Multimedia User's Guide

For XVideo700, PowerVideo700, and MultiVideo700 on HP-UX 10.x and 9.x









Parallax Graphics



Part Number: 917-028810 Rev. D


Table of Contents

Preface
How to Use This Manual

Technical Support Contacts

Introduction
Your Video Card's Capabilities

Your Software Tools



Using VideoTool
Starting VideoTool

Displaying Live Video

Adjusting Video Color

Resizing Video

Enlarging Video with Zoom_2X

Capturing a Still Image

Displaying a Still Image

Sending Video Out to Videotape

Closing a VideoTool Window

Quitting VideoTool

Using MovieTool

Starting MovieTool

Displaying Live Video

Capturing a Movie

Playing Back a Movie

Enlarging Video with Zoom_2X

Capturing a Still Image

Editing a Movie

Showing Movies on the Output Channel

Closing a MovieTool Window

Quitting MovieTool

Using MovieCat

Starting MovieCat

Joining Movie Clips Together

Quitting MovieCat

Appendix A: Troubleshooting Guidelines

Solutions to Common Problems

Appendix B: UNIX Command Line Options

Using the Command Line Options

Command Line Options

Appendix C: X-Client UNIX Utility and Demo Programs

Appendix D: H.261 Image Capture and Display Utilities




Preface



This preface describes how to use this manual and how to reach us if you need technical support. This preface includes:

How to Use This Manual
Font Conventions
Related Documents
Technical Support Contacts

How to Use This Manual



The MultiMedia User's Guide describes and guides you through our end-user applications: VideoTool, MovieTool, and MovieCat. You can use this manual as an introduction to the features and functions of these applications, a training guide, and a reference.

Before you begin using this manual, make sure that your Parallax Graphics video card and software are already installed. If you have not yet installed them, please see your Release Notes, Hardware Installation Guide, and Software Installation Guide for instructions.

Also, before you start using video, you should carefully read through the Release Notes to find out about bugs and recent software enhancements.

To use this manual as a training guide, work through the book one chapter at a time, in sequence, trying out the functions as you read about them.

Font Conventions



Italics Manual titles, new terms being defined.

Typewriter Font
Commands typed in an X window, text that would appear in an X window.

<Words> Indicates on-screen text that is variable (such as <filename>)

[Words] Indicates on-screen text that is optional or conditional (such as [-help])

Normal_Font Strings of text from the graphical user interface.

Related Documents



Release Notes Skim before installation, then read in detail. These notes provide important information about recent changes and bugs.

Hardware Installation Guide Use for hardware installation.

Software Installation Guide Use for software installation and de-installation

Video Development Environment Reference Guide For developers who purchase the Video Development Environment: Use for developing your own video applications.

Technical Support Contacts


If you need any technical assistance as you get acquainted with these applications, please contact Parallax Technical Support:

Parallax Graphics-East
Herndon, VA USA
tel: +1 703 450 7718
fax: +1 703 450 7719
email: tsupport@parallax.com


Introduction 1



This chapter introduces you to the capabilities of your XVideo700, PowerVideo700, or MultiVideo700 video overlay card and briefly describes the software tools that come with it. This chapter includes:

Your Video Card's Capabilities

Your Software Tools

VideoTool

MovieTool

MovieCat

Building Your Own Video Applications

Independent Software Vendors




Your Video Card's Capabilities



Congratulations on your purchase of one of Parallax Graphics' premier video cards for workstation video: XVideo700, PowerVideo700, or MultiVideo700. With Parallax Graphics video hardware and software you enter the world of corporate quality digital video. The XVideo family of video cards all support high performance video with:




With any Parallax Graphics video card, you can display live video from a video camera, VCR, TV tuner, or other analog source. You can also capture still images for monitoring applications such as manufacturing inspection and surveillance.

If you have hardware compression (XVideo700 with compression or PowerVideo700) you can capture and compress digital video movies in real-time and play them back locally or over a network from a video-on-demand server. You can send and receive compressed video over a data network in real-time for remote monitoring and videoconferencing applications such as distance learning, collaboration, and telemedicine.

With XVideo700, you can also display live video from two sources simultaneously and send video out from the workstation to a VCR, video projector, or other analog video decive for presentations or distribution to a wider audience. At a given moment, you can display live video inputs from two sources simultaneously, or you can display one live video input and send video out to a VCR, video projector, or other device for displaying and/or recording.

Table 1-1 XVideo700, PowerVideo700, and MultiVideo700 Capabilities

Function XVideo700 w/compression (XVC-700) XVideo700 w/o compression (XV-700) PowerVideo700 (PV-700) MultiVideo700 (MV-700)
Display One Live Video Yes Yes Yes Yes
Capture Still Images Yes Yes Yes Yes
Use Hardware Compression Yes No Yes No
Capture and Playback Video in Real-Time Yes No Yes No
Send and Receive Video over Data Networks in Real-Time Yes No Yes No
Display a Second Simultaneous Live Video Yes Yes No No
Real-Time Video Output to VCR, etc. Yes Yes No No





Your Software Tools



To get you started in using video, Parallax Graphics has developed a set of tools for users that we think you'll find invaluable and enjoyable to use: VideoTool, MovieTool, and MovieCat. All these tools have graphical user interfaces with pull-down menus.

The Parallax software versions 9.3 and 10.10 have some new features that are not available in version 9.2 or earlier releases (for information on bugs fixed in 9.3 and 10.10, see your Release Notes):



VideoTool



VideoTool supports live video display, video color adjustments, still image capture (Sun Raster, TIFF, JPEG, or JFIF formats), and displaying a second live video and sending video out to a VCR or other analog video device in real-time.

VideoTool is ideal for applications such as video monitoring and surveillance, with image capture for image enhancement, image analysis, and record-keeping, and video output (to VCR or video projector) for presentations

MovieTool



If you have compression (XVideo700 with compression or PowerVideo700), you can use MovieTool to capture and playback compressed digital video movies with synchronized audio in real-time. To achieve real-time performance, MovieTool relies on Parallax's hardware compression and decompression. The optimal quality of MovieTool movies ranges from approximately 15-30 frames/second for full size movies to 30 frames/second for quarter size or smaller movies, always with 24-bit TrueColor. You can select your compression factor and adjust video size and color before starting recording. The MovieTool user interface offers precise time and frame-by-frame control for playing back digital video movies. Movies can be played back enlarged (twice as wide, four times the area) with Zoom_2X. Simple editing tools are included.

MovieTool movies can be used with other compatible applications such as authoring software for presentations, computer-based training, and on-line documents. MovieTool movies can be placed on a server, available for playback at other locations on a network. And MovieTool movies can be included in databases, e-mail, and anywhere else a UNIX file can go.

MovieCat



MovieCat creates new MovieTool movies by splicing together existing MovieTool movie clips. MovieCat does not record movies, it simply copies pieces of existing movies into a new movie. MovieCat is not available in version 9.2 or earlier releases.

Building Your Own Video Applications



If you want to build video capabilities like VideoTool and MovieTool into your own applications, our Video Development Environment will speed up the process with APIs, sample programs, and sample source code, including complete source code for VideoTool and MovieTool. If you have already purchased the Video Development Environment, you can consult your Video Development Environment Reference Guide to get started. Before you start writing code, we recommend walking through this Multimedia User's Guide to get familiar with our video cards and software applications.

Independent Software Vendors



A number of independent software vendors have incorporated Parallax Graphics video support into their applications, which range from imaging software to authoring to videoconferencing. If you are looking for specific capabilities, we recommend looking at our Software Applications Overview and then looking at our home page (http://www.parallax.com) for full descriptions.




Using VideoTool 2



You can use VideoTool to display and control live video and capture still images in several formats. If you have XVideo 700, you can also use VideoTool to display video from two live sources simultaneously, or send video out to videotape or video projector.

This chapter is set up so you can work through it as a tutorial or jump to a section when you need information. This chapter includes:

Starting VideoTool

Displaying Live Video

Displaying Live Video from Two Sources

Adjusting Video Color

Resizing Video

Enlarging Video with Zoom_2X

Capturing a Still Image

Displaying a Still Image

Sending Video Out to Videotape

Closing a VideoTool Window

Quitting VideoTool


Starting VideoTool



You can start VideoTool from a UNIX command line or from the HP VUE/HP MPower graphics interface.

From the UNIX Commmand Line



To start VideoTool, type VideoTool at the shell prompt and press return:
% VideoTool
The VideoTool control and Input_1 windows will appear.



Figure 2-1 The VideoTool control and Input_1 windows. The VideoTool control window for Parallax software version 9.2 and earlier releases looks slightly different.

Note: When starting VideoTool from a UNIX command line, you can use various command line options to customize your VideoTool session. Refer to Appendix B for more information.

From HP VUE/HP MPower



HP-UX 9.x users: If you are using HP MPower as part of the HP VUE user environment, you can start VideoTool from the Media icon in the HP VUE (HP MPower) Front Panel. To start VideoTool from the HP VUE Front Panel, do the following:

Note: HP MPower and this start-up procedure are not available in HP_UX 10.x

  1. Log in to the system

  2. Click the arrow above the Media icon in the HP VUE Front Panel

    No figure available.

    Figure 2-2HP VUE Front Panel and Media pop-up menu.

  3. Click the Video icon in the Media pop-up menu. The Video window appears.

  4. Click the VideoTool icon in the Video window.

  5. The VideoTool control and Input 1 windows will appear.



    Figure 2-3 The VideoTool control and Input_1 windows. The VideoTool control window for Parallax software version 9.2 and earlier releases looks slightly different.

Displaying Live Video



To display live video with VideoTool:

1. Connect a video source (camera, TV cable, laserdisc, VCR, etc.) to one of your video input cables (with a label such as "Video In Composite 1"), turn the video source on and start playing video. For more information about setting up the cable connections, see your Hardware Installation Guide

Note: You can connect your video input cables to more than one live video source at once. Older PowerVideo700 and MultiVideo700 cards connect to two Composite sources. XVideo700 and newer PowerVideo700 and MultiVideo700 cards connect to both Composite and S-VHS (Y/C) format sources. XVideo700 can display two video inputs simultaneously (S-VHS only on Input 2). PowerVideo700 and MultiVideo700 display one input, with software switching between inputs.

2. In the VideoTool control window, click the On/Off button to turn Input_1 (or Input_2) on. Your video card and software will try to find and display the first available video signal.

Note: If you are using multiple video cards, the "first available" video signal is from the video card in the lowest slot number.

3. If the video input window is not displaying video the way you want it, you need to adjust the Input_Settings. In the VideoTool Control window, pull down the Configure menu and select Input Settings. The Input Settings control panel window will appear.



Figure 2-4 Opening the Input Settings control panel.

4. In the Input Settings control panel, click on the Window button to select video input Window 1 or Window 2.

5. From the Input cascading menu (see Figure 2-5), choose the input window, signal format, cable input, and signal standard you want to use:

5.1 Input: Choose which input window to set up (Input 1, or for XVideo700 or multiple cards, Input 2+). XVideo 700 can display two at once. PowerVideo700 and MultiVideo700 can display only one.

Note: If you have multiple vidoe cards in your system, each card has one or two inputs (two for XVideo). For two XVideo cards and one PowerVideo, you will have five inputs called Input 1 through Input 5, in order of ascending slot numbers (Input 1 is the lowest slot).

Note: Single-card users: If you do not know the type of input you want, choose First Available from the Input cascading menu to find the first valid signal.

5.2 Signal format: Choose from Composite or S-VHS formats, to match your video source's signal format. S-VHS is not available for older PowerVideo700 and MultiVideo700's.

5.3 Cable input: Choose an input cable--1 or 2--matching the label on the video input cable. If you select Composite and select cable input 2, then you have specified the video source connected to the cable labeled "Video In Composite 2".

4.4 Signal standard: Choose from NTSC, PAL, or SECAM standards (the signal in the USA is NTSC).



Figure 2-5 The Input cascading menu.

Switching Between Two Video Sources



If you want to switch from displaying one video input to displaying the other, follow steps 2 through 5 above for displaying live video.

Displaying Live Video from Two Sources



With XVideo700 or with multiple video cards in your system, you can display video inputs from two live sources in two windows simultaneously (two sources per VideoTool session). To display live video from two sources:

Note: If you have multiple video cards in your system with a total of more than two inputs, you can open two or three VideoTool sessions at the same time to display one or two inputs each. For the second and third VideoTool session, you must use the Input cascading menu to select and display video from sources that are not already being displayed, or video will freeze.

1. Connect two or more live video sources (on and playing video) to your video input cables.

2. If the video Input 1 window is not currently displaying video, click the Input 1 box in the VideoTool Control window. The video Input 1 window will appear. If needed, use Input Settings to set up the video input window, format, cable, and standard.

3. Click the video Input 2 box in the VideoTool Control window to display video from a second live video input source. The video Input 2 window will appear. If needed, use Input Settings to set up the video input window, format, cable, and standard. Both video Input 1 and Input 2 will display live video sources.



Figure 2-6 Displaying two video sources


Adjusting Video Color



To adjust the color (brightness, contrast, hue, and saturation), use the color slider panels in the Input Settings window:

1. If the Input Settings window is not open, in the VideoTool control window, pull down the Configure menu and select Input Settings. The Input Settings window will appear with the color slider panels.



Figure 2-7 The color slider panels in the Input Settings window.

2. Adjust the hue, saturation, brightness, or contrast of the display video by doing one of the following:

- Drag the box along each slider until you get the desired results in the display video. Color changes immediately.

- Place the cursor in one of the slider boxes and increase or decrease the color by pressing the arrow keys on the keyboard.

Note: Hue is not adjustable under PAL.


Resizing Video



You can resize the video input window in two ways: by just using click and drag (beginner's version) or by using the Input Settings panel to do a customized resizing (advanced version).

Resizing: Beginner's Version



When you have a video display window open, you can click and drag any corner of the video window to resize it. The video will resize to any resolution less than or equal to the video source, unless you are using Zoom_2X (see Enlarging Video with Zoom_2X). For NTSC the full size (maximum) resolution is 640x480 pixels (525 lines). For PAL or SECAM the full size resolution is 768x576 pixels (625 lines). These resolutions are standard, the same resolution you receive on your TV.

When you resize the video window, it will resize according to the settings in the Input Settings control panel. The default settings show the whole video and keep it undistorted with a 4:3 width-to-height aspect ratio.

Resizing: Advanced Version



You can use the Input Settings control panel to resize the window with special controls for cropping the video, squeezing/distorting the video or returning it to normal (4:3 aspect ratio), sizing it to quarter size and returning it to full size.

1. Scaling to Quarter Size

To scale the video input window to one-quarter of normal size, click the Quarter Size button. The window will resize to 320x240 pixels for NTSC, and to 384x288 pixels for PAL or SECAM. If you have the Zoom feature set to 2X (twice normal size), the size of the window is doubled.

2. Restoring to Normal Size

To restore the sized down video display window to its full size, click the Normal Size button. The window will return to full size. For NTSC, full size is 640x480 pixels (525 lines); for PAL or SECAM, full size is 768x576 pixels (625 lines). If you have the Zoom feature set to 2X (twice normal size), the size of the window is doubled.

3. Squeezing

You can squeeze video into a window smaller than Normal Size as undistorted (4:3 aspect ratio) video or as disorted (an aspect ratio) video. 4:3 is the standard width-to-height aspect ratio of NTSC, PAL, and SECAM video.

3.1 Squeezing Undistorted Video (4:3 Aspect Ratio)

To squeeze undistorted video into a smaller window, in the Input Settings window click the Squeeze and 4:3 buttons. Then use your mouse to click on any corner of the video input window and drag it to resize the window.



Figure 2-8 Selecting the Squeeze and 4:3 buttons to resize video.

The video window will resize while maintaining an undistorted aspect ratio.



Figure 2-9 Scaling video display without distortion

3.2 Squeezing Distorted Video (Any Aspect Ratio)

With Squeeze and Any selected, you can distort the video image by compressing it horizontally or vertically.

To squeeze disorted video into a smaller window, in the Input Settings window, select both the Squeeze and Any buttons. Click the cursor on any corner of the video input window and drag it to resize the window.



Figure 2-10 Squeezing video display into a distorted image.

Note: At twice normal size (Zoom_2X), video images can be squeezed to fit custom window sizes with the largest size being 1280x960 for NTSC and 1536x1144 for PAL/SECAM (unless the window manager limits the size to the dimensions of the screen).

4. Cropping

You can use the Crop button to cut the edges off video-in-a-window. To crop video to fit in a video window smaller than Normal Size, click the Crop button, and use your mouse to resize the video window (click and drag a corner of the video window).



Figure 2-11 Cropping a video display


Enlarging Video with Zoom_2X



In VideoTool, you can change the magnification at which you display live video and display still JPEG and JFIF images by using the Zoom command. To change the magnification in VideoTool:

1. In the VideoTool control window, pull down the Configure menu and select Zoom.

2. From the Zoom submenu, choose 1X for normal viewing or 2X to view the live video or JPEG or JFIF image at twice the original size (twice the width and height, four times the area). A bullet appears next to the selected Zoom option.

Figure not available.

Figure 2-12 The Zoom Menu.

Note: If you are using Zoom_2X when you capture a still image, it will not affect the captured image. The image is saved at its original (Zoom_1X) size. If you later want to display that still image at an enlarged size, you can use VideoTool and Zoom_2X.


Capturing a Still Image



With VideoTool, you can capture and save still images from a video input window. Later you can view the saved images in a separate window, or import them to other applications such as ImageMagick (for converting image formats), Adobe Photoshop, and other applications that import still images.

You can save still images in the following file formats:



To convert your images to another format, you can use imaging software such as ImageMagick freeware.

Note: The Parallax JPEG format is not the standard JPEG format. It is a still movie frame (or for a movie, a sequence of frames). This format is recognized by Parallax systems on other platforms, but not by third party applications unless they have built-in support for the Parallax format (see the Software Applications Overview). Use JFIF if you plan to use a compressed image with non-Parallax software.

Note: If you want the ImageMagick freeware, see http://www.wizards.dupont.com/cristy/

Freezing Video Display



The Input Settings/Still button freezes one frame of video in the video display window while the video source continues to play. The Live button restores live video display to the video input window.

Note: When you freeze a video window, the image in the video window is still but the video source does not stop playing. If you wish to pause the video, pause the video source manually.



Figure 2-13 You can use the Still button to freeze a frame of video, and then use the Live button to restore live video display.

Saving a Still Image



To save a still image from the video input window, do the following:

1. Freeze the video display and open the Save window with one of the following three methods:

1.1 Version 9.3 or higher: In the VideoTool main control panel, press the Capture button. Video will freeze and the Save window will appear

--OR--

1.2 Version 9.3 or higher: Place the cursor on top of the live video window you want to freeze and press shift-click with any mouse button. Video will freeze and the Save window will appear.

--OR--

1.3 If the Input Settings window is not open, go to the VideoTool control window, pull down the Configure menu and select Input Settings. In the Input Settings window, click the Still button to freeze the video display.

In the VideoTool control window, pull down the File menu and choose Save. The Save window will appear.



Figure 2-14 The Save window.

2. Select an Image Format

Note: JFIF is the default format. To display a JFIF using ImageMagick "display", the image width and height must be divisible by 16. In Parallax version 9.3 and higher, VideoTool will automatically reduce the JFIF image size if needed so the width and height are divisible by 16.

Note: If you do not have hardware compression (XVideo700 without compression or MultiVideo700) you must choose an uncompressed format (24-bit Sun Raster or TIFF).

3. Highlight the directory and filename in the Save window or type a new file name in the Selection box.

4. Click the OK button when you are ready to save the image.

Note: Version 9.3 or higher: You can set up a delay between the time you freeze the video source and when you capture the still image. In the VideoTool control panel, pull down the Options menu and select Capture Preferences. A window with a slider panel to adjust delay will appear.


Displaying a Still Image



If you have a video card with compression (XVideo700 with compression or PowerVideo700) you can display a saved JFIF or Parallax JPEG image in VideoTool. To display a saved still image, do the following:

1. Choose Open from the File menu on the VideoTool control window.



Figure 2-15 To view a still image, choose Open from the File menu.

2. Highlight the directory and file name in the Open window or type the file name in the Selection box.

3. Click the OK button when you are ready to view the image.

Note: VideoTool displays only JFIF and Parallax JPEG format still images. VideoTool will not display 24-bit TIFF or 24-bit Sun Raster format images. If you wish to view these images, you can use imageing software such as ImageMagick. If you want the ImageMagick freeware, see http://www.wizards.dupont.com/cristy/ The "display" program is distributed with the Parallax release.

Note: Viewing a JPEG image captured with Version 9.1 (or Solaris 2.4) or earlier Parallax releases: If you want to view a still JPEG or JFIF image that was captured with Parallax software version 9.1 or earlier (or Sun/Solaris 2.4 or earlier), you should use fixMovieQ so you can view it at optimal quality. Without fixMovieQ (which corrects compression Q factor), the images will display but will look wrong: high contrast, edges too sharp, color too pronounced. For information on how to use fixMovieQ, see Appendix C.


Sending Video Out to Videotape



With XVideo700, you can send video out from the workstation screen to a VCR or laserdisc recorder for recording or to a video projector or large TV monitor to display for a large audience.

For video overlay cards such as XVideo700, the only kind of image that will show up on video output is video and images that are on the video overlay card, such as:



If you select a window to send as output to a video device, you need to select a window showing video or images on the video overlay card. Otherwise, the external video device will display/record nothing (a black area). The window frame will not show up in the output.

If you select a region to send as output to a video device, the region should include at least part of a window showing video and/or images on the video overlay card. Otherwise, the device will display/ record a black area. If just part of the selected output region is on video overlay, the rest of the region will be displayed/recorded as black.

If you select a small window or a small part of a window showing video or images on the video overlay card, and send the region out to an external video device, the selected region will be enlarged to fill the image area for the video output device.

Note: If you have a still image that is not in 24-bit JFIF or Parallax JPEG format that you want to send as output, you can use imaging software such as ImageMagick to convert the image to 24-bit JFIF format, then use VideoTool to display it.

To send output to an external video device (for this example, a VCR):

1. Connect the appropriate video output cable ("Composite" or S-VHS "Y/C") to the VCR's video input connector. You Hardware Installation Guide has cable diagrams.

2. Turn on the VCR and insert a videotape.

3. In the VideoTool control window, turn the Output 1 button On.

4. In the VideoTool control window, pull down the Configure menu and select Output Settings. The Output Settings window will appear. See Figure 2-16.

Note: You cannot use Output 1 and Input 2 at the same time. If you select one of these options, the other is unavailable.



Figure 2-16 The Output Settings window.

5. Select the Aspect Ratio:

- Click the 4:3 button to constrain the video output to a 4:3 image aspect ratio (width-to-height) at all times. The 4:3 aspect ratio is standard for NTSC and PAL signals.

- Click the Any button to allow video to be scaled at any width-to-height aspect ratio.

6. Select the output window or region:

- Click the Select Window button to choose an active window to send out to the VCR. Then click on the window.

- Click the Select Region button to choose a region of your monitor to send out to the VCR. To choose the region (up to 640x480 pixels in size for NTSC, 768x576 for PAL), use your mouse as follows:

Use the left mouse button to reposition the white bounding box on the screen and use the middle mouse button to drag a corner and resize the region for output.

Note: If you are sending output of video or images on the video overlay card, don't worry if the images are obscured on your monitor by other (non-overlay) windows. The external video device will receive unobscured images.

No figure is available. Left Button - Select - Move selected window or region. Middle Button - Adjust - Resize selected region.

Figure 2-17 Output Mouse Controls.

7. Press Record on the VCR.

8. When you are finished recording, press Stop on the VCR.


Closing a VideoTool Window



There are two ways you can close a VideoTool video window. To close a video window:




Quitting VideoTool



To quit VideoTool, in the VideoTool control window, pull down the File menu and select Quit.



Figure 2-18 Choose Quit from the File menu to end a VideoTool session..

The VideoTool session will end.


Using MovieTool 3






If you have hardware compression (XVideo700 with compression or PowerVideo700), you can use MovieTool to display live video, capture and play back digital video movies in real-time, and capture still images. MovieTool includes simple editing tools and the ability to send video out to record on VCR or display with a video projector.

This chapter is set up so you can work through it as a tutorial or jump to a section when you need information. This chapter includes:

Starting MovieTool

The MovieTool Control Window

Displaying Live Video

Capturing a Movie

Recording a Movie: Beginner's Version

Recording a Movie: Advanced Version

Playing Back a Movie

Playing Back a Movie Repeatedly

Enlarging Video with Zoom_2X

Capturing a Still Image

Editing a Movie

Showing Movies on the Output Channel

Closing a MovieTool Window

Quitting MovieTool




Starting MovieTool



You can start MovieTool from a UNIX command line, or from the HP VUE/HP MPower graphical interface.

From the UNIX Command Line



To start MovieTool, type MovieTool at the shell prompt and press return:

% MovieTool

The MovieTool control window will appear.





Figure 3-1 The MovieTool control window.

Note: When starting MovieTool from a UNIX command line, you can use various command line options to customize your MovieTool session. Refer to Appendix B for more information.

From HP VUE/HP MPower



HP-UX 9.x users: If you are using HP MPower as part of the HP VUE user environment, you can start MovieTool from the Media icon in the HP VUE (HP MPower) Front Panel. To start MovieTool from the HP VUE Front Panel, do the following:

Note: HP MPower and this start-up procedure are not available in HP_UX 10.x

  1. Log in to the system

  2. Click the arrow above the Media icon in the HP VUE Front Panel

    No figure available.

    Figure 3-2HP VUE Front Panel and Media pop-up menu.

  3. Click the Video icon in the Media pop-up menu. The Video window appears.

  4. Click the MovieTool icon in the Video window.

  5. The MovieTool control window will appear.



    Figure 3-3 The MovieTool control window.

The MovieTool Control Window



The MovieTool control window has 10 buttons for recording and playing back MovieTool movies (see Figure 3-2). Each button and its definition is listed on the following page.



Figure 3-4 The MovieTool control window buttons.

MovieTool Buttons and Definitions



Time Code Display Tells you where you are within a movie file in increments of hours, minutes, seconds, and frames. 00:00:00:00 is the beginning of a movie
Search Slider Steps through a recorded movie file, frame by frame. You can shuttle forward and backward in the movie by moving the slider.
Speed Slider Controls playback speed in frames/second (fps). The default speed is the speed at which the movie was recorded. You can increase or decrease the speed by moving the slider.
Record Starts recording a MovieTool movie file
Pause Pauses playback of a recorded movie file. The window displays the current frame of the movie file.
Play Plays back a recorded movie file at the frames-per-second-speed defined in the header of the movie file.
Stop Stops recording a MovieTool movie file.
First Frame Takes you to the first frame in a recorded movie file
Step Back a Frame Displays a recorded movie file one frame at a time in "step-back" sequence.
Step Forward a Frame Displays a recorded movie file one frame at a time in "step-through" sequence.
Last Frame Takes you to the last frame in a recorded movie file.



Displaying Live Video



To display video from a live video source:

1. Connect a video source to your video card. Turn the video source on and have it playing video. For information about setting up cable connections, see your Hardware Installation Guide.

2. In the MovieTool control window, pull down the Inputs cascading menu and choose the video input window (Input 1, or for XVideo700 or multiple cards, Input 2+), signal format (composite or S-VHS), cable input, and signal standard (NTSC, PAL, or SECAM).

Note: If you have multiple vidoe cards in your system, each card has one or two inputs (two for XVideo). For two XVideo cards and one PowerVideo, you will have five inputs called Input 1 through Input 5, in order of ascending slot numbers (Input 1 is the lowest slot).

Note: Single-card users: If you do not know the type of input you want, choose First Available from the Input cascading menu to find the first valid signal.

Note: For more details on the Inputs cascading menu, see VideoTool: Displaying Live Video



Figure 3-3 The Inputs cascading menu.

Switching Between Two Video Sources



If you want to switch from displaying one video input to displaying the other, follow step 2 above using the same input (Input 1 or Input 2).


Capturing a Movie



To make a successful MovieTool movie recording, you should consider these factors:



There are two sets of instructions below for capturing a MovieTool movie: Recording a Movie: Beginner's Version and Recording a Movie: Advanced Version. The beginner's version uses default settings and is best used only for tutorial purposes. The advanced version includes instructions for adjusting color, setting up audio, setting up JPEG Compression Preferences, and naming a movie to customize the recorded movie.

Recording a Movie: Beginner's Version



To record a MovieTool movie in real-time from a live source:

1. Video Source Connected/On. Make sure you have a live video source connected, turned on, and playing video.

2. Storage Space. Make sure you have sufficient storage space available for your digital movie and limit the recording session to avoid exceeding the amount of disk storage available. At default record settings (Quarter Size, audio On, Q factor 50, Record Speed at 30 or 25 frames/second), you will need approximately 20-40 Megabytes/minute.

Note: If you exceed the capacity of your disk, the recording session will be discontinued, and you'll need to start again. See the recommended settings in Table 3-1.

3. Recording a Movie.

3.1 Open the MovieTool control window. Pull down the Inputs menu and select First Available to find the first valid video input signal.

3.2 Click on the Record button to begin recording.

Note: For best results, avoid making adjustments to the video window while recording.

3.3 Click on the Stop button to stop recording. MovieTool will automatically save the movie to the default name
jpegMovie
in your home directory.

Recording a Movie: Advanced Version



To record a MovieTool movie in real-time with full control:

1. Video Source Connected/On. Make sure you have a live video source connected, turned on, and playing video.

2. MovieTool Displaying Live Video. Make sure MovieTool is displaying live video. If needed, pull down the MovieTool Inputs menu and select the video source. If you don't know the type of input you want, choose First Available to find the first valid video signal. If you wish to specify a source, choose Input 1 or Input 2 and signal format, cable input, and signal standard.

3. Adjusting Video Color. MovieTool allows you to adjust the hue, saturation, brightness, and contrast of the live video, which will be recorded in your movie. You must adjust color before you record. To change the color settings:

3.1 In the MovieTool control window, pull down the Options menu and select Color Settings. The Color Settings window will appear.



Figure 3-4 The Color Settings menu.

3.2 Click and drag the slider bars to adjust brightness, contrast, hue, and saturation until the live video looks the way you want. Changes take effect immediately.

You can also place the cursor in one of the slider boxes and increase or decrease the color settings by pressing the arrow keys on the keyboard.

Note: If you want to return the color settings to their default values, click the Defaults button.

4. Setting Up Audio. MovieTool allows you to adjust audio volume for recording and playback of movies. You can also monitor audio while recording. Audio automatically starts when you begin a MovieTool session. To change the audio controls:

4.1 Check that an audio device is connected, turned on, and playing audio.

4.2 From the MovieTool control window, pull down the Options menu and choose Audio. The audio Volume window wil appear.



Figure 3-5 The audio Volume window.

4.3 Select you audio input source (Record: Line In, Microphone) and output device (Playback: Speaker, Headphones, Line_Out).

4.4 Turn audio monitoring On if you want to hear audio during recording, or Off if you don't (Monitor: On, Off).

Note: The Off button (next to the Monitor slider) mutes the sound but does not stop recording audio. To hear the audio, click the On button.

Note: If you hear feedback during recording, turn down the audio Monitor volume.

4.5 Use the slider bars to increase or decrease Playback, Record, and Monitor volumes.

5. Storage Space: Setting up JPEG Compression Preferences. Before you record, you must have sufficient storage space available on a local hard disk for your digital movie. At default settings, you will need approximately 30-85 Megabytes/minute for video and audio (for NTSC, 30-70 MB/min., for PAL or SECAM, 45-85 MB/min.).

The default settings for MovieTool movies are:

- Video image at Quarter Size.
- Record Speed at full motion. 30 frames/second for NTSC. 25 frames/second for PAL or SECAM.
- Q Factor 50 (range 25-1000).
- Audio On.

Note The Q factor for movies captured with Version 9.1 (or Solaris 2.4) and earlier Parallax releases was incorrect. A utility called fixMovieQ converts old Q factor movies to the new Q factor so that they look right. For information on how to use fixMovieQ, see Appendix C.

You should consider adjusting the default settings for several reasons:

- To optimize MovieTool performance on your workstation (See Table 3-1).
- To decrease movie file size.
- To trade off movie quality versus file size (image size vs. Record Speed vs. Q factor vs. file size) to meet your specific needs.

We recommend the following settings for Record Speed and Image Quality (Q factor) to optimize use of MovieTool on your workstation, and capture the highest quality MovieTool movies possible:

Table 3-1 MovieTool recommended settings (approximate). Depending on your workstation's throughput, you may be able to capture more frames/second, or fewer.

Type Full Size Quarter Size Small Size
NTSC audio/video 30-70 Megabytes/minute 20-35 MB/min. 13-18 MB/min.
NTSC video 20-60 MB/min. 10-25 MB/min. 3-8 MB/min.
PAL/SECAM audio/video 40-85 MB/min. 25-40 MB/min. 15-20 MB/min.
PAL/SECAM video 30-75 MB/min. 15-30 MB/min. 5-10 MB/min.


Note: At the most demanding settings (Full Size, full motion, and high Image Quality), the size of a 1-minute movie file will vary depending on the throughput of your system. A faster system than a 745/100 may capture nearly every frame, while a slower system may capture just half of the frames.

Note: With any given settings for image size, Image Quality, and Record Speed, the size of a 1-minute movie file will vary from movie to movie, depending on the image complexity and motion.

Note: You can vary the file size even more by changing the Record Speed and Image Quality settings.

Because you may want to limit file size to fit into your hard drive, you may need to reduce the Megabytes/minute for your movies.

To reduce the storage space (MB/minute) you need for your movie, you can use the JPEG Compression Preferences control panel to reduce image size to Quarter Size or Small Size, decrease Record Speed, and decrease Image Quality (increase compression Q factor). You may also turn audio Off (see step 4).

To change your JPEG Compression Preferences:

5.1 From the MovieTool control window, pull down the Options menu and choose JPEG Compression Preferences. The JPEG Compression Preferences window will appear.



Figure 3-8 The JPEG Compression Preferences window.

5.2 Adjusting Recording Speed. You can adjust the recording speed from 1-30 frames/second (fps) NTSC or 1-25 fps PAL or SECAM by movie the Record Speed slider. The default recording speed is 30 fps for NTSC, 25 for PAL or SECAM. The higher the number of frames recorded per second the more disk space is used.

Note: With MovieTool, if you choose a large image size and high image quality, you can set your Record Speed to 30 or 25 frames/second (fps), but you will probably not be able to capture 30 or 25 fps video.

Note: Certain frame rates are not allowed for audio synchronization reasons. These rates do not appear when you slide the Record Speed bar.

5.3 Adjusting Image Size. You can view and record video in Full Size (same resolution as your TV), Quarter Size, or Small Size. For NTSC the sizes are 640x480 pixels, 320x240, and 160x120. For PAL and SECAM, the sizes are 768x576, 384x288, and 192x144.

5.4 Adjusting Compression Rate. You can adjust the compression rate by moving the Image Quality slider between the High and Low settings. The High setting is for high image quality and the Low setting is for lower image quality. The higher the image quality, the more disk space is required. The number displayed along the slider is the Q factor which is an indication of the compression rate.

Note: You must select the preferences before you record.

6. Choosing a File Name and Location You should select a file name and a location to store the movie before you record. If you wish to save a series of movies you should select a new file name and location before each recording. If you don't select a new file name before each recording, each time you record, your old movie file will be overwritten by the new movie file.

Note: For better performance, save movie files to a local disk. If you do not know which disks are mounted locally, ask your system administrator.

To name a movie:

6.1 From the MovieTool control window, pull down the Movie menu and choose Record To File. The Save window will appear.



Figure 3-9 Pull down the Movie menu and choose Record to File.

6.2 Place the cursor in the Selection box, and type a location and new file name for your movie.

Note: When typing in the Filter box and Selection box, use the <Backspace> key for deleting text and use the arrow keys to move the cursor.

Note: For best results, put the movie in a local directory.

Note: Click the Filter button to update the list of files.





Figure 3-10 The Save window.

6.3 Click the OK button. The MovieTool control window title bar will update to the name you choose.

Note: If you do not select a movie name, the default name
jpegMovie
is automatically selected and saved in your home directory.

7. Recording a Movie.

7.1 Click on the Record button to begin recording.

Note: For best results, avoid making adjustments to the video window while recording.

7.2 Click on the Stop button to stop recording. MovieTool will automatically save the movie to the file name and location you specified in Step 6 (or if you did not specify a file name, to the default name
jpegMovie
in your home directory).

Playing Back a Movie



You can play back a pre-recorded MovieTool movie with JPEG decompression. To playback a MovieTool movie file in real-time:

1. If the MovieTool file you want to play back is not already open in a MovieTool window, you need to open it.

1.1 Open the MovieTool control window, pull down the Movie menu and choose Open.



Figure 3-11 Pulling down the Movie menu and selecting Open.

1.2 Type the name of the MovieTool movie file that you wish to play in the Selection box or double-click the name in the Files scroll window.

Note: Playing back a movie captured with Version 9.1 (or Solaris 2.4) or earlier Parallax releases: If you want to view a MovieTool movie that was captured with Parallax software version 9.1 or earlier (or Parallax on Sun/Solaris 2.4 or earlier), you should use fixMovieQ so you can view it at optimal quality. Without fixMovieQ (which corrects compresison Q factor), the video will display but will look wrong: high contrast, edges too sharp, color too pronounced. For information on how to use fixMovieQ, see Appendix C

1.3 Click the OK button to open the selected movie.

1.4 Click the Play button to play the selected movie.

Note: If you would like to pause playback, click the Pause button. To resume playback, click Pause again.

Note: If the movie looks odd while playing back, check to see if you need to use fixMovieQ. See Appendix C.

Note: MovieTool movies can only be played back at the same size they were originally recorded in. For example, if the MovieTool movie was recorded at Quarter Size, the MovieTool window plays back the movie in Quarter Size. If you want to enlarge the movie for playback, use the Zoom_2X feature to play it back at two times the width/height (four times the area).

2. Click the Stop button to stop playback.

Note: If you have a pre-recorded MovieTool movie open but not playing, you can use the Search slider bar, Current Time, and other controls on the MovieTool control panel to move around within the movie.

Setting up Audio for Playback



MovieTool allows you to adjust volume for playback of movies. To change the audio volume for MovieTool playback:

1. Check that an audio playback device (speakers, headphones, or line out) is connected and turned on.

2. From the MovieTool control window, pull down the Options menu and choose Audio. The audio Volume window will appear.



Figure 3-12 The audio Volume window.

2.1 Select your audio output device (Playback: Speaker, Headphones, Line_Out).

2.2 Use the slider bar to increase or decrease Playback volume.

Note: More than one MovieTool movie can be playing back at the same time. However, the audio can only connect with one audio client. Therefore, audio playback is connected for only the first MovieTool movie started.

Adjusting Audio Synchronization



During playback, sometimes audio and video get a little out of synchronization in high quality (high bandwidth) MovieTool movie files.

Version 9.3 or higher: If you have this problem and are using Parallax software version 9.3 or higher, you can use the new Sync Slack feature to adjust the audio delay.

Sync Slack adjusts the audio speed to get better synchronization with video. There is a trade-off in that adjusting audio speed with Sync Slack may cause small gaps in audio that you will hear as clicks.

To adjust Sync_Slack:

2.1 From the MovieTool control window, pull down the Options menu and choose JPEG Compression Preferences. The JPEG Compression Preferences window will appear. In the middle of this window is the Sync Slack slider.



Figure 3-13 Sync Slack is located in the middle of the JPEG Compression Preferences window.

2.2 Move the Sync Slack slider to adjust the audio speed in milliseconds (the number shown on top of the slider bar) until your MovieTool movies play back with audio and video synchronized.

Moving Around within a Movie


To move back and forth within a movie, use the MovieTool control panel buttons. For complete descriptions of the button functions, see MovieTool Control Buttons.

Playing Back a Movie Repeatedly



Version 9.3 or higher:If you are playing back a MovieTool movie and you want to play it back repeatedly as a continuous loop, you can use the new Auto Repeat feature. To use Auto Repeat:

1. In the MovieTool control window, pull down the Options menu and select Auto Repeat. The Auto Repeat feature will toggle from Off (default) to On.

2. Play back a MovieTool movie. The movie will play from start to finish, then immediately go back to the start and play again from start to finish, repeating this process until you turn Auto Repeat off.

3. When you want to stop playing back the movie:

3.1 In the MovieTool control window select either Stop or Pause button to halt movie playback.

3.2 Pull down the Options menu and select Auto Repeat, which will toggle from On to Off.

Note: If you would like diagnostics on the number of times you have played back a MovieTool movie with Auto Repeat, and how long it took each time, see the -loopDiagnostics command line option in Appendix B


Enlarging Video with Zoom_2X



In MovieTool, you can change the magnification at which you display live video and play back MovieTool movies with the Zoom command, which can display video at normal size (Zoom_1X) or twice the width and height, four times the area (Zoom_2X). To change the magnification in MovieTool:

1. In the MovieTool control window, pull down the Options menu and select Zoom.

2. From the Zoom submenu, choose 1X for normal viewing or 2X to view the live video or MovieTool file at twice the original size (twice the width and height, four times the area). A bullet appears next to the selected Zoom option.

Figure not available.

Figure 3-14 The Zoom Menu.

Note: If you capture a movie while using Zoom_2X, the movie file will still be captured at normal size (Zoom_1X). If you want to display the movie at an enlarged size, use Zoom_2X while playing it back.


Capturing a Still Image



Version 9.3 or higher:You can use MovieTool to capture a still image in JFIF format (JPEG File Interchange Format) from a MovieTool movie file. To capture a still:

1. Open a MovieTool movie and pause it at the frame you want to capture.

2. In the MovieTool control window, pull down the Movie menu and select Save Still Image. The Save Still Image window will appear.



Figure 3-15 The MovieTool Save Still Image window.

3. Select the location and file name you want to save the still image to, and click OK. The still image is saved as a JFIF file, which can be opened by VideoTool, by imaging software such as ImageMagick (for converting to another format if needed), and by other programs which import JFIF format images.

Note: Click the Filter button to update the list of files.


Editing a Movie



With MovieTool you can do some simple editing by cutting frames from the beginning and/or ending of a movie file.

Note: Version 9.3 or higher:With a program called MovieCat, you can also join two or more movie clips together to make a new, longer movie (see Chapter 4).

Cutting Frames from the Beginning or Ending



To cut frames from the beginning and/or ending of a movie file:

1. Open the MovieTool control window and display a saved movie by following the steps in Playing Back a Movie.

2. To select the starting point for the edited movie, use the Search slider bar or the Current Time numbers to step through the saved movie file frame by frame. Stop at the frame where you want to begin the movie.

3. From the Edit menu, choose Start Movie Here to mark the start of the edited movie.



Figure 3-16 Pull down the Edit menu to edit a movie.

4. To select the ending point for the edited movie, use the Search slider bar or the Current Time numbers to step through the saved movie file frame by frame. Stop at the frame where you want to end the movie.

5. From the Edit menu, choose End Movie Here to mark the end of the edited movie.

Note: If you want to undo the start and end settings, choose Use Original Start & End Frames from the Edit menu.

6. To preview the edited movie before saving it, click the Play button.

7. To delete the unused frames from the beginning and/or ending of the edited movie and save it as a new file:

7.1 From the MovieTool control window, pull down the Movie menu and choose Compact and Save As.



Figure 3-17 Selecting Compact and Save As form the Movie menu.

7.2 In the Selection box, type a new name for the compacted movie.

7.3 Click the OK button. MovieTool will save the new, shorter movie under the file name you selected.


Showing Movies on the Output Channel



With XVideo700, you can send a MovieTool movie out to an external video device. For example, you can choose to connect output to a video projector or large screen TV for showing movies to a large group, or to a VCR for creating a videotape.

You can display a movie and send output to an external video device from within MovieTool. When you use this output feature, movies play back on both your workstation screen and on the output channel. To show movies on output:

1. Choose Show Movies On Output from the Options menu.

No figure is available.

Figure 3-18 The Show Movies On Output cascading menu.

2. Choose either Composite or S-VHS as the signal format, and choose either NTSC or PAL as the signal standard.

Note: When using the video output feature, the live video input window is disabled and turns black. To restore the live video, choose First Available (or specify the input source) from the Inputs menu.


Closing a MovieTool Window



To close a video window, use your windowing system's standard method for closing a window. For example, if you are using OpenWindows, click the upper right corner of the video window, select Dismiss from the pop-up menu, and click the OFF box.


Quitting MovieTool



To quit MovieTool, in the MovieTool control window, pull down the File menu and select Quit.



Figure 3-19 Choose Quit from the File menu to end a MovieTool session.

The MovieTool session will end.

Using MovieCat 4



Version 9.3 or higher: You can use MovieCat to create a MovieTool movie by splicing together existing MovieTool movie clips. MovieCat does not record movies, it simply copies pieces of existing movies into a new movie. This chapter includes:

Starting MovieCat

Joining Movie Clips Together

Quitting MovieCat




Starting MovieCat



You can start MovieCat from a UNIX command line. To start MovieCat, type MovieCat at the shell prompt and press return:
% MovieCat


The MovieCat window will appear.



Figure 4-1 The MovieCat interface.


Joining Movie Clips Together



To copy and join (concatenate) two or more MovieTool movie clips into a new longer MovieTool movie file with the MovieCat program:

1. From the MovieCat window, add (or insert) MovieTool movie clips to the Movie clips list:



Figure 4-2 The MovieCat Movie clips list.

1.1 Click Add Clip to add a movie clip to the end of the list (or Insert Clip to insert a movie clip before the highlighted clip in the Movie clips list). The MovieCat: Add (or MovieCat: Insert) window will appear.



Figure 4-3 The MovieCat:Add and List Files windows.

1.2 Specify the movie file you want to add (or insert) a movie clip from. You can either type a location and file name in the Movie File box, or click List Files to pull up a directory dialog box, search for the file you want, and click on it.

Note: The movie files you select must have been recorded with the same Record Speed (frames/second), image size (such as Full Size), Image Quality (Q factor), and if you wish to include audio, audio settings.

1.3 Choose the part of the selected movie file you want to add (or insert) by clicking Entire Movie or Selected Frames Only. If you choose selected frames, you must indicate the start frame (From:) and end frame (To:) of your movie clip.

1.4 Choose whether to include audio form this movie clip in the new movie file (Audio/Copy) or not (Audio/Omit).

Note: If the audio of the current clip is not comparable with movie clips already in the Movie clips list, MovieCat will automatically select Audio/Omit.

1.5 When you have the settings as you want them, click Done. You will see your new clip int the Movie clips list.

2. To modify the settings (start and end frames, audio) of a movie clip, select the clip and click Modify Clip to change the settings.

3. To delete a movie clip form the Movie clips list, select the clip and click Delete Clip.

4. In the MovieCat window, type the location and file name of the new movie file you are creating in the Destination File text box.

5. Click the Create Movie button. MovieCat will save teh new MovieTool movie to the file name specified in step 4.


Quitting MovieCat



To quit MovieCat, in the MovieCat control window, pull down the File menu and select Quit.

The MovieCat session will end.







Appendix A: Troubleshooting Guidelines A





This appendix gives a few tips in case you are having a problem with VideoTool, MovieTool, or MovieCat. This appendix includes descriptions of the following problems and their solutions.

Can't Locate VideoTool, MovieTool, or MovieCat

Monitor Blacks Out

No Video in a Video Input Window

MovieTool Won't Start

VideoTool: JPEG Stills Look Bad

MovieTool: Movies Look Bad



If your problem persists and you need technical support, please contact Parallax Graphics Technical support (see Preface).

Solutions to Common Problems



Can't Locate VideoTool, MovieTool, or MovieCat



Problem: You try to start VideoTool, MovieTool, or MovieCat, but get an error message like: "MovieTool: command not found".

Solution: Make sure that $PARALLAX_HOME/bin is in your path. Follow the instructions in the Software Installation Guide--Setting User Environment, to set the path. If the path is not set correctly, you will need to cd into that directory to run VideoTool, MovieTool, or MovieCat.

Monitor Blacks Out



Problem: The monitor blacks out while the Parallax Graphics video software is running.

Solution 1: Check that your Parallax Graphics video cables and your monitor cables are all correctly and securely connected.

Solution 2: Check that your Parallax Graphics video card is securely seated in the EISA slots.

Solution 3: Check that your monitor is on.

No Video in a Video Input Window



Problem: Video does not display in an open video input window.

Solution 1: Check that your cables are correctly and securely connected.

Solution 2: Check that your connected video source (camera, VCR or other) is on and playing video.

Solution 3: If you have connected a S-VHS video source, check your input settings to make sure that you have selected the correct video format (in VideoTool look under Configure/Input Settings/Input, in MovieTool look under Inputs, and select S-VHS).

MovieTool Won't Start



Problem: MovieTool won't start (the contorl panel may try to open for about 15 seconds, then fail). This happens if you launch MovieTool with command line options to specify the audio device ("MovieTool -audioDevice HPAudioServer") but the audio server is not installed or is not executing.

Solution: You need to have the HP audio server software ("Aserver") installed and running. From a command line, type "ps -ae | grep Aserver" to see if the audio server is running. If the Aserver software is not found, you will need to install it and turn it on.

VideoTool: JPEG Stills Look Bad



Problem: You open a Parallax JPEG format still image that was captured under a different operating system (Solaris 2.4 or earlier, HP-UX 9.1 or earlier, or IBM-AIX) and it looks bad: blocky, washed out, and/or high contrast.

Solution: Parallax version 9.1 for HP and Solaris 2.4 and earlier releases of our Sun software used an incorrect JPEG compression Q table, which is fixed in Solaris 2.5 and HP-UX (s/w version 9.2 or later). To solve the problem, you need to convert old-Q-table-images into new-Q-table-images. At the shell prompt use the command
fixMovieQ OldImageFile
You can also convert new-Q-table-images to old-Q-table-images. For more information, see Appendix C.

MovieTool: Movies Look Bad



Problem: You open a MovieTool movie that was captured under a different operating system (Solaris 2.4 or earlier, HP release 9.1 or earlier, or IBM-AIX) and it looks bad: contrast too high (edges too sharp, color too pronounced) or too low (color looks dim).

Solution: Parallax version 9.1 for HP and Solaris 2.4 and earlier releases of our Sun software used an incorrect JPEG compression Q table, which is fixed in Solaris 2.5 and HP-UX (s/w version 9.3 or later). To solve the problem, you need to convert old-Q-table-movies into new-Q-table-movies. At the shell prompt use the command
fixMovieQ OldImageMovie
YOu can also convert new-Q-table-movies to old-Q-table-movies. For more information, see Appendix C.

MovieTool Can't Open Audio Device



Problem: If you start up MovieTool and it displays the message, "Could not open the audio device. No audio will be available", audio will not work in this session of MovieTool.

Solution: You need to have read/write permissions to the HP Audio Device. Log in as root and type:
chmod 666 /dev/audio
Now restart MovieTool and audio should work.

Other Problems



Problem: Something else! (Check Release Notes, too).

Solution: Contact Parallax Graphics technical support for help. There are a few things you can do to speed up the help process: make notes of the Parallax software version you are using, the serial number of your video card, and the workstation model and operating system version you are using.

Version 9.3 or higher: To find out which Parallax software version you are using, from the VideoTool or MovieTool main panel, pull down the Help menu and choose "About...". A panel with the software version number will appear. (Version 9.2 or earlier does not have this feature).

To find out your video card serial number (a five-digit number0, you can look at the card for the number stamped in white, or look at the "What's in Your Package" sheet that came with your video card.

Appendix B: UNIX Command Line Options




This appendix decribes how to use the Parallax command line options to customize your MovieTool and VideoTool session. This appendix includes:

Using Command Line Options

Command Line Options

-audioDelay

-audioDevice

-autoPlay, -autoQuit, and -autoRepeat

-channels

-diagnostics

filename

-help

-loopDiagnostics

-sampleRate

-silent



Note: Version 9.3 or higher: We have added one new UNIX command line option, called -loopDiagnostics, to go with the new MovieTool feature called Auto Repeat.


Using Command Line Options



You can use command line option(s) to customize your VideoTool or MovieTool session by typing additional options when you start VideoTool or MovieTool from a UNIX command line.

VideoTool supports two command line options:
% VideoTool <filename> -help


MovieTool supports several command line options, including commands for including MovieTool in other applications:
% MovieTool <filename> -help -diagnostics \ 
-channels -sampleRate -audioDevice \
-audioDelay -silent -autoPlay -autoQuit \
-autoRepeat -loopDiagnostics



Command Line Options



You can use the command line options when you start VideoTool or MovieTool from a UNIX command line. The options are defined as:

-audioDelay



The -audioDelay option is designed to adjust synchronization between audio and video in movies. It specifies the number of frames that audio should lag behind video when MovieTool is recording a movie. By using this option, MovieTool can be made to wait a few frames before starting to record a movie in order to give the audio device time to respond.

You can use any number with the -audioDelay option, however, you should be aware of the following:



Note: By default, the audioDelay value is 4. Although this setting gives MovieTool good overall recording performance, a slight synchronization error occurs (the video will lag by slightly over a tenth of a second at 30 frames per second).

-audioDevice



The -audioDevice option lets you select the method for playing and recording audio. For example, some workstations provide both direct access to the audio hardware and audio server software which allows several applications to use the workstation's audio at the same time.

Note: This option is platform-dependent. To view the audio device options available, type "MovieTool -help".

-autoPlay, -autoQuit, and -autoRepeat



The -autoPlay, -autoQuit, and -autoRepeat options are useful for launching MovieTool as part of a shell script or automated playback environment.

When using these options, you should specify the name of the movie file you want to use. For example:
MovieTool -autoPlay -autoQuit /home/test/MyMovie


-autoPlay

The -autoPlay option tells MovieTool to begin playback of the specified movie immediately upon launch. Without this option, only the first frame of the movie would be opened and MovieTool will wait for you to press the Play button to begin playback of the movie.

-autoQuit

The -autoQuit option tells MovieTool to quit immediately after playing the specified movie once. It is meant to be used in conjunction with the -autoPlay option; for example, from a shell script that would launch MovieTool, play a movie, then exit.

-autoRepeat

The -autoRepeat option is meant to be used in conjunction with the -autoPlay option. The -autoRepeat option tells Movietool to play the same movie over and over until the Stop button is selected.

Note: You cannot use both the -autoQuit and -autoRepeat options together.

-channels



The -channels option lets you set the number of audio channels used for recording movies (1=mono, 2=stereo).

Note: By default, MovieTool will try to find audio hardware that can accomodate 2-channel (stereo) audio.

-diagnostics



The -diagnostics option prints diagnostic messages after each record and play operation; for example, if you wish to see how your system is performing during the recording of a movie or playback of a movie.

Diagnostic information gathered during recording and playback can include:



Diagnostic information is not printed until the Stop button is pressed or until the whole movie has completed playback.

Note: Be prepared to see hundreds of lines of diagnostic messages.

filename



When staring MovieTool or VideoTool, you can specify which file the application should use:



-help



VideoTool and MovieTool: The -help option provides a listing of all available options and a brief description of each.

-loopDiagnostics



MovieTool(version 9.3 or higher): While MovieTool Auto Repeat is turned on, the -loopDiagnostics option prints diagnostic information about the movie loop playback:


-loopDiagnostics prints the messages in an X window in real time. Messages will look similar to the following:
% MovieTool  -loopDiagnostics
 1 01:10
 2 01:10
 3 01:12
 4 01:11


Be prepared to see hundreds of lines of loop diagnostics if you play back the movie loop hundreds of times.

-sampleRate



The -sampleRate option lets you choose the sample rate used when recording movies. The possible sample rates are determined by the audio hardware on the workstation. For more information, read the on-line help for the audio device (usually, type "man audio" to view this help).

Note: By default, MovieTool will try to find audio hardware that can support 16-bit (48KHz) DAT quality audio.

-silent



The -silent option tells MovieTool not to use audio while recording or during playback; for example, if you want to record a movie with video only. A useful side-effect of this option is that it saves disk space; the highest quality audio uses 192 Kilobytes per second.

Note: This option can be overridden while the application is running by choosing a different audio device from the Audio options panel.

Appendix C: X-Client UNIX Utility and Demo Programs




This appendix describes how to use some of our special demo and utility programs, which show specific Parallax video capabilities, and perform useful tasks. These programs are launched from a UNIX command line by typing the program name from the shell prompt. All the programs require a Parallax video card (except fixMovieQ), software, and hardware compression if noted. (fcomp, fixMovieQ, scomp, and videoIcon are not availabel in version 9.2). The programs include:

convert

display

fcomp

fixMovieQ

jpegContinuousTest

jpegFileTest

jpegPlaybackTest

jpegTest

jpegTimingTest

scomp

tcomp

xlib_test

xvInTest

xvshow

videoIcon



Note: If you have purchased the Video Development Environment, all the source code for these demo/utility programs is included with your software to help you develop software.

convert



This utility program converts still images to a variety of standard image formats (including EPS, GIF, JPEG, PICT, Postscript, Sun Raster, TIFF). For detailed information on convert, type "convert -help".

Usage:
% convert [-help] [-options] <inputfile> <outputfile>


-help
Choose -help to get detailed information on how to use convert.

-options
A place holder for all the other convert options: choose -help to get detailed information on all the options.

inputfile
The image file you want to copy/convert to another format.

outputfile
The image file convert will create.

This program is part of the Image Magick freeware. The source code for this program is included with our Video Development Environment software. See the $PARALLAX_HOME/src/xlib directory.

convert executes the command and returns you to the command line.

display



This utility program displays still images in a variety of standard image formats (including EPS, GIF, JPEG, PICT, Postscript, Sun Raster, TIFF). For detailed information on display, type "display -help".

Usage:
% display [-help] [-options] <filename> 


-help
Choose -help to get detailed information on how to use display.

-options
A place holder for all the other display options: choose -help to get detailed information on all the options.

filename
The image file you want to display.

This program is part of the Image Magick freeware. The source code for this program is included with our Video Development Environment software. See the $PARALLAX_HOME/src/xlib directory.

Note: To display a JFIF using ImageMagick "display", the image width and height must be divisible by 16. In Parallax version 9.3 and higher, VideoTool will automatically reduce the JFIF image size if needed so the width and height are divisible by 16. In Parallax version 9.2 or earlier releases, if you want to use "display" to display a JFIF image, you should make sure the image size is divisible by 16 before capturing it (or use VideoTool to display the image).

To quit, use the window manager controls or use CTRL-C.

fcomp



Version 9.3 or higher: This demo program displays live video, compresses it, saves it to a file, then decompresses and displays it, providing performance information for compression and decompression times.

Usage:
% fcomp [-qfactor #] [-stillFirst] [-noSharedMemory] [filename] [-help]


-qfactor #
This sets the qfactor that will be used during the preformance test.
-stillFirst
If this option is used, the video will be stilled before each compression. This degrades the performance.
-noSharedMemory
Do not use shared memory for compression/decompression. The default behavior does use shared memory whenever possible.
filename
fcomp will use this filename to record (if provided). If you do not provide a filename, fcomp will record the file to /tmp/theimage.
-help
Prints a simple help message.

Click in the window titled "Compress" to start recording. When you click in the Compress window again, recording will stop and playback will begin. Playback will continue until you record again or quit fcomp. Diagnostic messages will be printed in the terminal window from which fcomp was launched.

To quit, use the window manager controls or use CTRL-C.

fixMovieQ



Version 9.3 or higher: The fixMovieQ utility program corrects the JPEG compression Q table in Parallax JPEG still images and MovieTool files captured with our Parallax Version 0.1 (or Solaris 2.4 and earlier Sun software releases') VideoTool and MovieTool, so they can be played back at full quality with Solaris 2.5, our HP 9.3 or higher releases, or IBM-AIX.

Usage:
% fixMovieQ OldImageOrMovieFile


OldImageOrMovieFile
The name of a Parallax JPEG format still image or MovieTool file captured under Solaris 2.4 or earlier Sun software release.

Note: fixMovieQ can also be used to convert a HP version 9.2 or later, Solaris 2.5, or IBM-AIX Parallax JPEG still image or MovieTool file back to the old Q factor for full quality playback under Solaris 2.4 or earlier. Multiply the Q factor of the new image or movie file by 2 and add it to the end of your command:
fixMovieQ NewImageOrMovieFile 100
(for a Q factor of 50).

We created fixMovieQ because we recently discovered that our JPEG compression Q tables were not standard in our Sun Solaris 2.4 and earlier software. This caused problems with image quality when still images or movie files created in Solaris 2.4 or earlier Sun software releases were opened in Solaris 2.5, HP-UX, or IBM-AIX (and vice-versa).



jpegContinuousTest



This demo program opens a live video display window, captures and JPEG- compresses a series of still images at the fastest possible speed, and decompresses and displays them in another window (without saving them). Requires hardware compression.

Usage:
 jpegContinuousTest <howOftenToPrintStats%gt; <howManyFramesToGrab> \
<x y width height> <sleepTime>

howOftenToPrintStatistics
How many frames appear between reports showing performance statistics.
howManyFramesToGrab
How many frames to grab before exiting the test.
x y width height
The origin coordinates and dimensions of the source rectangle to compress.
sleepTime
How long to sleep (in microseconds) before getting and putting the next frame.

Developers can use jpegContinuousTest as an example of how to create a video input widget and a JPEG widget to grab compressed images at the fastest possible speed.

Example


jpegContinuousTest 500 1000 0 0 300 300 200000


This example does the following: reports statistics every 500 frames, captures a total of 1000 frames, captures a new frame every 200000 microseconds, starting at the top left corner (x y coordinates 0,0) with a width and height of 300 pixels (300, 300).

To quit, close the window or type Control-C from the command line.

jpegFileTest



This demo program displays a previously captured JFIF still image file. Requires hardware compression.

Usage:
% jpegFileTest <JFIF fileName>

JFIF fileName
The name of the JFIF image file to be displayed by the JPEG widget.

Developers can use jpegFileTest as an example of how to use the JPEG widget to display a JFIF file.

To quit, close the window or type Control-C from the command line.

jpegPlaybackTest



This demo program opens, decompresses, and displays MovieTool movies, then displays some simple JPEG performance statistics. Requires hardware compression.

Usage:
% jpegPlaybackTest <fileName>


fileName
The name of the MovieTool movie file to open and display.

The movie files are displayed in the JPEG widget's window.

After the program is finished, simple statistics appear to indicate how quickly it was able to display images. This program assumes that all the images in a single file have the same dimensions (for example, 640x480 pixels).

Developers use jpegPlaybackTest as an example of how to use the JPEG widget to open and display MovieTool movies from disk, and then display performance statistics on the JPEG widget.

To quit, close the window or type Control-C from the command line.

jpegTest



This demo program opens a live video display window, cpatures and compresses a still image, then decompresses and displays it (without saving the image). Requires hardware compression.

Usage:
% jpegTest <optionalWindowID>


optionalWindowID
An optional argument which indicates the ID of any X window. The program uses the specified window as the window from which compressed data should be created. For example, you can use this program to specify the JPEG window to digitize and compress the contents of that window instead of using the video input widget's window.

Developers use jpegTest as an example of how to create a video input widget and a JPEG widget for grabbing and compressing a still iamge.

To quit, close the window or type Control-C from the command line.

jpegTimingTest



This demo program displays live video, captures and JPEG-compresses a MovieTool movie file, and saves the movie file to disk. Requires hardware compression.

Usage:
% jpegTimingTest <numberOfFramesToBeSaved> <width> <height> <fileName>


numberOfFramesToBeSaved
The number of frames to be recorded and saved to disk.
width
The width of the image to be digitized and compressed.
height
The height of the image to be digitized and compressed.
fileName
The name of the movie file to which the JPEG-compressed data is saved.

The program also sets up a timer function to begin work after a short delay. The timer function does the following:



Developers can use this program as an example of how to digitize images form the screen and save them as JPEG data on disk. In this case, the images are digitized from an incoming video signal, compressed, and then saved to disk. The program creates a VideoIn widget and a JPEG widget, then instructs the JPEG widget to capture image data from the VideoIn widget.

To quit, close the window or type Control-C from the command line.

scomp



Version 9.3 or higher: This demo program displays live video, compresses it, and decompresses it into another window. scomp allows you to vary the compression Q factor and see the resulting change in image quality.

Usage:
% scomp [-noSharedMemory] [-diagnostics] [-help]

-noSharedMemory
Do not use shared memory for compression/decompression. The default behavior does use shared memory whenever possible.

-diagnostics
Print diagnostic messages. The diagnostic messages indicate how scomp is set up (window id's, whether shared memory is being used or not, etc.).

-help
Prints a simple help message.

To start a scomp session, click in one of the video windows. To change the compression Q factor, use your mouse to slide the Q factor slider bar up or down.

Developers can use scomp as an example of how to use shared memory for compression and decompression.

To quit, close the window or type Control-C from the command line.

tcomp



This demo program displays live video, compresses it, sends it over a network, and decompresses it and displays it at the other end in real-time (like a videoconferencing prototype). Depending on the bandwidth of your network, tcomp can operate at speeds up to 25 or 30 frames/second. tcomp can be run bi-directional by starting it on two separate workstations, sending video to each other. Requires a hardware compression video card on both workstations (for both 1-way and 2-way tcomp sessions).

Usage:
% tcomp <remote display> <[-q qfactor]>

remote display
The name of the remote workstation (which has a video card with compression).
[-q qfactor]
The degree of compression. A high Q factor will be more compressed (to fit on a lower bandwidth network) and will have lower quality.

To start a tcomp session, click the Start Session button.

Developers can use tcomp as an example of how to send compressed video over a network in a videoconferencing-like setting. In this case, the images are digitized from an incoming video signal, compressed, sent over the network, and then displayed on another workstation.

To quit, click the Stop Session button.

xlib_test



This demo program opens a video window and displays live video. To use xlib_test, you must have an NTSC video source connected to the first video input cable (labeled "Video In Composite 1"), turned on, and playing video.

Usage:
% xlib_test

Note: The video source must be in NTSC format.

Note: The video source must be connected to the first video input cable.

Developers can use xlib_test as an example of how to display live video with Xlib.

To quit, close the window or type Control-C from the command line.

xvInTest



This demo program opens up a video window and displays live video from the first available NTSC, PAL, or SECAM video source.

Usage:
% xvInTest


Developers can use xvInTest as an example of how to display live video with the VideoIn X widget.

To quit, close the window or type Control-C from the command line.

xvshow



This demo program displays a Sun Raster format image (as graphics over video if you chooose -gov), or converts the image into an XImage before displaying it, or sends the image as output to an external device.

Usage:
% xvshow [-gov] [-dump] [-output] <filename>


filename
Specifies the filename of a Sun Raster format image to be displayed.

-gov
Puts live video in the window and then overlays the Sun Raster still image. All black pixels in the still image will show live video. All non-black pixels in the still image will show the still image.

-dump
Displays the image file on screen as an XImage format image.

-output
Sends the image file as Composite output to an external device such as a VCR, TV monitor, or video projector. (Requires XVideo700 with Composite video output connected to a Composite external device).

Note: If you do not specify dump or output, the image will be displayed on screen in it's original Sun Raster format.

Note: You can't select both dump and output at once.

Developers may use xvshow as an example of graphics over video.

To quit, close the window or type Control-C from the command line.

videoIcon



videoIcon displays a small live video window inside an icon.

Usage:
% videoIcon


When the icon is double-clicked, the video window will grow back to full size.

Note: The video in the icon may appear distorted because icons do not have a 4:3 aspect ratio.

To quit, close the window or type Control-C from the command line.




Appendix D: H.261 Image Capture and Display Utilities



No information is available.