User Guide for Cisco Digital Media Designer 5.3.x

Procedures

Welcome

Revised: November 15, 2011
OL-21601-02

Procedures

•Log In

•Start DMD

•Choose Where to Begin

•Set the Orientation and Size of a New, Blank Canvas

Log In

Before You Begin

•Verify that you have an account.

•Verify that you know the server address.

Procedure

Step 1 Point your browser at your Cisco Digital Media Manager (DMM) server.

a. Be sure to enter the full DNS name for your server.

A DNS name always includes some letters. Do not enter the server IP address, which uses numbers only.

b. After you enter the server DNS name, add a colon and the number 8080, and then press Enter.

For example, http://dmm.example.com:8080.

Step 2 When the login page loads, sign in to your account.

Note The "look and feel" of our login prompt can vary, depending on how your administrator configures your server to authenticate its user sessions. The prompt might look broadly like any of these illustrated variants. Or, your organization might "re-skin" its login prompts to match organizational branding.


Login Variant 1	Login Variant 2	Login Variant 3

Tip When you see the older style login prompt (illustrated here against a blue background) or you see "Variant 1," you can click Contact your administrator if you forget your account details or you have not obtained an account. Then, you can then write and send an email message that tells your administrator what you need. However, when you see either "Variant 2" or "Variant 3," there is no equivalent method to contact your administrator unless or until your organization re-skins the prompt.

Step 3 Click Log In.

Step 4 Stop. You have completed this procedure.

Start DMD

Procedure

Step 1 When the DMM landing page loads, do one of the following.

•Choose Digital Signs from the global navigation.

•Click Digital Signs on the landing page.

Cisco Digital Signs loads.

Step 2 Choose Digital Signage > Presentations, and then click Start Digital Media Designer 2.0.

Step 3 DMD starts.

Step 4 Stop. You have completed this procedure.

Choose Where to Begin

Procedure

Step 1 Choose where to begin.


•Would you like to design a new presentation on a blank canvas?	When you will start an entirely new design a. Click Start with a Blank Presentation. DMD loads a canvas over which you have complete control.
•Would you like to design a new presentation from a template?	When you will base a design on a template a. Click Start from a Template. DMD loads its template library. b. Scroll to your preferred template, click it, and then click OK.
•Would you like to resume work in whichever design you modified most recently?	When a design project has been interrupted or postponed a. Click the Open Last Modified entry.
•Would you like to open an existing presentation or template to edit it?	When you will edit a presentation or template a. Click Open Existing....

Step 2 Stop. You have completed this procedure.

Set the Orientation and Size of a New, Blank Canvas

Procedure

Step 1 Click Canvas in the Objects drawer.

Step 2 Click an orientation in the Properties drawer.


•	landscape	(horizontal orientation)
•	portait	(vertical orientation)

Step 3 Choose a canvas size that matches the native resolution of your presentation system. .

Note The video signal cable that connects a digital sign to a DMP 4310G constrains which native resolutions the DMP can detect automatically. This is a microprocessor limitation in the DMP 4310G. Only HDMI-standard resolutions are detectable over an HDMI cable, while only VESA-standard resolutions are detectable over a DVI cable.

Native resolution for a digital sign rarely deviates from the expected standard. When it does deviate, your DMP proceeds as if the native resolution is 1080i, which is permissible only over HDMI. Therefore, it does not work as expected over a DVI cable. (This behavior does not affect a DMP 4305G or a DMP 4400G. These models do not use the same microprocessor that a DMP 4310G uses.)

If this affects your DMP, disable the autodetect feature in DMPDM, and then choose the actual resolution manually.

Define Canvas Properties

Before You Begin

Is your canvas locked? You cannot change a locked canvas.

Procedure

Step 1 Click Canvas in the Objects drawer.

Step 2 Choose which properties to define.


•Would you like to set the background to a solid color?	When you will use one color a. Find the Fill list in the Properties drawer. b. Choose Color from the list. DMD reveals the color tool () under the list. And, when your pointer hovers over the color tool, DMD reveals a related control (). c. Do one of the following. · Click to reveal a simple color swatch browser. OR · Click to open a standard color picker. d. Set the color and, as needed, click OK.
•Would you like to set the background to a gradient?	When you will use a gradient a. Find the Fill list in the Properties drawer. b. Choose Gradient from the list. DMD reveals two color tools () near the list. When your pointer hovers over either of these, DMD reveals a related control (). c. Click either Horizontal or Vertical to set the gradient direction. d. Do one of the following. · Click to reveal a simple color swatch browser. OR · Click to open a standard color picker. e. Set the gradient color and, as needed, click OK.
•Would you like to set the background to an image from the media library?	When you will use a static image a. Find the Fill list in the Properties drawer. b. Choose Image from the list. c. Choose whether to center the image or stretch it. d. Click Choose Image. e. Choose an image asset from your media library, and then click OK. Tip Do not choose a JPG file as your background image if a DMP 4310G will render this design for playback. We recommend that you use PNG.