Table Of Contents
Creating and Managing Playlists for Video Playback
Creating and Managing Playlists for TV-Out Playback
Supported MPEG File Specifications
Enabling the TV-Out Feature
Configuring TV-Out Devices
Disabling the TV-Out Feature
About Playlists
Creating Playlists
Adding Media and Overlay Images to Playlists
Building a Media Playlist
Adding an Overlay Image to a Playlist
Setting Playback Schedules for Playlists
Assigning Content Engines to Playlists
Assigning Device Groups to Playlists
Viewing the Playback Guide
Creating and Managing Playlists for Video Playback
This chapter provides information about creating and managing playlists. It contains the following sections:
•
Creating and Managing Playlists for TV-Out Playback
•Creating Playlists
•Assigning Content Engines to Playlists
•Assigning Device Groups to Playlists
•Viewing the Playback Guide
Creating and Managing Playlists for TV-Out Playback
Content Engines that are equipped with an integrated Moving Picture Experts Group (MPEG) decoder are also known as TV-out enabled devices. These devices play media files using National Television Standards Committee (NTSC) or Phase Alternation Line (PAL) video signals. The Content Engine can thus play video directly to a TV monitor in applications such as kiosks, cable TV systems, and video walls.
A playlist is a list of media files and their associated attributes that defines when and how the files are played back. A playtime is a schedule set up for a playlist. You can set up between one and ten playtime schedules for a playlist. Playback is the playing of the playlist as specified by a playtime.
Playlists are created and managed by the Content Distribution Manager and then played across one or more TV-out devices.
Supported MPEG File Specifications
Table 9-1 lists the supported MPEG file specifications for TV-out enabled devices.
Table 9-1 MPEG File Specifications
Specification
|
Description
|
MPEG stream type
|
MPEG-1 system stream
MPEG-2 program stream
MPEG-2 transport stream
|
MPEG video
|
MPEG-1—4:2:0 Constrained Parameter Bitstream
MPEG-2—4:2:0 Main Profile (MP) at Main Level (ML)
|
MPEG audio
|
Layers 1 and 2 at 32 kHz, 44.1 kHz, 49 kHz
|
Data rate
|
Up to 15 Mbps
|
Video resolution
|
NTSC
352 x 240 at 30 frames per second (fps)
352 x 480 at 30 fps
480 x 480 at 30 fps
544 x 480 at 30 fps
704 x 480 at 30 fps
720 x 480 at 30 fps
PAL
352 x 288 at 24 fps
352 x 576 at 24 fps
480 x 576 at 24 fps
544 x 576 at 24 fps
704 x 576 at 24 fps
720 x 576 at 24 fps
|
Enabling the TV-Out Feature
In order to create and manage playlists using the Content Distribution Manager, you must first enable and then configure the TV-out feature on the Content Engine. Enabling the TV-out feature will succeed only if supported audio and video hardware can be detected on the Content Engine. This is done automatically when you enable the TV-out feature.
To enable TV-out, enter the following ACNS software command from the CLI:
Console(config)# tvout enable
Configuring TV-Out Devices
TV-out enabled devices, such as Content Engines, can be configured for signal output and playlist management. You need to designate the TV signal output format that is used when delivering content from a TV-out enabled device to a TV monitor.
To configure a Content Engine for video output, make sure that TV-out is enabled and then enter the following ACNS software command from the CLI:
Console(config)# tvout signal {ntsc | pal}
where ntsc is the National Television Systems Committee standard and pal is the Phase Alternating Line standard. NTSC is the default.
Disabling the TV-Out Feature
Disabling TV-out unloads the TV-out driver and stops all associated software. To disable TV-out, enter the following ACNS software command from the CLI:
Console(config)# no tvout enable
About Playlists
From the Content Distribution Manager GUI, you can configure and schedule playlists across one or more TV-out enabled devices such as Content Engines. The Content Distribution Manager additionally provides the storage of playlist information as needed for data recovery on individual Content Engines.
The schedules of playlists may overlap on a particular device, causing playback of one playlist to be preempted by another playlist. Preemption is handled based on the start time of the playlist. Playlists with later start times preempt playlists with earlier start times.
Creating Playlists
All playlists initially have a default name that you can change, along with a set of attributes. To create and manage playlists, follow these steps:
Step 1 Choose System > Playlists. All playlists are displayed and are configured from this window. Click the Create a New Playlist icon. The Adding a New Playlist window appears. (See Figure 9-1.)
Figure 9-1 Adding a New Playlist Window
Step 2 Enter a name for the playlist in the Name field.
Step 3 Enter a description of the playlist in the Description field. This step is optional.
Step 4 Enter search keywords, separated by commas, in the Key Words field. This step is optional.
Step 5 Check the Shuffle check box if you want the media files to be played in random order. The default is unchecked.
Step 6 Check the Graceful Exit check box if you want the playlist to stop and close only after its current media file has finished playing. The default is unchecked.
Step 7 Click Submit. The Playlists window appears with the new playlist added to the top of the list.
Note If the Graceful Exit feature is enabled in playlist that is being launched, then the launch window size of a second playlist must have the same or larger launch window size of the first playlist, or else the second playlist will not play.
Adding Media and Overlay Images to Playlists
Playlists let you assemble a series of media files from different channels and play them in a defined order on any video-out enabled device. You can associate one overlay image with each playlist. The user sees this image displayed in a determinable screen location when the playlist it is associated with is playing. Overlay images are useful for displaying logos.
Building a Media Playlist
To add media files to a playlist, follow these steps:
Step 1 Choose System > Playlists. The Playlists window appears with existing playlists listed.
Step 2 Click the Edit icon next to the playlist to which you want to add media files.
Step 3 Choose Media from the Contents pane. The Assigning Media Files to Playlist window appears. (See Figure 9-2.) The left pane displays channels and the right pane displays media files currently in the playlist. You can add more media files to the playlist.
Figure 9-2 Assigning Media Files to Playlist Window
Step 4 In the left pane, choose the channel whose media files you want to display. Click Use Selected Channel.
Step 5 Search for the channel's media files by entering the search criteria in the Criteria field. Use an asterisk (*) to match zero or more characters, or a question mark (?) to match exactly one character. For example, use "*.mpg" for all files with the suffix "mpg," and "file?.mpg" to match file1.mpg, file2.mpg, and so on. Click Use Criteria. All media files in the selected channel that match the criteria appear.
Step 6 Check the check box next to each media file that you want to add to the playlist. Click Add. The media file appears in the right pane at the bottom of the list.
Step 7 In the right pane, you can use the Up Arrow and Down Arrow keys to move a media file up or down one position in the list. Unless you check the Shuffle check box in the Playlist Information window, files are played in the order in which they are listed.
Note that the up and down arrows are only displayed if the list of media files in the playlist is sorted by position. However, for example, if you sort the media files alphabetically, then the arrows do not appear.
Adding an Overlay Image to a Playlist
Note Overlay images must be Windows bitmap files with 16 colors. They must have 4 bits per pixel and must be less than 64 KB in size. The width of the image (in pixels) must be divisible by 8. Before associating an overlay image, open the image file in an image editor and view its properties to make sure that it meets the above requirements.
To add an overlay image to a playlist, follow these steps:
Step 1 In the Assigning Media Files to Playlist window, display a channel's media files.
Step 2 Check the check box next to the media file that you want to use as an overlay image.
Step 3 Click Add Overlay. The Overlay Settings pane appears and contains the image name and the channel from which it was obtained.
Step 4 You can edit the parameters of the overlay image by specifying and adjusting its location on the TV-out monitor, specifying the overall opacity of the image, and choosing whether you want one color to be transparent. To modify the overlay image, see the parameter descriptions in Table 9-2.
Table 9-2 Overlay Image Parameters
Image Parameter
|
Description
|
Placement
|
Specifies where the overlay image should appear on the TV-out monitor. Your options are upper left, upper right, lower left, lower right, and center.
|
Height offset
|
Adjusts placement along the vertical axis. The valid range is from -40 to 40 pixels.
-40 = Moves the image to the lowest possible position on the display.
40 = Moves the image to the uppermost position on the display.
|
Width offset
|
Adjusts placement along the horizontal axis. The valid range is from -60 to 60 pixels.
-60 = Moves the image to the left-most possible position on the display.
60 = Moves the image to the right-most possible position on the display.
|
Opacity
|
Adjusts the opacity of the overlay image. The valid range is from 0 to 15.
0 = Renders the image completely opaque.
15 = Renders the image nearly transparent.
|
Transparent Color
|
Enables or disables the use of transparent color. When checked, the color of the pixel in the lower left corner of the image is transparent over the entire image. When a transparency-enabled image is placed over a video, the background color of the overlay image is not visible against the video playing behind it. This is useful if you want to use a nonrectangular image as your overlay.
|
Step 5 Click Submit.
Step 6 Click Edit Overlay Settings to return to the list of media files in the current playlist.
Setting Playback Schedules for Playlists
To set automatic playback schedules for playlists, follow these steps:
Step 1 Choose System > Playlists. The Playlists window appears with existing playlists listed.
Step 2 Click the Edit icon next to the playlist for which you want to set playback schedules.
Step 3 Choose Schedule from the Contents pane. The Scheduling Playlist window appears. (See Figure 9-3.)
Figure 9-3 Scheduling Playlist Window
Step 4 Click the Loop Playback Continuously radio button if you want the playlist to play in a continuous loop. Alternatively, click the Do Not Schedule Playback radio button (the default) if you do not want to set a playback schedule for the playlist.
Step 5 Click Submit.
Step 6 If you want to schedule up to ten playback times per playlist, then click the Schedule Playback radio button. The Playtimes control tool appears.
Note No two playback times for a single playlist can have the same start time.
Step 7 To add a playtime (that is, the time a playback is scheduled to play) click the Add a New Play Time icon, which is in the Play Times header. A new playtime selection is added to the list, and the Playtime Editor pane appears. Configure the playtime by entering the necessary information in the appropriate fields. To save the playtime, click Submit.
Step 8 To remove an existing playtime, check the check box in the Remove column that is next to the playtime selection you want to remove and click Submit.
Step 9 To edit an existing playtime, click the Edit icon next to the scheduled playtime that you want to change. Change the schedule and playback options as necessary. Table 9-3 explains the fields under the Editing Play Time heading shown in Figure 9-3.
Note The dates and times that are entered and displayed are honored according to the local times on the device.
Table 9-3 Playlist Schedule Settings
Schedule Setting
|
Description
|
Start Playback on
|
Local time that the playlist starts playing. This field is required.
|
Playback Once and Stop
|
Playlist is played only once and is stopped.
You must choose either this option or the Loop for option.
|
Loop for
|
Playlist repeats for the specified duration.
You must choose either this option or the Playback Once and Stop option.
|
Do Not Repeat
|
Playback occurs only once and does not repeat.
You must choose this option, the Repeat Every option, or the Repeat weekly at <start time> on selected days option.
|
Repeat every
|
Playback repeats every minute, hour, or day at the specified interval (for example, every 10 minutes).
You must choose this option, the Do Not Repeat option, or the Repeat Weekly at <start time> on Selected Days option.
|
Repeat Weekly at <start time> on selected days
|
Playback repeats weekly at the local time indicated the Start Playback on option.
If you choose this option, you must also choose either the Do Not Repeat option or the Repeat Every option.
|
Step 10 Click Submit.
Assigning Content Engines to Playlists
Note You can only assign TV-out enabled Content Engines to playlists in the Content Distribution Manager.
To assign a TV-out enabled Content Engine or a group of Content Engines to a playlist, follow these steps:
Step 1 Choose System > Playlists. The Playlists window appears with existing playlists listed.
Step 2 Click the Edit icon next to the playlist to which you want to assign a Content Engine. The Modifying Playlist window appears.
Step 3 In the Contents pane, choose Assign content engines. The Assigning Content Engines to Playlist window appears. (See Figure 9-4.)
The left pane displays all locations of Content Engines and the right pane displays Content Engines currently assigned to this playlist.
Figure 9-4 Assigning Content Engines to Playlist Window
Step 4 In the left pane, choose the location of the Content Engines that you want to display. A list of all Content Engines in the location appears.
Step 5 Check the check box next to the Content Engine that you want to assign to the playlist. Click Add. The Content Engine is now assigned to the playlist and appears in the right pane.
Step 6 To remove a Content Engine that has been assigned to the playlist, check the check box next to the Content Engine in the right pane and click Remove Selected CEs.
Assigning Device Groups to Playlists
You can assign one or more device groups to a playlist. A device group is a set of devices that share common qualities and capabilities and can be assigned to one or more channels. Some common qualities might include disk capacity, distribution minimum bandwidth, or routing properties. One channel can have many device groups assigned to it.
Device groups are assigned through the Content Distribution Manager GUI. When a channel is created, additional groups are added, or a device group assignment changes, devices in the group are notified of their assignment to the associated channel. Each device can subscribe to more than one channel.
To assign a device group to a playlist, follow these steps:
Step 1 Choose System > Playlists. The Playlists window appears with existing playlists listed.
Step 2 Click the Edit icon next to the playlist to which you want to assign a device group. The Modifying Playlist window appears.
Step 3 In the Contents pane, choose Assign device groups. The Assigning Content Engines to Channels window appears. (See Figure 9-5.)
Figure 9-5 Assigning Content Engines to Channels Window
Step 4 In the left pane, check the check box next to the device groups that you want to assign to the current playlist and click Add Selected DGs. The selected device groups appear in the right pane.
Step 5 To remove a previously assigned device group from the playlist, in the right pane check the check box next to the device groups you want to remove from the playlist and click Remove Selected DGs.
Step 6 Click Submit.
Viewing the Playback Guide
You can view a playback guide that displays playlists by date for a selected Content Engine. Playback schedules can be viewed by day, week, month, or year.
To view the playback guide, follow these steps:
Step 1 Choose Devices > Content Engines. The Content Engines window appears with a current list of
Content Engines.
Step 2 Click the Edit icon next to the Content Engine whose playback guide you want to view.
Step 3 Choose Content Services > TV-out Playback Guide from the Contents pane. The Playback Guide for Content Engine window appears. (See Figure 9-6.)
Figure 9-6 Playback Guide for Content Engine Window
Step 4 Choose the Day, Week, Month, or Year tab to view the playback schedules. Scheduled playlists are listed by start time (initial start time plus any repeat intervals). Times begin with the current device time (current system time plus device time zone offset).
