Home Page        Up one Level        Site Map        Send us mail

Supplement for: Digital Video

Overview:

The Digital Video Plug-In provides a method for playing MPEG full motion video in a CD-i title created with MediaMogul.

Plug-ins required for operation:

cdi_sgmn - The "Signal Manager" plug-in.
cdi_dvpl - The "Digital Video Play" plug-in. Allows playing of digital video.

MediaMogul Utilities required to prepare assets:

• Entrypoint Assist (epassist) is used to make entrypoint files. Entrypoint files are required to use some functions such as Scan (both forward and back), INTIME, OUTTIME, STILL, JUMP, Bookmarking, etc. Functions which require entrypoint files are identified in the Digital Video Plug-In manual.

• The ImageMaker utility software for Macintosh and Windows is used to make .rtf files and disc images of MPEG files for playing scripts using the Digital Video Plug-In in Simulation from Script Writer. ImageMaker requires master software,

If you are using a Philips development CD-i player and/or an OS-9 Emulator, you will need to create a master script for converting each .mmd/.mpg file to an .rtf file (Example script) and also to build a disc image (Example script). Then a disc must be written prior to Simulation.

Assets to create before using plug-in:

• MPEG .mmd (.mpg) files of the required video must be encoded and multiplexed.
• Entrypoint files may need to be created for use of some functions.
• Foreground and background pictures may need to be created for use with menus.
• Menu file(s) need to be created if menus will be used with the Digital Video.
• MPEG .rtf (Real Time Files) must be made if you wish to play the MPEG in Simulation from the Script Writer.
• A disc containing the .rtf files of the MPEG will need to be created if you wish to play scripts using the plug-in in Simulation from the Script Writer.

NOTE: For additional information on creating MPEG .rtf files and on building a disc image of these, see "Preparing MPEG for MediaMogul 2.2 Applications", available from pmpro Professional Support. You can also consult the pages immediately below:

Special preparations:

No additional preparation required.

How plug-in works:

· You should call the digital video plug-in, cdi_dvpl, in TEST mode early in your title. The plug-in will check for the presence of a digital video card, and set the Z variable to 500 if none is found. Then have a Br_ifeq_nr if Z is 500 to a script that alerts the user that the title requires a digital video card.

· Calling the digital video plug-in will automatically start the signal manager plug-in, cdi_sgmn, so make sure you do not call this more than once.

· Digital Video is displayed on the background video plane in CD-i. The foreground video planes must be made transparent, either partially or completely, in order for it to be seen. Use the DV_Transp video command to set up the type of transparency you want, and then use a Cut, Curtain, or Wipe video transition with the DV checkbox checked to establish the defined transparency once decoding of the digital video starts.

· After the digital video has been played, you must turn off the transparency that had been established by using a Cut, Curtain, or Wipe video transition without the DV checkbox checked.

· If you want to change transparency parameters, e.g. go from a CLUT 0 to a matte transparency, or vice versa, you must first turn off the existing transparency before establishing the new one.

Example:

In the following example, the digital video plug-in is called in TEST mode to check for the presence of a Digital Video card. Then an entrypoint file is loaded and a 9 second portion of MPEG is played at full screen CLUT 0 transparency with a hidden, toggleable menu.

dvtest.scr
00:00 Skip_off (Skip off ensures that the user cannot skip over anything required for the plug-in.)
00:00 Call /h0/SUBROUT/cdi_dvpl TEST (Check for presence of a DV card.)
00:20 Br_ifeq_nr /h0/SCRIPTS/nodv.scr Z 500 (Branch if no DV card present.)
00:20 Br_always_nr /h0/SCRIPTS/playdv.scr

playdv.scr
00:00 EPLoad /h0/DVFILES/mympeg.mm (Entrypoint file is loaded.)
00:00 DV_Transp ck3/HIDE 0 0 0 0 (Transparency is defined.)
00:20 DV_Cut /h0/VIDEO/dvmnufg.cl7 (Foreground image is loaded and transition defined)
01:10 Background /h0/VIDEO/dvmnubg.cl7 (Background image for menu is loaded.)
01:10 Menu /h0/MENUS/dv.mnu (Menu is loaded.)
01:10 Call /h0/SUBROUT/cdi_dvpl /cd/DV/mympeg.rtf INTIME=00:00:01:15,OUTTIME=00:00:10:15 (Digital video is played.)
01:10 Cut /h0/VIDEO/mystill.cl7 (Transparency is cleared.)
01:10 Br_always_nr /h0/SCRIPTS/nextscr.scr

NOTE: Times in the above example are approximate.

Home Page        Up one Level        Site Map        Send us mail