CHAPTER 1

ActiveMovie Control Reference


ActiveMovie Control

Properties	Methods	Events	See Also

The ActiveMovie control is a custom control that you can use with Microsoft Visual Basic and Microsoft Visual C++ to quickly add support for multimedia streams to your applications.

ActiveMovie™ is an extensible media streaming architecture for Windows that delivers high quality audio and video playback from the Internet or Intranet. ActiveMovie supports the most popular media types, including MPEG audio and video, AVI video, WAV audio, and Apple®  QuickTime® video.

The ActiveMovie architecture defines how streams of time-stamped multimedia data can be controlled and processed by using modular components called filters connected in a configuration called a filter graph.

Applications assemble the filter graph and control how data moves through the filter graph by accessing the filter graph manager via programming interfaces, as shown in the following illustration:

For example, the Microsoft MPEG filter graph uses the following filters:

•	A source filter to read the data off the disk.

•	A splitter transform filter to separate the video and audio.

•	A video transform filter to decompress the video data.

•	A video rendering filter to display the data on the screen.

•	An audio transform filter to decompress the audio data.

•	An audio rendering filter to send the audio data to the sound card.

Default filter graphs are configured for you when you install the ActiveMovie software on your computer. You can also install additional filters and create your own filter graphs. For more information about configuring filter graphs, see the ActiveMovie Software Developer’s Kit (SDK) documentation.

The ActiveMovie control represents an easy-to-use programming interface that lets you manage multimedia streams using the control’s properties, methods, and events. The control handles all video and audio rendering for you, simplifying your programming tasks and making it easy to add support for multimedia streams to your application.

In addition to the ActiveMovie control, two other ActiveMovie programming interfaces are available:

•	ActiveMovie Component Object Model (COM) interfaces

•	The OM-1 MPEG MCI command set

For more information about these programming interfaces, see the ActiveMovie SDK documentation.


See Also

Shortcut Keys

Properties Pages


ActiveMovie Properties

See Also

The ActiveMovie control supports the following properties:

Note   Some ActiveMovie properties are only functional with some types of multimedia streams. For example, the properties Author, Copyright, Description, ImageSourceHeight, ImageSourceWidth, and Rating are only available for ActiveMovie streaming format (ASF) files.

Property	Description
AllowChangeDisplayMode	Indicates whether the end-user can change the display mode at run time between time and frames.
AllowHideControls	Indicates whether the end-user can hide the control panel at run time.
AllowHideDisplay	Indicates whether the end-user can hide the display at run time.
Author	Contains the author of the multimedia stream.
AutoRewind	Indicates whether to automatically rewind the multimedia stream when it stops.
AutoStart	Indicates whether to automatically start playing the multimedia stream.
Balance	Specifies the stereo balance.
Copyright	Contains copyright information for this multimedia stream.
CurrentPosition	Specifies the current position within the multimedia stream, in seconds.
CurrentState	Specifies the current state of the player: stopped, paused, running.
Description	Contains a description for this multimedia stream.
DisplayBackColor	Specifies the color used for the control background.
DisplayForeColor	Specifies the color used for the control foreground.
DisplayMode	Indicates whether the control displays the current position in time or frames.
Duration	Specifies the duration of the multimedia stream in seconds.
EnableContextMenu	Indicates whether to enable the context menu on right click.
EnablePositionControls	Indicates whether to enable the position buttons in the control panel.
EnableSelectionControls	Indicates whether to enable the selection buttons in the control panel.
EnableTracker	Indicates whether to enable the tracker bar in the control panel.
FileName	Specifies the name of the file that contains the multimedia stream to be played.
FilterGraph	Returns an interface pointer (IUnknown *) to the current filter graph object.
FilterGraphDispatch	Returns an interface pointer (IDispatch *) to the current filter graph object.
FullScreen	Expands the area of the OCX so that it fills the entire screen.
ImageSourceHeight	Specifies the authored height of the source image.
ImageSourceWidth	Specifies the authored width of the source image.
MovieWindowSize	Selects the image window size and characteristics.
PlayCount	Specifies the number of times to play this multimedia stream.
Rate	Specifies the playback rate for the stream.
SelectionEnd	Specifies the ending position in this multimedia stream, in seconds, relative to the beginning of the stream.
SelectionStart	Specifies the starting position in this multimedia stream, in seconds, relative to the beginning of the stream.
ShowControls	Indicates whether the control panel is visible.
ShowDisplay	Indicates whether the status display panel is visible.
ShowPositionControls	Indicates whether the position buttons are visible in the control panel.
ShowSelectionControls	Indicates whether the selection buttons are visible in the control panel.
ShowTracker	Indicates whether the tracker bar is visible in the control panel.
Title	Specifies the title of the multimedia stream.
Volume	Specifies the audio volume.
The ActiveMovie control also supports properties that are common to other controls: Appearance, BorderStyle, DragIcon, DragMode, Enabled, Height, HelpContextID, hWnd, Index, Left, Name, Parent, TabStop, TabIndex, Tag, Top, Visible, WhatsThisHelpID, and Width. For information about these properties, please see your Visual Basic documentation.


See Also

ActiveMovie Control

ActiveMovie Methods

ActiveMovie Events


ActiveMovie Methods

See Also

The ActiveMovie control supports the following methods:

Method	Description
Pause	Pause playing and maintain the current position in the multimedia stream.
Run	Play the multimedia stream.
Stop	Stop playback and reset the position as indicated by the AutoRewind and SelectionStart properties.
The ActiveMovie control also supports several methods that are common to other controls: Drag, Move, SetFocus, ShowWhatsThis, and ZOrder. For information about these methods, please see your Visual Basic documentation.


ActiveMovie Control Properties Pages
ActiveMovie Property Pages

A property page is a tabbed dialog box that you can use to set properties on a control. You can access the ActiveMovie property page at either design or run-time.

To activate a property page at design time, select the control, and press F4, and then, in the Properties window, click on the Custom button.

To activate a property page at run-time, click on your right mouse button, and then click Properties on the popup menu that appears.

Playback

Movie Size

Controls

Advanced


See Also

ActiveMovie Control

ActiveMovie Properties

ActiveMovie Events


ActiveMovie Events

See Also

The ActiveMovie control supports the following events:

Event	Description
Error	Indicates an error. (Note: Not yet implemented.)
PositionChange	Indicates changes to the position, such as by the user seeking to the position using the default user interface.
StateChange	Indicates player state changes, such as a change from stopped to running, or from running to paused.
Timer	Handles timer events.
The ActiveMovie control also supports several events that are common to other controls: DragDrop, DragOver, GotFocus, KeyDown, KeyPress, KeyUp, LostFocus, MouseDown, MouseMove, and MouseUp. For information about these events, please see your Visual Basic documentation.


See Also

ActiveMovie Control

ActiveMovie Properties

ActiveMovie Methods


AllowChangeDisplayMode Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Indicates whether the end-user can change the DisplayMode property at run time.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .AllowChangeDisplayMode [ = { True | False } ]

The syntax for the AllowChangeDisplayMode property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

Settings

The settings for AllowChangeDisplayMode are:

Setting	Description
True	(Default) Allow the user to change the DisplayMode property at run time.
False	Do not allow the user to change the DisplayMode property at run time.
Type

Boolean

Remarks

The DisplayMode property selects whether to show the current position of the multimedia stream in time or frames.

Run-time access: read-only. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

DisplayMode property


AllowHideControls Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Indicates whether the end-user can hide the control panel at run time.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .AllowHideControls [ = { True | False } ]

The syntax for the AllowHideControls property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

Settings

The settings for AllowHideControls are:

Setting	Description
True	(Default) Allow the user to change the ShowControls property to False.
False	Do not allow the user to change the ShowControls property to False.
Type

Boolean

Remarks

This property can be set only at design time. It then determines whether the user or the application can change the ShowControls property at run time.

Run-time access: read-only. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

ShowControls Property, AllowHideDisplay Property


AllowHideDisplay Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Indicates whether the end-user can hide the status display panel at run time.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .AllowHideDisplay [ = { True | False } ]

The syntax for the AllowHideDisplay property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

Settings

The settings for AllowHideDisplay are:

Setting	Description
True	(Default) Allow the user to change the ShowDisplay property at run time.
False	Do not allow the user to change the ShowDisplay property at run time.
Type

Boolean

Remarks

This property can be set only at design time. It then determines whether the user or an application can set the ShowDisplay property at run time.

Run-time access: read-only. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

ShowDisplay Property, AllowHideControls Property


Author Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Contains the author of the multimedia stream.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .Author

The syntax for the Author property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

Type

String

Remarks

This value can be set at design time. When this value is present in the multimedia stream, it overwrites the value set at design time.

Run-time access: read-only. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

Copyright Property


AutoRewind Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Indicates whether to automatically rewind the multimedia stream and reposition at the beginning after playing stops.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .AutoRewind [ = { True | False } ]

The syntax for the AutoRewind property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

Settings

The settings for AutoRewind are:

Setting	Description
True	Reposition the multimedia stream at the beginning after playing.
False	(Default) Do not reposition the multimedia stream at the beginning after playing.
Type

Boolean

Remarks

The rewind operation occurs after a stop operation and when a play operation reaches the position specified by the SelectionEnd property. The rewind operation resets the position to the value specified by the SelectionStart property.

To retain the current position within the multimedia stream, set AutoRewind to False or use the Pause method.

Run-time access: read/write. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

AutoStart Property, PlayCount Property


AutoStart Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Indicates whether to automatically start playing the multimedia stream.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .AutoStart [ = { True | False } ]

The syntax for the AutoStart property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

Settings

The settings for AutoStart are:

Setting	Description
True	Automatically start playing the multimedia stream.
False	(Default) Do not automatically start the multimedia stream; require an explicit Run method.
Type

Boolean

Remarks

Run-time access: read-only. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

PlayCount Property


Balance Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Specifies the stereo balance.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .Balance [ = long ]

The syntax for the Balance property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

long    A numeric expression that specifies the balance value. The number ranges from -10000 to +10000.

Type

Long

Remarks

The value 0 (the default value) indicates a neutral balance (no attenuation).

Run-time access: read/write. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

Volume Property


Copyright Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Contains copyright information for this multimedia stream.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .Copyright

The syntax for the Copyright property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

Type

String

Remarks

This value can be set at design time. When this value is present in the multimedia stream, it overwrites the value set at design time.

Run-time access: read-only. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

Author Property, Title Property


CurrentPosition Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Specifies the current position within the multimedia stream, in seconds.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .CurrentPosition [ = double ]

The syntax for the CurrentPosition property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

double    Contains the new position within the stream, in seconds.

Type

Double

Remarks

The new value must be within the range specified by SelectionStart and SelectionEnd.

The current position value displayed by the control’s user interface can represent either seconds or frames. The DisplayMode property determines the units shown.

Setting the CurrentPosition property at run time is similar to a seek operation and changes the position to the specified point in the multimedia stream.

Run-time access: read/write. Design-time access: not applicable.

See Also

DisplayMode Property, SelectionStart Property, SelectionEnd Property


CurrentState Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Contains the active state of the control, such as running, paused, or stopped.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .CurrentState

The syntax for the CurrentState property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

Settings

The settings for CurrentState are:

Setting	Value	Description
amvStopped	0	The player is stopped.
amvPaused	1	The player is paused.
amvRunning	2	The player is running and actively playing the multimedia stream.
Type

Long

Remarks

To change the state value, call one of the ActiveMovie control methods, such as Run, Pause, or Stop.

Run-time access: read-only. Design-time access: not applicable.

See Also

Run method, Pause method, Stop method


Description Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Contains a description for this multimedia stream.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .Description

The syntax for the Description property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

Type

String

Remarks

This value can be set at design time. When this value is present in the multimedia stream, it overwrites the value set at design time.

Run-time access: read-only. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

Author Property


DisplayBackColor Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Specifies the color used for the display panel background.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .DisplayBackColor [ = color ]

The syntax for the DisplayBackColor property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

color    A value or constant that determines the background, as described in Settings.

Settings

The settings for color are:

Setting	Description
Normal RGB colors	Colors specified by using the Color palette or by using the RGB or QBColor functions in code.
System default colors	Colors specified by system color constants listed in the object library in the Object Browser.  The Windows operating environment substitutes the user's choices as specified in the Control Panel settings.
Remarks

At design time, the default setting is the system default color specified by the constant vbWindowBackground.

The valid range for a normal RGB color is 0 to 16,777,215 (&HFFFFFF).  The high byte of a number in this range equals 0; the lower 3 bytes, from least to most significant byte, determine the amount of red, green, and blue, respectively.  The red, green, and blue components are each represented by a number between 0 and 255 (&HFF).  If the high byte isn't 0, Visual Basic uses the system colors, as defined in the user's Control Panel settings and by constants listed in the object library in the Object Browser.

Run-time access: read/write. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

DisplayForeColor Property


DisplayForeColor Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Specifies the color used for the display panel foreground.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .DisplayForeColor [ = color ]

The syntax for the DisplayForeColor property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

color    A value or constant that determines the background, as described in Settings.

Settings

The settings for color are:

Setting	Description
Normal RGB colors	Colors specified by using the Color palette or by using the RGB or QBColor functions in code.
System default colors	Colors specified by system color constants listed in the object library in the Object Browser.  The Windows operating environment substitutes the user's choices as specified in the Control Panel settings.
Remarks

At design time, the default setting is the system default color specified by the constant vbWindowText.

The valid range for a normal RGB color is 0 to 16,777,215 (&HFFFFFF).  The high byte of a number in this range equals 0; the lower 3 bytes, from least to most significant byte, determine the amount of red, green, and blue, respectively.  The red, green, and blue components are each represented by a number between 0 and 255 (&HFF).  If the high byte isn't 0, Visual Basic uses the system colors, as defined in the user's Control Panel settings and by constants listed in the object library in the Object Browser.

Run-time access: read/write. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

DisplayBackColor Property


DisplayMode Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Indicates the units for the current position value when the position value is displayed.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .DisplayMode [ = setting ]

The syntax for the DisplayMode property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

setting    Specifies the new value, as described in Settings, below.

Settings

The settings for DisplayMode are:

Setting	Value	Description
amvTime	0	(Default) Display the current position in seconds.
amvFrames	1	Display the current position in frames.
Type

Integer

Remarks

The properties ShowDisplay and AllowHideDisplay determine whether the display panel appears on the ActiveMovie control.

Run-time access: read/write. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

AllowHideDisplay Property, ShowDisplay Property


Duration Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Specifies the duration of the multimedia stream in seconds.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .Duration

The syntax for the Duration property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

Type

Double

Remarks

The multimedia stream is contained in the file specified by the FileName property. The Duration property always represents the length of the entire stream, not just the part of the stream indicated by the SelectionStart and SelectionEnd properties.

Run-time access: read-only. Design-time access: not applicable.

See Also

FileName Property


EnableContextMenu Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Indicates whether to enable the context menu on right click.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .EnableContextMenu [ = { True | False } ]

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

Settings

The settings for EnableContextMenu are:

Setting	Description
True	(Default) Enable the context menu on right click.
False	Do not enable the context menu on right click.
Type

Boolean

Remarks

Run-time access: read/write. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

ShowDisplay Property, ShowControls Property


EnablePositionControls Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Indicates whether to enable the position controls.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .EnablePositionControls [ = { True | False } ]

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

Settings

The settings for EnablePositionControls are:

Setting	Description
True	(Default) Enable the position controls.
False	Disable (dim) the position controls.
Type

Boolean

Remarks

Run-time access: read/write. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

ShowPositionControls Property


EnableSelectionControls Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Indicates whether to enable the position controls.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .EnableSelectionControls [ = { True | False } ]

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

Settings

The settings for EnableSelectionControls are:

Setting	Description
True	(Default) Enable the selection controls.
False	Disable (dim) the selection controls.
Type

Boolean

Remarks

Run-time access: read/write. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

ShowSelectionControls Property


EnableTracker Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Indicates whether to enable the tracker.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .EnableTracker [ = { True | False } ]

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

Settings

The settings for EnableTracker are:

Setting	Description
True	(Default) Enable the tracker.
False	Disable (dim) the tracker.
Type

Boolean

Remarks

Run-time access: read/write. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

ShowTracker Property


FileName Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Specifies the name of the file that contains the multimedia stream to be played.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .FileName [ = string ]

The syntax for the FileName property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

string    Contains the name of the file that contains the multimedia stream.

Type

String

Remarks

Run-time access: read/write. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

Description Property


FilterGraph Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Contains an IUnknown interface pointer to the current filter graph object.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .FilterGraph [ = punk ]

The syntax for the FilterGraph property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

punk    Contains the IUnknown pointer for the filter graph object, IFilterGraph.

Type

IUnknown *

Remarks

The filter graph represents a specific configuration of source, transform, and rendering filters. The filter graph represents the complete set of software components needed to process a given multimedia stream within the ActiveMovie architecture.

You can set this property to change the current filter graph.

An IDispatch interface pointer for the filter graph object is available through the FilterGraphDispatch property.

Run-time access: read/write. Design-time access: read/write.

For more information about the IFilterGraph object, see the ActiveMovie SDK documentation.

See Also

FilterGraphDispatch Property, FileName Property


FilterGraphDispatch Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Contains an IDispatch interface pointer to the current filter graph object.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .FilterGraphDispatch [ = pdisp ]

The syntax for the FilterGraphDispatch property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

pdisp    Contains the IDispatch pointer to the current filter graph object.

Type

IDispatch *

Remarks

The filter graph represents a specific configuration of source, transform, and rendering filters. The filter graph represents the complete set of software components needed to process a given multimedia stream within the ActiveMovie architecture.

You can set this property to change the current filter graph.

An IUnknown interface pointer for the filter graph object is available through the FilterGraph property.

For more information about the IFilterGraph object, see the ActiveMovie SDK documentation.

Run-time access: read-only. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

FilterGraph Property, FileName Property


ImageSourceHeight Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Specifies the authored height of the source image.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .ImageSourceHeight

The syntax for the ImageSourceHeight property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

Type

Long

Remarks

This value is independent of the projected image size, which is determined by the MovieWindowSize property.

Run-time access: read-only. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

MovieWindowSize property, ImageSourceWidth Property


ImageSourceWidth Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Specifies the authored width of the source image.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .ImageSourceWidth

The syntax for the ImageSourceWidth property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

Type

Long

Remarks

This value is independent of the projected image size, which is determined by the MovieWindowSize property.

Run-time access: read-only. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

MovieWindowSize Property, ImageSourceHeight Property


MovieWindowSize Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Specifies the settings for the window that displays the images associated with a multimedia stream.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .MovieWindowSize [ = setting ]

The syntax for the MovieWindowSize property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

setting    Specifies the window setting, described in Settings, below.

Settings

The settings for MovieWindowSize are:

Setting	Value	Description
amvDefaultSize	0	(default) Uses the authored size.
amvHalfSize	1	Reduces the image projection size to exactly half the authored size.
amvDoubleSize	2	Increases the image projection size to twice the authored size.
amvMaximized	3	Maximizes the image size within its parent form.
amvFullScreen	4	Projects the images onto the full screen.
amvPermitResizeWithAspect	5	Allows users to resize the form that contains the ActiveMovie control, while retaining the authored aspect ratio.
amvPermitResizeNoRestrict	6	Allows users to resize the form that contains the ActiveMovie control, fitting the image to the resized form without restrictions.
Type

Long

Remarks

Run-time access: read/write. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

ImageSourceHeight Property


PlayCount Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Specifies the number of times to play the multimedia stream.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .PlayCount [ = long ]

The syntax for the PlayCount property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

long    A numeric expression that specifies the number of times to play the multimedia stream. The value 0 indicates play repeatedly.

Type

Long

Remarks

The value 0 indicates that the control should play the multimedia stream repeatedly, restarting as soon as it finishes playing the stream.

Run-time access: read/write. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

AutoStart Property


Rate Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Specifies the playback rate for the multimedia stream.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .Rate [ = double ]

The syntax for the Rate property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

double    A numeric expression that represents the playback rate, where 1.0 corresponds to the authored rate.

Type

Double

Remarks

This acts as a multiplier value that allows the stream to be played in slow motion or in fast motion. The value 1.0 indicates normal, or authored, speed. Note that the audio track becomes difficult to understand at rates lower than 0.5 and higher than 1.5.

The default value is 1.0.

Run-time access: read/write. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

Duration Property


Rating Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Contains rating information relating to the multimedia stream.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .Rating

The syntax for the Rating property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

Type

String

Remarks

This value can be set at design time. When this value is present in the multimedia stream, it overwrites the value set at design time.

Run-time access: read-only. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

Description Property


SelectionEnd Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Specifies the ending position in this multimedia stream, in seconds, relative to the beginning of the stream.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .SelectionEnd [ = double ]

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

double    A numeric expression that specifies the position within the multimedia stream that represents the end of the playback sequence.

Type

Double

Remarks

The default value for the SelectionEnd is the Duration property.

Run-time access: read/write. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

Duration Property, SelectionStart Property


SelectionStart Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Specifies the starting position in this multimedia stream, in seconds, relative to the beginning of the stream.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .SelectionStart [ = double ]

The syntax for the SelectionStart property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

double    A numeric expression that specifies the position within the multimedia stream that represents the beginning of the playback sequence.

Type

Double

Remarks

The default value for SelectionStart is 0.

Run-time access: read/write. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

Duration Property, SelectionEnd Property


ShowControls Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Indicates whether the control panel is visible.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .ShowControls [ = { True | False } ]

The syntax for the ShowControls property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

Settings

The settings for ShowControls are:

Setting	Description
True	(Default) Show the control panel at run time.
False	Do not show the control panel at run time.
Type

Boolean

Remarks

Run-time access: read/write. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

ShowDisplay Property


ShowDisplay Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Indicates whether the status display panel is visible.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .ShowDisplay [ = { True | False } ]

The syntax for the ShowDisplay property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

Settings

The settings for ShowDisplay are:

Setting	Description
True	(Default) Show the status display at run time.
False	Do not show the status display at run time.
Type

Boolean

Remarks

Run-time access: read/write. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

ShowControls Property


ShowPositionControls Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Indicates whether the position controls are visible.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .ShowPositionControls [ = { True | False } ]

The syntax for the ShowPositionControls property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

Settings

The settings for ShowPositionControls are:

Setting	Description
True	Show the position controls at run time.
False	(Default) Do not show the position controls at run time.
Type

Boolean

Remarks

Run-time access: read/write. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

EnablePositionControls Property


ShowSelectionControls Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Indicates whether the selection controls are visible.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .ShowSelectionControls [ = { True | False } ]

The syntax for the ShowSelectionControls property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

Settings

The settings for ShowSelectionControls are:

Setting	Description
True	Show the selection controls at run time.
False	(Default) Do not show the selection controls at run time.
Type

Boolean

Remarks

Run-time access: read/write. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

EnableSelectionControls Property


ShowTracker Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Indicates whether the tracker is visible.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .ShowTracker [ = { True | False } ]

The syntax for the ShowTracker property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

Settings

The settings for ShowTracker are:

Setting	Description
True	(Default) Show the tracker at run time.
False	Do not show the tracker at run time.
Type

Boolean

Remarks

Run-time access: read/write. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

EnableTracker Property


Title Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Specifies the title of the multimedia stream.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .Title

The syntax for the Title property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

Type

String

Remarks

This value can be set at design time. When this value is present in the multimedia stream, it overwrites the value set at design time.

Run-time access: read-only. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

Author Property


Volume Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Specifies the volume, in hundredths of decibels.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .Volume [ = long ]

The syntax for the Volume property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

long    A numeric expression that specifies the audio volume, in hundredths of decibels.

Type

Long

Remarks

The value ranges from AX_MIN_VOLUME, -10000, to AX_MAX_VOLUME, 0. The value 0 (the default value) represents full volume.

Run-time access: read/write. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

Balance Property


Pause Method

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Suspends a play operation without changing the current position.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

object .Pause

Parameters

object   An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

Remarks

The Pause method pauses the multimedia stream at the current position. To continue playing the multimedia stream, use the Run method.

To stop the multimedia stream, use the Stop method.

See Also

Stop Method, Run Method


Run Method

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Starts a multimedia stream from the specified starting position or continues playing a paused stream.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

object .Run

Parameters

object   An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

Remarks

The Run method starts the multimedia stream at the starting position specified by the SelectionStart property. In the absence of other user or application input, the Run method continues playing the stream to the position specified by the SelectionEnd property.

The Run method is also used to resume playing a paused multimedia stream.

To pause playing, call the Pause method. To stop playing, call the Stop method.

See Also

SelectionStart Property, Pause Method, Stop Method


Stop Method

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Stops the playing of a multimedia stream.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

object .Stop

Parameters

object   An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

Remarks

The Stop method changes the CurrentState property.

When the Stop method halts a play operation, the current position can be optionally reset to the starting point for the multimedia stream, as indicated by the SelectionStart property. The AutoRewind property determines whether the position is reset to this starting position.

To halt a play operation without changing the current position, use the Pause method.

See Also

AutoRewind Property, Run Method, SelectionStart Property


Error Event

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Raises an event when an error occurs.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

Private Sub object_Error(ByVal SCode As Integer, ByVal Description As String, ByVal Source As String, CancelDisplay As Boolean)

Parameters

object   An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

SCode   An error code.

Description   A string describing the error which occurred.

Source   A string containing the ActiveMovie Control’s name.

Cancel Display   A value that may be set by the client to cancel the default error messages.

Remarks

The Error event is fired when ActiveMovie reports an error during playback. By default, the ActiveMovie control displays a message box containing the description string. To avoid displaying this box, set the CancelDisplay parameter of the Error event to False.


PositionChange Event

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Indicates changes to the position that are not otherwise accessible to the client.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

Private Sub object_PositionChange(ByVal oldPosition As Double, ByVal newPosition As Double)

Parameters

object   An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

oldPosition   The position before it was changed in seconds.

newPosition   The current position in seconds, after the position change occurred.

Remarks

The PositionChange event is raised to indicate changes to the position that are not otherwise accessible to the client. For example, the event is raised when the default UI is used to seek to a position within the multimedia stream.

Changes made directly to the CurrentPosition property do not trigger this event.


StateChange Event

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Indicates changes to the player state, such as from stopped to running.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

Private Sub object_StateChange(ByVal oldState As Long, ByVal newState As Long)

Parameters

object   An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

oldState   The previous state, before the change occurred.

newState   The current state, after the change occurred.

Remarks

The StateChange event is raised when the player state changes, such as from stopped to running. The current player state appears in the CurrentState property. State flags are listed under CurrentState property.


Timer Event

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Raised by the ActiveMovie control’s internal timer.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

Private Sub object_Timer( )

Parameters

object   An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

Remarks

The Timer event is raised at the intervals specified by the control’s timer.


ActiveMovie Hotkeys
ActiveMovie Control Shortcut Keys

ActiveMovie Control

The following key combinations can be used to activate ActiveMovie commands:

Key(s)	Result
CTRL+D	Toggle display
CTRL+LEFT ARROW	Rewind
CTRL+P	Pause
CTRL+R	Run
CTRL+RIGHT ARROW	Forward
CTRL+S	Stop
CTRL+SHIFT+LEFT ARROW	Previous
CTRL+SHIFT+RIGHT ARROW	Next
CTRL+T	Toggle control panel
ALT+ENTER	Toggle between full screen and windowed modes


Playback

Use the Playback tab at run-tim to set options such as volume, rate of play and the number of times you want the current video to play.

To learn more about this tab, point the cursor to the controls represented in the picture below. When the cursor becomes a hand, click on the left mouse button.


Movie Size

Use the controls on the Movie Size tab at run time to specify the size of the window in which you want to play video.

To learn more about this tab, point the cursor to the controls represented in the picture below. When the cursor becomes a hand, click on the left mouse button.


Controls

Use the controls on the Controls tab to specify at run time which ActiveMovie controls you want to be visible.

To learn more about this tab, point the cursor to the controls represented in the picture below. When the cursor becomes a hand, click on the left mouse button.


Advanced

Use the Advanced tab to run a filter on the currently playing video.

To learn more about this tab, point the cursor to the controls represented in the picture below. When the cursor becomes a hand, click on the left mouse button.


Volume and Balance

Toggles the volume and balance for the OCX.

For information on how to set this property in code, see VolumeandBalance.


Start and Stop Time

Identifies the start and stop time for the current file.

For information on how to set this property in code, see AllowChangeDisplayMode.


Play Count

Specifies the number of times to play the current file consecutively.

For information on how to set this property in code, see PlayCount.


Auto Repeat

Causes the ActiveMovie control to repeatedly play the current file.

For information on how to set this property in code, see AutoStart.


Auto Rewind

Indicates whether to automatically rewind the multimedia stream and reposition at the beginning after playing stops.

For information on how to set this property in code, see AutoRewind.


Filename

Displays the name of the currently loaded file.

For information on how to set this property in code, see FileName.


Duration

Displays the duration of the currently loaded file.

For information on how to set this property in code, see Duration.


Title

Displays the title of the currently loaded file.

For information on how to set this property in code, see Title.


Rating

Displays the rating of the currently loaded file.

For information on how to set this property in code, see Rating.


Author

Identifies the author of the current file.

For information on how to set this property in code, see Author.


Copyright

Contains copyright information for the current file.

For information on how to set this property in code, see Copyright.


Description

Contains a description of the current file.

For information on how to set this property in code, see Description.


Display Panel

Check this box if you want the display panel to be visible at run-time.

For information on how to set this property in code, see ShowDisplay.


Control Panel

Check this box if you want the control panel to be visible at run-time.

For more information on how to set this property in code, see ShowControls.


Position Control

Check this box if you want the video stream position to be displayed.

For information on how to set this property in code, see DisplayMode.


Selection Controls

Check this box to make the selection controls visible.

For information on how to set this property in code, see SelectionStartand SelectionEnd.


Show Trackbar

Click this box to toggle the visibility of the track bar.

For information on how to set this property in code, see ShowTracker.


Background and Foreground Color

Use these controls to show and set the background and foreground colors of the ActiveMovie control.

For information on how to set this property in code, see DisplayForeColor

 and DisplayBackColor.


Full Screen
Run Full Screen

Choose this option to maximize the ActiveMovie control so that it fills the entire screen.

For information on how to set this property in code, see MovieWindowSize .


Movie Size

Use this option list to specify the movie’s size.

For information on how to set this property in code, see MovieWindowSize.


Run Full Screen

Choose this option if you want the ActiveMovie images projected onto the full screen.

For information on how to set this property in code, see MovieWindowSize.


Filter Properties

Selects the filter property page to display when the Properties button is clicked. For more details, see the ActiveMovie SDK documentation.


Properties

Displays the property page of the filter selected in the Filter Properties list. Property pages allow you to change parameters on individual filters in the ActiveMovie filter graph. See the Filter Reference in the ActiveMovie SDK for more information on properties of ActiveMovie filters.


FullScreen
FullScreenMode Property

Applies To

ActiveMovie control

Description

Indicates whether the control images are projected onto the entire screen.

Syntax (Visual Basic)

[form.] object .FullScreenMode [ = { True | False } ]

The syntax for the FullScreenMode property has these parts:

form    An object expression that evaluates to a Visual Basic form.

object    An object expression that evaluates to an ActiveMovie control.

Settings

The settings for AllowChangeDisplayMode are:

Setting	Description
False	(Default) Displays the current video in the mode set in the MovieWindowSize property.
False	Projects the current video onto the entire screen.
Type

Boolean

Remarks

The FullScreenMode property selects whether to show the current on the entire screen.

Run-time access: read-only. Design-time access: read/write.

See Also

MovieWindowSize Property