.
6 Click the Run Job button to initiate the series of takes.
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Export and Import options for Animation Editor include importing and exporting templates for the template registry, importing FX Scripts for use in other Inscriber products, such as RTX, exporting the current frame as a still, exporting a series of still frames, exporting FX scripts, and exporting the entire animation. The export and import options are located on the File > Import/Export menu.
Import and Export template buttons are located with the template management buttons on the Templates tab. Templates are saved in .ifx format at the time they are exported. Once imported into the template registry, you can update, rename, and delete templates. See
Template Registry" on page 295 for details.
Animations are saved in .via format at the time of render. You cannot add a rendered file to an existing animation in Animation Editor, but you can open the rendered file in a new slot in the playlist. Switch to CG, click an empty slot in the playlist and select File > Import > Import Animation. You cannot edit a rendered animation file. To make changes, you need to locate the source .scribelist file where the animation was created. You can make changes in Animation Editor, then re-render the .via. Switch to Sequencer to set time code and trigger information.
When you render an animation, a .via file is created. The Export Animation option located under the File menu in Animation Editor produces the same results as rendering, except that you can select a specific location for the animation file using the export option. Select a location and name for the file, then click OK. The Render Engine launches and the animation is rendered frame by frame.
Figure 4-125. Export Animation
When you export an FX Script, the file is saved in .ifx format. You can then edit the script in any text editor, import the file into CG, or use it in
Animation Editor.
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You can export each frame in an animation as a single bitmap format file.
The Export All Frames option saves the animation as a series of still images in the selected file format. Formats include .hkf, bmp .vii, .lgo, .tga, and
.pict. Each frame is saved in the specified folder in sequential order. The series of images are named sequentially (as in the graphic to the right) and together comprise the animation. You can then use Via Builder or a third party application to rebuild the animation in a format readable for playback.
Figure 4-126. Exported Frame Folder
If you like the way an animation looks at a particular frame, you can save that single frame for use as a background or texture. The Export Current
Frame option saves the frame in the selected an image format. Use the Time
Slider on the Preview toolbar to move to the target frame in time, then select File > Import/Export > Export Current Frame.
The Save As dialog opens and you can select the location, file type, and bit depth for the image. Formats include .hkf, .bmp, .rle, .vii, .lgo, .tga, and
.pict.
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The 3D FlyBy tool allows you to import animations from an external 3D animation program, like Maya
or
3ds Max
. Once you import the animation, you can use the imported file as an animation event in your playlist. 3D FlyBy allows you to apply text and graphics to your imported animation surfaces that travel with those surfaces as the animation plays in real-time. After you assign text and graphic objects to your 3D animation surfaces, you can easily update the objects in 3D FlyBy.
You cannot switch to 3D FlyBy the same way you switch to other G-Scribe modules.
• To access 3D FlyBy you need to import your animation using the import option in the CG tool (File > Import > Import 3D Animation).
Note:
Make sure you work through pages 322 - 340 before you import
your first 3D animation.
• After you import the animation and you are working in 3D FlyBy, the CG and Animation Editor tools are unavailable on the toolbar because you cannot edit your 3D animation in these tools.
To access CG or the Animation Editor from 3D FlyBy, select an empty slot in the playlist. When you select an empty slot the CG tool opens with the default layout.
3D FlyBy works with external animation programs and plugins to create your 3D animation events in G-Scribe. When you create your 3D animation you must include specific animation properties for the files to import into 3D FlyBy.
Once you set up your animation with the necessary properties, you can render the animation and export the COLLADA file, and then import the files in 3D
FlyBy.
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See the following illustration for your animation tool workflow.
1 2 3
TGA sequence
3D Animation
Program
Graphics
Program
(texture file)
COLLADA (.dae file)
4
3D FlyBy
(.via file)
Figure 5-1. Animation Tool Workflow
1
2
3
4
3D Animation Program: Create Animation
Create your 3D animation in a 3D animation program, like Maya or 3ds
Max.
Graphics Program: Create Texture File
Create a texture graphic for your surface in Adobe
Photoshop
or another graphics program. Map your textures to the surfaces in your 3D animation program.
3D Animation Program: Render and Export Files
In your 3D Animation program, render your animation as a .tga sequence.
Use the COLLADA plugin, a free open source tool, to create a .dae file from your 3D animation program. 3D FlyBy uses the .dae file when you import your animation into G-Scribe.
To download the COLLADA plugin, visit www.feelingsoftware.com
.
For information about COLLADA, visit www.khronos.org/collada/ .
3D FlyBy: Add Text and Graphics
Import the COLLADA file and the animation source frames into 3D FlyBy.
Once you import the animation files, G-Scribe renders your animation and creates a .via animation file that you use in the 3D FlyBy tool.
After you import the animation into G-Scribe you can add text and graphics to the animation surfaces in the 3D FlyBy tool.
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When you create an animation in your 3D animation program (like Maya or 3ds Max), you can create surfaces for the animation that you edit in G-Scribe. To ensure 3D FlyBy reads your animation properly, you need to set up your animation with the specific properties described in this section.
Note:
If you do not follow these instructions, 3D FlyBy will not read or play your animation.
When you create a 3D animation in your animation program, there are number of steps you must follow. These steps provide a sample workflow for creating a scene of a cube that use the top and bottom faces as surfaces in 3D FlyBy.
1 Create the scene of the cube on the first layer of your 3D animation program.
2 Add two surfaces to the second layer.
3 Place the two surfaces on the top and bottom faces of the cube, throughout the entire animation. You should place the surfaces exactly.
4 Preview the surfaces in the modeler to ensure they are placed properly throughout the animation.
5 To prepare the animation for 3D FlyBy, hide the surface objects on the second layer.
6 Render the animation on the first layer. 3D FlyBy uses the rendered animation to create a .via file.
7 Export the scene using the COLLADA plugin. 3D FlyBy uses the .dae file to read the surface information.
Before you start creating your animation, note the following points.
• Camera Viewing Volume: With some external animation programs, the camera view volume is automatically defined and gets manually clipped when exported to COLLADA.
As a result, some animation objects may work fine in the original program, but have surfaces cut out in 3D FlyBy.
• End Keyframe: Adding a keyframe at the end of the animation helps 3D
FlyBy verify that the length of the COLLADA animation and the .via animation match. The end keyframe also ensures that looping works properly in 3D FlyBy.
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When you create your animation in a 3D animation program, you need to include three main components:
• A layer with the rendered animation.
• A layer with Inscriber surfaces.
• Texture files mapped to the Inscriber surfaces.
The following information describes these components in detail.
The first layer of your 3D animation must contain your rendered images. These images may be a progressive series of frames or interlaced fields. If the images are interlaced field, you can set either the even or the odd frame first.
3D FlyBy uses this layer to create the .via file that displays as the background of your 3D animation event in G-Scribe.
First Layer Restrictions
The following table lists the restrictions for the first layer.
Table 5-1: Restrictions for the First Layer
Restriction Details
Naming conventions
Overlapping panels
When rendering the animation you must use one of the following naming conventions:
• <name> <dot> <###> <dot> <extension>
• <name> <dot> <extension> <dot> <###>
• <name> <underscore> <###> <dot> <extension>
• <name> <number> <dot> <extension>
3D FlyBy does not support overlapping panels. If your animation includes overlapping panels, they might not display properly.
The second layer of your 3D animation must contain the surfaces that you want to edit in G-Scribe and the camera for the 3D animation.
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Add Surfaces to Inscriber Layer
You can place surfaces on the Inscriber layer through an extra set of objects/ surfaces. Depending on the desired effect, place these extra objects in the exact location as the original or in another location.
To confirm an object is on the Inscriber layer in Maya, complete the following steps.
1 Select the object in Maya.
2 Open the Attribute Editor.
3 Select the Transform node. In the Notes section ensure the word Inscriber displays.
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Figure 5-2. Inscriber Displayed in Maya
To confirm an object is on the Inscriber layer in 3ds Max, complete the following steps.
1 Select the object in 3ds Max.
2 Select Edit > Object Properties.
3 In the Object Properties dialog, switch to the User Defined tab and ensure
Inscriber is listed in the User Defined Properties window.
Figure 5-3. Inscriber Displayed in 3ds Max
Add Camera to Inscriber Layer
You must place the camera on the Inscriber layer. If you do not place the camera on the Inscriber layer, a default perspective camera is created with an FOV of 45 degrees and an aspect ratio of 1, positioned at the origin.
When you add a camera to the Inscribe layer, make sure Inscriber is listed for the camera object on the User Defined tab of the Object Properties dialog (Edit
> Object Properties).
Inscriber Layer Restrictions
The following tables lists the restrictions for the Inscriber layer.
Table 5-2: Restrictions for the Inscriber Layer
Restriction Details
One camera The Inscriber layer can only contain a single camera.
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Table 5-2: Restrictions for the Inscriber Layer
Restriction Details
Camera type The Inscriber layer cannot contain a targeted camera.
• In Maya the camera cannot have aim or light vectors.
• In 3ds Max the camera must be a Free Camera.
• Inscriber must be listed in Object Properties dialog for the camera object.
Lights are not currently supported in 3D FlyBy.
No lights
Flat rectangles 3D FlyBy only supports flat rectangles with four vertices.
• In Maya your Inscriber surfaces must be a polygonal plane with the Input Node value set to 1. You can set the value in the Attribute Editor on the Input Node.
• In 3ds Max your Inscriber surfaces must be a Plane with length and width segments equal to 1.
You must accurately texture the surfaces on the Inscriber layer. 3D FlyBy uses the original textures for each surface to determine the size and aspect ratio of the surface in 3D FlyBy.
The texture coordinates for each surface are defined in the animation modeler.
If a texture is not properly mapped to a surface in the modeler, it will not display properly in 3D FlyBy.
When the original texture is unavailable, 3D FlyBy uses a default size of 512 pixels by 512 pixels.
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Texture Restrictions
The following table lists the restrictions for the textures.
Table 5-3: Restrictions for Textures
Restriction Details
Texture coordinates
Texture file
You are responsible for ensuring all the texture coordinates and normals (normal vectors) are correct before you export the scene to COLLADA.
3D FlyBy cannot verify the coordinates match the surface.
Texture files must be in a still file format. Motion media, such as .wmv or .avi files are not supported.
After you render your background animation, G-Scribe imports the rendered image sequence and creates a .via file. 3D FlyBy uses the .via file as the background animation for your 3D FlyBy event. If you need to edit the .via file, you must edit the original animation in your 3D animation program.
Before you render the background animation on the first layer, hide the objects on the Inscriber layer.
Name Your Rendered Animation
When rendering the animation you must use one of the following naming conventions:
• <name> <dot> <###> <dot> <extension>
• <name> <dot> <extension> <dot> <###>
• <name> <underscore> <###> <dot> <extension>
<name> <number> <dot> <extension>
Prepare Maya Animation for Render
To hide the objects on the Inscriber layer in Maya, complete the following steps.
1 On the hypergraph in Maya, right-click on the object.
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2 From the right-click menu, select the Hide option.
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Figure 5-4. Hide Surface in Maya
Note:
You will need to unhide the surfaces after you render the animation — and before you export using the COLLADA plugin.
Prepare 3ds Max Animation for Render
To hide the objects on the Inscriber layer in 3ds Max, complete the following steps.
1 Click the Hide by Name button in the display options.
2 In the Hide Objects dialog, select the objects on the Inscriber layer.
3 Click the Hide button.
Figure 5-5. Hide Surface in 3ds Max
Note:
You will need to unhide the surfaces after you render the animation
—and before you export using the COLLADA plugin.
4 Use the Time Configuration dialog to set the FPS (frames per second) for the rendered animation. Note that the 3D FlyBy Import 3D Animation dialog allows you to select the FPS you enter here.
• For NTSC use 60 FPS, full frames.
• For PAL use 50 FPS, full frames.
• For 1080i and 720p use 60 FPS (North America) or 50 FPS (Europe), full frames.
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Note:
If you render full frame the two frames are blended into one interlaced frame during the 3D FlyBy import process. Rendering full frame allows you to add further effects to the animation in compositing tools, like Adobe
After Effects
.
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Figure 5-6. 3ds Max Time Configuration Dialog
5 In the Render Scene dialog (Rendering > Render menu), make sure the following options are set properly.
• Range fields: Set the frame range for the rendered animation by entering the first and last frame of the animation. If you are rendering a segment of the animation you can enter a different frame range.
• Output Size drop-down list: Select NTSC, PAL, or HDTV to set the proper size and aspect ratio for your output.
Set proper frame range.
Set proper output size.
Figure 5-7. 3ds Max Render Scene Dialog
6 Click the Render button to render the animation.
After you export the animation scene as a COLLADA file, G-Scribe imports the
.dae file and uses the information to define your 3D FlyBy surfaces.
Maya | ColladaMaya Export Options
Before you export the COLLADA file, you must unhide the surfaces you hid for the animation render.
The following export options are specific to ColladaMaya 3.02 from Feeling
Software.
You must select the following Export options in the Export All Options dialog.
General Export Options
• Triangulate
Filter Export
• Polygon meshes
• Cameras
• Animations
XRef Options
• Export References
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Note:
The other export settings are optional, including the default options:
Export Constraints, Lights, Joints and skin, Normals, Per-Vertex Colors.
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Figure 5-8. ColladaMaya Export Options
Sampling on Export
When you import the .dae file into 3D FlyBy, you may notice sync issues with the animation. To help avoid sync issues you can select the Sampling option in the ColladaMaya Export All Options dialog. Note that sampling creates a larger
.dae file.
If you sample the animation on export, make sure to enter the correct frame range. For example, if the animation is 400 frames you should enter a frame range of 0-399, not 0-400. This ensures the animation length is the same as the .via file created in 3D FlyBy.
3ds Max | ColladaMax Export Options
Before you export the COLLADA file, you must unhide the surfaces you hid for the animation render.
The following COLLADA plugin export options are specific to ColladaMax 3.02 from Feeling Software.
You must select the following Export options in the COLLADA Exporter dialog.
Animation
• Enable Export
Standard Options
• Relative Paths
Geometry
• Normals
• Triangulate
• XRefs
Note:
The other export settings are optional.
Figure 5-9. ColladaMax Export Options
Sampling on Export
When you import the .dae file into 3D FlyBy, you may notice sync issues with the animation. To help avoid sync issues you can select the Sampling option in the COLLADA Exporter dialog. Note that sampling creates a larger .dae file.
If you sample the animation on export, make sure to enter the correct frame range. For example, if the animation is 400 frames you should enter a frame range of 0-399, not 0-400. This ensures the animation length is the same as the
.via file created in 3D FlyBy.
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The first time you open your 3D animation in G-Scribe, you need to select your
COLLADA (.dae) file and your animation source frames.
1 In the CG tool, select an empty slot in the playlist.
2 Select File > Import > Import 3D Animation.
3 Click Yes in the message to overwrite the current event.
4 In the Import 3D Animation dialog, click the Browse button beside the
Collada File field, and open the .dae file for your 3D animation.
5 Select the Source Frames option and click the Browse button.
6 In the Open dialog, navigate to and select the first rendered frame of your animation sequence.
7 Click Open. The VIA Location dialog opens.
8 In the dialog, click Browse and select a location for the .via file. 3D FlyBy creates a .via file from your source frames and uses the .via file in your layout.
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Figure 5-10. Enter Location for VIA FIle
9 Click OK to close the dialog.
10 Select the field ordering for the animation from the Images drop-down list:
Progressive Frames, Interlace Fields (Odd First), or Interlace Fields (Even
First).
If you are not sure of the field ordering and you notice that your output is degraded, select a different option to improve the output quality.
11 Use the Pre-multiplied Alpha checkbox to determine the format of the imported images. The format is used during the import process to create information for the .via file.
• Select the Pre-multiplied Alpha checkbox if alpha values are pre-applied to the color channels in the .tga frame files.
• Clear the Pre-multiplied Alpha checkbox if the .tga frame files have a separate alpha channel in addition to the normal color channels.
12 From the Preview drop-down list, set the preview to display only the .via information, only the COLLADA information, or both.
13 From the VIA Create FPS drop-down list, select the frame rate (frames per second) that the images were rendered at to create the .via file.
Figure 5-11. Import 3D Animation Dialog
14 Use the preview options to view your animation.
15 To set the picon that displays as your event image in the playlist, scrub to the frame and then click the Set button beside the Picon.
16 To set the default start frame for your animation, scrub to the frame and then click the Set button beside the Default Frame display.
17 Click OK to import your animation.
After you import your animation source frames the first time, 3D FlyBy creates a
.via file that you can use for subsequent imports.
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When you import your animation into 3D FlyBy, a Warnings dialog displays if
3D FlyBy cannot locate your texture files, or if the imported surfaces are not rectangular shapes.
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Figure 5-12. Warnings Dialog Displays Texture Warning
Fix Missing Textures Warning
If your animation is missing the texture files, 3D FlyBy cannot properly define the surface dimensions. When you add text or graphic objects to surfaces in the
3D Surface Editor, the objects are resized on output to fit the actual surface size. Resizing the objects results in the text and graphics appearing distorted.
To fix the missing textures:
1 Click Continue in the Warnings dialog. G-Scribe continues to import the animation into 3D FlyBy.
2 In 3D FlyBy, click the 3D Surface Editor button on the Surfaces tab. The
3D Surface Editor opens.
3 Select the surface with the warning symbol in the Editable Objects list.
4 In the Warning section at the bottom of the editor, use one of the following methods to define your surface size.
• To select the missing texture file for the current surface, click the Open button and select the missing files.
• To define the dimensions of the missing texture file, enter the width and height in the Surface Size area.
• To ignore the warning, you can click the Dismiss Warning button. The options for defining the texture dimensions are removed from the editor. Once you dismiss the warning, you cannot access the options again.
Figure 5-13. Texture Options in 3D Surface Editor
Fix Non-Rectangular Shape Warning
If your animation uses non-rectangular shapes as surface objects, the surface names display in the Warnings dialog.
To fix the missing textures:
1 Return to your 3D animation program.
2 Check your that your surface objects on the Inscriber use rectangular shapes.
• Check to see if you created a non-rectangular surface on the Inscriber layer for use in 3D FlyBy. To fix this problem, recreate the object in the
3D animation program.
• Check to see if an object was incorrectly labeled for the Inscriber layer.
To fix this problem, confirm that the Inscriber layer objects are labeled properly in the 3D animation program.
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G-Scribe creates a .via animation from your rendered animation sequence. G-Scribe uses the .via file as the background animation in 3D FlyBy. The information for your animation surfaces is provided by the
COLLADA file. You can use the features in 3D FlyBy to add text and graphics to the animation surfaces, to preview the animation, and to set the animation loop options
Before you start working in 3D FlyBy, note the following points.
Switch to CG or Animation Editor
When you work in 3D FlyBy, the CG and Animation Editor tools are unavailable on the toolbar since you cannot edit your 3D animation in these tools.
To access CG or the Animation Editor, select an empty slot in the playlist.
When you select an empty slot the CG tool opens with the default layout.
3D FlyBy Saves Automatically
As you update your animation in 3D FlyBy and in the 3D Surface Editor, your work is saved automatically.
Note:
When you edit text and graphic objects in the 3D Surface Editor, any updates are saved immediately. Closing the editor does not cancel your changes.
You Cannot Edit the .via File
The .via file 3D FlyBy uses as your animation background is not an editable file.
If you need to edit the background animation, you must edit the original animation in your 3D animation program.
Once you import your animation into the 3D FlyBy tool, your 3D animation objects display in the workspace. The options below the workspace allow you to preview and edit your animation.
• Preview Options: Allow you to preview your animation in the workspace.
For details, see
”Preview Your Animation” on page 341 .
• Surfaces Tab: Sets display options for the surface preview in the workspace. Use the 3D Surface Editor button to apply text and graphic objects to your surfaces.
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For details, see
”Set Display Options for Surfaces in the Workspace” on page 345 .
• Markers Tab: Adds markers on the timeline and in the Markers drop-down list. When you select a marker from the drop-down list, the frame displays in the workspace.
For details, see
”Add Markers to Your Timeline” on page 343 .
• Animation Tab: Sets the animation playback options.
For details, see
”Set Your Animation Playback Options” on page 386 .
Preview options
3D FlyBy tabs
Figure 5-14. 3D FlyBy Workspace Options
The options below the 3D FlyBy workspace allow you to preview the animation using the playhead, preview buttons, Frames field, and Marker drop-down list.
Playhead Timeline
Preview buttons
Markers
Frames field
Marker list
Figure 5-15. 3D FlyBy Preview Options
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See the following information for details on the different preview options.
Playhead
Use the playhead to preview the animation with the timeline.
• Scrub the playhead along the timeline to quickly scan the animation. The animation plays in the workspace.
• Drag the playhead to a specific frame in the timeline. The animation frame displays in the workspace and the frame number displays in the Frames field.
Preview Buttons
Use the preview buttons to control your animation preview.
Table 5-4. 3D FlyBy Preview Buttons
Preview Button Action
First Frame
Play Reverse
Jumps to the first frame in the animation.
Previous Frame
Moves the animation back one frame.
Plays the animation in reverse from the current frame.
Stop
Stops the preview from playing.
Loop
Loops the animation preview.
Play
Plays the animation forward from the current frame.
Next Frame
Moves the animation forward one frame.
Last Frame
Jumps to the last frame in the animation.
Frames Field
Use the Frames field to preview a specific frame of your animation.
• Enter the frame number in the field and press ENTER. The animation frame displays in the workspace.
• Use the up and down arrow buttons beside the field to move the animation forward or backward by a single frame.
The Frames field also updates to display the current animation frame when you use the other preview options.
Markers List
Use the Markers list to jump to the animation frame defined by a timeline marker.
Select the marker from the list. The playhead jumps to the selected marker and the animation frame displays in the workspace.
Note:
The Markers list is unavailable until you define your timeline markers on the Markers tab.
The Markers tab allows you to set markers on your timeline so you can quickly preview the frame in your workspace.
1 On the Markers tab, enter the name for your marker in the Name field.
2 In the Frame field, set the frame you want to mark on the timeline.
3 Click the Color box and select a color for the timeline marker.
4 To create the marker, click the Set button. The marker displays on the timeline, in the Markers list, and in the list on the Markers tab.
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5 To update any marker attributes, select the marker from the list on the
Markers tab, make the update, and click the Set button.
Figure 5-16. Markers Tab
You can export individual 3D FlyBy layouts as .flyby files. After you export a
.flyby file, you can import the file using the import options in CG or in 3D
FlyBy.
Export .flyby Files
To export a 3D FlyBy layout:
1 Select File > Export > Export 3D FlyBy Event.
2 In the Save As dialog, navigate to the location for the saved layout.
3 Enter a name for the layout and then click Save.
Import .flyby Files
To import a 3D FlyBy layout:
1 Select the playlist slot for the .flyby layout.
• If there is a current layout in the slot, the imported event overwrites the layout.
• If the slot is empty, the CG layout opens.
2 Select File > Import > Import 3D FlyBy Event.
3 In the Open dialog, navigate to and select the .flyby layout.
4 Click Open.
Note:
A Warning displays if 3D FlyBy cannot find files in the .flyby event.
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The Surfaces tab includes options for displaying your surfaces in the 3D FlyBy workspace. Use the options to hide or show individual surfaces, display a wireframe preview of the surface, and view the surface label.
When you set the options on the Surfaces tab, the surface preview updates in the 3D FlyBy workspace.
Figure 5-17. Surface Display in Workspace
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Switch to the Surfaces tab to view the options.
Hides and shows surfaces in workspace.
Color and Transparency options for wireframes.
Displays wireframe on surface in workspace.
Displays surface labels in workspace.
Figure 5-18. Surfaces Tab Options
• To hide your animation surface in the workspace, click the icon beside the surface name. Click the icon again to view the surface.
• To display wireframes around your surfaces in the workspace, select the
Show Wireframe checkbox.
• To set the color and transparency for the wireframes, use the color box and the Transparency options.
• To view the labels of the individual surfaces in your workspace, select the
Show Labels checkbox.
The 3D Surface Editor allows you to apply text and graphic objects to your animation surfaces. The text and graphic objects travel with the surfaces as the animation plays in real-time. Once you apply objects to your surfaces, use the 3D Surface Editor to quickly update your text or graphics for playback.
The 3D Surface Editor includes the options for adding text to your animation surfaces.
1 To open the 3D Surface Editor, switch to the Surfaces tab.
2 Click the 3D Surface Editor button.
Use the options in the 3D Surface Editor to add text to an animation surface.
1 In the 3D Surface Editor, select the surface for your text from the Editable
Objects list. The 3D Surface Editor workspace updates to the size of the selected surface.
Select surface.
Text Cursor button
Figure 5-19. 3D Surface Editor Options
2 Select the Text Cursor button.
3 Click the workspace and enter your text. Press the ENTER key to add text on the next line. The new line remains part of the text object.
4 To add another text object to your surface, click a new location in the workspace and enter your text.
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Use the Text Path tool to create different path shapes that your text follows.
1 In the 3D Surface Editor, select the Text Path button.
2 Click the editor workspace to add your first path point.
3 Continue clicking in the editor workspace to add the rest of your path points. A straight line connects the anchor points.
Press the SHIFT key when adding anchor points to create a curved line between the points.
4 Enter your text. As you type the text, the text follows the path.
Text Path button
Control point
Anchor point
Figure 5-20. 3D Surface Editor: Text Path
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Edit Your Path Shape
The following table describes different ways to edit your path shape.
Table 5-5. Edit Text Path
Action Description
Move the anchor points.
Delete an anchor point.
To move the anchor points:
1 Select the Text Path button.
2 Click the anchor point on the path. The anchor is highlighted as a solid white point.
3 Drag the anchor to a new location. As you drag the anchor, the path shape changes.
4 Drag the anchor’s control points to smooth the path shape.
To delete an anchor point:
1 Select the Text Path button.
2 Double-click the anchor point you want to delete.
Extend the start of the path.
To extend the start of the path:
1 Select the Text Path tool.
2 Press the ALT key and click the first anchor point.
3 Holding the ALT key, click the workspace before the first anchor.
Extend the end of the path.
To extend the end of the path:
1 Select the Text Path tool.
2 Press the ALT key and click the last anchor point.
3 Holding the ALT key, click the workspace after the last anchor.
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Table 5-5. Edit Text Path
Action Description
Change the shape of the path.
To edit the path shape:
1 Click the Select button (pointer tool).
2 Click the path. The selection box displays.
3 Position the cursor over a point on the selection box.
4 Drag the point to a new position in the workspace.
The 3D Surface Editor uses the styles from the Styles Library to change the font and formatting attributes of your text and graphics. For details on using styles,
see ”Create Styles for Text and Graphics” on page 365 .
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The 3D Surface Editor allows you to apply text and graphic objects to your animation surfaces. The text and graphic objects travel with the surfaces as the animation plays in real-time. Use the graphic tools in the 3D
Surface Editor to apply the object to your surfaces.
The 3D Surface Editor includes the options for adding graphic objects to your animation surfaces.
1 To open the 3D Surface Editor, switch to the Surfaces tab.
2 Click the 3D Surface Editor button.
To add graphic objects to an animation surface, use the options in the 3D
Surface Editor.
1 In the 3D Surface Editor, select the surface for your graphic object from the
Editable Objects list. The 3D Surface Editor workspace updates to the size of the selected surface.
2 Select the graphic button and draw the graphic shape in the 3D FlyBy workspace.
Select surface.
Graphic object buttons
Figure 5-21. 3D Surface Editor: Graphic Options
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The standard graphic tools draw the selected shape when you drag a box in your workspace. The Polygon and Spline tools create the shape by connecting your anchor points.
Draw a Standard Shape
Select any of the standard graphic object buttons to draw a standard shape in the 3D Surface Editor.
1 In the 3D Surface Editor, select a standard shape tool (for example,
Rectangle, Wedge, or Arc).
2 Drag a box in the 3D Surface Editor workspace. The selected shape fills the box.
Draw a Polygon
Select the Polygon button to create a polygon in the 3D Surface Editor.
1 In the 3D Surface Editor, select the Polygon tool.
2 Click the editor workspace to add your first anchor point.
3 Continue clicking in the Editor workspace to add the rest of your points.
Straight lines connect the anchor points.
Press the SHIFT key when adding anchor points to create a curved line between the points.
Draw a Spline Shape
Select the Spline button to create lines and spline shapes in the 3D Surface
Editor.
1 In the 3D Surface Editor, select the Spline tool.
2 Click the editor workspace to add your first anchor point.
3 Continue clicking in the Editor workspace to add the rest of your points.
Straight lines connect the anchor points.
Press the SHIFT key when adding anchor points to create a curved line between the points.
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The following table describes different ways to edit your polygons and spline shapes.
Table 5-6. Edit the Shape of Polygons and Splines
Action Description
Move the anchor points.
To move the anchor points:
1 Select the Polygon or Spline button.
2 Click the anchor point on the path. The anchor is highlighted as a solid white point.
3 Drag the anchor to a new location. As you drag the anchor, the shape changes.
4 Drag the anchor’s control points to smooth the curve between points.
Delete an anchor point.
Add a point to the start of the shape.
To delete an anchor point:
1 Select the Polygon or Spline button.
2 Double-click the anchor point you want to delete.
To add a point to the start of the shape:
1 Select the Polygon or Spline button.
2 Press the ALT key and click the first anchor point.
3 Holding the ALT key, click the workspace before the first anchor.
Add a point to the end of the shape.
To add a point to the end of the shape:
1 Select the Polygon or Spline button.
2 Press the ALT key and click the last anchor point.
3 Holding the ALT key, click the workspace after the last anchor.
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Table 5-6. Edit the Shape of Polygons and Splines
Action Description
Change the object shape.
To edit the object shape:
1 Click the Select button (pointer tool).
2 Click the shape. The selection box displays.
3 Position the cursor over a point on the selection box.
4 Drag the point to a new position in the workspace.
The 3D Surface Editor uses the styles from the Styles Library to change the font and formatting attributes of your text and graphics. For details on using styles,
see ”Create Styles for Text and Graphics” on page 365 .
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The 3D Surface Editor includes an Media Library where you can open image files and add them to your surfaces. Use the Media Library to add logos or graphic files to the selected surface.
Use the Media Library in the 3D Surface Editor to open media files for your surfaces.
1 In the 3D Surface Editor, select the Media tab to view the Media Library.
2 Click the Menu button and select the Add Media to Library option.
3 In the Open dialog, select your media file and click Open. The image displays in the Media Library.
Figure 5-22. 3D Surface Editor: Media Library
Use the options in the 3D Surface Editor to add media files to an animation surface.
1 In the 3D Surface Editor, select the surface for your media file from the
Editable Objects list. The 3D Surface Editor workspace updates to the size of the selected surface.
2 Add an image from the Media Library to your surface using one of the following methods.
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• Drag the image from the Media Library to the workspace. The image displays with the dimensions of the original file.
Figure 5-23. Drag Image into Workspace
• Create a shape in the workspace using a graphic object button and then select the image in the Media Library. The image displays as the shape of the graphic object.
Figure 5-24. Apply Image to Graphic Shape
• Use the Logo tool to draw an area in the workspace and then select the image in the Media Library. The image fills the logo shape.
Figure 5-25. Apply Image with Logo Tool
You can use the Media Library to apply an image background to your surface.
1 In the 3D Surface Editor, select the surface for your image background from the Editable Objects list. The 3D Surface Editor workspace updates to the size of the selected surface.
2 Select the background image in the Media Library.
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3 Click the Menu button and select Apply Background. The image fills the surface.
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Figure 5-26. Apply Background Option
4 Control the background display using the right-click menu.
• Select Turn Off Background to remove the background from the surface.
• Select Turn On Background to reapply the background to the surface.
Figure 5-27. Background Right-Click Menu
The 3D Surface Editor includes options for editing your text, graphic objects, and images. Use the tools to resize, move, position, copy, and rotate your objects.
You can change the size of your object in the 3D Surface Editor using the Select tool.
1 Click the Select button (pointer tool).
2 Click the object in the workspace. A selection box displays around the text or graphic object.
3 Use the selection points around the box to resize your text or graphic.
• Drag the right or left point to resize the width.
• Drag the top or bottom point to resize the height.
• Drag a corner point to resize the width and height at the same time.
Adjust the height.
Adjust the width.
Adjust the width and height.
Figure 5-28. 3D Surface Editor: Resize Object
Resize Keys
The SHIFT and ALT keys allow you to resize your text and graphics in a specific way.
• Press the SHIFT key to constrain the text width-to-height proportion when you drag a selection point.
• Press the ALT key to resize the text from the object center point, rather than the top left point.
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You can move text and graphic objects in the in the 3D Surface Editor using the
Select tool.
1 Click the Select button.
2 Click the object in the workspace. A selection box displays around the text or graphic.
3 Click the center of the box and drag the object to a new location.
When you add text or graphic objects to the 3D Surface Editor, the objects display in the same order you add them to the workspace.
You can change the stacking order using Move buttons in the editor.
Moves object forward one level.
Moves object back one level.
Moves object to the front.
Moves object behind all other objects.
Figure 5-29. 3D Surface Editor: Move Buttons
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If you are positioning multiple objects in the 3D Surface Editor workspace, use the vertical and horizontal guides to place your objects. The following table describes the guide options.
Figure 5-30. 3D Surface Editor: Workspace Guides
Table 5-7. 3D Surface Editor Guide Options
Action Description
Add a vertical guide.
Add a horizontal guide.
Add multiple guides.
To add a vertical guide:
1 Select the Vertical button.
2 Click the workspace to place the vertical guide.
To add a horizontal guide:
1 Select the Horizontal button.
2 Click the workspace to place the horizontal guide.
To add multiple guides:
1 Select the Vertical or Horizontal button.
2 Click workspace again to place an additional guide.
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Table 5-7. 3D Surface Editor Guide Options
Action Description
Move the guides.
Delete a guide.
To move guides in the workspace:
1 Click the Select button.
2 Drag the guide to a new position.
To remove a guide from the workspace:
1 Click the Select button.
2 Drag the guide outside the workspace.
The toolbar includes the following standard edit options.
• Cut: Removes the selected object. You can paste the object on the current surface or another surface.
• Copy: Creates a copy of the selected object. You can paste the object on the current surface or another surface.
• Paste: Places the cut or copied object on the current surface.
• Undo: Cancels the previous action.
• Redo: Recreates the canceled action.
You can use the Select tool to duplicate your objects in the 3D Surface Editor workspace.
1 Click the Select button.
2 Press and hold the ALT key.
3 Click your object. A copy of the object displays over the original.
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4 Drag the duplicated object to a new location in the workspace.
Figure 5-31. 3D Surface Editor: Duplicated Object
You can rotate your objects in the 3D Surface Editor using the Select tool.
1 Click the Select button.
2 Select your object. The selection box displays.
3 Move your mouse cursor just beyond a selection point so the cursor disappears.
4 Once the cursor disappears, drag the selection point up or down to rotate the object.
To rotate the object by 45 degree angles, hold the SHIFT key as you rotate the object.
Figure 5-32. 3D Surface Editor: Rotated Text
After you add the text and graphics to your surface, you can save the surface information as a .scribe file. The surface text and graphics are saved, as well as the surface dimensions.
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After you save a surface as a .scribe file, you can import the file in the 3D
Surface Editor.
Save Surface Contents
To save the contents of the surface in the 3D Surface Editor:
1 Click the Export button. The Export Surface dialog opens.
2 Navigate to the folder for the saved surface.
3 Enter a name for the surface in the File name field.
4 Click Save. The surface saves with the .scribe file extension.
Open Saved Surface File
To open a saved surface file:
1 In the 3D Surface Editor, select the surface for the saved file from the
Editable Objects list.
2 Click the Import button. An Import Surface message displays warning the surface contents and dimensions will be overwritten by the imported file.
3 Click Yes to continue.
4 In the Import Surface dialog, navigate to surface .scribe file.
5 Select the file and click Open.
The .scribe file opens in the current surface.
The 3D Surface Editor uses the styles from the Styles Library to change the font and formatting attributes of your text and graphics. For details on using styles,
see ”Create Styles for Text and Graphics” on page 365 .
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The 3D Surface Editor uses the styles created in CG to format your surface text and graphic objects with color, edge, depth, and shadow attributes. Once you create your styles in CG, you can use the styles in the 3D
Surface Editor to apply formatting to your objects.
The 3D Surface Editor does not support other types of text or graphic formatting.
A style is a saved set of formatting attributes for your text and graphic objects.
You can add multiple styles to the Styles Library. In the 3D Surface Editor you can load a style create in CG and apply the style to your surface objects.
Text Styles
The style attributes for text include the text size and font, as well as the formatting applied to the text face, edge, depth, and shadow.
When you apply a text style to a text object, the object resizes to the size of the style and displays the formatting and font attributes of the style.
Graphic Styles
The style attributes for graphics include the formatting applied to the graphic face, edge, depth, and shadow.
When you apply a graphic style to a graphic object, the graphic displays the style’s formatting attributes.
When you have 3D FlyBy open, CG and Animation Editor are unavailable because you cannot use these tools to edit your 3D animation.
To switch to the CG tool from 3D FlyBy, select an empty slot in the playlist. The
CG tool opens.
Use the formatting options in CG to create a text style for your surface text objects. After creating the style, you can switch to the 3D Surface Editor to apply the style.
1 From the 3D FlyBy tool, select an empty slot in the playlist. The CG tool opens.
2 Select the Text Field tool.
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3 Click the workspace and enter a word. You can format the word and then save the formatting as a style.
4 Use the CG Attributes tabs below the workspace to format the text, face, edge, depth, and shadow.
5 With your text selected, click the Menu button and select the Add Style to
Library option.
6 In the Style Name dialog, enter a number and name for the style.
7 To save the style, click OK. The style is saved to the current Style library.
Figure 5-33. Add Text Style to Styles Library
8 Add the style to the Global Style Library by right-clicking on the style and selecting Add to Global Style Library.
Figure 5-34. Add Text Style to Global Style Library
9 In the Add Template dialog, enter a number and name for the style that displays in the Global Style Library.
Figure 5-35. Add Template Dialog
10 Click Add. The style is added to the library.
11 Check that your style is added to the library by clicking the Menu button and selecting Open Global Style Library.
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The Template Manager (Style Library) dialog opens with the contents of the Global Style Library displayed. The global styles are saved in a file called inscribe.templates.
Figure 5-36. Global Style Library
Use the formatting options in CG to create a text style for your surface graphic objects. After creating the style, you can switch to the 3D Surface Editor to apply the style.
1 From the 3D FlyBy tool, select an empty slot in the playlist. The CG tool opens.
2 Select a graphic tool from the Tools palette.
3 Draw the graphic shape in the CG workspace. You will apply formatting to the graphic and then save the formatting as a style.
4 Use the CG Attributes tabs below the workspace to format the graphic face, edge, depth, and shadow.
5 With the graphic object selected, click the Menu button below the Style
Library.
6 Select the Add Style to Library option from the menu.
7 In the Style Name dialog, enter a number and name for the style.
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8 To save the style, click OK.
Figure 5-37. Add Graphic Style to Styles Library
9 Add the style to the Global Style Library by right-clicking on the style and selecting Add to Global Style Library.
Figure 5-38. Add Graphic Style to Global Style Library
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10 In the Add Template dialog, enter a number and name for the style that displays in the Global Style Library.
Figure 5-39. Add Template Dialog
11 Click Add. The style is added to the library.
12 Check that your style is added to the library by clicking the Menu button and selecting Open Global Style Library.
The Template Manager (Style Library) dialog opens with the contents of the Global Style Library displayed. The global styles are saved in a file called inscribe.templates.
Figure 5-40. Global Style Library
After you create your styles in CG and save them to the Global Style Library, you can load the styles in the 3D Surface Editor.
1 To switch to 3D FlyBy, select your 3D FlyBy layout in the playlist.
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2 To open the editor, click the 3D Surface Editor button on the Surfaces tab.
3 Select your surface from the Editable Objects list. Your surface objects display in the workspace.
4 Click the Menu button below the Styles Library, and select the Open Global
Style Library option.
Figure 5-41. Open Global Style Library
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5 From the Global Style Library, select the style from the library and click the
Load button.
Figure 5-42. Global Style Library: Load Style
The Global Style Library closes and the selected style loads in the Style
Library of 3D Surface Editor.
6 Repeat steps 4 and 5 to load additional styles.
7 To apply a style, select your text or graphic object in the 3D Surface Editor and then click the style in the Style Library. The style attributes are applied to the object.
Figure 5-43. Apply Style in 3D Surface Editor
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Text tags apply labels to the text objects in the 3D Surface Editor. After you apply a tag to your text object, quickly update the text with an entry from the Content area of the 3D Surface Editor. Use the tags feature to easily update the content of your text objects.
The options in the 3D Surface Editor allow you to tag your text for quick updates.
1 In the 3D Surface Editor, select the text object you want to tag.
2 In the Tags field, enter a name for the tag and click Add. The tag is added to the text object.
3 In the Content field, type the text entries that will replace the tagged text.
4 Click the Add button to add the entry as a tagged content option.
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Figure 5-44. Add Tag Content
After you add tags to your objects and add content in the 3D Surface Editor, use the following steps to replace the tagged text.
1 In the 3D Surface Editor, select the tagged object you want to update.
2 Select the content entry to replace the current text.
3 To update the surface text, click the Display button.
Figure 5-45. Replace Text Object Content
4 To update the text again, select a new entry and click Display.
You can display all the content entries for a tagged text object using the Append
All button. The available content entries display in the tagged text field. Each entry displays on a new line.
1 In the 3D Surface Editor, select the tagged object you want to update.
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2 Select the Text Cursor tool and delete any text currently displayed.
Figure 5-46. Delete Current Text
3 In the Content area click the Append All button. The available content entries display.
Figure 5-47. Append All Entries
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Linking your text objects to content in an external file allows you to easily update your 3D surface text. When you make updates in the external file, the 3D surface text automatically updates. You can link your text objects to text files, XML/RSS data feeds, and ODBC data sources in the 3D Surface Editor.
The following information describes how to set up your surface objects to display text from an external file.
For complete instructions on using external data files, see
”External Data Sources” on page 228 .
You can add content to a text file and import the content into the 3D Surface
Editor. When you import the text file, each line displays as a separate entry in the Content area of the editor. You can display a single line as your text object, or display the entire file.
1 In a text editor like Notepad, create a text file with each entry on a new line.
Figure 5-48. Sample Text File
2 Return to the 3D Surface Editor and select your text object.
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3 Add a tag to the text by entering a name in the Tags field and clicking the
Add button.
Figure 5-49. Add Tag to Text Object
4 Click the Import button and open your text file. The text file entries display in the Content area.
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5 To display a single entry, select the entry and click the Display button.
Figure 5-50. Display Single Entry from External File
6 To display all entries, select the first entry and then click the Append All button. All the entries in the Content area display in the tagged text field.
Figure 5-51. Display All Entries from External File
If you have a database file with rows and columns, you can display the rows of information in your tagged text objects.
Figure 5-52. Sample Database Table
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1 In the 3D Surface Editor, order your text objects into columns.
2 Add tags to the objects in the first row. When you name the tag for the first text object, enter 1-1. When you name the tag for the second text object, enter 1-2, and so on.
3 Add tags to the objects in the second row. When you name the tag for the first text object in the second row, enter 2-1. When you name the tag for the second text object in the second row, enter 2-2, and so on.
4 Continue naming the tags using the above naming convention. For example, the tags in the third row will start with 3- and the tags in the fourth row will start with 4- .
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Figure 5-53. Set Up Text Columns with Tags
5 Click the Configure External Data Source button. The Select Text Source dialog opens.
Note:
Before you can select your database tables, you need to add your database to the Windows ODBC Data Source Administrator
(Windows Control Panel > Administrative Tools > Data Sources
ODBC). For details, see the online help topic “Add Data Source to
System List”.
6 Select the ODBC option and then select your database and table from the drop-down lists.
Figure 5-54. Select External Data Source
7 Click OK in the Select Text Source dialog. The Select Database Items dialog opens.
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8 Beside the 1-1 tag, select the database table column that you want to display as the first column on your 3D surface.
Select the column that displays as the first column of your surface text.
Tag Name in
3D Surface Editor
Figure 5-55. Link Text Tags to Database Columns
9 Beside the 1-2 tag, select the database column that you want to display as the second column on your 3D surface.
10 Click OK to return to the 3D Surface Editor. The database column entries display as the content for your surface text columns.
Figure 5-56. Database Table Text Displays
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The Animation tab includes options for setting the animation playback. You can set the animation to loop once, until the next event is triggered, or a certain number of times. You can also create a 4-point animation by looping a specific sequence of frames in the animation.
Use the Play Once option to set the animation to loop once and then stop. The animation is removed from screen.
1 Switch to the Animation tab.
2 Select Play Once from the drop-down list.
3 Click Apply.
Use the Loop Until Trigger option to loop the animation until the next event is triggered.
1 Switch to the Animation tab.
2 Select Loop Until Trigger from the drop-down list.
3 Click Apply.
Use the Specify Number of Repeats option to loop the animation a certain number of times.
1 Switch to the Animation tab.
2 Select Specify Number of Repeats from the drop-down list. The Repeat field displays.
3 In the Repeat field, enter the number of times to loop the animation during playback.
4 Click Apply.
Figure 5-57. Specify Number of Repeats
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Use the Fly-In > Loop > Fly-Out option to create a 4-point animation. The
4-point animation allows you to fly the animation in, loop part of the animation, and then fly the animation out.
You can use the Fly-In and Fly-Out Setup dialog to help set your loop start and end points if necessary. For details, see
”Determine the Start and End Points for the Loop” on page 387 .
1 Switch to the Animation tab.
2 Select Fly-In > Loop > Fly-Out from the drop-down list.
3 In the Loop Starts field, enter the frame that starts the loop.
4 Press the ENTER key to apply the start frame. The IN marker on the timeline moves to the set frame.
5 In the Ends field, enter the frame that stops the loop.
6 Press the ENTER key to apply the end frame. The OUT marker on the timeline moves to the set frame.
7 From the Loop drop-down list, select your loop option.
• Repeat: Plays the loop the number of times set in the Times field.
• Until Trigger: Repeats the loop until you trigger the Fly Out sequence with a GPI trigger.
• None: Skips the loop and only plays the Fly In and Fly Out sequence.
8 Click Apply to save your settings.
Figure 5-58. Options for 4-Point Animation
Determine the Start and End Points for the Loop
Use the Fly-In and Fly-Out Setup dialog to help set the start and end points for your 4-point animation loop. The dialog recognizes pairs of identical frames that are suitable for the start and end points, to ensure the animation loops
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smoothly.
1 On the Animation tab, select Fly-In > Loop > Fly-Out from the drop-down list.
2 Click the Match button to open the Fly-In and Fly-Out Setup dialog.
3 For Step 1, enter the approximate last frame of the Fly-In sequence in the
Est. Fly-In End At field. The last frame of the Fly-In sequence becomes the start frame of the loop.
4 In the Tolerance field, enter the number of frames before or after the specified Fly-In End frame that 3D FlyBy can use as the loop start frame.
5 Click the Match button to determine a smooth end frame for the animation loop. The results display in Step 2.
• The start frame displays in the Loop Starts at field.
• The recommended end frames display in the Loop Ends list.
6 Select a frame from the Loop Ends At list to view the frame in the preview.
7 Once you select the best end frame, click OK to save the start and end frame for the loop.
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Figure 5-59. Set Start and End Loop Points
Use Sequencer to manage, edit, and output your playlist. You can prepare your playlist for output in
Sequencer by applying transitions, duration, audio, alpha masks, and trigger types to your events. If you have a large playlist, you can group your events into separate sequences or by layout type to make playback easier.
Switch between tools using the buttons on the toolbar or the options on the
Tools menu.
To switch to the Sequencer tool, use one of the following methods.
• On the toolbar, click the Sequencer button.
• Select Tools > Sequencer (F11).
The Sequencer interface includes the following components.
• Playlist/Sequencer Playlist
• Sequencer toolbar
• Sequencer Attributes tabs
• Scrapbook
• Shot Box palette
• Program/Preview palette
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Playlist Sequencer playlist Sequencer toolbar Shot Box palette
Program/Preview palette Attributes tabs Scrapbook
Figure 6-1. Sequencer Workspace
Playlist vs. Sequencer Playlist
Both the playlist and the Sequencer Playlist contain the events for the current project in the order that they are output. When you select or move events in the playlist, the events are also selected and moved in the
Sequencer playlist.
• Playlist: You can add events to the playlist from all G-Scribe tools and arrange the event output order.
• Sequencer Playlist: You can arrange the event output order, display the playlist output details, and apply output controls.
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Sequencer Toolbar
The Sequencer toolbar includes options for editing and viewing events.
Table 6-1. Sequencer Toolbar Buttons
Button Description
Cut Event: Removes the selected event from the playlist.
You can paste the event in a new location, or leave the event deleted from the playlist.
Copy Event: Creates a duplicate of the selected event. The original event remains in the playlist.
You can paste the duplicated event in a new location in the playlist.
Paste Event: Pastes the cut or copied event below the currently selected event.
Log Event Up: Adds a blank event above the currently selected event in the playlist.
Log Event Down: Adds a blank event below the currently selected event in the playlist.
Collapse Sequence Display: Hides the events and only displays the group headers in the Sequencer playlist.
The playlist displays a thumbnail of the first event in each group.
Expand Sequence Display: Shows all events and group headers in the current playlist.
The playlist displays a thumbnail of all the events in the
Sequencer playlist.
Sequencer Attributes Tabs
The Sequencer Attributes tabs include the Event Editor, Run, Effect
Settings, Audio, Mask, Renderer, and Animation tabs.
Table 6-2. Sequencer Attributes Tabs
Tab Description
Event Editor Sets the event name, transition, in and out points, duration, board assignment, render location, and group trigger.
Run Outputs the events in the playlist and monitors output activity.
You must be online to access the Run tab. Press
CTRL+SHIFT+O to switch to online mode.
Effect Settings Sets output display options for rolls and crawls, including speed, timing, borders, and margins.
You can also use the Effect Settings tab to select an export option for animation events. The animation export option determines how the layout objects are grouped in the Animation Editor.
Audio Applies an audio file to the selected event.
Mask
Renderer
Selects an alpha mask to display over the selected event.
Sets the selected animation event to display in real-time when you select the Hardware Acceleration option.
Animation Sets an animation file to play as a transition with the selected event.
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Scrapbook
The Scrapbook is temporary holding place for layouts, frame grabs, styles, library items, media, and other G-Scribe elements. You can easily add items stored in the Scrapbook to the playlist.
To use a Scrapbook item in the playlist:
1 Select an empty slot in the playlist.
2 Use the scrollbar below the Scrapbook to display the item.
3 Right-click on the item and select Use. The Scrapbook item is added to the playlist as an event.
To add an event to the Scrapbook:
1 Select the event in the playlist.
2 Right-click on the Scrapbook.
3 Select Add from the right-click menu. The event is added to the
Scrapbook.
Shot Box Palette
You can use the Shot Box to select playlist events in Sequencer.
To select an event with the Shot Box:
1 Open the Preferences dialog, select File > Preferences.
2 To display event numbers in the playlist, switch to the Project tab and clear the Show Filename in Job Strip checkbox.
When this checkbox is cleared, the event numbers display in the playlist rather than the file names.
3 To close the Preferences dialog, click OK.
4 On the Shot Box palette, click the Store/Play toggle button to read Play.
• When the button reads Play G-Scribe selects playlist events.
• When the button reads Store G-Scribe selects media files in the
Media Store tool.
5 Enter the event number in the Shot Box Number field. If the event number is 00003, you can enter 3.
6 To select the event, press ENTER on the main keyboard — not the number pad ENTER key.
Note:
If you press the number pad ENTER key, the layout plays on the program channel. The number pad ENTER key immediately outputs the selected layout.
7 Use one of the following methods to preview or play the event.
• To preview the event, click the Preview button on the Shot Box palette.
• To play the event, click the Take button on the Shot Box palette.
Program/Preview Palette
The Program/Preview palette controls output to individual channels. A thumbnail of the currently setup event displays on the Preview palette. A thumbnail of the currently playing event displays on the Program palette.
Note:
The preview channel is not available in G-Scribe Offline.
You can use the Program/Preview palette to complete the following actions.
Table 6-3. Program/Preview Channel Actions
Action Description
Preview
Output
Clear Screen
Content
To preview the selected event, drag the event to the
Preview palette.
To output the selected event, drag the event to the
Program palette. You can also press ENTER on the number pad.
To clear the program channel or preview channel, click the CLR button above the palette.
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Use the G-Scribe tools to add events to your playlist, and then use Sequencer to organize your events into a sequence for output. When you organize the playlist in Sequencer you can name events, add new events, and change the event order.
You can add events to the playlist from CG, Animation Editor, 3D FlyBy, and
Media Store. Once you add events to the playlist use the options in
Sequencer to prepare your events for output.
Table 6-4. G-Scribe Tools and Playlist Functionality
G-Scribe Tool Playlist Function
CG Adds stills, rolls, crawls, and animations to the playlist. Select an empty slot in the playlist, and then create your layout in the CG workspace. The current layout fills the selected slot in the playlist.
Selecting a new slot clears your CG workspace and allows you to add a new layout to the playlist.
Animation Editor Adds animation effects to the layout you created in
CG.
After you create the animation layout in CG, select the layout in the playlist and switch to the
Animation Editor to animate the layout.
3D FlyBy Imports scenes from an external 3D software package into the selected slot in the playlist. Once you import a scene, use 3D FlyBy to add text and graphics to your surfaces that move with the animation.
Media Store Locates media files that you can drag to an empty playlist slot and display as a full-screen layout.
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Once you add events to the playlist, switch to Sequencer to start organizing the playlist for output. To help identify events in the Sequencer Playlist, use the Event Editor tab to name your events.
1 In Sequencer, select the event line in the Sequencer playlist.
2 Switch to the Event Editor tab.
3 In the Name field, enter a name for the event.
4 Press ENTER to apply the name. The name displays on the event line.
Name displayed on event line.
Name field
You can access the playlist edit options in the following locations:
• Playlist menu
• Playlist toolbar
• Playlist right-click menu
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• Sequencer toolbar
• Sequencer right-click menu
Playlist menu
Sequencer toolbar
Playlist toolbar Playlist right-click menu Sequencer right-click menu
Figure 6-2. Playlist Edit Options
You can add a new event to your playlist using the Log Event Up and Log
Event Down options.
1 Select the event in the playlist.
2 Add a new event either above or below the selected event.
• To add an event above, click the Log Event Above button.
• To add an event below, click the Log Event Below button.
G-Scribe adds the default event to the playlist, which is generally a blank event.
Note:
In CG, you can update the default event by adding your images and graphics to the default event and then clicking the Update button in the Template Manager (CTRL+SHIFT+R).
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Use the Cut Event option to delete an event from the playlist. When you cut an event the event is removed from the playlist. You can paste the event in a new location or leave the event deleted from the playlist.
1 To delete an event, select the event in the playlist.
2 Right-click the event and select the Cut Event option.
To move events in the playlist use the cut, copy, and paste options; or drag the events to a new location in the playlist.
Move Events
Use the cut and paste options to move an event to a new location in the playlist.
1 To move an event to a new location, select the event in the playlist.
2 Right-click on the event and select the Cut Event option. The event is removed from the playlist.
Figure 6-3. Cut Event Option
3 Select the event in the playlist that will proceed the pasted event.
4 Right-click on the event and select the Paste Event option. The event is pasted below the selected event.
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Duplicate Events
Use the copy and paste options to duplicate an event in the playlist.
1 To add a duplicate of an event in the playlist, select the event.
2 Right-click on the event and select the Copy Event option.
3 Select the event in the playlist that will proceed the pasted event.
4 Right-click on the event and select the Paste Event option. The duplicated event is pasted below the selected event.
Drag Events in the Playlist
To quickly reorder the playlist, drag the event up or down to a new location.
When you drag an event, you can move a copy of the event or move the original event to a new slot.
• To move a copy of the original event, click and drag the event to a new location in the playlist. When you drag an event, the original event stays in its initial position and a copy is placed in the playlist.
• To move the original event, hold down CTRL when you click and drag the event. The event is deleted from its old position once it is inserted in the new slot.
The cursor determines how the event is placed in the playlist. See the following table for details.
Table 6-5. Playlist Cursor
Cursor Description
Places the selected event above the current event.
Places the selected event below the current event.
Replaces the current event with the selected event.
To output long rolls and crawls smoothly, Sequencer allows you to separate your roll/crawl into multiple pages (or events). In Sequencer, the multi-page roll/crawl displays as a separate group, with each page displayed as a separate event. During playback the multi-page roll/crawl plays as one smooth event.
Multi-page rolls, also called page-formatted rolls, allow you to easily create and navigate long rolls. All events in the multi-page roll are rendered to disk and then played out as one smooth continuous roll. The output plays back unbroken, but each page is actually an individual event in the playlist.
Creating multi-page rolls requires both the CG and Sequencer tools.
1 In CG (Tools > CG), select an empty slot in the playlist.
2 Select Roll from the Title Type list.
3 Enter the text for the first page of your roll in the CG workspace.
4 For each subsequent page of your roll: a Select the next empty slot in the playlist. b Select Roll from the Title Type list. c Add your text and graphics to the layout.
Multi-page roll in CG Roll selected
Figure 6-4. Multi-page Roll Set Up in CG
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5 Switch to Sequencer (Tools > Sequencer).
6 Select the first event you want included in your multi-page roll.
7 Select Edit > Insert Group Header. The group header is inserted above the selected event.
All the events that fall between the new group header and the next header belong to the same group.
8 On the group header, right-click on the column heading Default Group and select Page Formatted Rolls. All of the events in your group are immediately converted to a page formatted roll. You can only insert roll events into the Page Formatted Roll group.
Figure 6-5. Select Page Formatted Roll in Sequencer
When you output the playlist, all events in the Page Formatted Roll group are rendered to disk and then played-back as one smooth continuous roll.
Note:
If your roll events have backgrounds, the background from the first event is used as the background for the whole Page Formatted Roll group.
The Equalize Timing option on the Effect Settings tab sets all roll pages to equal the same length as the longest roll. When you check the Equalize
Timing checkbox, each roll page displays for the same length of time on-screen.
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1 Select an event in the Page Formatted Roll group to determine which group receives the formatting.
2 Switch to the Effect Settings tab.
3 Click the Global Settings button.
4 Check the Equalize Timing checkbox to display each roll event for the same length of time.
Figure 6-6. Select the Equalize Timing Checkbox
Multi-page crawls, also called page-formatted crawls, allow you to easily create and navigate long crawls. All events in the multi-page crawl are rendered to disk and then played back as one smooth continuous crawl. The output plays back unbroken, but each page is actually an individual event in the playlist. Creating multi-page crawls requires both the CG and
Sequencer modules.
1 In CG (Tools > CG), select an empty slot in the playlist.
2 Select Crawl from the Title Type list.
3 Enter the text for the first page of your crawl in the CG workspace.
4 For each subsequent page of your crawl: a Select the next empty slot in the playlist.
b Select Crawl from the Title Type list.
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c Add your text and graphics to the layout.
Multi-page crawl in CG Crawl selected
Figure 6-7. Multi-page Crawl Set Up in CG
5 Switch to Sequencer (Tools > Sequencer).
6 Select the first event you want included in the your multi-page crawl.
7 Select Edit > Insert Group Header. The group header is inserted above the selected event.
All the events that fall between the new group header and the next header belong to the same group.
8 On the group header, right-click on the column heading Default Group and select Page Formatted Crawls. All of the events in your group are immediately converted to a page formatted crawl. You can only insert crawl events into the Page Formatted Crawl group.
Figure 6-8. Select Page Formatted Crawls in Sequencer
When you output the playlist, all events in the Page Formatted Crawl group are rendered to disk and then played back as one smooth continuous crawl.
Note:
If your crawl events have backgrounds, the background from the first event will be used as the background for the whole Page Formatted
Crawl group.
The Equalize Timing option on the Effect Settings tab sets all crawl pages to equal the same length as the longest crawl. When you check the Equalize
Timing checkbox, each crawl page displays for the same length of time on screen.
1 Select an event in the Page Formatted Crawl group to determine which group receives the formatting.
2 Switch to the Effect Settings tab.
3 Click the Global Settings button.
4 Check the Equalize Timing checkbox to display each crawl event for the same length of time.
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Sequencer includes output options for your rolls and crawls. Use the Effect Settings to adjust the on-screen borders, start position, and output speed.
Roll and crawl layouts have border options that set the output area of the layout. Use the Effect Settings tab to set the borders for the current event.
1 Select the roll or crawl in the Sequencer playlist.
2 Switch to the Effect Settings tab.
3 Click on the Global Settings button and then check the Show Borders checkbox.
4 Adjust the border settings for your layout.
• Roll Layouts: Adjust the values in the Top and Bottom fields in the
Global Settings dialog.
• Crawl Layouts: Adjust the value in the Left and Right fields in the
Global Settings dialog.
5 Enter a number in the Softness field to add a fade area to your roll or crawl layout. For example, if you add a softness value to your roll borders the roll will fade in from the bottom border and fade out into the top border.
6 To hide the border markers, clear the checkbox.
You can set whether your roll or crawl starts on- or off-screen.
1 Select the roll or crawl event in the Sequencer playlist.
2 Switch to the Effect Settings tab and click on the Global Settings button.
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3 Select the Start Off Screen or Start On Screen radio button.
Figure 6-9. Set Your On-Screen/Off-Screen Options
If you start the event on-screen you can set the following options.
• To increase the speed of the roll/crawl, check the Accelerate checkbox and enter the number of frames it takes for the event to accelerate in the Frames field.
• To set where the roll/crawl starts on-screen use the Pad options.
Select the Use Layout Spacing radio button to start the text at the existing edge of the layout. If you are adjusting a multi-page crawl
G-Scribe uses the left edge of the first crawl layout, or the top edge of the first roll layout.
Select the Before First radio button to set an edge independent of the layout spacing. Enter the edge value in the Before First field.
4 Select the End Off Screen or End On Screen radio button.
To adjust the speed of your roll or crawl, you can set the amount of time it takes to display the event, or you can set a speed value.
1 Select the roll or crawl event in the Sequencer playlist.
2 Switch to the Effect Settings tab.
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3 Select the Set Speed radio button and enter a value in the Set Speed field.
• The smaller the speed value the slower the playback.
• The greater the speed value the faster the playback.
Figure 6-10. Speed Options
4 To set the amount of time it takes to display the roll/crawl, select the
Set Time radio button.
5 Enter the duration of time using one of the follow options.
• In the Frames field enter the duration as a total number of frames.
• In the hh:mm:ss:ff field enter the duration in hours:minutes:seconds:frames.
Before you output your events you can apply transitions, audio, and set the event duration using the
Attributes tabs in Sequencer. Sequencer also includes real-time playback and loop options.
Transitions determine how still events appear on-screen. When you select a transition from the drop-down list any related transition options become available.
For example, if you select the Wipe transition the directional buttons display and the duration and softness options also become available.
Figure 6-11. Transition Options
The transition options are available on the Event Editor tab.
Table 6-6. Transition Types
Transition Description
Cut
Wipe
Tile
Displays the entire event instantly. The cut transition is the default option.
Gradually wipes the event on-screen in the selected direction.
Wipe transitions include directional options, duration
(Frames field), and transition softness (Soft field).
Reveals the event one square at a time.
Tile transitions include directional options, duration
(Frames field), and transition softness (Soft field).
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Table 6-6. Transition Types
Transition Description
Organic
Dissolve
Push
Reveals the event using one of 32 pre-defined transition effects.
Organic transitions include numbered buttons that you use to select the effect. Duration (Frames field) and transition softness (Soft field) options are also available.
Fades the event on-screen until the event is fully displayed.
Dissolve transitions include the duration option
(Frames field).
Moves the event on-screen in a specific direction.
Push transitions include the directional and duration
(Frames field) options.
Select Transition
To select a transition for your event, complete the following steps.
1 Select your event in the Sequencer playlist.
2 Switch to the Event Editor tab.
3 Select a transition from the Transition drop-down list. The transition is applied to the selected event.
Figure 6-12. Transition List
4 Set the options that are available for the selected transition.
Table 6-7. Transition Options
Option Description
Directional buttons
Numbered buttons
Frames field
Soft field
Determines where the event starts to appear on the screen.
Look at the button to see how the transition displays on-screen. The event will appear in the dark area first and spread to the light area.
For example, the directional button will start the transition in lower-left corner and spread diagonally to the upper-right.
Available for wipe, tile, and push transitions.
Note:
The available buttons change depending on the selected transition.
Determines which transition effect is applied to the selected event.
Available for organic transitions.
Sets how many frames it takes to display the entire transition.
Available for all transitions.
Sets how blurred the edges of the transition appear on output. Increase the value to increase the softness.
Available for wipe, tile, and organic transitions.
Apply an Animation Transition
The Animation tab allows you to select an animation file to play as your transition during output.
1 Select an event in the Sequencer playlist for your animation.
2 Switch to the Animation tab.
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3 Click the Browse button.
4 In the Open dialog, navigate to and select your animation file.
5 Click Open.
Figure 6-13. Animation Transition Options
6 To delay the animation transition from the start of the event, enter the number of seconds in the Offset field.
During output the animation plays as the transition for the selected event.
Global transitions allow you to save a set of four transitions as one file, and apply the transitions to different events. You can apply the transitions to events in any playlist.
Create a Global Transition File
To create a global transition file, you need to save the first transition as a
.trn file. After the initial transition is saved, you can easily define the three remaining transitions that are automatically saved with the file.
1 Select the event in the Sequencer playlist with the transition you want to save.
2 Right-click on the event and select Set Event As Default Transition >
Transition 1 from the right-click menu.
3 In the Save dialog, save the transition. The transition is saved as a .trn file. After the first transition is saved, any transitions set for Transition
2, Transition 3, or Transition 4 are automatically saved with this file.
4 Right-click on another event with a transition you want to save as
Transition 2.
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5 From the right-click menu select Set Event As Default Transition >
Transition 2 from the right-click menu. The transition is automatically saved as Transition 2 in the saved file.
Figure 6-14. Set Event As Default Transition Option
6 Use the right-click menu to set transitions for Transition 3 and
Transition 4 option.
Apply the Global Transitions
After you have set up your global transition file, you can apply the transitions to events in the current playlist or a new playlist.
1 Select an event in the Sequencer playlist.
2 Right-click the event and select Apply Global Transition to Event.
3 From the submenu select the transition you want to apply: Transition 1,
Transition 2, Transition 3, or Transition 4.
After you select the option, the transition is applied to the event.
Save a New Set of Global Transitions
You can create multiple .trn files that save a set of four global transitions.
1 To start a new global transition file, select File > Export > Global
Transition File.
2 In the Save As dialog, enter a name for the new global transitions file.
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3 To define your new transitions, right-click the event with the transition and select Set Event As Default Transition > Transition 1 from the right-click menu.
4 Use the right-click menu to save transitions for Transition 2, Transition
3, and Transition 4.
The transitions are automatically saved with the new global transition file.
You can apply the new transitions to any event in any playlist.
Switch between Global Transition Files
After you create multiple global transition files, you can open the files and apply the saved transitions to events.
1 To open a global transition file, select File > Import > Global Transition
File.
2 In the Load Transition File dialog, select the .trn file you want to use and then click Open. The selected file is automatically loaded.
3 To apply a transition from the new file, select an event in the Sequencer playlist.
4 Right-click on the event select Apply Global Transition to Event.
5 From the submenu select the transition you want to apply: Transition 1,
Transition 2, Transition 3, or Transition 4.
After you select the option, the transition is applied to the event.
You can assign a disk-based audio file to any event in Sequencer using the options on the Audio tab.
1 Select the event in the Sequencer playlist.
2 Switch to the Audio tab.
3 Click the Browse button to select an audio file for the event.
4 Use the Offset field to delay the start of the audio file from the beginning of the event. Time is measured in hh:mm:ss:ff.
5 Use the Duck Input field to duck the pass-through audio (decrease the volume of the output video). In the Duck Input field, decrease the audio by a set number of decibels. The audio level decreases when the event is playing.
6 To remove the audio, click the Reset All to Default button.
Note:
For information on setting audio options, see
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You can select an image or video file to use as a mask. The mask displays over the selected event during output. The selected event displays through the alpha of the selected file.
1 Select the event in the Sequencer playlist.
2 Switch to the Mask tab.
3 Click the Browse button to select the mask file for the event.
4 If the image is in color, use the Channel drop-down list to select which pixel color(s) are converted to transparent.
• alpha (for 32-bit images)
• luminance (red, green, and blue)
• red
• green
• blue
5 To remove the mask, click the Reset All to Default button.
Note:
For the mask effect to display on-screen, you must output from
Sequencer.
The Renderer tab includes a hardware acceleration option for animation events. The option allows you to broadcast your animations in real-time without having to render them to a .via file first.
1 Switch to the Renderer tab.
2 Select the Use Hardware Acceleration checkbox.
When you take your layout, your animations will be broadcast directly to air.
If your animation is particularly complex, it may not playback smoothly in real-time.
Note:
Some filters and blur effects from the Animation Editor may appear differently than what you are used to if you select the hardware acceleration option.
You can set your animation events to loop during playback. When you loop your animation, the animation event repeats the set number of times before the next event plays.
1 Select your animation event in the Sequencer playlist.
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2 Switch to the Event Editor tab.
3 Enter the number of loops for your animation in the Loop field.
The Loop value represents the total number of times that the animation will play. For example, if you want your animation to play 3 times, enter the number 3.
You can use groups to organize events into categories, and to apply the trigger information for the events in the group. The trigger applies to all the events in a group.
1 Select the first event you want included in the new group.
2 Select Playlist > Insert Group Header (CTRL+T). The group header is inserted above the selected event.
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Figure 6-15. Group Headers in Sequencer Playlist
All the events that fall between the new group header and the next header belong to the same group.
Name Groups
To help identify your groups, you can name your groups using the options on the Event Editor tab.
1 Select your group header.
2 Switch to the Event Editor tab.
3 Enter the group name in the Label field.
Label field
Figure 6-16. Name the Group Header
4 Press ENTER on the main keyboard (not the ENTER key on the number pad). The group header is labeled in the Sequencer playlist.
Note:
Pressing the ENTER key on the number pad triggers output.
Delete Group Headers
You can use the option on the Playlist menu to remove a group header from the playlist, When you remove a group header, the events become part of the group above.
If you only have one group header in the playlist you cannot delete the header.
1 To delete a group header, select the header in the playlist.
2 Select Playlist > Remove Group Header (CTRL+U).
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The Event Editor tab includes the options for setting your event duration.
Duration is set for individual events, not for the entire group. Events play sequentially based on their in and out points.
Event duration is dependant on the trigger type selected for the group. The
In Point and Out Point fields are available for the Timed, Time Code, and
PC Clock trigger types. Operators determine the event duration for the
Manual and GPI triggers so you do not set a duration for these trigger types.
• Timed triggers are based on a start time of 00:00:00:00. If you want to play your first event for 30 seconds, you would enter 00:00:00:00 as your in point and 00:00:30:00 as your out point.
• Time Code triggers are based on the time code device you use. Base your in and out points on the format the time code device uses.
• PC Clock triggers are based on your system clock and use the 24-hour format. If you wanted to play your first event for 30 seconds starting at
6:00 PM, you would enter 18:00:00:00 as your in point and
18:00:30:00 as your out point.
For more details on trigger types, see ”Select a Trigger for Output” on page 421
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To set the event duration for time-based triggered events, complete the following steps.
1 Select the first event in the group.
2 On the Event Editor tab, enter a start time for the event in the In Point field. Time is measured in HH:MM:SS:FF
(hours:minutes:seconds:frames).
In Point field Duration field
Out Point field
Figure 6-17. Event Timing Fields
3 Enter an end time for the event in the Out Point field. Time is measured in HH:MM:SS:FF.
The timing fields update in the playlist.
4 Continue setting the duration for each event in the group. The timing fields update on the event lines and in the group header.
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The options in Sequencer do not allow for spaces between events. Once the event out point is reached during playback the event is removed from screen and the next event displays.
To add a space between events you can use a blank event.
1 Select the event in the playlist that will come before the blank event.
2 Right-click on the event and select the Log Event Down (CTRL+L) option.
A blank event is added below the selected event.
3 Select the blank event and switch to the Event Editor tab.
4 If you are using a time-based trigger, use the In Point and Out Point fields to set the duration of blank event. Time is measured in
HH:MM:SS:FF.
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Trigger types control how you output your playlist once you go online. The trigger type applies to all the events in a group.
G-Scribe includes five trigger types for controlling output: Manual, Timed,
GPI, Time Code, and PC Clock.
Table 6-8. Available Trigger Types
Trigger Description
Manual
Timed
Waits for an operator to press the SPACEBAR to trigger the next event. The current event remains on-screen until the next event is triggered.
Plays each event sequentially for the set duration. Once
Sequencer reaches the event in point, the event is triggered. The Timed trigger starts the clock at
00:00:00:00.
GPI Trigger Waits for an operator to press the external GPI button to trigger the next event. The current event remains on-screen until the next event is triggered.
Time Code Uses an external time code source to trigger events.
When the time code source reaches the event in point, the event is triggered.
PC Clock Uses the system clock to trigger events. When the system clock reaches the event in point, the event is triggered.
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You can select a trigger from the Trigger Type drop-down list on the Event
Editor tab, or the group header right-click menu.
Trigger Type right-click menu
Trigger Type drop-down list
Figure 6-18. Trigger Type Menus
The Manual trigger type allows an operator to manually trigger each event using the SPACEBAR.
Select the Manual Trigger
Use the options on the group header or the Event Editor tab to select the
Manual trigger.
1 Select the group header.
2 Select the trigger using one of the following methods.
• On the group header, right-click on the current trigger and select
Manual from the right-click menu.
• On the Event Editor tab, select Manual from the Trigger Type drop-down list.
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Output with a Manual Trigger
Once you move the playlist online, use the SPACEBAR to manually trigger each event.
1 To go online, press CTRL+SHIFT+O. You are prompted to save your playlist if you have not saved yet.
Once all the events are rendered and moved online, the Run tab becomes available.
2 Select the group header containing the events you want to output.
3 Switch to the Run tab.
4 Click the Run Job button to start the output.
5 Press the SPACEBAR to trigger your event. The event plays on the program channel.
6 Continue to output the remaining events using one of the following methods.
• To immediately play the next event, press the SPACEBAR. The current event is cleared from screen and the next event plays.
• To clear the screen before playing the next event, click the CLR button above the Program palette (or press CTRL+SHIFT+ENTER).
Press the SPACEBAR to play the next event.
The Timed trigger sequentially plays each event for the set duration. During output the clock starts at 00:00:00:00.
Select the Timed Trigger
Use the options on the group header or the Event Editor tab to select the
Timed trigger.
1 Select the group header.
2 Select the trigger using one of the following methods.
• On the group header, right-click on the current trigger and select
Timed from the right-click menu.
• On the Event Editor tab, select Timed from the Trigger Type drop-down list.
Output with a Timed Trigger
Once you move the playlist online, you can start playback.
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1 To go online, press CTRL+SHIFT+O. You are prompted to save your playlist if you have not saved yet.
Once all the events are rendered and moved online, the Run tab becomes available.
2 Select the group header containing the events you want to output.
3 Switch to the Run tab.
4 Click the Run Job button. Each event in the group plays sequentially for the set duration.
The GPI trigger type allows an operator to manually trigger each event using an external GPI button press. You can use two types of GPI triggers.
• A trigger connected to the GPI/O port on your system.
• A trigger connected to a COM port.
Set Up a GPI/O Trigger
To set up a GPI/O trigger, you need to connect the GPI device to the GPI/
O port on the back of your system.
Note:
The GPI/O is enabled during the installation of the G-Scribe application by default. If the GPI/O is not currently enabled on your system, you must uninstall G-Scribe and then reinstall the software with the U2IO option selected.
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Figure 6-19. U2IO Selected to Enable GPIO Trigger
1 To set up a GPI/O trigger, connect your device to the GPI/O port on the back of your system.
GPIO
Figure 6-20. GPI/O Connection
2 Review the following illustration for the proper pinouts.
9
18
Pin
1
10
26 19
Pins 1 - 9 Pins 10 - 18 Pins 19 - 26
1: GPI 1
2: GPI 2
3: GPI 3
4: GPI 4
5: GPI 5
6: GPO 1
7: GND
8: GPO 2
9: GPO 3
10: GPI 6
11: GPI 7
12: GPO 4
13: GPI 9
14: GPI 8
15: GPO 5
16: GPO 6
17: GPO 7
18: GPO 8
19: GPI 10
20: GPI 11
21: GPO 9
22: GPI 14
23: GPI 13
24: GPI 12
25: VCC - MPU
26: GPO 10
Figure 6-21. DB26 Female High Density Connector
The GPI inputs are TTL. The GPI/O device expects TTL transition from
HIGH to Low to initiate GPI trigger. GPI triggers can be initiated by using passive switch, or relay with normally open contacts.
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GPI inputs 9-14 have no internal pull-up resistors. If passive switching is required for GPI inputs 9-14 the pull-up resistors must be added externally as indicated in the following diagram.
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Figure 6-22. GPI Passive Switch Connection
Set Up Your COM Port Trigger
To set up a COM port trigger, you need to connect the GPI device to a
COM port on your system and then select the COM port in the G-Scribe
Preference dialog.
1 Connect your GPI device to the COM 1 or COM 2 port on the back of your system.
COM 1 COM 2
Figure 6-23. System COM Ports
The following diagram shows the pin closures for the 9-pin COM port connectors. Reverse movement is not supported.
7
8
Forward
Figure 6-24. GPI Connectors
2 Once you connect your GPI device to the COM port, open the
Preferences dialog in G-Scribe (File > Preferences).
3 Switch to the Sequencer tab in the Preferences dialog.
4 From the GPI Port drop-down list, select the COM port that is connected to your GPI device.
5 Click OK to save the setting and close the Preferences dialog.
6 Close G-Scribe and restart your system.
Select the GPI Trigger
Use the options on the group header or the Event Editor tab to select the
GPI trigger.
1 Select the group header.
2 Select the trigger using one of the following methods.
• On the group header, right-click on the current trigger and select
GPI from the right-click menu.
• On the Event Editor tab, select GPI from the Trigger Type drop-down list.
Output with a GPI Trigger
Once you move the playlist online, use an external GPI button press to manually trigger each event.
1 To go online, press CTRL+SHIFT+O. You are prompted to save your playlist if you have not saved yet.
Once all the events are rendered and moved online, the Run tab becomes available.
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2 Select the group header containing the events you want to output.
3 Switch to the Run tab.
4 Click the Run Job button to start the output.
5 Press the external GPI button to trigger your event. The event plays on the program channel.
6 Continue to output the remaining events using one of the following methods.
• To immediately play the next event, press the external GPI button.
The current event is cleared from screen and the next event plays.
• To clear the screen before playing the next event, click the CLR button above the Program palette (or press CTRL+SHIFT+ENTER).
Press the external GPI button to play the next event.
The Time Code trigger uses an external time code source to trigger each event. Events are triggered once the time code source reaches the event in point.
Set Up Your Time Code Source
To set up your Time Code source, you need to connect the time code device to your system and check that the time code is enabled.
1 Connect your time code device to the LTC input on the XD-200 paddleboard located on the back of your system.
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LTC input
Figure 6-25. Connect Time Code Device to the LTC Input
2 Open the XD-200 Control Panel from the Windows Start menu (Start
> All Programs > Harris > G-Scribe > Configuration Utilities >
Phoenix Control Panel).
3 In the XD-200 Control Panel, click the Input/Output button and ensure the Enable Timecode Input checkbox is selected.
Note:
If you do not have a timecode signal connected to the card, make sure the checkbox is cleared.
Figure 6-26. Enable Timecode Input Checkbox
4 Click Close.
Select the Time Code Trigger
Use the options on the group header or the Event Editor tab to select the
Time Code trigger.
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1 Select the group header.
2 Select the trigger using one of the following methods.
• On the group header, right-click on the current trigger and select
TimeCode from the right-click menu.
• On the Event Editor tab, select TimeCode from the Trigger Type drop-down list.
Output with a Time Code Trigger
Once you move the playlist online, you can start playback. When the time code device reaches the event in point, the event is output to the program channel.
1 To go online, press CTRL+SHIFT+O. You are prompted to save your playlist if you have not saved yet.
Once all the events are rendered and moved online, the Run tab becomes available.
2 On the Event Editor tab, click the Start Reading arrow beside the
Source field. The Source field displays the current time code.
Start Reading button
Figure 6-27. Start Reading TimeCode Source
3 Select the group header containing the events you want to output.
4 Switch to the Run tab.
5 Click the Run Job button. Events are triggered once the time code device reaches the event in point.
Offset Timecode
When you use the Time Code trigger, you can offset the timecode for your
Time Code group. This feature is helpful if you see a slight delay between the system output and the timecode input.
1 Select Edit > Set Timecode Offset. The TimeCode Offset dialog opens.
2 Enter the amount of time you want to offset the events in hh:mm:ss:ff.
Entering a time value adds the time to the timecode. For example, if you enter 00:00:30:00, 30 seconds are added to the timecode.
Figure 6-28. TimeCode Offset Dialog
3 To remove (decrease) the time from the timecode, enter the time in hh:mm:ss:ff and click the Forward button to read Reverse.
When Reverse displays, the time is removed from the timecode. For example, if you enter 00:00:30:00, 30 seconds are removed from the timecode.
The PC Clock trigger uses the internal clock on your system to trigger each event. Time is measured in 24-hour format. Events are triggered once the system clock reaches the event in point.
Select the PC Clock Trigger
Use the options on the group header or the Event Editor tab to select the
PC Clock trigger.
1 Select the group header.
2 Select the trigger using one of the following methods.
• On the group header, right-click on the current trigger and select
PC Clock from the right-click menu.
• On the Event Editor tab, select PC Clock from the Trigger Type drop-down list.
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Output with a PC Clock Trigger
Once you move the playlist online, you can start playback. When the system time reaches the event in point, the event is output to the program channel.
1 To go online, press CTRL+SHIFT+O. You are prompted to save your playlist if you have not saved yet.
Once all the events are rendered and moved online, the Run tab becomes available.
2 On the Event Editor tab, click the Start Reading arrow beside the
Source field. The Source field displays the current system time.
3 Select the group header containing the events you want to output.
4 Switch to the Run tab.
5 Click the Run Job button. Events are triggered once the system time reaches the event in point.
Before you output your playlist you have a number of playback options available in Sequencer. The playback options allow you to set the following:
• Playlist loop options.
• Event output highlight.
• Event render location.
• Live video display (DVE).
After you move the playlist online, you can set the playlist to loop during output. Sequencer continues to play the job until you stop the output.
For each loop, the playlist restarts at the set start time, which is determined by the selected trigger type.
1 Switch to Online mode (CTRL+SHIFT+O). The Run tab becomes available.
2 Switch to the Run tab.
3 Select the Cycle checkbox. During output the playlist will loop.
During output you can set Sequencer to highlight the current event in the global playlist and the Sequencer playlist.
1 Switch to the Run tab. If you need to move online, press
CTRL+SHIFT+O.
2 Set your highlight option.
• To highlight the current event in the global playlist, select the Live
Playlist checkbox.
• To highlight the current event in the Sequencer playlist, select the
Live Update checkbox.
The render location determines where your events are rendered when you go online. You have two choices: local disk or remote. You can set the render location for each event in the playlist.
1 Select the event in the playlist.
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2 Switch to the Event Editor tab. If you need to move offline, press
SHIFT+CTRL+O.
3 Select the Local Disk or the Remote button to set the render location for the selected event.
Diamond marks events rendered remotely.
Circle marks events rendered to disk.
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Figure 6-29. Render Options
Render options
• Local Disk: Renders the event to a file on your local hard drive.
Image display latency depends on local drive access speed and image size.
• Remote: Renders the event to a remote location during output.
Image display latency depends on network or CD-ROM access time and image size.
Note:
Remote rendering occurs only when you setup or run the event. If images or fonts are not available at that point, the rendering process may fail or give unexpected results. The advantage of Remote rendering is that your hard drive space is not used to store the rendered events.
If you have a dual channel system, you can send your layouts to channel 1 or channel 2. Use the playlist, the Program palette, or the Event Editor tab to select the channel. The Program/Preview palette controls two program channels when you have a dual channel system.
On output, the event plays on the selected channel.
• Playlist: Use the Channel drop-down list to select the channel for the event.
• Program palette: Use the Channel buttons on the Program palette to assign a channel to the selected event.
• Event Editor tab: Use the Channel buttons on the Event Editor tab to assign a channel to the selected event.
Assigned channels
Channel list
Channel buttons Channel buttons
Figure 6-30. Dual Channel Options
Note:
You can output two events simultaneously. See
Simultaneously” on page 68 for details.
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You can use the DVE option to size and position live video by applying single-channel digital video effects (DVEs) to your layouts. G-Scribe makes a copy of the incoming video and shrinks it to the set size. On output, the
DVE window creates a video region containing the live video source. The
DVE plays on top of your events.
Roll event Live video in DVE window
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Black event background hides live video playing behind
Figure 6-31. DVE Example
When you play live video in a DVE window, the live video also continues playing in the background. For example, if you have a DVE playing over a roll event, the live video also plays in the background behind the roll event and is visible if the roll event has any transparent areas. Use a full screen background in your layouts to hide the live video.
DVEs are applied to the entire group so every event in the group appears in the DVE window. You can add as many group headers to your job as needed
(Playlist > Insert Group Header). When you output the group, the live video plays in the DVE window and the event plays in the background.
1 Select a group header.
2 Right-click on the Pop-Back icon (which looks like a dash or hyphen) in the group header, and then select Pop-Back from the menu.
After you click the Pop-back button, the currently selected DVE template is applied to all events in the group during output. The default template is full-screen.
DVE button
Figure 6-32: Pop-back DVE Button
3 To change the size and position of the DVE window, right-click on the
Pop-Back icon in the group header and select Edit from the menu.
Figure 6-33. Select Edit to Access the DVE Options
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4 In the Pop-back Templates dialog, do one of the following:
• Select another template that represents the size and position of the
DVE you want from the list. G-Scribe ships with preset templates.
• Reposition the DVE window, by dragging the DVE window in the preview panel of the dialog box.
5 Resize the DVE window, by holding down BOTH the right and the left mouse buttons, and then dragging the window.
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Figure 6-34: DVE Window
6 Save the template position and size.
• To save your changes in the same template, click the Update button.
• To save your changes as a new template, click on the Add button. In the Add Item dialog, enter a name and number for the DVE template.
Figure 6-35: Add New DVE Templates
G-Scribe includes a number of global output options that are available in every G-Scribe tool. For details on the global output options, see
”Global Output” on page 66 . The information in this section describes
the output options available in Sequencer.
The Run tab includes the output options for Sequencer, and is only available after you move the playlist online. When you switch to Online mode, Sequencer renders your events and prepares them for output. After all the events are rendered, the Run tab becomes available.
Move Online
To move online:
• Click the Offline/Online toggle button on the toolbar.
• When you click the Offline button G-Scribe moves the current playlist online, and the button changes to read Online. You can click the
Online/Offline button again to move offline.
Figure 6-36. Offline/Online Toggle Button
• Press CTRL+SHIFT+O.
Move Offline
To move offline:
• Click the Offline/Online toggle button on the toolbar.
When you click the Online button G-Scribe moves the current playlist offline, and the button changes to read Offline. You can click the
Online/Offline button again to move online.
Figure 6-37. Offline/Online Toggle Button
• Press CTRL+SHIFT+O.
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Online Folders
When you move online G-Scribe renders your events first and then displays the rendered file on output. The rendered files are saved in a folder that uses the name of your playlist.
For example, if your playlist is called MorningShow.scribelist the online folder is called morningShow.OnlineFiles.
The online folder is placed in the same location as your .scribelist file. You can use the Preferences dialog to change the default location for your online files.
1 Select File > Preferences.
2 In the Preferences dialog, switch to the Sequencer tab.
3 Click the Browse button below the On-Line Output Directory field.
4 In the Select On-Line Output Directory dialog, select the new folder for your online files and click OK. The new folder displays.
5 Click OK in the Preferences dialog to apply the change.
Figure 6-38. Change the On-Line Output Directory
After you move online you can access the options on the Run tab. The
Number and Label option allow you to quickly select events in the
Sequencer playlist.
Note:
You must be online (CTRL+SHIFT+O) to access the Run tab.
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Select Events by Number
After you enter the event number, the event is selected in the global playlist and the Sequencer playlist.
1 Switch to the Run tab.
2 Click the Number button.
3 Enter the event number.
4 Press ENTER. Sequencer selects the event.
Select Events by Label
After you enter the event name, the event is selected in the global playlist and the Sequencer playlist.
1 Switch to the Run tab.
2 Click the Label button.
3 Enter the event name.
4 Press ENTER. Sequencer selects the event.
You can use the Preview button on the Run tab to preview the selected event.
1 Select the event you want to preview.
2 Switch to the Run tab. If you need to, press CTRL+SHIFT+O to move online.
3 Click the Preview button. The event preview displays in the Preview palette and on your preview monitor.
Figure 6-39. Preview Button on Run Tab
Use the Take buttons on the Run tab to take a single event.
1 Select the event you want to take.
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2 Switch to the Run tab. If you need to, press CTRL+SHIFT+O to move online.
3 Use one of the Take options to take your event.
• Click on the Take Down button ( ) on the Run tab to take the current event and load the next event to the preview channel.
• Select the event in the Sequencer playlist and press the PLUS (+) key on the number pad. Pressing the PLUS (+) key outputs the layout and loads the next event in the playlist to the preview channel.
If you select a new event in the sequence and press the PLUS (+) key, the previously setup event will take to air. Set up the selected event by pressing the number pad MINUS (-) key. Then press the number pad PLUS (+) key to output the event.
• Click on the Take button ( ) on the Run tab to take the current event without loading the next event to the Preview Channel. You can also use the ENTER key on the number pad for the same effect.
Use the Run Job button on the Run tab to run the playlist from the selected event.
1 Select the event where you want to start playback.
2 Switch to the Run tab. If you need to, press CTRL+SHIFT+O to move online.
3 Click the Run Job button.
• If you are using the Manual or GPI trigger, press the SPACEBAR or
GPI button to trigger the events.
• If you are using the Timed, PC Clock, or Time Code trigger the events play based on their in points.
Use the Stop button on the Run tab to stop output after the current event completes playback.
1 Switch to the Run tab.
2 Click the Stop button. Output stops after the current event completes playback.
Note:
To stop playback immediately, press the Pause key. The current event freezes on-screen. You can click the CLR button above the
Program palette to clear the screen.
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You can clear the content of program channel or the preview channel using the Program/Preview palette.
• To clear the contents of the Preview palette, click the CLR button above the Preview palette.
• To clear the contents of the Program palette, click the CLR button above the Program palette.
Clear preview channel.
Clear program channel.
Figure 6-40. Clear Channel Options
Note:
You can clear the contents of the program and preview channels from any G-Scribe tool. This option is not specific to Sequencer.
Sequencer includes options for changing the output speed of rolls and crawls, and for playing your page-formatted (multi-page) rolls and crawls.
Change Roll/Crawl Output Speed
You can change the speed of a roll or a crawl during output.
• To increase the roll/crawl speed, press ALT+SHIFT+Page Up.
• To decrease the roll/crawl speed, press ALT+SHIFT+Page Down.
Pause Roll/Crawl Playback
You can pause the playback of rolls and crawls using the PAUSE key.
1 During the roll/crawl output, press the PAUSE key to pause the output.
2 Press the PAUSE key again to resume output.
Note:
You can pause the playback of rolls/crawls from any G-Scribe tool.
This option is not specific to Sequencer.
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Pause Multi-Page Rolls/Crawls
Use the Pause Page option to pause the playback of a multi-page roll or crawl (also called a page-formatted roll/crawl).
The multi-page roll/crawl displays as a separate group in the Sequencer playlist, and each page of the roll/crawl displays as a single event.
1 Select the page in the Sequencer playlist. Each page appears as a single event in the group.
2 Switch to the Effect Settings tab and check the Pause Page checkbox.
The output will pause on the selected page.
3 During output, to end the pause and restart playback, use the trigger assigned to the page-formatted group header.
When your playlist is online and you have started playback, you can switch to the Run tab to monitor your output activity.
The Run tab displays the current time code, the amount of time elapsed for the running playlist, the amount of the time left to complete playback, and the amount of free RAM currently available.
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Frame Grab allows you to capture a single frame from an incoming video signal and save it as a still image. Frame Grab includes special tools to crop ragged edges from the grab, filters to apply to the grab, and a variety of methods to save the image as a graphics file. Frame Grab is not available on all supported frame buffers.
To switch to Frame Grab from other G-Scribe modules, use one of the following methods.
• On the toolbar, click the Frame Grab button.
• Select Tools > Frame Grab.
• Press F7.
Frame Grab is a simple module. All the Frame Grab tools and options are located in the Attributes palette at the bottom of the window and on the
Frame Grab Edit menu.
Figure 7-1. Frame Grab Attributes Palette
The video plays in the Frame Grab window. To capture an image:
1 Click the Grab button.
The captured image is displayed in the Frame Grab window.
Note:
The video stops playing on your video monitor after you perform a grab. See
”Switch from Still to Live Video” on page 447 .
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After you grab an image, the video stops playing on your video monitor.
Frame Grab displays the captured image.
You can change the display on your TV monitor between live video and the last grabbed frame.
• To receive live video, click the Live Video button.
• To display the last grabbed frame, click the Still
Graphic button.
You may need to do this to compare your grab to the input signal when you are trying to decide whether the grab is okay or whether you need to change the filter options.
When you capture frames, you can exclude the key (transparency) information.
To capture only fill information:
• In the External Key Capture Option area of the Attributes palette, select the Fill Only option.
To capture key and fill information:
• In the External Key Capture Option area of the Attributes palette, select the Key + Fill option.
A frame is composed of two interlaced fields, separated by 1/50th or 1/60th of a second. Essentially, the input signal contains the even-numbered scan lines followed by the odd-numbered scan lines. If any object in the image moves during that fraction of a second, you see flicker in the display of a frame grab using both frames.
Frame Grab allows you to use various filters to correct for flicker. There are also other filters that let you modify the image. You can switch back and forth between the filter displays until you save the image. For details, see
”Use the Image Filters” on page 450
.
To quickly grab multiple frames:
• In Frame Grab or in Media Store, use the CTRL+G shortcut key to grab
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video frames.
Note:
Pressing CTRL+G does not update the Frame Grab window.
Depending on your hardware, you can grab a maximum of one frame per second.
G-Scribe temporarily saves each image in the Media Store Build set. To access the Build set:
1 If necessary, switch to the Media
Store module: on the toolbar, click the Media Store button.
2 On the Media Store toolbar, click the
Build button. For more information, see
”View Files Selected for Build” on page 478
.
To delete a grab from the Build set:
• Right-click the image, then select Delete from the right-click menu.
To keep frame grabs, add them to a Media Store database. For more information, see
”Add a Grab to Media Store” on page 456
.
Some frame buffers leave a ragged edge on the top and bottom of each image. It may look like the grab starts half way across a scan line. Normally, this rough area is well outside the safe title area, but you can use the cropping features to remove part of the image.
Frame Grab always centers crops. To crop an image:
• Adjust the value in the Crop field.
A white border in the Grab window marks the crop boundary. When you save the image, Frame Grab saves only the image information inside the marker. Cropping the image decreases the size of your image file.
Because you are cropping 4:3 or 16:9 images, depending on your video input, you can smoothly scale the images up to full screen again when you add them to Media Store. You may notice that the image quality is degraded
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if you enlarge the cropped image too much.
Table 7-1. Image Cropping Advantages and Disadvantages
Cropping Advantages Cropping Disadvantages
Eliminates the ragged edges on some frame grabs.
Scaling images back to full size may visually degrade image quality.
Only saves the relevant area of the image. Produces smaller images by eliminating unneeded image areas.
Cropped areas are permanently lost.
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Video signals contain two interlaced fields slightly offset in time. This offset causes grabbed frames to flicker. Decoded NTSC and PAL signals may have a certain amount of degradation or color distortions.
You can apply filter options to minimize flicker and clean up any distortion.
You can apply filters to the current grab and to new images.
To select and apply filters:
1 Click the Filter button to open the Filter and Clean-up
Options dialog.
2 Select the filters to apply to your grab by selecting the appropriate checkboxes, and then clicking OK. For a complete description of each filter, see
3 Select the Filter checkbox to apply the selected filters. The selected filters are applied to the grab as soon as you select the Filter checkbox.
Note:
When the Filter checkbox is selected the filters are automatically applied to new frame grabs.
Experiment with the filters to see the kind of effects you can achieve with them. The Flip and Monochrome filters usually provide the most noticeable effects.
The following topics list the available filter effects in Frame Grab.
Repeat Field 1
Duplicates the odd-numbered scan lines, replacing the even-numbered ones. The image appears to shift down.
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Repeat Field 2
Duplicates the even-numbered scan lines, replacing the odd-numbered ones. The image appears to shift up.
The Repeat Field filters successfully remove field flicker without blurring the image. However, because they completely remove one of the fields, they tend to add visual steps in the image.
Interpolate Field 1
Computes new data for even-numbered scan lines from the scan lines directly above and below. The odd-numbered scan lines remain unchanged.
Interpolate Field 2
Computes new data for odd-numbered scan lines from the scan lines directly above and below. The even-numbered scan lines remain unchanged.
The Interpolate Field filters remove inter-field jitter but increase vertical image softness. These filters generally do not increase visual steps in the image.
Adaptive Field 1
Modifies the luminance values for each pixel on even-numbered scan lines based on the luminance values for the pixels directly above and below. The odd-numbered scan lines remain unchanged.
Adaptive Field 2
Modifies the luminance values for each pixel on odd-numbered scan lines based on the luminance values for the pixels directly above and below. The even-numbered scan lines remain unchanged.
The Adaptive Field filters remove inter-field jitter without increasing vertical image softness. These filters generally do not increase visual steps in the image. The Adaptive Field filters are recommended for general frame grab clean-up.
Average Field 1
Computes new data for even-numbered scan lines by averaging each one
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with the line directly above.
Average Field 2
Computes new data for odd-numbered scan lines by averaging each one with the line directly above.
The Average Field filters average the two fields to remove flicker. In averaging the fields these filters tend to blur motion and slightly soften the image vertically.
Horizontal Flip
Flips the image left to right.
Vertical Flip
Flips the image top to bottom.
Blur Filter
Mildly blurs the image with a 3x3 convolution filter.
Sharpen Filter
Mildly sharpens the image with a 3x3 convolution filter.
Video Legalize
Checks the image for color values that will result in out-of-range values after an encoding process. Illegal colors are corrected to legal colors with an algorithm that attempts to maintain luminance values.
Monochrome
Performs a luminance conversion, converting images to 8-bit grayscale.
Dither
Removes contouring in imported graphics with a generalized noise filter.
Footprint Removal Field 1
Applies the average field filter to the field 1, followed by an adaptive field
filter to field 2.
Footprint Removal Field 2
Applies the average field filter to the field 2, followed by an adaptive field filter to field 1.
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As long as your frame buffer is configured correctly, G-Scribe automatically does all the setup required for a frame grab as soon as you switch to the
Frame Grab module. All you have to do is start the input feed. Frame Grab requires an encoder on the frame buffer board. It does not work on the
VMAXX-10 board. On other systems, frame grabs are saved as 16- or 32-bit image files, but transparency is lost.
When you switch to Frame Grab, G-Scribe sets your frame buffer to video passthrough so that you can see the incoming signal on your video monitor.
If you have trouble, check the following items.
Table 7-2. Set Up Troubleshooting
Problem Possible Solutions
No Input Signal Check the cable connections and the setup options in your frame buffer configuration software. Some frame buffers fail to switch to video passthrough if you select the wrong input type in the configuration software.
Scrambled Signal Check that the horizontal and vertical frame buffer resolutions match the input signal resolution.
Check these values on the General Preferences tab.
No Sync Check your sync input source and the sync options in the frame buffer configuration software.
When you have more than one frame buffer installed, you can perform a grab from any frame buffer board. To select a board:
• Use the Program palette. For information on the Program/Preview
palette, see ”How Do I Use the Program/Preview Palette?” on page 34 .
• Click a channel button in the Attributes palette.
To limit grab capability to one board only, edit Inscribe.ini and change the
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FrameGrabOnBoards entry in the [Configuration] section. By default, this entry is set to 0, which enables frame grabs from any board. To limit grabs to one particular board, change this value to 1, 2, or 3 to match the board to grab from. For example, to limit grabs to board 2, set FrameGrabOn Boards to 2:
[Configuration]
FrameGrabOnBoards=2
By default, Frame Grab does not initialize the current board to Live when you switch to the Frame Grab module. This means that the output on the channel is not disrupted until you click the Live button.
For convenience, you can set up your system to automatically initialize the board to Live when you switch to Frame Grab. Change the
FrameGrabInitLive value in Inscribe.ini to 1 instead of the default value of 0.
[Configuration]
FrameGrabInitLive=1
Once you have grabbed an image in Frame Grab, there are four ways to save it.
• Save the grabbed image to a file.
• Copy the grabbed image to the Clipboard for use with other applications.
• Add the grabbed image to the Scrapbook.
• Add the grabbed image to a Media Store database.
Save a Grab to a File
You can save a frame grab as a graphics file that you can use in Inscriber programs or graphics applications.
1 Click the Save Grab to File button.
2 Navigate to the drive and folder in which to save the file.
3 Select a file type for the image file.
You can save the image as a 24-bit .bmp file (the key information is lost) or a 32-bit .vii or .tga file.
Most graphics applications can read .tga and .bmp image files. Other
Inscriber programs can read .vii files.
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4 Enter a filename, and click OK.
Save a Grab to the Clipboard
You can paste a grabbed image directly into another Windows application.
1 Click the Save Grab to Clipboard button.
2 Switch to the other application.
3 To insert the image, select Edit > Paste.
Add a Grab to the Scrapbook
You can add a frame grab to the G-Scribe Scrapbook to quickly use it in other modules.
1 Right-click the Scrapbook and then select Add.
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To use the grab in another module:
1 Switch to the module.
2 In the Scrapbook, right-click the image and then select Use.
For example, in Sequencer, the grab is added to the Event list and an image thumbnail appears in the playlist. You can set transition and duration information for the image.
Note:
The Scrapbook is a temporary file that is deleted when you close
G-Scribe. To keep any images permanently, ensure that you save them.
For more information on the Scrapbook, see
.
Add a Grab to Media Store
You can capture a frame and directly add it to the Build Set in Media Store.
To add an existing frame grab to Media Store, use the Scrapbook.
1 To capture a frame, press CTRL+G (instead of pressing the Grab button). The image is added to the Build set (and saved in the directory specified by the FrameGrabDirectory entry in the [Preferences] section of the Inscribe.ini file).
Note:
You can grab a frame in Frame Grab or Media Store.
2 If necessary, switch to the Media
Store module: on the toolbar, click the Media Store button.
3 Using the Build Media Store dialog, add the image to a Media Store database. For more information, see
”Create a Database” on page 474 .
To delete a grab:
1 In the Build Media Store dialog, select the image.
2 Click the Remove button.
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Media Store provides a searchable list of stills, video clips, and animations. Media files display as thumbnails with text descriptions in the Media window.
Using Media Store, you can quickly find and use media files. You can browse for media files or create
Media Store databases of media files, which can be organized into folios containing related files.
Searches are based on date, keywords, title, media file number, or other attributes. You can take a media file to video in real-time or add files to the playlist.
You can easily switch between modules using the buttons on the toolbar or the options from the Tools menu.
To switch to Media Store, use one of the following methods.
• On the toolbar, click the Media Store button.
• Select Tools > Media Store.
• Press F9.
The Media Store interface has the following components.
• Media window
• Navigation pane
• Media Store toolbar
• Attributes palette
• Shot Box palette
• Media Store palette
• Playlist
• Scrapbook
• Program/Preview palette
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Playlist Navigation Pane Media Window Media Store Toolbar
Shot
Box
Palette
Media
Store
Palette
Program/Preview Palette Attributes Palette
Figure 8-1. Media Store Interface
Scrapbook
There are two modes in Media Store, browse mode and database mode, which control the media displayed in the Media window and the buttons on the Media Store toolbar.
Media Window
The Media window displays thumbnail previews for the media files in the
current folio. For information on folios, see ”Media Store Toolbar and
. Non-graphic files, such as text and executable files, do not display. For video clips and animations, the thumbnail displays the first frame.
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Media Store lists descriptive information for each file on the label below its thumbnail.
• Source icon
• Media number (assigned by
Media Store)
• Filename without extension (by default)
Source
Icon
You can display the file’s title or first keyword instead of the filename. For more information, see
”Change the Thumbnail Text” on page 515 .
Table 8-1. Media File Source Icons
Source Icon
Media
Number
Filename
File Type and Source
Image or layout on local drive
Image or layout on network drive
Image or layout on removable drive
Image included in database
Video or animation on local drive
Video or animation on network drive
Video or animation on removable drive
To display a larger preview of a media file, hover the mouse pointer over the thumbnail label.
Figure 8-2. Large Preview of a Media File
Editable template thumbnails display a T icon in the top right corner. The T indicates that the file is a template layout.
Figure 8-3. T Icon - Template Layout
For information on changing the thumbnail display in the Media window, see
”Update Thumbnails” on page 492
.
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Navigation Pane
In the navigation pane, you can browse local, removable, and network drives for media files. When you select a folder in the navigation pane,
Media Store switches to browse mode and the Media window displays thumbnail previews of the media files in the folder.
Media Store Toolbar and Modes
Using the Media Store toolbar, you can control the Media Store mode
(browse or database) and select the “folio” (a group of related media files) displayed in the Media window.
In each mode, the Media Store toolbar provides access to distinct folios.
For example, in database mode there is a folio of all the media files in the current Media Store database (Global folio) and there are collection folios to which you can assign database files, such as files that have the same source or subject. To display the media files of a folio in the Media window, click the corresponding button on the Media Store toolbar.
The Browse button on the toolbar allows you to switch between browse mode and database mode. If the Browse button is selected, the browse mode toolbar displays and the Media window displays browsed media files.
Global Browse Button
Browse Set Button
Recent Browse List
Figure 8-4. Browse Mode Toolbar
Note:
If you use the navigation pane to browse the files in a folder, Media
Store switches to browse mode. For more information, see
Use the toolbar to select the media files displayed in the Media window.
Table 8-2. Browse Mode Toolbar
Button/List Function
Global Browse button
(See
Displays all the media you have browsed using the navigation pane.
Browse Set button
(See
Displays search results from last browse mode search. For more information, see
.
B1 button
Scan button
Displays the contents of the folder selected in the navigation pane (Browse folio). After you have browsed several folders, click the Global
Browse button to display all the media files in the folders browsed.
Sets up folders to monitor for updates. For
more information, see ”Scan Files for Updates” on page 492 .
Displays a list of the last ten folders browsed.
Recent Browse list
(See
Build button
Browse button
Displays media in the Build set, files to be added to the Media Store database in the next build. For more information, see
Database” on page 474 . Clicking this button
switches Media Store to database mode.
Stops browsing files on drives and switches to database mode, so that you can view files in a
Media Store database.
To switch to database mode, click the Browse button on the Media Store toolbar (so that it is not selected). The database mode toolbar displays and
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the Media window displays the media files in the current Media Store database.
Global Button
Set Button
Collection Folio Buttons
Figure 8-5. Database Mode Toolbar
The Media Store module opens in database mode. For more information on
databases, see ”Media Store Databases” on page 474 .
Use the toolbar to select the media displayed in the Media window.
Table 8-3. Database Mode Toolbar
Button Function
Set (See
F1-F12
Build
Displays the media files in the current Media
Store database.
Displays search results from your last database
search. For more information, see ”Search for
Collection folios that you can use to organize files. To add media to these folios, drag thumbnails from the media window to a collection folio button. For more information, see
”Collection Folios” on page 487
.
Displays media in the Build set, files to be added to the Media Store database in the next build. For more information, see
.
Table 8-3. Database Mode Toolbar
Button Function
Local/System
Browse
Switches the collection folio buttons (F1-F12) between the Local collection folios and the
System collection folios. For more information, see
”Collection Folios” on page 487
.
Stops viewing database files and switches to browse mode, so that you can browse files on drives. You can also click a folder in the navigation pane to switch to browse mode and browse the files in that folder.
Note:
The Global and Set folios available from the database mode toolbar are different from the Global Browse and Browse Set folios available from the browse mode toolbar.
Attributes Palette
The Attributes palette contains tabs that display descriptive information for a media file, such as title, keywords, transition type, file type, and database storage information.
Figure 8-6. Attributes Palette
For database media files, the Attributes palette contains the Memo tab on which you can enter notes for the file. For database image files, the Image
Info tab shows whether the file has been added to the database (instead of referenced) and, if so, any compression algorithm applied to the image.
For information on updating media file titles, keywords, and memos, see
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”Update Thumbnails” on page 492 .
Media Store Palette
The Media Store palette provides quick access to functions.
Figure 8-7. Media Store Palette
Table 8-4. Media Store Palette Buttons
Button Function
Saves the updated information for a media file.
Searches for media files. For more information, see
”Search for Media” on page 498
.
Finds a media file. For more information, see
Finds the next media file matching the find criteria. For more information, see
Sorts the thumbnails in the Media window. For more information, see
”Sort Media Files” on page 493 .
Table 8-4. Media Store Palette Buttons
Button Function
Adds media files in the Build set to a Media Store database. For more information, see
”Create a Database” on page 474
.
Edits the current folio name.
Deletes files selected in the Media window. For more information, see
”Delete Media Files” on page 497
.
Shot Box Palette
The Shot Box palette provides a quick keyboard method for finding and outputting files in the Media window or playlist. The Store/Play button switches between selecting files from the Media window and selecting files from the playlist. To access a media file, enter its media number in the
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Number field.
Program Channel Buttons
Store/Play Button
Learn Mode Button
Number Field
Preview Button
Take Button
Defined Buttons
Find Button
Figure 8-8. Shot Box Palette
You can perform the following tasks using the Shot Box.
• Find and then select or preview a media file. For more information, see
”Find a File Using the Shot Box Palette” on page 502 .
• Add media files to the playlist. For more information, see
Files to the Playlist Using the Shot Box Palette” on page 511
.
• Define media files that you can take to video with a single-click. For more information, see
”Set Up Media Files for Single-Click Takes” on page 513 .
•
Take media files to video. For more information, see ”Take Media Files
Using the Shot Box Palette” on page 513 .
Playlist
The playlist contains thumbnails of all the events in the current playlist.
Using the playlist, you can quickly add, move, copy, or replace events.
Every module contains the playlist. For more information, see
and
”Edit Playlist Options” on page 397 .
In Media Store, you can quickly add media files to layouts and then take
them to video. See
”Add Media Files to the Playlist” on page 510 .
Scrapbook
The Scrapbook can temporarily store layouts, images, logos, and other media items for transfer between modules. When you exit G-Scribe, the
Scrapbook is emptied. For more information, see ”How Do I Use the
.
Program/Preview Palette
The Program/Preview palette allows you to view the contents of the
Program Channels and Preview Channel. For more information, see ”How
Do I Use the Program/Preview Palette?” on page 34
.
To browse folders on local, removable, or network drives, use the navigation pane to the left of the Media window.
1 In the navigation pane, navigate to the folder to browse.
2 To view thumbnails of the files in the folder, select the folder. Media
Store displays only the files of the selected folder in the Media window.
For more information, see
When you display the contents of a folder in the navigation pane, Media
Store switches to browse mode.
Figure 8-9. Use Navigation Pane to Browse Folders
The buttons on the Media Store toolbar control the folder or folio displayed
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in the Media window.
Table 8-5. Browse Folders and Folios
Button/List Function
Global Browse button
Browse Set button Displays search results from last browse mode search.
B1 button
Displays all the media you have browsed using the navigation pane.
Displays the contents of the folder selected in the navigation pane. After you have browsed several folders, click the Global Browse button to display all the media files in the folders browsed.
Recent Browse list Displays a list of the last ten folders browsed.
For more information on browse mode, see
.
You can export media files displayed in the Media window.
1 Select a media file in the Media window. Use the CTRL and SHIFT keys to select multiple thumbnails.
2 Select File > Export > Export Selected Store Images.
3 In the dialog, select a file type and location and then click OK. Media
Store names the files numerically. If you save multiple files, the files are saved sequentially by number.
Metadata is data used to describe a media file, including transition information and keywords. Because all users in a multi-user environment share the same metadata, the attribute settings for each media file are synchronized without using a central database. For example, if you update the keyword list for a media file, all other users see the change. Using
metadata, you can also easily recover the Attributes palette settings (see
”Attributes Palette” on page 467 ) for all the media files you browse or add
to a Media Store database.
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If you edit the attributes of a media file in browse mode, Media Store creates a metadata file for the media file. Also, Media Store creates a metadata file for every media file you add to a database using the following methods.
• Browsed media files
• Frame grabs captured by pressing CTRL+G
The metadata file contains all the media file information from the Media
Store Attributes palette, including the following.
• Title
• Keywords
• Key information, such as file type and size
• Memo (database media files only)
• Transition information: type, direction, and duration
• Default output channel
• Video clip information: mark in and mark out points, duration, and loop setting
The metadata for browse mode is distinct from the metadata for database mode, so you can set different attribute values for a media file in the two modes.
The metadata file is created in the same directory as the corresponding media file. The metadata filename is the same as that of the media file, with an .xm_scribe file extension. For example, if you browse or add to a database the file image1.bmp, Media Store creates a metadata file named image1.bmp.xm_scribe.
The metadata file is updated if you edit the attributes of a media file (in browse mode or database mode), so the metadata is always up to date. To create a metadata file for a media file in an existing Media Store database, edit the file attributes, for example, append a new keyword to the keyword list.
You can easily recover a lost or corrupt database by recreating the database and adding your media files. Media Store uses the metadata files to recover the Attributes palette settings for all your files. For more information, see
”Recover a Database” on page 490 .
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A Media Store database is a searchable collection of media files stored on a local or network drive. You can build and use many databases, switching between them as needed. Creating a database of your media files makes searching fast and easy.
This section describes how to set up Media Store databases and view database files.
• Add media files to the Build set, and then build the files into a database as a batch process. For more information, see
”Create a Database” on page 474
.
• View database media files in the Media window. For more information, see
”View Database Files” on page 486 .
• Organize database files in folios. For more information, see ”Collection Folios” on page 487 .
• Switch between databases. For more information, see ”Switch Current Database” on page 489 .
To create a database, complete the following steps.
1 Create a database location.
2 Add the files to build into the database to the Build set. You can view the files in the Build set by clicking the Build button on the Media
Store toolbar.
3 For each file, you must set a title and at least one keyword. You can verify the spelling accuracy using the Spell Checker and search for synonyms or antonyms using the Thesaurus.
4 For each file, set the media options: image sizing and compression.
5 Build the database. You can add only selected files or all the files in the
Build set.
To add media files to an existing database, switch to the database (see
”Switch Current Database” on page 489 ), and then add the files to the Build
set and build the files into the database (steps 2-5).
Create a Database Location
The default Media Store database location is in your product installation folder. It is recommended that you store all databases on a network drive.
The first step in creating a database is to set the locations for the database, the user folios, and the browsed files.
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1 Select File > Preferences. The Preferences dialog opens.
2 In the Preferences dialog, switch to the Store Paths tab. You enter the information for the new database in the Store Locations area at the bottom of the tab.
Figure 8-10. Store Paths Tab - Store Locator Area
3 In the Location Name field, enter a name for the new database.
4 In the Server field, enter the network path for the database, or click the
Browse button and navigate to the network path.
5 In the Local field, enter the local path for the user folios, or click the
Browse button and navigate to the local path.
6 In the Browse field, enter the network path for the browsed files, or click the Browse button and navigate to the network path.
7 Click the Add button.
8 To close the Preferences dialog, click OK. The new database is now the active database.
For information on switching between databases, see
.
Add Browsed Files
You can browse for files to add to the Build set using the navigation pane or the Build Media Store dialog. For information on browsing folders, see
”Browse Media Files” on page 471 .
Use the navigation pane to browse files.
1 In the navigation pane to the left of the Media window, navigate to and select each folder that contains files to add.
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2 On the Media Store toolbar, click the Global Browse button. The
Media window displays thumbnails of the media files in all the folders you browsed.
3 In the Media window, select the files to add and drag them to the Build button on the Media Store toolbar.
Note:
You can drag files from the Media window to the Build button immediately after selecting the folder that contains them.
You can also add files to the Build set using the Build Media Store dialog.
1 To open the Build Media Store dialog, click the Add to the Store button on the Media Store palette.
Add to the Store Button
Figure 8-11. Media Store Palette - Add to the Store Button
The Build Media Store dialog lists all the files in the Build set.
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Figure 8-12. Build Media Store Dialog
2 To add files to the Build set, click the Browse button.
3 In the Open dialog, navigate to the files to add.
4 Select the files.
You can preview a file in the preview region in the top right corner of the dialog.
5 To add the files, click the Open button.
Add Frame Grabs
You can add frame grabs to the Build set as images.
1 If you need to adjust any frame grab options, such as filters, switch to the Frame Grab module and update the options. You can grab frames in either the Frame Grab module or the Media Store module.
2 To grab a frame, press CTRL+G. The image is added to the Build set.
Add Files from Other Modules
You can add media files from other modules to the Build set.
1 Grab an image in Frame Grab, create a layout in CG, or create a logo in
Paint.
2 Right-click the Scrapbook in the bottom right corner of the Media
Store window, and then select Add.
Figure 8-13. Add a Media File to the Scrapbook
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3 Switch to the Media Store module: on the toolbar, click the Media
Store button.
4 Drag the item from the Scrapbook to an empty area in the Media window. The Build Media Store dialog opens with the file added.
Add Files from Other Applications
You can add media files from other applications to the Build set.
1 In the application, copy the media to the Windows clipboard by using the Edit menu or by pressing CTRL+C.
2 Open or switch to G-Scribe.
3 Switch to the Media Store module: on the toolbar, click the Media
Store button.
4 Select Edit > Paste Image. The Build Media Store dialog opens with the file added.
View Files Selected for Build
To view the media files in the Build set (folio), click the Build button on the
Media Store toolbar. The Media window displays the files in the Build set.
If you are in browse mode, Media Store switches to database mode
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Figure 8-14. Build Set
Set Titles and Keywords
Before you add a file to the database, you must set a title and at least one keyword. You can search for or sort files using titles and keywords.
You can set a default title or list of keywords for all media files. For more information, see
”Set the Default Title and Keywords” on page 516
.
To add or edit the titles and keywords of files you are adding to your
database, complete the following steps.
1 To open the Build Media Store dialog, click the Add to the Store button on the Media Store palette. The Build dialog lists all the files in the Build set. See
Figure 8-11 on page 476 and Figure 8-12 on page 476
.
2 In the Build Set area, select a file.
3 In the Image Storage area, add or edit the title. Ensure that you use a descriptive title so that you can easily search for the file.
If you specified a title in browse mode, it is displayed in the Titles field.
4 In the Image Storage area, add or edit the list of keywords. Separate entries with a space character. Enter keyword phrases with quotation marks.
flags international “Canadian flag” patriotism
If you specified keywords in browse mode, they are displayed in the
Keywords field.
It is recommended that you create a plan for creating keywords.
Consistently apply your plan when adding keywords. Keyword lists should include general information about the file (for example, orientation and project) and specific details (for example, nouns and adjectives that describe the contents).
5 For each file in the Build set, repeat steps 2-4.
When adding a title and keywords to a media file, you can also:
• Spell check the title or keywords. See
• Search for synonyms or antonyms. See
.
•
Set media options for an image file. See ”Set Media Options” on page 484 .
You can edit the title and keywords assigned to a media file after you build it into a database. You can also add a memo to a database media file. For more information, see
”Update Thumbnails” on page 492 .
Spell Checker
When you are building media into a database, use the Spell Checker functionality to verify the spelling of the title and keywords. By using correct spelling, you can more easily find files in the database.
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1 To open the Build Media Store dialog, click the Add to the Store button on the Media Store palette. The Build dialog lists all the files in the Build set. See
Figure 8-11 on page 476 and Figure 8-12 on page 476
.
2 In the Build Set area, select a file.
3 To verify the spelling of text in the Title or Keywords field, click the Spell Checker button beside the field.
If any text is unrecognized, the Suggestions dialog opens.
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Figure 8-15. Suggestions Dialog
4 Using the Suggestions dialog, review all unrecognized words.
• To replace the unknown word with the word in the Suggestion field, click the Replace button.
• To replace the unknown word with a word in the Suggestion List, click the replacement word and then click the Replace button.
• To add the unknown word to the dictionary, click the Add or Add to
Default button.
• To update how the Spell Checker selects misspelled words, click
the Options button and then select the options to enable.
Figure 8-16. Spell Options Dialog
• To close the Suggestions dialog before reviewing all unknown words, click the Quit Checking button.
5 For each file in the Build set, repeat steps 2-4.
Thesaurus
When you are building media into a database, use the Thesaurus functionality to find synonyms or antonyms to use in the title or keyword list. By adding synonyms, you can more easily find files in the database.
1 To open the Build Media Store dialog, click the Add to the Store button on the Media Store palette. The Build dialog lists all the files in the Build set. See
Figure 8-11 on page 476 and Figure 8-12 on page 476
.
2 In the Build Set area, select a file.
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3 To search for synonyms or antonyms of text in the Title or
Keywords field, click the Thesaurus button beside the field. The
Thesaurus dialog opens.
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Figure 8-17. Thesaurus Dialog
4 If the title or keywords list contains multiple words or phrases, edit the text in the Word list to search for synonyms or antonyms of one word or phrase.
5 By default, the Thesaurus searches for synonyms. To search for antonyms, select the Antonyms option.
6 To perform the search, click the Look Up button.
7 If no matches are found, verify the spelling.
a Click the Check Spelling button.
The Spelling Suggestions dialog opens.
b To select one of the suggestions, double-click the correctly spelled entry.
8 Results are organized by category. Click the appropriate category.
9 To replace the original word or phrase, double-click an item in the
Synonyms or Antonyms list.
10 Click OK.
11 For each file in the Build set, repeat steps 2-10.
In addition to the built-in thesaurus, Media Store has a user thesaurus that you can customize.
1 In the Thesaurus dialog, click the Modify User Thesaurus button. The
Modify User Thesaurus dialog opens.
Figure 8-18. Modify User Thesaurus Dialog
2 To add a new category of synonyms, complete the following steps.
a In the Categories area, click the Add button. The New Category dialog opens.
b In the Category field, enter the category name.
The category name is automatically added as a synonym in the category.
c In the Word Class area, select the part of speech for the category.
d Click OK.
3 To add a synonym to a category, complete the following steps.
a In the Categories area, select the category to add the synonym to.
b In the Synonyms area, click the Add Word button.
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c In the New Word dialog, enter the new synonym. Click OK.
Figure 8-19. New Word Dialog
4 To remove a synonym from a category, complete the following steps.
a In the Categories area, select the category to remove the synonym from.
b In the Synonyms area, select the synonym to remove.
c In the Synonyms area, click the Delete Word button.
5 To remove a category, remove all its synonyms.
6 To save your changes to the user thesaurus, click OK.
Set Media Options
In addition to the mandatory title and keyword for each file, you can specify media storage options for image files.
1 To open the Build Media Store dialog, click the Add to the Store button on the Media Store palette. The Build dialog lists all the files in the Build set. See
Figure 8-11 on page 476 and Figure 8-12 on page 476
.
2 In the Build Set area, select a file.
3 To include the file in the database, select the Include Image checkbox
(only image files can be included). To create a reference to the file in the database, clear this checkbox.
Including files ensures that they are available and provides fast retrieval, but requires a potentially large amount of disk space on a single drive.
4 In the Image Storage area, select the image size option for the file.
Table 8-6. Image Size Options
Option Description
Original Res Use default file size. If the image is larger than the screen, it is cut off when displayed.
Size to Fit Image always displays at largest size possible, but maintains aspect ratio (no distortion).
Size to Full
Screen
Image fills the screen, which may distort the image.
5 If you include a file, you can apply compression to it to reduce disk requirements. In the Image Storage area, select the compression option for the file.
Table 8-7. Image Compression Options
Option Loss Description
LZW No
HKF Yes
• Photographic images achieve 25-50% compression.
• Suitable for all files.
• Slowest compression method.
• 16- and 24-bit photographic images achieve at least 10:1 compression.
• Not suitable for 32-bit images (because it removes the alpha channel), 8-bit images, or most computer-generated images.
• Combined with less than full screen sizing, images display surrounded by black (not alpha).
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Table 8-7. Image Compression Options
Option Loss Description
VII No
Best
Lossless
No
• Some files achieve over 20:1 compression.
• Suitable for computer-generated images, including graphic pages from
CG.
• May compress photographic images.
• Fastest compression method.
• Performs both LZW and VII compression. If one file is smaller, it chooses that compression method.
Otherwise, no compression is applied.
• Suitable when adding various file types.
6 For each image file, repeat steps 2-5.
Build a Database
The final step in creating (or adding files to) a Media Store database is to build it.
1 To open the Build Media Store dialog, click the Add to the Store button on the Media Store palette. The Build dialog lists all the files in the Build set. See
Figure 8-11 on page 476 and Figure 8-12 on page 476
.
2 To build the database, click the Build All button.
OR
To add only the files selected in the Build Set area, click the Build
Selected button.
Note:
It is recommended that you build a database when you are not working in Media Store, for example, overnight or over a weekend.
To view the media files in the current Media Store database, click the
Global button on the Media Store toolbar. Media Store displays the database media files in the Media window.
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Note:
Ensure that the Browse button on the toolbar is not selected. If you are browsing files (see
”Browse Media Files” on page 471 ), click the
Browse button on the Media Store toolbar (so that it is not selected) to view database files.
When you are viewing database files, Media Store displays the database mode toolbar. See
.
The buttons on the Media Store toolbar control the folio displayed in the
Media window.
Table 8-8. Database Folios
Button Function
Global Displays the media files in the current database.
Set
F1-F12
Displays search results from your last database search.
Collection folios that you can use to organize files. To add media to these folios, drag thumbnails from the media window to a collection folio button. For more information, see
”Collection Folios” on page 487
.
Local/System Switches the collection folio buttons (F1-F12) between the Local collection folios and the System collection
folios. For more information, see ”Collection Folios” on page 487 .
For more information on database mode, see ”Media Store Toolbar and
.
Collection Folios
You can group media files displayed by the Global button (Global folio) or the Set button (Set folio) into collection folios. The Set folio contains your most recent search results. You can group media using any criteria you choose, for example, by client, playlist, or contents.
1 Ensure that the Browse button is not selected on the Media Store toolbar, and then click the Global Database button or the Set button.
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2 To place a copy of a file into a folio, drag the its thumbnail from the
Media window to a collection folio button (F1-F12) on the toolbar. You can add a media file to more than one folio. Organizing your media files in folios allows you to group related media files.
• To organize your media files into categories that are available to only you, ensure that the Local/System button reads Local before dragging thumbnails to the F1-F12 buttons.
• To organize your media files into categories that are available to all users, ensure that the Local/System button reads System before dragging thumbnails to the F1-F12 buttons.
Note:
Media files added to a collection folio remain in the source folio; they are not deleted.
3 To view the media files in the folios, click the F1-F12 buttons.
• To view media files available to only you, ensure that the Local/
System button reads Local before clicking a toolbar button.
• To view media files available to all users, ensure that the Local/
System button reads System before clicking a toolbar button.
Set Up an Existing Database
You can access Media Store databases that you did not create. To set up access, specify the location of the database and set the locations for the user folios and the browsed files. (You set up access to your databases when you create them. See
”Create a Database Location” on page 474 .)
1 Select File > Preferences. The Preferences dialog opens.
2 In the Preferences dialog, switch to the Store Paths tab. You enter the information for the existing database in the Store Locations area at the bottom of the tab.
Figure 8-20. Access an Existing Database
3 In the Location Name field, enter a name for the database.
4 In the Server field, enter the database path, or click the Browse button and navigate to the database.
5 In the Local field, enter the local path for the user folios, or click the
Browse button and navigate to the local path.
6 In the Browse field, enter the network path for the browsed files, or click the Browse button and navigate to the network path.
7 Click the Add button. You can now access the database in Media Store.
8 To close the Preferences dialog, click OK.
Switch Current Database
Media Store supports the use of multiple Media Store databases. To access a database that you did not create, you must first set up access to the
database. For more information, see ”Set Up an Existing Database” on page 488 .
You can switch between databases using the following three methods.
1 Select File > Media Store List. The submenu lists all the databases that you have access to. The current database has a checkmark beside it.
2 From the submenu, select the database to view.
OR
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1 Select Media Store > Switch Current Media Store To. The submenu lists all the databases that you have access to. The current database has a checkmark beside it.
2 From the submenu, select the database to view.
OR
1 In the navigation pane, click the plus symbol (+) beside Stores. The
Media Store database list displays.
2 From the Media Store database list, select the database to view.
If you encounter database problems with your Media Store databases, use the Media Store tools to recover.
Rebuild a Database
To rebuild your database:
1 Select File > Media Store Utilities > Rebuild Database.
Note:
Rebuilding your database creates a new Global folio and deletes all other database folios (Global Set and collection folios).
Recover a Database
If the File > Media Store Utilities > Rebuild Database command does not fix your database problems, you can manually rebuild the Media Store database. Media Store uses metadata files (see
help recover the Attributes palette settings, such as the title, keywords, and transition information, for all your media files.
To restore your database, complete the following steps.
1 If your Media Store database is corrupt, delete its folder.
To determine the location of your database folder: a Select File > Preferences.
b Switch to the Store Paths tab.
c In the Store Locations area, the Server field displays the database folder.
2 Add each media file to the Build set. For more information, see
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Note:
To add frame grabs, you must browse to the folder that contains the images (specified by the FrameGrabDirectory entry in the
[Preferences] section of the Inscribe.ini file).
3
Open the Build Media Store dialog. See Figure 8-11 on page 476 and
.
4 For each media file, set media options. Media options specify the following.
• Whether to include an image in the database or simply reference it
• Image size
• Image file compression (only for included images)
For more information, see
”Set Media Options” on page 484 .
Note:
The title and keyword list are automatically recovered.
5
Build the media files into the database. For more information, see
”Build a Database” on page 486
.
Media Store automatically recovers the attribute information for each media file from its corresponding metadata file.
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You can control how the thumbnails display in the Media window and update the descriptive information for thumbnails selected in the Media window.
• Monitor media files in browsed folders for updates.
• Change the size of the thumbnails.
• Change the order of the thumbnails using sort methods.
• Edit the title and keywords assigned to one or more media files. Using titles and keywords, you can easily search for media files.
• Add a memo to a database media file.
• Delete a file from disk, a folio, or a database.
For information on changing the text that displays below thumbnails, see
”Change the Thumbnail Text” on page 515
.
.
The Scan dialog lets you monitor browsed folders for changes to media files. Scanning the files forces Media Store to check the selected files and update the Media window with any changes.
1 Switch to browse mode: ensure that the Browse button on the toolbar is selected.
2 To open the Scan dialog, click the Scan button on the toolbar.
3 In the Scan for Media dialog, select the checkboxes beside the folders to scan for updates.
4 Limit the number of scanned files by selecting a file type from the list on the right side of the dialog. To select multiple file types, use the
SHIFT or CTRL key. Media Store scans all media files in a folder for changes if no file types are selected.
To scan the files for updates, click the Scan button in the dialog.
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To view more thumbnails on-screen, display the thumbnails in the Media window at a size smaller than the default stamp size.
1 Click the Media Store menu.
2 In the stamp sizes section of the menu, select a thumbnail size: Full
Stamp Size, 3/4 Stamp Size, 2/3 Stamp Size, or 1/2 Stamp Size.
Note:
To display a large preview of a single media file in the Media
window, hover the mouse pointer over the thumbnail label. See
By default, files in the Media window are sorted by the media number assigned by Media Store. You can change the sort order so that Media Store sorts the files by date, keyword, title, resolution, or user/owner.
Note:
You cannot change the display order of the thumbnails in the Browse
(B1) folio. They are always sorted by media number.
To change the sort order for the items, use the Sort functionality.
1 Select Media Store > Sort.
2 In the Sort Key dialog, select a sort option.
3 Click OK.
Browse Folios
Browse Set - The sort order is used until you perform another search. New search results are sorted by media number.
Global Browse - The sort order you select is set as the default sort order for this folio. The Global Browse folio uses this sort method until you select a new sort method using the Sort functionality.
Database Folios
The sort order is used in only the current Media window. When you close
G-Scribe or change folios, the sort order resets to the default database sort order.
To change the default database sort order, use the Preferences dialog. For more information, see
”Set the Default Database Media Sort Order” on page 516
.
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You can edit the title assigned to a browsed media file or a database media file.
• For a browsed media file, the default title is the filename.
• For a database media file, you must assign a title when you add the file to a database.
To edit the title of a file, complete the following steps.
1 Ensure that the Browse button is in the correct position: selected to update a browsed file, not selected to update a database file.
2 Select a folio that contains the file to update.
3 In the Media window, select the thumbnail.
4 In the Attributes palette at the bottom of the window, select the Key
Info tab.
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Figure 8-21. Attributes Palette - Key Info Tab
5 In the Title field, edit the title.
6 To save the changes, press ENTER on the main keyboard.
You can also edit multiple titles by appending the same text to the existing titles or replacing the existing titles with the same text.
1 Ensure that the Browse button is in the correct position: selected to update a browsed file, not selected to update a database file.
2 Select a folio that contains the files to update.
3 To select multiple thumbnails in the Media window, use the SHIFT or
CTRL key.
4 In the Attributes palette at the bottom of the window, select the Key
Info tab.
5 In the Title field, edit the title.
6 To append the entered text to the existing titles, press CTRL+ENTER.
Use the ENTER key on the main keyboard.
OR
To replace the existing titles with the entered text, press
SHIFT+ENTER. Use the ENTER key on the main keyboard.
Keywords are descriptive words assigned to media files. Once you assign keywords to a media file, you can search for the file using keywords.
You can edit the keywords assigned to a browsed media file or a database media file.
• For a browsed media file, the default keywords are the words in the file path.
• For a database media file, you must assign at least one keyword when you add the file to a database.
To edit the keyword list of a file, complete the following steps.
1 Ensure that the Browse button is in the correct position: selected to update a browsed file, not selected to update a database file.
2 Select a folio that contains the file to update.
3 In the Media window, select the thumbnail.
4 In the Attributes palette at the bottom of the window, select the Key
Info tab. See Figure 8-21 on page 494 .
5 In the Keywords field, update the keyword list.
6 To save the changes, press ENTER on the main keyboard.
You can also add keywords to multiple files or replace the keywords assigned to multiple files.
1 Ensure that the Browse button is in the correct position: selected to update a browsed file, not selected to update a database file.
2 Select a folio that contains the files to update.
3 To select multiple thumbnails in the Media window, use the SHIFT or
CTRL key.
4 In the Attributes palette at the bottom of the window, select the Key
Info tab.
5 In the Keywords text field, enter the keywords to add.
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6 To add the keywords to the selected files, press CTRL+ENTER. Use the
ENTER key on the main keyboard.
OR
To replace the existing keywords with the entered keywords, press
SHIFT+ENTER. Use the ENTER key on the main keyboard.
For only database media files, you can add notes about files, such as the source, copyright, permissions, and history.
1 Switch to database mode: ensure that the Browse button on the toolbar is not selected.
2 Select a folio that contains the file to update.
3 In the Media window, select the thumbnail.
4 In the Attributes palette at the bottom of the window, select the Memo tab.
Figure 8-22. Attributes Palette - Memo Tab
5 In the text field, enter text to describe the file. The window scrolls if necessary.
6 On the Media Store palette, click the Update Image Info button.
Update Image Info Button
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You can delete files in browse mode or database mode. In browse mode, you delete the file from disk. In database mode, you can delete a file from one folio or all folios and can also delete the file from disk.
Delete a File from Disk
You can delete media files from disk when browsing in the Media window.
1 Switch to browse mode: ensure that the Browse button on the toolbar is selected.
2 In the navigation pane, select the folder that contains the file to delete.
3 In the Media window, right-click the thumbnail and then select Delete from the menu.
4 In the confirmation dialog, click OK.
Delete a Media File from a Database
You can delete a media file from a Media Store database folio without deleting the file from the database.
1 Switch to database mode: ensure that the Browse button on the toolbar is not selected. Otherwise, you will delete the file from disk.
2 Select the folio to delete the file from.
3 In the Media window, right-click the thumbnail.
4 From the right-click menu, select Delete. The file is deleted from the folio.
You can also delete a media file from a database. The file is removed from all folios.
1 Switch to database mode: ensure the Browse button on the toolbar is not selected. Otherwise, you will delete the file from disk.
2 Select the Global folio.
3 In the Media window, right-click the thumbnail.
4 From the right-click menu, select Delete.
5 In the confirmation dialog, you can select whether to delete the source file from disk.
• To delete the file from the database, but leave the source file on disk, click No.
• To delete the file from the database and disk, click Yes.
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You can scroll through media files in Media Store databases or browse drives and folders using the navigation pane to find a file. If you have many media files, this is a tedious process.
To find media files quickly, use the Find and Search dialogs. Search criteria can be simple or combine multiple search keys, such as title, date, keywords, and media number.
• Search for all the files that match your search criteria. For more information, see
”Perform a Search” on page 498 .
• Find the first (or next) file that matches your search criteria. For more information, see
• Reuse search criteria to search for and find files more quickly. For more information, see
Using Previous Search Criteria” on page 503
.
When searching, you can display or select the search results.
• Display only the files that match your search criteria in the Media window. For more information, see
”Display All Search Results” on page 503 .
• Select the files that match your search criteria in the Media window, but display all the files in the
searched folio. For more information, see ”Select All Search Results” on page 504 .
After selecting a folio to search, you specify search criteria based on the following search keys.
• Keywords
• Media resolution
• Title
• Media type
• User name
• Media number
• Date
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Figure 8-23. Search Dialog
Search criteria can be simple with a single search key or complex with multiple search keys and operators. You can also access previous search criteria.
To search for a single file that matches your criteria, use the Find dialog. If you know the media number of and folio containing the media file, you can quickly select it by entering the media number in the Shot Box.
Set Up a Simple Search
Media Store allows you to search for files based on keywords, media resolution, title, media type, user name, media number, and date. You can search for media in any folio except the Build set.
1 Using the buttons on the toolbar, display the media to search in the
Media window.
2 To open the Search dialog, click the Search button on the Media Store palette.
3 From the Search Key list, select a search key.
Table 8-9. Search Keys
Search Key Description
Keywords Descriptive words assigned to the media file
Media Resolution Resolution of the media file
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Table 8-9. Search Keys
Search Key Description
Title
Media Type
User Name
Number
Date
Name assigned to the media file
File format of the media file
User who added the media file
Media number assigned by Media Store
File creation date
4 In the Available attributes list, double-click an attribute value. The attribute appears in the Key Search Criteria field.
5 To perform the search, click the Search button.
Set Up an Advanced Search
Advanced searches help to set your search parameters by narrowing or expanding your search criteria. You can search for media in any folio except the Build set.
1 Using the buttons on the toolbar, display the media to search in the
Media window.
2 To open the Search dialog, click the Search button on the Media Store palette.
3 From the Search Key list, select a search key. For descriptions of search keys, see
.
4 In the Available attributes list, double-click an attribute value.
OR
In the Operators list, double-click * or ?. For operator descriptions, see
”Use Search Operators” on page 501 .
The criterion appears in the Key Search Criteria field.
5 If necessary, add additional criteria.
To add criteria using the same search key, repeat the following steps.
a In the Operators list, double-click an operator (AND, OR, NOT).
For operator descriptions, see
”Use Search Operators” on page 501 .
b Specify the attribute value using the Available attributes or
Operators list.
To add criteria using a different search key, repeat the following steps.
An AND operator is automatically inserted between criteria.
a From the Search Key list, select another search key.
b Specify the attribute value using the Available attributes or
Operators list.
6 To perform the search, click the Search button.
Use Search Operators
An advanced search (see
”Set Up an Advanced Search” on page 500 ) uses
multiple search criteria with operators. The operators help to set your search parameters by narrowing or expanding your search criteria.
Table 8-10. Search Operators
Operator Function
*
?
AND
OR
NOT
Matches any value
Matches any single character
Both the previous and the following criteria must be matched
Either the previous or the following criteria must be matched
The following criterion must not be matched
Find a File
The Find dialog selects individual search results based on the criteria set in the Key Search Criteria field. The Find dialog closes after a search and selects the first media file that matches the search criteria in the Media window.
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1 Using the buttons on the toolbar, display the media to search in the
Media window.
2 Open the Find dialog (Media Store > Find).
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Figure 8-24. Find Dialog
3 Add attributes to the Key Search Criteria field. For more information, see
”Set Up a Simple Search” on page 499
or
4 Click the Find button. The dialog closes and Media Store selects the first media file matching the search criteria in the Media window.
5 To select the next file matching the search criteria, select Media Store
> Find Again.
Find a File Using the Shot Box Palette
In the Shot Box palette, you can access a media file using its media number.
For general information about the Shot Box, see
”Shot Box Palette” on page 469
.
1 On the Shot Box palette, click the Store/Play toggle button to read
Store. (If the button reads Play, the Shot Box searches the playlist.)
2 Using the buttons on the toolbar, display the media to search in the
Media window.
3 In the Shot Box Number field, enter the media number. (To quickly set the focus to the Number field, press the F12 key.)
4 To select the media file, click the Find button on the Shot Box palette or press the ENTER key on the main keyboard--not the ENTER key on the number pad.
OR
To preview the file in the Preview window of the Program/Preview palette, click the Preview button on the Shot Box palette. For more information on the Program/Preview palette, see
Program/Preview Palette?” on page 34 .
Search Using Previous Search Criteria
Previous search criteria are saved in the Recent Searches list.
1 Using the buttons on the toolbar, display the media to search in the
Media window.
2 To open the Find or Search dialog, click the Find button or Search button on the Media Store palette.
3 In the Recent Searches list, double-click the appropriate entry.
4 Edit the search criteria.
5 To perform the search, click the Find or Search button.
Search dialog results can be used in several ways. You can choose to display only the search results that match your criteria or you can select the search results in the Media window while still displaying all the files in the searched folio.
To allow you to refer to the most recent search results in browse mode and database mode, you can assign your last search results to the Browse Set folio (in browse mode) or the Set folio (in database mode).
You can also define a playlist using search results. For more information, see
”Create a Playlist from Search Results” on page 511 .
Display All Search Results
You can display the results from the Search dialog.
1 In the Search dialog, define search criteria. For more information, see
”Set Up a Simple Search” on page 499
or
”Set Up an Advanced Search” on page 500
.
2 Click the Search button.
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• If the Auto Build Set Folio checkbox is selected, the Search dialog closes after the search with the search results displayed in the
Media window. The search results are assigned to the Set or Browse
Set folio. For more information on these folios, see
• If the Auto Build Set Folio checkbox is cleared, the search results are displayed at the bottom of the Search dialog.
You can view the results as thumbnails or a text list. To switch views, click the List/Thumbnail toggle button in the top right corner of the Search Results area.
List
Button
Figure 8-25. Search Results - List View
Thumbnail
Button
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Figure 8-26. Search Results - Thumbnail View
To display the search results in the Media window and assign the results to the Set or Browse Set folio, click the Set Folio button.
(For more information on these folios, see
Folios” on page 505 .) When you click the Set Folio button, the
Search dialog closes.
Select All Search Results
You can use the Select All button to select all of your search results in the
Media window. Other files in the searched folio still display in the Media window, but only the results are selected. For example, if you are searching
your Media Store database files, use the Select All button to select only the database files that match your search criteria.
1 In the Search dialog, define search criteria. For more information, see
”Set Up a Simple Search” on page 499
or
”Set Up an Advanced Search” on page 500
.
2 Clear the Auto Build Set Folio checkbox.
3 Click the Search button. The search results are displayed at the bottom of the Search dialog.
4 To select all the results in the Media window, click the Select All button. When you click the Select All button, the Search dialog closes.
Note:
The Set and Browse Set folios are not updated when you select all
search results. For more information on these folios, see ”Set and
Browse Set Folios” on page 505 .
Set and Browse Set Folios
The Set and Browse Set folios contain your most recent database search results and browse search results, respectively. For more information on
database and browse modes, see ”Media Store Toolbar and Modes” on page 464 .
To display the Set folio files, click the Set button on the Media Store toolbar in database mode.
Set Button
Figure 8-27. Database Mode Toolbar - Set Button
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To display the Browse Set folio files, click the Browse Set button on the
Media Store toolbar in browse mode.
Browse Set Button
Figure 8-28. Browse Mode Toolbar - Browse Set Button
You can refine the search results in the Set or Browse Set folio by searching the media files in one of these folios.
In addition to viewing thumbnail previews of media files in the Media window and previewing files in the
Program/Preview palette, you can also check files, set transition effects, and trim video clips before using them.
.
• Set default transition effects for media files. For more information, see
”Set Transition Effects” on page 508
.
• Trim video clips if they are too long or have extra content at the beginning or end. For more information, see
”Set Transition Effects” on page 508
.
Media Store provides many ways to quickly use media files, such as clicking or dragging thumbnails in the
Media window and using the Shot Box palette.
• Add media files to the playlist at the left side of the window, and then switch to another module to update or use the playlist. For example, you can use the Sequencer module to edit timing and trigger options. For more information, see
”Add Media Files to the Playlist” on page 510 .
• Take media files to video. For time-critical output, assign media files to Shot Box Defined buttons: you can take an assigned file to video with a single-click. For more information, see
”Take Media Files to Video” on page 512 .
Before using media files, you can check the files.
• Verify that a media file is available for use
• View the transparency levels of a media file
For information on previewing media files in the Program/Preview palette, see
”How Do I Use the Program/Preview Palette?” on page 34 .
Check Media File Reference
To check whether a media file is referenced correctly in the Media window, select the thumbnail in the Media window and then select Media Store >
Check Reference.
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• If Media Store displays a message stating that the media file is available, you can use the file in the playlist or take it to video.
• If Media Store displays a message stating that the media file is not available, the file cannot be used.
Note:
Image files that are included in a Media Store database (instead of simply referenced) are always available.
View Media File Transparency
You can view the transparency levels of the media thumbnails in the Media window.
1 To preview the media file transparency levels, right-click a thumbnail in the Media window.
2 Select Show Alpha from the right-click menu. The thumbnail displays the transparency levels of the file.
• Black indicates completely transparent areas.
• White indicates completely opaque areas.
• Shades of gray indicate different levels of transparency.
3 To view the original full-color preview, right-click the thumbnail and then select Show Alpha to remove the checkmark.
You can set default transition effects for a media file, including trimming and looping video clips.
1 In the Media window, select the thumbnail.
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2 In the Attributes palette at the bottom of the window, select the
Transition tab.
Figure 8-29. Attributes Palette - Transition Tab
3 Select a transition type, such as Wipe or Dissolve, from the list.
4 Select a transition direction by clicking one of the buttons below the transition type list.
5 In the Frames field, enter the duration for the transition.
6 To set an output channel, click one of the Program buttons.
7 For video clips, you can set the trim in and trim out times, and loop the clip. The Duration field displays the clip duration.
a In the Mark In field, enter a new in point for the clip.
b In the Mark Out field, enter a new out point for the clip.
c To loop the clip, select the Loop checkbox.
8 On the Media Store palette, click the Update Image Info button.
The Scissors icon displays in the bottom-right corner of the media file thumbnail to indicate that a transition has been set for the file.
Figure 8-30. Scissors Icon
The transition information is included with the media file each time you add it to the playlist. To adjust the transition, use the Sequencer module. For
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more information, see
”Apply Transitions” on page 409 .
There are many methods that add media files to the playlist.
• Drag a media file from the Media window to the playlist.
• In the Search dialog, click the Build Job button to create a playlist using the results of a search.
• Drag a folio from the toolbar to create a playlist using the media files in a folio.
• Use the Shot Box palette to quickly add one or more media files to the playlist.
Add Media Files from the Media Window
To add a media file to the playlist, drag the media file from the Media window to the playlist.
1 Using the buttons on the toolbar, display the media to add in the
Media window. For example, to display Media Store database files, click the Global Database button.
2 Drag a thumbnail from the Media window to the playlist. You can insert the file above, below, or as a replacement for the active playlist event.
The cursor indicates where the file will be inserted.
Table 8-11. Media Insertion Cursor
Cursor Description
Inserts the new event above the active event
Replaces the active event with the new event
Inserts the new event below the active event
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To set the file as a logo, texture, or background, use the following key combinations when you drag the file.
• CTRL-drag adds the file to the playlist as a logo.
• CTRL+SHIFT-drag adds the file to the playlist as a texture.
• CTRL+ALT+SHIFT-drag adds the file to the playlist as a background.
Create a Playlist from Search Results
You can create a playlist from your search results.
1 In the Search dialog, define search criteria. For more information,
2 see
”Set Up a Simple Search” on page 499
or
3 Clear the Auto Build Set Folio checkbox.
4 Click the Search button. The search results are displayed at the bottom of the Search dialog.
5 To create the playlist, click the Build Job button. Media Store prompts you to save the current playlist before placing the search results in a new playlist.
Note:
This operation replaces the existing playlist with a new playlist.
Create a Playlist from a Folio
To define a playlist using the contents of a Media Store database folio, drag the folio to the playlist.
1 Drag a database folio from the Media Store toolbar to the playlist.
2 In the dialog, specify whether to save the previous playlist.
Note:
This operation replaces the existing playlist with a new playlist.
Add Media Files to the Playlist Using the Shot Box Palette
Using the Shot Box, you can quickly add files to the playlist. For general information about the Shot Box, see
”Shot Box Palette” on page 469 .
1 Using the buttons on the toolbar, display the media to add in the
Media window.
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2 On the Shot Box palette, click the Store/Play toggle button to read
Store. (If the button reads Play, the Shot Box searches the playlist.)
3 To enable the Learn mode, click the LRN (Learn Mode) button on the
Shot Box palette.
4 In the playlist, select the item that will precede the media file.
5 Select the folio containing the media files to insert. The media files display in the Media window.
6 In the Shot Box Number field, enter the media number of the file to insert. The media number for a file is displayed below its thumbnail in the Media window. (To quickly set the focus to the Shot Box Number field, press the F12 key.)
7 To add the file below the selected playlist item, click the Take button on the Shot Box palette or press the ENTER key on the number pad--not the ENTER key on the main keyboard.
Note:
The file is also output on the active output channel. See
Media Files Using the Shot Box Palette” on page 513 .
8 To add more media files to the playlist, repeat steps 4 to 7.
9 To disable the Learn mode, click the LRN (Learn Mode) button on the
Shot Box palette.
You can easily take media files in Media Store to video.
Use one of the following methods to take your media file.
• Double-click the thumbnail in the Media window.
• Drag the thumbnail from the Media window to the Program palette.
• Select the thumbnail in the Media window or enter the file's media number in the Shot Box Number field, and then click the Take button on the Shot Box palette. Ensure that the LRN button is not selected on
the Shot Box palette. For more information, see ”Take Media Files
Using the Shot Box Palette” on page 513 .
• Click one of the four Shot Box Defined buttons on the Shot Box palette. For more information, see
”Set Up Media Files for Single-Click
Takes” on page 513 and ”Take Media Files Using the Shot Box Palette” on page 513 .
• Select the thumbnail in the Media window and press the ENTER key on your keyboard number pad.
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Set Up Media Files for Single-Click Takes
Using the Shot Box Defined buttons, you can output a Media Store database media file in real-time with a single click. The Shot Box palette contains four Defined buttons that you can assign media files to. For general information about the Shot Box, see
”Shot Box Palette” on page 469
.
1 Select the database folio containing the media file to assign to a
Defined button. The folio's media files display in the Media window.
2 Locate the media file to assign to a Defined button.
3 Drag the media file to one of the Defined buttons
(labeled 1-4) in the bottom right corner of the
Shot Box palette.
4 In the message dialog, click Yes to confirm that the file be assigned to the Shot Box Defined button.
Take Media Files Using the Shot Box Palette
Using the Shot Box, you can quickly output Media Store database files.
Media files display on the active output channel. If there are multiple output channels installed on your system, select a program channel button (P1, P2, or P3) on the Shot Box palette to use it to display media files.
To take a media file in real-time with a single click, click one of the Shot
Box Defined buttons (labeled 1-4). For information on setting up the Shot
Box Defined buttons, see ”Set Up Media Files for Single-Click Takes” on page 513 .
• Click one of the four Defined buttons (labeled 1-4) in the bottom right corner of the Shot Box palette. The assigned media file outputs immediately on the active output channel.
Note:
The tooltip for a Shot Box Defined button includes the media number of the media file assigned to it.
For files that are not assigned to a Shot Box Defined button, you can take the files using the Shot Box Number field on the Shot Box palette.
1 Using the buttons on the toolbar, display the media to take in the
Media window.
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2 On the Shot Box palette, click the Store/Play toggle button to read
Store. (If the button reads Play, the Shot Box searches the playlist.)
3 On the Shot Box palette, ensure that the LRN (Learn Mode) button is not selected.
4 Select the folio containing the media file to take. The media files display in the Media window.
5 In the Shot Box Number field, enter the file's media number. The media number for a file is displayed below its thumbnail in the Media window. (To quickly set the focus to the Shot Box Number field, press the F12 key.)
6 To output the file on the active output channel, click the Take button on the Shot Box palette or press the ENTER key on the number pad--not the ENTER key on the main keyboard.
Setting the Media Store preferences allows you to control the Store behavior.
• Display options for the Media window
• Default title and keywords for database media files
• Date format
To update the default values, use the Preferences dialog (File > Preferences).
Figure 8-31. Preferences Dialog - Store Paths and Folios Tabs
Below each thumbnail in the Media window, Media Store displays a source icon (see
”Media Window” on page 461 ) and media number followed by one
of the following.
• Filename
• First keyword
• Title
By default, Media Store displays the filename. You can change the default so that Media Store displays the first keyword or title assigned to the media file.
1 Open the Preferences dialog (File > Preferences).
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2 Switch to the Store Paths tab.
3 In the Thumbnail Text section, select the File
Name, Keyword, or Title option.
4 Click OK.
You can change the default order of Media Store database file thumbnails in the Media window. The default sort order is None, which sorts the files by media number.
1 To change the default sort order, open the
Preferences dialog (File > Preferences).
2 Switch to the Folios tab.
3 Select a new sort order: None, Number, Date,
Keyword, Title, Resolution, or User.
4 Click OK.
For more information on sorting, see
.
A default title and default keywords can be assigned to every media file included in a Media Store database build. You can enter the default title and keywords on the Store Paths tab in the Preferences dialog.
1 Open the Preferences dialog (File > Preferences).
2 Switch to the Store Paths tab.
3 In the Default Title field, enter the default title.
4 In the Default Keywords field, enter the default keywords. Separate entries with a space character. Enter multiple word keywords using quotation marks.
flags international “Canadian flag” patriotism
5 Click OK.
Media Store supports three date formats: DD-MM-YYYY, MM-DD-YYYY, and YYYY-MM-DD. The format is controlled by the Date Format option.
Media Store date fields, for example, the file date on the Key Info tab, use the format specified by the Date Format option. Also, if you define a search using the Date search key, you must use the current Media Store date format.
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To change the Media Store date format, use the Preferences dialog.
1 Open the Preferences dialog (File > Preferences).
2 Switch to the Store Paths tab.
3 In the Date Format section, select the DDMMYY,
MMDDYY, or YYMMDD option.
4 Click OK.
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Paint is a full featured image manipulation application that lets you edit, retouch, and add alpha to bitmap images and Paint files. The sophisticated tools in Paint make it easy to clean up logos and images. With a variety of filters, you can create effects quickly and easily. Paint also makes it easy to create textures for use in the CG Editor.
You can easily switch between modules using the buttons on the Toolbar or the options from the Tools drop-down menu.
To switch to Paint, use one of the following methods:
• On the Toolbar, click on the Paint button.
• Select Tools > Paint.
• Press F8 on the main keyboard.
Paint is a full-featured, bitmap-based image manipulation application. It lets you create, edit, retouch, and add alpha to bitmap images. These images can be used as logos, backgrounds, and textures in the CG Editor, or added to Media Store. You can import files from other applications in many file formats, including 32-bit formats containing alpha. Any image, layout, or frame from Media Store, CG, Animation, or Frame Grab can be edited as a bitmap in Paint.
The Paint interface has the following components:
• Paint Workspace
• Attributes Palette
• Tools Palette
• Right-click Menu
• Status Bar
• Scrapbook
• Preview/Program Palette
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Playlist Paint workspace
Tools palette
Status Bar
Program/Preview palette
Attributes palette
Figure 9-1. Paint Interface
Scrapbook
Paint Workspace
The Paint workspace is restricted to the boundaries of the image you are working on. You cannot work outside the image area.
Use the Color tools to paint an image, the Alpha tools to manipulate image alpha, the Selection tools to select the parts of the image to work on, the
Transformation tools to transform a selected area, or the Image Editing tools to edit the image. Paint offers a variety of filters and supports
Photoshop compatible plug-in filters. Paint also has unlimited layers so you can easily create complex graphics.
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Attributes Palette
The Attributes Palette contains tabs for easy access to all of Paint’s options, such as View, Brush, Color, Select, Transform, Layers, and Filter. Click on the tab name to display the contents of the tab.
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Figure 9-2. Paint Attributes Palette Tabs
The following table describes the functions of the Paint attributes palette tabs.
Table 9-1. Paint Attributes Palette Tabs
Tab Description
View
Brush
Sets the workspace display options such as; Zoom, RGB or Alpha, Grid, Cursor, and Video Safe Title Area.
Contains all the brush options, including Tool type,
Shape, Style, Opacity, Texture, and Brush attributes.
Color Contains Color Picker options, Foreground and
Background colors, a list of the six most recently used colors, Color Chips, and a Color Tester.
Contains the Selection Tools and Options.
Select
Transform Controls the transformation of your selection such as;
Move, Scale, Skew, Rotate, Flip Horizontally, and Flip
Vertically.
Table 9-1. Paint Attributes Palette Tabs (Continued)
Tab Description
Layers
Filter
Contains a thumbnail view of all the layers in your Paint image.
You can add, delete, duplicate, rearrange, and merge layers in this tab.
Contains the filters available to enhance you image such as; Alpha Adjustment, Color Adjustment, and Distortion
(including sharpen, blur, and pixelize).
Tools Palette
The Tools palette contains all of the tools available in Paint. The palette includes the General, Transformation, Selection, Alpha, Color, and Image
Editing tools. Many tools share one Tools palette button. Multi-tool buttons are indicated by a small triangle on the lower right side of the button. To access the additional tools, click and hold the mouse over the
desired tool button. See "Work with Paint Tools" on page 534 for details.
Figure 9-3. Paint Tools Palette
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Table 9-2. Paint Palette Tools
Icon Name
General Tools
Zoom
Icon Name
Scroll (Pan)
Color Picker
Transformation Tools
Move
Rotate
Freeform
Selection Tools
Selection Move
Wand
Rectangular Selection
Elliptical Selection
Lasso
Scale
Skew
Brush Selection
Luminance Wand
Column Selection
Scan Line Selection
Linear Lasso
Table 9-2. Paint Palette Tools (Continued)
Icon Name Icon Name
Color Tools
Pencil Brush
Airbrush
Fill
Eraser
Line
Linear Gradient
Radial Gradient
Tolerance Fill
Luminance Fill
Alpha Tools
Alpha Add
Alpha Subtract
Alpha Memory
Alpha Fill
Image Editing Tools
Clone
Clone Fill
Alpha Luminance Fill
Alpha Tolerance Fill
Alpha Linear Gradient
Alpha Radial Gradient
Burn
Luminance Add
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Table 9-2. Paint Palette Tools (Continued)
Icon Name Icon Name
Smear Luminance Subtract
Blur
Offset
Dodge
Saturation Add
Saturation Subtract
Texture
Active Channels
You can select which image channels (red, green, blue, or alpha) you want to work on. When you first launch paint, all channels are selected. See
"Work with Channels" on page 581 for details.
Figure 9-4. Active Channels
Status Bar
The status bar displays the image size, cursor coordinates, zoom level, and any modifiers for the current tool. You can view this information on various tabs, but the status bar provides a summary in one easy location.
Figure 9-5. Paint Status Bar
Right-Click Menu
You can access all the Tools by positioning the cursor anywhere on the
Paint workspace and pressing the right mouse button.
Figure 9-6. Right-Click Menu
Scrapbook
You can use the Scrapbook to move Paint layers or composite images to and from other G-Scribe modules without importing or exporting them.
This lets you use your images without saving them as separate files, as the images are saved in your .scribelist file instead. However, this method uses a lot more memory. If you transfer an image to the Scrapbook, all layer information is lost.
Program/Preview Palette
The Program/Preview palette allows you to see how events look on the preview channel before sending them to the program channel.
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Paint provides alpha tools, color tools, image editing tools, selection tools, transformation tools, and filters for fast editing of the images you need to get online.
If you use logos frequently, cropping and removing image information from around logos or objects may be one of the most important reasons to use
Paint. This task is often called logo clean-up. The sophisticated alpha tools in Paint make cleaning up logos easy.
You can add alpha to small areas of your image or make whole areas of your image transparent. These images can then be saved as Inscriber .ipt format
files and imported into CG as logos. See "Work with Alpha Tools and
Logos" on page 540 for details.
You can create a series of artistic brush stroke styles and paint an image
from scratch using the color tools. See "Paint an Image" on page 549 for
details.
You can retouch images or remove unwanted objects or artifacts, such as telephone poles or scratches, from your images to make them more presentable on air. You can also selectively copy and offset areas using the
Clone and Offset tools, and you can edit the luminance values of your image. You can also apply color correction filters to adjust the image color, contrast, or levels. See
for details.
Backgrounds and collages can be used in a variety of situations.
Backgrounds are images used behind CG text. Collages combine and blend multiple images into a single composition. Collages can be used for many purposes, such as backgrounds and over-the-shoulder graphics.
The selection tools make it easy to edit parts of images. To edit a certain area of an image, simply make a selection around the area. You can also import and export selections for later use. See
"Modify Selections" on page 555 for details.
You can apply transformations to an entire image or to selected areas of an image. Paint has five transformation tools: Move, Scale, Skew, Rotate, and
Freeform. See "Work with Channels" on page 581 for details.
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Textures and patterns can accentuate text and graphics in CG and can also be used as backgrounds. You can use the image editing tools to create seamless textures for use in CG. See
"Create Textures" on page 574 for
details.
Paint’s image filters let you adjust image color and create a variety of effects. You can clean up frame grabs, colorize black and white photographs, or legalize image colors for display to video.
You can apply filters to an entire image or layer, to selected areas of an image, to imported files, or images transferred into Paint from the
Scrapbook. See
"Work with Filters" on page 569 for details.
You can create complex and stunning images with layers. For example, you can use the alpha tools to blend images on different layers together. The number of layers you can use is limited only by your system’s resources. See
"Work with Layers" on page 579
for details.
Every layer is made up of four channels: red, green, blue, and alpha. You can paint, retouch, transform, and apply filters to each channel individually.
See
"Work with Channels" on page 581 for details.
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The main thing to remember about working with files in Paint is that Paint files are not saved with the
.scribelist file. Paint has its own file format that contains layer information, but when used in other modules, Paint images are only composite images—they do not contain layer information.
The Paint file format (.ipt) is more than just another bitmap file format.
Paint files contain all image layers, opacity settings, and alpha values. The
.ipt format also contains the current selection and a bitmap composite of all image layers. If you save your image in any other format (except .lgo), you may lose the alpha channel.
Paint is a single file application. This means you can only have one file open at a time. However, you can use layers as separate files and export visible layers in a bitmap format (.lgo, .tga, etc.).
You can create a new Paint file by selecting Edit > Create New Image. You can specify the image size in pixels and the background color and opacity.
When you create a new image, Paint creates a blank canvas showing 100% alpha. Because there are no color tools, you must either use the Alpha
Subtract tool to add opacity, or use the Edit menu to copy another image onto your canvas.
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Figure 9-7. New Image Dialog Box
To open an existing file or image, select File > Import/Export. To open a playlist, click on the Open button on the toolbar. This option only opens a job file in the playlist; it does not open image files.
Import Options
When you want to work with an existing image, you can transfer it into Paint through the Scrapbook, or import it into the Paint workspace using File >
Import/Export. The following table describes all the import options available in Paint.
Table 9-3. Import Options
Options Description
Import Paint Document...
Imports a Paint (.ipt) file.
Import Image...
Imports any bitmap file.
Import Photoshop File...
Imports a Photoshop (.psd) file.
Import Image Sized to Fit
Layer...
Import Image as
Transformation...
Imports a bitmap file sized to fit the current canvas size.
Imports a bitmap file as a transformation in the current image.
Import Selection...
Import Texture...
Import Color Chips...
Import Color Chips
(Append)...
(Once you clear the transformation, you can no longer move it separately)
Imports a bitmap file as a selection.
(once you clear the selection, you can no longer move it separately from the image)
Imports an image to use as a texture for any brush-based tools.
Imports a palette file (.aco) and overwrites the existing color chips.
Imports a palette file (.aco) and adds it to the existing color chips.
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You can import a surface texture to be used by the Texture tool or other brush-based tools. Select File > Import/Export > Import Texture. In the
Select Channel dialog, you can set the texture size and which image channels you want to use for the texture. Use the Texture field on the Brush tab to set the amount of texture each tool paints with. See
and
"Edit an Image" on page 563 for details.
When you want to save an image in Paint, you have to export it. If you select the Save button on the toolbar, G-Scribe saves the current playlist, not the
Paint image. If you save your image as an .ipt or .lgo file, the alpha channel is retained when you use the image elsewhere in G-Scribe. If you save your images in any other format, you may lose the alpha channel.
Export Options
The following table describes all of the export options available in Paint.
Table 9-4. Export Options
Options Description
Export Paint Document
Export Image...
Export Current Layer as
Image...
Export Selection...
• Exports the current image as an .ipt file.
• Saves all alpha and layer information.
• Exports current file as a bitmap image.
• Flattens the image into a single layer.
• Alpha information may be lost.
• Exports the current layer as a bitmap image.
• Alpha information may be lost.
• Exports selection outline as a bitmap image.
• Exports selection contents as a bitmap.
Export Selection
Contents...
Export Color Chips...
• Exports the current color chips as a palette (.aco) file.
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Importing and exporting image selections gives you greater control over your work. If you create a selection you know you are going to need later, you can use the File > Import/Export menu options to export the selection and import it again when you need it.
You can change the image or canvas size by selecting Edit > Image and
Canvas Size. Resizing the image scales the image, while resizing the canvas crops or adds canvas space without scaling the image.
To resize an image:
1 Enter the new image size (in pixels) in the Width and Height fields.
2 Click on the Resize Image button.
3 Click OK.
To resize the canvas:
1 Enter the new canvas size (in pixels) in the Width and Height fields.
2 Select one of the nine positioning buttons to select where the image will be located on the new canvas. For example, the Top Left button aligns the top left corner of the image with the top left corner of the canvas.
3 Click OK.
Figure 9-8. Image and Canvas Size Dialog Box
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Paint uses six types of tools: general, transformation, selection, alpha, color, and image editing tools.
Most of the alpha, color, and image editing tools are brush-based. That is, they edit the image as if you were using a paint brush on canvas.
Most of the color, image editing, and alpha tools, along with the Brush Selection tool, are all brush-based. These tools act on the image in ways similar to a paint brush, using attribute settings from the Brush tab. Paint has sixteen default brushes, but at any point you can redefine brush shapes and characteristics. See
"Work with Brush Tools" on page 536
and
"Brush Attributes" on page 537
for details.
You can select any tool by clicking on a Tools palette button or by using the right-click menu, You can select a brush-based tool (alpha, color, and image editing) from the Tool menu on the Brush tab.
The Attributes palette tabs contain options for various tools.
• The View tab contains options for the Zoom tool.
• The Brush tab contains brush attributes for the color, image editing, and alpha tools.
• The Select tab contains options for the selection tools.
• The Transform tab contains options for the transformation tools.
The Tools palette is displayed in groups of similar tools. Many tool buttons on the palette contain flyout tool menu that reveal additional tools. Buttons with flyout tools are identified by a small black arrow in the bottom right corner of the button. For example, the Brush, Pencil, Airbrush, and Eraser tools share one button. When you click and hold this button, a flyout appears with the tool options. The tool that you select from the flyout is the one that appears on the tool button.
Figure 9-9. Tools Palette Flyout
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There are three general tools on the Tools palette. They are described in the following table.
Table 9-5. General Tools
Tool Name
Zoom
Scroll (also called
Pan)
Color Picker
Description
• Zooms the view in or out.
• To zoom in, click on the image; to zoom out, hold the ALT key while clicking.
• Scrolls or pans a zoomed in view.
• You can hold the SPACEBAR to quickly switch to and use the Scroll tool while using another tool.
• Picks the color under the cursor.
• Click anywhere in the image to select a color.
• The Color tab displays the last six colors chosen with the Color Picker.
There are two color pickers in Paint: one on the Tools palette, and one on the Color tab. While you can use either tool to select colors, they behave slightly differently.
The Tools palette Color Picker remembers the last six colors selected, and displays them on the Color tab. The Color tab Color Picker does not have memory; it’s main use is for quickly selecting a color without having to switch tools. You can use the Color tab Color Picker to select a color from anywhere on your computer monitor. The Tools palette Color Picker tool only selects colors from the Paint workspace. See
"Work with Color" on page 544 for details on the Color tab Color Picker.
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The Brush tab contains all the options for working with brushes. There are sixteen default brushes, but at any point, you can redefine the shape and characteristics for any brush.
Figure 9-10. Brush Tab
In the Brush tab, click on the image of the brush type you want to use.
There are three brush types: Single Pixel, Elliptical, and Rectangular.
Single Pixel Elliptical Rectangular
Figure 9-11. Brush Types
Single Pixel Brush
The Single Pixel brushes are one pixel square, but are anti-aliased so they cover an area of at least three pixels. The degree of anti-aliasing depends on the brush style you are using. The hard-edge brush style offers the most precise single-pixel brush.
Elliptical Brush
The Elliptical brushes are the most used brushes in Paint. Elliptical brushes are good general purpose brushes. For a nice soft brush, select an Elliptical brush and change the Softness to 100.
Rectangular Brush
The Rectangular brushes are good for painting large areas. They are also good for creating calligraphic effects and diamond patterns. To create a good calligraphy brush, change the Angle to 320 and the Aspect to 0.25.
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The Opacity field on the Brush tab sets the opacity for the selected tool. All image editing, color, and alpha tools use the opacity setting. The Brush
Selection tool also uses the opacity setting, so you can make selections at less than 100% opacity.
The Texture field specifies the amount of surface texture applied by the
Texture tool and all brush-based tools. Set the value to 0 if you do not want any texture applied when you paint.
You need to import an image to apply it as surface texture every time you create or import a new document. Select File > Import/Export > Import
Texture and select the image you want to use as the texture.
All brush-based tools apply the imported texture using the current brush attributes. This includes color for the color tools. Lighter areas of the texture image take on more color or are edited more than darker areas.
See
for details on applying textures with the
Texture tool.
You can reset a brush to its default value by clicking on the Reset button.
You can reset all the brushes to their defaults by holding the SHIFT key and clicking on the Reset button.
Brush characteristics help define and accentuate the behavior of all brush-based tools. You may find that some settings are best for certain tools but need to be modified for others. Brushes have six attributes: Size,
Spacing, Softness, Angle, Aspect, and Speed.
Figure 9-12. Brush Attributes
Size
The Size attribute specifies the overall size of the brush in pixels. The size of the brush affects painting speed. Size is measured in pixels.
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Spacing
The Spacing attribute specifies the spacing between brush marks as a percentage of the brush size. You can modify this attribute to create unique strokes.
Softness
The Softness attribute specifies the softness of the brush edges. The larger the value, the greater the softness. A value of 0 means no softness. The
Softness value is not used by the hard-edge brush style or Pencil tool.
Aspect
The Aspect attribute specifies the width of the brush as a factor of the brush width over brush height. When used in conjunction with the Angle attribute, you can design brushes that create calligraphy effects.
By default, the brush Aspect is corrected for the current video aspect ratio. Circular stokes look circular and square strokes look square in Paint and on video. See
"Video Aspect Ratio" on page 577 for
details.
Angle
The Angle attribute specifies the counter-clockwise angle of the brush in degrees
(0 to 359). Usually you change this attribute after you have changed the brush Aspect.
Speed
The Speed attribute affects the speed at which Paint calculates your brush stroke. This attribute is dependent on the size of the brush. The higher the setting, the more calculations Paint performs. If you want to paint slowly, lower Speed to smooth the stroke.
You can change the selected brush visually in the Brush Preview Window.
The Brush window provides a preview of the current brush. The preview shows certain brush attributes: Size, Softness, Angle, and Aspect. You can change the size, angle, and aspect in the Brush window on the Brush tab.
Figure 9-13. Brush Preview Window
Table 9-6. Brush Styles
Cursor Name
Size cursor
Angle cursor
Aspect cursor
How to...
Change size—click and drag in the
Brush window.
Change angle—hold the SHIFT key and drag in the Brush window.
Change Aspect—hold the CTRL key and drag in the Brush window.
The Brush Preview cursor lets you see the effects of the current brush settings on the Paint workspace before you make any changes to your image. The cursor shows several brush attributes, including Size, Angle, and Shape.
The brush preview cursor respects selections and layers. It is enabled by default. To disable this option, switch to the View tab and clear the Brush
Preview Cursor checkbox.
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Removing background information from around logos or objects is one of the primary reasons for using
Paint. This task is often referred to as logo clean-up. Effective and efficient logo clean-up calls for proficiency with both the alpha tools and the selection tools. See
"Make Selections" on page 551 for
details on making selections.
The main feature of Paint is its ability to manipulate and paint with alpha.
Paint is a full-fledged 32-bit image-editing program that really understands the alpha channel. You can paint, edit, transform, and apply filters to the alpha channel completely independent of the color channels.
When an image or area of an image is transparent, video shows through. It is often necessary to add alpha so that the video signal shows through only in certain areas. For example, if you are cleaning up team logos for the basketball games aired on your station, you want to be able to paint with alpha to clean up edges on the logos.
Paint provides eight alpha tools: Alpha Add, Alpha Subtract, Alpha
Memory, Alpha Fill, Alpha Tolerance Fill, Alpha Luminance Fill, Alpha
Linear Gradient, and Alpha Radial Gradient. The alpha tools have two special characteristics: they manipulate only the alpha channel, and they remember what the alpha values were before you manipulated the image alpha.
For example, if you import an image and paint it with the Alpha Add tool, it may appear as though you are erasing the image. If you paint over the newly created transparent areas with the Alpha Memory brush, the alpha values in the image are restored to their original values. It is important to remember that if you use the Eraser tool instead of the Alpha Add tool to add transparency, the Alpha Memory brush cannot restore the alpha values.
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Table 9-7. Alpha Tools
Tool Name
Alpha Add*
Description
• Paints with alpha—adds transparency.
Alpha Subtract* • Removes alpha—adds opacity.
Alpha Memory* • Restores alpha to its original levels.
Alpha Fill • Fills the image or selection with alpha.
Alpha Luminance
Fill
Alpha Tolerance
Fill
Alpha Linear
Gradient
Alpha Radial
Gradient
• Fills all pixels adjacent to the selected pixel with alpha based on luminance values of the image.
• The Tolerance value specifies the range of luminance values for pixels to be filled in.
• Fills all pixels adjacent to the selected pixel with alpha based on tolerance
(hue) values of the image.
• The Tolerance value specifies the range of hues for pixels to be filled in.
• Performs a linear gradient on the alpha channel.
• Image appears to fade to video.
• Performs a radial gradient on the alpha channel.
• Image appears to fade to video.
*These tools are brush-based.
Alpha gradients make creating layer effects easy. Use the alpha gradient tools when you want your image to have layers fading into each other,
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Memory is a characteristic specific to the alpha tools. No matter what alpha tool you use to manipulate the alpha channel, the Alpha Memory tool can restore it.
Some logos are stored in vector-based file formats, such as .eps or
Illustrator
files. Paint cannot use vector-based files, so you need to convert these files to raster-based images, such as .bmp or .jpg. Programs like Illustrator and Photoshop are capable of making these conversions.
Most of the time, you will need to resize your logos to get them to the size you need for video output. You will get better results if you start with a large image (720 NTSC or PAL) and scale it down later. If you are scanning a logo, scan it in at 200% to 400% of the image size to give yourself more detail to work with. Scale your logo to the size you need when you finish editing it, or when you import it into CG.
Once you’ve cleaned up your logo, you can export it from Paint and add it to the Logo Map in CG to use it as a text or graphic object. See
for details on using logos in CG.
You can also import images from Paint to use as backgrounds or textures for text and graphic objects.
In Paint, you can only work on a single image at a time, but each image can have multiple layers. Each layer has four channels: Red, Green, Blue, and
Alpha.
Paint Image Image Layers Layer Channels
Layer 6
Layer 5
Layer 4
Layer 3
Layer 2
Layer 1
Alpha
Red
Green
Blue
Figure 9-14. Image Layers and Channels
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The color channels define the color portion of the layer while the alpha channel defines the visible portion of the layer. You can edit the channels individually and view the alpha channel separately from the color channels.
In Paint, the alpha channel is represented by a grayscale image. Fully opaque areas are white, and fully transparent areas are black.
See
"Work with Channels" on page 581 for details on manipulating
individual channels and "View Your Image" on page 576 for details on
viewing the alpha channel.
+ =
RGB
Channels
Alpha
Channel
Image
(All Channels)
Figure 9-15. Image Channels
In Paint, the alpha channel is actually made up of two channels: the Real alpha channel and the Displayed alpha channel. The alpha tools work on the displayed alpha channel while all other tools work on the real alpha channel.
The displayed alpha channel is unique to Paint, and acts like a mask on the real alpha channel; which is the original alpha channel of the image. The real alpha channel is affected by all of the other Paint tools.
You need to understand this because the alpha tools remember the previous values by looking at the real alpha channel. The Alpha Memory tool cannot restore alpha when you use the image editing, color, or transform tools because they affect the real alpha channel — the same channel the Alpha
Memory tool uses as its memory.
Alpha Channel
Real
Displayed
Figure 9-16. Alpha Channels
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In Paint, there are several different ways of finding the color you want. The Color tab offers the standard
Inscriber Color Picker options, Foreground and Background colors, a list of the six most recently used colors, Color Chips, and a Color Tester. You can also use the Color Picker tool on the Tools palette to select colors.
Figure 9-17. Color Tab
The Color Picker area on the Color tab offers a second Color Picker tool, in addition to the one on the Tools palette. The Color tab Color Picker lets you quickly pick a color from anywhere on your computer monitor without having to switch tools.
To use it the Color tab Color Picker, click on the Color Picker tool and drag it to the color you want to select. When you release the left mouse button, the color under the cursor will be selected.
Color Selector Color Slider
Color Model
List
Value Fields
Color Selection Box Color Picker
Figure 9-18. Color Picker Area
The Color Picker area on the Color tab supports three color models: RGB,
HSV, and HLS. In all three color models, color definitions are the result of
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three values. When you modify one value, the range of possible colors that can be achieved using the other two values changes, so the color display changes. Use the Color Selector and the Color Slider to get close to the color definition that you want and then change the three values numerically until you reach the specific color.
Table 9-8. Color Models
Color Model Description
HSV
RGB
HLS
Hue, Saturation, and Value. This model describes colors in terms of hue (tint), saturation (tone), and value (shade).
Red, Green, and Blue. This model is an additive model where the amount of red, green, and blue are added together to determine the final color.
Hue, Lightness, and Saturation. Unlike HSV, the HLS color model represents saturation and lightness as independent values.
You can specify both a foreground and a background color at the same time. Most color tools use only the foreground color, but the Linear
Gradient tool, Radial Gradient tool, and certain filters also use the
Background color.
You can quickly switch any color tool to the Background color by holding the ALT key. With gradient tools, holding the ALT key switches the direction of the gradient. This shortcut works for the color tools and alpha gradient tools.
Set the Foreground and Background Colors
The default Foreground color is black, and the default Background color is white. You can reset the Foreground and Background to the defaults at any time by clicking on the Reset
Colors button.
Switch Colors
Reset Colors
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When you use the Color tab or Tools palette Color Picker tools, the color you select becomes the Foreground color. You can use the Color Picker tools to select the Background color instead by switching the Foreground and Background colors. To do this, click on the Switch Colors arrow.
You can also set the Foreground and Background colors by clicking on the
Foreground or Background color swatch and selecting a color from any of the Color tab color selection areas.
You can switch the Foreground and Background colors by clicking on the
Switch Colors arrows. You can also temporarily switch colors on certain tools by holding the ALT key while you paint.
Paint displays the six most recently selected colors. This is a handy feature when you need to use several colors repeatedly.
Color chips are handy for defining colors for specific projects, such as working within station logos. You can define, replace, delete, select, import, export, and
reset the color chips. See "Use Color Chips" on page 547 for details.
The color tester can be used to generate colors that complement each other. It can also be used as a cloning source or destination, giving added flexibility when using the Clone tools.
You can use all tools in the color tester, but there are a few restrictions. The undo commands, filters, selection actions, and selection options do not work. To deselect in the color tester, you need to select the Rectangular
Selection tool and click without dragging.
Although there are no color correction options on the Color tab, there are color correction filters in Paint. See
"Work with Filters" on page 569
for details.
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Whenever you need to use a particular color more than once, create a color chip. Color chips can be valuable when you do not have time to find the right color or you remember using a particular color on a previous project but no longer have the files on your computer. If you have defined your colors ahead of time, these colors can provide a frame work for creation.
Palette files (.aco) are the files containing the color chips. Paint comes with three sets of color chips: the default, subtle, and funky palette files. The files are located in the Paint/Palettes folder. You can create your palettes in
Paint or import palettes created in Photoshop.
If you want to import palette files from Photoshop, the palettes must be created in RGB color mode. Photoshop palettes can specify colors in any color model, but Paint can only accurately read RGB colors. If the colors are specified in another color model, Paint replaces the colors with gray.
You can also use Paint palette files in Photoshop.
There are two import options for importing palette files. You can overwrite the existing list or you can add the new chips to the existing list. To overwrite the existing list, select File > Import/Export > Import Color
Chips. To add the new chips to the existing list, select File > Import/Export
> Import Color Chips (Append). Paint will remember what chips are imported from session to session.
You can export all color chips by selecting File > Import/Export > Export
Color Chips.
You can reset the color chips to the defaults by clicking on the Reset button. You do not have to worry about changing or deleting the default palette file (default.aco), since the defaults are built into Paint.
Paint comes with two images containing colors from the palette files. You can use these files in CG to select the same colors in both CG and Paint.
These files are color_default&subtle.tga and color_funky.tga in the
Paint\Palettes folder.
To use these colors in CG, import the palette file as a logo using the Logo tab. Create a logo and select the palette file image as the logo. Define Style
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Chips using the desired palette colors, and delete the logo when you are done with it. Save the layout as a template in the Templates Registry.
You can select, add, replace, and delete color chips from the list. The cursor changes to show you what action you are performing. The following table describes how to perform each action.
Table 9-9. Color Chip Cursors
Cursor Name How to...
Select cursor • Select a color—click the desired color chip.
Add cursor
Remove cursor
• Add a color—hold the SHIFT key and click in the last row in the color chip list.
• Replace an existing color—hold the
SHIFT key and click on the color chip.
• Remove a color chip—hold the CTRL key and click on the color chip.
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All Color tools are available from either the Tools palette, the Tool drop-down list on the Brush tab, or the right-click menu. The Tools palette allows you to quickly change the tools you are using while the
Brush tab allows you to set specific tool attributes. Tool specific options are always displayed on the
Brush tab.
There are ten color tools in Paint. The following table lists the tools and their functions.
Table 9-10. Color Tools
Tool Name
Pencil
Brush
Description
• Paints hard-edged brush strokes.
• Brush tab softness setting is ignored.
• Paints soft-edged brush strokes.
Airbrush
Eraser
• Paints soft-edged brush strokes .
• Builds up opacity beyond the opacity setting.
• Adds alpha to the real alpha channel.
• Eraser brush strokes cannot be restored with the Alpha Memory brush.
Fill • Fills the layer selection with the selected color.
Tolerance Fill • Fills all pixels adjacent to the selected pixel with color based on tolerance (hue) values of the image.
• The Tolerance value specifies the range of hues for pixels to be filled in.
Luminance Fill • Fills all pixels adjacent to the selected pixel with color based on luminance values in the image.
• The Tolerance field specifies the range of luminance for pixels to be filled in.
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Table 9-10. Color Tools (Continued)
Tool Name Description
Linear
Gradient
Radial
Gradient
Line
• Fills the selection with a linear gradient using foreground and background colors.
• Fills the selection with a radial gradient using foreground and background colors.
• Draws a line.
• Line width is specified in the Width field.
The gradient tools are the only tools that use both the Foreground and
Background colors. All other tools use only the Foreground color. You can temporarily switch these tools to the Background color by holding the ALT key while you paint. Holding the ALT key when you apply the gradient tools reverses the gradient direction.
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In Paint, you can edit an entire layer at once, or you can specify which areas of the layer you wish to work on. To work only on a particular area of an layer, you must first select it. Once you have made a selection, you can import, export, modify, and move the selection outline, or you can modify, transform, and apply filters to the selection contents.
You can make complex selections using the Add, Subtract, and Intersect
Selection options on the Select tab. You can invert a selection, add or remove edge pixels, change the degree to which pixels are selected, or
select only the pixels around the edge of the selection. See "Modify
for details on modifying your selections.
Figure 9-19. Select Tab
Paint has ten Selection tools, all located on the Tools palette. The Selection tools offer a variety of ways of making selections. You can make a simple selection with only one tool, or you can refine and create complex
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Each selection tool creates a differently shaped selection. The tools are described in
Table 9-11. Selection Tools
Tool Name Description
Selection Move • Moves the current selection outline.
Wand • Selects areas of similar color.
• The Wand Tolerance field on the
Select tab specifies how similar colors have to be to for inclusion in the selection.
Luminance Wand • Selects areas of similar luminance.
• The Wand Tolerance field on the
Select tab specifies how similar the values have to be for inclusion in the selection.
Brush Selection • Selects areas using the current brush attributes, painting a selection.
• Lets you select pixels less than 100%.
Rectangular
Selection
• Selects a rectangular area.
Elliptical Selection • Selects an elliptical area.
Scan Line
Selection
• Selects an entire scan line.
Column Selection • Selects a column one pixel wide.
Lasso • Lets you draw a freehand selection.
Linear Lasso • Lets you select an area as a free-form polygon.
• You draw a series of connected lines, then double-click or hold the CTRL key and click to close the selection.
Each selection has two parts: the selection outline and the selection contents. The selection tools and the options on the Select tab affect the selection outline. The filters, color, alpha, transformation, and image editing tools modify the contents.
The selection area is outlined by a flashing dotted line called the selection marquee. The selection marquee only shows you which pixels are selected; as long as a pixel is at least 1% selected, it appears within the selection marquee.
You can hide the marquee by selecting the Hide Selection checkbox on the
Select tab. The marquee disappears, but the pixels remain selected.
The Selection Channel thumbnail on the Select tab shows the degree to which individual pixels are selected. Black represents areas that are 0% selected, white presents areas that are 100% selected, and shades of gray show areas that are only partially selected. Seeing these differences is very helpful when you are using the Brush Selection tool to select pixels at less than 100% opacity.
The Selection Channel thumbnail helps you keep track of how changes will be applied to your selection. Pixels that are 100% selected will be affected differently than pixels that are 50% selected when you edit them.
Fully unselected
Fully selected
Partially selected
Figure 9-20. Selection Channel
Pixels can be selected at a range of values from 1% to 100%. The level of selection of the pixels determines the degree to which changes are applied when you edit the selection. For example, if you select an area at 50%, then apply a filter, the filter is applied to the selection at 50% opacity.
Only the Brush Selection tool selects pixels at less than 100% opacity. Like all brush-based tools, you set the opacity level for this tool in the Opacity
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field on the Brush tab. When you make your selection, the Selection
Channel shows the varying levels of selection of the pixels as a grayscale image.
You can import and export selections to give you greater control over your work. To export a selection outline, select File > Import/Export > Export
Selection. You can export the selection in a variety of file formats.
To import a selection, select File > Import/Export > Import Selection. This imports the selection or image outline, not the selection or image contents.
To export the selection contents, select File > Import/Export > Export
Selection Contents. When you export the selection contents, Paint crops the image to the selection and alphas out all unselected pixels. Make sure you save the image as an .ipt format to maintain the alpha channel. If you do not, the area around the selection appears black instead of transparent when you import the selection.
To import the selection contents, select File > Import/Export > Import
Image as Transformation. If you select File > Import/Export > Import
Selection, you will import only the selection outline.
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Selections can be powerful tools, and you can create, modify, and use them in numerous ways with the options on the Select tab.
When making a selection, you can specify whether you want to make a single selection, add to an existing selection, subtract from an existing selection, or intersect a new selection with an existing selection. You can also specify that you only want to move the current selection. These options are available in the Selection Tools section of the Select tab.
Table 9-12. Creation Option Buttons
Button Name Description
Single Selection • Creates a new selection every time you draw a selection.
Add to Selection • Adds a selection to the current selection.
• Has the same effect as using the
SHIFT key with the Single Selection button selected.
Subtract from
Selection
• Subtracts new selections from the current selection.
• Has the same effect as using the ALT key with the Single Selection button selected.
Intersect Selection • Intersects any new selections with the current selection so that only areas common to both selections remain selected.
• Has the same effect as using the
SHIFT and ALT keys with the Single
Selection button selected.
Move Selection
• Moves the current selection
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The selection buttons on the Select tab affect the current selection.
Table 9-13. Selection Buttons
Button Description
Image...
Layer...
All
None
Visible
Invisible
Invert
Crop
Select Fully
• Opens the Select Channel dialog in order to select a channel on all layers.
• Opens the Select Channel dialog in order to select a channel on the current layer.
• Selects all the pixels in the current layer.
• Clears all selected pixels and ends a transformation.
• Selects all visible pixels in the layer (all pixels that at least 1% opaque).
• Selects all invisible pixels in the layer (all pixels that are 100% transparent).
• Inverts the current selection.
• Crops the image to the current selection.
• Selects all pixels in the selection at 100%.
To use the selection fields, enter a specific value in the appropriate field and click on the corresponding button to apply the change. All values are in pixels.
Table 9-14. Selection Fields
Option Illustration
Expand
Description
• Enlarges the selection outward.
Contract
Feather
Border
• Shrinks the selection inward.
• Feathers or softens the selection by selecting pixels at lesser levels.
• Creates a border around the selection.
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Table 9-14. Selection Fields (Continued)
Option Illustration Description
Grow
Similar
Smooth
• Swells the selection based on the tolerance value.
• Extends the selection based on the pixel values of its neighbors.
• Selects regions similar to the current selection based on the tolerance value.
• Includes or excludes pixels in the selection based on whether the majority of nearby pixels are selected.
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The Transform tab and the transformation tools on the Tools palette control all the transformation options, allowing you to move, scale, rotate, and otherwise modify your selections. You can also use these tools to add shadows.
Selections define the areas to be transformed. If you haven not made a selection, the entire layer is transformed when you use a transformation tool or apply a transform option.
Many of the options on the Transform tab act like transformation tools, but are not true tools. The values on the tab mimic the transformation tools as closely as possible, but may not always produce the expected results. The
Transform tab also includes several transformation options that are not accessible through the transformation tools.
The five transformation tools, available on the Tools palette, are described below. You can also alter the move, scale, skew, and rotate values from the
Transform tab.
Table 9-15. Transformation Tools
Tool Name Description
Move • Moves the selection.
Scale
Skew
Freeform
Rotate
• Scales the selection.
• Skews the selection.
• Transforms individual points of the selection.
• Rotates the selection.
You can import an image as a transformation into the current Paint document. This is the method the Scrapbook uses to place images in Paint.
To import an image as a transformation, select File > Import/Export >
Import Transformation, and navigate to your image location.
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There are two modifier keys you can use when you apply transformations with the transformation tools. Hold the ALT key to paste a copy of the selection contents while you are transforming. Hold the CTRL key to paste a copy when the mouse button is pressed.
You can use several methods to exit a transformation:
Table 9-16. Exit Transformations
Method Outcome
SHIFT+ESC
ESC
• Exits the transformation without applying it.
• Applies and exits the transformation.
• Applies and exits the transformation.
• This button is located on the Select tab.
Select a new tool • Applies and exits the transformation.
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The Transform Tab provides options for more precise control over your transformations. You can adjust the opacity, flip your selections and add depth, and select relative or absolute transformations.
Figure 9-21. Transform Tab
You can modify your transformations based on three frames of reference:
Relative 2D Transform, Relative Corner Offsets, and Absolute Corner
Position. Select your frame of reference from the Type drop-down list on the Transform tab. The main difference between the frames of reference is in the way Paint measures the movement across the workspace.
Relative 2D Transform
This frame of reference finds the center point of your transformation and sets its initial position as the origin, with video coordinates (0, 0). Any changes to the position of your transformation are measured in relation to this point.
This frame of reference moves, scales, skews, and rotates your selections in the same way as the Transformation tools. Note that when you use the
Skew, Scale, or Rotate fields on the Transform tab, the center point of your transformation does not change. Only the Move fields change the position of the center point.
(0,0)
(77,99)
Figure 9-22. Relative 2D Transformation
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Relative or Absolute Corners
With the Relative Corner Offsets and Absolute Corner Position frames of reference, you can use the transform tools to make the same basic transformations as with Relative 2D Transform. You can also skew the transformation corners in unique ways with the Top Left, Bottom Left, Top
Right, and Bottom Right fields on the Transform tab.
The result of the transformation is the same whether you use the Relative
Corner Offsets or Absolute Corner Position frame of reference; the difference is in the way the origins are set.
Absolute Corner Offsets sets the top left corner of the Paint workspace as the origin. When you move a transformation to a specific location, its final coordinates are always the same, no matter what the initial position is.
Since each corner occupies a different position, each corner has different video coordinates.
Relative Corner Offsets sets four origins, one at each initial corner position for the transformation. When you move the transformation, the final coordinates are based on each corner’s initial position. If you move your transformation without skewing it, each corner has the same final coordinates, since each corner has moved an equal distance from its initial location.
(0,0)
(0,0) (0,0)
(104,116) (296,116)
(104,213) (296,213)
(0,0) (0,0)
(77,99) (77,99)
(77,99) (77,99)
Absolute Corner Position Relative Corner Offsets
Figure 9-23. Absolute and Relative Transformation
When you adjust a corner with the fields on the Transform tab, only the selected corner of your transformation is moved. With Relative Corner
Offsets, the new corner position is measured from its initial position. With
Absolute Corner Position, the new position is measured from the top left corner of the workspace.
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The Flip Horiz button flips your image horizontally, around the vertical y-axis. The Flip Vert button flips your image vertically, around the horizontal x-axis.
The horizontal and vertical depth fields allow you to add depth or perspective to your transformations. Depth Horiz skews transformations left to right, so they recede into the background. Depth Vert skews transformations top to bottom, so they recede upward or downward.
Initial transformation
Horizontal depth added
Vertical depth added
Figure 9-24. Horizontal and Vertical Transformation
You can change the opacity of your transformations with the Opacity field on the Transform tab. This allows you to superimpose transformations as ghost images, or have deeper layers show through certain areas of the current layer.
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Paint offers several tools that you can use to edit and retouch your images. With the image editing tools, you can remove unwanted objects or artifacts, copy and offset areas, and adjust the luminance.
Paint has twelve image editing tools. All tools except the Clone Fill and
Offset tools are brush-based. That is, they use the attributes set on the
Brush tab.
Table 9-17. Image Editing Tools
Tool Name Description
Clone
Clone Fill
Smear
• Paints with image data.
• You can set the clone source and clone destination, or copy the image data to use as the clone source.
• Fills with image data.
• You can set the clone source and clone destination.
• Smears the image.
Blur • Blurs the image.
Offset
Dodge
Burn
Luminance Add
• Offsets the image and wraps the edges.
• Lightens the image by moving the color values for the pixels up to their maximum; for example, RGB
(255,72,0) will dodge to (255, 255, 0).
• Darkens the image by moving color values for the pixels to their minimum; for example, RGB (255, 72, 0) will burn to (255, 0, 0).
• Lightens the image by adding luminance in HLS color space; all colors start to move towards white.
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Table 9-17. Image Editing Tools (Continued)
Tool Name Description
Luminance
Subtract
Saturation Add
Saturation
Subtract
Texture
• Darkens the image by subtracting luminance in HLS color space; all colors start to move towards black.
• Adds chroma to the image by adding saturation in HLS color space.
• If the image is monochrome,
Saturation Add acts like a tint tool using the foreground color to tint.
• Subtracts chroma from the image by removing saturation in HLS color space; all colors move towards gray.
• Adds texture using the image colors.
• Lightens or darkens the image based on light and dark areas in the texture.
The Smear tool is sensitive to the speed of your stroke. The slower you move the tool across the image, the more the colors will smear. In the following image, the Smear tool was moved quickly across the color boundary in the top smear, and slowly across the color boundary in the bottom smear. The dark color was carried much further into the light color in the slower smear.
Figure 9-25. Smear Tool Effect
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The Texture tool applies the imported texture to the current layer using the layer colors. Darker areas of the texture image take on more color than lighter areas. For example, if you have a picture of a yellow flower with green leaves and you apply a texture with the Texture tool, the texture appears green when applied to the leaves, and yellow when applied to the flower.
To add a surface texture to your image, import an image to use as a texture.
Select File > Import/Export > Import Texture and select an image. Use the
Texture and Opacity settings on the Brush tab to set how the texture is applied.
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The Clone and Clone Fill tools let you paint an exact duplicate of a layer or image into the current layer.
As a brush-based tool, the Clone tool paints with the settings on the Brush tab. With the Clone Fill tool, you can fill entire sections with image data with a single click.
Before you can begin cloning, you need to define a source point. The source point is the location Paint copies from when you start painting with the Clone or Clone Fill tools. With the Clone tool selected, position the cursor over the part of the layer you want to use as the source, hold the ALT key, and click the left mouse button. The cursor shape changes to show you that the source point is being set. When you begin painting, the source point is identified by a set of crosshairs.
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Figure 9-26. Clone an Image
Once you have defined a source point, you can paint anywhere in the current layer. Wherever you click in the layer, the Clone tool copies the source point. If you drag the Clone tool around, the source point moves to match your cursor movement. However, each time you release the mouse button and click again, the Clone tool returns to the originally defined source point. This means you can make several copies of the source point at different locations throughout the layer.
You do not have to clone the same layer or image the source point was set from. You can select another layer, close the current image and import a new one, or work on a blank canvas. Paint remembers the image data from the previously defined source point.
The SHIFT key changes how the clone source is set, depending on whether there is an active selection in the layer.
If you press ALT+SHIFT+click to set the source point when there is no selection, Paint copies the entire layer and uses the copy as the clone source. This allows you to paint over the source point without losing the original clone source data.
When there is an active selection and you press ALT+SHIFT+click instead of ALT+click to define the source point, Paint takes a copy of the selection contents and uses that as the source image. For example, if you have a picture of a face and a selection around one eye, pressing
SHIFT+ALT+click sets just the selected eye as the clone source. As you paint, only the eye is cloned. Remember to clear the selected area before you begin cloning.
The CTRL key and Align checkbox on the Brush tab change how the clone destination is set. Enabling the Align option prevents a new destination point from being set each time you begin painting with the Clone tool, allowing you to stop and resume painting while creating a seamless clone. If the Align option is not enabled, pressing the CTRL key as you begin cloning has the same effect.
For example, if you are cloning an eye, but realize your brush is too big, you can stop painting and resize your brush. Then, as you begin to paint with the Clone tool again, hold CTRL to continue the clone where you left off.
If Align is selected, holding CTRL temporarily disables the Align option.
This lets you set a new destination point for your clone without having to clear the Align checkbox.
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The Tile checkbox forces Paint to tile the clone source information throughout the layer. For example, if you have selected a beetle and set it as your clone source, cloning with the Tile option enabled clones the beetle over and over again as you drag the Clone tool throughout the layer. If you are using an entire image or layer as your clone source, Paint tiles the image whenever the source point reaches the image edge.
Figure 9-27. Clone Tile Checkbox
The Clone Fill tool lets you copy entire sections of a layer with one click.
When you set the clone source, the Clone Fill tool copies the entire layer or selection, and pastes the source onto the current layer.
For example, if you have an active selection and you use ALT+click to set the clone source, the Clone Fill tool fills the selection with a copy of the entire image, sized to fit.
The CTRL and SHIFT modifier keys and the Tile and Align checkboxes work the same way for the Clone Fill tool as for the Clone tool. For example, you select an eye and set the selection as the source point using
ALT+SHIFT+click. When you click in the layer with the Clone Fill tool, the layer is filled with a sized-to-fit copy of the eye. If the Tile option on the
Brush tab is enabled, the Clone Fill tool tiles the eye throughout the image.
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Inscriber filters extend the functionality of Paint. All filters appear in the Plug-In Filters list on the Filter tab. Paint also supports third-party Photoshop plug-in filters, so many of the filters you use in Photoshop
can also be used in Paint. See "Third-Party Filters" on page 572
for details on using third-party filters.
Figure 9-28. Filter Tab
There are 34 filters that come with Paint The filters are divided into groups according to their function.,
Table 9-18. Paint Filters
Filter Type Plugin
Alpha
Adjustment
Legalize
• Invert Key
• Complex NTCS Legalize
• Complex PAL Legalize
• Mark NTSC Illegal Colors
• Mark PAL Illegal Colors
• Simple NTCS Legalize
• Simple PAL Legalize
Function
• Operate solely on the alpha channel.
• Identify and corrects illegal colors for display to video.
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Table 9-18. Paint Filters (Continued)
Filter Type Plugin
Color
Adjustment
• Brightness & Contrast
• Color Balance
• Invert Color
• Level Curves
• Levels
• Monochrome
• Posterize
• Threshold
Distortion • Color Emboss
• Emboss
• Gaussian Blur
• Motion Blur
• Pixelize
• Radial Blur
• Sharpen
Video
Cleanup
• Adaptive Field 1
• Adaptive Field 2
• Average Field 1
• Average Field 2
• Chroma Antialiasing
• Horizontal Risetime
• Interpolate Field 1
• Interpolate Field 2
• Reduce Flicker
• Remove Flicker
• Repeat Field 1
• Repeat Field 2
Function
• Operate solely on the color channel to adjust contrast or color levels.
• Distort the image in a variety of ways to create special effects.
• Removes interlaced fields and corrects for flicker and luminance changes in images grabbed from video.
When you first switch to the Filter tab, the filters list is collapsed, and only the filter types are listed. To expand the view to individual filters, click on the + symbol next to each filter type.
Figure 9-29. Filters List
The Filters list contains three main headings: Inscriber, Plug-ins, and
Recent. While all of the available filters are listed under Inscriber and
Plug-ins, Recent contains a list of the last ten filters used. This gives you quick access to your most frequently used filters without having to navigate through the Inscriber list.
To apply a filter, select it from the Filters list and either double-click on the filter name or click on the Select button. Some filters bring up a dialog with filter options and a thumbnail preview of the filtered image.
You cannot apply filters to selections, but you can create a new layer from a selection and apply the filter to the new layer. See the procedure
for details.
Before applying a filter, you can set the filter opacity in the Opacity field on the Filter tab. This lets you create more subtle effects than applying a filter at 100% opacity. For example, if you want to desaturate an image, set
Opacity to 10% and apply a monochrome filter.
If you do not like the effect of a filter after you’ve applied it, you can always undo it. The Undo command is especially important when you are work with the Mark NTSC Illegal Colors and Mark PAL Illegal Colors filters. These filters identify illegal areas of your image by changing them to a specified color. Since you probably do not want to keep the new color once you’ve identified illegal areas of your image, you will want to use the Edit > Undo command or CTRL+Z shortcut to undo the filter before you make any further changes to your image.
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Many of the filters you use in Photoshop and in other image manipulation applications can be used in
Paint. Once you have specified the filter locations, these filters appear in the Plug-ins section of the
Filters list on the Filter tab.
Figure 9-30. Third Party Filters
Before you can use third-party filters in Paint, you need to show Paint what folders the third party plug-in filters are in. Paint remembers the folder locations, so you only have to do this the first time you use Paint or when you install new filters that are not in the current paths. If Paint finds multiple filters with the same name it uses the first one found.
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Figure 9-31. Filter Plugin Directory
To specify the folders, click on the Browse button on the Filter tab and select the folder where the filters are located in the Select a Plugin
Directory dialog. This dialog will only show folders, not the actual filters
themselves, so do not worry if the folders appear empty. If you know the folder path, you can enter it directly in the Folder field. Once you have selected a path, you can tell Paint to search all subfolders in that folder by selecting the Include Subfolders checkbox. Click on the Add button to add the new path to the list of remembered paths.
To delete a folder, select the appropriate path from the list in the Filter
Directories section of the Filter tab and click on the Trash Can icon.
You can tell whether Paint searches subfolders in the defined filter folders by looking at the Subfolder Inclusion Status icon, located above the Trash
Can. If the icon displays two folders, subfolders are included for the selected path. If the icon displays only one folder, only filters located in the specified folder are available.
While Inscriber filters can be applied to any channel individually, including the alpha channel, many plug-in filters do not work with the alpha channel.
This means that if you have an image that has alpha around it, the third party plug-in filters may only affect the opaque areas.
If you have Photoshop installed on your computer, you can use some of its filters with Paint. Some Photoshop filters require special .dlls to work properly. To find these .dlls, the Photoshop path needs to be in your system path. Once the .dlls are found, the filters will be displayed, but not all of them may work.
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You can create three types of textures in Paint: Seamless, Surface, and Alpha. These textures can be used as backgrounds in CG or in Paint, or as textures for text and graphic objects in CG.
Seamless textures are good for all text objects, graphic objects, and backgrounds in CG. These textures are small areas that are tiled when used in CG to create a repeating, but seamless, pattern. Since every texture you use in CG is loaded into memory, using seamless textures cuts down on the amount of memory required. A good rule for the maximum size of your seamless textures is one half video resolution (NTSC 360x243 max).
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Figure 9-32. Seamless Texture
Follow these steps to create a seamless texture in Paint.
1 Import an image or paint one on the workspace.
2 Use filters and Image Editing tools to create a pattern.
3 Select an area of interest and crop the image.
4 Use the Offset tool to offset the edge pixels to the center of the image.
5 Remove the seam using the Clone, Smear, or Blur tools.
6 Export the image.
7 Import the image as a texture in CG.
8 Select the Tile radio button for text and graphic objects that use the texture.
If you are using the texture as a CG background, make sure the Size to Fit checkbox is cleared. See “Fill with a Seamless Pattern” on page 80 for details on using seamless texture in the CG Editor.
You can add surface texture to your images by importing an image to use as a texture (File > Import/Export > Import Texture) and applying it with the
Texture tool, or any other brush-based tool.
The Texture tool applies the imported texture to the current layer using the layer colors. Darker areas of the texture image take on more color than lighter areas. For example, if you have a picture of a yellow flower with green leaves and you apply a texture with the Texture tool, the texture appears green when applied to the leaves, and yellow when applied to the flower.
Other brush-based tools apply the texture using the current brush-tab settings, including color for the color tools. Lighter areas of the texture image take on more color or are edited more than darker areas.
The Opacity and Texture fields on the Brush tab let you set how much texture is applied to your image. See
"Work with Brush Tools" on page 536
and "Edit an Image" on page 563 for details on applying surface textures
with the Texture tool or other brush-based tools.
Alpha textures are a variation of surface textures. The texture is applied to the entire image, but instead of texturizing the color channels, as in surface textures, in an alpha texture the alpha channel is texturized.
Follow these steps to create an alpha texture.
1 Import an image or fill a layer with color.
2 Import a texture or image file as a selection.
3 Paint with the Alpha Add or Alpha Fill tool, depending on the desired effect. The imported texture or image is applied to the canvas as an alpha texture.
4 Export the image for use in CG.
You can use this texture in CG as a background, logo, or texture.
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Paint has a variety of viewing options, located on the View tab. These options, as well as the Zoom and
Scroll tools, alter the actual view so you can view all of your image at various magnifications. All views are corrected for the current video aspect ratio.
Figure 9-33. View Tab
Paint offers several zoom levels, at intervals from 12.5% to 3200%. Either select the desired zoom level from the Zoom drop-down list on the View tab, or use the Zoom tool on the Tools palette.
To zoom in with the Zoom tool, click on the image. To zoom out, hold the
ALT key and click on the image. All zoom levels are corrected for the current video aspect ratio.
While zoomed in on an image, you can move around the image using the
Scroll tool. The Scroll tool is useful when you are making selections while zoomed in on your image. You can also use the scroll bars on the right and bottom edges of the Paint workspace. You can hold the SPACEBAR to quickly switch to and use the Scroll tool while using another tool.
The View radio buttons change the views between the RGB channels and the alpha channel. With RGB selected, the image is seen as full color. With
Alpha selected, alpha channel is seen as a grayscale image representing the transparency levels for the visible layers. To view the alpha channel for a particular layer, make sure it is the only visible layer and select the Alpha
radio button. See "Work with Channels" on page 581 for details on
channels.
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The View checkboxes let you select a variety of options, including grid view, cursor view, and video safe title area. To enable an option, select the checkbox. To disable an option, clear the checkbox.
The grid provides a guide to manually align images, selections, or brush strokes. To view the grid, select the Grid checkbox on the View tab. Then, select the line color and line type from the drop-down lists, and enter a line spacing value.
The View tab offers three cursor options: Brush Preview cursor, Small
Crosshair, and Large Crosshair. Each option is enabled or disabled by selecting the appropriate checkbox on the View tab.
The Brush Preview cursor previews the current brush tool. It lets you see the size, shape, opacity, and other attributes before you start painting. This option is enabled by default.
Small Crosshair replaces the standard cursor with a fine crosshair.
You can also access the small cursor by pressing CAPS LOCK.
The small cursor is useful when you need to edit an image pixel by pixel.
Large Crosshair extends the crosshairs to the edge of your image.
This is useful for finding the precise corners on square objects— just line the crosshair up with the object edges.
The Video Safe Title Area option displays the video safe area defined in
CG. The video safe area is the portion of the image normally visible when viewed on an output monitor or television. To edit the Video Safe Title
Area, you must switch to the View tab in CG.
All views and initial brush settings are corrected for the current video aspect ratio. The current video aspect ratio is set in the Inscribe.ini file. You need three values to set the video aspect ratio: the actual aspect ratio, the horizontal resolution, and the vertical resolution. The formula below gives the correction value that Paint uses. This value is used for the views and the
Aspect parameter in the Brush tab.
HorsResolution/VertResolution*Aspect(Vertical)/Aspect(Horizontal)
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The parameters in the formula are taken from the Configuration section of the Inscribe.ini file. HorsResolution and VertResolution are actual entries that are set in the Preferences dialog. The Aspect parameter may or may not be in the .ini file. The Aspect parameter should be added as follows:
Aspect=x:y where x is the horizontal value and y is the vertical value
The default aspect ratio for NTSC and PAL is 4:3. The default aspect ratio for HDTV is 16:9. If you need to change the corrected views in Paint, make sure the formula above equals the correction you need. For example, the numbers for NTSC are 720/486*3/4=1.111. If you are creating images for square pixel use, such as web graphics, and you do not want video corrected views, make sure the formula equals 1. You do not always have to change the ratio when creating uncorrected images, since you can adjust the aspect of the brush-based tools using the Aspect field on the Brush tab.
The default value for the Aspect field on the Brush tab is set to the current video aspect. Any brush strokes you make with the default aspect settings are corrected for output. For example, if you are working in NTSC, the default aspect is 1.111. If you view images created in Paint at this aspect ratio using another application that does not use variable aspect ratio views, any
circular brush strokes or objects appear elliptical. See "Understand Video
Color" on page 588 for details.
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In Paint, images are made up of layers. Each layer overlaps the one behind it, allowing you to create complex images by overlapping graphic elements on different layers. You can add, duplicate, delete, rearrange, and merge layers, but you can only work on one layer at a time. This ensures that other layers are not affected by changes you make on a single layer. Each layer has four channels: the red, green, blue, and alpha channels.
Figure 9-34. Layers Tab
You can only work on one layer at a time. The layer with the Layer
Select Toggle on is always the active layer. To switch to another layer, click on the Layer Select Toggle for the desired layer.
You can show or hide a layer by clicking on the View Layer Toggle.
There is no limit to the number of layers you can have visible at the same time.
You can change the layer name in the Name field. By default, layers are named according to numeric order (Layer 1, Layer 2, etc.).
The Opacity field allows you to set layer opacity. Transparent layers allow the layers beneath to show through, creating interesting effects.
To add a new layer to your Paint image, click on the New Layer button. The new layer is added above the current layer.
To duplicate the current layer, click on the Duplicate Layer button.
The copy is added above the original layer.
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To delete the current layer, click on the Delete Layer button (Trash Can).
The easiest way to delete many layers at once is to merge the layers and then delete the merged layer.
You can rearrange layers in your document quickly and easily. To move a layer, click on the layer thumbnail and drag it to the location where you want it. To place the layer at the new location, just release the mouse button. The layer is always inserted in front of the layer the cursor is over.
There are four options for merging layers: Merge Up, Merge
Down, Merge Visible, and Merge All.
• Merge Up merges the current layer with the one above it.
• Merge Down merges the current layer with the one below.
• Merge Visible merges all visible layers (those that have the
View Layer Toggle selected).
• Merge All merges all layers in the image.
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Every layer is made up of four channels: Red, Blue, Green, and Alpha channels. In Paint you can paint, retouch, transform, and apply filters to any combination of channels, or to each channel individually. If you do not fully understand RGB color theory, you may get confusing results when you work on less than all four channels at once. You should take time to experiment with the channel toggles if you want to work on individual channels.
All individual channels can be represented by grayscale images. The gray values range from 0 to 255. When working on individual RGB channels, these values are set using the Color Picker section of the Color tab. Select the RGB color model to set the values to paint with. A value of 255 means you are painting with the full color of the channel (white). A value of 0 means you are painting with the none of the specific color (black). If there is currently color in the specific channel and you are painting with a value of
0, you are actually removing the specific color from the image.
For example, if you select only the red channel and fill it with 127 red and then paint with 255 red, you are adding red to the channel. If you then paint with 0 red, you are removing red from the channel.
The whole process gets more complicated when you are painting on two channels. If you are painting white over black (0, 0, 0) on the red and green channels, you are actually painting with yellow (255, 255, 0). Green and blue make cyan (0, 255, 255); red and blue make magenta (255, 0, 255).
Table 9-19. Add Color to Channels
Painting White on Black Resulting Color
Red channel
Green channel
Blue channel
Red and green channels
Red and blue channels
Green and blue channels
Red (255, 0, 0)
Green (0, 255, 0)
Blue (255, 0, 0)
Yellow (255, 255, 0)
Magenta (255, 0, 255)
Cyan (0, 255, 255)
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When painting black (0, 0, 0) over white (255, 255, 255) on a single channel you also get initially confusing results. In this case you are actually changing the image color by removing color from a specific channel. For example, if you paint black over white on the red channel, you are creating cyan
(0, 255, 255).
Table 9-20. Remove Color from Channel
Painting Black on White Resulting Color
Red channel
Green channel
Blue channel
Red and green channels
Red and blue channels
Green and blue channels
Cyan (0, 255, 255)
Magenta (255, 0, 255)
Yellow (255, 255, 0)
Blue (0, 0, 255)
Green (0, 255, 0)
Red (255, 0, 0)
When you are only working on the alpha channel with non-alpha tools, you can only add opacity. There is no place to specify a value for the color you paint on the alpha channel so Paint always paints with white. The results are the same as if you were painting with the alpha tools.
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Channels add an extra dimension to Paint and are used for a variety of tasks. In Paint, each layer contains four channels: Red, Green, Blue, and Alpha.
Images are made up of a series of channels: red, green, blue, and sometimes alpha. Each channel is an 8-bit image that represents a different part of the full image. For example, the red channel contains all the red pixels in the image. When you add the three 8-bit RGB channels, you get a
24-bit full-color image. Most image editing applications work with 24-bit
RGB images. In Paint, you add a fourth channel— alpha. The alpha channel contains all the transparent pixels. When you add alpha to an RGB image, you are adding 8 more bits, so you get a 32-bit image.
Channels can be represented by a grayscale image. For example, if you open a 32-bit image in Paint and select the Alpha radio button on the View tab to view the image alpha channel, it appears as a grayscale. Black represents full transparency while white represents full opacity. Anything between these two extremes is represented by a shade of gray.
Paint also creates a selection channel when you make a selection. Switch to the Select tab and draw a selection. The thumbnail sketch on the Select tab is a grayscale image representing the current selection channel. White represents fully selected areas, black represents fully unselected areas, and shades of gray represent areas that are partially selected.
Channels mask out areas of an image. If you select only the red channel, you are masking out the green, blue, and alpha channels so that only the red channel is available for editing. Similarly, the selection channel acts as a mask on the unselected pixels so that only the selected pixels are available.
Paint uses the Select Channel dialog when you need to select channel options. Call the Select Channel dialog from the Image As Selection or
Layer as Selection buttons on the Select tab whenever you want to select a specific channel. This dialog is also called whenever you import a selection.
The Image thumbnail shows a sketch of the source file. The Selected
Channel thumbnail shows a sketch of the current channel, as determined by the Source radio buttons.
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The dialog displays four groups of channel settings: Source, Scale, Offset, and Options. The Options settings only appear when there is an active selection in the image.
The Source settings determine which source image channels you use as the selected channel. The available channels are Luminance (All Channels),
Grayscale (RGB Channels), Red Channel, Green Channel, Blue Channel, and Alpha Channel. Selecting Luminance (All Channels) combines the red, green, blue, and alpha channels. You can also invert and tile the selected channel.
The Scale and Offset settings let you scale and offset the selected channel.
The Scale values are factors and the Offset values are measured in pixels.
The Options settings let you specify how to use the selected channel with the existing selection or transformation. The default setting is to use the selected channel as a new transformation, but you can also add the selected channel to the existing transformation, subtract the selected channel from the existing transformation, or intersect the selected channel with the existing transformation. These options allow you to create interesting effects.
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Figure 9-35. Select Channel Menu
You may have noticed that the alpha channel appears differently than other channels when you select it. With RGB and selection channels, the red, green, blue, or selected portions of the image appear white in the selected channel thumbnail, and are surrounded by the selection marquee when you close the Select Channel dialog. When you select the alpha channel, the opaque areas of your image are selected, not the transparent areas. If this is confusing for you, you can invert the selection with the Invert Channel checkbox in the Select Channel dialog, or with the Invert button on the
Select tab.
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When editing any image, you need to take many variables into account, including the constraints and benefits of the medium you are working in. Computers have two general image types — vector and bitmap — each with their own limitations. Video, like any other medium, has its peculiarities and design challenges.
Vector-based images describe objects mathematically. In many well-known vector-based programs like CorelDRAW
and Adobe Illustrator, you can tell when an object is vector-based by the aliased edges. CG differs from these packages because the text and graphic object edges are always anti-aliased, even though they are vector-based.
Raster images, also known as bitmaps, describe objects by pixels. These pixels are arranged in a grid, or raster. Since a bitmap is defined by the number of pixels it contains, increasing its size can distort the image.
Programs like Microsoft Paint
, PaintShop Pro
, MetaCreations
™
Painter ™ , and Photoshop manipulate raster images. Unlike these applications, Paint is designed specifically for the video and broadcast industry. In CG, logos, textures, and backgrounds are bitmap images. In
Paint, Animation, and Frame Grab, all objects are bitmaps, including text.
Generally, you should not size an image or part of an image much beyond
120% in any application that manipulates bitmap images, including Paint,
CG, Animation, Frame Grab, and other paint programs.
Every design medium has its particular challenges. In print graphics, you need to understand CMYK color space, color separations, and the difference between image size and image resolution. In web graphics, you have to be concerned with file size and web colors. In video graphics, you do not have to worry about image resolution or file size. Image resolution is the size of the image and file size is limited only by free hard drive space and installed RAM.
Dealing with pixel shape, different aspect ratios, and video legal colors are part of the challenge of creating graphics for video. Paint has tools and features that are designed specifically for creating images for video.
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In the world of computers and print, pixels are square. Pixel shape may seem obvious, but it is important because in the world of video and television, pixels are usually
square. Video pixels are actually slightly rectangular, so when you output images to video, your circles become ellipses and your squares become rectangles. Pixel shape is determined by the aspect ratio.
Pixel aspect ratio is defined as the relationship between the width and height of a pixel. Computer monitor pixel aspect ratio is 1:1.
Television and video output ratios are not 1:1. The output picture aspect ratio depends on the standard (NTSC, PAL, or HDTV) you are creating the image for. Some older frame buffers let you define the output resolution separately. The picture aspect ratio for NTSC and PAL is 4:3
(width:height). For HDTV, the picture aspect ratio is 16:9. Paint automatically corrects your images for the current video aspect ratio, so your images do not appear distorted when output to video.
Paint provides a group of video legal filters on the Filter tab. These filters allow you to identify illegal colors and provide several ways of converting them to video safe colors for NTSC or PAL. See
"Work with Filters" on page 569 for details.
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When you are working with graphics, it is sometimes difficult to tell which colors in your image may be illegal. The result of illegal colors is not as severe as it used to be—encoder technology is much better today, and many newer encoders automatically replace problem colors with similar colors. Avoiding illegal colors is now mainly a design consideration, but you should still try to create graphics that do not need to be significantly modified by hardware or software.
You should know which colors are problem colors before you begin creating video legal graphics. The least problematic main color is blue, followed by red, and then green. Combinations of red and green tend to produce stronger, and less legal, colors. Saturated yellows are the most problematic colors to work with. One method of guaranteeing that your colors are legal is to work with desaturated colors.
Some of the tools in Paint can introduce illegal colors. For example, if you begin with an image that contains video legal colors but then paint with any of the Luminance Add, Luminance Subtract, Dodge, or Burn tools, or apply a filter that affects the luminance or chrominance values, you can potentially introduce illegal colors. But you do not have to avoid these tools or filters—this knowledge should help you create better graphics by predicting problem areas.
Colors with high chrominance and luminance values lean towards illegal, especially if they are combinations of red and green. Any highly saturated color that ranges from green to yellow or from red to yellow may be a problem. Colors with high chrominance and low luminance also lean towards illegal, so dark saturated colors can be problems as well.
Again, do not be afraid of using these colors, just use good judgement when using them. For example, if you are working with an image that has detailed areas with light greens, yellows, or reds, make sure the details are not just created with changes in color. Details in these areas must be created by a difference in luminance as well. A difference in luminance implies contrast. Following this guideline is a good idea no matter what colors you are working with.
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To understand which colors look good in video, you need to experiment with saturation. Colors that look quite different on your computer monitor may appear very similar, if not the same, on video. You should try using more than just different saturation values. Compelling images often have a good range of saturation, luminance, and chrominance.
Open the saturation.ipt file in the G-Scribe\Paint\Examples folder and take the image to video. Notice how the difference in saturation is more noticeable on your computer monitor than on your output monitor. With this example, you can see that you often do not need to use highly saturated colors for video images.
Figure 9-36. Video Saturation
In the real world, colors are much less saturated than they seem. As an experiment, some footage of everyday objects that seem to have saturated colors was shot with a camcorder.
Import the realworld.tga file in the G-Scribe\Paint\Examples folder. On the
Color tab, switch to the HLS color model. Select the Color tab Color Picker tool and drag it around the image. As you drag the Eye Dropper, look at the colors being selected. Notice that the saturation values for the colors are fairly low. This shows what the real world looks like when viewed by a video camera.
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Figure 9-37. Real World Saturation
Device gamuts describe the available colors that can be displayed on a particular device. The RGB color gamut describes the available colors in video and on the computer. Orange and yellow colors are in limited supply in the RGB gamut, which makes it difficult to select variations of yellow and orange.
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In order to create stunning video legal images easily, you should calibrate the three components you need to create, view, and output your images. The three components are: Frame Buffer, Output Monitor, and
Computer Monitor. Providing complete step-by-step instructions for the calibration process is beyond the scope of this manual, but this topic introduces the concepts and the general steps involved in setting up your system for creating the most usable Paint images. The illustration below shows the parts of a complete Paint system.
Frame Buffer
Computer Monitor
Figure 9-38. Paint System Components
Output Monitor
The main goal of calibration is simple: you want the images you create in
Paint to look the same in video as they do on your computer monitor. To achieve this goal, you need to be working on a calibrated system. A secondary goal is to be able to use your images on different systems without a huge variation in the output. The key to the secondary goal is a set of frame buffers that are calibrated identically.
In a one-system setup, the secondary goal may not be as important. In this situation you may be able to get away with not calibrating your frame buffer if you create images that look fine on your output monitor. However, this method is not recommended.
The order in which you calibrate your devices is important. Unless otherwise stated, you should calibrate your system in the following order:
1 Frame buffer.
2 Output monitor.
3 Computer monitor.
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The frame buffer is the most important of the three devices to be calibrated since it actually outputs your images. If the frame buffer is not properly calibrated, your images may experience shifts in color.
Calibrating your own frame buffer is not recommended unless you know what you are doing and have access to the proper equipment. When calibrating a frame buffer, you generally output a test signal and use a waveform and vectorscope to adjust the video levels and colors.
If you are a one-system shop or are only outputting images from the Paint system, you may be able to work around not calibrating your frame buffer.
You can try to match colors by eye between the output monitor and the computer monitor by setting your computer monitor to display similar colors to the output monitor. This method is not recommended since you are creating images that only look right if output using the current frame buffer.
Of the three devices you need to calibrate, the output monitor is the only one that does not affect the image itself or the image output. However, you still want to calibrate the output monitor since you use it to gauge what your image colors really look like in video. The quality of the image you see on your output monitor is much better than what you would see on the average television.
To calibrate your output monitor, you need to:
• Set the white point.
• Set the black and white levels.
• Adjust the chroma and hue settings.
The color temperature should be set to 6500K (warm). Set the contrast and brightness levels according to the Pluge test pattern. Adjust the chroma and hue according to the SMPTE color bars. See your output monitor documentation or the SMPTE ECR 1-1978 document for more information.
Since Paint is a WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) paint package, you want to make sure your computer monitor is calibrated properly. If you create images without calibrating your monitor, the images will not appear correctly in video. For example, if your gamma is not corrected, oranges may appear red, or yellows may appear orange.
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Calibrating your computer monitor involves several steps. You want to set the white point, correct the gamma, and adjust the brightness and contrast.
If your monitor allows it, set the white point (using software or hardware) to match the output monitor (6500K).
You can correct the gamma in G-Scribe or using third party gamma correction software. To correct your gamma in G-Scribe:
1 Import the gamma.bmp file located in the G-Scribe\Paint\Examples folder.
2 Select File > Preferences.
3 Adjust the R, G, and B fields on the General tab until the small color bars virtually disappear. You may not be able to get the gray bar to disappear totally.
You can set the brightness and contrast while viewing the smpte.bmp file.
Import the smpte.bmp file from the G-Scribe\Paint\Examples folder. The smpte.bmp file contains an RGB version of the SMPTE color bar with a
Pluge test pattern. This image should not be used to calibrate an output monitor since the values on the bottom row cannot reproduce negative voltages.
The Pluge test pattern is what you want to look at—the area at the bottom right of the image. Adjust the brightness and contrast until the dark gray bars disappear.
When calibrating the output and computer monitors, remember that environment variables such as office lighting and glare from windows affect how you perceive the images. You usually want to make sure light levels are consistent from one day to the next. You also want to minimize glare on the monitors.
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In Paint, one of the main ways to speed up your work is to use the shortcut keys. You can use shortcut keys for selecting tools and using Paint functionality.
Table 9-21. Paint Shortcut Keys
Tool Shortcut Key
General Tools
Tool
Color Picker
Scroll
Transformation Tools
CTRL+SHIFT+ALT+I Zoom In
CTRL+SHIFT+ALT+H Zoom Out
Move
Rotate
Scale
Color Tools
Brush
Airbrush
Pencil
Eraser
Line
Alpha Tools
CTRL+SHIFT+ALT+V Skew
CTRL+T
CTRL+SHIFT+ALT+T
Freeform
CTRL+SHIFT+ALT+B Fill
CTRL+SHIFT+ALT+A Tolerance Fill
CTRL+SHIFT+ALT+Y Luminance Fill
CTRL+SHIFT+ALT+E Linear Gradient
CTRL+SHIFT+ALT+N Radial Gradient
Alpha Add
Alpha Subtract
Alpha Memory
Image Editing Tools
Clone
Clone Fill
Offset
Smear
CTRL+SHIFT+ALT+J Alpha Linear Gradient CTRL+SHIFT+ALT+P
CTRL+ALT+J Alpha Radial Gradient CTRL+ALT+P
CTRL+SHIFT+ALT+R
CTRL+SHIFT+ALT+S
CTRL+ALT+S
CTRL+ALT+U
Dodge
Burn
Luminance Add
CTRL+SHIFT+ALT+U Luminance Subtract
Shortcut Key
CTRL+SHIFT+ALT+Z
CTRL+ALT+Z
CTRL+ALT+T
CTRL+SHIFT+T
CTRL+SHIFT+ALT+K
CTRL+ALT+K
CTRL+SHIFT+K
CTRL+SHIFT+ALT+G
CTRL+ALT+G
CTRL+SHIFT+ALT+O
CTRL+ALT+O
CTRL+SHIFT+ALT+Q
CTRL+ALT+Q
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Table 9-21. Paint Shortcut Keys
Tool Shortcut Key
Selection Tools
Wand
Luminance Wand
Selection Brush
Lasso
Tool Shortcut Key
CTRL+SHIFT+ALT+W Linear Lasso
CTRL+ALT+W Rectangular Selection
CTRL+ALT+L
CTRL+SHIFT+ALT+M
CTRL+SHIFT+ALT+C
CTRL+SHIFT+ALT+L
Elliptical Selection CTRL+ALT+M
Some of the most popular features in Paint also have shortcut keys. These features are listed below.
Functionality
Cut
Copy
Paste
Select All
Select None
Select Visible
Select Invisible
Invert Selection
Crop
View Normal
Shortcut Key
CTRL+X
CTRL+C
CTRL+V
CTRL+A
CTRL+D
CTRL+ALT+A
CTRL+SHIFT+A
CTRL+SHIFT+I
CTRL+SHIFT+C
CTRL+SHIFT+0
Functionality
Undo
Redo
Redraw
Duplicate Layer
New Layer
Merge Up
Merge Down
Merge Visible
Shortcut Key
CTRL+Z
CTRL+SHIFT+Z
CTRL+Y
CTRL+R
CTRL+SHIFT+R
CTRL+ALT+D
CTRL+ALT+N
CTRL+ALT+E
CTRL+E
CTRL+SHIFT+E
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The Preferences dialog includes a number of options that allow you to setup your system and workspace preferences. See the following information for details on each option.
Table 10-1. General Tab Preferences
Option Description
HORZ, VERT
NTSC, PAL
4:3, 16:9
Multi-Channel
Operation
Disable Board
Access
Horizontal and vertical resolution sets the width and height of rendered images. The values must match the board resolution in online mode.
Horizontal resolution is measured in pixels, and vertical resolution is measured in scanlines.
Video standard sets the standard you are working in.
Layouts designed in one standard and output on another can produce undesired results.
Aspect ratio is the relationship between the width and height of an image. The shape of the individual pixels determines the aspect ratio.
Layouts designed in one aspect ratio and output on another can produce undesired effects.
Enables multiple output boards to work as separate program channels. Clear this option to use multiple output boards as a Program/Preview system.
This option is not applicable when working offline.
Sets G-Scribe to avoid sending information to the output board. When selected, this option disables output functionality on the output monitor.
Clear this option to allow G-Scribe to send information to the output board and enable output functionality.
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Table 10-1. General Tab Preferences
Option Description
External Serial
Control
Disable Text
Filtering
1:1 Display
Aspect Ratio
Line 21
Protected
Enables serial port trigger functionality in G-Scribe.
Clear this option to disable serial port trigger support when no serial port trigger is used.
Disables automatic blur and pixel rise-time filters applied to text characters. Clear this option to apply blur and pixel rise-time filters on text.
Displays workspace image pixels on the computer monitor as a 1:1 ratio instead of a video-correct 4:3 or 16:9. Clear this option to set the workspace display to the current aspect ratio.
Prevents Closed Captioning from being overlapped by graphics. Clear this checkbox if Closed
Captioning is not part of the video signal.
Disable Copy
On Open
Silent Video Init Stops the output of the start-up screen when
G-Scribe is opened. Clear this option to output the output board start-up screen when G-Scribe is opened.
Video Dither
Disables G-Scribe from making backup copies of your .scribelist files when you open them.
Applies a dither filter that compensates for banding that appears with reduced color resolution during conversions on some output boards.
The dither filter improves the look of gradients.
Choose the setting based on your output board.
Enter 0 to avoid applying the dither filter.
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Table 10-1. General Tab Preferences
Option Description
Windows
Gamma
Video
Transparent
Pattern
Sets the VGA display to match the video output. You can set the red, green, and blue channels separately.
Gamma correction changes the midtones without modifying the extremes of the brightness range.
Increase the gamma values to lighten midtone ranges, or decrease the gamma values to darken the midtone ranges. The default gamma value of 1.0 means the VGA display is not corrected.
Sets the pattern G-Scribe displays that represents the video transparent areas of an image or a layout.
The pattern displayed is not saved as part of the layout information.
Table 10-2. Project Tab Preferences
Option Description
Search Order
Materials Path
Show Filename in Job Strip
Open the Most
Recently Used
Job on Launch
Sets the path order that G-Scribe uses to search for layout media.
G-Scribe searches this path when looking for referenced materials in layouts.
Displays the rendered image filename in the playlist instead of the event number. Clear this option to display event numbers in the playlist. You must check this option to use the Navigate dialog.
Opens the most recently opened playlist when you launch G-Scribe.
Write Scrapbook
Items to Disk
Allows you to save individual Scrapbook items to disk.
Table 10-3. Character Generator Tab Preferences
Option Description
Scale Type
Warn Layout
Changes
Default Sample
Strings
Language
Dictionaries
Sets the type of scaling for layouts opened in a different resolution than they were created in.
• Letterbox fits the layout into the new workspace without any change in aspect ratio.
• Crop scales and centers the layout to fill the workspace, cropping the outside edges.
• Size-To-Fit adjusts the aspect ratio of the layout to fill the new workspace.
Sets G-Scribe to warn you before you select a new template in CG. The warning reminds you that the new template deletes the existing CG content in the workspace.
You can copy text from the existing layout to the new template.
Clear this option to avoid the new template warning.
Sets the default text strings displayed for the styles in the Style Library.
Opens the Lexicon Selection dialog to customize the languages and dictionaries available in G-Scribe.
Check one or more Languages and User Lexicons
(dictionaries) as needed. Clear Languages and/or
User Lexicons that you don't need access to.
Click Close to return to the Preferences dialog.
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Table 10-4. Sequencer Tab Preferences
Option Description
Default Colors Customizes both the text and background color of the Sequencer playlist.
• Select a display option from the list.
• Select a text color with the Text color chips.
• Select a background color with the Background color chips.
The Sample Text area shows you what the color combination looks like. The Sample Text area is located below the list.
Reset
Reset All
Resets the selected object in the list to its default color.
Resets all the objects in the list to their default colors.
Default to
Group Headers
Default to
Non-Keyed Cuts
Inserts a group header each time you add an event to the current playlist.
Sets the keying type for cut transitions to a full-screen, 32-bit cut by default. Clear this option to set cuts to 32-bit for the center 512 scanlines and a wipe for the rest of the scanlines.
Default Trigger Applies the selected trigger type to new group headers.
GPI Port Selects the system COM port your GPI device is connected to.
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Table 10-4. Sequencer Tab Preferences
Option Description
On-Line Output
Directory
Sets the folder location for all rendered Sequencer files. Leave this option blank to store all rendered files in a subfolder where the SCRIBELIST file is stored.
Click the Browse button to navigate to and select a folder.
Table 10-5. Store Paths Tab Preferences
Option Description
Default Title
Default
Keywords
Automatically assigns the entered title to every media file included in a Media Store database build.
• To automatically use the filename as the default title, select the Auto Use File Name checkbox.
• To automatically use the network drive name or compact disc volume name as the default title, select the Auto Use Volume Label checkbox.
Automatically assigns the entered keywords to every media file included in a Media Store database build.
• To automatically use the filename as the default keyword, select the Auto Use File Name checkbox.
• To automatically use the network drive name or compact disc volume name as the default keyword, select the Auto Use Volume Label checkbox.
Thumbnail Text Sets G-Scribe to display either the file name, the first keyword, or the title on the image thumbnails in the
Media window.
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Table 10-5. Store Paths Tab Preferences
Option Description
Date Format Sets the date format used in Media Store:
DD-MM-YYYY, MM-DD-YYYY, or YYYY-MM-DD.
The format is controlled by the Date Format option.
Media Store date fields, for example, the file date on the Key Info tab, use the format specified by the Date
Format option. Also, if you define a search using the
Date search key, you must use the current Media
Store date format.
Case Insensitive Sets G-Scribe to perform case-insensitive searches.
Location Name Names the location for the reference files Media
Store creates when you view images in the Media window.
By default, the location is named Default and the following fields (Server, Local, and Browse) set the locations for saving the referenced files.
Server, Local,
Browse
Sets the location for storing image reference files.
Store creates the reference files when you view images in the Media window.
Click the Browse button or enter the path in the fields to set the location.
Table 10-6. Folios Tab Preferences
Option Description
Default Sort
Order
Sets the default order for the image thumbnails in the Media window.
The default sort order is None, which sorts the files by media number.
Table 10-7. Browser Tab Preferences
Option Description
Live Update/
Directories list
Defaults
Clear
Add
Delete
Displays the folders that the Media window will not automatically update with file changes, when the folder is currently selected in browse mode (B1 folio).
If the folder is not currently selected, file changes are updated in the Media window the next time you select the folder.
Sets G-Scribe to ignore the default folders.
Clears all folders from the list.
Adds a new folder to the list.
Deletes the selected folder from the list.
The Cache tab allows you to set the amount of RAM available for performing functions in the Media window. The Record Cache improves scrolling through image thumbnails with smaller databases. The Node
Cache speeds up searches and improves very large database access.
Once your system is configured, you should not have to change these settings.
Table 10-8. Cache Tab Preferences
Option Description
Max Size field Enter the amount of RAM you want available for each cache.
Bytes Used field Reports the amount of data currently stored in the available RAM.
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Table 10-8. Cache Tab Preferences
Option Description
Hit Rate field Reports the effectiveness of the cache. For example, if G-Scribe retrieves information from the cache 1/3 of the time, then the hit rate is 33%.
Hits field
Misses field
Displays the number of hits, which is used in calculating the Hit Rate.
Displays the number of misses, which is used in calculating the Hit Rate.
Defaults button Resets the caches back to the default sizes.
The following information provides a quick reference to the G-Scribe shortcut keys.
Action
New
Open
Save
Print Playlist
Cut
Shortcut
CTRL + N
CTRL + O
CTRL + S
CTRL + P
CTRL + X
Action
Copy
Paste
Undo
Redo
Help
Shortcut
CTRL + C
CTRL + V
CTRL + Z
CTRL + Y
F1
Action Shortcut
CG F6
Sequencer F11
Animation SHIFT+F6
Media Store F9
Action
Paint
Frame Grab
Shortcut
F8
F7
SHIFT+F7
Action Shortcut
Open new playlist CTRL+N
Open playlist
Print playlist
Save playlist
Cut event
CTRL+O
CTRL+P
CTRL+S
ALT+SHIFT+X
Action Shortcut
Select next event ALT+PAGE
DOWN
Select previous event
ALT+PAGE UP
Select first event ALT+HOME
Select last event ALT+END
Log event down CTRL+L
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Action
Copy event
Paste event
Undo cut, copy, paste events
Shortcut
ALT+SHIFT+C
ALT+SHIFT+V
ALT+SHIFT+Z
Action Shortcut
Log default event CTRL+SHIFT+G
Log event up CTRL+SHIFT+L
Action Shortcut Action Shortcut
Setup event
Take event
Stop current take
Number pad
MINUS Sign key
(-)
Number pad
ENTER
ESC
Open Change
Render Name dialog
Open Navigate dialog
Select event in
Navigate dialog
SHIFT + Page Up Take event in
Navigate dialog
Increase output speed of rolls/ crawls
Decrease output speed of rolls/ crawls
SHIFT + Page
Down
Delete event in
Navigate dialog
Start/stop roll/ crawl output
Switch Online/
Offline
Clear DVE
PAUSE Close
SHIFT+CTRL+O
CTRL+F12 dialog
Make Shotbox field active when
Shotbox is visible in the workspace
CTRL+J
CTRL+SHIFT+J
ENTER
Number pad
ENTER
DELETE
ESCAPE
F12
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Action
Text Objects
Shortcut Action Shortcut
Move cursor to previous line
Move cursor to next line
Jump to start of line
UP ARROW
DOWN ARROW Select character to right of cursor
HOME
Jump to end of line END
Select character to left of cursor
Select word to left of cursor
Select word to right of cursor
Jump to first line in text object
CTRL+HOME
Jump to last line in text object
CTRL+END
Select from cursor to previous line
Select from cursor to next line
Jump to start of word
CTRL+LEFT
ARROW
Delete selected text; remove character to the right of the cursor
Delete selected text; remove character to the left of the cursor
Delete text to end of line
Switch to Insert cursor
DELETE
BACKSPACE
SHIFT+DELETE
CTRL+=
SHIFT+LEFT
ARROW
SHIFT+RIGHT
ARROW
CTRL+SHIFT+LEFT
ARROW
CTRL+SHIFT+
RIGHT ARROW
SHIFT+UP ARROW
SHIFT+DOWN
ARROW
Select from cursor to start of line
SHIFT+HOME
Select from cursor to end of line
SHIFT+END
Select from cursor to start of object
Select from cursor to end of object
Switch to Auto
Erase cursor
CTRL+SHIFT+
HOME
CTRL+SHIFT+END
CTRL+-
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Action
Switch to Lock cursor
Text Rows
Shortcut
CTRL+0
Action Shortcut
Make row
Swap rows
Copy row
Move row up and swap with row directly above
CTRL+ENTER
CTRL+SHIFT+C followed by
CTRL+/
Cut row
Paste row
CTRL+SHIFT+X
CTRL+SHIFT+V
CTRL+SHIFT+C Paste row above CTRL+SHIFT+ALT
+V
CTRL+SHIFT+U
P ARROW
Move row down and swap with row directly below
CTRL+SHIFT+
DOWN ARROW
Manage Objects
Move object one pixel in any direction
Move object 10 pixels in any direction
ALT+ARROW
ALT+CTRL+AR
ROW
Cut object
Copy object
CTRL+X
CTRL+C
Move object by number of pixels in the Pixels field
CTRL+ARROW Paste object
Bring to front CTRL+F
Send to back CTRL+B
CTRL+V
Select multiple objects
SHIFT+click on each object
Move text object Select text object then SHIFT+drag
Layouts
Redraw CG workspace
CTRL+D Load template with Template
Manager
ENTER
Action Shortcut
Open Layout Type list
CTRL+E
Open Templates list
CTRL+R
Action
Load next template with
Template
Manager
Load multiple templates with
Template
Manager
Shortcut
ALT+W
CTRL+SHIFT+
ENTER
Open Template
Manager dialog
Text Tools
CTRL+SHIFT+R
Text Constraint
Field tool
Text Field tool
Vertical Text Field tool
Vertical Text
Constraint tool
CTRL+]
CTRL+[
Paragraph Field tool
Fixed Width
Paragraph tool
CTRL+T
CTRL+H
CTRL+SHIFT+[ Vertical
Paragraph Field tool
CTRL+SHIFT+] Vertical Fixed
Width Paragraph tool
CTRL+SHIFT+T
CTRL+SHIFT+H
Layout Tree View
Bring To Front
Bring Forward
Send To Back
CTRL + F
CTRL + SHIFT +
F
CTRL + B
Send Backward CTRL + SHIFT + B
Delete selected objects
DELETE
Lock/Unlock selected object’s position
CTRL + SHIFT + P
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Action
Keyframes
Shortcut Action Shortcut
Cut keyframe
Copy keyframe
Paste keyframe
Delete keyframe
Insert keyframe at default
Insert keyframe after
Select next keyframe
Select all keyframes
Constrain tool to
X axis
Constrain tool to
Y axis
Layout
CTRL+X
CTRL+C
CTRL+V
DELETE
Insert keyframe before
Insert keyframe at current frame
Paste keyframe at current frame
Paste keyframe attributes
INSERT or
CTRL+E
Select first keyframe in path
CTRL+INSERT Select last keyframe in path
CTRL+W Select previous keyframe
CTRL+A
1+click and drag Constrain tool to
Z axis
2+click and drag
Adjust keyframe using current tool
SHIFT+INSERT
ALT+INSERT or
CTRL+ALT+E
CTRL+ALT+V
CTRL+SHIFT+V
HOME
END
CTRL+Q
ARROW keys
3+click and drag
Redraw FX workspace
Play wireframe preview of animation in FX workspace
CTRL+D
CTRL+H
Preview current frame
CTRL+F
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Action
Animation Paths
Shortcut
Select first path CTRL+HOME
Select last path CTRL+END
Action
Select next path
Select previous path
Shortcut
CTRL+PAGE
DOWN
CTRL+PAGE UP
Action
Import 3D
Animation
Copy surface object
Open Surface
Editor
Shortcut Action
ALT+F+I+I+I
ALT+CLICK
Maintain aspect ratio when sizing
Resize from object middle
CTRL+SHIFT+D Toggle Visibility of Surface
Shortcut
SHIFT+DRAG
ALT+DRAG
CTRL+SHIFT+Y
Action
Insert group header
Remove group header
Shortcut
CTRL+T
CTRL+U
Action Shortcut
Select all events CTRL+A
Select multiple events
Hold CTRL or
SHIFT and click to select
Action Shortcut
Grab video frame and add it to
Media Store
Build folio
CTRL+G
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Action Shortcut Action Shortcut
Scroll to top of
Media window
Scroll to bottom of Media window
Scroll up one page in Media window
Scroll down one page in Media window
CTRL+HOME
CTRL+END
Search for media in Media window
Find media in
Media window
CTRL+PAGE UP Find media again in Media window
CTRL+PAGE
DOWN
Sort media in
Media window
F2
F3
SHIFT+F3
F4
Scroll up one line in Media window
Scroll down one line in Media window
Select all media in
Media window
Select multiple items
Cut media
Copy media
CTRL+UP
ARROW
CTRL+DOWN
ARROW
CTRL+A
Hold CTRL or
SHIFT and click to select
Build media into
Media Store database
Add media to a layout Media
Library as a logo
Add media to playlist as a background
Add media to a layout Media
Library as a texture
SHIFT+CTRL+X Update changes
SHIFT+CTRL+C Delete media from
Media window
F5
CTRL-drag media to layout in playlist
CTRL+ALT+SHIF
T-drag media to playlist
CTRL+SHIFT-dra g media to layout in playlist
CTRL+U
CTRL+D
Launch Build
Media Store dialog with media on Clipboard
SHIFT+CTRL+V Add media to
Scrapbook
Grab a video frame and add it to Build folio
CTRL+G
SHIFT+CTRL+A
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Action
Selections
Select all pixels
Select visible pixels
Select invisible pixels
Layers
New layer
Duplicate layer
Merge layer up
Shortcut
CTRL+A
ALT+CTRL+A
CTRL+SHIFT+A Select none
(remove selection)
CTRL+D
CTRL+ALT+N
CTRL+ALT+D
CTRL+ALT+E
Action
Crop to selection
Invert selection
Shortcut
CTRL+SHIFT+C
CTRL+SHIFT+I
Merge layer down CTRL+E
Merge visible layers
CTRL+SHIFT+E
Action
Function Keys
Load layout from registry into
Scratch.vii layout
Write Scratch.vii layout to registry
(update only)
Shortcut
F2
F3
Action Shortcut
Write Scratch.vii layout to playlist
F5
Write Scratch.vii layout to working directory (if Load
From Working
Directory option is enabled) or Media
Store (if option is
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Action Shortcut
Load layout from playlist into
Scratch.vii layout
Load layout from working directory
(if Load From
Working Directory option is enabled) or Media Store (if option is disabled) into Scratch.vii layout. See
.
Number Pad Keys
F4
SHIFT+F4
Swap contents of program channel 1 and program channel 2
Switch the output channel
/
*
Action Shortcut
Grab a video frame and load it into
Scratch.vii layout
CTRL+G
Find the next free number in the sequence
CTRL+
PLUS SIGN
Load layout from playlist (if focus is in RapidFire text field). Otherwise, take event.
ENTER
Action
Set up event
Shortcut
-
Set up event as linked event
Read the next item in sequence
SHIFT+
MINUS SIGN
+
Action Shortcut
Load layout from working directory
(if Load From
Working Directory option is enabled) or Media Store (if option is disabled) into Scratch.vii layout. Focus must be in RapidFire text field. See
SHIFT+ENTER
Clear all output channels
Clear the
Scratch.vii layout and load default template.
Clear RapidFire text field
CTRL+SHIFT+*
CTRL+*
PERIOD Find the previous item in the sequence
SHIFT+
PLUS SIGN
For RapidFire keyboard key descriptions, see ”RapidFire Keyboard” on page 618 .
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If you purchased the RapidFire Keyboard option for G-Scribe, you received the custom RapidFire keyboard designed for sports and live event coverage.
The following illustration shows the RapidFire keyboard with colored keycaps and labels.
The following tables describe the function of the RapidFire keys.
1
Number Key Function
Switches to CG
2
3
4
Switches to Sequencer
Switches to Media Store
Switches to Animation Editor
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Number
5
Key
6
Function
Switches to Frame Grab
Switches to Paint
Number
7
8
9
10
Key
STORE 1
STORE 2
STORE 3
STORE 4
Function
Loads predefined Media Store file (assigned to the Shot Box palette Defined button 1) to the workspace. The file is centered on the workspace.
Loads predefined Media Store file (assigned to the Shot Box palette Defined button 2) to the workspace. The file is centered on the workspace.
Loads predefined Media Store file (assigned to the Shot Box palette Defined button 3) to the workspace. The file is centered on the workspace.
Loads predefined Media Store file (assigned to the Shot Box palette Defined button 4) to the workspace. The file is centered on the workspace.
Number
11
12
Key
OVERLAY
STOP
SHIFT+STOP
Function
Toggles Overlay open and closed
Stops all layers, for example, stops clocks and counters
LAYER 1 - Toggles Overlay layer 1 between the show and hide states, but does not take the change to air
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Number
13
14
Key
ALL ON
SHIFT+
ALL ON
ALL OFF
SHIFT+
ALL OFF
Function
Turns all Overlay layers on
LAYER 2 - Toggles Overlay layer 2 between the show and hide states, but does not take the change to air
Turns all Overlay layers off
LAYER 3 - Toggles Overlay layer 3 between the show and hide states, but does not take the change to air
18
19
20
Number
15
16
17
21
22
Key Function
TEXT
DELETE
CURSORS
DELETE END
Selects Text Field on CG Tools palette.
Deletes all unused, empty objects on the layout. If an empty object is selected, it is not deleted.
Deletes all text from the cursor position to the end of the line.
STYLE LIBRARY Opens Template Manager (Style Library).
NEWS EDIT Opens News Edit.
CRAWL
SHIFT+CRAWL
CENTER ROW
Switches layout type to crawl.
ROLL - Switches layout type to roll.
CENTER PAGE
Centers selected rows horizontally on the layout.
Centers all items horizontally and vertically on the layout.
Number
23
24
Key
GUIDES/
MARKERS
SPELL CHECK
Function
Toggles on and off guides and markers, for example, safe area, grid, and tags.
Opens Spell Check.
Number
25
26
Key
LOGO
BG
27
CTRL+BG
SHIFT+BG
SWAP ROWS
SHIFT+
SWAP ROWS
Function
Inserts a logo region on the workspace.
Imports a background file. The Open dialog opens to allow you to select a file.
Removes background.
Opens background editor.
If one row is selected and another has been copied for swapping, swaps the rows.
Copies row for swapping.
Number
28
29
30
31
32
Key
SETUP LINKED
EVENT
Function
Sets up the event as a linked event. Each event must be assigned to a different output channel. Linked events are taken to air simultaneously.
Assigns the event to Strata layer 1.
Clears the event on Strata layer 1.
STRATA 1
SHIFT+
STRATA 1
STRATA 2
SHIFT+
STRATA 2
STRATA 3
SHIFT+
STRATA 3
STRATA 4
SHIFT+
STRATA 4
Assigns the event to Strata layer 2.
Clears the event on Strata layer 2.
Assigns the event to Strata layer 3.
Clears the event on Strata layer 3.
Assigns the event to Strata layer 4.
Clears the event on Strata layer 4.
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Number
33
Key
CLEAR BOTH
34 CLEAR ALL
37
38
CLEAR 1
CLEAR 2
Number
35
Key
IMPORT 3D
Function
Clears all output channels (both video boards).
Clears all output channels and the Scratch.vii layout. The default template loads into
Scratch.vii. See
”Set Default Template” on page 90
.
Clears output channel 1.
Clears output channel 2.
36
39
AUTO TEXT
SHIFT+
AUTO TEXT
CTRL+ALT+
AUTO TEXT
VIA TRANS 1
SHIFT+
VIA TRANS 1
Function
Imports a 3D animation. The Import 3D
Animation dialog opens to allow you to select files: COLLADA (.dae) file and animation source frames.
Inserts specified Auto Text string in text field.
String from the Auto Text File” on page 89
.
Opens configuration dialog, which lists all
Auto Text strings for current playlist.
Opens the Auto Text file for the current playlist in Windows Notepad. If the file does not exist, RapidFire can create it. For more information, see
”Create an Auto Text File” on page 87
Plays the first predefined transition .via file before displaying the active event or event called by RapidFire.
Plays the third predefined transition .via file before displaying the active event or event called by RapidFire.
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Number
40
Key
VIA TRANS 2
SHIFT+
VIA TRANS 2
Function
Plays the second predefined transition .via file before displaying the active event or event called by RapidFire.
Plays the fourth predefined transition .via file before displaying the active event or event called by RapidFire.
Number
41
Key
RECORD
LAYOUT
SHIFT+
RECORD
LAYOUT
42
43
44
SWAP
CHANGE
CTRL+
CHANGE
SETUP EVENT
Function
Writes layout to playlist (specified in
RapidFire text field) from Scratch.vii.
If the Load From Working Directory option is enabled (see
”Set the Working Directory” on page 83
), writes the Scratch.vii layout to
the working directory as a layout (filename without extension specified in the RapidFire text field).
If the Load From Working Directory option is disabled (see
”Set the Working Directory” on page 83
), writes the Scratch.vii layout to
Media Store as a template layout (media number specified in the RapidFire text field).
Swaps the contents of program channel 1 and program channel 2 (requires a two channel system or two virtual channels set up using
Strata). The current channel is indicated by the number displayed in the bottom left
(under the playlist) of the G-Scribe window.
Switches the output channel for the current event.
Clears Scratch.vii layout. The default template
Sets up event: previews event.
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Number
45
Key
READ
46
47
SHIFT+READ
CTRL+READ
TAKE
SHIFT+TAKE
DEL
SHIFT+DEL
Function
Reads the next item in the sequence. For example, if 200 is in the RapidFire text field and the next item is 232.vii, RapidFire loads
232.vii into Scratch.vii.
Finds the previous item in the sequence. Note:
The item is not loaded.
Finds the next free number after the current number in the sequence.
If the focus is in the RapidFire text field, reads the layout from the sequencer into Scratch.vii and does not output. Otherwise, takes the current layout to the current output channel.
Note:
The focus must be in the RapidFire text field.
If the Load From Working Directory option is enabled (see
”Set the Working Directory” on page 83
working directory (filename without extension specified in the RapidFire text field) into the
Scratch.vii layout.
If the Load From Working Directory option is disabled (see
”Set the Working Directory” on page 83
), loads the Media Store template
layout (media number specified in the
RapidFire text field) into the Scratch.vii layout.
Clears RapidFire text field.
FOCUS - Changes focus to the objects on the workspace.
.dae file
A file created with the COLLADA plugin when you export your 3D animation from a 3rd party program. The .dae file is imported into 3D FlyBy along with the animation sequence to create a .via file that you use in the 3D FlyBy module.
.eps file
The most common form of a vector-based image.
Objects in vector-based images are described mathematically, based on various specified points, such as the four corner points of a rectangle.
.icg file
Legacy file format for individual layouts. Replaced by .scribe file format in G-Scribe 5.0.
.ins file
Legacy file format for playlist files. Replaced by
.scribelist file format in G-Scribe 5.0.
.ipt file
An Inscriber image format for files created in
Paint. .ipt files are 32-bit and contain alpha information.
.lgo file
An Inscriber image format for 1-, 16-, or 32-bit images with alpha.
.scribe file
File format for individual layouts created in
G-Scribe 5.0 or later. Contains the layout details, animation data, ODBC connections, and transitions information.
.scribelist file
File format for saved playlists created in G-Scribe
5.0 or later. Contains the playlist details including layout details, sequencing, Media Store files, and output information.
.via file
3D FlyBy – The file format of your 3D FlyBy animation. 3D FlyBy takes the imported .dae file and animation sequence to make the .via file used in 3D FlyBy.
ViaBuilder – The file format of your single animation file. ViaBuilder takes the imported
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animation sequence and creates the .via file. You can import .via files in G-Scribe.
2D
See Two-Dimensional Space.
3D
See Three-Dimensional Space.
3D FlyBy
G-Scribe module that imports scenes from 3D software programs to use in your playlist. You can add titles and graphics that fly in with the animation surfaces during output.
3D Surface Editor
3D FlyBy – The editor that includes options for adding text and graphics to your 3D animation surfaces.
4-Point Animation
3D FlyBy – Loops a segment of the animation, instead of the entire animation. You can set the start and end loop points on the Animation tab.
A
Absolute Position
Animation – A motion template option that ignores the placement of the selected path and uses the position set in the template instead.
Active Texture Treatment
CG – Applies a moving image to text or graphic objects. They are usually looped video clips which add texture and motion to several objects in a layout.
You must have the Clip Option activated on your system before you can use Active Textures.
Adaptive Field Filters
CG, Paint, and Frame Grab – Video clean-up filters that modify the luminance numbers for each pixel on even- or odd-numbered scan lines based on the luminance numbers for the pixels directly above and below.
AES
Audio Engineering Society. AES is a professional organization that recommends standards for the audio industries.
Alpha
Transparency in video images. In Paint, the alpha channel contains all of the details on the video transparency of the image.
See also Transparency.
Alpha Adjustment Filters
Paint – Inscriber filters that allow you to manipulate the video transparency of your images.
Alpha Background Pattern
See Video Transparent Pattern.
Alpha Channel
Paint – The channel that defines the visible and transparent areas of images used in G-Scribe.
Paint allows you to modify the image alpha channel.
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Alpha Mask
Sequencer – Uses a video file or image as a mask over the event during output. The event displays through the alpha of the selected file.
Alpha Memory
When you edit a file in Paint, the original alpha channel is not destroyed when you modify the alpha information. Using the Alpha Memory tools, you can restore all or a portion of the original alpha channel.
Alpha Memory Tool
Paint – Tool that allows you to restore all or a portion of the original alpha channel of an image.
This is possible because the original alpha channel is not destroyed when you modify alpha information in Paint.
Alpha Texture
Paint – A type of texture applied to the alpha channel instead of to the image.
Alpha Tools
Paint – Tools used to add alpha to an image.
Tools include Alpha Add and Subtract, Alpha Fill, and Alpha Gradient.
Anamorphic
Process that horizontally squeezes a 16:9 HD image so that all the pixels are visible in the 4:3
SD space. The image is then stretched horizontally when outputting to 16:9 SD, resulting in a clearer and sharper picture.
Animation
CG, Animation, and Sequencer – A type of CG layout or effect event. From CG, layouts are imported into Animation to move the text and graphic objects around in virtual 3D space, then output in Sequencer.
Animation Editor
G-Scribe module that takes two-dimensional CG text and graphics and creates three-dimensional animations.
Animation Settings
CG – A dialog that determines how CG objects are sent in the FX workspace. For each layer in a
CG layout, select As Lines, As Characters, or As
Single Object. To send the background to
Animation, click the Export Background checkbox.
Animation Transition
Sequencer – Displays a still event using the selected animation file as a transition. The transition duration is determined by the length of the animation.
See also Transition.
ANSI Fonts
A standard arrangement of alphanumeric characters within a font. All ANSI fonts identify characters with three digit numbers ranging from
000 to 255.
ANSI Identification Numbers
Three digit numbers, ranging from 000 to 255, used to identify specific characters in ANSI fonts.
A character usually has the same number in all fonts. For example, “a” is ANSI character 097 and
“®” is ANSI character 174. Use the Windows
Character Map or the CG Character Map to find identification numbers.
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Anti-Aliasing
Removes or avoids the jagged edges on curved and diagonal lines in text or graphic objects.
Anti-aliasing works by interpolating pixels of an intermediate color along the edges of an object.
CG characters and various Paint tools use anti-aliasing.
As Characters
CG – An animation setting that determines how items on a layer are grouped when imported into
Animation. As Characters puts each character in a word on a separate spline path in Animation.
As Lines
CG – An animation setting that determines how items on a layer are grouped when imported into
Animation. As Lines puts each word or object on a separate spline path in Animation.
As Single Object
CG – An animation setting that determines how items on a layer are grouped when imported into
Animation. As Single Object flies all objects and words in a layout on a single spline path.
Aspect Ratio
The relationship between the width and height of an image. Standard televisions have an aspect ratio of 4:3 (4 units wide by 3 units high).
Widescreen television have an aspect ratio of 16:9.
ATVista
A brand of frame buffer.
Automatic Live Updates
A Program/Preview palette setting that automatically sends any changes you make directly to the channels enabled for live updates. You can set the updates for the Program and Preview palette.
Auto Text
Text strings that can be quickly inserted into a layout using RapidFire.
Average Field Filters
CG, Paint, and Frame Grab – Video clean-up filters that compute new data for even- or odd-numbered scan lines by averaging each scan line with the line above.
Axis (X, Y, or Z)
Animation – An imaginary line that passes through an object and about which the object turns. There are three axes Animation – X (width), Y (height), and Z (depth).
B
B1 Folio
See Browse Folio.
Background
CG – A pattern, color, image, or incoming video signal. Foreground objects, such as text and graphics, are placed on top of the background.
Paint – Images created in Paint, to be used in CG behind other text and graphic objects.
See also Collage.
Background Color
CG and Paint – Color used as a secondary color for gradients. You can also use the background color as a secondary color choice when applying
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color to an element. If you hold down the ALT key, the background color is applied instead of the face color.
Balanced Audio
Balanced audio is a method of minimizing unwanted noise from interference in audio cables.
The idea is that any interference picked up in a balanced cable is eliminated at the point where the cable plugs into the audio equipment.
Balanced audio works on the principle that two identical signals which are inverted 180° out of phase will cancel each other out. This method of transmission is designed for long cable runs.
Baud Rate
A measure of the speed of data transmission between computer and other devices, measured in bits per second. Typically, the baud settings of two devices must match if the devices are to communicate with one another.
Best Lossless Compression
Media Store – A compression option that tries both LZW and VII methods, and then applies the one with the best compression or no compression.
The result is the smallest possible image size without losing data.
See also Compression, LZW Compression, and VII
Compression.
Bias
Animation – A spline property that refers to the spline path coming into or out of a keyframe.
Adjusting the bias makes motion more dependent on one direction than the other.
See also Spline.
Bitmap
An image file format that describes the position and color number of each of its pixels. These pixels are arranged in a grid, or raster. Since a bitmap is defined by the number of pixels it contains, increasing its size can distort the image.
Bitmaps are also known as raster images.
Bitrate
The speed at which bits are transmitted or processed, measured in bits per second (bps). The higher the bitrate, the more data that is processed and, typically, the higher the picture resolution.
Blue Channel
Paint – The channel that stores all of the blue information in an image.
Blur Filter
CG, Paint, Animation Editor, and Frame Grab – A distortion filter that mildly blurs the frame grab, object, or texture it is applied to with a 3x3 convolution filter.
Contrast with Sharpen Filter.
Borders
Sequencer – Sets the output area for rolls and crawls. During playback the roll/crawl displays within the set border.
Browse Folio
Media Store – The folder that contains the media files from the directory you are currently browsing.
It can be accessed by clicking the B1 button on the
Media Store toolbar in browse mode.
Contrast with Global Browse Folio.
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Browse Mode
Media Store – The Media window displays the media files from the folders you have browsed on local, network, and removable drives. The Media
Store toolbar provides access to folios of browsed files.
Contrast with Database Mode.
Browse Set Folio
Media Store – A temporary location for holding media files from the most recent Media Store search in browse mode.
Brush-Based Tools
Paint – Tools that let you use brush attributes to perform non-painting tasks, such as cloning or alpha memory. All of the settings from the Brush tab are used by brush-based tools.
Brush Styles
Paint – Brush tab settings that control the appearance of Paint tool strokes. The Hard-Edge style applies the tool as if it were a pencil. The
Soft-Edge style applies the tool as if it were a brush. The Soft-Edge Buildup style applies the tool as if it were an airbrush.
Build Folio
Media Store – The folder that contains browsed media files to be added to a Media Store database.
You can access the Build folio (also called the
Build set) by clicking the Build button on the
Media Store toolbar.
Build List
Media Store – The list of image files in the Build dialog waiting to be added to the Store database.
C
Cache
A specialized area of memory that improves a computer’s performance by storing frequently accessed information.
Calibration
The process of matching the output on your computer monitor to your video output so that colors look the same on both monitors.
Canvas Size
Paint – The size of your painting area. Your canvas size can be larger or smaller than your image size.
If your canvas size is smaller than your image size, some of the image is clipped. If your canvas size is larger than your image size, an empty area appears around the image.
See also Image Size.
Capture
Frame Grab – An action that allows you to capture a frame from a video feed.
Center Cut
A method used to crop the original 16:9 widescreen image so it will fit a standard 4:3 television monitor. As a result, the left and right sides of the image are cut off, and only the center is visible.
CG
G-Scribe module that acts as a full-featured character generator, allowing you to create still, roll, crawl, and animation layouts for display to
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video. CG layouts can also be exported to FX for
3D effects.
Channel
Paint – The storage location for color and transparency information in an image. Each layer in an image has four channels: red, green, blue, and alpha. Each channel stores information about one aspect of the image. The red, green, and blue channels store all of the color information for the image. The alpha channel stores all of the transparency information for the image. Individual channels are represented by monochrome images.
Character Generator
See CG.
Chroma Antialiasing Filter
Paint – A video clean-up filter that smooths image features that cause flickering bands of false color
(due to color signal encoding in NTSC) during broadcast.
Chrominance
Amount of pure color. Chrominance works in conjunction with luminance, which is the shade or value of the color. For example, when you look at a red ball your eyes do not see it as having many colors but as having many shades of red. The red you see is the chrominance of the ball and the shades of red are the different luminance values.
Clean-up
Paint – The process of using Paint tools and filters to add alpha and make other corrections to a logo or image.
Clip Art
Images commonly available from third-party sources that can be quickly inserted into an image.
Clip Objects
CG – Full resolution, uncropped video clip objects. You must have the Clip Option enabled on your system before you can use clip objects.
Clock Objects
CG – Pre-defined RTX applications you can use to add digital clocks and digital timers to layouts.
CLR button
A Program/Preview palette button that clears the current channel.
CMYK
An acronym for Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Black.
All printed images are a combination of these four colors. CMYK is not relevant to video display, but computer-generated images must be converted to
CMYK if they are to be printed.
COLLADA Plugin
A free open source tool. Allows you to create a
.dae file from your 3D animation program. 3D
FlyBy uses the .dae file when you import your animation into G-Scribe.
For information about COLLADA, visit www.khronos.org/collada/ .
Collage
Paint – An image technique that combines and blends multiple images into one smooth composition.
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Color Adjustment Filters
Paint – Inscriber filters that alter image color by mapping new ranges of pixel values over existing ranges.
Color Balance Filter
Paint – A color adjustment filter that adjusts the color range of an image’s shadows, midtones, and highlights one at a time.
Color Chip
CG and Paint – A small colored square on the
Color & Texture tab in CG or the Color tab in
Paint that identifies a selected color.
Color Correction
Paint – A means of adjusting the color of an image. Paint has several color correction filters that let you perform complex adjustments to the color of an image.
Color Emboss
Paint – A distortion filter that makes an image appear embossed by adding highlights and shadows based on the edges in the images, while retaining color information.
Color Model
A mathematical representation of the full set of colors available for NTSC or PAL encoding, such as the RGB, HSV or HLS color models. While the colors they represent remain the same (that is, yellow remains yellow), the method they use to represent those colors may differ.
See also RGB Color Model.
Color Picker
Paint and CG – An eye-dropper tool that copies colors from anywhere on the screen.
Complex Search
Media Store – A Media Store search using multiple keywords and operators.
See also Simple Search.
Component Video
Video comprised of multiple signals. It is usually taken to mean that there are separate signals for chrominance and luminance. RGB is also a component signal, with separate signals for red, green, and blue pixel numbers.
Composite Image
Paint – An image where all of the information is placed on a single layer and cannot be separated.
You can create images with multiple layers, but they are converted to composite, or single layer, images when you take them into another G-Scribe module.
See also Merge.
Composite Video
Video comprised of a single signal for luminance and chrominance numbers.
Compression
Media Store – Reduces the size of a database image, typically by removing redundant information. Some types of compression can affect the quality of the compressed file.
See also Best Lossless Compression, HKF
Compression, LZW Compression, and VII
Compression.
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Continuity
Animation – A spline property that refers to the smoothness, whether sharp or exaggerated, of the spline path as it moves from one keyframe to another.
See also Spline.
Control Point
CG – Point on a polygon or spline that changes its shape. A single spline or polygon can contain up to 64 control points. Polygon control points define its boundaries while spline control points define tangents to the curve.
Corner Logo
A logo found in a corner of the screen, generally for the purposes of corporate identification or program rating. Corner logos are also known as video bugs.
Crop Filter
Animation – A motion filter that cuts off or reveals a percentage of an object over time. You can set a different crop number for each side of an object.
D
Database Mode
Media Store – The Media window displays media files from the current Media Store database. The
Media Store toolbar provides access to folios containing media files from the database.
Contrast with Browse Mode.
Defined Shot Box Buttons
See Predefined Media.
Delay
Animation – A set number of frames an animation stops and holds its position at the current frame before continuing along the path. Set in the Pause field to the left of the Animation tabs. Also known as Pause.
Depth Element
CG – An element that extends away from the object at an angle, giving it the appearance of thickness and depth.
DigiMix
A brand of frame buffer.
Digital Store
See Media Store.
Display Latency
The lag time between first accessing a rendered file and having it appear on screen. Latency is caused by the time required to read rendered files from disk or from a remote location, the time to decompress files, and the time to transfer files to the frame buffer card. Display latency varies from system to system, and with network activity level.
Display Options
Animation – Options on the Go menu or
Animation palette that change the view of the FX workspace. Display options include All Paths, Text
Outline, Snapshot of All Objects, and Snapshot of
Selected Object.
Distort
CG – An effect that changes the face shape of individual text characters along the X and Y axes.
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Available with all type styles except Classic
Inscriber.
Distortion Filters
Paint – Inscriber filters that let you apply special effects to your images to give the impression of distortion or a different medium.
Dither Filter
CG and Frame Grab – A filter that removes contouring in imported graphics with a generalized noise filter.
Dodge Tool
Paint – An image-editing tool used to lighten an image by moving pixel color values towards their maximum.
Downconvert
The process of converting a higher resolution image or input signal to a lower resolution. For example, a high definition 1080i signal is downconvert to standard definition 480i.
Drop frame
A method of adjusting the 30 fps (frame per second) NTSC timecode to approximately 29.97 fps. This correction drops 108 frames per hour by skipping frame counts 0 and 1 at the beginning of each minute, except minutes 0, 10, 20, 30, 40, and 50.
DVE (Digital Video Effect)
Sequencer – An option that sizes and positions live video during output by applying single-channel digital video effects to your events.
On output the live video plays in two locations: the DVE window on top of events, and full-screen in behind the event. Apply an opaque background to the event in CG so you do not see the live video in behind.
DVI (Digital Visual Interface)
This is a high-bandwidth video connection that carries digitized picture information.
The DVI port provides a pure digital video signal to a digital flat-panel display to ensure the highest quality picture.
E
EAS (Emergency Alert System)
A broadcast warning system that either interrupts normal broadcasting, or displays an alert which crawls across the video picture. EAS alerts also contain an audible alert message
Ease In/Out
Animation – Settings on the Spline tab that determine the speed of a path coming into or out of a keyframe.
Edge Element
CG – An element that completely surrounds the face of an object. You can add an unlimited number of edges to an object, and they can either overlap the face or extend beyond the face.
Element
CG – Every object consists of four different elements: a face, one or more edges, a depth, and a shadow. In most cases the elements can also include a sheen.
Apply treatments to elements to change the appearance of the elements.
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Embedded Audio
Digital audio that is multiplexed (combined) into a serial digital video signal.
Embellishments
CG – An object’s edge, depth, and shadow elements.
Emboss
Paint – A distortion filter that makes an image appear raised or embossed by adding highlights and shadows based on the edges in the image.
Color information is suppressed.
Event
Sequencer – A layout that displays in the
Sequencer Playlist. Events include the layout details, as well as transition, timing, and output information.
Event Duration
Sequencer – The total time it takes to play an individual event. Event duration is dependant on the trigger type selected for the group. You can set a duration for events triggered by Timed, Time
Code, and PC Clock trigger types.
Operators control the event duration manually for the Manual and GPI triggers.
Event List
See Sequencer Playlist.
Eye-Dropper
See Color Picker.
F
Face Element
CG – The actual shape of the object. It is the top element of the object unless it is overlapped by one or more inside edges.
Field
One half of a complete video frame. A field contains every second horizontal scan line in an image, either all odd scan lines or all even scan lines. Two fields make a complete video frame.
See also Interlaced Scan.
Field Filters
See Video Clean-up Filters.
Fill Pattern
See Video Transparent Pattern.
Filters
CG, Paint, and Frame Grab – Filters that operate on the interlaced fields in a captured image are known as video clean-up filters. Other filters that manipulate, modify, and refine your image in complex ways include alpha adjustment filters, color adjustment filters, distortion filters, and legalize filters. Alpha filters work only on one channel of an image, while the others affect the entire image. Not all filters are available in all modules.
Animation – An algorithm that changes the appearance of a keyframe as it moves through time. Filters in Animation Editor include
Transparency, Crop, Mosaic, Blur Luminance, and
Tint.
See also Photoshop Filters and Third-Party Filters.
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Flyout Menu
Paint and CG – Some buttons on the Tools palette contain flyout menus with additional tools.
Buttons with flyout menus are identified by a small black arrow in the bottom right corner. The flyout menus appear when you place the pointer on top of a tool and hold down the left mouse button.
Folio
Media Store – A subset of a Media Store database, or the browsed media files. In database mode, you can use folios to organize Media Store media files into sets based on specific criteria, such as media type, job, or client. Adding a media file to a folio only creates a reference from the
Global folio; the media file is not duplicated.
Folios include the Set folio, Local/System folios,
Build folio, and Browse folio.
Font Manager
CG – An application that builds and maintains the
Inscriber font database. You can use the Font
Manager to convert True Type fonts to Inscriber fonts.
Footprint Removal Field Filters
CG and Frame Grab – Video clean-up filters that combine the average field filters and adaptive field filters. First, the average field filter is applied to the selected field, then the adaptive field filter is applied to the other field.
Frame
Animation – A point along a spline path, indicated by a small square between keyframes. Frames are also referred to as “in-betweens”.
See also Keyframe and Video Frame.
Frame Buffer
A hardware card that stores frame information and then outputs it to video. Inscriber products interact with the frame buffer to add information to the video frame stored on the frame buffer to create complex effects.
Frame Grab
G-Scribe module that captures individual frames from a video feed. The image can be filtered in
Frame Grab, and then added to the Scrapbook, used as a background for layouts, or edited in
Paint using a variety of tools and filters.
G
Gamut
The available colors that can be displayed on a particular device (video output or computer monitor). The RGB color gamut describes the colors available in video and on the computer.
Orange and yellow colors are in limited supply in the RGB gamut, making it difficult to select variations of yellow and orange.
Gaussian Blur
Paint – A distortion filter that softens an image by applying a weighted average (along a Gaussian or bell-shaped curve) of the pixels where significant color transitions occur.
GIF (Graphics Interchange Format)
A computer graphics file format for compressing graphic images. GIF compression is lossless, supports transparency, but allows a maximum of only 256 colors.
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Global Browse Folio
Media Store – The folder that contains all the media files from all the directories you have browsed. It can be accessed through the globe icon on the Media Store toolbar in browse mode.
Contrast with Browse Folio.
Global Folio
Media Store – The folder that contains all the media files in a Media Store database and that is available to all users on the network. After you create a database, the Global folio is the default folio when launching G-Scribe. You can access the
Global folio through the globe icon on the Media
Store toolbar in database mode.
GPI (General Purpose Interface) Trigger
Sequencer – A simple electro-mechanical cueing trigger that uses a contact closure.
GPI Trigger Type
Sequencer – A group trigger type. Waits for an operator to press the external GPI button to trigger the next event. The current event remains on-screen until the next event is triggered.
Gradient
CG and Paint – A blend from one color to another, or from one level of transparency to another.
Graphic Object
CG – For adding colorful shapes behind text, such as lower thirds and panels. Can be simple shapes such as ovals, rectangles, wedges, and arcs.
Polygons and splines are more complex graphic objects.
Graphic Styles
3D FlyBy – A saved set of attributes that include the graphic shape and size, as well as the formatting applied to the graphic face, edge, depth, and shadow.
When you apply a graphic style to a graphic object, the graphic changes to the size and shape of the style and displays the style’s formatting attributes. Used in the Style Library in the 3D
Surface Editor.
Graphics Tablet
A device for controlling the cursor, used instead of a mouse. A pen is used as a drawing device on the tablet, and pen motions are translated into cursor movement on the interface. Unlike a mouse, a graphics tablet is pressure-sensitive.
Grayscale
An image that is represented by up to 256 shades of gray. In a grayscale image, every pixel has a brightness number ranging from 0 (black) to 255
(white). The monochrome filter converts a color image to a grayscale image.
Green Channel
Paint – The channel that stores all of the green information in an image.
See also Channel.
Group
Sequencer – One or more events organized into categories. Groups display in the Sequencer playlist, starting with a group header and followed by the group’s events. Trigger types are applied to the entire group.
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GUI (Graphical User Interface)
See Interface.
H
Hardware Acceleration
Sequencer – A checkbox on the Renderer tab that applies to animation events. The option allows you to broadcast your animations in real-time without having to render them to a .via file first.
HDTV (High Definition Television)
HDTV is a digital television format where the broadcast transmits a signal with a much higher resolution and a wider aspect ratio than standard
NTSC analog television signals. The HDTV aspect ratio is 16:9.
High Quality (HQ) Processing
Creates smoother curves and diagonal lines for
Inscriber font characters at large font sizes in CG.
HKF Compression
Media Store – A compression method that achieves at least 10:1 compression on 16- and
24-bit images. HKF is a loss compression method, and you may see some distortion upon decompression. 32-bit images lose the alpha channel when HKF is used.
See also Compression.
HLS Color Model
A color model that describes colors in terms of hue, lightness, and saturation. Hue numbers range from 0 to 359 degrees, arranged in spectrum order from red through blue to magenta. Saturation determines the brightness of the color with a maximum value of 100%. Lightness describes how close the color falls to pure black or white. White has a lightness number of 100% and black has a lightness value of 0%.
Horizontal Flip Filter
CG, Paint, and Frame Grab – An image filter that flips the image left to right. In Paint, the horizontal flip filter is accessed on the Transform tab.
HSV Color Model
A color model that describes colors in terms of hue, saturation, and value. Pure colors (hues) are measured in degrees, from red at 0 degrees through blue to magenta at 359 degrees.
Decreasing the saturation without changing the value is the same as adding white pigment to a pure color. Decreasing the value without changing the saturation is the same as adding black pigment to a pure color.
Hue
A numeric representation of a pure color in a particular color model.
I
Illegal Colors
Paint – Colors that force a color system to go outside its normal bounds. Usually these are the result of electronically painted images rather than direct video outputs. For example, removing the luminance from a high intensity blue or adding luminance to a strong yellow may produce illegal colors.
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Illuminator Pro
A brand of frame buffer.
Image
CG – Images can be used as logos, textures, and backgrounds.
Media Store – Any image browsed, imported, captured, or residing in a Media Store database.
Animation – You can fly images around in 3D space.
Frame Grab – You can grab an image from a video feed.
Paint – You can add alpha to an image or create a new image.
Image Alpha
See Alpha Channel.
Image Attributes
A list of characteristics about a source file, such as its resolution, file size, name, and keywords.
Image Capture
See Frame Grab.
Image Catalog
See Media Window.
Image Channel
See Channel.
Image File Format
The particular storage format for image information. G-Scribe can import images stored in most common bitmap formats.
Image Filters
Filters that operate on the alpha and color channels of an image.
See also Filters.
Image Resolution
The size and color depth of the source file.
Image Size
The actual size of an image. Your image size can be larger or smaller than your canvas size. If your image size is larger than your canvas size, some of the image is clipped. If your image size is smaller than your canvas size, an empty area appears around the image.
See also Canvas Size.
Image Thumbnail
A small, rendered bitmap representing a layout, event, or other full-size image. A thumbnail is used to give a good representation of what a source file looks like without producing a high quality image. Thumbnails are used for preview purposes and image selection.
In Point
Sequencer – The point specifying when Sequencer starts the playback of the event.
Insert Keyframe (Before, After, At)
Animation – An option that determines where a keyframe is inserted in the spline path. “Before” inserts a keyframe before the selected keyframe.
“After” inserts a keyframe after the selected keyframe. “At” inserts a keyframe at the current frame, as indicated in the Current Frame field on the Preview toolbar.
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Interface
The commands and graphical display formats provided by a computer program that allow you to communicate with and use the program. Inscriber uses a graphical user interface (GUI) to provide a picture-oriented way of interacting with the program.
Interlaced Scan
A system of video scanning where an image is split into odd- and even-numbered horizontal scan lines, which are transmitted in rapid succession as two separate fields slightly offset in time.
Compare to Progressive Scan
Interpolate Field Filters
CG, Paint, and Frame Grab – Video clean-up filters that compute new data for even or odd numbered scan lines based on the scan lines directly above and below.
Interpolation
Animation – Determines intermediate numbers between existing numbers. Interpolation occurs from one keyframe to the next as the program determines the smoothest or most accurate path coming out of the first keyframe and into the second keyframe.
Invert Color Filter
Paint – A color adjustment filter that inverts the value of each component (HSV, RGB, or HLS) of the colors in your images. The new values are equal to the full-scale value of each component minus the original value.
Invert Key Filter
Paint – An alpha adjustment filter that reverses the opaque and transparent areas of your image. For example, if an area is 80% opaque and 20% transparent, it becomes 20% opaque, 80% transparent.
Ittest.exe
A program provided with G-Scribe that allows you to use the Inscribe.ini settings to verify whether
G-Scribe should be seeing the time codes.
J
Job
The entire .scribelist file, including all transition and effect events, trigger and timing information.
The current job is always displayed on the Play list, or job strip, and in the Event List in
Sequencer.
Job Creator
CG – Creates a multi-layout playlist, using a formatted text file to load and fill existing templates.
K
Key
The alpha signal as seen on the video output monitor.
See also Alpha.
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Keyframe
Animation – A significant point in an animation that instigates a change in the rotation, position, or attributes of the current path.
See also Frame.
Keyframe Marker
Animation – Keyframe markers appear as small diamonds on the Track Slider for each path. You can change where a keyframe occurs in the path by clicking on the keyframe marker and dragging to the left or right to change its location.
Keyword
Media Store – A descriptive word tagged to a media file, used for searching and sorting purposes.
L
Layer
CG – A level of the CG workspace that allows you overlap text and graphic objects. There are 10 main layers, with each main layer divided into separate text and graphic planes. Text planes always appear on top of their respective graphic planes.
Paint – A level of the Paint workspace that allows you to overlap images. Each paint layer is an image layer, with its own set of image channels.
There is no limit to the number of Paint layers allowed.
Layout
CG – The overall appearance of an image created in CG, consisting of objects which you customize and position.
Layout Tree View
CG – Displays all of the objects in a layout and allows you to select them, change their z-order, lock them, duplicate them, and delete them.
Leading
CG – The space between lines of text in a layout.
Leading is measured from baseline to baseline.
Learn Mode
Sequencer and Media Store – A function that automatically creates a playlist from the media file numbers that you enter into the Shot Box palette
Number field. You can switch to learn mode by clicking the LRN button on the Shot Box palette.
Legal Colors
Paint – Video safe colors for NTSC or PAL that contain RGB values that fall in the middle of the 0 to 255 range.
Legalize Filters
Paint – Inscriber filters that convert illegal colors
(image colors outside the broadcast range) to legal colors (colors within the broadcast range). If colors are not legalized before they are broadcast as an NTSC or PAL signal, they will produce inferior results and possibly even technical problems.
See also Video Legalize Filter.
Length of Path
Animation – The number of frames that an object takes to complete the spline path.
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Level Curves Filter
Paint – A color adjustment filter that adjusts the tonal range of an image at any point along a 0-255 scale. This allows for smoother adjustments to the tonal value of an image, replicating high-end color correction systems.
Levels Filter
Paint – A color adjustment filter that makes gradual adjustments to the brightness, contrast, and midtones of an image.
Lightness
An element of the HLS color model. Lightness determines the brightness or darkness of a color.
A lightness value of 0% is black; a value of 100% is white. For maximum saturation, lightness must be set to 50%.
Linked Events
Events that are taken to air simultaneously.
Live Video
Sequencer – When used with the DVE option, you can size and position the live video output.
See also DVE.
Live Video Button
Frame Grab – Switches to the online monitor to view the video signal.
Local Disk Render
Sequencer – Renders the event as a file on your local hard drive. Image display latency depends on local drive access speed and image size.
Local Folios
Media Store – Collection folios associated with an individual Windows user, and which cannot be accessed by other users. G-Scribe checks your
Windows logon name to determine which local folios to display in Media Store.
Contrast with System Folios.
Local/System Toggle Button
Media Store – Cycles between Local collection folios that are private to each user and System collection folios that can be accessed by all network users.
Locked Path
Animation – A Time tab option that locks a spline path in place and prevents you from editing or moving its position, or the position of individual keyframes in the path.
Log Event
Sequencer and Media Store – Options from the
Playlist menu that add an event to a sequence or playlist. Log Event Down adds an event below the current event; Log Event Up adds an event above the current event.
Logo Object
CG – Special graphic objects that can mix the face treatment with a bitmap image. Commonly used for station identification images, corporate logos, or product logos.
Luminance
The shade or value of a color. Luminance works in conjunction with chrominance, which is pure color. For example, when you look at a red ball
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your eyes do not see it as having many colors but as having many shades of red. The red you see is the chrominance of the ball and the shades of red are the different luminance values.
Luminance Fill
Paint – A painting tool that fills a layer or selection based on color values in the image. You can specify in the Tolerance field how close color values need to be in order to be filled in.
Luminance Filter
Animation – A motion filter that adjusts the brightness and contrast of an object over time.
You can use luminance as a lighting effect where light moves from one object to another over time.
LZW Compression
Media Store – A lossless data compression scheme suitable for all image file formats.
See also Compression.
M
Manual Trigger Type
Sequencer – A group trigger type. Waits for an operator to press the SPACEBAR to trigger the next event. The current event remains on-screen until the next event is triggered.
Mark In and Mark Out Points
Sequencer and Media Store – The points that mark the first and last frames of a clip to be played in a sequence.
Marker
3D FlyBy – Points you define on the 3D FlyBy timeline. When you select a marker from the
Marker list, the playhead jumps to the selected marker and the animation frame displays in the workspace.
Marquee
Paint – The dotted line that denotes a selection boundary.
See also Selection.
Media File Attributes
A list of characteristics about a source file, such as its resolution, file size, name, and keywords.
Media File Thumbnail
A small, rendered bitmap representing a layout, event, or other full-size media file. A thumbnail is used to give a good representation of what a source file looks like without producing a high quality image. Thumbnails are used for preview purposes and media file selection.
Media Library
CG – A collection of images, video clips, clocks, and Ports. Used to quickly transfer media between layouts and to create a collection of common layout items.
3D FlyBy – A collection of images used in the 3D
Surface Editor, allowing you to add images to the animation surface.
Media Number
Media Store – A unique number assigned to each media file when it is browsed or added to a Media
Store database.
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Media Store
Module that is a searchable database of still images, clips, and animations that can be used in other modules.
Media Window
Media Store – The window displaying thumbnail images from the Media Store folios.
Merge
Paint – Composites or combines selected layers in an image into a single layer. Merge Up and Merge
Down merge the current layer with the one above or below it; Merge Visible merges all layers currently visible on screen; Merge All merges all the layers in the image.
Monochrome Filter
CG, Paint, and Frame Grab – A color adjustment filter that performs a luminance conversion.
Images are converted to 8-bit grayscale.
See also Grayscale.
Monochrome Logo
An export option in Paint to save a monochrome
1-bit logo.
Mosaic Filter
Animation – A motion filter that makes an object appear more pixelated or less pixelated over time.
This filter is often used to blur out a person’s face to disguise their identity. Mosaic width and height numbers range from 0 to 100.
Motion Path
Animation – A sequence of points along a spline that an object goes through to create movement.
Motion Template
Animation – Preset motion effects that you can apply to any text or graphic object. Motion templates include position, filter, spline, and timing information for each keyframe in the path.
Motion Template Registry
Animation – A library of preset motion effects that you can apply to existing paths.
Multiple-Board System
A system with more than one frame buffer.
Multi-Page Crawls
A single crawl created from multiple events. The output plays as a smooth continuous crawl, but each page is actually an individual event in the
Sequencer Playlist. Creating multi-page crawls requires both the CG and Sequencer tools.
Multi-Page Rolls
A single roll created from multiple events. The output plays as a smooth continuous roll, but each page is actually an individual event in the
Sequencer Playlist. Creating multi-page rolls requires both the CG and Sequencer tools.
N
Native Resolution
The number of physical pixels a television or monitor is designed to display . For example, the native resolution of an SD image is 720x480, and
HD has a native resolution of 1920x1080 or
1280x720.
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News Edit
CG – A dialog which allows the quick update of layout text with commonly used names, places, or other text. Also allows you to connect text objects to external data sources.
Noise Filter
See Dither Filter.
Non-Keyed Cuts
Cut transitions without a key or alpha channel.
Non-Repeating Textures
Non-repeating textures are good for backgrounds and other large objects, since they do not have to be tiled or otherwise duplicated.
Non-Tab-Constrained Line
See Anchored Text Line.
NTSC (National Television Standards
Committee)
One of several standards developed for television broadcast transmission and reception. An NTSC television image has 525 horizontal scan lines per video frame, with each frame transmitted at 30 fps
(frames per second).
Contrast with PAL.
O
Object
CG – Layouts are made up of objects which are customized and positioned within the workspace.
Layouts can consist of clip, graphic, logo, Port, and text objects.
Offline
A state that is suitable for creating and editing layouts in G-Scribe. If you take an event when working offline, the event is not pre-rendered and a delay occurs while G-Scribe renders the event for output.
Offline Take
A take made while G-Scribe is offline.
Online
A state where all events are pre-rendered and ready for immediate output. You must be online to access the output options on the Run tab in
Sequencer.
Online Folders
Sequencer – The location where G-Scribe places your rendered events before playing them. The folder uses the same name as your playlist.
For example, if your playlist is called
MorningShow.ins the online folder is called morningShow.OnlineFiles.
Online Manager
A G-Scribe application that renders all events before going online.
Online Output Directory
The folder or folders where all rendered events for the current sequence are stored.
Online Take
A take made while G-Scribe is online.
Online Toggle Button
Switches between offline and online modes.
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Opacity
CG and Paint – The degree to which background information cannot be seen through a graphic object, text, or image. An object with 0% opacity is transparent; an object with 100% opacity is completely opaque (you cannot see through it).
Operator
Media Store – A wildcard character (such as * or
?) or a word (such as AND, NOT, or OR) used in complex search strings to find media files in a
Media Store database.
Out Point
Sequencer – The point specifying when the current event ends and when Sequencer takes the next event.
Overlay
G-Scribe utility that allows you to insert and hide clocks, timers, stills, animated logos, and other events. You can control three additional layers of graphics on top of your current output using the
Overlay utility.
Over-the-Shoulder Graphic
An image or collage that appears above a reporter’s shoulder during a newscast.
Over-the-shoulder graphics are a type of DVE.
See also DVE and Collage.
P
Page Formatted Crawls
See Multi-Page Crawls.
Page Formatted Rolls
See Multi-Page Rolls.
Paint
G-Scribe module that lets you create, edit, retouch, and add alpha to bitmap images and Paint files.
Paint File Format
See .ipt.
PAL (Phase Alternating Line)
Video broadcast standard used in Europe and much of the world. A PAL television image has
625 horizontal scan lines per video frame, with each frame transmitted at 25 fps (frames per second).
Contrast with NTSC.
Path
Animation – The sum of the points along which an object moves in an animation. The path includes all keyframes and frames.
PC Clock Trigger Type
Sequencer – A group trigger type. Uses the system clock to trigger events. When the system clock reaches the event in point, the event is triggered.
Personal Folios
See Local Folios.
Perspective
Paint – An element of drawing on a two-dimensional surface so that objects give the impression of relative position, size, and lighting
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angles. Perspective can be applied to an object in
Paint by using the Freeform tool or Depth fields on the Transform tab.
PGM Button
A Program/Preview palette button that sets automatic online updates for the current Program channel.
Photoshop Filters
Paint – Filters associated with Adobe Photoshop.
These filters can be used in Paint, along with standard Inscriber filters.
See also Filters and Third-Party Filters.
Pickle Device
See GPI Trigger.
Pixel
A single sample of picture information. Pixel is short for “picture cell”.
Pixel Shape
The shape of a pixel as determined by its proportion of length to width. Pixel shape differs between computer and video output. In computer or print media, pixels are square. In video and television media, pixels are slightly rectangular.
Pixelize Filter
Paint – A distortion filter that replaces groups of pixels in an image with the average color values of the pixels in each group.
Playlist
The side palette in G-Scribe that displays the layouts in your current project. The playlist is available in all G-Scribe modules.
See also Sequencer Playlist.
Pluge Test
Part of the SMPTE video test pattern, generally used when calibrating your output monitor and your frame buffer.
Plug-In Filters
See Third-Party Filters.
Port Object
CG – Displays layers of data created in associated
RTX applications. Port objects can only be used if the RTX Ports option is enabled.
Posterize Filter
Paint – A color adjustment filter that reduces the number of colors in an image. You specify the number of tonal levels (brightness values) for an image, and the filter maps pixels to the level that most closely matches the original value.
Predefined Media
Media Store – Media files that you can display by clicking one of the programmable Defined Shot
Box buttons. They are often used for emergency or test situations because you can quickly access the media files.
Preserve Luminance
Paint – An option with the color balance filter that, when selected, automatically compensates
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for changes in luminance caused by increasing or decreasing color values.
Pressure Sensitivity
See Graphics Tablet.
Preview Board
A frame buffer dedicated to the preview channel.
Preview Button
Sequencer – A button on the Run tab that loads the current event to the preview channel.
Preview Channel
The video channel used to preview video before it goes live.
Preview Toolbar
Animation – A toolbar providing options for viewing your animation on your computer monitor without rendering. This toolbar also provides viewing time options.
See also Time Slider.
Program Board
A frame buffer dedicated to the Program Channel.
Program Channel
The video channel used to send video and events to air or tape.
Program/Preview Palette
A palette in G-Scribe that allows you to preview and take single events. You can also use the palette to monitor your output.
During playback of a running playlist, the Preview palette displays an image of the next layout, and the Program palette displays an image of the current layout on the program channel.
Progressive Scan
A system of video scanning where a complete frame is drawn from left to right and top to bottom in one pass. This method reduces the flicker of the picture on the television or monitor and results in smoother motion on the screen.
Compare to Interlaced Scan
PRV Button
The Program/Preview palette button that, when selected, sets automatic online updates for the
Preview channel.
Push Pins
Animation – Buttons on the Time tab that, when depressed, force a path to remain on screen until the entire animation is complete.
Q
Quick Preview
A preview of a take made while G-Scribe is offline.
Quick Take
A take made while G-Scribe is offline.
R
Radial Blur Filter
Paint – A distortion filter that blurs an image around a center point.
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RapidFire
Tool for quickly loading, updating, taking, and clearing layouts. The RapidFire Keyboard option provides a custom keyboard that has additional macro keys designed for fast, accurate layout updates in a live environment.
Raster Image
See Bitmap.
Red Channel
Paint – The channel that stores all of the red information in the image.
See also Channel.
Redraw
Updates the screen display. Complex layouts or images may take longer to redraw than simpler ones. You can force a redraw by pressing
CTRL+D.
Reduce Flicker Filter
Paint – A video clean-up filter that blurs the image in the vertical direction. This reduces flicker caused by sharp changes in luminance between pixels in the vertical direction.
Referenced Media File
Media Store – A media file that is referenced, not included in a Media Store database. Media Store creates a pointer to the media file location. The location can be on disk, network volume, or compact disc. When you display the media file,
Media Store will locate the file or prompt you to load the disk or compact disc.
Registry Manager
CG – A utility that helps organize registry
(template) files. It can create new registries, manage existing registries, and copy templates between registries.
Registry - Motion Template
See Motion Template Registry.
Registry - News Edit
See News Edit Registry.
Registry - Templates
See Template Registry.
Relative Position
Animation – A template option that uses the current placement of the selected keyframe as the starting point for the motion template.
Remote Render
Sequencer – Renders the event to a remote location during output. Image display latency depends on network or CD-ROM access time and image size.
Remove Flicker Filter
Paint – A video clean-up filter that smooths the image in the vertical direction to remove flicker caused by sharp changes in color in the vertical direction.
Render
Converts information regarding objects or effects to a graphical bitmap form that can be displayed to video. Object information includes shape, color, bevels, and transparencies. Effect
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information includes keys, transitions, movement, and layering. When you render an event, a temporary file is written to the hard drive and then sent to the frame buffer when you do a take.
This process happens on the fly in offline mode. In online mode, all events are pre-rendered for immediate output when you do a take.
Render Animation
Animation – A command that saves an animation in a bitmap .via file for playback.
Render Location
Sequencer – The location where events are rendered when you go online. Render locations include local disk, or remote.
Rendered File Names
Sequencer – The file name of an event after it has been rendered. To take events to video, G-Scribe needs to render the events to separate files.
Repeat Field Filters
CG, Paint, and Frame Grab – Video clean-up filters that duplicate the even- or odd-numbered scan lines in an image, replacing the odd- or even-numbered ones respectively. The image appears to shift either up or down depending on the filter.
Restoring Alpha
See Alpha Memory Tool.
Reveal
CG and Sequencer – A layout or transition that displays text one line or character at a time. In
Sequencer, a reveal is recognized as an effect event.
RGB Color Model
A color model that describes colors in terms of the amount of red, green, and blue light in the signal. The values of the three components are added together to determine the final color. White is defined with red, green, and blue set to full intensity (255); black is defined with red, green, and blue set to zero intensity. Any color definition with equal amounts of red, green, and blue is gray.
Row
CG – Specially grouped text objects that are easily edited and duplicated using shortcut keys and the
Row menu. Used for creating tables and leaderboards.
S
Safe Title Area
See Video Safe Title Area.
Saturation
The amount of pure color. 100% saturation is pure color, with no black or white mixed in. 0% saturation is a shade of gray, with no hint of color.
Scale
Animation – A tool on the Shape tab that increases or decreases the size of an object or character while constraining its proportions.
Paint – A tool on the Tools palette that increases or decreases the size of an object or selection without constraining its proportions.
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Scan Line
A single horizontal sweep across the face of a video display by the electron beam that creates the picture. NTSC uses 525 scan lines; PAL uses 625.
Scanned Image
A printed image that has been converted by a scanning device into a graphics file for the purposes of electronic transmission or modification. A scanning device, or scanner, resolves the image into elements of color, light, and shade.
Scrapbook
A temporary holding place for layouts, frame grabs, styles, library items, and other G-Scribe elements. Use the Scrapbook to transfer objects between G-Scribe tools, or to transfer layout styles and elements between CG layouts.
Scrapbook items are not saved when you close
G-Scribe.
Scrubber
See Preview Toolbar.
SDTV (Standard Definition Television)
Digital television format that includes 480-line resolution in both interlaced (480i) and progressively scanned (480p) formats.
Seamless Loop
Media Store – Loops the preview of the trimmed clip in the Trim Editor. There is no delay when the clip returns to the first frame of the loop.
Seamless Texture
Paint – A small texture image that can be tiled endlessly without a visible edge. Some seamless textures may have features that make the repetition obvious, but no image edge is ever visible.
Search - Complex
See Complex Search.
Search Key
Media Store – A particular attribute of a media file to search for in a Media Store search. Search keys include keywords, resolution, title, media type, media number, date, and user name.
Search Results
Media Store – The list of media files that meet the search criteria in a Media Store search.
Search - Simple
See Simple Search.
Search String
See Additive Search String.
Selection
Paint – The area of an image that you wish to work on. The selected area is surrounded by a dotted line. Paint offers numerous Selection tools that allow you to select areas of the image.
Selection Channel
Paint – The Selection channel is only available when you have made a selection in Paint using the
Selection tools, and shows you an 8-bit image of the selection.
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Selection Contents
Paint – An export option that exports the contents of the current selection channel as a bitmap image.
Sequencer
G-Scribe module that manages the playlist, assigns transitions, and applies output controls.
Sequencer Playlist
Sequencer – The main workspace in Sequencer that contains the events for the current project.
You can arrange the event output order, view output details, and apply output controls.
Set Folio
Media Store – A temporary location for holding media files from the most recent Media Store database search.
Shadow Element
CG – A color or pattern offset from the face and edge elements by a specific number of pixels.
Used to add depth to flat 2D objects. The shadow element always appears behind all other object elements.
Sharpen Filter
CG, Paint, and Frame Grab – An image filter that mildly sharpens the image with a 3x3 convolution filter.
Sheen Element
CG – A band of color that cuts through another element, like a focused highlight.
Shot Box Palette
Media Store and Sequencer – Selects an event in the playlist when operating in Play mode. You can assign the event to a Defined button for quick recall or output the selected item.
Simple Search
Media Store – A Media Store search that uses a single keyword to find and retrieve media files.
See also Complex Search.
Single Pixel Brush
Paint – A brush that adds color or alpha or edits an image information a single pixel at a time.
Smooth Processing
See Sub-Pixel Processing.
SMPTE
Society of Motion Picture and Television
Engineers.
SMPTE Color Bars
A video test pattern, generally used when calibrating your output monitor and your frame buffer.
Snapshot
Animation – A rendered bitmap of an object at a particular point in time on a spline path.
Sort Key
Media Store – A particular media file attribute by which media files are sorted in the Media window.
Sort keys include date, keywords, title, resolution, media number, and user name.
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Sort Order
Media Store – The order in which media files are displayed in the Media window. By default, media files are sorted by media number. The default sort order is set on the Folios tab of the Preferences dialog.
Source File
The data file where all image information is stored.
Spline
Animation – A curve whose shape is defined by a set of points along a path.
See also Path.
Spline Properties
Animation – The collection of attributes associated with a spline path, such as tension, continuity, and bias.
Stagger
Animation – Offsets the time values when applying a motion template containing more than one path.
Stagger starts each path after a specific number of keyframes.
Strata
Configuration utility that controls the output and display of your Inscriber applications. You can assign applications to a layer on one or two channels. Events can be scheduled and played independently on separate layers.
Style
CG and 3D FlyBy – A set of attributes that you can apply to the text and graphic objects.
See also Text Styles and Graphic Styles.
Style Library
3D FlyBy – Applies the styles you create in CG to the text and graphic surface objects.
Surface
3D FlyBy – An area on the imported 3D animation. 3D FlyBy recognizes the surfaces defined in your 3D animation program and includes options to add text and graphics travel with surfaces on output.
CG – Collects and organizes styles used in CG layouts. By building a list of commonly-used styles, new layouts can be created with a standardized look without needing to recreate the styles for every object.
Surface Texture
Paint – An imported image used to provide a more interesting pattern to an image. Surface textures generally have finer detail than other types of textures. Surface textures are used by all brush-based tools, and are applied using the
Texture tool.
See also Texture.
System Folios
Media Store – Collection folios that are accessible to all network users.
Contrast with Local Folios.
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T
Tab-Constrained Line
See Floating Text Line.
Tablet
See Graphics Tablet.
Tag
A feature that allows you to label text objects for easy updates. You can update the content with an external data source, or manually in a G-Scribe dialog. Example dialogs that support tags are
News Tag Editor (CG), 3D Surface Editor (3D
FlyBy), and Overlay.
Take
Outputs a rendered image or event file.
Take Button
Sequencer – Outputs the current event without loading the next event to the preview channel.
Overlay – Applies any changes to the show/hide state. If you set an item to display, clicking Take displays the item on the program channel. If you set an item to hide, clicking Take hides the item on the program channel.
Take Down Button
Sequencer – Outputs the current event and loads the next event to the preview channel.
Template
CG – Pre-defined layouts which are stored in template registries. Creating layouts from templates ensures that the layouts use standardized colors, styles, and media.
3D FlyBy – CG templates that you can access in the 3D Surface Editor and apply to your animation surface.
Tension
Animation – A spline property that refers to the rigidity of the spline path. You can increase the tension to tighten the curve, or decrease the tension to add slack to the curve.
See also Spline.
Text Object
CG – An object containing one or more lines of text. Text objects can be constrained in various ways to keep their lengths constant.
Text Styles
3D FlyBy – A set of attributes that include the text size and font, as well as the formatting applied to the text face, edge, depth, and shadow.
When you apply a text style to a text object, the object resizes to the size of the style and displays the formatting and font attributes of the style.
Used in the 3D Surface Editor.
Texture
CG – An effect that simulates a pattern or tactile surface on a CG object, such as marbling or basket-weave.
3D FlyBy – An area on the surface of an imported
3D animation. 3D FlyBy recognizes the original texture for each surface and uses the texture to
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determine the size and aspect ratio of the surface in 3D FlyBy.
Paint – A graphic image pattern that can be applied to objects and images. Textures simulate a tactile or three-dimensional surface. Paint has three types of textures: seamless, paper, and alpha.
Texture Tool
Paint – A tool that paints a surface texture without changing the image chrominance values. Lightens or darkens the images based on the imported texture.
Third-Party Filters
Paint – Filters not packaged with G-Scribe. Some third-party filters can be used in Paint, but they may only affect the opaque areas of the image, and not the alpha channel. You should test third-party filters in Paint to determine how they perform.
See also Filters and Photoshop Filters.
Three-Dimensional Space (3D)
Animation – Workspace that incorporates height, width, and depth. Objects created in the two dimensional CG workspace (height and width) are editable in 3D when brought into Animation.
Thumbnail
See Media File Thumbnail.
Timecode
Sequencer – An indexing method that uniquely identifies each frame of frame-based media.
Denotes hours, minutes, seconds, and frames elapsed for the medium (HH:MM:SS:FF).
Timecode Source
A device, usually a video playback device like a
VCR, that generates time codes.
Timecode Trigger Type
Sequencer – A group trigger type. Uses an external time code source to trigger events. When the time code source reaches the event in point, the event is triggered.
Timeline
3D FlyBy – A visual representation of the length of the animation. You can use the timeline to see the current point in the animation and to control the animation preview in the workspace.
Animation – A horizontal bar on the Time tab that gives a visual representation of the length of a motion path, and which allows you to manipulate the amount of time an individual spline path takes to display. The time is measured in frames. There are as many track sliders as there are paths.
Time Slider
Animation – A slider on the Preview Toolbar that gives you a visual representation of where you are at any time in your animation. You can select any frame in the animation by dragging the time slider to the desired location. Keyframes in your animation are represented by tick marks along the bottom of the time slider.
Timed Trigger Type
Sequencer – A group trigger type. Plays each event sequentially for the set duration. Once
Sequencer reaches the event in point, the event is triggered. The Timed trigger starts the clock at
00:00:00:00.
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Tint Filter
Animation – A motion filter that allows you to adjust color values of an object over time. You can gradually change the saturation of an object from black and white to color, or change the hue from one color to another.
Title
The overall appearance of a video image created in CG, consisting of three main elements: background, text, and graphic objects. Known also as a layout.
Tolerance Fill
Paint – A tool that fills a layer or selection based on luminance values in the image. Use the
Tolerance field to specify how close luminance values need to be in order to be filled in.
Total Event Duration
The sum of the event duration and event wait time.
Track Slider
See Timeline – Animation.
Transformation
Animation – Changes the appearance of all or a portion of an image using the Move, Scale, Skew,
Freeform, and Rotate tools.
Transition
Sequencer and Media Store – Determines how still events appear on-screen. When you output the event, the event displays gradually using the selected transition. Transition types include: wipe, tile, organic, dissolve, and push.
See also Animation Transition.
Transition Direction
Sequencer and Media Store – The direction a new media file takes as it starts to appear on screen.
Applies only to wipe, tile, and push transitions.
Transparency
CG and Paint – The amount of background information that you can see through a graphic object, text, or image. An object with 0% transparency is opaque; an object with 100% transparency is fully transparent.
Transparency Filter
Animation – A motion filter that changes the alpha value of an object over time, allowing you to fade an object in or out between keyframes.
Treatment
CG – Each object element is assigned a treatment.
Treatments dictate the color, image, and Active
Texture choices available to the elements they are assigned to.
Tri-Level Sync
An HDTV synchronization signal.
Trigger Type
Sequencer – Controls how you output your playlist once you go online. The trigger type applies to all the events in a group.
The five trigger types include: Manual, Timed,
GPI, Time Code, and PC Clock.
Trim Points
See Mark In and Mark Out Points.
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Twist
Animation – A tool on the Shape tab that adjusts the shape of an object by twisting it around either the x- or y-axis.
U-V
Upconvert
The process of converting a lower resolution image or input signal to a higher resolution. For example, a standard definition 480i signal is upconvert to high definition 1080i signal.
Value
The shade of a color. Increasing or decreasing the value of a color is like adding or removing black pigment. Value must be 100% for a color to be fully saturated. When value is 0%, the color is completely black.
Vector-Based Image
See .eps file.
Vectorscope
A device used to adjust the color vectors when calibrating the frame buffer.
Vertical Blanking Interval (VBI)
The period of time when the video signal is at the blank level causing the electron beam not to appear when it sweeps back from the bottom to the top of the screen. A VBI occurs almost instantly.
Vertical Flip Filter
CG, Paint, and Frame Grab – An image filter that flips the image top to bottom. In Paint, the vertical flip filter is accessed through the Transform tab.
VGA (Video Graphics Array)
A computer video adapter which can display 16 colours at a resolution of 640x480 or 256 colours at 320x200.
via Format
See .via file.
ViaBuilder
G-Scribe utility that creates an animation from a series of individual animation frames created with an external program. You can import .via animations into G-Scribe to use in your CG layouts as media objects or moving textures.
Video Aspect Ratio
The relationship between the width and height of an image when it is sent to video. The aspect ratio is different for computers and video monitors, so a correction is made when images are taken to video. The video aspect ratio is set in the
Inscribe.ini file, and controlled by three values: the actual aspect ratio, the horizontal resolution, and the vertical resolution. The aspect ratio for
NTSC and PAL is 4:3; the aspect ratio for HDTV is 16:9.
Video Bug
See Corner Logo.
Video Clean-up Filters
CG, Paint, and Frame Grab – Inscriber filters that smooth fielded images captured from video into
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non-interlaced images by removing odd- or even-numbered scan lines.
Video Frame
An interlaced image consisting of two separate fields (odd- and even-numbered scan lines), taken from a video signal.
See also Field and Interlaced Scan.
Video Legalize Filter
CG and Frame Grab – A legalize filter that performs a simple NTSC or PAL legalize
(depending on the settings in the General tab of the Preferences dialog) to prevent out-of-range values.
See also Legalize Filters.
Video Safe Title Area
The area of the video screen where images are legible on a standard television screen. This generally includes the center 80% of the total screen area.
Video Standards
Standards that specify the protocol for television broadcast transmission and reception. Common standards include NTSC, PAL, and HDTV.
Video Transparent Pattern
The pattern G-Scribe uses to represent video transparency, set on the General Preferences tab.
This pattern is not included in your final rendered images.
VII Compression
Media Store – An image compression method especially suited to computer-generated images.
VII compression can give over 20:1 compression, and is the fastest method available in Media Store.
See also Compression.
VMAXX-10
A brand of frame buffer.
VMAXX-20
A brand of frame buffer.
VMAXX-30
A brand of frame buffer.
VRAM
Video RAM on a frame buffer or video card.
W-Z
White Point
A setting for the output monitor, set during calibration.
Widescreen
The term given to picture displays that have a wider aspect ratio than a standard television monitor. For example, the aspect ratio for a standard television is 4:3 and widescreen is 16:9.
See also Aspect Ratio.
Wildcard
Media Store – A variable used as search criterion to help you find a range of media files: “?” matches a single character; “*” matches one or more characters.
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XD-200 Control Panel
Configures standard definition and high definition
SDI inputs and outputs and reference source. The
XD-200 Control Panel displays the status associated with different configurations and allows you to view a test pattern to ensure your configuration is working properly.
X-axis
See Axis (X, Y, or Z).
Y-axis
See Axis (X, Y, or Z).
Y/Cr/Cb
Y/Cr/Cb refers to a "component" type digital television connector or cable.
The separate components of the video signal
(luminance - light; and chroma - color) are kept separated by using a 3-wire cable. One wire is "Y" for light or brightness, one wire is "Cr" for red, and one wire is "Cb" for blue.
Z-axis
See Axis (X, Y, or Z).
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Symbols
## command ............................................. 226
* search operator ...................................... 501
.aco files .................................................... 547
.dae files .................................................... 336
.flyby events .............................................. 344
.icg files ....................................................... 28
.ini files ...................................................... 577
.ins files ....................................................... 28
.mdb files ................................................... 231
.palette files ............................................... 190
.scribe files ................................................ 256
.scribe files (3D FlyBy surface) ................. 364
.scribe files (CG layout) ............................... 27
.scribelist files ...................................... 28, 530
.templates files .......................................... 251
.tga sequence ........................................... 336
.txt files
Auto Text ................................................. 87
databases ............................................. 230
import text ............................................. 256
Job Creator ........................................... 253
News Edit Tables .................................. 223
subtitles ................................................. 257
.via files ..................................................... 336
.xls files ..................................................... 231
? button (Shot Box) ................................... 470
? search operator ...................................... 501
Numerics
16:9 aspect ratio ................................. 48, 578
32-bit images ............................................ 581
3D animations
add markers to timeline ........................ 343
export COLLADA 3ds Max file .............. 335
export COLLADA Maya file .................. 333
import in 3D FlyBy ................................ 336
preview ................................................. 341
set up in external program ............ 324–335
view surfaces ........................................ 345
3D animations, output ............................... 386
3D Effects (Animation) ...................... 313–316
apply effects ......................................... 315
options .......................................... 314–315
thumbnail folders .................................. 313
time duration ......................................... 316
import 3D animation ............................. 336
overview ............................................... 340
playlist function ....................................... 33
switch to ................................................ 322
warnings during import ......................... 338
workspace limitations ........................... 340
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3D Surface Editor ...................................... 347
add graphic objects to surfaces ............ 351
add images to surfaces ......................... 355
add text to surfaces ............................... 347
apply text tags ....................................... 374
create styles for surface objects ........... 365
format objects with styles ...................... 365
link text to external file .......................... 378
object stacking order ............................. 360
use backgrounds ................................... 357
workspace guides ................................. 361
4 color gradient treatments ....................... 178
4:3 aspect ratio ................................... 48, 578
4-point animation, create .......................... 387
8-bit images .............................................. 581
A
Access databases ............................. 229, 231
read only ............................................... 231
Active Texture treatments ................. 166, 182
add to face ............................................ 183
add with Media Library .................. 182, 196
align ...................................................... 183
flip ......................................................... 209
loop ....................................................... 184
sheen elements ..................................... 173
transparency ......................................... 184
update Active Texture ........................... 226
Add Default Event button .......................... 116
adjust spline paths (Animation) ......... 300–301
Advanced Formatting button ..................... 242
align (CG)
Active Texture treatments ..................... 183
clip objects ............................................ 167
image treatments .................................. 181
objects .................................................. 204
text ........................................................ 136
to safe title area .................................... 204
alpha (Paint)
channel ................................................. 543
gradients ............................................... 541
memory ......................................... 542, 543
textures ................................................. 575
View button ........................................... 576
alpha channel (CG) ................................... 156
alpha channel, view (Media Store) ........... 508
alpha mask (Sequencer) ........................... 415
AND search operator ................................ 501
angle (CG)
Linear Gradient treatments ................... 177
shadows ............................................... 173
sheen elements .................................... 174
playlist function ....................................... 33
switch to ................................................ 264
animation layouts .............................. 120, 247
animations (3D). See 3D animations
animations (Animation)
combine templates ............................... 294
preview options ..................................... 288
render ................................................... 286
transition settings .................................. 275
animations (Media Store)
source icons ......................................... 462
thumbnails ............................................ 461
See also media files (Media Store)
animations (Sequencer)
apply animation transitions ................... 411
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animations, output
loop in Overlay ........................................ 97
antonyms, find ........................................... 482
Append All button ...................................... 223
application instances ................................. 101
apply animation templates ........................ 290
Apply Conditions to All Tags ..................... 241
aspect ratio (CG)
fonts ...................................................... 134
graphic objects ...................................... 153
logo objects ........................................... 155
text objects ............................................ 139
aspect ratio (Paint)
pixel ............................................... 577, 587
video ............................................. 538, 577
Attributes palette (3D FlyBy)
Animation tab ........................................ 386
Markers tab ........................................... 343
Surfaces tab .......................................... 346
Attributes palette (Animation)
3D Effects tab ............................... 267, 313
Filter tab ........................................ 267, 311
Placement tab ............................... 267, 306
Shape tab ...................................... 267, 309
Spline tab ...................................... 267, 298
Templates tab ............................... 267, 289
Time tab ........................................ 267, 302
Attributes palette (CG) .............................. 113
Attributes tab ......................... 131, 159, 207
Depth and Shadow tab ......................... 160
Depth tab .............................................. 171
Digital Clock Format tab ........................ 161
Digital Timer Format tab ....................... 162
Edge tab ................................................ 169
Face and Edge tab ................................ 159
Face tab ................................ 157, 166, 168
Logo Details section .............................. 156
Paragraph section ................................. 131
Shadow tab ........................................... 172
Sheen section ....................................... 173
Text Object Properties section ............. 137
Attributes palette (Media Store) ........ 461, 467
Image Info tab ....................................... 467
Key Info tab .......................... 467, 494, 495
Memo tab ...................................... 467, 496
Transition tab ................................ 467, 509
Attributes palette (Paint)
Brush tab ...................................... 522, 536
Color tab ....................................... 522, 544
Filter tab ........................................ 523, 569
Layers tab ..................................... 523, 579
Select tab ...................................... 522, 551
Transform tab ............................... 522, 560
View tab ........................................ 522, 576
Attributes palette (Sequencer)
Animation tab ........................................ 393
Audio tab .............................................. 393
Effect Settings tab ................................ 393
Event Editor tab .................................... 393
Mask tab ............................................... 393
Renderer tab ......................................... 393
Run tab ................................................. 393
audio
apply to events ..................................... 414
configure audio settings .......................... 59
Auto Text .................................................... 87
auto-erase cursor ...................................... 139
Automation Interface ......................... 225, 227
axis
keyframe ............................................... 306
X, Y, Z ................................................... 273
B
B1 folio ...................................................... 465
background color (Paint) ................... 545, 550
background objects (CG) .................. 217–219
add media with Media Library ............... 197
image treatments .................................. 218
backgrounds (3D FlyBy)
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backgrounds, add (Media Store) ............... 511
backgrounds, use (Scrapbook) ................... 36
baseline ..................................................... 132
Best Lossless image compression ............ 486
bevel control .............................................. 186
beveled edge treatments .......................... 184
transparency ......................................... 185
beziers .............................................. 151, 282
bitmap images ........................................... 586
blur filter .................................................... 312
bold text .................................................... 133
Browse button ................................... 465, 467
browse files (Media Store) ........................ 471
scan for updates ................................... 492
Browse folio .............................................. 465
browse mode. See modes (Media Store)
Browse Set folio ........................ 464, 465, 506
brush preview cursor ......................... 539, 577
build databases. See Media Store databases
Build Media Store dialog ........... 469, 476, 486
Build set. See folios (Media Store)
butt line ends ............................................. 152
C
calibrate
system ........................................... 591–593
canvas size ............................................... 533
capture frames .......................................... 446
center
text ........................................................ 136
CG ..................................................... 111–262
overview ................................................ 112
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playlist function ....................................... 32
switch to ................................................ 112
CG Ruler ................................................... 146
CG workspace .......................................... 113
right-click menus ................................... 114
zoom ..................................................... 122
change keyframe shape ................... 309–310
channels (Paint)
alpha ..................................................... 581
channels, dual
assign event to channel for output .......... 67
assign events to channel (Sequencer) . 435
output two layouts simultaneously .......... 68
preview option ........................................ 45
Program/Preview palette display ............ 35
set primary program channel .................. 46
Character Map .......................................... 127
clean up logos (Paint) ............................... 540
clip objects ........................................ 165–167
create .................................................... 165
insert into text objects ........................... 126
supported files ...................................... 165
transparency ......................................... 167
clip option
Active Texture treatments ............. 182, 197
described ................................................ 24
video clips ............................. 126, 165, 195
clock objects ..................................... 159–162
closed beziers ........................................... 151
line width ............................................... 152
codecs ...................................................... 165
COLLADA files
export with 3ds Max .............................. 335
export with Maya ................................... 333
workflow in 3D FlyBy ............................. 323
collapse Sequencer playlist ...................... 392
collection folios .......................... 466, 467, 487
color (CG)
color models .......................................... 188
create a new color ................................. 187
logo objects ........................................... 157
treatment colors .................................... 175
color (Paint)
background ................................... 545, 550
calibration ...................................... 591–593
chips ...................................................... 547
color picker .................................... 535, 544
illegal color values ................................. 588
most recently used ................................ 546
remove from RGB channels .................. 582
reset defaults ........................................ 545
safe video colors ................................... 587
saturation .............................................. 588
switch .................................................... 545
test area ................................................ 546
unsafe video color ................................. 588
video legal colors .................................. 587
color picker (CG) ....................................... 189
color picker (Paint) ............................ 535, 544
color tint (Animation) ................................. 312
columns ............................................. 234, 237
headers ................................................. 233
combine edges .......................................... 170
layers .................................................... 211
combine multiple animation templates ...... 294
configure
audio settings .......................................... 59
external data source ..................... 232, 235
GPI COM port trigger ............................ 426
GPI/O trigger ........................................ 424
G-Scribe system ..................................... 39
input/output ............................................. 54
mixer settings ......................................... 58
preview channel ...................................... 39
program channel ..................................... 46
reference in ............................................. 57
Time Code source ................................ 428
video settings .......................................... 51
XD-200 Control Panel ............................. 51
constrain
lock object height .................................. 137
Control Panel. See XD-200 Control Panel
coordinates, XYZ axes .............................. 281
copy (CG)
objects .................................. 114, 200, 215
templates .............................................. 251
corner trim ................................................. 149
crawl layouts ..................................... 119, 247
adjust borders ....................................... 406
create multi-page crawls ....................... 403
prevent objects from scrolling ............... 208
crawls, output .............................................. 69
adjust multi-page timing ........................ 405
adjust output speed ...................... 407, 443
change speed on-air ............................... 69
loop in Overlay ........................................ 97
pause layouts ....................................... 443
pause playback ....................................... 69
start on/off screen ................................. 406
crop filter ................................................... 312
crop frame grabs ....................................... 448
cursor (CG) ............................................... 138
curved paths ............................. 129, 151, 282
cut (CG) ............................................ 114, 215
Cut transition ............................................. 409
Index
G-Scribe User Guide
665
D
Data Unavailable option ............................ 236
database mode. See modes (Media Store)
databases (CG)
Access .................................................. 229
add to system list .................................. 231
create .................................................... 228
Excel ..................................................... 229
text files ................................................. 230
See also external data sources
databases, media. See Media Store databases
date format (CG) ....................................... 242
date format (Media Store) ......................... 516
decimals, text formatting ........................... 242
default color (CG) ...................................... 187
default keywords for files (Media Store) .... 516
default style (CG) ...................................... 192
default template (CG) ................................ 247
default title for files (Media Store) ............. 516
define a clone source point ....................... 566
Defined buttons (Shot Box) ......... 77, 470, 513
defined edges list ...................................... 169
delimiters ........................................... 230, 233
depth elements ................................. 171–172
for clocks ............................................... 160
depth perspective ...................................... 562
Depth tab .................................................. 171
desaturated color ...................................... 588
display options (Animation) ............... 283–285
display options (CG) ................................. 120
macros .................................................. 244
right-click menus ................................... 114
tag labels ............................................... 224
Dissolve transition ..................................... 410
distribute objects ....................................... 207
double byte text ......................................... 130
dual channel systems
assign event to channel for output .......... 67
assign events to different channels ...... 435
output two layouts simultaneously .......... 68
preview option ........................................ 45
Program/Preview palette display ............ 35
set primary program channel .................. 46
duplicate objects ............................... 200, 215
duplicate rows ........................................... 141
duration
add space between events ................... 420
of motion paths ..................................... 304
transition duration ......................... 411, 509
DVE .................................................. 436–438
E
EBU subtitle files ....................................... 258
edge elements .................................. 168–171
combine edges ..................................... 170
create edges ......................................... 169
for clocks .............................................. 159
in macros .............................................. 244
Edge tab ................................................... 169
edit images (Paint) .................................... 563
edit mode (CG) ......................................... 126
elements ........................................... 168–174
depth elements ..................................... 171
shadow elements .................................. 172
sheen elements .................................... 173
treatments ............................................. 175
embellishments
logo objects .......................................... 156
666
Index
G-Scribe User Guide
relative embellishments ................ 135, 153
end time, events ........................................ 419
event list. See Sequencer playlist
events (Sequencer) ................................... 397
add blank event ..................................... 392
add space between events ................... 420
apply alpha mask .................................. 415
apply audio ............................................ 414
apply transitions .................................... 409
assign to different channels .................. 435
cut, copy, paste events ......................... 392
group events ......................................... 416
highlight during output ........................... 433
output with Program/Preview palette ...... 34
prepare for output ................................. 409
select event render location .................. 433
set duration ........................................... 418
Excel databases ................................ 229, 231
read only ............................................... 231
expand Sequencer playlist ........................ 392
expired data .............................................. 236
export (3D FlyBy) ...................................... 344
Collada Max export options .................. 335
Collada Maya export options ................ 333
surface (.scribe file) ............................... 364
export (Animation)
FX scripts .............................................. 319
objects ........................................... 275–276
templates .............................. 295, 319–320
transition settings .................................. 275
export (CG)
.scribe files ............................................ 256
subtitle files ........................................... 261
export (Paint)
color chips ............................................ 547
files ....................................................... 532
layers as separate files ......................... 530
options .................................................. 532
palette files ........................................... 547
selections ...................................... 533, 554
export media files (Media Store) ............... 472
extend keyframes ..................................... 310
external data sources (3D FlyBy) ............. 378
link to database table ............................ 381
link to linear text file .............................. 378
external data sources (CG) ............... 228–242
add to system list .................................. 231
columns ................................................ 235
create databases .................................. 228
format data ........................................... 242
link directly to text files .......................... 236
link to layouts ........................................ 235
No Data Available option ...................... 236
read only ............................................... 231
select table text ..................................... 239
sort ........................................................ 240
SQL statements .................................... 241
text file databases ................................. 230
When Data Expires option .................... 236
XML databases ..................................... 238
External Key Capture options ................... 447
F
F1-F12 folios ..................................... 466, 487
face elements ........................................... 168
add Active Texture treatments .............. 183
add image ............................................. 180
for clocks .............................................. 159
Face tab .................................................... 168
fade keyframes in/out ............................... 311
field order .................................................. 166
files, manage in G-Scribe ........................... 26
Index
G-Scribe User Guide
667
Fill Only option .......................................... 447
fill pattern .................................................. 217
filled beziers .............................................. 151
filters (Animation) .............................. 311–312
filters (Frame Grab) ........................... 450–453
filters (Paint) .............................. 554, 569–573
Find button (Shot Box) .............................. 470
Find dialog (Media Store) .......................... 502
find files
in Media Store ............................... 468, 501
using Shot Box ...................................... 502
flicker (Frame Grab) .................................. 447
flip objects ......................................... 149, 209
flip Paint transformations .......................... 560
flyout menu ....................................... 115, 534
folios (Media Store) ................................... 464
assign search results to ........................ 504
B1 .......................................................... 465
Browse .................................................. 465
browse mode vs. database mode ......... 464
Browse Set .................................... 465, 505
Build ...................... 465, 466, 469, 474, 478
collection ....................................... 466, 487
create playlist from ................................ 511
edit names ............................................ 469
F1-F12 .......................................... 466, 487
Global ............................................ 466, 487
Global Browse ....................................... 465
Global vs. Global Browse ...................... 467
Local ..................................... 467, 487, 488
Set ......................................... 466, 487, 505
Set vs. Browse Set ................................ 467
sort ................................................ 493, 516
System .................................. 467, 487, 488
fonts .......................................................... 132
aspect ratio ........................................... 134
for clocks ............................................... 159
size ........................................................ 134
styles ..................................................... 133
foreground color (Paint) ............................ 545
form, graphic objects ................................ 154
format external data sources .................... 242
four color gradient treatments ................... 178
Frame Grab ...................................... 445–457
overview ....................................... 446–449
playlist function ....................................... 33
set up .................................................... 454
switch to ................................................ 446
frame grabs
capture .......................................... 446, 447
copy to Clipboard .................................. 456
crop images .......................................... 448
filters ............................................. 450–453
flicker .................................................... 447
save ...................................................... 455
framebuffers
Frames field (Sequencer) ......................... 411
G
generic color control ................................. 544
Global Browse folio ........................... 464, 465
Global folio ........................................ 466, 487
Global Style Library .................................. 193
global transitions ....................................... 412
GPI trigger ................................................ 421
output with GPI trigger .......................... 427
pinout .................................................... 425
select GPI trigger .................................. 427
set up COM port GPI trigger ................. 426
set up GPI/O trigger .............................. 424
grab
668
Index
G-Scribe User Guide
frames ................................................... 446
series of frames .................................... 447
gradient steps ........................... 177, 178, 181
gradients
graphic objects .................................. 148–154
aspect ratio ........................................... 153
create .................................................... 148
flip ................................................. 149, 209
form ....................................................... 154
lines ....................................................... 151
logo objects ........................................... 155
polygons ................................................ 150
relative embellishments ........................ 153
select ..................................................... 199
size ........................................................ 153
splines ................................................... 151
add images to surfaces ......................... 355
add shapes to surfaces ......................... 352
apply formatting styles .......................... 365
create graphic styles ............................. 368
duplicate object ..................................... 362
edit surface graphics ............................. 359
object stacking order ............................. 360
rotate object .......................................... 363
grid ............................................................ 121
groups (CG) .............................................. 211
groups (Sequencer)
delete group headers ............................ 417
select trigger type ................................. 421
G-Scribe
configure audio ....................................... 59
configure video ....................................... 51
configure your system ...................... 39–62
modules .................................................. 22
output options ................................. 64–109
SD/HD overview ..................................... 48
G-Scribe workspace
Attributes palette ..................................... 35
main toolbar ............................................ 29
playlist ..................................................... 32
Program/Preview palette ........................ 34
Scrapbook .............................................. 35
workspace overview ......................... 29–37
guides ....................................................... 121
H
conversion limitations ............................. 50
conversion options .................................. 49
headers ..................................................... 233
highlight event during output ..................... 433
HKF image compression .......................... 485
HLS ........................................................... 188
horizontal guides ....................................... 121
HSV .......................................................... 188
I
ignore .avi transparency ................... 166, 184
illegal color values .................................... 588
image filters (Frame Grab) ................ 450–453
Index
G-Scribe User Guide
669
Image Info tab (Media Store) .................... 467
image insertion commands (CG) .............. 226
image size (Paint) ............................. 533, 586
image treatments .............................. 179–182
background objects ............................... 218
flip ......................................................... 209
update images ...................................... 226
images (3D FlyBy). See graphics (3D FlyBy)
images (Frame Grab). See frame grabs images. See media files (Media Store)
import (3D FlyBy) ...................................... 336
.dae file ................................................. 336
.flyby files .............................................. 344
.tga sequence ....................................... 336
.via file ................................................... 336
saved surface (.scribe file) .................... 364
warnings ................................................ 338
import (Animation)
FX scripts .............................................. 319
templates .............................. 295, 319–320
import (CG)
.scribe files ............................................ 256
subtitle file ............................................. 259
text files ................................................. 256
import (Paint)
channels ................................................ 583
color chips ............................................. 547
image as transformation ....................... 558
options .................................................. 531
palette files ............................................ 547
selections ...................................... 533, 554
texture ........................................... 532, 565
import files into databases (Media Store) . 478
in point, set event start time (Sequencer) . 419
input, configure ........................................... 54
Inscribe.ini
automatically initialize board ................. 455
grab frames on multi-board systems ..... 454
set current aspect ratio ......................... 577
Inscriber color control ................................ 544
Inscriber MOS ........................................... 225
insert
keyframes ..................................... 277–279
motion templates .................................. 293
insert cursor .............................................. 138
insert media into text objects ............ 126, 197
inside depth .............................................. 172
interlaced output display ............................. 48
invert field order ................................ 166, 184
italics, text ................................................. 133
J
Job Creator ....................................... 252–254
justify text .................................................. 136
K
kerning ...................................................... 136
Key + Fill option ........................................ 447
Key Info tab (Media Store) 467, 494, 495, 516
key information, in frame grabs ................ 447
keyframes ......................................... 277–282
absolute position ................................... 281
change shape ............................... 309–310
determine order .................................... 282
extend ................................................... 310
insert ............................................. 277–279
markers ................................................. 303
move ............................................. 280–282
offset ..................................................... 308
paste ..................................................... 279
pixelate ................................................. 312
rotate .................................................... 307
scale ..................................................... 310
select .................................................... 280
skew ..................................................... 310
spins ..................................................... 307
670
Index
G-Scribe User Guide
XYZ axes .............................................. 306
keywords (Media Store)
default for database files ....................... 516
edit ........................................................ 495
set for database files ............................. 478
L
layers (CG) ................................................ 210
change with the Layout Tree View ........ 214
combine edges ...................................... 211
layers (Paint) ..................................... 579–580
layers (Strata) ........................................... 101
Layout Tree View .............................. 212–216
layout types ....................................... 119, 246
layouts ....................................................... 116
align to layout ........................................ 204
background objects ............................... 217
colors .................................................... 187
create ............................................ 116, 246
create tagged layouts ............................ 234
create templates ................................... 248
Job Creator ........................................... 252
link external data sources ..................... 235
prevent objects from scrolling ............... 208
save ........................................................ 27
screen grid ............................................ 121
styles ..................................................... 191
subtitles ................................................. 257
templates .............................................. 247
transfer between systems ....................... 26
update ................................................... 220
video transparent area .......................... 217
view selected layout’s media ................ 198
with columns ......................................... 234
See also media files (Media Store)
leading ...................................................... 136
Learn Mode button (Shot Box) .. 470, 512, 514
legacy files .................................................. 28
legal color values ...................................... 587
linear gradient treatments ......................... 176
lines .......................................................... 151
link external data sources ......................... 235
list view of search results (Media Store) ... 504
List/Thumbnail button ............................... 504
live video feed (CG) .................................. 217
live video, display as DVE ................ 436–438
load (CG)
color palettes ........................................ 190
News Edit Tables .................................. 223
registry file ............................................ 251
Local collection folios ........................ 467, 487
Local Disk render option ........................... 434
local drives (Media Store)
browse for media files ........................... 471
source icons ......................................... 462
Local/System button ................. 467, 487, 488
lock
animation path ...................................... 304
object height ......................................... 137
object position ............................... 208, 215
object width ................................... 138, 258
lock content cursor .................................... 139
Log Event Down button ............................ 392
Log Event Up button ................................. 392
logo objects ....................................... 155–158
flip ......................................................... 209
insert into text objects ........................... 126
resize .................................................... 157
update logos ......................................... 226
logos (Paint)
cleanup ................................................. 540
Index
G-Scribe User Guide
671
logos, add to playlist as (Media Store) ...... 511
loop (3D FlyBy)
loop (Overlay)
loop (Sequencer)
animations ............................................. 415
the playlist ............................................. 433
loop the playback (CG) ..................... 166, 184
loosen the spline path ............................... 300
LRN button (Shot Box) .............. 470, 512, 514
luminance filter .......................................... 312
LZW image compression .......................... 485
M
macros .............................................. 243–245
Manual trigger ........................................... 421
output with Manual trigger ..................... 423
select Manual trigger ............................. 422
markers, keyframe (Animation) ................. 303
matte .avi files ................................... 166, 184
MDAC ....................................................... 228
media
add to Media Library ............................. 195
insert into text objects ................... 126, 197
media files (Media Store) .......................... 460
add to databases .................................. 474
add to playlist. See playlist (Media Store)
browse .......................................... 464, 471
check availability ................................... 507
compress database images .................. 485
databases. See Media Store databases
delete ............................................ 469, 497
export .................................................... 472
keywords. See keywords (Media Store)
media numbers ..................................... 462
memos .................................................. 496
metadata ............................................... 472
preview ................................................. 461
search for. See search (Media Store)
sort ........................................ 468, 493, 516
source icons ......................................... 462
take to video ......................................... 512
thumbnail previews ............................... 461
titles. See titles (Media Store)
view transparency ................................. 508
Media Library .................................... 195–198
add Active Texture treatments ...... 182, 196
add clip objects ............................. 166, 196
add image to face ................................. 180
add logo objects ........................... 156, 196
insert media into text objects ........ 127, 197
update objects ...................................... 226
media numbers ......................................... 462
media range .............................................. 198
Media Store ...................................... 459–517
overview ....................................... 460–473
playlist function ....................................... 33
switch to ................................................ 460
See also media files (Media Store)
Media Store button ................................... 460
Media Store databases ............. 466, 474–491
add browsed files .................................. 475
add files from other applications ........... 478
add files from other modules ................ 477
add files in Build set to database .......... 486
add files to existing database ............... 474
add files using Build dialog ................... 476
add frame grabs ................................... 477
add layout (RapidFire) ............................ 87
build ...................................................... 486
Build Media Store dialog ....... 469, 476, 486
672
Index
G-Scribe User Guide
Build set ................ 465, 466, 469, 474, 478
check referenced files ........................... 507
collection folios ...................................... 487
compress images .................................. 485
create ............................................ 474–486
database mode ..................................... 466
delete files ............................................. 497
edit file keywords .................................. 495
edit file titles .......................................... 494
folios .............................. 464, 466, 487, 505
location of files ...................................... 474
memos .................................................. 496
metadata ............................................... 490
organize files ......................................... 487
read layout from (RapidFire) ................... 86
search results, most recent ................... 505
search. See search (Media Store)
set build options for files ....................... 484
set up access to other databases ......... 488
sort thumbnails .............................. 493, 516
source icon for included images ........... 462
Spell Checker ........................................ 479
switch current database ........................ 489
Thesaurus ............................................. 481
toolbar ................................................... 466
view files ....................................... 486–490
Media Store palette ........................... 461, 468
Media Store toolbar ................... 461, 464–467
Media window ........... 461, 471, 492, 493, 505
Memo tab (Media Store) ................... 467, 496
memos for templates ................................ 249
merge layers (Paint) .................................. 580
metadata ........................................... 472, 490
Microsoft Data Access Components ......... 228
mixer settings .............................................. 58
database toolbar ................................... 466
switch .................................... 464, 466, 471
modules
switch to 3D FlyBy ................................ 322
switch to Animation Editor .................... 264
switch to CG ......................................... 112
switch to Frame Grab ........................... 446
switch to Media Store ........................... 460
switch to Paint ...................................... 520
switch to Sequencer ............................. 390
modules described ...................................... 22
monitor calibration .................................... 593
monitor output activity ............................... 444
MOS .......................................................... 225
mosaic filter ............................................... 312
most recently used colors (Paint) ............. 546
motion filters ..................................... 311–312
motion templates
combine multiple templates .................. 294
delete from registry ............................... 297
insert options ........................................ 293
name ..................................................... 295
preview ................................................. 289
registry .......................................... 295–297
reverse .................................................. 293
select .................................................... 289
timing options ....................................... 293
update ................................................... 297
motion timeline .................................. 302–303
move (CG)
groups ................................................... 211
objects .......................................... 118, 203
Index
G-Scribe User Guide
673
tabs ....................................................... 146
move keyframes ........................................ 280
move transformations ............................... 558
multi-page crawls ...................................... 401
adjust timing .......................................... 405
create .................................................... 403
pause output ......................................... 444
multi-page rolls .......................................... 401
adjust timing .......................................... 402
create .................................................... 401
pause output ......................................... 444
multiple channels (Frame Grab) ............... 454
multiple channels (Strata) ......................... 101
N
name events ............................................. 397
name motion templates ............................. 296
Navigate dialog ........................................... 73
navigation pane ......................... 461, 464, 471
network drives (Media Store)
browse for media files ........................... 471
source icons .......................................... 462
News Edit .......................................... 220–227
News Edit Tables .............................. 221–224
News Tags Editor ...................................... 227
Next button ................................................ 201
No Data Available option .......................... 236
none treatment .......................................... 179
NOT search operator ................................ 501
nudge ........................................................ 203
Number field (Shot Box) ............................ 470
NVIDIA VGA preview .................................. 39
O
objects ....................................................... 116
align ...................................................... 204
appearance ........................................... 118
clip objects ............................................ 165
copy ...................................... 114, 200, 215
create .................................................... 116
default style .......................................... 192
delete .................................................... 216
distribute ............................................... 207
duplicate ....................................... 200, 215
elements ............................................... 168
flip ......................................................... 209
graphic objects ..................................... 148
group .................................................... 211
layers .................................................... 210
lock ....................................................... 215
lock position .......................................... 208
logo objects .......................................... 155
macros .................................................. 243
move ............................................. 118, 203
Port objects ........................................... 163
prevent from scrolling ................... 119, 208
rename ................................................. 213
right-click menus ................................... 114
rotate .................................................... 208
select .................................................... 199
select multiple objects .......................... 201
snapshot ............................................... 285
style ...................................................... 192
text objects ........................................... 124
treatments ............................................. 175
ODBC. See external data sources
offset
animation transition .............................. 411
keyframes ............................................. 308
Time Code trigger ................................. 431
online
move online .......................................... 439
online folders ........................................ 440
opacity
of Paint filters ........................................ 571
selection ............................................... 553
OR search operator .................................. 501
674
Index
G-Scribe User Guide
Organic transition ...................................... 410
Original Res database images .................. 485
out point, set event end time (Sequencer) 419
outline polygon .......................................... 151
output
configure ................................................. 54
preview single layout ............................... 66
run the playlist ....................................... 442
output (Media Store)
set up single-click takes (Shot Box) ...... 513
take files to video .................................. 512
take files using Shot Box ....................... 513
output (Sequencer)
add space between events ................... 420
apply audio to events ............................ 414
apply transitions .................................... 409
clear output content .............................. 443
monitor output activity ........................... 444
move online ........................................... 439
prepare events for output ...................... 409
prepare playlist for output ..................... 433
preview events ...................................... 441
run the playlist ....................................... 442
select event render location .................. 433
select trigger type .................................. 421
set event duration ................................. 418
set real-time animation playback .......... 415
stop output ............................................ 442
take a single event ................................ 441
output options ..................................... 64–109
global output ........................................... 66
in 3D FlyBy ............................................ 386
Navigate dialog output ............................ 73
Overlay output ......................................... 91
RapidFire output ..................................... 79
Sequencer output ................................... 70
Shot Box palette ..................................... 75
Strata output ......................................... 101
output problems, Memory Tuning ............... 56
output, crawls
adjust crawl borders ............................. 406
adjust crawl speed ........................ 407, 443
output options ....................................... 406
pause multi-page crawls ....................... 444
pause output ......................................... 443
start on/off screen ................................. 406
output, rolls
adjust roll borders ................................. 406
adjust roll speed ........................... 407, 443
output options ....................................... 406
pause multi-page rolls .......................... 444
pause output ......................................... 443
start on/off screen ................................. 406
outside depth ............................................ 172
overlapping tab stops ................................ 146
Overlay ....................................................... 91
add items for output ................................ 94
basic workflow ........................................ 91
delay on-air display ................................. 96
described ................................................ 24
output items in Overlay ........................... 98
output options ......................................... 97
output timers in Overlay .......................... 99
prepare items for output ......................... 95
remove items .......................................... 94
save set of items ..................................... 95
update tagged text .................................. 93
Index
G-Scribe User Guide
675
P
page-formatted crawls. See multi-page crawls page-formatted rolls. See multi-page rolls
Paint .................................................. 520–595
concepts ........................................ 528–529
overview ................................................ 520
playlist function ....................................... 33
switch to ................................................ 520
paragraphs ................................................ 125
Paste Below option ................................... 215
Paste Replace option ................................ 215
paths (Animation)
curved paths ......................................... 282
spline paths ........................................... 298
paths (CG) ................................................ 129
curved paths ......................................... 151
pause
multi-page rolls/crawls .......................... 444
roll/crawl output ..................................... 443
pause macro recording ............................. 244
PC Clock trigger ........................................ 421
event duration ....................................... 418
output with PC Clock trigger ................. 432
select PC Clock trigger ......................... 431
Photoshop filters ....................................... 573
pinout, GPI ................................................ 425
pixel
aspect ratio ........................................... 577
shape .................................................... 587
pixelate keyframe ...................................... 312
play animations ................................. 286–287
play controls .............................................. 287
play macros ............................................... 245
playlist (CG)
create with Template Manager ............. 249
Job Creator ........................................... 252
playlist (Media Store)
add files from Media window ................ 510
playlist (Sequencer)
loop during output ................................. 433
playlist vs. Sequencer playlist ............... 391
prepare for output ................................. 433
use Scrapbook item .............................. 394
playlist function
in CG ...................................................... 32
add new events .................................... 398
delete events ........................................ 399
move events ......................................... 399
playlist cursor ........................................ 400
use Animation Editor with playlist ......... 396
playlist, save ............................................... 28
playlists, create
use 3D FlyBy with playlist ..................... 396
plug-in filters ............................................. 573
pointer tool
move objects ........................................ 203
select objects ........................................ 199
polygons ................................................... 150
676
Index
G-Scribe User Guide
Port objects ............................................... 163
add to Media Library ............................. 195
clocks .................................................... 159
edge elements ...................................... 169
position fields ............................................ 203
position keyframes .................................... 280
Preferences dialog .................................... 598
Browser tab ........................................... 605
Cache tab .............................................. 605
Character Generator tab ....................... 601
Folios tab ...................................... 515, 604
General tab ........................................... 598
Project tab ............................................. 600
Sequencer tab ....................................... 602
Store Paths tab ............................. 515, 603
prefix, text formatting ................................ 242
preset animation templates ....................... 294
preview
an event ................................................ 441
clear content ........................................... 34
single layout ............................................ 66
preview (Animation)
motion paths ......................................... 286
motion templates ................................... 289
options .................................................. 288
toolbar ................................... 266, 286, 302
Preview button (Shot Box) ........................ 470
preview channel
clear content ........................................... 34
configure ................................... 39–46, 107
in dual channel systems .......................... 45
VGA preview ........................................... 39
preview, media file (Media Store) ..... 461, 462
Previous button ......................................... 201
program channel
clear output ............................................. 34
configure ................................... 46–47, 106
configure video board ............................. 51
view test pattern ..................................... 61
Program Channel buttons (Shot Box) ....... 470
in Sequencer ........................................ 395
progressive scan output display ................. 48
push pins .................................................. 305
Push transition .......................................... 410
R
radial gradient treatments ................. 177, 178
RapidFire .............................................. 79–90
Auto Text ................................................ 87
default template ...................................... 90
Keyboard option ........................... 618–624
Media Store save directory ..................... 83
Media Store template layouts ................. 86
shortcut keys ........................................ 615
working directory .................................... 83
raster images ............................................ 586
read data directly from the text file ............ 237
rebuild Media Store databases ................. 490
Recent Browse list (Media Store) ..... 464, 465
record macro ............................................. 244
recover Media Store databases ................ 490
reference in ................................................. 57
Registry Manager ............................. 250–252
Global Style Library .............................. 193
Index
G-Scribe User Guide
677
relative embellishments .................... 135, 153
Remote render option ............................... 434
removable drives (Media Store)
browse for media files ........................... 471
source icons .......................................... 462
remove color from RGB channels ............. 582
render animations ..................... 286, 317–318
render location, events .............................. 433
Resize to Fit Texture button ...................... 184
restore alpha values (Paint) .............. 542, 543
RGB (CG) ................................................. 188
RGB (Paint)
channels ................................................ 581
color gamut ........................................... 590
View button ........................................... 576
right justify text .......................................... 136
right-click menu
in Animation .......................................... 270
in CG ..................................................... 114
in Media Store ............................... 497, 508
in Paint .................................................. 527
in Sequencer ......................................... 398
right-to-left text .......................................... 137
roll layouts ................................................. 119
adjust borders ....................................... 406
adjust multi-page timing ........................ 402
adjust output speed ............................... 443
adjust speed .......................................... 407
pause output ......................................... 443
prevent objects from scrolling ............... 208
start on/off screen ................................. 406
rotate keyframes ....................................... 307
rotate objects ............................................ 208
round line ends ......................................... 152
rows
cell attributes ........................................ 142
swap ..................................................... 143
RSS databases. See XML databases
ruler ........................................................... 146
Run Job button ......................................... 442 run. See output
S
safe title area .................................... 122, 255
align to .................................................. 204
edit ........................................................ 255
snap to .......................................... 122, 255
safe video colors ....................................... 587
saturated color .......................................... 588
save
color palettes ........................................ 190
layouts .................................................... 27
macros .................................................. 245
media files ............................................ 472
playlists ................................................... 28
scale (Paint)
images .................................................. 586
logos ..................................................... 542
transformations ..................................... 558
scale keyframes ........................................ 310
scan folders for updates ................... 465, 492
Scissors icon ............................................. 509
Scrapbook ..................................... 35–37, 477
add events to the Scrapbook ................ 394
add frame grabs ................................... 456
add items ................................................ 36
Info option ............................................... 37
Paste from Clipboard option ................... 37
use as background in CG ....................... 36
use as logo in CG ................................... 37
678
Index
G-Scribe User Guide
use item in playlist ................................. 394
use layout in CG ..................................... 36
scroll on an image (Paint) ......................... 576
scroll with crawl / roll ......................... 119, 208
conversion limitations .............................. 50
conversion options .................................. 49
seamless textures (Paint) ......................... 574
search (Media Store) ................ 468, 498–506
advanced searches ............................... 500
date format ............................................ 516
find a file ................................................ 501
find a file using the Shot Box ................ 502
Find dialog ............................................ 502
operators ............................................... 501
results. See search results (Media Store)
assign to (Browse) Set folio .................. 504
create playlist from ................................ 511
display ................................................... 503
list view ................................................. 504
most recent ........................................... 505
refine ..................................................... 506
select (CG) ........................................ 199–202
groups ................................................... 211
objects with the Layout Tree View ........ 213
text ........................................ 124, 126, 201
select keyframes ....................................... 280
Selection Channel (Paint) ......................... 553
selection mode .................................. 126, 202
selection tool
move objects ........................................ 203
select objects ........................................ 199
selections (Paint)
alpha ..................................................... 556
creation options .................................... 555
RGB channels ...................................... 581
Select tab buttons ................................. 556
Sequencer ........................................ 390–444
assign triggers ...................................... 421
output playlist ........................................ 439
overview ............................................... 390
playlist function ....................................... 33
switch to ................................................ 390
Sequencer playlist
add space between events ................... 420
collapse ................................................ 392
group events ......................................... 416
loop during output ................................. 433
playlist vs. Sequencer playlist ............... 391
set event duration ................................. 418
show all items ....................................... 392
add new events .................................... 398
delete events ........................................ 399
drag events to new location .................. 400
Index
G-Scribe User Guide
679
duplicate events .................................... 400
move events .......................................... 399
Set folio ..................................... 466, 487, 505
shadow elements .............................. 172–173
for clocks ............................................... 160
Shadow tab ............................................... 172
sheen elements ................................. 173–174
logo objects ........................................... 157
sheen tab .................................................. 173
shortcut keys ............................................. 607
Shot Box palette .......................... 75, 461, 469
add files to playlist ................................. 511
find a file ................................................ 502
output selected item ................................ 78
output with defined buttons ..................... 77
preview a media file .............................. 503
select events in Sequencer ................... 394
select files in Media Store ....................... 76
select layouts in playlist .......................... 75
size (CG)
clock objects ......................................... 160
fonts ...................................................... 134
relative embellishments ................ 135, 153
text objects ............................................ 139
Size to Fit database images ...................... 485
Size to Full Screen database images ....... 485
skew keyframes ........................................ 310
small caps, text ......................................... 134
SMPTE color bars ..................................... 593
snap to
video safe title area ....................... 122, 255
snapshot of objects ................................... 285
Soft field (Sequencer) ............................... 411
solid color treatments ................................ 176
sort (Media Store)
default database folio sort order ........... 516
default Global Browse folio order ......... 493
sort data sources ...................................... 240
source icons .............................................. 462
speed
spell check (CG) ....................................... 144
Spell Checker (Media Store) ..................... 479
spin keyframes .......................................... 307
spline objects (CG) ................................... 151
edit ........................................................ 200
select .................................................... 200
render ................................................... 317
smoothness .......................................... 300
tension .......................................... 298, 300
SQL statements ........................................ 241
square line ends ....................................... 152
stagger templates ............................. 291, 315
stamp size, adjust ..................................... 493
start delay ......................................... 166, 184
start time, events ...................................... 419
status bar (Paint) ...................................... 526
680
Index
G-Scribe User Guide
still layouts ........................................ 119, 246
stills. See media files (Media Store)
stop macro recording ................................ 245
stop output ................................................ 442
Store/Play button (Shot Box) .................... 470
Strata ................................................ 101–109
described ................................................ 24
stretch keyframes ...................................... 310
Style Library (3D FlyBy) ............................ 365
add graphic style to library .................... 369
add text style to library .......................... 366
apply styles to surface objects .............. 370
create graphic styles ............................. 368
create text styles ................................... 365
format surface objects ........................... 370
Style Library (CG) ............................. 191–194
subtitles ............................................. 257–262
versioning .............................................. 261
suffix, text formatting ................................. 242
Surface Editor. See 3D Surface Editor
surface textures (Paint) ............................. 575
surfaces
use backgrounds ................................... 357
surfaces (3D FlyBy) .................................. 345
add graphics ......................................... 351
add images ........................................... 355
add shapes ........................................... 352
add text ................................................. 347
create styles for surface objects ........... 365
enter text on a path ............................... 348
format graphics with styles .................... 365
format objects with styles ...................... 370
link text to external data source ............ 378
workspace display options .................... 345
swap rows ................................................. 143
switch
Media Store database .......................... 489
Media Store mode ........................ 464, 466
switch to
3D FlyBy ............................................... 322
Animation Editor ................................... 264
CG ........................................................ 112
Frame Grab .......................................... 446
Media Store .......................................... 460
Paint ..................................................... 520
Sequencer ............................................ 390
synonyms, find .......................................... 482
System button ........................................... 467
System collection folios .................... 467, 487
system DSN ...................................... 231, 232
T
T icon ........................................................ 463
tab editor ................................................... 145
tab stops ................................................... 144
overlap .................................................. 146
tags (3D FlyBy)
add tags to text ..................................... 374
tags (CG) .......................................... 224–227
add with the Layout Tree View ............. 214
columns ................................................ 235
Job Creator ........................................... 252
tags (Overlay)
tag text for updates ................................. 92
update tagged text .................................. 93
Take button (Shot Box) ............................. 470
take events (Sequencer) ........................... 441
take files to video (Media Store) ............... 512
set up single-click takes (Shot Box) ...... 513
Index
G-Scribe User Guide
681
using Shot Box ...................................... 513
Template Manager
create News Edit Tables ....................... 221
create playlists ...................................... 249
create templates ................................... 248
News Edit Tables .................................. 223
save a template ..................................... 259
switch template registries ...................... 250
update templates .................................. 249
template registries. See Registry Manager
templates (Animation)
add template effects to path .................. 292
apply ..................................................... 290
import/export ......................... 295, 319–320
motion templates ................................... 289
overwrite options ................................... 292
stagger .......................................... 291, 315
templates (CG) .................................. 247–254
create playlists with ............................... 249
default template .................................... 247
Job Creator ........................................... 252
select ..................................................... 248
subtitles ................................................. 259
templates (Media Store) ............................ 463
test pattern .................................................. 61
apply text tags ....................................... 374
display all tag content entries ................ 375
duplicate object ..................................... 362
edit surface text ..................................... 359
enter text on a path ............................... 348
link to external data source ................... 378
object stacking order ............................. 360
rotate object .......................................... 363
update tagged text ................................ 375
text (Animation)
scale ...................................................... 276
text (CG)
align ...................................................... 135
baseline ................................................ 132
bold ....................................................... 133
Character Map ...................................... 127
constrained ........................................... 138
double byte ........................................... 130
fonts ...................................................... 132
italics ..................................................... 133
orient ..................................................... 131
paragraphs ........................................... 125
path ....................................................... 130
right-to-left processing .......................... 137
select .................................... 124, 200, 201
small caps ............................................. 134
spell check ............................................ 144
styles .................................................... 191
unconstrained ....................................... 125
underline ............................................... 133
vertical .................................................. 130
word wrap ............................................. 138
See also fonts, styles, text objects
text (Paint)
add surface texture ............................... 575
apply seamless texture ......................... 574
text file databases ..................................... 230
add to system list .................................. 232
column headers .................................... 233
columns ................................................ 237
delimiters ...................................... 230, 233
link directly to layouts ........................... 236
text files
import .................................................... 256
timecoded ............................................. 258
text objects ........................................ 123–147
add tags ................................................ 224
682
Index
G-Scribe User Guide
aspect ratio ........................................... 139
columns ................................................. 234
create .................................................... 124
cursor .................................................... 138
edit ........................................................ 124
format external data sources ................ 242
height .................................................... 140
insert media into ............................ 126, 197
lock height ............................................. 137
lock width .............................................. 138
paragraph text ....................................... 125
relative embellishments ........................ 135
resize ............................................ 134, 140
select ..................................................... 200
selection mode ...................................... 126
size ........................................................ 139
styles ..................................................... 191
tab stops ............................................... 144
update ................................................... 220
update image files ................................. 226
update with News Edit .......................... 222
width ...................................................... 140
word wrap ..................................... 138, 258
text path .................................................... 123
textures (CG). See image treatment
textures (Paint)
alpha ..................................................... 575
seamless ............................................... 574
surface .................................................. 575
textures, add to playlist as (Media Store) .. 511
Thesaurus ................................................. 481
user ....................................................... 483
third-party filters ........................................ 572
thousands separator ................................. 242
thumbnail 3D effects folders ..................... 313
thumbnails (Media Store) .. 460, 461, 462, 471
delete ............................................ 469, 497
descriptive information .................. 462, 515
resize .................................................... 493
sort ........................................ 468, 493, 516
text, change .......................................... 515
update ........................................... 492–497
view of search results ........................... 504
view transparency ................................. 508
tighten the spline path ............................... 300
Tile transition ............................................ 409
Time Code trigger ..................................... 421
event duration ....................................... 418
offset time code .................................... 431
output with Time Code trigger .............. 430
select Time Code trigger ...................... 429
set up Time Code source ..................... 428
time format (CG) ....................................... 242
Time Slider ................................................ 286
timecoded text files ................................... 258
Timed trigger ............................................. 421
event duration ....................................... 418
timeline (3D FlyBy) ................................... 342
Frame field ............................................ 343
Markers list ........................................... 343
timeline (Animation)
keyframe markers ................................. 303
timing
adjust multi-page crawl timing .............. 405
adjust multi-page roll timing .................. 402
for PC Clock triggers ............................ 418
for Sequencer transitions ...................... 411
tint filter ..................................................... 312
tint image treatments ................................ 181
Index
G-Scribe User Guide
683
Title Type drop-down ................................ 246
titles (Media Store)
default for database files ....................... 516
edit ........................................................ 494
set for database files ............................. 478
tools (Animation) ....................................... 269
tools (Paint)
alpha ............................................. 540–543
brush-based .................................. 536–539
clone and clone fill ........................ 566–568
image editing ................................. 563–564
transformation ............................... 558–559
Tools palette (CG) ..................................... 115
Tools palette (Paint) .......................... 523–526
transfer files between systems .................... 26
transformations (Paint)
import .................................................... 558
Transition tab (Media Store) ............. 467, 509
transitions
global transitions ................................... 412
transitions (Animation)
transitions (Media Store) ................... 467, 509
transitions (Sequencer) ............................. 409
apply animation transition ..................... 411
apply to events ...................................... 409
select transition ..................................... 410
transition types ...................................... 409
transparency (CG)
Active Texture treatments ..................... 184
background objects .............................. 219
clip objects ............................................ 167
treatments ............................................. 176
transparency filter ..................................... 311
transparency levels, view (Media Store) ... 508
treatments ......................................... 175–186
4 color gradients ................................... 178
Active Texture treatments ..................... 182
apply ..................................................... 175
background objects .............................. 217
beveled edge ........................................ 184
color ...................................................... 175
depth elements ..................................... 172
edge elements ...................................... 170
face elements ....................................... 168
image treatments .................................. 179
in macros .............................................. 244
linear gradient ....................................... 176
none treatment ..................................... 179
radial gradient ....................................... 177
shadow elements .................................. 173
tube treatments ..................................... 186
trigger types ...................................... 421–432
GPI ....................................... 421, 424, 426
Manual .......................................... 421, 422
PC Clock ....................................... 421, 431
Time Code .................................... 421, 428
Timed ............................................ 421, 423
tube treatments ......................................... 186
two channel systems
assign event to channel for output .......... 67
assign events to different channels ...... 435
output two layouts simultaneously .......... 68
preview option ........................................ 45
Program/Preview palette display ............ 35
set primary program channel .................. 46
684
Index
G-Scribe User Guide
U
unconstrained text ..................................... 125
underline text ............................................ 133
undo .......................................................... 114
ungroup ..................................................... 211
unsafe video colors ................................... 588
Update Image Info button ................. 468, 496
update tagged objects ............................... 225
Update to Current Style option .................. 193
user DSN .......................................... 231, 232
V
vector-based images ................................. 586
vector-based logos .................................... 542
versioning .................................................. 261
vertical guides ........................................... 121
vertical text objects ........................... 130–132
VGA preview ............................................... 39
ViaBuilder, described .................................. 25
video
calibration ...................................... 591–593
configure video board ............................. 51
live video DVE ............................... 436–438
video clips (CG). See clip objects
video clips (Media Store)
source icons .......................................... 462
thumbnails ............................................. 461
See also media files (Media Store)
video feed (CG) ......................................... 217
video safe colors ....................................... 587
video safe title area ................................... 122
video transparent area .............................. 217
View buttons (Paint) .................................. 576
view selected layout’s media .................... 198
view selected layout’s styles ..................... 193
VII image compression ............................. 486
virtual channels ......................................... 101
W
warnings during import (3D FlyBy) ........... 338
When Data Expires option ........................ 236
width
edges .................................................... 170
lines ...................................................... 152
sheen elements .................................... 173
splines .................................................. 152
Wipe transition .......................................... 409
word wrap ......................................... 138, 258
working directory (RapidFire) ...................... 83
X
X axis ................................................ 273, 281
XD-200 Control Panel ........................... 51–62
configure audio settings .......................... 59
configure input/output ............................. 54
configure mixer settings .......................... 58
configure reference in ............................. 57
create configuration ................................ 52
overview ................................................. 51
save configuration .................................. 61
view system details ................................. 53
view test pattern ..................................... 61
XML databases ......................................... 238
Y
Y axis ................................................ 273, 281
Z
Z axis ................................ 273, 281, 306, 309
zoom ......................................................... 122
Index
G-Scribe User Guide
685
If you need technical support, contact your dealer first. Because your dealer helped you configure your system, your dealer is also the best resource for your system configuration issues.
If your dealer is unable to resolve your technical support problems, contact Inscriber Graphics
Systems technical support:
Email: [email protected]
Web: http://broadcast.harris.com/inscriber
Inscriber Graphics Systems
Harris Broadcast Communications Division
686
Technical Support
G-Scribe User Guide
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Create and manage digital signage layouts
Import and export media files
Create, edit, and output graphics
Use a variety of tools to create professional-looking graphics
User-friendly interface
The Inscriber G-Scribe is software for creating and managing graphics for digital signage. It allows you to create, edit and output layouts, as well as import and export media files.
The primary purpose of Inscriber G-Scribe is to create and manage graphics for digital signage applications. It is designed for users who need to create and display professional-looking graphics on digital screens.
Inscriber G-Scribe provides a user-friendly interface with a variety of tools for creating and editing graphics. You can import media files, create layouts, and then output the finished graphics to digital screens.
How can the operating standard (resolution) of the XD-200 board be changed to address issues like unsupported HD errors?
Using the Control Panel utility, select the video card, click the Input/Output button, select the desired broadcast standard (Standard Definition or High Definition) in the Input/Output Standard section, and click Apply Changes. (The utility path is typically Start > All Programs > Harris > G-Scribe > Configuration Utilities > Phoenix Control Panel).
How can the shape of existing polygons and spline shapes be modified or edited?
The shape of polygons and spline shapes can be edited by deleting or adding anchor points and changing the object shape.
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