Specifying linksYou specify links in the Properties palette. The Properties palette changes view depending on what is selected, displaying disc, menu, button, and timeline properties as appropriate. When you use the Properties palette in conjunction with the Project window, you can quickly set links and defaults for an entire project. All links in Adobe Encore DVD point to either a menu or a timeline: Menu and button When linking to a menu, you must also designate the button to be highlighted (selected) when the menu appears. Each menu has a default button that is highlighted for the viewer. You can choose to leave the default button highlighted or you can designate a specific button. The button you specify replaces the default setting only for that viewing of the menu. Controlling which button is highlighted improves the usability of your DVD. It lets you control the menu depending on where the viewer has just been. You generally highlight the button that the viewer just activated, which helps the viewer keep track of what clip has just played. For example, a video's end action can point back to the menu and its own button. After the viewer watches the video, the end action leads to the menu, highlighting the video's button, not the default button. Timeline and chapter When linking to a timeline, you also choose one of its chapter points. The chapter point indicates the starting location for a timeline. In other words, the link specifies not just the timeline to play, but also a specific start point in the timeline. Thus, using chapter points in a timeline, you can control where in a video to begin display based on where the viewer has just been in the DVD. |