home
***
CD-ROM
|
disk
|
FTP
|
other
***
search
/
Video Toaster 4.3
/
Video Toaster v4.3.iso
/
4.2
/
3rdparty
/
ybt
/
ybt_readme
< prev
next >
Wrap
Text File
|
1998-04-17
|
27KB
|
843 lines
YBT - Special Flyer 4.2 Version - Program Documentation
YBT, doc files, and ARexx support files ©1996-7 by Daniel Wolf.
All Rights Reserved Worldwide.
Video Toaster and Flyer are registered trademarks of NewTek, Inc.
Visit MegageM on the Web for maximum updated information.
http://www.megagem.com
This YBT is A FREE GIFT TO YOU FROM MegageM Digital Media.
If you like YBT, you'll LOVE AV8RPro and AV8RPro+.
See the limited-time special rebate offer below.
*********************************************************************
***** Free Software - Special Rebate Offers - Free Software *****
*********************************************************************
*********************************************************************
*********************** VIDEOGEMS *******************************
************************ OFFER ********************************
*********************************************************************
SPECIAL HALF-PRICE OFFER ON VideoGems CDROM !
HURRY - 50% OFF PRICE EXPIRES on June 30, 1997 !
Order your VideoGems CDROM direct from MegageM by June 30, 1997
at a very special 50% OFF price of only $49.95.
VideoGems includes:
12 beautiful new CG ColorFonts (40, 60, and 80 point sizes)
60+ unique new effects/wipes for A4000 Toaster Systems
including some uniquely fancy fractal effects
25+ unique new effects/wipes for A2000 Toaster Systems
including quick-loading 'Blinds' & algorithmic wipes
20+ framestores which match some of the wipes on A4000s
300+ LightWave objects of real terrain locations
including Grand Canyon, Hawaii, even a large patch
of the planet Mars.
as well as IFF images, ColorFont and more...
VideoGems installs easily on your Toaster or Flyer 4.x system.
The VideoGems Lightwave 3D material is cross-platform compatible.
Free sample portions of the VideoGems CDROM have been included
with this Flyer 4.2 update, as a gift to you from MegageM.
See the VidGems drawer in your NewTek/Effects drawer
See the VidGems drawer in your LightWave 3D objects
See the VidGems drawer in your NewTek/Framestore drawer
See the VG_ColorFont drawer in your NewTek/PSFonts drawer
If you are using an A4000-based system, try loading the 'Spiral'
Framestore and then activate the 'Spiral' effect which matches it.
These special pairs of Framestores and matching wipes are unique
with VideoGems and can create some eye-catching sparkle in your
Projects.
*********************************************************************
********************* AV8RPro & AV8RPro+ ************************
*********************** REBATE OFFERS **************************
*********************************************************************
SPECIAL $25 REBATE OFFER ON AV8RPro OR AV8RPro+ !
SPECIAL $25 REBATE OFFER ON AV8RPro JOG WHEEL CONTROLLER !
HURRY - REBATE OFFER EXPIRES on June 30, 1997 !
To get your rebates -
Purchase a new AV8RPro or AV8RPro+ by June 30, 1997 for a
$25 rebate.
Purchase a new AV8RPro jog-wheel controller at the same time
for the ADDITIONAL $25 rebate.
Send registration card & proof of purchase by July 15, 1997
to MegageM and we'll send your rebate directly to you.
Note: Only NEW purchases of these products are eligible for
these special rebate offers. Purchase verification
required.
Rebate offered ONLY to end user retail purchases.
NO dealers, distributors, or resellers are eligible.
Rebate offer may not be combined with any other discounts
or special offers if purchased direct from MegageM.
Maximum $50 rebate TOTAL to any one account, address, or
person.
Rebate offer ends on June 30, 1997 without exception.
SEE THE SCREEN SHOT IMAGES OF AV8RPro.IFF AND AV8RPro+.IFF
INCLUDED WITH THIS FREE YBT 4.2 DISTRIBUTION. THEY'LL BE
IN YOUR NEWTEK DRAWER!
*********************************************************************
******************* AV8RPro Product Summary *********************
*********************************************************************
The unified, all-in-one Flyer EDL, Timeline, Edit Support System
*** AV8RPro EDL ***
* Crouton name, type, Program Start Time, Duration (or End Time)
* Color-coded to visually match timeline display
* Instant highlight/select with mouse or keyboard shortcuts
* Instantly SAVE entire Flyer Project EDL to text file in ram: disk
* Instant match frame views of clip edit points
*** AV8RPro Timeline ***
* Automatic FAST update of the timeline and EDL after edits
* Display 10, 30, 50, 60, 120, ...300, 600 seconds (11 choices)
* Color-coded 'bars'- size corresponds to project element duration
* Eight timelines for A-video, B-video, Wipes, CG, & 4 audio channels
* Toggle time mark overlays for 1 second, 10 seconds, and 60 seconds
* Select/highlight instantly jumps to selected location in clip
* Traverse project with slider, arrow keys, or jog wheel on controller
* Time cursor marks paused, jogged, or shuttled location on timeline
* Extended timeline object highlight/selection
* The same FAST timeline format as YBT, but even more capabilities
*** AV8RPro GUI Edit Controls ***
* Play Edit from inpoint to outpoint
* Play All from paused point or full clip (beginning to end)
* Pause - still display, like a VCR pause
* Stop - goes to black
* Jog Forward & Reverse - 4-field jog
* Shuttle Forward & Reverse - 1X and 5X speeds
* Set Inpoint & Set Outpoint
* Goto Inpoint & Goto Outpoint
instant jump to display edit points of clip
* Goto First and Goto End
instant jump to a 'still' display of zero and last frames of clip
* Edit video clips, audio clips, and mixed A/V clips
separate audio, video, or combined editing of A/V clips
*** AV8RPro GUI SMPTE Time Code Readouts ***
* SMPTE Readouts
timeline display start and end times
selected clip InPoint and OutPoint
* Program & Clip Timecode Displays Updated in Real Time!
During Pause, Jog, and Shuttle operations
*** Many Other Features ***
* Fluid, responsive, 100% SUPER-FAST assembly language
* Re-calculate EDL and timeline up to 50 croutons per second!
* Non-destructive edit functions
* Audio-sync-to-video automatic audio alignment feature
single keystroke Foley edits!
* Instant interactive auto-sync tools
video to audio
video to video
CG to video or audio
Chroma FX to video or audio
* Fully integrated into Flyer/Toaster 'Programs Popup' menu system
* Works w/ CoPilot & other Flyer support tools
* Low memory use for easy multitasking
* Attractive, low-flicker 3D-look modern style GUI
* Hot keys for most functions AND full Amiga menus, too
* 'At a glance' reference for all project element timing relations
* Automatically detects and pinpoints Flyer audio track overloads!
* GUI button to jumps to Flyer/Toaster screen
* GUI 'trim' buttons
instaly modify clip InPoint, OutPoint & Still/Framestore durations
+/- 2 or +/- 10 frames
* Instant FREEZE, SAVE, & LOAD paused clip field as 24-bit RGB
to/from file in ram disk
freeze paused clip single field to Toaster DV1
*** AV8RPro Optional Hardware Jog-Wheel Edit Controller ***
* Professional look and feel, with durable all metal construction
made by JL Cooper exclusively for MegageM
* Jog wheel and 8 buttons
* Smooth jog wheel 'scrub' action
* 18 editing and operation functions
Play, Pause, Stop, FF, REW, Set Inpoint & Set Outpoint and more
***********************************************************************
*************** AV8RPro+ Adds VCR Tape Deck Control *****************
*************** Tape Logging and AutoDigitizing *****************
***********************************************************************
AV8RPro+ is a BRAND NEW version of AV8RPro which adds VCR deck controls
(play, pause, etc.), tape logging, and automatic batch digitizing to all
the great features already in AV8RPro. AV8RPro+ works with many popular
VCR decks and camcorders that have RS422 or Control-L (LANC) industry-
standard control protocol capabilities.
***********************************************************************
********************* AV8RPro and AV8RPro+ Prices *********************
***********************************************************************
AV8RPro List Prices
$599.95 with jog-wheel edit controller for the Flyer
$349.95 software only
AV8RPro+ List Prices
$489.95 for RS422 decks (includes RS422 adapter/cable)
$549.95 for Control-L decks (includes Control-L adapter/cable)
Add $249.95 for the optional jog-wheel edit controller for the Flyer
Prices & specifications are subject to change without notice.
SEE THE SCREEN SHOT IMAGES OF AV8RPro.IFF AND AV8RPro+.IFF
INCLUDED WITH THIS FREE YBT 4.2 DISTRIBUTION. THEY'LL BE
IN YOUR NEWTEK DRAWER.
***********************************************************************
***********************************************************************
***********************************************************************
** AV8RPro and Pro+ use the same FAST timeline display system as YBT **
***********************************************************************
***********************************************************************
***********************************************************************
** YBT - YBT - YBT - YBT - YBT - YBT - YBT - YBT - YBT - YBT - YBT **
***********************************************************************
***********************************************************************
YBT - Special Flyer 4.2 Version - Program Documentation
*** About YBT ***
YBT is a fast timeline display for your Flyer 4.2.
This YBT is A FREE GIFT TO YOU FROM MegageM Digital Media.
If you like the timeline display and wish to have a greatly
enhanced timeline editing system with many additional features,
get AV8RPro or AV8RPro+. Complete information on both of those
programs is printed above. This gift is MegageM's way of
introducing you to the timeline concept for the NewTek Flyer.
MegageM hopes you like having YBT, an alternative way of viewing
your Flyer Projects, and that your experiences with YBT will
lead you to consider adding the more powerful AV8RPro or AV8RPro+
programs to your Flyer system.
Special rebate offers are also included here. Take a moment to
look over the AV8RPro and AV8RPro+ information and rebate offers
above. Thank you for trying YBT.
MegageM also thanks the many people at NewTek and in the Flyer
community who have supported the development of these advanced
timeline products.
*** Requirements to run YBT for Flyer 4.2 ***
You MUST have:
The NewTek Flyer 4.2 System
A PLAYABLE PROJECT up in the Toaster or Flyer.
About 150K of chip ram for YBT to open its screen.
*** Running YBT ***
To run the YBT:
1. Start your Flyer with the supplied 'FlyerPlusYBT' icon
You can find this icon in your Newtek drawer after you install
the new Flyer 4.2 update system.
This special icon is just like the ordinary 'StartToaster' icon
except it adds YBT to appear in the Flyer's Program Popup menu.
2. Get a PLAYABLE PROJECT up into the Flyer Project Window.
3. Select YBT from the Flyer's Program Popup Menu.
Use this simple 3-step procedure to start YBT. YBT is not intended
to run by clicking on its Workbench icon. It is intended only to run
from within the Flyer's own user interface Programs Popup Menu and
only when a Project is already loaded into your Flyer.
*** An Alternative Method ***
There is an alternative if you have already started your Flyer from
the original NewTek 'StartToaster' icon.
1. After the Flyer is running, double-click on the 'addybt.rexx'
icon. That will place YBT into the Flyer Programs Popup menu.
2. Get a PLAYABLE PROJECT up into the Flyer Project Window.
3. Select YBT from the Flyer's Program Popup Menu.
In other words, the 'addybt.rexx' is another way to get YBT to
appear on the Flyer's Programs Popup Menu.
*** About YBT's Timeline ***
YBT lets you see your Flyer 4.2 project on a timeline.
The timeline shows the elements of your project as horizontal colored
'bars'. The horizontal length of a colored 'bar' corresponds to the
time duration of that project element. For example, you might have
a Toaster Framestore element in your project which lasts 10 seconds
and a Flyer Clip element in the same project which lasts 20 seconds.
YBT's timeline 'bar' for the Framestore will be 1/2 the length of the
'bar' which YBT shows for the Clip. A timeline lets you see time and
sequencing information about your project in a way that is completely
hidden when you view the project with the NewTek user interface
'crouton' display. This is especially true of Flyer projects with
audio overlapping video and multiple channels of audio, at that.
Color Coding the Timeline
YBT also uses the color of a timeline bar to denote what kind of
project element it represents. A Flyer video clip appears as an
orange 'bar', while a Framestore (also a video object) appears as
a red 'bar'. Audio clips appear green, and so on.
Positionally Coding the Timeline
YBT also uses a bar's vertical position to denote it's 'type'. For
example, a Flyer video object (Framestore, Flyer video clip, etc.)
will appear on one of two vertical positions on the timeline. Audio
clips (and tracks of video clips which contain their own audio)
appear on one of four vertical positions for the Flyer's four audio
stereo channels.
If too many different types of objects appeared at the same vertical
position, their overlap would create more confusion than does the
crouton-only GUI.
Having different types of objects on 'separate timelines', you can
easily observe when video effects start and end with respect to the
end of one video object and the start of another. Likewise, the
timeline display with different 'tracks' lets you observe the timing
relations between audio and video and switching events. Hooray!
You can get a clear display of the timing relations which are
critical to rapidly creating effective Toaster and Flyer projects.
*** The YBT Display Layout ***
The top half of YBT's screen shows a list of up to 32 elements of
your project. This list shows each element's file name, element
type, video starting time, video duration, audio starting time,
and audio duration. You can also switch this display to show
'ending' times instead of duration times with a single keystroke.
The items in the list have their element type and video starting
time color-coded to match the element's timeline bar display to
make it easy to visually relate the list entries to their
timeline bars.
In the middle of the screen are two sliders - a large timeline
slider and a smaller timeline scale slider.
You can move the timeline slider to select which project element
becomes the 'start' of the timeline (and also the top item in the
list display). The timeline slider automatically adjusts to the
number of 'croutons' in your project.
You can move the timeline scale slider to adjust the displayed
length of the timeline bars and also adjust how many elements
will 'fit' the fixed timeline display window. The scale factor
slider has 11 possible positions which let you view from 10
seconds to 10 minutes in the timeline display area below.
The YBT timeline occupies the bottom part of the screen.
It shows a labelled set of 8 timeline bar displays within
a large rectangular region.
At the far lower left of the display is a numerical indicator
of the project element which is at the 'top of the list'.
At the lower left corner of the timeline display area is a time
code which indicates the current 'starting time' of the timeline
itself. This is always the same as the topmost 'video' starting
time in the list display at the top of the screen and serves as
a reference time value for the remainder of the timeline.
*** Features ***
The Timeline Slider:
Operates with the mouse or the Amiga Right- and Left-Arrow keys.
Steps through the project with single clicks or slides through
the project (keep your eye on the numerical indicator at lower
left corner of the screen).
Selects the current 'top' project item in the display list which
is also the 'leftmost' item on the timeline display.
Clears the display of the time scale 'hash' marks.
The Scale Factor Slider:
Operates with the mouse or the Amiga Up- and Down-Arrow keys.
Is non-linear: successive positions of this slider are not
exactly equal steps as in the usual Amiga slider. You get
a series of steps which correspond to how many video fields
are represented by a single pixel width of the display on
the timeline: (1 field is 1/60 second of video). The timeline
is about 600 pixels wide, so the available options of this
slider correspond to:
1 field per pixel 10 seconds total display
2 field per pixel 20 seconds total display
3 fields per pixel 30 seconds total display
5 fields per pixel 50 seconds total display
6 fields per pixel 60 seconds total display ( 1 minute)
10 fields per pixel 100 seconds total display
12 fields per pixel 120 seconds total display ( 2 minutes)
15 fields per pixel 150 seconds total display
20 fields per pixel 200 seconds total display
30 fields per pixel 300 seconds total display ( 5 minutes)
60 fields per pixel 600 seconds total display (10 minutes)
No higher-order scalings are provided because they would
fail to display events of 1 second.
When you move the Scaling Slider, the color-coded time
hash marks magically appear vertically overwriting the
timeline area to show the time divisions directly on the
color-coded timeline bars.
The 'black' hash marks denote 1 second.
The 'green' hash marks denote 10 seconds.
The 'red' hash marks denote 60 seconds.
The one-second black hash marks are NOT DRAWN once they are
too close to be useful, leaving the 10-second and 60-second
on display - and the hashmarks stay useful and clean-looking.
Clearing the hash marks is easy - just move the time slider
or use the keyboard 'C' key (or 'c' key).
The Keyboard HotKeys:
The 'A' (or 'a') key toggles between letting you see the
video and audio 'duration' times or the video and audio
'ending' times on the upper screen's text crouton and time
code display area.
The 'R' (or 'r') key performs a RE-DO (a reanalysis of the
entire project) which takes about 1 second per 50 croutons.
The 'C' (or 'c') key performs a hash-mark removal if they're
in your way.
The 'P' (or 'p') key jumps you to the end of your project.
The 'Q' (or 'q') key jumps to the beginning of the project.
The 'M' (or 'm') key jumps to the middle of the project.
The 'H' (or 'h') key steps DOWN the crouton text list and
highlights corresponding crouton on the timeline graphic display.
The 'I' (or 'i') key steps UP the crouton text list and
highlights corresponding crouton on the timeline graphic display.
The 'E' (or 'e') key displays a 'end of list' vertical line
marker which shows the 'crouton' at which the displayed list
ends (in case the timeline actually shows more events than can
be listed).
The Arrow Keys -
Up-Arrow and Down-Arrow control the Scale Slider
Left-Arrow and Right-Arrow control the Timeline Slider
The Menus:
The QUIT and RE-DO commands are obtained via usual Amiga
menu options, which include Right-Amiga-Key alternatives,
Q and R, respectively.
There is also a command quick-reference guide BUILT INTO the
menu display which shows all keystroke commands, ARexx
commands, and relevant display information guides.
ARexx:
The QUIT and REDO commands can be achieved from ARexx.
The PORT NAME for Yer Basic Timeline is YBT (for the ARexx
'ADDRESS command). To perform the available commands from
an ARexx script, use this form:
ADDRESS YBT
QUIT
or
ADDRESS YBT
REDO
etc.
Color Codes:
Orange Flyer Video
Red Framestores and Flyer Stills
Purple CG Scrolls
Blue CG Keys
Dark Green Video part of Flyer mixed Video/Audio clips
Bright Green Audio
Yellow ILBM Switcher Effects (color cycle wipes, etc.)
BlueGreen ALGO Switcher Effects (smooth fade, etc.)
Pink ANIM Switcher Effects (Falling Sheep, etc.)
and there are more for you to discover.
Select/Highlighting Feature:
Use the 'h' or 'i' key to step through the EDL text list of croutons
on YBT's upper display. You'll see a small bright yellow 'bullet'
line appear both at the far left of the crouton's file name as well
as between the crouton's 'type' and 'start time' text displays.
Simultaneously, the corresponding timeline graphic colored 'bar' (or
'bars' if there is split audio) will be highlighted by an underline
of white.
This feature lets you quickly slip up and down the crouton list and
instantly see the corresponding visual reference to that item on the
graphic timeline display.
Additional ARexx Information
ARexx command: FRONT
This brings YBT's screen to the front.
You should have no need to use this command yourself. I use it in
the startybt.rexx, redoybt.rexx, and jumpybt.rexx scripts to bring
YBT's screen to the front for you.
ARexx command: JUMP
This permits the YBT-JUMP script to simulate pressing the
'v' key and jump to have the timeline start at the crouton
you've selected in the Flyer Project.
Additional Information on the Flyer Programs Popup Options
You have THREE YBT-related options here:
a. YBT
When you select YBT from the Toaster/Flyer PROGRAMS POPUP:
IF YBT IS NOT RUNNING - it will start.
IF YBT IS RUNNING - it will jump to the front for you.
YBT tries to 'remember' whichever crouton you may have had
selected in the Flyer Project when you activate YBT on the
Programs Popup. You should be able to immediately use the
'v' key to jump to that crouton after YBT starts.
b. YBT-REDO
I added a YBT-REDO to the popup created by StartToaster&YBT
You can use this to bring YBT to the front and do a 'REDO',
then a 'JUMP' to the crouton all in one go.
This is quite useful as when you do a REDO, it will usually
be because you just changed the timing of some Flyer Project
crouton which is still 'selected'. YBT-REDO will let you
IMMEDIATELY see the effect of that.
IF YBT IS RUNNING
- brings YBT to the front
- does a REDO
- does a JUMP to the selected Flyer Project crouton
IF YBT IS NOT RUNNING - does nothing.
c. YBT-JUMP
This completely automates the 'v' key option in YBT. You
select a crouton in your Flyer Project and simply do this
YBT-JUMP option - YBT will appear and the jump will occur
all in one go.
IF YBT IS RUNNING - brings YBT up front and does the jump.
IF YBT IS NOT RUNNING - does nothing.
IF YBT IS RUNNING but you have NOT selected a crouton - just
brings YBT to front, like hitting YBT on the popup.
YBT-related files you get:
YBT The program itself
addybt.rexx An ARexx program to add YBT, YBT-REDO, and
YBT-JUMP to the Toaster's Programs popup
(if you need to do this yourself).
startybt.rexx The ARexx program which the Toaster/Flyer
will use to start YBT if you have YBT
installed on the Programs Popup (which
it will be if you use the StartToaster&YBT
icon OR if you do the addybt.rexx yourself).
redoybt.rexx The ARexx program which performs the YBT-REDO.
jumpybt.rexx The ARExx program which performs the YBT-JUMP.
FlyerPlusYBT A replacement for your 'StartToaster' icon.
If you use this instead of the usual old
'StartToaster' icon, then YBT (and a couple
convenient YBT options like REDO and JUMP)
will appear on the Progrms Popup (under
LightWave, etc.) when you start the
Toaster/Flyer system.
How to Run YBT
1.
Start your Flyer4.2 system (preferably with the
'FlyerPlusYBT' replacement icon you get with this disk).
2.
Bring up a playable project into your Toaster/Flyer system.
3.
Click your mouse on the 'Programs' popup menu on the Toaster
screen.
4.
Slide the mouse down to the YBT entry at the bottom of the
Programs popup.
5.
YBT will start and jump up front and show you it is analyzing
the project.
6.
Refer to the YBTDox.txt file, or activate the Amiga program
menu in YBT. You'll get full details about how to use the
keyboard shortcuts to navigate your project and activate
YBT's cool features.
7.
Quitting from YBT requires you access the Menu Quit command.
Current Known Limitations of YBT
Try to stick to actual PLAYABLE projects. YBT will always try to
intelligently decode your project, but it will stumble the same
ways the Toaster/Flyer can stumble - e.g. if you have two effects
in a row, etc. You may wish to assure your project is PLAYABLE
before running it past YBT. There are a few known limitations and
we'll be trying to address even these few odd cases...
Animation Overlay Effects
There is a small family of Toaster effects, including the 'Atom',
'Wedding Bells', and so on. These place little continuous running
animations on top of a video source or clip, etc. The actual time
they run is NOT properly shown in YBT. The duration YBT shows is
ALWAYS 1 second for these effects.
STOP Croutons
The STOP Crouton won't hurt anything, but it FORCES all time values
AFTER it to a single value and things appear to 'pile up' on the
time line after a STOP crouton. A STOP Crouton WILL cause WRONG
time values and timeline positions of ALL croutons which succeed it.
CRFX Croutons
Chroma FX should now show correct durations and end times under Flyer
4.2. They'll also show up in the timeline properly.
The BLANK Crouton
This can be a bit of an unfriendly crouton. It always appears at the
start of the timeline with a fixed duration. It is not intended as
a 'real' project entry. It will do no harm, it just can't really
be understood by programs like YBT - it is in a class by itself.
Note that CoPilot and other programs may make use of the BLANK Crouton
and it will cause no harm - it just can't line up in your YBT timeline
display where you might think it would.
Otherwise, YBT does a pretty good job of deciphering croutons and
their timing relations - framestores, clips, split audio, most effects,
CG pages, and more (the practical usable project items) work just fine.
If you do find a problem related to a particular crouton type or
ordering situation, please report it to MegageM so we can try to
make YBT even smarter.
In general, the croutons which lead to minor difficulties in YBT are
all croutons which are odd, rarely used, or otherwise really more
applicable to LIVE video than to actual playable projects.
Copyright 1996-7 by Daniel Wolf
May 1, 1997