Automation Interface User Guide

Inscriber Automation Interface
Inscriber Automation Interface User Guide
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Contents
Install Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 outs ..................................................... 8 Prevent Implementation Problems .............. 8
Implementation Requires Broad Knowledge Base..................................................... 8 Automation Interface Does NOT Create LayAutomation Interface Requires Layouts ...... 8 Use Standard Automation Conventions...... 8
Basics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Windows Operating System ......................15 Introducing Inscriber Automation Interface 10

How Automation Interface Works............. 10 Inscriber formats you can use.................... 11 News Feed Simulator ............................... 11 Automation Interface - Hands On or Off.... 12 Hands On/Hands Free Operation ............. 12 Direct Control........................................ 12 Requirements for Inscriber CG Users ........ 13 Inscriber/Chyron Terminology.................. 13 Folder/File Structure ............................... 13 Machine ID Code ................................... 13 Tagged Data Fields................................. 14 Graphic Resources.................................. 14 Requirements for Chyron CG Users ...........15 Inscriber CG ...........................................15 Inscriber C2i ...........................................15 Inscriber A2i ...........................................15 Inscriber/Chyron Terminology...................15 Renaming Layouts....................................15 Chyron Operation .................................... 16 How Chyron Works................................. 16 How CII Commands Work ....................... 17 Basic Operation....................................... 18 How Automation Interface Works............. 18 Notes on Inscriber Formats ..................... 18 Graphic Resources.................................. 19 Folder/File Structure Required ................. 19
Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Connect Dongle .....................................24 Before You Start ......................................22

System Requirements ..............................22 Hardware Requirements ..........................22 Determine Framebuffer Control ...............22 Determine COM Port..............................22 Determine Machine ID............................23 Load Software .........................................24 Automation Interface ............................. 24 News Feed Simulator .............................. 25 Check Framebuffer Output ...................... 25 Establish Communication ........................ 26 Connect RS232 Cable .............................26 Verify News Vendor Settings....................26 Initiate Communication ...........................26
Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Coordinate with News Vendor ................. 28 Set Preferences in Automation Interface ....32
Create Folders....................................... 28 Set Up Your CG ......................................29 Configure Inscriber CG Software..............29 Show Filenames in Playlist .......................30 Change Layout Names in INS Files ...........30 Set Layout Size.......................................30 Open Preferences ................................... 32 General Settings ......................................33 Framebuffer Settings ................................35 General Settings From Framebuffer .......... 35 Use Framebuffers ................................... 35 Set a Test Page ......................................36 Contents v
Edit Framebuffers IPS..............................36 Set Program and Preview Channel ............36 Finish or Switch Tabs ..............................36 CII Settings............................................. 37 Set Checksum.........................................37 Set Number of Digits in Error Codes ........37 Skip Tag Command.................................37 Indicate First Tag....................................38 Set Tag Identification ..............................38 Special Codes.........................................38 Use Custom Receive-Send .......................38 Switch Tabs............................................38 Resource Settings.................................... 39 Set RGB Font (special character) resources39 Update resource paths ........................... 40 Set Default Startup Folder ...................... 40 Set Output Folder .................................. 40
Set RGB Folder ..................................... 40 Set Materials Folder............................... 40 Select Format of Input Files .................... 40 Select Format of Output Files .................. 41 Switch Tabs ........................................... 41 Prepare For RGB Font (special character fonts) .................................................. 41 Effects Settings........................................43 Set Effect Speed .....................................43 Start Effect On-screen............................ 44 Move Effect Off-screen........................... 44 Set Active Texture Framebuffer on AutoCG . 44 Stop Effect ............................................ 44 Ignore AVI Alpha................................... 44 Invert Video Field Order......................... 44
Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 Add Tagged Fields to Your Layouts ..........50 Automation Procedure.............................46

Basic Operation Outline ......................... 46 Preparation Phase ...................................47 Convert or Create Layouts with Tagged Data Fields ................................................. 47 Notes on Using INS and .templates Files . 47 Change a Layout Name........................... 48 Change Registry Template Name(s) ......... 48 Assign INS Files to an Output Channel Using Strata ................................................. 48 Tagging Phase ........................................50 Delete a Tagged Data Field ......................51 Create a Text Box for a Tagged Field........ 52 Create a Text Line for a Tagged Field ....... 53 Active Phase ...........................................54 Use Layouts with Automation Interface .....54 Enable/Disable Last Rendered window...... 55 Framebuffer not Required to Render......... 55 View Commands..................................... 55 Hands Free Operation ............................. 56 Direct Control........................................ 56
Direct Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57 63 Direct Control ........................................58

Install Direct Control ..............................58 Open Direct Control ...............................58 Get Started ............................................58 Graphic File Formats............................... 61 Set Up Playlists .......................................62 Set Up Automation Interface Machine ......62 Set Up Framebuffers for Output ...............62 Add Files to Playlist ................................62 Add Another Automation Interface Machine. vi Contents Finish Playlist Setup................................63 Apply Familiar Naming and Labelling .......64 Add Another Playlist...............................64 Save a Set of Playlists.............................. 65 Add Another Set of Playlists .................... 65 Save an IDC Template............................. 65 Add Effects .............................................66 Set Up an Effect .....................................66 Add an Effect to a Group ........................67
Edit an Effect......................................... 67 Export an Effect Group........................... 68 Import an Effect Group .......................... 68 Edit Text.................................................69 Edit .......................................................69 Check Your Layouts................................ 70 Save Your Edited Layout ......................... 70 Save to a New Location .......................... 70 Modify Sequences ...................................72 Select ....................................................72 Copy and Paste.......................................72 Click and Drag .......................................72 Insert and Delete ....................................72 CII Commands Supported....................... 80 CII Commands Not Supported ................. 81
Modifications Not Saved to Source ..........73 Update Playlist Files ...............................73 Take to Air............................................. 74 Modify Channel Assignment ....................74 Read Framebuffer Indicator .....................74 Take to Air ............................................74 Set Preferences....................................... 76 Open Preferences ...................................76 Startup ..................................................76 Durations ..............................................76 Workbook View ......................................76 New IDC File ........................................77 Preload Effects Manually or Automatically 77 Inscriber II Commands Supported ............82
Command Lists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
News Feed Simulator. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93 Open Com Test......................................98 News Feed Simulator ...............................94
Install News Feed Simulator.................... 94 Test Your Automation Interface ................96 Open News Feed Simulator .....................96 Test a Previously Created Inscriber Layout 96 Test Your Own Inscriber Layout ................97 Generic Demo........................................97 Test Communications ............................. 98 Send Commands Using Test Interface ......98 Check the Results ...................................99 Send a List of Commands ........................99 Create a Log of Commands Received...... 100 Use the Script Demo ............................ 100 Use News Feed Simulator on Automation Interface................................................ 101
Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103 Data Transfer Rate................................ 106 Layout Problems.................................... 104

Layouts Dont Appear on Monitor .......... 104 Layouts Dont Include New Data ............ 104 Layouts Dont Look Right ...................... 104 Program Problems ..................................105 Program wont Open ............................. 105 No Layout Names in Playlist .................. 105 Communication Problems .......................105 Not Receiving Commands...................... 105 Inscribe.ini File ..................................... 106 Machine ID .......................................... 106 COM Port ............................................ 106 Resolution............................................ 106 Generating Log Files/Debug Messages ... 106 Job Folder............................................ 106 HyperTerminal Test ............................... 107 Set Up for test...................................... 107 HyperTerminal Settings......................... 107 Create a File for Logs............................ 108 Log News Vendor Commands ................ 108 Set Up Automation Interface For Test .... 109 Send Commands................................... 109
Contents
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Technical Support. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
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Contents
Install Notes
Prevent Implementation Problems

Please read the notes in this section to help you implement Automation Interface smoothly, and ensure your system continues to work effectively.
Implementation Requires Broad Knowledge Base
A comprehensive understanding of Automation Interface requires knowledge and experience in several different domains. Chyron conventions and the CII message protocol Chyron CG operational methods Inscriber configuration and operational requirements Typically, few people can approach an automation implementation project with a solid grounding in each of these different domains. This manual gives everyone enough information about each domain so that they can implement automation smoothly. If you already have knowledge and experience about one of the domains, you should still scan each section for a review of important topics.
Automation Interface Does NOT Create Layouts Automation Interface Requires Layouts
Automation Interface cannot create Inscriber layouts. The Automation Interface inserts data from your News Vendor into your prepared Inscriber layouts. Your Automation Interface may or may not share a computer with your Inscriber CG software, depending on your configuration and needs.
Automation Interface requires Inscriber layouts to function correctly. You can use several methods to create layouts. Use an Inscriber CG product (G-Scribe, titleOne) to create layouts. Use the Inscriber C2i Message Converter to convert Chyron full page message files to layouts. Use the Inscriber A2i Page Converter to convert Aston page files to layouts. Automation Interface can also display graphic files which dont have any tags TGA, BMP, AVI, PSD, VFB. If you cannot generate Inscriber layouts you can not proceed with Automation Interface.
Use Standard Automation Conventions
Inscriber CG users are most familiar with using a natural language naming system for templates, layouts, and tagged data fields. General automation convention uses a numeric naming system. You should use the numeric naming convention until you have a clear understanding of automation and Inscriber products. When Automation Interface is working smoothly, you can change the system to work with natural language.
Inscriber Automation Interface - Install Notes
Basics
Introducing Inscriber Automation Interface

Automation Interface allows you to fill tagged data fields of Inscriber CG layouts with live data from a compatible News Vendor (ENPS, AP News Centre, AV-Star etc.). Automation Interface follows the Chyron Intelligent Interface (CII) message protocol defined by Chyron Corporation. The broadcast industry uses CII as a standard protocol for passing data and display commands to character generators. You may need to request a CII data feed from your News Vendor if you dont have one already.
How Automation Interface Works
The following illustration outlines how Automation Interface works with a News Vendor. The News Vendor sends commands using CII protocol. The commands consist of a text string that contains the required data, and a command for a specific tab description message (Inscriber layout). Automation Interface interprets the command, and retrieves the required layout. Then it extracts the data from the command, and inserts the data into the appropriate tagged data field in the specified layout.
For a list of supported Chyron commands see CII Commands Supported on page 80.
You can edit text in the rendered layout using Automation Interfaces Direct Control. You can also use Direct Control to check through your layouts before they go to air. See Direct Control on page 58.
News Vendor sends data using CII commands Direct Control edit before output NTSC/PAL video feed Rendered layout with filled tagged data fields to video output Automation Interface Serial RS 232 connection
TCP- IP Network
Graphics Department G-Scribe or titleOne for layout/template creation
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Inscriber Automation Interface - Basics
Tagged data fields in layouts must have a defined order.
Because Automation Interface extracts the data according to a specific order, you must understand how to order the tagged data fields in your layout. See Convert or Create Layouts with Tagged Data Fields on page 47 for instructions. You can use new or previously created SLY, ICG, INS or .templates files with Automation Interface. Please note however that you must correctly name and path your component files (graphics, logos, textures etc.) in your INS and .templates files. You can have only a single INS and .templates file in each folder. We recommend users new to Inscriber file formats save their layouts as SLY or ICG files and keep them in a single job folder. This method ensures that your Automation Interface views each template you want to fill as a single ICG or SLY file. This follows previous conventions.
Inscriber formats you can use
Automation Interface currently does not support the ipacked format.
Newer versions of Inscriber CG products include an ipacked file format option. The ipacked format compiles and compresses all of the graphic resources required to create a layout into one file. Automation Interface currently does not support the ipacked format. Inscriber supplies an Automation Interface demo application which contains a variety of pre-created test layouts. Install the News Feed Simulator on a second machine. You can then type in data and send it to the Automation Interface through an null modem RS232 cable (supplied) to simulate data coming from a News Vendor. You can also install News Feed Simulator on your Automation Interface machine. If you choose not to use a second machine, you can still see Automation Interface function, with no need to set up communications between computers.
News Feed Simulator
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The computer you load the News Feed Simulator on requires no dongle or framebuffer to operate the simulator.
News Feed Simulator comes complete with a test interface to check the communication setup, and a set of Inscriber layouts with tagged data fields. You can find the layouts for News Feed Simulator in the Automation Interface/Demo folder.
Automation Interface - Hands On or Off

Hands On/Hands Free Operation
You can use Direct Control while operating Hands On or Hands Off.
You can set up Automation Interface to run and then leave it alone (Hands Off) or you can set up Automation Interface to display its activities and accept commands from an operator (Hands On).
Operator Intervention Simplest Graphic look remains the same News, magazine predictable no edits, automated takes Hands Off operation Most Complex
Live sports or news special unpredictable last second edits, Direct Control takes Hands On operation
In Hands On operation, a CG operator can see the commands coming from the News Vendor and view a thumbnail of the rendered layout. You can open Direct Control (from a remote computer or your Automation Interface machine) and intervene in the layouts - browse, edit and take directly to air. In Hands Free operation, the rendered layouts with News Vendor data output directly using controls from the scheduling component of the News Vendor. You do nothing, you see nothing. Automation Interface takes care of it all.
Direct Control
You can find Inscriber created INS files in the Automation Interface/Tutorial folder.
You can check and edit data-filled rendered layouts before they go to air using the Direct Control interface. Direct Control lets you browse through your layouts after the News Vendor drops information into the tagged data fields. You can edit the information which appears in your rendered layouts and take the edited layouts to air from Automation Interface.
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Requirements for Inscriber CG Users

If you already use an Inscriber CG (G-Scribe, titleOne, or the previously available CG/S, CG/X, VMP), and you want to use Automation Interface, you need to understand the following:
Inscriber/Chyron Terminology
You should understand how Chyron/Inscriber terms correspond. Chyron Message (or Tab message) Tab data Message Directory (i.e. for the same production) Inscriber Layout or template with tagged data fields Tagged data field INS file - holds descriptions of elements of one or many layouts
Folder/File Structure
You must follow a strict folder/file structure.
You must use a specific CG layout folder and file structure that conforms to the CII protocol, specifically: You must create and name folders that correspond exactly to folders called by the CII protocol. We recommend users new to Inscriber products use the CII style names. We recommend also that users new to Inscriber products export their Inscriber templates as SLY or ICG files and group them in one folder per job. If you use INS or .templates files with Automation Interface, each folder can contain only one INS or one .templates file. An INS file describes a collection of layouts while a .templates file describes a collection of templates. The CII save command usually saves the resulting rendered layouts in the same folder as the source files. Inscriber Automation Interface modifies the instruction to save the resulting rendered file in a subfolder called Output. Automation Interface automatically creates the Output sub-folder. You can change this output folder in the Preferences. You can use an absolute or relative file path for your Output folder location. However, to locate your Output folder in a shared directory on another machine you must use an absolute file path. You must specify the machine ID code when you install Automation Interface. Most machines use 1 as their ID. Check with your system administrator.
Machine ID Code
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Tagged Data Fields
Automation Interface uses tagged data fields in layouts to insert data from the News Vendor. You must configure the Inscriber CG program to use tagged data fields (RTX tags). See Configure Inscriber CG Software on page 29 You must create layouts in Inscriber CG that contain tagged data fields or convert previously created pages or message files using Inscriber A2i or C2i. See Add Tagged Fields to Your Layouts on page 50. You must make sure the tagged data fields occur in the expected order. You can export and save layouts with Automation Interface tagged data fields in Inca 1.4 or later or the previously available Inscriber 4.7 format.
Graphic Resources
You need to understand how Inscriber CG creates a layout using an ICG/ SLY (one layout) or an INS/.templates (multiple layouts) description file. Make graphic resources (backgrounds, fonts, textures) available on the machine that creates the layout. You might want to have an Automation Interface that creates layouts with data in tagged fields, but also have a CG operator on another machine access the layout across a network for review, edit or building a playlist. If the CG operator wants the ability to edit the layouts, you need to make sure the CG operators machine has the required graphic resources to recreate the layout.
You can edit layouts with tagged data fields in your CG. You can edit the data in the tags with Direct Control.
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Requirements for Chyron CG Users

If you are currently a Chyron CG user, and you want to use Automation Interface, you need to understand and apply the following summary steps. Different sections of this manual, and other reference manuals, describe each step in detail.
Windows Operating System
You need to have a basic understanding of how to use a Windows operating environment. For further information, refer to the Windows workstation documentation delivered with your system computer, or with your Automation Interface system. You need to understand how to use the Inscriber CG program (G-Scribe or titleOne). Refer to the documentation included with the program. You can convert your Chyron files to Inscriber layouts using the Inscriber C2i converter to use those files with Automation Interface. You can convert your Aston files to Inscriber layouts using the A2i converter and use those files with Automation Interface. You need to become familiar with corresponding Chyron/Inscriber terms.
Inscriber CG Inscriber C2i Inscriber A2i Inscriber/Chyron Terminology
Chyron Full Page Message Tab Message Tab data Message Directory (i.e. all files for one production)
Inscriber Layout or template Layout with tagged data fields Tagged data field INS file - holds descriptions of elements of one or many layouts
Renaming Layouts
If you want a CG operator to access and use the layouts, you need to know how to configure the CG program to show layout file names in the playlist. When the layout names are visible in the playlist, you can use the Change Render Name function (press CTRL+J) to rename the layouts to correspond with the familiar naming conventions used in the Chyron CG (eg. 4 digit numbers).
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Chyron Operation
Most of the information in this section is from the Chyron Intelligent Interface Option Handbook, Pub. No. 2A01989 February, 1999, Revision C. 1996 CHYRON Corporation. Please contact Chyron Corporation if you require more information about the Chyron CG or the CII protocol. CHYRON Corporation, 5 Hub Drive Melville, NY 11747, 516-845-2000
How Chyron Works
The Chyron CG system uses a specific folder structure one single Chyron message in a folder. The message uses font resources from an associated machine font directory. The CII uses a command syntax based on this folder structure. The CII command calls for the required message by including a specific folder in the command text string. The CII command can call any single tab description message (layout) by specifying the folder. The M or m command changes the current folder. All subsequent commands only affect messages in this folder. The folder name follows this command. If the command letter appears in lower case, you need to indicate which machine performs your command use a machine code as the first modifier. When executed, the command changes the active folder on the selected disk drive. The syntax for the Select Message Folder command: M\Drive Letter/Folder Name\\ [ checksum] <CR><LF> Or, if you want to address a particular system: m\Machine Code\Drive Letter/Folder Name\\ [ checksum] <CR><LF> When a CII command calls a tab description message, the system looks for the message in the last folder used. An error message appears if your automation system cannot find the message in the last folder used.
Your administrator can alias the 4 digit numbers to descriptive text names.
The CII command calls the messages by a number (up to 8 digits). Typically, the tab description messages are numbered sequentially, and the sequence corresponds to a predefined application (news, sports, weather, etc.). The output tab data messages (layouts with automation data) are also typically numbered sequentially, and correspond to the same application as the tab description messages. As an example of how the messages are numbered, if you are creating a series of lower-thirds for a news program you might: Use a numbered tab description message as the template for the lower third, say 1001.
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Create a sequence of output files, say 2009-2018, that use the lower third template, but each of the 10 files in the sequence has a different reporter name and location in the data fields. The tab description message functions as a template, and the command saves the resulting 10 output files in the same folder.
Inscriber users must restructure their file folders for compatibility with CII protocol.
By contrast, Inscriber bases CG files on a filename structure. The folders organize the files, but the folder can contain many ICG or SLY layout files, or many multiple layout INS files. Inscriber CG users must restructure their folders and files to the CII protocol for use with Automation Interface. A typical CII command set: M\c/news\\ W\2000\1000\Ralph Phelpps\Waterloo\Crime Reporter\\ T\7\2000\A\\ The first command string sets the current directory to c:\news. The second command string opens the standard news template (#1000) and fills the tags: tag#1 receives the reporters name (Ralph Phelpps); tag #2 receives the location (Waterloo); and tag #3 receives the reporters title (Crime Reporter). The layout (with the tags filled) gets saved in the output directory as layout #2000. The third command string takes the generated layout (#2000) on Channel A. For more information on CII Commands, see List of Commands on page 80. Your administrator can customize the News Vendor System to alias the 4 digit ID numbers to descriptive text names to easily identify individual layouts in the run-down. Automation Interface supports text names for the tab description message and the tab data message in place of the 4 digit numbers in the CII command.
How CII Commands Work
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Basic Operation
How Automation Interface Works
A brief description of the Automation Interface process:
1 2 3 4 5
News Vendor sends data in CII commands. Automation Interface opens the layout files called by the News Vendor System. Automation Interface pulls graphic resources from the network or local machine. Automation Interface extracts data from the News Vendor commands and inserts the data into the tagged data fields. Automation Interface saves the layouts with tagged data fields as editable files to a specified location on the network or renders the layouts and sends them to video output. Automation Interface saves the rendered layouts to a specified location on the network.
News Vendor sends data using CII commands Direct Control edit before output NTSC/PAL video feed Rendered layout with filled tagged data fields to video output Automation Interface Serial RS 232 connection
TCP- IP Network
Graphics Department G-Scribe or titleOne for layout/template creation
Notes on Inscriber Formats

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Inscriber saves single editable CG layouts as ICG files (or, the older, uneditable SLY format). A collection of editable Inscriber CG layouts go into an INS file. Inscriber saves rendered layouts as VII files.
Graphic Resources
ICG and INS files hold information about your layouts, including references to where various graphic resources (fonts, images, textures, etc.) are located. You need to make the graphic resources available on the machine that runs the CG program in order to re-create your layouts. Consider the accessibility of graphic resources when planning and implementing an automation system, especially if you want a CG operator to access and edit the layouts from a remote machine. If the CG operator requires the ability to edit the layouts, the CG operators machine must have the same graphic resources as the Automation Interface machine. If any of the graphic resources are not available, the CG operator cannot recreate the editable layout on their machine, nor can they preview or edit.
Folder/File Structure Required
To use an Inscriber CG product (G-Scribe or titleOne) with Automation Interface you must accommodate the folder/file structure of the CII protocol. We recommend that users new to Inscriber products create their layouts for automation as ICG or SLY files and keep related layouts in one folder per job. Users who usually create their layouts as INS files need to keep in mind that CII protocol works differently. You need to set a specific folder that contains the INS file. The INS file contains descriptions of a series of layouts in a playlist. You must create a different folder for each INS file that you use. The name of the folder must correspond precisely with the name of the folder called by the CII command. The INS files can have any name, for example, weather.INS, sports.INS, but each INS file must be in a separate folder. Automation Interface loads the appropriate layout from the INS file in the folder specified in the CII command. You should carefully consider how to structure your folders to work effectively with Automation Interface.
Each folder can hold only one INS file.
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Installation
Before You Start

System Requirements Hardware Requirements
You must have Windows Administrator privileges to install the Automation Interface. The computer running the Inscriber CG software with Automation Interface connects to the News Vendor machine using a Windows Standard RS232 null-modem cable. If you are running the demo application, the RS232 null-modem cable connects to the machine running the demo data-sending software. Make sure you have this cable available before starting the installation.
Unix null-modem cables use different pinning than Windows Standard null-modem cables. You need to change a Unix null-modem cable to a Windows Standard nullmodem cable.
Determine Framebuffer Control Determine COM Port
If your Automation Interface shares a computer with a CG (G-Scribe, titleOne), you must determine which program controls the framebuffer. You can set this in your Automation Interface Preferences. See Use Framebuffers on page 35. When you install Automation Interface you need to enter the COM port the PC uses for automation data from the News Vendor or the demo application.
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Inscriber Automation Interface - Installation
Determine Machine ID
Your framebuffer software transfers settings for keying type, video format and resolution to Automation Interface.
Your system administrator might configure the News Vendor system(s) to look for files and save files on specific machines. In this case use a lower case letter for the first letter in the CII command string, and use the machine code as the first modifier in the command string. The machine code must match an Automation Interface machine on your network. You must specify the machine ID code during installation. Contact your administrator if you are uncertain about how to proceed.
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Load Software
Automation Interface
Run the setup program on the CD ROM, and follow the instructions provided on the install dialogs. You must have Windows Administrator privileges to install the automation option. You can chose to install all three or just one of the applications from the install disk. Direct Control and News Feed Simulator can run on an independent machine.
Connect Dongle
You must attach a special interlock device (dongle) to the USB port of the computer running Automation Interface. The dongle you attach depends on how you received Automation Interface. If you received Automation Interface with Inscriber G-Scribe, you must attach your G-Scribe dongle to the computer running Automation Interface. If you purchased Automation Interface as a stand-alone product, you must attach your Automation Interface dongle to the computer running Automation Interface. Direct Control can run on a secondary computer without a dongle, but it must connect through the local area network to a computer running Automation Interface. If the Direct Control feature is enabled on the Automation Interface dongle then Direct Control will operate properly. News Feed Simulator runs without a dongle.
News Feed Simulator

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In a real world workflow, the News Vendor system sends CII commands to the Automation Interface.
For demonstrations or testing, you can install the News Feed Simulator on a remote machine. News Feed Simulator acts as the data sending application of the News Vendor. The demo application can send manually typed input or pre-created Inscriber layouts and sends CII commands to your Automation Interface.
Check Framebuffer Output

If the test page displays correctly, Automation Interface works properly with your video hardware.
You should check that Automation Interface works properly with your video hardware.
1 2
Click on NewsTest on the Automation Interface menu on the desktop of your Automation Interface to open the automation interface. Click on the Test Page button to display the default test page.
Your video monitor displays the default test page, which uses a 32 bit image with alpha gradients. You can set your own test page in Automation Interface Preferences.
Click on the Clear Screen button to clear the test screen.
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Establish Communication
Connect RS232 Cable Verify News Vendor Settings
Connect an RS232 null-modem cable between the Automation Interface machine and the News Vendor system (or, in the case of the demo, the machine with the News Feed Simulator application). The News Automation Service Provider must have the correct settings to talk to the Automation Interface.
COM2 19200
Initiate Communication
You can also use HyperTerminal to test communication. See HyperTerminal Test on page 107.
If you are running the demo application (News Feed Simulator) to simulate News Vendor data, you also need to open Automation Interface on the other machine. If you connect to a News Vendor system, select a run-down from it, then call for the layout.
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Setup
Coordinate with News Vendor

Create Folders
News Vendors use Chyron Intelligent Interface (CII) protocol to send commands to Automation Interface. The CII protocol refers to hard-coded folders. You must coordinate the folder structure between the News Vendor System and the Automation Interface application. You can save layouts created for Automation Interface as INS files, ICG files, or SLY files. You need to store INS files differently than the ICG or SLY files. You must keep only one INS file per folder, but you can store many ICG or SLY files in a folder. The News Vendor needs to find each layout in an INS file -one INS per folder - so that data delivery runs smoothly. We recommend that new users save their layouts as ICG or SLY files (export them into either format). The folder you create for each job can then contain all the layout files (ICG or SLY) needed for that job. This simple approach closely follows existing news automation methods - Inscriber formats give you more flexibility once you are familiar with them.
Use folder locations that your News Vendor expects to find.
Create folders on the hard drive of your Automation Interface machine that your News Vendor expects to find. You might need to contact your administrator to get the expected folder names. If the News Vendor does not specify a folder for the files, Automation Interface looks in the default folder, See Set Default Startup Folder on page 40 for details.
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Inscriber Automation Interface - Setup
Set Up Your CG
Before you can work with Automation Interface, you need to enable your CG (G-Scribe, titleOne) to create appropriately named layouts with tagged data fields which your News Vendor can fill with information.
Configure Inscriber CG Software

Show RTX Tags
Automation Interface searches for RTX Tags (Tagged Data Fields) in your layout and replaces them with the data from your news service. You must configure the Inscriber CG software to view RTX tags before you can create layouts used by the Automation Interface.
1
In your CG select File > Preferences and switch to the Character Generator tab.
Click on the right arrow at the side of the tab headers to move to the Character Generator tab.
2 3 4 5
Check the Show RTX tags option. Click on OK to close the Preferences dialog. Switch to the View Tab. In the Markers panel, check the RTX checkbox.
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Show Filenames in Playlist
Inscriber CGs can show either the event number of a layout, or the rendered filename of a layout in the playlist. Chyron CG users might want to see the rendered filename in the playlist, and possibly change the name to Chyrons own naming protocol.
1 2 3
From the Inscriber CG program, choose File > Preferences. Switch to the Project tab. Check the Show filename in Job Strip checkbox to turn on the option. Click in the checkbox again if you want to clear the option and have the layout event number appear in the playlist instead. Click on OK to finish.
Change Layout Names in INS Files
Chyron CG users might want to change the names of layouts in the Inscriber CG playlist (used in INS files) to correspond to the four digit naming convention used in Chyron CGs. The four-digit naming convention allows easy keyboarding and shot box operations. See Change a Layout Name on page 48 for details. If your layouts were created in a different resolution than the resolution that will be used for output, you can set how layouts are scaled in Automation Interface. For example, your CG may be set up to create layouts for High Definition (HD) output, but you are currently outputting in Standard Definition (SD).
1 2
Set Layout Size
Open the inscribe.ini file. The inscribe.ini file is usually located in C:\Program Files\Harris\Automation Interface. Look in the [Configuration] section. You will see three different types of scaling: ScaleLetterbox, ScaleCrop, ScaleSizeToFit. ScaleLetterbox: Sets the layout to fit to the new screen resolution without any change in aspect ratio. The entire layout will appear on screen. This option is recommended if you are converting layouts from SD to HD. ScaleCrop: Sets the layout to scale to fill the new screen resolution without any change in aspect ratio. The layout will be centered on screen with the outside edges cropped. This option is recommended if you are converting layouts from HD to SD.
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ScaleSizeToFit: Adjusts the aspect ratio of the layout to fit the new screen resolution. Set the type of scaling you require to 1, and set the others to zero. The default scaling type is letterbox. For example, if you would like your layout to be scaled without a change in the aspect ratio, centered and cropped, you would change the following configuration settings.
[Configuration] ScaleLetterbox=0 ScaleCrop=1 ScaleSizeToFit=0
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Set Preferences in Automation Interface

You can set the preferences for your Automation Interface before you begin running the data feed, and update the preferences anytime.You can use the Preference dialogs to make changes to the behavior of Automation Interface or adjust your preferences using CII or Inscriber commands. See List of Commands on page 80 for details. Automation Interface saves your preferences in the Inscribe.ini file to maintain them from one session to another.
Open Preferences
To open the Preferences dialog, simply click the Preferences button on the main Automation Interface window.
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General Settings
The General tab allows you to customize Automation Interface to suit your existing system. The General tab appears when you first open the Preferences dialog.
If you select either the serial port or the dispatcher option, you can still use any custom created application. If you select the custom application option, you cannot use other sources.
Name or rename 1 the Automation Interface Select to receive 2 commands from serial port Select to receive 3 commands from your dispatcher application Select to receive 4 commands from your own custom application
See News Feed Simulator for instructions on testing your Automation Interface.
Click on 5 OK to finish
1
You set your Automation Interfaces name during the initial install, but you can rename it at any time in Preferences. You may want to change the renderer name if you have more than one Automation Interface installed on your system, otherwise it is not generally necessary. You set your machines code during the initial install. You can also change it here if you have more than one Automation Interface installed on your system so each instance of Automation Interface receives its own commands. You need to indicate the source of your News Feed. Select the serial port option if your News Vendor connects directly to your Automation Interface through a serial port. Configure the serial port settings in the serial port section of the inscribe.ini file located in C:\Program Files\Inscriber\Automation Interface Common Files Inscriber Automation Interface - Setup 33
Select the Dispatcher option if your News Vendor connects to a dispatcher which then connects to your Automation Interface. This option is useful if you have more than one Automation Interface installed on your system or if you have multiple instances of Automation Interface on different computers, and you want to connect them to your News Vendor through a single serial port. Configure the dispatcher settings in the serial port section of the inscribe.ini file located in C:\Program Files\Harris\Automation Interface Common Files. Select the Custom Application option if you create your own custom application to simulate a News Vendor. For example, you would select Custom Application if you are connecting to your News Vendor using the MOS option. Click on OK to finish or switch to another tab to continue setting your preferences.
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Framebuffer Settings
Set your preferences for your framebuffer(s). You can have more than one framebuffer, but your resolution and keying settings remain the same for all of them.
Settings transfer 1 from output board automatically Check to give Automation 2 Interface control of output board Type file path for 3 a custom test page
Select channel for program and 4 preview
Click to finish
General Settings From Framebuffer
The framebuffer software automatically transfers settings to Automation Interface. You cannot use Automation Interfaces preferences to set Resolution, Keying Type or Video Format. If you need to change any of the general settings, go to preferences on your framebuffer software. Check the Use Framebuffers checkbox to give Automation Interface control of the framebuffer. This sends the rendered layouts through the framebuffer to your video display. We recommend that you use the framebuffer with Automation Interface only while you test the system. After you finish testing the system, clear the checkbox to give control of the framebuffer to your CG. If you prefer, you can send your rendered layouts directly to air using Automation Interface. Keep the checkbox checked after testing to use this option. Inscriber Automation Interface - Setup 35
Use Framebuffers
Set a Test Page
You can set a test page which appears in your Last Rendered window and video output when you click the Test Page button on the main Automation Interface screen. This option is no longer applicable in Automation Interface version 2.0 and later. If you have more than one channel on your system, you can set one to be the program channel and one to be the preview channel using the XFER option. If you only have one channel, or you dont want to set a preview channel, you can set the program channel and set Automation Interface to buffer your output without using a preview channel. To set a program channel and a preview channel, enter program channel, preview channel in the XFER field. For example, enter 1, 2 to set channel 1 as the program channel and channel 2 as the preview channel. To set a program channel and use no preview channel, enter program channel, 0 in the XFER field. For example, enter 1, 0 to set channel 1 as the program channel and to use no preview channel. Automation Interface will buffer the content but wont send it to output until it is taken to air.
Edit Framebuffers IPS Set Program and Preview Channel
Finish or Switch Tabs
Click on OK to finish or switch to another tab to continue setting your preferences.
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CII Settings
Use this tab to set your preferences for the behavior of the CII commands with Automation Interface.
1 Check to 2 Select
add a checksum command
the number of digits for error messages
3 Check to
skip tags with a space

4 Enter ID
of first tag
5 Select method
for tag naming

6 Special Codes:
you can input your own commands 7 Check to set custom commands
8 Type your custom
command codes
9 Click OK to finish
Set Checksum
Check Add checksum to add a checksum to each set of commands sent. Checksum verifies the integrity of the replay serial communication.
Set Number of Digits in Error Codes Skip Tag Command
Error codes follow CII protocol. You can choose the number of digits that appear in your error codes.
2 3
Click on either radio button to select a 4 or 8 digit error code.
Check the Use space to skip tag checkbox to use a space in your tagged field to tell Automation Interface to not fill that tag with data. If you check the checkbox, a command W\1000\1001\data1\ \data3\\ for example, skips tag 2 (i.e. Automation Interface does not update the tagged data field). If you dont check the checkbox, the same command fills the tag specified with a space. Inscriber Automation Interface - Setup 37
Indicate First Tag
Enter the tag ID number you want Automation Interface to use as your first tag. CII protocol sends data to a tag location using the Tag ID in the command. Tag IDs can be set directly in the layout. You can begin tag IDs at 0. Select a radio button to choose a method for identifying your tags to the News Vendor. We recommend that you select the Use tagID as tag name option. In your CG, you will label your tags with numbers and use those name tags as the tag ID. If you select the Use creation order option, you need to know the order in which tags were added to the CG layout and you cannot find that information if the person who created the layout is not available. Set special CII codes that you need to conform with your News Vendor protocol. Check the checkbox to set customized send or receive codes to follow your specific protocol. Type your codes into the boxes. Switch to another Preferences Tab to continue setting your preferences, or click on OK to finish.
Set Tag Identification
Special Codes Use Custom Receive-Send Switch Tabs
7 8 9
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Resource Settings
The Resources tab sets preferences for resources that Automation Interface requires for rendering layouts, as well as the resources that Automation Interface outputs.
Check to automatically update paths to resource files 2
1 Check to search for
fonts containing RGB logos
Type the path of folder to open on startup 3 Type the path for your output files 4 Type path to folder 5 containing RGB fonts Type path to folder containing resources 6
Select file format 7 of layouts used
8 Select file
format for output files
Set RGB Font (special character) resources
You can include special characters in your Automation layouts. Automation Interface looks for them automatically in the folder under your templates folder. See Prepare For RGB Font (special character fonts) on page 41 for details. You must set the preferences properly to tell Automation Interface to look for the special character fonts.
1
Check the Use RGB Fonts checkbox to direct Automation Interface to search the fonts subdirectory for your special character fonts containing RGB logo characters.
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Update resource paths
Check the Auto Update Resource Path checkbox to automatically update the changes in the path to resource files. Automation Interface can record changes to a resource path only if your resources remain in the job folder. You must update the paths individually if your resource files move beyond the job folder.
2 3
Set Default Startup Folder
Type the path of the folder you want to open by default when you startup Automation Interface. In most cases, this is the folder that will store your templates and/or layouts. You should create this folder on your media drive, not on your startup (C:\) drive because if you need to restore your system for any reason, you dont want your media files to be deleted. If your layouts have come from another system, this folder also needs to contain all required resources for your layouts including graphics and fonts. Enter the name of the folder to which you want Automation Interface to send your output files (rendered layouts). Type the full file path to your default RGB Fonts folder. If the automation system changes the current template folder, Automation Interface will look in the new templates directory for updated RGB fonts. Type the name of the folder containing your layout resources.
Set Output Folder Set RGB Folder
Set Materials Folder Select Format of Input Files

All of your layouts used with Automation Interface must be in the same format.
Select the file format of the layouts that Automation Interface uses with News Vendor data. We recommend users new to Inscriber CGs create their layouts as ICG files. You can store all your related ICG files in one single job folder, making organization more like the CII protocol. More experienced users who are familiar with .templates and INS files, must remember that each job folder can contain only one INS or .templates file. To select .templates files, select the REG option. If you use the INS or .templates file formats, you must change the names of the events (INS) or layouts (.templates) to match the filenames called by the News Vendor. See Notes on Using INS and .templates Files on page 47 for details.
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Select Format of Output Files
Select the format of the files Automation Interface produces after combining the News Vendor data with the layout. The Output files are referred to as the rendered files. Rendered files are ready to go to air. Normally, you will select the Automation Interface (XML) format. This format tells Automation Interface how to output your rendered files. You also have the choice of outputting VII (VIR, VIC, VIA), TGA, BMP, LGO, JPG, SLY, or ICG files with Automation Interface. If you want a layout to be created instead of a rendered file, you could select the ICG option. A still template renders to a VII file, a crawl renders to a VIC file and a roll renders to a VIR file. Switch to another Preferences Tab to continue setting your preferences, or click on OK to finish.
Switch Tabs Prepare For RGB Font (special character fonts)
In the Chyron system, one keystroke in a particular font displays an image or logo mapped to that specific keystroke. Chyron users know this feature as an RGB font. Inscriber layouts can also contain RGB fonts or special character fonts, but you must prepare your special character fonts first. In the CG, you must create layouts using a placeholder font for the image file font. The font in the CG template does not match the image file font. It is a placeholder for where the image file font appears when the template is filled by the news system.
The Windings font in this example contains special characters. You can use an existing font name or one of the empty fonts Inscriber includes for this purpose.
Collect a series of sequentially named image files in any supported format (TGA, BMP, etc.). It is recommended that you use the alphanumeric naming convention. Select an unused Windows font to use as a placeholder for the image file. Several fonts are appropriate. Shapes.ttf is provided in Automation Interface. Windings is another example. Create a CG layout with tagged data fields, using the placeholder font where you want to display the custom font. On your Automation Interface system, create an RGBFonts folder for your special character fonts directly under your templates folder location. In the RGB font folder, create a sub-folder with the same name as the place-holder font. Download the images that you require to your special character font folder. Each image should have its own file.
The name of the fonts folder has to match the name of the font in your CG template exactly.
5 6
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You must name each special character file with the keystroke that you want to map it to. It is recommended that you use the alphanumeric naming convention. 8 Once you assign a keystroke and folder location to your special character font, your special characters are ready to use in your automated layouts. When the data sent by the news system fills the tagged data fields in your CG template, the custom font is achieved when Automation Interface:
7
looks in the font folder specified on the Resources tab of the Preferences dialog looks for a sub-folder with the name of the placeholder font looks for sequential image files in the sub-folder uses the file names to index through the image files as if each one is a character of the font.
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Effects Settings
Your automated layouts can contain rolls and crawls and Active Textures, and Automation Interface can drop data from your News Vendor into a roll or a crawl. These effects come into Automation Interface as rendered files, without some settings. The Effects Settings tab in Preferences allows you to set some controls for your effects behavior.
1 Type the default 2 Check to start each
speed
effect on-screen
3 Check to
move your effect off-screen when finished
4 Check to switch
effects when the next effect begins
5 Check to set
Automation Interface to ignore the embedded alpha channel of all video clips. 6 Check to invert the field order of all video clips played using Automation Interface
Set Effect Speed

Available effect speeds are on a 1-9 scale with 1 being an average to slow speed and 9 being the fastest.
Automation Interface needs a default speed for your effects, as the rendered output files (VIR or VIC) dont give speed instructions. The News Vendor commands can give speed instructions for each individual layout. The effect speed setting in Automation Interface becomes a default, used when the file/call has no other settings.
1
Enter the speed that you want effects to run.
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Start Effect Onscreen Move Effect Offscreen Set Active Texture Framebuffer on AutoCG Stop Effect
Check the start on checkbox to start each effect on-screen by default. Check the move off checkbox if you want effects to move off-screen when finished. If you want objects in your effects to remain on screen after the effect has finished, leave the Move Off checkbox unchecked.
This option is no longer applicable in Automation Interface version 2.0 and later.
Effects usually end automatically. Active Textures however are continuous loops of motion, and so never end on their own. If you have Active Textures in your layouts, you should use the stop previous effect function. You can also stop your effects with the clear screen button in Automation Interface. You must check the Stop Previous Effects checkbox to enable this feature.
4
Check the Stop Previous Effect checkbox if you want effects to stop when the News Vendor calls something that requires the framebuffer.
Ignore AVI Alpha
Automation Interface supports 32-bit video clips.

5
Check the Ignore AVI Alpha checkbox to set Automation Interface to ignore the embedded alpha channel in all .avi video clips.
Invert Video Field Order
In some cases, Automation Interface is unable to determine the field dominance (i.e. upper field first or lower field first) of the video clip. When this happens, the video may contain motion jitter during preview or playback.
6
Check the Invert Video Field Order checkbox to flip the field dominance for all video clips played using Automation Interface.
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Operation
Automation Procedure
Basic Operation Outline
Preparation phase:
1
2 3
Identify the data that you are to receive from your News Vendor. You need to know the precise name of the folder/file/data field that the News Service expects to find. If you name the wrong folder/file/data field, your News Vendor cannot deliver the data to your layout. Set the Preferences for your Automation Interface as you require. See Set Preferences in Automation Interface on page 32. Convert your previously created pages or message files to Inscriber layouts using A2i or C2i converters. Create new Inscriber layouts with your Inscriber CG. See Notes on Using INS and .templates Files on page 47. Add tagged data fields to your layouts. Be sure to name your tags as your News Vendor requires. Troubleshoot and test as needed using the News Feed Simulator. See News Feed Simulator on page 94. Run Automation Interface (use Hands Free operation for fastest results). See Hands Free Operation on page 56. Use Direct Control to view each layout. You can also take a layout to video with Direct Control. Use Direct Control to edit any of your rendered Automation Interface layouts.
OR
4
Tagging phase:
5
Active phase:
6 7 8
Edit phase:
9
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Inscriber Automation Interface - Operation
Preparation Phase
Contact your News Vendor to determine what data they provide and the folders/files/tags the News Vendor requires to deliver the data properly. When you set up your account with a News Vendor you identify the information you want to receive and inform the News Vendor which layouts are to receive data. You must inform your News Vendor of any new layouts requiring data.
Convert or Create Layouts with Tagged Data Fields
When you convert files into Inscriber layouts, tabbed data fields are converted into tagged data fields (which use RTX tags). You can format tagged data fields with flexibility, to allow for different lengths of data. See Create a Text Box for a Tagged Field on page 52. When you create new layouts you must create tagged data fields for the data to feed into.
Tagged data fields, or tags, must be ordered properly.
Note: You need to know the order of the tags your News Vendor expects to find in each layout, which requires some coordination with your news operators. Name your tagged data fields sequentially (1, 2, 3, 4, and so on). It doesnt matter where you assign field numbers, as long as the data fields in your layouts match the ordered tags being sent by the News Vendor. Check that the names of your tagged data fields agree with the expectations of your News Vendor.
Notes on Using INS and .templates Files
We recommend users unfamiliar with Inscriber file structure use a simple approach. Save layouts as ICG or SLY file formats. You can store all of your related ICG and SLY files in a single job folder. See your CGs manual for more detailed instructions. More experienced users, who are familiar with .templates and INS files, must remember that each job folder can contain only one INS or .templates file. If you use the INS or .templates file formats, you must change the names of the events (INS) or templates (.templates) to match the filenames called for by the News Vendor. If the name of the files dont match the names the News Vendor commands look for, your data wont transfer properly.
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Change a Layout Name

Each INS file contains many layouts. Each layout can have its own name.
Use your CG to change a layout name:

1
4 5
In your CG, select the layout you want to use with Automation Interface. Right-click anywhere on the Workspace to open the menu. Select Change Render File Name. A new dialog opens. Enter the new file name in the New field. Click on OK to finish.
Change Registry Template Name(s)
2 3
You can select multiple files in Template Manager to change each files name.
Press CTRL+SHIFT+R to open Template Manager. (On 4.7 CGs select File > Template Manager > CG Layouts and click on the Registry Manager button) Select the template (.templates file) that you want to use with Automation Interface. Click on the Rename button. Enter the new file name in the New field of the dialog. Click on the Rename button again to accept the new name. Click on the Close button to finish.
4 5 6
Assign INS Files to an Output Channel Using Strata
Strata lets you simultaneously output multiple CG layouts through one physical channel. If you have purchased the MOS option and have Strata installed on your Automation Interface and Inscriber CG systems, you can assign your INS files to different layers, or virtual channels, in the CG so that you can output your layouts on the correct layer in Direct Control. Note that if you are using a News Vendor to output your content, the News Vendor will send its own output channel assignments.
1
Open the Strata Wizard by selecting Start > Programs > Harris > Strata Config Utility.
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Use the Strata Wizard to assign your Inscriber applications to virtual output channels, and assign virtual channels to layers on a specific output board. You can assign your Inscriber CG application (G-Scribe or titleOne) to more than one virtual channel. Assign your layout to a channel in your CG. All layouts in an INS file need to be assigned to the same channel. In Inscriber G-Scribe, switch to the Sequencer and select an event. Select a channel by clicking on a Program button on the Event Editor tab. In Inscriber CG, select an event in the playlist and select a channel in the Program/Preview palette. Once you open your INS file in Automation Interface, you can view the assigned layers in Direct Control and make changes. If the layers are listed by letters, 'A' corresponds to layer one, 'B' corresponds to layer two and so on.
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Tagging Phase
Add Tagged Fields to Your Layouts
Use your CG to create and place tagged data fields (also called RTX Tags) into your layout. In order to create tagged data fields in your CG, you need to enable it to view RTX tags. See Configure Inscriber CG Software on page 29. Follow this procedure to create a tagged data field in your layout:
1 2
Open your layout in your CG. Switch to the News Edit tab.
3 4
Name your tagged data fields as your News Vendor requires. Check that your Automation Interface Preferences match your tag naming style.
Make a text box or text line in the workspace. (See the following section on text boxes and text lines for details.) Click on the RTX tag name field. Type the name for your tagged data field in the field and press ENTER. The new RTX tag name appears in the list. Press Enter to make the text box or text line into a tagged field. The name for the tag
Enter the name for your Tagged Data Field Tag names appear in this list
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automatically appears on the CG editor screen near the text box or text line.
Tagged Data Field (using a Text Box)
Tag indicators
7
The name of the tag appears on your layout in a black indicator box just below your tagged data field.
Delete a Tagged Data Field
If you need to delete a tagged data field:

1 2 3
Select the tag name from the list of RTX tags. Highlight the tag name in the tag name field above the list. Click on the Remove Tag button.
Select the tag name

4
Click to remove the tag
Delete the text box or text line from your layout if you need to as well.
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Brief Outline of Text Boxes
Text boxes (also known as text in a box) appear on the Object Layer, rather than on the Text Layer, which allows you to move them along with other objects. You have more formatting flexibility with text boxes as well. The box expands automatically to accommodate more information. If you need the box to remain a fixed width, the font size or width automatically adjusts to fit inside the box. For Automation Interface, text boxes allow you to control the display of your data in a way that easily deals with data changes. Use the following basic instructions to create a text box to hold a tagged field in your layout. See Create a Text Line for a Tagged Field on page 53. for another option. If you need more details on creating a layout, refer to your CGs online help.
1 2 3
Create a Text Box for a Tagged Field
Click on the Text Box button in the Tools Palette of your CG. In the workspace, click and drag the cursor to make a box. Drag the text box to any position needed in your layout. You can make changes to the boxs size by dragging the side edges.
Click to create a Text Box.
Delete a Text Box Text in a Box Formatting
To delete a text box, simply highlight it and press CTRL+DEL. Text boxes automatically word-wrap and center justify. To change the format of text in a box:
1 2
Right-click on the text box and select Constrain. Select one of the constraints to indicate how you want the text to fit inside the text box. Move the margins of the box to the position you want. Select None if you need no limitations on the size of the box. Word-wrap works in this setting. Select Size to limit the overall size of the box - characters change to smaller fonts as more feed in. Select Width to limit the width only - characters height remains the same but their width changes as more feed into the box. Select Kerning to change the space between characters as more
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Text boxes by default have no constraints. If you put a formatting constraint on a text box, any font style automatically converts to a freeform style. You can change the font to a non-free-form style simply right click on the style chip and remove the check beside Free-form. Use this method if you need the boxes to be uniform in size with varied lengths of text inside.
characters feed into the box. The font also narrows when you select to constrain by kerning Word-wrap works in this setting.
Select one of three options for positioning characters within your text box: Left Justify, Centered, or Right Justify. You can chose to put your tagged field in a text line instead of inside a text box. You lose the formatting capabilities of the text box if you use a text line. To create a text line:
1 2 3
Create a Text Line for a Tagged Field

You can reposition anchored text vertically, but not horizontally. You can position floating text anywhere in the layout.
Click on the Text Cursor in the Tools palette of your CG. In the workspace, position the cursor and click to make your line. This creates an anchored text line. To change a floating text line simply press CTRL+TAB.
Click to create a Text Line.
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Active Phase
Automation Interface fills layouts with data received from your News Vendor, renders the layouts, and sends them directly to video. You can also use Direct Control to browse through the rendered layouts, edit for corrections and save or take the layout to video. If you are using an Inscriber CG (G-Scribe or titleOne) you could also have a CG operator on another machine access the layouts across a network for reviewing, editing or building a playlist.
Use Layouts with Automation Interface
Automation Interface saves layouts in an Output sub-folder as both rendered files (VII) and editable files (ICG or SLY). To use your layouts with Automation Interface:
1 2
Close the Inscriber G-Scribe or Inscriber CG program on the CG operators machine. Go to the Automation Interface machine. Ensure your layouts and/or templates are located in the job folder that is named to match exactly to the folder that the News Vendors CII command expects. You should delete old rendered files (VII) from the Output subfolder. You can make this step easier by creating and running a batch file to delete VII files. Double-click on the Automation Interface shortcut on the desktop to start the automation.
Go to the News Vendor System. Select a run-down. Call for the CG.
The number of events in the run-down determines the time that Automation Interface takes to render layouts with data. You could also use the demo application to simulate the News Vendor system. See News Feed Simulator on page 94. If you want to create additional layouts using another News Vendor, repeat this procedure from step 1. You dont have to double-click on the Automation Interface shortcut (step 2), unless you closed Automation Interface.
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Enable/Disable Last Rendered window

Enabling the Last Rendered window may slow your system as it requires more CPU and/or network time.
To see a thumbnail view of the last rendered file:

1 2
Switch to the Last Rendered tab. Right-click anywhere in the blank window.
Select Disable or Enable View Last Rendered layout.
Viewing your last rendered layout helps as you test your Automation Interface. Like the CII and Inscriber Log features, the Last Rendered window demands processor time and may slow your system down.
Framebuffer not Required to Render View Commands
Automation Interface doesnt need a framebuffer to render layouts. Layouts (including graphics) render to local or network drives. Rendering without a framebuffer commonly happens in Hands Free operation, when CG operators need to access render graphics over a network. You can choose to see News Vendor commands as Automation Interface receives them, or you can minimize Automation Interface and see no commands. Automation Interface opens with the log window enabled (Hands On operation). To disable the log window (Hands Free operation):
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Right-click anywhere in either CII or Inscriber Log Window. Select Disable log window.
Select to switch to unattended mode
Hands Free Operation
Automation Interface can work directly with a framebuffer and output directly to video. Your CG does not need to connect to the Automation Interface if your layouts remain the same. The data from your News Service continues to drop into your layout automatically. After your News Vendor data goes into your layout, you can use Direct Control to view each layout and make edits to the tagged text. You can use Direct Control any time. See Direct Control on page 58.
Direct Control
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Direct Control
Direct Control
Use Direct Control to add human intervention to an automated process for confirmation, accuracy, and flexibility of output. You can check, edit, and take rendered broadcast graphics from a conveniently located, and possibly portable, computer connected to your network. You can scroll through graphics to check them using any computer connected to the network and running Direct Control. You can edit information in tagged data fields filled manually, by ODBC, or by a News Vendor. You can add an appropriate display effect and take graphics directly to air, or save changes back over the network for output as scheduled. If your graphics were created in Inscriber CG and organized into a sequenced INS playlist, you can add, delete, or rearrange graphics in the playlist.
Install Direct Control

Install the Direct Control component of the Automation Interface install.
1 2
Run the Automation Interface install on the computer you want to use for human intervention. During the install, check the Direct Control checkbox in the Automation Interface Components dialog. Clear the Automation Interface (Main Application) checkbox unless you have a dongle to run Automation Interface on this machine. Clear the News Feed Simulator checkbox unless you want to use this machine to test your Automation system (see News Feed Simulator on page 94 for details). Follow the install prompts.
Open Direct Control
Open Direct Control using one of these methods. Double-click on the Direct Control icon on your desktop. Click on Start > Programs > Harris > Automation Interface > DirectControl. Direct Control opens the first time with a blank window. The next time you open Direct Control, the last file used is automatically opened (see Set Preferences).
Get Started
Select File > New to create the first set of playlists, and open the Setup Playlist dialog. The interface shows the organization tools used in Direct Control.
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Inscriber Automation Interface - Direct Control
Playlist Tab
IDC File Tab (set of play lists)
Organization Tools
Direct Control is most effective when you organize the rendered graphics you want to watch into a logical structure for convenient display and access.
Playlists
A playlist in Direct Control is a list of rendered graphic files that are common to a program or program segment. Each playlist is represented by a tab. Use playlists to organize files that need to be accessed at the same time, and save each playlist with an appropriate descriptive name. If you create a playlist from individual graphics (.icg, .vii, .tga), the files can be collected from one or more Automation Interface machines on the network. If you create a playlist from a sequenced INS file, or create a sequence from a series of images, files can only be collected from one Automation Interface machine so that the sequence is maintained.
Sets of Playlists
You can create sets of playlists for different programs that use common graphics and display effects, then save the set with an appropriate descriptive name. For instance, if your morning and dinner hour news programs use the same graphics and display effects, you can create one set for those programs. Your late-night news and sports programs, which use a different set of graphics and display effects, can go into another set. Inscriber Automation Interface - Direct Control 59
The set of playlists is saved as an IDC (Inscriber Direct Control) file, which includes: navigation instructions to your set of playlists settings for framebuffers the display effects commonly used in takes
Set Viewing Options

You can change the position and size of many of the elements. If you have multiple machine/framebuffers, you can see thumbnails and status information on each machine/framebuffer, with the full composite displayed in the large VGA preview window.
Output Tab Appearance

You can change the appearance of any of the Output tabs (machine/ framebuffer; Tag View; Status View) so you can see more than one machines output. You can move your tabs anywhere on the Direct Control window. If you need to see information from multiple machines, you can create separate tabs for each machine. Move a Tab
1
Click and drag the tab name up into the VGA area. Your tab now appears in the upper-left hand corner of the window.
Click on tab name and drag up into VGA Preview for new tab format
Command Tag info status
Machines/Frame Buffers
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Reposition a Tab
You can arrange the tabs on your Direct Control window as needed. Click and drag the edge of the tab to widen or narrow. Preview and Program thumbnails resize and reposition automatically as you resize each tab. Click and drag the corner of the tab to resize both height and width at the same time. Click on the top blue title bar and drag the tab to move it around your screen. Click and drag the tab name down to the bottom-right corner of the screen to return your tab to the original format.
Graphic File Formats
When you set up a list of rendered graphics, you are asked to select one or more file formats as the source of the rendered graphics. The source file(s) can be: unsequenced single image formats such as Automation Interface (ICG + XML), ICG, SLY, VII, TGA, JPEG, or BMP unsequenced multiple image formats such as Inscriber .templates files, or Inscriber INS files used as unsequenced templates a sequenced multiple image format such as an Inscriber INS a sequence created using multiple images The type of source file you use depends on what is available on the Automation Interface machine and cannot be modified by Direct Control.
Use Inscribercreated files from Automation Interface/Tutorial to learn how Direct Control works.
Unsequenced: Single and Multiple Image Formats

If the source files are single image formats, or unsequenced multiple image formats, the graphics are rendered by the Automation Interface machine, and entered in the Direct Control playlist in alphabetical order. You can connect to more than one Automation Interface machine, and add the graphics from each additional machine to your playlist. You cannot copy and paste or reorder the playlist because the list is not sequenced.
Sequenced: Images or Multiple Image Format

If the source file is a sequenced multiple image format, or you want to use a collection of images in a sequence, the graphics are rendered by the Automation Interface machine, and entered in the Direct Control playlist in sequenced order. You can only connect to one Automation Interface machine, and use the graphics from that one machine so that the sequence is maintained. You can copy, paste, and reorder the sequenced playlist.
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Set Up Playlists
When you first open Direct Control you are prompted to set up the first playlist in the first set of playlists. Type a descriptive name in the Playlist Name box. The name appears on the playlist tab.
Set Up Automation Interface Machine
Click on the Browse button to find the Automation Interface machine on the network with rendered graphic files you want to watch. The Renderer Name ( ) for the framebuffer and Automation Interface hardware/software assembly is chosen during the installation of Automation Interface and cannot be changed with Direct Control. The Machine Name is assigned by network administrators and cannot be changed with Direct Control. If you intend to take rendered graphics directly to air from Direct Control, you must set up the connection to each available framebuffer board on the Automation Interface machine.
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Set Up Framebuffers for Output
2 3 4
Type the number code of the framebuffers in the Framebuffer # box. You might need the assistance of the Automation Interface machine administrator to determine the correct numbers. Check the Enable Program checkbox if you want to take directly to air from Direct Control. Check the Enable Preview checkbox if you want to take to preview from Direct Control. Check the Add View Tab checkbox if you want to see an output thumbnail in the Preview window on the Direct Control interface. Click on the Add button in the List of Files section to setup a list of rendered files on the Automation Interface machine that you want to watch. Select the source of your files. Select Folder if the files are unsequenced single image formats collected under a folder. Select Template File if the files are unsequenced multiple image formats such as Inscriber .templates files, or Inscriber INS files that you want to use as templates. Select Sequencer File if the file is a sequenced multiple image format such as an Inscriber INS file, and you want to maintain the sequence. Setting up a sequenced playlist takes some processing time because an XML file is generated for the sequence.
Add Files to Playlist
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Select Sequencer Folder if you want to create a sequence using multiple images in a folder. Click on the Browse button to select the path to your file or folder. The path must be to the Automation Interface machine currently set as the renderer. If youre using individual files, check the file types you want to include in this playlist. Click on OK to finish adding files to the playlist.
If required, check Other and type any additional formats in the field.
Add Another Automation Interface Machine

Use Advanced Remove Automation Interface Device to remove machines.
If your playlist is unsequenced files or templates you can add the rendered graphics from another Automation Interface machine to your playlist. Click on Advanced, then click on New Automation Interface Device. Each Renderer/Machine combination appears as a separate tab on the bottom right of your screen, so you can easily switch between them. If the playlist is sequenced, you can only use graphics from one Automation Interface machine so that the sequence is maintained. Click on OK to finish your playlist.
Finish Playlist Setup
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The following illustration shows the Direct Control interface after setting up a sequenced playlist from an INS source.
Sequenced Playlist (INS source file)
Indicators for Sequence Reordering
VGA Preview Window
Swap Framebuffers Indicator
Framebuffer Indicator
Effects List
Automation Interface Machine Tab
Apply Familiar Naming and Labelling
Edit the name, label, and comment for any item in the playlist using the Edit menu or the following quick keys. Press ALT + N to edit the name of an item. Press ALT + L to edit the label of an item. Press ALT + C to edit the comment included with an item. To set up more playlists in a set select Setup > Add Playlist. You can have as many playlists as you require in one set. You can use each playlist in more than one set.
Add Another Playlist
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Save a Set of Playlists Add Another Set of Playlists
Select File > Save, and type a descriptive name for the set of playlists. The set is saved as an IDC file with information on file paths, effects, files, and preferences for your Direct Control session. If required, select File > New to create another set of playlists. Each set is accessed through a tab on the bottom left of the screen if you are using the default Workbook View (see Set Preferences to change the Direct Control display). When you have set the viewing options, arrange windows and created effects you can save an IDC file to use as a template. Save the file as readonly so that the settings cannot be changed. When you want to use the template, open the IDC file, add playlists, and save the file with a new name.
Save an IDC Template
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Add Effects
If you intend to take rendered graphics directly to air from Direct Control, choose an effects file for output. The available effects files are shown in the Effects List drop-down on the view tab.
Press CTRL+SHIFT+ 1 to CTRL + SHIFT + 9 to select any of the first 9 effects available.
If you select a group header you can add an effect for the entire group. If you multi-select using CTRL + ALT + click you can add an effect to all of the selected items. See Set Up Framebuffers for Output on page 62 if the view tab is not visible. Effects control the behavior of the take. You can create effects that fade on and fade off, or any combination of standard effects. Direct Control keeps effects in groups, with the entire group using a single name. If you click on the group name of your effect in the list, you can see all the effects that belong to that group.
Effect Group Effect element
You can add or remove elements within your effect group, as well as edit each element of the effect using the Set Effects dialog.
Set Up an Effect
1 2 3
Select Setup > Set Effect. Select Set Effects from the menu on the Set up dialog. Select Create Effect > New Effect Group from the menu on the Set Effect dialog the Set Custom Effect dialog opens.
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4 5
6 7
Name your effect. Select Effect and chose an effect from the dropdown menu. Set the effect duration. Set a Pause, Wait or both, if required. Click on OK to return to your Effect Group. Click on OK to finish, or you can add another effect to your group. Select the group you want to add an effect to. Select Create Effect > Add Effect to Group. Select the effect you want to add to the group from the drop-down list. Add any other options to your effect. To change the effect and pause duration measurement from frames to seconds, select File > Preferences from the main menu. Click OK to finish. Double-click on the effect to open the Set Effect dialog. Make your changes as described in Set Up an Effect on page 66. Click on OK to finish.
Add an Effect to a Group
1 2 3 4
Edit an Effect
1 2 3
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Export an Effect Group
To use your effects in more than one IDC file (if you keep separate folders for your broadcast projects or use Direct Control on more than one machine), you can export your effects as a DCE (Direct Control Custom Effect) file to use on the second machine.
1 2 3 4 5
Select the Effect group you want to export. Select File > Export. Navigate to where you want to save the file on the network. Name your exported file. Click on Save to finish. Select Effect > Set Effect > File > Import. Navigate to your DCE file. Select the file to import. Click on Open to import the file.
Import an Effect Group
1 2 3 4
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Edit Text
Edit
You can edit text in any tagged field.
1
Press CTRL+E to open the Tag Editor dialog. Select the tag you want to edit.
Open the field for editing using one of these methods. Press the Click inside the highlight spacebar. or press the spacebar Click inside the to open the field for editing highlight. Type your new data or edit the data in the field, and press ENTER. Click on the Preview button to see your edited tags in the VGA Preview. Save your edits using one of Type new data the following methods. Click Save Press CTRL+S
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Check Your Layouts
To scroll through your data-filled layouts:

1
Click on the playlist tab you want to check.

Renderer Names
Playlist Tabs Layout Files

2
Press CTRL + G to use the Go To dialog.
File Types
Click on the file you want to see. Scroll through the list using the arrow keys on the keyboard. Each layout appears in the VGA Preview window.
Save Your Edited Layout
After making an edit to one of your layouts, you can save it back to its usual location for your system to output automatically. Save your layout using one of the following methods. Select Playlist > Save Event Press CTRL+S You can save your layout to another folder on your machine, and build a list of optional locations.
1
Save to a New Location

You must save each layout to the machine that renders the layout.
Open the Save As dialog using one of the following methods. Select File > Save As Press SHIFT+CTRL+S
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2 3
Type the file name for your layout. Select a folder from the list. If you want to use a different folder:
a Click on the New Folder button. b Navigate to your folder. c Click OK to finish. Your new path appears in the list.
Click on the Save button to finish.
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Modify Sequences
Try using the rightclick menu to make changes.
If your playlist is sequenced, you can copy, paste, and reorder the playlist. Flags appear in the Deleted, Moved, Added, and Edited columns in the Direct Control interface to show when a graphic in the sequence has been rearranged or modified. Click on a single item to select it. Hold down CTRL + ALT and click on a number of non-consecutive items to select several for modification. Press CTRL + G to go to a numbered item in the playlist.
Select
Copy and Paste

Changes are automatically saved after each operation.
Click on an item in any playlist and press CTRL + C to copy. Click on an item in any playlist and press CTRL + V to paste a copied item below the selected item. If the items are on another system, only stills can be pasted. Copy and paste items to and from the Windows clip board on the system running Direct Control. Click and drag an item to move the item to another position in the sequence. Press INSERT to select an .icg or an .sly file to add to the playlist. Press SHIFT + INSERT to insert a new group in the playlist. Press CTRL + INSERT to insert an image (JPEG, TGA, BMP) in the playlist. Press CTRL + SHIFT + V to insert an image from the clip board. Click on an item and press the DELETE key to mark the item to be skipped. Click on a deleted item and press SHIFT + DELETE to return the item to the sequence. Deleted items remain in the sequence but are marked to be skipped. Deleted items can be easily returned to the sequence (undeleted) if required.
Click and Drag Insert and Delete
Select Show Playlist Deleted (F4) to show or hide items.
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Modifications Not Saved to Source
Changes you make to the playlist in Direct Control are saved over the network for output as scheduled, but the changes are NOT saved back to the unrendered playlist source file on the Automation Interface machine. All modifications are lost if the playlist source file on the Automation Interface machine changes and you need to recreate the playlist in Direct Control.
Update Playlist Files
If your source files change or you add images to the Sequencer folder, you can pull the latest versions into Direct Control as you check your line-up. Direct Control retrieves the last version from the usual location, sends it to the renderer and displays the new files. Display the most recent version of your files using one of the following methods. Select Playlist > Refresh Playlist Press F5
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Take to Air
Modify Channel Assignment
You can also use the right-click menu to make changes.
If you have a sequenced playlist, check the Channel column to confirm the channel the layout is assigned to. Use the following key combinations to change the channel assignment either temporarily or permanently. Press SHIFT + F1 to take to channel 1 if the layout is assigned to channel 2. The channel assignment is NOT changed in the Channel column. Press SHIFT + F2 to take to channel 2 if the layout is assigned to channel 1. The channel assignment is NOT changed in the Channel column. Press CTRL + F1 to reassign the take to channel 1. The channel assignment is changed in the Channel column. Press CTRL + F2 to reassign the take to channel 2. The channel assignment is changed in the Channel column. Press F3 to swap framebuffers. All layouts assigned to channel 1 now take to channel 2. All layouts assigned to channel 2 now take to channel 1. The channel assignment change is flagged by the red swap indicator under the VGA preview window. The framebuffer indicator, located on the view tab, shows the status of the framebuffer. (See: Set Up Playlists on page 62, step 3 if the view tab is not visible). Green = available Red = busy Square in Green = waiting (available when next take called - for multiple effects)
Read Framebuffer Indicator
Take to Air
You can take to air using one of the following methods. Select Playlist > Take Press the PLUS (+) key on the number pad to take an event. When the event is finished playing, press the PLUS (+) key again for the next take. Enable takes in quick succession by changing an ini file setting so that items queue when the PLUS (+) key is pressed many times. In inscribe.ini, set CacheTakeNext = 1 to enable queueing.
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Quick Keys for Takes

Quick keys are available to simplify your takes. You can see these on the Playlist menu as well.
You can also use the right-click menu for takes.
Press the numpad ENTER key to take the current window straight to program. Press the numpad PLUS (+) key to take the current layout (shown in the VGA Preview window) and move to the next layout in the list. Press the numpad MINUS (-) key to take the current layout to Preview. Use this if you selected Manual pre-load in your preferences. See Preload Effects Manually or Automatically on page 77 for details. Press CTRL + SHIFT + numpad ENTER to Clear the program window. Press the ESCAPE key to abort a take.
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Set Preferences
You can set a variety of preferences in Direct Control to simplify your work.
Open Preferences
Select File > Preferences to open the dialog.
Startup
Choose what happens when you open Direct Control. open with the last set of playlists (IDC) file you used select a set of playlists (IDC) file
Durations Workbook View
Choose timing of effects measured in frames or seconds. You can choose to see your IDC files as Workbook tabs. Each IDC file appears as a tab in the bottom left corner of your Direct Control window. You can open multiple IDC files and easily switch between them. If you dont use this option, you must select File from the menu and select an IDC file from the list.
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New IDC File
You can choose an effects file (DirectControl Custom Effect or DCE file) to load automatically whenever you create a new IDC file.
1 2
Check the Autoload effects checkbox. Click on the Browse button to navigate to your DCE file.
Preload Effects Manually or Automatically
You can choose to manually preload effects when needed, or have Direct Control automatically preload your effects to preview. If you decide to use the manual option, use the MINUS (-) key on the number pad to preload your effects to preview. You can preload your effects with or without a preview framebuffer. Preloaded effects give you immediate takes.
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Command Lists
List of Commands
Inscriber Automation Interface supports the following commands:
CII Commands Supported
Automation Interface supports these CII commands:
Select Message Directory (M)

M\Drive Letter/Directory Name\\[checksum]<CR><LF> m\Machine Code\Drive Letter/Directory Name\\[checksum]<CR><LF>
Write to Tab Data message (W)

W\Tab Data message ID #\Tab Description message ID #\Data1\Data2\. . . \\[checksum]<CR><LF> w\ Machine Code\Tab Data message ID #\Tab Description message ID #\Data1\Data2\ . . . \\[checksum]<CR><LF>
IMAGESTORE! (T)
T\Command #\Parameter 1\...\Parameter n\\[checksum]<CR><LF> 7 : Read Still 14 : Erase Channel
Special Effects (V)

Read Effects (V\0 - V\2) V\Read Effects Frame buffer code\1\Effect\ Pattern\Speed\Ease\Reverse\Row 0 Direction\...\Row n Direction\\[checksum]<CR><LF> V\Roll or Crawl Frame buffer code\1\Effect\Roll or Crawl ID #\Duration\\<CR><LF> V\Read Effects Frame buffer code\1\V\EEFB Foreground or Background buffer\Start Frame #\End Frame#\Absolute Path\ \[checksum]<CR><LF>
Miscellaneous (V\5)
1: Turn Keyboard Input Off : not supported 2: Turn Keyboard input On : not supported 3: Prebuild framebuffer 4: Set Message Compose active buffer 5: Set Palette : not supported 6: Quick Erase for displaying framebuffer 7: Quick Erase for non-displaying framebuffer 80 Inscriber Automation Interface - List of Commands
11: Disable Prompts Monitor Updates : not supported 12: Enable prompts Monitor Updates : not supported 13: Prebuild
Triggering Effects (V\6)

V\6\Special Effects Command 1\...\Special Effects Command n\ \[checksum]<CR><LF>
Checksum calculation : supported Send packet of keyboard to Primary user (Y) : supported Send packet of keyboard to Secondary user (Z) : supported
CII Commands Not Supported
Mix Effects (V\3) : not supported Transform and Advanced Transform (V\4) : not supported Serial Data (D) : not supported Change Time Slicing (Turbo mode) : not supported Response To External Update Request : not supported Update One Field (U) : not supported Resend Previous Transmission (Q) : not supported IMAGESTORE! ( T )
0: Add Still 1: Replace Still 2: Move Entry 3: Delete Entry 4: Delete Playlist 5: Change Current Entry 6: Read Next 8: Read Playlist 9: Query Playlist 10: Query Entry 11: Keyboard lock : not supported 12: Save Playlist Inscriber Automation Interface - List of Commands 81
13: Query Status : not supported
Inscriber II Commands Supported
Use these Inscriber commands to extend the CII set. These commands can affect your set Preferences. Use these commands to make changes to your Preferences while your Automation Interface runs. Even if a 'News System' can't use these new commands, they are initially used by Automation Interface as default setting , with values from the inscribe.ini file. Specify the 'current directory' with a CII M command (e.g. M\C/ automation/demo\\ )
Use capital or lower case letters with Inscriber commands as you would for CII commands.
Set Up a Transition on a Channel

I\1 I\1\Framebuffer #\Effect\Pattern\Duration\Ease\Reverse\Row Direction\\[CHECKSUM]CRLF Framebuffer #: Framebuffer 1 = 1, ... Framebuffer n = n Effect: W - Wipe P - Push H - Hide R - Reveal D - Dissolve C Cut Pattern: A Horizontal Slide Wipe B Vertical Slide Wipe C Horizontal Split Wipe D Vertical Split Wipe E Box Wipe F Row Slide / Wipe G Scanline Wipe H Row By Row Scanline Wipe I Screen Scanline Sipe J Pixel Wipe
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Inscriber Automation Interface - List of Commands
Speed (Duration): Range (Frames): 1- 300 Ease: Ignored Reverse: 0 Off 1 On Row Direction: 0 Up 1 Down 2 Left 3 Right 4 Static
Specify Tag Name

I\20 I\20\Tab Data Message\Tab Description Message ID\TagName1\Data1\TagName2\Data2\...\\ This corresponds to CIIs W command : W\Tab Data Message\Tab Description Message ID\Data1\Data2\...\\ You can specify the tag name, not just the tag data. You can give tags any name, and create them in any order. For example :I\20\1000\100\tag1\newdata1\tag2\newdata2\tag3\newdata3\\ W\1000\100\newdata1\newdata2\newdata3\\ I\20\TGAfile\SLYtemplate\tag1\newdata1\tag2\newdata2\tag3\newdata3\\ I\21 I\21\Mode Mode is a number from zero to four. 0: Load layout. I\21\0\layout_name\\ If no extension is specified, Automation Interface will try to open a layout of the type specified in the Default Input Type section of the Resources tab in the Automation Interface Preferences dialog. If you would like to open an icg file that is not saved in the current directory, you can specify the complete file path name to the icg file. example: I\21\0\file.icg\\ 1. Update tags example: I\21\1\tag_name1\dag_data1\tag_name2\tag_data2\..\\
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2: Load layout, specific to Direct Control. 3: Save layout I\21\3\filename\\ The file will be saved to the current output folder using the current Default Output settings specified on the Resources tab of the Automation Interface Preferences dialog. If you would like to save the file to a different location and use a different output format, you must specify the complete path name of the file including the file extension. example: I\21\3\D/Automation Interface/MyOutput/out.icg\\ 4: Close currently loaded layout example: I\21\4\\
Miscellaneous
I\25 I\25\1\FileName\\ Sets the 'input' file as an INS or REG file. FileName is the name of the INS/REG in the 'current directory. Example: I\25\1\demo.ins\\
Set Input File Type

I\25\2\input type\\ You can use INS, REG, SLY, or ICG files with Automation Interface. See Resource Settings on page 39 for details. In the W or I\20 command, the Tab Description Message ID will be: To use a INS file: the event number (the rendered name) in the list. To use a REG file: the entry number in the list. To use an SLY or ICG: the name of the file in the current directory.
Set Output File Type

I\25\3\output type\\ You have the choice of outputting VII (VIR, VIC, VIA), TGA, BMP, LGO, JPG, SLY, or ICG files with Automation Interface. See Resource Settings on page 39 for details. Use a W or I\20 command to indicate the format you want to output:
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You can edit SLY and ICG files, but you cannot edit rendered files.
To output a ICG file: output type=ICG To output an SLY file: output type=SLY and the appropriate rendered file. See Select Format of Output Files on page 41 for details. To output VII, TGA, BMP, LGO (rendered files): ouput type=VII/TGA/ BMP/LGO For example : I\25\2\INS\\ or the command list: I\25\3\TGA\\ W\1000\100\newdata1\newdata2\newdata3\\ This series of commands will look for event 100 in the first INS file in the current directory, use it as a template, update the three specified tags, and save the result as a TGA As another example: I\25\2\SLY\\ I\25\3\SLY\\ W\1000\100\newdata1\newdata2\newdata3\\ Automation Interface looks for 100.sly, uses it as a template, updates 3 tags and saves the result as an SLY file. If 100.sly is an animation file, the result will be : 1000.sly + 1000.via Another variation: M\C/news\\ I\25\1\inscribe.templates\\ I\25\3\TGA\\ I\25\6\C/night news\\ W\5001\1115\11 o'clock news\Toronto\\ Automation Interface moves the current directory to C:\news, looks for template 1115 in inscribe.templates file, updates two tags, and saves the result as 5000.tga in the C:\night news folder.
Set Framebuffers
I\25\4\use framebuffers\\ To enable the framebuffer: use framebuffers = 1 When your framebuffer is enabled, you can do takes to air using the current framebuffer. Inscriber Automation Interface - List of Commands 85
To disable the framebuffer: use framebuffers = 0
Use RGB Fonts

See Set RGB Font (special character) resources on page 39 for details. I\25\5\use RGB fonts\\ To use RGB fonts: use RGB fonts = 1 To not use RGB fonts: use RGB fonts = 0
Set the Output Directory

See Set Output Folder on page 40 for details. I\25\6\output directory\\
Set Auto Update Resource Path

See Update resource paths on page 40 for details. I\25\7\auto update resource path\\ To enable Automation Interface to automatically update the resource path: auto update resource path = 1 To disable automatic update of the resource path: auto update resource path = 0
Skip a Tag
See Set Checksum on page 37 for details. I\25\8\use space to skip tag\\ To skip a tag: use space to skip tag = 1 To not skip a tag: use space to skip tag = 0
Set First Tag

See Indicate First Tag on page 38 for details. I\25\9\\first tag ID\\ first tag ID = 0, 1, ...
Set Tag Name

See Set Tag Identification on page 38 for details. I\25\10\use tagID as tagName\\ To use tagID as tagName = 1 To use creation order = 0
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Set Template (layout) Name

I\25\11\template name type\\ To use numeric name: template name type = 1 To use a character string: template name type = 2
Query .ins for events

I\5\6\ins_file\\[checksum]CRLF "ins_file" is the name of the .ins file in the current directory return :
*CRLF for valid command AND R\I\5\6\ins_file\ins_event1\ins_event2\....\ins_eventn\\[checksum]CRLF
example :
M\c:/Automation Interface/Demo\\ : set current directory : where the .ins file is located I\25\2\INS\ : set default "input" extension : INS ( or set "input" in Automation Interface\Preferences\Resources tab ) I\5\6\demostills\\ : query c:\Automation Interface\Demo\DemoStills.ins reply "*" AND R\I\5\6\demostills\news\weather\sports\...\\
Query event in an .ins file

I\5\7\ins_file\ins_event\1\\ I\5\7\ins_file\ins_event\2\\ I\5\7\ins_file\ins_event\3\\ "ins_file" is the name of the .ins file in the current directory, "ins_event" is the event in the .ins file, returned by I\5\6\... 1: returns tags, name only. 2: return tags, name + data. 3: returns effect info as defined in the V\0...V\3 CII command.
if the event is roll-crawl-animation-activetexture-clock, the returned effect is empty (the effect is defined in the rendered files and cannot be changed )
reply *
AND for I\5\7\...\1 : R\I\5\7\ins_file\ins_event\1\tag1_name\tag2_name\...\tagn_name\\ for I\5\7\..\2 : R\I\5\7\ins_file\ins_event2\\tag1_name\tag1_text\...\tagn_name\tagn_text\\ for I\5\7\...\3 : R\I\5\7\ins_file\ins_event\3\frame_buffer\effect\pattern\duration_frames\ease\reverse \rowdirection\\ note : frame_buffer : first framebuffer is 1 ( not 0 as in the V\0 command )
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example
I\5\7\demostills\news\1\\ R\I\5\7\demostills\news\1\subheading\headline\\ I\5\7\demostills\news\2\\ R\I\5\7\demostills\news\2\subheading\Home Safely\headline\Space Shutle\\ I\5\7\demostills\news\3\\ R\I\5\7\demostills\news\3\1\C\A\30\0\0\0\\
Query icg file

I\5\7\icg_file\1\requested_query\ icg_file is the name of the .icg file in the current directory. Be sure to include the .icg file extension. You can also give the full path to the .icg file. requested_query is 1, 2 or 3 1: returns tags, name only. 2: return tags, name + data. 3: returns effect info as defined in the V\0...V\3 CII command. example
I\5\7\00001.icg\1\2\ I\5\7\D/Tech/Tract/ICGS/00001.icg\1\2\
Create new playlist

I\6\2\playlist_file\\ "playlist_file" is the name of the playlist file in the current directory reply * example
I\6\2\testplaylist\\ : the result is c:\Automation Interface\Demo\testplaylist.xml
Delete playlist
I\6\4\playlist_file\\ "playlist_file" is the name of the playlist file in the current directory reply * example
I\6\2\testplaylist\\ : the result is c:\Automation Interface\Demo\testplaylist.xml will be deleted (if is not the current active playlist)
Set playlist as active ( load the playlist )

I\6\5\playlist_file\\ "playlist_file" is the name of the playlist file in the current directory reply * 88 Inscriber Automation Interface - List of Commands
example
I\6\5\testplaylist\\ : the result is c:\Automation Interface\Demo\testplaylist.xml is loaded, and the previously loaded-active playlist is discarded without saving
Add event to playlist

I\6\8\playlist_file\where_to_add\event_file\frame_buffer\[effect]\\ "playlist_file" is the name of the playlist file in the current directory or "C" if working on the current playlist "where_to_add" is the position of event in the playlist : 0 is first "event_file" is the name of the rendered file in the Output subfolder "frame_buffer" and "effect" as they are returned by I\5\7\...\3 reply : *
note : event_file is rendered with a W or the I\20 command if "playlist_file" is not current (C), the "playlist_file" is saved after adding the event
example
M\c:/Automation Interface/Demo\\ I\25\1\demostills.ins\\ : use demostills.ins events as templates I\5\6\demostills\\ : query .ins for events got R\I\5\6\demostills\news\weather\sports\...\\ I\5\7\demostills\news\2\\ : query event "news" for tags (name + text ) got R\I\5\7\demostills\news\2\subheading\Home Safely\headline\Space Shutle\\ I\5\7\demostills\news\3\\ : query "mews" event for effect info got R\I\5\7\demostills\news\3\1\C\A\30\0\0\0\\ I\20\news1\news\headline\Space Shuttle\\ : changed "Shutle" to "Shuttle" and saved news1.xml in the Output subfolder I\20\news2\news\\ : saved news2.xml in the Output subfolder with default tags I\6\2\testplaylist\\ : create playlist "testplaylist" I\6\5\testplaylist\\ : set playlist "testplaylist" as active I\6\8\C\0\news1\1\C\A\30\0\0\0\\ : add news1 to active playlist and set framebuffer and effect I\6\8\C\1\news2\2\\ : add news2 to active playlist and set framebuffer to 2
Remove event from playlist

I\6\9\playlist_file\what_to_remove\\ "playlist_file" is the name of the playlist file in the current directory or "C" if working on the current playlist "what_to_remove" is the position of event in the playlist : 0 is first return * example
I\6\9\testplaylist\0\\ : remove event 0 in "testplaylist" and save "testplaylist"
Save current playlist

I\6\11\[playlist_file]\\
89
"playlist_file" is the name of the playlist file in the current directory or "C" if working on the current playlist if no "playlist_file" or "playlist_file" == C : save with the same name used in I\6\5\playlist_file\\ (load) example
I\6\11\\ saved c:\Automation Interface\Demo\testplaylist.xml
Select event in active playlist

I\6\12\what_to_select\\ "what_to_select" is the position starting at 0 in the playlist example
I\6\12\1\\ : select "news2"
Select next event in active playlist

I\6\13\\
note : if current selected event is the last one, "select next" fails
Select previous event in active playlist

I\6\14\\
note : if current selected event is the first one, "select previous" fails
Take event in active playlist

I\6\15\1\what_effect_to_use_mode\\ : take current selected event I\6\15\2\what_to_take\what_effect_to_use_mode\\ : take "what_to_take" to air I\6\15\3\what_to_take_event_file\what_effect_to_use_mode\ : take "news1" to air "what_to_take" is the position starting at 0 in the playlist "what_to_take_event_file" is the event as added with I\6\8 "what_effect_to_use_mode" is to specify what effect to use for "take" 0: use current defined effect with V\0...V\3 or from a previous "take" 1: framebuffer and effect as defined in I\6\8\ ( add event ) example
I\6\15\2\0\1\\ : "take" news1 as C\A\30\0\0\0 to framebuffer 1 I\6\15\3\news2\\ "take" news2
Page Recall
I\23\Framebuffer #\Effect\Pattern\Duration\Ease\Reverse\Row Direction\Message ID\Mode\\[CHECKSUM]CRLF Framebuffer # 90 Inscriber Automation Interface - List of Commands
Framebuffer 1 = 1, ... Framebuffer n = n
Effect
W - Wipe P - Push H - Hide R - Reveal D - Dissolve C Cut
Pattern
A Horizontal Slide Wipe B Vertical Slide Wipe C Horizontal Split Wipe D Vertical Split Wipe E Box Wipe F Row Slide / Wipe G Scanline Wipe H Row By Row Scanline Wipe I Screen Scanline Sipe J Pixel Wipe
Speed (Duration)
Range (Frames): 1- 300
Ease is ignored Reverse

0 Off 1 On
Row Direction
0 Up 1 Down 2 Left 3 Right 4 Static
Message ID
The file name and path of the file you want to take or just the filename (ie Page Id)
Mode
0 Non Displaying (triggered later with a V\6 command) 1 Displaying (triggered immediately)
91
92
News Feed Simulator
News Feed Simulator

News Feed Simulator acts as a data sending application to let you set up and test your Automation system before your News Vendor system goes live. You can test: Com Port ID and functionality Tag filling process Rendering (on preview) Framebuffer display.
Three components make up the News Feed Simulator: News Feed Simulator application null modem cable Automation Interface News Feed Simulator contains Inscriber layouts tagged to receive data from the simulated News Vendor. You can enter the data into the News Feed Simulator screens and transfer it to your Automation Interface (with or without a framebuffer). Use the Generic Demo to send data to fill the tags in your own Inscriber layouts. You can use the Script Demo to send CII commands directly to your Automation Interface. Additionally, you can use the News Test application available from the Automation Interfaces Start menu listing. Use News Test to test the communications between your Automation Interface and your News Feed Simulator computer.
Install News Feed Simulator
Install News Feed Simulator on a second Windows XP computer. Connect the News Feed Simulator computer to the Automation Interface computer with the null modem cable. Copy the complete set of INS and TGA graphic resource files from the News Feed Simulator folder on the disk. The TGA files are required to create the layouts in the INS. Create a C:\newsdemo folder on the hard drive of the Automation Interface. When you do a News Vendor run-down and create layouts with automation data, the Automation Interface creates an Output sub-folder within this folder. The Output sub-folder contains the rendered output files (VII files), and the editable output files (ICG or SLY files).
You can install News Feed Simulator on the PC running Automation Interface.
94
Inscriber Automation Interface - News Feed Simulator
You need layouts in the INS file that identify and match file numbers called by the News Vendor system.
95
Test Your Automation Interface

Open News Feed Simulator Test a Previously Created Inscriber Layout
Click on the News Feed Simulator icon on your desktop. You can also select News Feed Simulator from your Start menu. You can use one of the Inscriber-created layouts from the News Feed Simulator:
1
Switch to the tab of the layout you want to use. The News Tab appears in this example. To change the data that appears in the layout, type over the text in the data fields. Click on the DRAW button to render the layout to preview. View the rendered layout in the Last Rendered window on your Automation Interface. SeeEnable/Disable Last Rendered window on page 55. Click on the TAKE button to send the rendered layout to your framebuffer for video output. You can do this immediately after clicking on the DRAW button if you want. Repeat steps 1 - 6 to test other layouts, or use the Generic Demo to create and test your own layout. Click on OK to close News Feed Simulator.
Rendering your layout places the data from the News Vendor into the prescribed tagged data fields in your layout.
6 7
96
Test Your Own Inscriber Layout

Use the Generic Demo to test one of your own Inscriber layouts with the Automation Interface. You must use an existing Inscriber layout that contains Tagged Data Fields, or create a new Inscriber layout with Tagged Data Fields.
Generic Demo
To test a layout using the Generic Demo:

1
Type the path of the folder or file you want to use with News Feed Simulator. Type the path of the folder you want for your output. Select the format for the file you intend to use in the test. Move to the Source field and type the name of the Inscriber layout file you want to use in the test. If you use an INS file, type the layouts render name. Select a field. (News Feed Simulator automatically finds the tagged data fields in the layout.) Type the name for each field. Use the name of the tagged data field from your Inscriber layout. Type some data into the Field Data lines. Click on the DRAW button to render the file. Click on the TAKE button to send the file to the framebuffer. Click on Save to save this demo file in your Output folder.
We recommend that users new to Inscriber products use ICG or SLY files in the test.
5 6 7 8
To reuse a saved generic demo file, click on the Open button and navigate to your file.
9 10
97
Test Communications
Use the News Feed Simulators Test Interface to check the communication between your News Feed Simulator computer and the Automation Interface.
Open Com Test

The Com Test and News Feed Simulator interface windows are similar but appear on separate computers.
Before you can use the Test Interface, you must open the News Test application. News Test receives the CII commands that you send from the Test Interface.
1 2 3 1
On your Automation Interface computer, click on the Windows Start button. Find the Automation Interface menu. Launch the News Test application. On your News Feed Simulator computer, switch to the Test Interface tab.
Send Commands Using Test Interface
Line Command Window List Command Window
Command Reception Window
2
Automation Interface doesnt respond to spaces or carriage returns in commands. Use other keys when sending tests to Automation Interface.
3 4
Check the CR and LF checkboxes to automatically add those commands (Carriage Return and Line Feed) to the end of each command line. Type your CII command line in the Line Command Window. Press the Enter key or click on the Send button to send the command to the News Test computer.
98
Check the Results Send a List of Commands
The command appears in the News Test computers Command Reception Window.
1 2
Type your CII commands in a list in the List Command Window. Double-click in the window, or click on the Send button to send the commands to your News Test computer.
99
Create a Log of Commands Received
You can log the commands that your News Test computer receives to help you with troubleshooting.
1 2 3 4 5
Click on the File button to indicate the location you want the log file saved. Click on the Start button to begin logging. Send your commands from the News Feed Simulator. Click on the End button (in the Start button location). Click OK when you finish your test - the log file saves automatically.
Use the Script Demo
The Script Demo allows you to send CII commands directly to your Automation Interface.
1
Switch to the Script tab.
If you want to reuse this or any other script demo file, click on the Open button and navigate to your file.
2 3 4 5
Type your CII commands in the command window. Click on the Run Script button to send your commands through to the Automation Interface. Check the Loop checkbox to loop the commands. If you want to change a command while your script continues to loop, edit the command line and click on the Use this script for next loop button. Click on the Save button to save this set of CII commands for a later demo.
100 Inscriber Automation Interface - News Feed Simulator
Use News Feed Simulator on Automation Interface
You can run the News Feed Simulator from your Automation Interface machine if you dont need to test your communications.
1 2 3
4 5
Install News Feed Simulator on your Automation Interface machine. Open News Feed Simulator from your desktop. Switch to the Preferences tab (you need to scroll to the right-end of the tabs to find the Preferences tab). Select Local Receiver to tell News Feed Simulator to send data through the local PC to Automation Interface. Switch to the test layout tab you want to use.
Inscriber Automation Interface - News Feed Simulator 101
102 Inscriber Automation Interface - News Feed Simulator
Troubleshooting
Layout Problems
If Automation Interface does not work correctly, you can troubleshoot using Automation Interface.
Layouts Dont Appear on Monitor
Check that Automation Interface program works properly with your video hardware. Click on NewsTest.exe on the desktop of the Automation Interface machine to open Automation Interface. 2 Click on the Test Page button. Your video monitor will display a test page. If the test page displays correctly, Automation Interface is working properly with your video hardware.
1 3
Click on the Clear Screen button to clear the test screen.
Layouts Dont Include New Data
Check communication with the News Vendor: The CII List in Automation Interface displays the latest commands from the News Vendor. If you can see commands coming from the News Vendor, Automation Interface and the News Vendor are communicating properly. If commands dont appear in your CII List: Check the integrity of the communication cable and connections. Check that your COM port settings comply with your News Vendor requirements. Check that your RTX tags (tagged data fields) are properly ordered and named. Ensure that your News Vendor is calling the correct layout name.
Layouts Dont Look Right
You might be missing graphic resources (graphics, fonts, textures, etc.) on the machine recreating the layout. Your CG needs access to all of the layout resources to properly recreate each layout. If the layout appears incorrect, check to make sure that all graphic resources are available across the network or on your Automation Interface system.
104 Inscriber Automation Interface - Troubleshooting
Program Problems
Program wont Open No Layout Names in Playlist
If you are already running an Inscriber product that requires a black dongle, it can conflict with the dongle used to enable Automation Interface. Please contact Inscriber Technology for a special order dongle. You need to make sure that the Inscriber CG can show filenames in the Playlist. See Show Filenames in Playlist on page 30.
Communication Problems
Not Receiving Commands
When testing communication between the sender application (iCommTest or HyperTerminal) and your Automation Interface, you cannot use a space or carriage return key. Automation Interface does not recognize the space or carriage return keystrokes. The CII List in Automation Interface displays the latest commands from the News Vendor. If you can see commands coming from the News Vendor, Automation Interface and the News Vendor are communicating properly. If commands dont appear in your CII List: Check the integrity of the communication cable and connections. Check that your COM port settings comply with your News Vendor requirements.
Inscriber Automation Interface - Troubleshooting 105
Inscribe.ini File
If Automation Interface does not work correctly you can check several settings in the inscribe.ini file.
Machine ID
Check the machine ID. If you have the wrong machine ID, the News Vendor system wont be able to communicate with the Automation Interface software. The machine ID is identified on the line MachineID=. Check the COM port to ensure you have the correct COM port. The line ComPort=COM# identifies the COM port, where # is the number of your COM port. If your pages display incorrectly, you may have set the wrong resolution when you installed the Automation Interface. You can check the resolution in the inscribe.ini file and correct the resolution in the HorzResolution= and VertResolution= lines. Check the data transfer rate.The default data transfer rate is 9600 baud but your system might have different specifications. You can generate log files and debug messages if you want additional information on how Automation Interface is functioning. If you set LogToFile=1, Automation Interface creates a file called Parselog.txt which tracks the traffic between the News Vendor and the Automation Interface. You can change the folder that contains all the graphic resources for automation jobs. The folder is set on the NewsJobFolder= line For example, the typical setting NewsJobFolder=C:\news sets the resource folder to C:\news.
COM Port
Resolution
Data Transfer Rate Generating Log Files/Debug Messages
Job Folder
HyperTerminal Test
Set Up for test
You can use HyperTerminal to quickly test your communication connection. You cant send control characters through HyperTerminal as they are not supported. Use serial commands to test communication through HyperTerminal.
1 2 3 4
From your Windows Start menu, select HyperTerminal. Chose the no option when asked to assign a modem. Chose a name and icon for your setup. Connect to COM port 1 (or the COM port your News Vendor uses). Make sure that your COM port settings match your News Vendor settings.
HyperTerminal Settings
You need to set a preference in your HyperTerminal so you can see what you type on your monitor.
5 6
Select File > Properties and switch to the Settings tab. Select the Window keys option for the function and arrow keys. Select ANSI from the pulldown Emulation list. Click on the ASCII Setup button to open the dialog.
10
You can use the HyperTerminal test to help technical support or your dealer to better understand your system.
11
Check the Send line ends with line feeds checkbox to make your lines easier to read. Check the Echo typed characters locally checkbox. Click OK to go back to HyperTerminal.
Create a File for Logs Log News Vendor Commands
Before you can log the commands from your News Vendor you need to create a file for the log to go into. You can create this log file anywhere on your system.
1
To log your News Vendor commands select Transfer > Capture Text from HyperTerminal.
You may want to keep a log of your HyperTerminal test to help diagnose communication problems.
Indicate the file you want to save your log to. Click on the Start button to begin recording your HyperTerminal activity.
To stop the capture, select Transfer > Capture Text > Stop
Set Up Automation Interface For Test
You need to set up Automation Interface (on another machine) for your test.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Click on the Preferences button to open the dialog. Switch to the General tab. Select a test page of your own creation or use the default test page. Switch to the CII tab. Select Use Creation order. Switch to the Resources tab. Select INS as input. Select VII as output. Check the Preview Rendered File checkbox if you want to see your test page. Click OK.
Send Commands
You are now prepared to send commands through HyperTerminal to your Automation Interface. You can use the following commands or your own if you want: Type: M\c/automation/demo\\ and press the ENTER key. 2 To add data to the default test layout and render it, type: W\news\news\data1\data2\\ and press the ENTER key. 3 To send the filled & rendered layout, type: T\7\news\A\\ and press the ENTER key. 4 Stop HyperTerminal logging and save the file for your dealer or Inscriber Technical Support. See Log News Vendor Commands on page 108. If your system does not output the expected layout, verify the filename.
1
Index
Symbols
.templates files ............ 13, 47
change name ....................48
coordinate create
A2i ....................................14 C2i ....................................14 with News Vendor .............10
file
files
save .................................. 70
A2i .......................................15 alpha channel
anchored text ......................53 Automation Interface

conventions ........................8 overview ...........................46
ignore ...............................44
effects ..............................66 CTRL+E ...............................69 CTRL+S ...............................70 cut .......................................66
data
C2i .......................................15 cable
null-modem ......................22 RS232 ...............................26 checksum ............................81
Chyron
CII commands
notes on .................... 15, 16 terms ................................13
add to layout ....................50 delete from layout .............51 DCE .....................................66 add effect .........................67 autoload ...........................77 edit ...................................67 export ...............................68 import ..............................68 setup ................................66
.templates ........................ 11 demo ................................ 12 folder structure ................. 19 formats ............................. 11 ICG ................................... 11 INS ..............................11, 19 iPacked ............................. 11 location of ........................ 28 naming ............................... 8 recommended formats (new users) ............................... 28 SLY ................................... 11 tutorial ............................. 12 floating text ........................ 53
folder structure framebuffer
CII protocol ....................... 13
demo
checksum ..........................81 example ............................17 M ......................................80 not supported ...................81 Q ......................................81 supported .........................80 syntax ...............................16 T .......................................80 U .......................................81 V .......................................80 V5 .....................................80 V6 .....................................81 W ......................................80 CII protocol .........................10 com port .............................22
files ..................................12 demo Automation Interface ... 11, .........................25 generic layout ...................94 on single PC ....................101 script layout ............. 94, 100 Direct Control .....................58 check ................................70 learn .................................12 take ..................................74 dissolve ...............................66
control .............................. 22 output .............................. 25 using Automation Interface without ............................. 55 frames ................................. 76
graphics group
location of ........................ 14 add effect ......................... 67 effects .............................. 66
dongle
groups
conflict ...........................105 connect .............................24
hands free
effect ................................67 text ...................................69
commands
edit
space in ............................98 view ..................................55 communication handshake 26
effects
communications connect
test ...................................94 compatible News Vendor ....10
connect test computer ........26 content

edit ...................................69 convert layouts ...................47
null-modem ......................22
export
add to group .....................67 autoload ...........................77 edit ...................................67 export ...............................68 files ..................................66 import ..............................68 setup ................................66 DCE ..................................68
hands free operation ....12, 56 hands on operation ............ 12 hide ..................................... 66 HyperTerminal test ........... 107
set .................................... 55
ICG files .............................. 11 IDC
autoload ........................... 76 tabs .................................. 76 imagestore command ........ 80
import
effect ................................ 68
Inscriber Automation Interface - Index 111
INS files ............ 11, 13, 19, 47 Inscriber II commands

framebuffers .................... 85 miscellaneous ................... 84 output directory ............... 86 output file type ................. 84 set first tag ....................... 86 set input file type ............. 84 set tag name .................... 86 set template name ............ 87 skip a tag ......................... 86 specify tag name .............. 83 update resource path ....... 86 use RGB fonts ................... 86 Inscriber recommends 11, 13, 19, .................. 28, 47
machine code ..................... 23 message ............................. 13 message directory .............. 13 miscellaneous command ... 80
protocol
DCE load ...........................77 Direct Control ...................76 duration ............................76 startup ..............................76 workbook ..........................76 naming ...............................8
name
push-up ..............................66
install
Automation Interface ........ 24 News Feed Simulator ........ 94 interlock device .................. 24 invert video field order ...... 44 iPacked files ....................... 11
donventions ....................... 8 numeric .............................. 8 News Feed Simulator .. 11, 25, 94 generic layout .................. 94 install ............................... 94 news test .......................... 94 open ................................ 96 render a layout ................. 96 run on Automation Interface . 101 script layout ............. 94, 100 test communications ........ 98 test your own layout ......... 97
Q R
quick keys ...........................75
recommendations ...............13 render ..................................54 requirements
K L
News Vendor
folder structure .................19 for Chyron users ...............15 for Inscriber users .............13 hardware ...........................22 system ..............................22 resend transmission ...........81
keystrokes .......................... 75
compatible ....................... 10 coordination ..................... 10 null-modem cable ............. 22
resolution
reveal ...................................66 RGB fonts
set ....................................30
language
CII .................................... 16 CII commands not supported 81 CII commands supported . 80, 81 Inscriber II supported ....... 82 last rendered window ......... 55
operation
RTX tags -- see "tags" ........14 run Automation Interface ...54
prepare to use ...................41
layout
operator outline
active phase ..................... 46 edit phase ........................ 46 preparation phase ............ 46 tagging phase .................. 46 unattended ....................... 56 with .................................. 12 without ............................ 12
save
layouts
add tags ........................... 50 change name .................... 48 change render name ......... 15 change resolution ............. 30 convert ............................. 15 fill with data ..................... 54 INS files ............................ 19 prepare for Automation Interface .................................. 47 render no framebuffer ...... 55 save ................................. 70 scale ................................. 30 check ............................... 70 enable or disable .............. 55
scale layouts .......................30 seconds ...............................76 select message directory ....80 set
effect ................................66 hands free .........................55 IDC tabs ............................76 machine code ....................23 machine ID ........................13 preferences .......................76 sharing with CG ..................22 SLY files ...............................11
file ....................................70
Automation Interface ........ 10 basic procedure ................ 46 output ................................. 74
pause .................................. 66 playlist PLUS .................................... 74 preference dialog
show file names ............... 30
special characters
log window
preferences
CII .................................... 37 effects .............................. 43 general ............................. 33 resources ......................... 39
special effects .....................80 specify tag name .................83 Strata
prepare to use ...................41
use with Automation Interface ..........................................48
112 Inscriber Automation Interface - Index
tab data -- see "tags" ........ 13 tab message -- see "layout" .. tags
13 create .........................14, 50 delete ............................... 51 edit ................................... 69 order ..........................11, 47 view .................................. 50 take ..................................... 74 effects .............................. 66 set .................................... 66 templates files .................... 11
view
files .................................. 70 last rendered .................... 55 tags .................................. 50 view commands .................. 12
view news vendor commands

55
wipe .................................... 66 write to tab data message . 80
test
communications .........26, 98 generic layout ................... 97 log commands ................ 100 render a layout ................. 96 test communications .......... 94 test page ............................. 25
text
text box
edit ................................... 69
text in a box -- see "text box" text line

............................... 52 create ............................... 53
create ............................... 52 delete ............................... 52 formatting ........................ 52 notes ................................ 52
thumbnail preview .............. 55 timing triggering effects ................ 81 troubleshoot

measure ........................... 76
layout appearance .......... 104 program ......................... 105 troubleshooting ................ 104 communications ............. 105 HyperTerminal test ......... 107 INI file ............................ 106 News Feed Simulator ........ 96 tutorial ................................ 12
unattended mode ............... 55 update one field ................. 81 update resource path command .................... 86
Inscriber Automation Interface - Index 113
114 Inscriber Automation Interface - Index
Technical Support
Technical Support
You can get technical support from several places. Technical Support from your dealer If your dealer cant help you... Contact your dealer first. Since your dealer helped you configure your system, your dealer is also the best resource for system configuration issues and problems. If your local dealer is unable to resolve your technical support problems, contact Inscriber - a division of Leitch Technology International Inc. Please have your software serial number available when you call Inscriber Technical Support. Your serial number can be found in a number of places, including software packaging, on the dongle, and on your CD. Phone: Fax: Email: 1.519.570.9111 (9:00 a.m. 5:00 p.m. EST) 1.519.570.9140 support@inscriber.com
Inscriber is located in Waterloo, Canada. Long distance charges may apply.
You can also post a technical support question on our web site, and our support staff will answer your questions. Product Updates You can download product updates from our web site, or you can use one of these methods to receive updates. Fax: Web site: Email: 1.519.570.9140 www.inscriber.com support@inscriber.com
Inscriber is located in Waterloo, Canada. Long distance charges may apply.
116 Inscriber Automation Interface - Technical Support

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Inscriber Automation Interface

Inscriber Automation Interface User Guide

Basics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Windows Operating System ......................15 Introducing Inscriber Automation Interface 10

Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Connect Dongle .....................................24 Before You Start ......................................22

Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 Add Tagged Fields to Your Layouts ..........50 Automation Procedure.............................46

Direct Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57 63 Direct Control ........................................58

Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103 Data Transfer Rate................................ 106 Layout Problems.................................... 104

Technical Support. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115

Prevent Implementation Problems

Implementation Requires Broad Knowledge Base

Use Standard Automation Conventions

Inscriber Automation Interface - Install Notes

Introducing Inscriber Automation Interface

How Automation Interface Works

Graphics Department G-Scribe or titleOne for layout/template creation

Inscriber Automation Interface - Basics

Tagged data fields in layouts must have a defined order.

Inscriber formats you can use

Automation Interface currently does not support the ipacked format.

News Feed Simulator

Inscriber Automation Interface - Basics

Automation Interface - Hands On or Off

Inscriber Automation Interface - Basics

Requirements for Inscriber CG Users

Inscriber Automation Interface - Basics

Tagged Data Fields

Inscriber Automation Interface - Basics

Requirements for Chyron CG Users

Windows Operating System

Inscriber CG Inscriber C2i Inscriber A2i Inscriber/Chyron Terminology

Inscriber Automation Interface - Basics

How Chyron Works

Inscriber Automation Interface - Basics

How CII Commands Work

Inscriber Automation Interface - Basics

Graphics Department G-Scribe or titleOne for layout/template creation

Notes on Inscriber Formats

Inscriber Automation Interface - Basics

Folder/File Structure Required

Each folder can hold only one INS file.

Inscriber Automation Interface - Basics

Inscriber Automation Interface - Basics

Before You Start

Determine Framebuffer Control Determine COM Port

Inscriber Automation Interface - Installation

Inscriber Automation Interface - Installation

News Feed Simulator

Inscriber Automation Interface - Installation

Check Framebuffer Output

Click on the Clear Screen button to clear the test screen.

Inscriber Automation Interface - Installation

Inscriber Automation Interface - Installation

Coordinate with News Vendor

Inscriber Automation Interface - Setup

Configure Inscriber CG Software

Inscriber Automation Interface - Setup

Show Filenames in Playlist

Change Layout Names in INS Files

Set Layout Size

Inscriber Automation Interface - Setup