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MediaShout 3.1 User Guide rev. 3.14.06 © Copyright 1999-2006 MediaComplete Corporation. All rights reserved.
MediaShout 3.1 User Guide
rev. 3.14.06
© Copyright 1999-2006 MediaComplete Corporation. All rights reserved.
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Welcome to MediaShout 3.1
Released less than a year after MediaShout 3.0, version 3.1 containsseveral new features requested by users, as well as performance andusability enhancements to existing features. Among our favorites:
C Script locking (9.10) — to prevent unauthorized changes
C New Song wizard (17.8) — makes adding songs a cinch
C Song data file importing (17.15) — more ways to load up yourlibrary
C Song library backup (17.18) — to protect this precious asset
C Sound Control cues (18.6) — for greater control of cuesoundtracks
You’ll also find some cool undocumented improvements just by exploring theapplication itself: Undo and Redo commands, auto-completion of Bible booknames, better handling of video transitions, and more.
And we’re not done yet. Plans for the next upgrade (and the next one afterthat) are underway. So if the feature you’ve been waiting for isn’t in v3.1,stand by, because chances are it’s on its way.
On behalf of the entire MediaShout team, thank you for letting us play a partin your ministry. We count it an honor to help you deliver life’s mostimportant message.
Todd TemplepresidentMediaComplete
MediaComplete Box 24625
Nashville, Tennessee 37202www.mediashout.com
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CONTENTS
GETTING STARTED . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
1. Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
2. Upgrading from Version 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
3. Preparing Your Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
4. The Short Course . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
5. Tips for PowerPoint Users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
USER INTERFACE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
6. Control Screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
7. Playback Bar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
8. Display Screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
PRESENTATIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
9. Scripts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
10. Cues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
11. Cue Templates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
12. Cue Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
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WORKING WITH MEDIA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
13. Animations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
14. Bible Passages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
15. Graphics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
16. Slideshows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
17. Song Lyrics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
18. Sounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
19. Text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
20. Videos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
21. Web Pages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
STUFF AT THE BACK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
End User License Agreement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
Sales and Site Licenses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
Shortcuts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
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GETTING STARTED
1. Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
2. Upgrading from Version 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
3. Preparing Your Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
4. The Short Course . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
5. Tips for PowerPoint Users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
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1. Installation
chapter contents:1.1 System specifications1.2 Install MediaShout and support applications1.3 Install Shoutable media1.4 Take the tutorials
1.1 System specifications Minimum: Windows XP, Intel Pentium or AMD Athlon 1.6 GHz CPU, 256 MBRAM, 300 MB available hard drive space (1.1GB for all media and Bibles),CDROM drive, DirectX 9-compatible dual-head graphics card/displayadapter with 32 MB VRAM (or two graphics cards with 16 MB VRAM each) Recommended: 2.4 GHz CPU, 512 MB RAM; DVD drive, 128 MB VRAM ondualhead graphics card/display adapter (or 64 MB VRAM on each of twographics cards)
1.2 Install MediaShout and support applications The MediaShout 3 Program CD’s menu screen provides buttons forinstalling MediaShout and other applications required for full functionality. Close all other applications currently open on your computer and place theMediaShout 3 Program CD in the CD-ROM drive. The CD’s menu screenwill appear automatically. Follow these steps:
1. Install MediaShout 3: Click this item on the menu screen to launch theMediaShout installer. Follow the instructions that appear on thescreen. Note the following:
• Upgrade edition only: The program will search for a copy ofversion 2.x on the computer. If none is found, you’ll beprompted to enter your version 2 serial number manually: it’slocated on the back of the version 2 CD case. (Note: Version 3is an entirely separate application, and can co-exist with version2 on the same computer. No changes to your presentations,song library or other media assets will be made duringinstallation.)
• Bibles: You’ll be asked to select the Bible versions you wish toinstall. (You can install additional versions at a later time:
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Reload the Program CD and click Add Bibles on the menuscreen.)
WARNING: The user license permits you to install MediaShouton two computers. If you wish to install the program on morethan two computers, you must obtain a site license. Pleasecontact MediaComplete at 615 754-0755.
2. Install PowerPoint Viewer 97: OPTIONAL. Click this item on theProgram CD’s menu screen to install this application, which isrequired for playback of PowerPoint files from MediaShout If the fullPowerPoint program isn’t installed on the computer. If you’ve gotPowerPoint, skip this step.
3. Install Adobe Reader: Click this item on the menu screen to installAdobe Reader, which is required for viewing or printing the userguide.
4. Install Macromedia Flash Player: Click this item to visit a page of theMacromedia website that will check for the latest version of FlashPlayer, and install it if necessary. (Flash Player is required forplayback of Flash animation files from MediaShout.)
5. Register Online: Click this item to register MediaShout 3 online. (Tovisit this page on your own, go towww.mediashout.com/support/register.cfm. To register by mail, usethe registration form included in the product case.)
IMPORTANT: You must register the product to receive free v3.xupgrades and one year of free technical support.
1.3 Install Shoutable media The second CD contains free Shoutable media — graphics, backgrounds,videos, animations, etc. — from many producers. To install the collections tothe My Shout\Shoutable Library folder, load the CD and follow theinstructions that appear on your screen.
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1.4 Take the tutorials When you launch MediaShout for the first time it will automatically open atutorial presentation: Getting Started (if you’ve installed the full edition) orMaking the Upgrade (if you’re running the upgrade edition). We stronglyrecommend that you take the tutorial, which will show you everything youneed to know to get up and running in MediaShout v3 quickly.
The first tutorial will direct you to a second tutorial, Working with Cues, whichwill show you how to customize your presentations to look and play theirbest. A third tutorial, Working with Song Lyrics, will teach you how to add,import and manage songs in the song library.
By the way, the tutorials are in the My Shout\Tutorials folder, so you canreturn to them at any time, by opening their Script files in MediaShout itself.
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2. Upgrading from Version 2
This chapter is intended for those who areupgrading MediaShout from version 2. If you’renew to MediaShout, you can skip it.
OverviewVersion 3 is an entirely separate application, and can co-exist with version 2on the same computer. No changes to your presentations, song library orother media assets are made during installation. In fact, we recommend thatyou keep both versions installed on the computer till you’re proficient in v3. Note: Because both versions use certain database components in Windows,you may not be able to access ShoutSinger in v2 while v3 is open.
chapter contents: 2.1 Import v2 Lyric cues and song records2.2 Install custom Bibles2.3 Key differences between versions 2 and 3
2.1 Import v2 Lyric cues and song records The tutorial Making the Upgrade walks you through the steps of importingyour v2 Lyric cues and song records. We strongly recommend that you usethis tutorial to import these assets. If you need to perform this procedureoutside the tutorial, follow these steps:
1. If you’ve stored a collection of v2 Lyric cues in a Box or Script file forsafekeeping, open this file in v3 before importing the v2 song library.The program will ask whether you want to add each v2 Lyric cue inthis file as a new record in the song library. If you click Add, each Lyriccue in the file will be added to the library, complete with all its lyricsand cue properties — text format, line and page breaks, etc. (Yep, inv3, the song library is actually a Lyric cue library.)
2. Now import your v2 song library: In v3, open ShoutSinger from theTools menu. In ShoutSinger, choose Import Songs from the Filemenu.
3. In the Import Songs wizard, select ShoutSong file (v2.5) as the sourcetype. Browse to and select the old song library file. Unless you
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changed it, the file is My Shout\Songs\Songs.mdb. (To preventmixups, the new library is located in a different folder, called SongLibrary.)
4. In the next step of the wizard, select Skip duplicates and IdenticalSong Title and Song ID. Then click Import. Any songs that werealready imported from v2 cues will be skipped so you don’t end upwith extra records.
2.2 Install custom Bibles Bible files in v2 and v3 share the same format. All versions included with v2are also included in v3 (which offers many more besides). However,because v3 installs Bibles to a different folder, if you’ve created a Bible file ofyour own (say, for a translation we don’t offer), you’ll need to copy that file tothe v3 Bible library to make it available in the new version. Again, this isnecessary only if you’ve created a Bible file of your own.
To install a custom v2 Bible to the v3 Bible library: 1. In Windows Explorer, browse to the following folder: Program
Files\MediaShout 2\Bibles. Select and copy the Bible file you created.(Copying the file instead of moving it will ensure that it’s still availablein v2.)
2. Now browse to the My Shout\Bible Library folder and paste the filethere.
3. If v3 is open, close and re-open it: During launch, the program checksthis folder and makes available all versions it finds there.
2.3 Key differences between versions 2 and 3 The Making the Upgrade tutorial Script (in the My Shout\Tutorials folder)walks you through the major differences in v3. Here’s a short list of the onesthat might trip you up if you’re not aware of them:
• Loop cues are now called Script Control cues because they cando more than simple looping. See 10.4, Script Control Cues.
• Audio cues are now called Sound cues. See Chapter 18,Sounds.
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• The General Preferences dialog is now called Settings. To openit, choose Tools > Settings.
• Cue preferences (default cue properties) and their many dialogsare replaced by cue templates, which can be created andmodified in the cue properties box. See Chapter 11, CueTemplates.
• The ShoutBox window is replaced by the crew window. One ofthe tabbed crew features available in this window is Boxer,which serves the same purpose as the ShoutBox. See 9.9,Boxer.
• By default, Text cues now use embedded text rather than textfrom a document assigned to the cue. You can still set a cue toplay a document instead (so your v2 Text cues will work justfine), but you’ll probably find it much more convenient to be ableto enter and edit text in the cue properties box itself. SeeChapter 19, Text.
• The comment text of a Comment cue is now entered right in thecue name field of the cue itself as it appears in the Scriptwindow.
• Song records are now actually complete Lyric cues. When youinsert a Lyric cue, you’re copying the entire record into thepresentation. Under the default synchronization setting, the cueand its record are linked: changes to the cue’s properties aresaved back to the record. See Chapter 17, Song Lyrics.
• The passage text of a Bible cue is now editable. The cuecontains an unlinked copy of the text from a Bible file, sochanges to it in the cue won’t get saved back to the library.
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3. Preparing Your Computer
Overview MediaShout turns your computer into a full-blown multimedia console. Thischapter describes how to set up your computer’s display and sound systemsfor this role.
chapter contents: 3.1 Set up extended-desktop mode3.2 Set resolution and color depth3.3 Turn off the screensaver and monitor power-saver3.4 Turn off Windows system sounds3.5 Troubleshooting dual-monitor display
3.1 Set up extended-desktop mode Although MediaShout can deliver a presentation on a single-monitorcomputer system, it’s designed for dual-monitor use. The MediaShout userinterface, or control screen, appears on the computer’s main monitor. Visualmedia played from the program appears full-screen via a second displaydevice attached to the computer: a projector, TV or other monitor serving asthe display screen. Windows supports this type of monitor arrangementthrough a feature called extended-desktop mode.
To set up extended-desktop mode in Windows XP: 1. Attach the secondary display device (projector, monitor) to the
computer’s secondary display output.
• On a desktop computer, this is the unused VGA or DVI port ona dual-head graphics card (the main monitor is plugged into theother port), or the display port on a second graphics card.
• On a notebook computer, this is the VGA or DVI port on thecomputer itself.
2. Power up the display device. If it has multiple inputs, make sure it isswitched to the proper source. Drag the mouse across the primarymonitor as far as it will go to the left and right. If you see the mousepointer appear on the secondary display, you’re set. If you don’t,continue to the next step.
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3. Right-click on the Windows desktop and choose Properties from thecontext menu. On the Display Properties dialog, click on the Settingstab. Click the Monitor 2 icon and check the option Extend myWindows desktop onto this monitor. Click Apply. If Windows askswhether you want keep the changes to the display settings, click Yes.
C If the Monitor 2 icon stays enabled and the checkbox stayschecked, you’re set. Click OK to close the dialog.
C If the Monitor 2 icon turns gray or the checkbox becomesunchecked again, then Windows hasn’t found the secondarymonitor: Make sure the cable is firmly attached at both endsand the device is powered up and switched to the proper input.Then repeat these steps.
If Windows still can’t find the secondary monitor, reboot the computer, and ifnecessary repeat the above steps again.
NOTE: If you don’t see two monitor icons in the DisplayProperties dialog, it may be that your computer is not capable ofdual-monitor display. See 3.5, Troubleshooting dual monitordisplay.
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3.2 Set resolution and color depth MediaShout formats visual media to fit on the size of display screen youselect in Windows. If you intend to play full-screen videos from MediaShoutwe recommend that you set the display monitor to 800 x 600. Butperformance depends on your computer, graphics card and the displaydevice itself, so you may want to experiment with different resolutions to seewhat works best for your system.
In any case, set the color depth to highest available setting, which is either24 or 32 bits.
To change display resolution and color depth in Windows: 1. Right-click on the Windows desktop and choose Properties from the
context menu to open the Display Properties dialog. Click on theSettings tab.
2. You’ll see two monitor icons on this tab. Click the monitor icon usedfor the display screen (generally Monitor 2) to select it.
3. Choose the highest setting in the Color quality field’s drop-down list.Drag the Screen resolution slider to the size you want (e.g., 800 x600).
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4. Click OK. You may be asked to confirm your choice to implement thechanges.
3.3 Turn off the screensaver and monitor power-saver If the computer is idle during a presentation and the screensaver comes on,it’ll blank out the display screen too. This may also happen if the monitorpower-saving setting is set to too short a time. To turn off the screensaver and monitor power-saver: 1. Right-click on the Windows desktop and choose Properties from the
context menu to open the Display Properties dialog.
2. On the Screen Saver tab, select (None) in the screen saver field, thenclick Apply.
3. Click the Power button at the bottom of the tab to open the PowerOptions Properties dialog. In the monitor power-off field, chooseNever.
4. Click OK to apply the changes and close the dialog, then OK again toclose the Display Properties dialog.
3.4 Turn off Windows system sounds In its standard setup, Windows plays sounds when it starts up, encountersan error, and so on. If your MediaShout presentations include music, videosoundtracks and other sounds, we recommend that you turn off theWindows system sounds so they don’t accidentally get played to theaudience. To turn off Windows system sounds: 1. In Windows, click Start > Control Panel > Sounds, Speech and Audio
Devices. Under Tasks, click Change the sound scheme.
2. In the dialog that opens, select No Sounds in the Sound Schemesfield. (You may be asked to save the current scheme: Unless you’vemade previous changes to it that you want to keep, just click No.)
3. Click OK to apply the change and close the dialog.
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3.5 Troubleshooting dual-monitor display If you can’t get Windows XP to run in extended-desktop mode, it’s likely thatthe computer lacks the proper hardware to do so, and therefore will need tobe upgraded.
Upgrading a desktop computer for dual-monitor display: If the currentgraphics card (aka video card, display card) can’t handle two monitors, youcan either replace the existing card with a dual-head card (recommended),or add a second display card:
Install a dual-head graphics card: This type of card has at least twomonitor outputs – typically, one VGA port and one DVI port with anadapter that can convert it to VGA. Buy the highest-quality card youcan afford (the more VRAM the better). Be sure that the dual-headcard supports DirectX 9 and has at least 32 MB of VRAM. (Forrecommendations on hardware that works well with MediaShout 3,visit www.mediashout.com/support.)
If you’re replacing an existing card, check your computerdocumentation before purchasing the new card to determine the typeof slot the old card is installed in: You’ll want to get the same type forthe replacement card. (Chances are it’s an AGP card, but a new type,called PCI Express, or PCIe, is starting to show up on some newcomputers.) If you’re keeping the old card and simply adding the newcard to an open slot, you’ll probably need to get a PCI card, sincemost computers have just one AGP or PCIe slot, and it’s likelyoccupied by the existing card.
Add a second card: Better graphics cards tend to be dual-heads, sowe recommend the above solution. However, if you need to add asinglehead card, make sure it supports DirectX 9 and has at least 16MB of VRAM. You’ll also need to make sure that the computer has anopen PCI slot for this card. If you see a slot covered by a metal platethat has no connectors on it, that’s an open slot.
Notebook display adapters: Unlike the graphics card in a desktop computer,the display adapter in a notebook computer cannot be replaced. If yournotebook doesn’t contain a dual-head display adapter, it’s incapable ofrunning MediaShout in dual-display mode. (At time of this writing, noPCMCIA display card on the market met the minimum requirements forMediaShout, so this is not an option for v3.)
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NOTE: For more help and information about dual-monitordisplay, desktop graphics cards, and laptop display adapters,please visit www.mediashout.com/support.
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4. The Short Course
MediaShout is designed to deliver both linear and nonlinear presentations,and so it uses some terms and concepts that are unique amongpresentation programs.
Control Screen & Display Screen: Although you can run MediaShout on asingle-screen computer system, to take advantage of all it has to offer, you’llwant to run it on two screens. The control screen appears on your computermonitor, for your eyes only. The display screen is the one the audiencesees. This dual-screen approach ensures that the audience sees only whatyou want them to see, not the computer software that makes it happen.
Scripts & Cues: If you’ve worked in theater, you already understand the twomost important components of MediaShout. In theater, the script is theblueprint to the production, describing what, when and how things happen.During the performance, the script is supported with cues that tell cast andcrew when to make an entrance or deliver a line or change the lighting ordrop the curtain. MediaShout is designed to support live performances, so itmakes sense that it uses scripts and cues too.
A MediaShout Script is a presentation file that tells the program what, whenand how media is to be played to the audience. Scripts can be created,opened and saved with choices in the File menu.
Each item in a Script is a cue. Think of a cue as a programmable shortcut.When you fire a cue, the cue itself tells MediaShout to find and play medialocated elsewhere on your computer. Read that last part again — it’s big. Acue isn’t like a slide found in other presentation programs: A slide typicallycontains the media it plays. A cue contains little or no media itself. It’s just ashortcut to the media, with settings that determine when and how the mediawill be played.
Cue Types: MediaShout offers several types of media cues, each designedto play a specific type of media — Lyric cues for song lyrics, Bible cues forscripture passages, Text cues for text screens, etc. When you drag a pieceof media into the Script window, the program automatically creates theproper type of cue for it. For example:
• Drag a media file from Philo (MediaShout’s own file browser) tothe Script window to create a Graphic, Animation, Video File or
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Sound cue that will play that file.
• Drag a song title from Lyra (the song browser) to the Scriptwindow to create a Lyric cue that will display the lyrics to thatsong.
• Drag a passage reference from Bob (the Bible browser) to theScript window to create a Bible cue that will display thatpassage.
• Drag a text message from Ted (the text composer) to the Scriptwindow to create a Text cue that will display that message.
Cue Properties & Templates: Dragging a piece of media into the Scriptwindow creates a cue and assigns that media to it. The default settings, orproperties, that determine the appearance and playback behavior of the cueare taken from a cue template. For example, when you create a Graphiccue, the size and position of the graphic, the background, the transitioneffect and so on will match the properties of the selected Graphic cuetemplate.
Of course you can change the properties of a cue at any time. Just click itsicon in the Script window and it will open into the cue properties box. Makechanges to the settings, then click OK. To apply a different template to acue, open it into the cue properties box, and choose a different templatefrom the Template field’s drop-down list.
Foregrounds, Backgrounds & Soundtracks: Most types of media cuesconsist of three layers:
• Foreground: The top visual layer of a cue makes up itsforeground. The foreground of a Lyric cue consists of the song’slyric text; a Text cue’s foreground is its text message; a Graphiccue’s foreground is a graphic file. The simplest way to create acue is to drag its foreground media (song, scripture passage,text message, or file) into the Script window.
• Background: A cue’s foreground layer is composed over thebackground layer — a color, graphic, animation or video. Whena cue is created, the background layer is determined by itstemplate, but you can change this in the cue properties box.
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• Soundtrack: A sound file can be assigned to a cue’s soundtracklayer. (This is the only layer in a Sound cue, which has no visualelements.)
The cue properties box makes it easy to work with this layered design: TheContent tab displays the most commonly used settings for all the layers; theForeground, Background and Soundtrack tabs provide more detailedsettings for each layer.
Media Creation vs. Playback: MediaShout is first and foremost a mediaplayer. It’s designed to play media stored elsewhere on your computer. Itdoesn’t have tools for creating graphics, videos, sounds and so on — it’s justvery good at playing these types of media created in other applications. But there are three types of media you can create in MediaShout — andthey just happen to be the three types you’ll probably use most often inministry presentations: song lyrics, Bible passages and text messages.
• Song lyrics: Use ShoutSinger (the song library manager) tocreate song records whose lyrics can be displayed from Lyriccues.
• Bible passages: Use Bible cues to display passages copiedfrom Bibles stored in MediaShout’s Bible library.
• Text messages: Use Text cues to display formatted text.
MediaShout includes lots of backgrounds, videos and sounds that you’refree to use in your presentations. You’ll find collections of these files in theMy Shout\Shoutable Library folder. For more ready-to-use media, look formedia and teaching resources bearing the Shoutable logo: These productscontain media that’s been tested and approved for optimal playback inMediaShout. You’ll find many such products in the Shoutable Store on theMediaShout website: www.mediashout.com.
By the way, MediaShout makes it easy to work with othermedia applications. If you tell it to, it can open a cue’sgraphic, video or sound file in another application forediting. See the Graphics, Videos and Sounds chaptersto learn how to set up this feature.
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Current Cue, Selected Cue, Open Cue: MediaShout’s dual-screen designlets you play one cue on the display screen while you’re working with othercues on the control screen. The cue on the display screen (the screen theaudience sees) is called the current cue. To make a cue current, you fire it.There are lots of ways to fire a cue, but the simplest is to click its Fire buttonon the control screen. To fire the next cue in a Script, press the space bar.Typically, the current cue is indicated on the control screen with yellowhighlighting.
The selected cue is the one that’s selected on the control screen; it appearsthere in reversed text. The selected cue can be copied, moved, previewed ordeleted without affecting the current cue. To select a cue, click it once.
An open cue is one that’s open in the cue properties box for editing. To opena cue, click its icon in the Script window, or right-click it and chooseProperties in the context menu. A cue can remain open in the cue propertiesbox while you select and fire other cues, so you can indeed be working onone cue while previewing another, and playing yet another cue to theaudience.
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5. Tips for PowerPoint Users
If you’re switching from PowerPoint to MediaShout, you’ll need to adjust tothe fact that MediaShout is an entirely different animal. PowerPoint isdesigned for creating and showing slides in a linear slideshow. MediaShoutis a multimedia player optimized to deliver live, often nonlinearpresentations. Because MediaShout is designed for this special purpose, ithandles presentations in ways that may seem foreign to you at first. Thefollowing information will help you translate your “pointing” to “shouting”:
Presentation files: In MediaShout, they’re called Scripts, because theyliterally tell the program what media to play, when to play it, and how itshould look and sound.
Slides: Typically, a slide in PPT is a graphic screen you create in theprogram itself. MediaShout doesn’t use slides at all. It uses cues. While it’stempting to think they’re the same thing, understanding the difference willhelp make the transition to MediaShout smoother. Think of a cue as aprogrammable shortcut to media located anywhere on your computer. Inmost cases, the media’s not stored in the cue — the cue just points to it.When you play a cue, the cue itself tells the program where to find the mediaassigned to it, then tells it when and how to play it to the audience.
Cues: In PPT a slide is like a canvas. You insert a new slide and then youdecide what media to put on it. In MediaShout each type of media has itsown type of “canvas,” or cue. So before you insert a new cue you mustdecide what type of media it will display in its foreground, then you insert theproper cue type to do that. Note that it’s the foreground media thatdetermines the cue type: To display a Bible passage, insert a Bible cue; toplay a Flash animation, insert an Animation cue. After you’ve chosen theforeground media, you can assign (or change) the cue’s background media— color, graphic, video, whatever.
TIP: If it’s hard for you to switch to this way of thinking, just drageach piece of media from a palette in the crew window and dropit into the Script window: If you drag a song from Lyra, it’ll beinserted as a Lyric cue. A Bible passage dragged from Bob getsinserted as a Bible cue. A graphic, video, animation or soundfile dragged from Philo gets inserted as a cue of the propertype.
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Pages: Ministry presentations typically contain lots of text — song lyrics,scripture passages, announcements, sermon points, and so on. In PPTeach screen of text must be created as a separate slide, so you might haveto make, say, two or three separate slides for a single Bible passage, or adozen or more slides to cover the lyrics to a single song. MediaShout treatstext screens as pages: A single Lyric, Bible or Text cue can have anynumber of pages, and can even generate these pages automatically tocover the amount of text to be displayed by the cue.
Creating graphics: In PPT you typically create graphics in the applicationitself. MediaShout offers no equivalent. Song lyrics, Bible passages and textmessages can be created in MediaShout and be set for display over agraphic background, but custom graphics themselves must be created inanother application. Granted, this takes extra time. But you’re likely to winback that time by not having to manually type or paste all your song lyricsand Bible passages onto slides: MediaShout generates multiple-page Lyricand Bible cues automatically.
Creating builds and animations: PPT lets you program objects (text andgraphics) in a slide to appear one at a time with transition and animationeffects. Text builds in MediaShout are typically handled with multiple-pageText cues: Each page of the cue contains one step in the build. Playing thepages in succession (manually or automatically), generates the build effect.And though you can choose a transition effect that emulates an animation,there’s no way to truly animate an object’s appearance. For true animations,create a Flash file in another application.
Converting slides to graphic files: Individual slides and entire presentationsin PPT can be converted to graphic files that can be played fromMediaShout Graphic cues. (See Chapter 16, Slideshows, to learn how to dothis.) Note, however, that while you’re able to convert your slides to graphicsand play them from Graphic cues, doing so won’t give you the superior textediting, management, formatting and control features offered by Lyric, Bibleand Text cues. The sooner you get your lyrics into the song library, andlearn to use the program’s other text features, the more you’ll appreciatewhat MediaShout can do for you.
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USER INTERFACE
6. Control Screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
7. Playback Bar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
8. Display Screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
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6. Control Screen
Overview MediaShout is designed as a dual-screen application. The display screendisplays the visual presentation, and is the one seen by the audience. Thecontrol screen appears on the computer’s main monitor, and is seen only byyou, the operator. It contains the controls that determine what the audiencesees and hears.
The control screen can be customized to suit your needs and preferences,but in its default layout it contains three windows: The Script window depictsthe current Script, or presentation. The ShoutMonitor window contains oneor more virtual monitors that can be used to preview cues or to view a copyof the cue being shown to the audience on the display screen. The crewwindow contains several tabbed crew features that can be used to createcues, and to play media to the audience “on the fly.”
chapter contents:6.1 Layouts6.2 Script window6.3 ShoutMonitors6.4 Crew window6.5 Toolbars6.6 Status bar6.7 Philo6.8 Coach
6.1 LayoutsThe control screen can be customized to the look you want. The look, orlayout, is saved automatically whenever the program is closed, and willre-open to that layout the next time the program is launched. Settings savedwith a layout include the size and position of the Script, ShoutMonitor andcrew windows.
The program actually stores four different layouts: Editor, Presenter, VJ andClassic. To select a layout, choose it in the View menu. Changes made tothe current layout are saved automatically when you switch to another layout(as well as when you close the program), so you can customize each of thefour layouts to suit specific needs or uses. For example, you can set up the
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Editor layout to serve you best for creating presentations, and the Presenterlayout to suit your needs when you’re delivering a presentation.
To restore the layouts to their original settings: Choose Tools > Settings. Onthe Control tab, click Restore Default Settings. In the dialog that opens,check Control settings, then click OK. Click OK again to close the Settingsdialog.
6.2 Script window Use the Script window to create, edit and play Scripts — MediaShoutpresentation files. To open the Script window, choose New, or Open, fromthe File menu.
Full Script View
Compact Script View
To show or hide cue thumbnails andnotes in the window: Choose FullScript or Compact Script in the Viewmenu.
To change the Script window’s font,cue colors or auto-scrolling behavior: Choose Tools > Settings > Scripttab. (To disable auto-scrolling,choose View > Auto-Scroll.)
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6.3 ShoutMonitors ShoutMonitors are virtual preview monitors that reside on the control screen.They come in three flavors: Solo, Deuce and Quad. To open a newShoutMonitor, choose Window > New ShoutMonitor, then choose the typeyou want. A ShoutMonitor can exist in its own window, or as a tab with other ShoutMonitors in a window.
Solo ShoutMonitor Deuce ShoutMonitor Quad ShoutMonitor
ShoutMonitor sources: Any monitor in a ShoutMonitor window can be set todepict any of the following sources:
Program (or Prog): depicts the current visual cue, if any; that is, whatthe audience is seeing on the display screen
Current (or Crnt): same as Program except that videos andanimations appear as thumbnails, and transition effects appear ascuts (to conserve system resources for display screen playback)
Next: depicts the next playable cue in the Script window — that is, theone the current cue will advance to
Script: depicts the cue that’s selected in the Script window
Boxer: depicts the cue that’s selected in Boxer
Philo: depicts the file that’s selected in Philo
NOTE: When a monitor is depicting a non-visual cue (e.g.,Sound, Script Control, Sound Control, Comment) or anon-visual file (e.g., audio), the appropriate cue or media typeicon appears in the monitor over a gray and white checkerboardpattern. Videos and animations in monitors set to a source otherthan Program are depicted as thumbnails.
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To change a monitor's source (on Deuce and Quad ShoutMonitors): Clickthe monitor's Source field and choose the source in the drop-down list.
To change the source assigned to a source button (Solo ShoutMonitor
only): Click the Options button and choose Source Buttons from thepopup menu. Click a button's Source field (1 through 5) and choosethe source in the drop-down list. Click OK when you're done.
To activate or turn off Dual-Play: Click the Options button in a
ShoutMonitor and choose Dual-Play in its menu. (In Dual-Play mode,videos, animations and transitions are rendered in the ProgramShoutMonitor as well as on the actual display screen.)
6.4 Crew window In the default layout, the crew window contains several tabbed featuresdesigned to simplify the creation of presentations, as well as to play mediato the audience “on the fly.” You can think of them as virtual crew members,standing by to serve your presentation-creation and delivery needs.
Any crew feature can be opened orclosed by toggling its name in theWindow menu. A feature can existas a tab in the crew window, aShoutMonitor window, or any otherwindow containing one or moreother crew features. It can alsoexist in its own window.
To place a feature in its ownwindow, drag its tab out of thecurrent window. To move a featurefrom its own window into anotherwindow, drag it into the destinationwindow. To change the order oftabbed features in a window, dragthe tabs within the window.
The number, size and position of crew features open on the control screen istotally up to you. For most purposes, we recommend that you keep the mostfrequently used crew features stored as tabs in the crew window. Features
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that you seldom use can remain closed to cut down on screen clutter; openthem only when you need them. Here’s MediaShout’s roster of virtual crewmembers:
Lyra: A song browser. Drag songs from her songlist and drop them into theScript window to insert them as Lyric cues ... or display a song instantlyusing her QuickLyric controls. (See 17.21, Lyra.)
Bob: A Bible browser. Select or enter a passage reference and drag its intothe Script window to insert it as a Bible cue, or use the QuickBible controlsto display the passage instantly right from Bob. (See 14.11, Bob.)
Ted: A text composer. Use Ted to create Text cues that can be dragged intothe Script window, or displayed instantly to the audience. (See 19.7, Ted.)
Philo: A file browser. Drag media files into the Script window to create cuesfor them ... or fire them directly to the audience by double-clicking. (See, 6.7,Philo.)
Boxer: A cue storage bin. Use Boxer to store frequently used cues that canbe copied to the Script window by dragging, or played straight from Boxerhimself. (See 9.9, Boxer.)
Coach: A quick-help tool. Look up the simple steps to accomplishing anycommon task, right on the control screen. (See 6.8, Coach.)
Audie: A dual-deck audio player. Create and play audio playlists — music,sound effects, etc. — independent of the presentation. (See 18.9, Audie.)
Annette: A web browser: Select web pages and display them full-screen tothe audience. (See Chapter 21, Web Pages.)
6.5 Toolbars MediaShout offers three toolbars:
Main toolbar: Contains standard buttons for file and editing tasks, as well asbuttons for controlling the computer screens.
Kim bar: Kim (Keyed Instant Messenger) superimposes or “keys” text overany cue on the display screen. (See 19.8, Kim.)
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Playback bar: Contains controls for cue-firing and media playback. (SeeChapter 7, Playback Bar.)
To open or close a toolbar, toggle its name in the View menu. To move atoolbar to another location on the control screen, drag it by the ridge at itsleft edge. To customize a toolbar, click the little Toolbar Options button at itsright edge.
6.6 Status bar The status bar along the bottom of the control screen contains cue-insertionbuttons that can be used to insert a cue into the Script window quickly. Clickthe button for the cue type you want to insert.
To insert a black screen into the presentation, click the Insert Black button.Click the Insert White button to insert a white screen into the presentation.
6.7 Philo Philo is MediaShout’s own file browser. He typically hangs out in the crewwindow, but he can be dragged anywhere on the control screen. To open orclose Philo, toggle his name in the Window menu.
Philo is a very powerful little feature,capable of many tasks that speed upand simplify your work in MediaShout:
Insert a media-file cue: Drag agraphic, animation, video, sound,PowerPoint or text file into the Scriptwindow to create a cue for it instantly.(Ctrl+click or Shift+click to selectmultiple files and drag them intogether to create multiple cues atonce.)
Play media: Double-click a media fileto play it to the audience instantly. Open a Script or copy its cues: Double-click a Script file to open it into theScript window. To copy a Script’s cues into the currently open Script, dragthe Script file and click Copy Cues in the dialog that opens.
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Apply a file filter: To view only files of a certain type (media files, videos,sounds, whatever), click the Filter field and choose the type in thedrop-down list.
Sort the files: Right-click in Philo’s browser window and choose Arrange Byin the context menu. Files can be sorted by name, size, type, or date.
Change the view: Right-click and choose View in the context menu tochange the view to thumbnails, icons, a list, or file details.
Use FastFolders: To jump to a folder quickly, select its name in theFastFolder field. To add the current folder to the FastFolder list, click theOptions button to the right of this field and choose Add Current Folder toList. To remove a folder, choose Remove Current Folder from List.
6.8 Coach Use Coach to learn simple steps to common tasks in MediaShout. Hetypically hangs out in the crew window, but can be dragged anywhere on thecontrol screen. To open or close Coach, toggle his name in the Windowmenu.
To use Coach, click a topic on hishome page, then click a task orsubtopic on the next page that opens.
If you can’t find the information youneed in Coach, browse the HelpTopics by choosing Help > HelpTopics. The Help file contains muchmore information than Coach.
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7. Playback Bar
Overview Use the Playback bar to control how cues are played in the Script window,and how media is played to the audience. To open or close: Choose View >Toolbars > Playback.
chapter contents: 7.1 Fire buttons7.2 Panic buttons7.3 Playback mode7.4 Now Playing field7.5 Playback buttons and slider
7.1 Fire buttons These buttons, from left to right, fire the previous, selected or next cue in theScript window.
To fire a Script cue from a keyboard function key: Press F9 (Fire Previous),F10 (Fire Next) or F11 (Fire Selected).
7.2 Panic buttons The first three panic buttons, Logo, Black and Bars, are actually cues thatcan be fired at any time. The fourth button, Stop All, immediately stops allmedia playback and blacks out the display screen.
To change the settings of the cue assigned to Logo, Black or Bars button: Click its down arrow and choose Properties to open the cue into the cueproperties box.
To assign a new cue to a button: Click its down arrow and choose Insert.
To fire a panic button from a keyboard function key: Press F5 (Logo), F6(Black), F7 (Bars) or F8 (Stop All).
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7.3 Playback mode The Script window’s various playback modes provide quick and simple waysto temporarily override the playback behavior of all cues in a Script at once.To change the playback mode: Choose Playback > Mode, or just select themode in the Playback bar. To return to Normal mode in a hurry, just pressthe Escape key. Available modes:
Normal: the program obeys each cue’s advance setting
Slide Show: same as Normal mode except that the mouse buttons actlike a remote control — the left button fires the next cue, the right firesthe previous cue
Manual: the program treats every cue as if it were set to advancemanually
Auto: the program advances each cue automatically till the last cue isreached; the behavior of this mode (e.g., duration of each cue, whichcue types to ignore) is determined by settings on the Script tab of theSettings dialog
Loop: same as Auto mode except that last cue advances to the firstcue, causing the entire Script to repeat
Shuffle: same as Auto mode except that each cue advances to arandomly chosen cue
Note that playlists in Audie also offer a choice of playback modes. See 18.9,Audie.
7.4 Now Playing field This field displays the name of the video, animation or sound clip that’scurrently playing, if any, from anywhere in MediaShout. If two or more clipsare currently playing, the most recently fired clip is displayed: To selectanother current clip, click the field and select it in the drop-down list. Theselected clip can be controlled with the playback buttons and slider.
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7.5 Playback buttons and slider Use these controls to control the playback of the video, animation or soundclip selected in the Now Playing field. Click Pause to pause the current clip,and Play to release the Pause. The Stop button stops the clip. A stoppedclip is no longer “current,” so it is removed from the Now Playing field andcan’t be restarted without re-firing it from its cue.
Use the Playback slider to jump to another location in the clip, either bydragging the slider’s handle, or clicking on the bar before or after it. Theelapsed time or frames of the clip is indicated to the left of the slider; theremaining time or number of frames is shown to the right.
The Fade Play, Fade Pause and Fade Stop buttons are enabled only forsound clips, and fade in the sound when a pause is released, or fade it outbefore pausing or stopping it, respectively. The length of the fades assignedto these buttons can be changed.
To change the duration of fades for Playback bar Fade buttons: ChooseTools > Settings > Sounds tab. Select a button in the list and adjust itsDuration setting. Click OK to apply the changes and close the Settingsdialog.
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8. Display Screen
Overview The display screen is the one the audience sees, revealing only the mediayou want them to see. Typically, this is a second monitor (projector, TV,plasma display, etc.), with the computer’s primary monitor used as thecontrol screen — the one the MediaShout user interface appears on. If yourcomputer isn’t equipped for dual-monitor display, you can use MediaShout’soverlay display to play media on top of the control screen.
chapter contents: 8.1 Dual-screen mode8.2 Single-screen mode8.3 Actual vs. Intended resolutions8.4 Overlay display8.5 Underscanning vs. overscanning8.6 Adjust screen for video display8.7 Using a wide-screen display8.8 Other display screen options
8.1 Dual-screen mode MediaShout is designed to work best in dual-screen mode, which takesadvantage of the multiple-monitor feature in Windows. If your computer hasa dual-head graphics card or display adapter (or two graphics cards) andWindows is in extended-desktop mode, MediaShout can run in dual-screenmode: The control screen will appear on one monitor, and the visual mediayou play from it will appear on the other.
To activate dual-screen mode in MediaShout: Click the Dual Screen
button in the main toolbar (or choose Screens > Dual Screen).
If this button and menu item are disabled, then it means that Windows isn’tin extended-desktop mode. To fix this:
1. Make sure that the display monitor or device (e.g., projector, plasmadisplay) is powered up and attached to the computer’s second displayoutput.
2. Click the Windows Display Properties button in the main toolbar (or
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choose this item in the Screens menu). In the dialog that opens, clickthe second monitor’s icon to select it, then check Extend my Windowsdesktop onto this monitor and click OK. If you’re asked to confirmchanges to the display, click Yes.
The Dual Screen button in MediaShout should now be enabled. Click it toenter dual-screen mode.
For more information on Windows multiple-monitor settings, see 3.1, Set upextended-desktop mode.
8.2 Single-screen mode Although MediaShout is designed to run best on two screens, it can
run on single screen if it has to. If Windows isn’t in extended-desktop mode when MediaShout opens, the program will default to single-screenmode. If Windows is in extended-desktop mode, both modes are available,and you can toggle between them using the Single Screen and Dual Screenbuttons in the main toolbar, or their equivalents in the Screens menu. To play a presentation while in single-screen mode, use the overlay display.See 8.4, Overlay display.
8.3 Actual vs. Intended resolutions When the computer recognizes a second monitor attached to it, MediaShoutuses the actual resolution of that monitor to determine its own displayresolution — the resolution that visual media will be displayed at. Forexample, if the display monitor is set in Windows to a resolution of 800 x600, cues will be formatted automatically to display at 800 x 600. Prettysimple, actually.
But what happens if you’re creating a presentation on a computer thatdoesn’t have a second monitor attached to it? MediaShout can’t look toWindows to tell it what resolution to use for display, because according toWindows, there is no display screen. So it looks to itself: A setting insideMediaShout called the Intended Display Resolution, or IDR.
Under these conditions, MediaShout formats visual cues according to theIDR — the resolution you intend to display the presentation at. If you set theIDR to match the resolution you intend to use on the display screen when it’shooked up, previews of the presentation (in ShoutMonitors, preview boxes,etc.) will provide an accurate depiction of how things will look during the
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presentation. If the IDR isn’t set correctly, the program will still do a prettygood job of adjusting the visuals for the actual display resolution later, butusing the correct IDR will give you accurate previews, and result in a betterlooking presentation. To set the Intended Display Resolution: 1. Choose Tools > Settings, then click the Display tab.
2. In the Intended Display Resolution section, enter the Width andHeight of the resolution you intend to display the presentation at. (Ifyou show videos in your presentations, we recommend 800 x 600; ahigher resolution may degrade performance, and chances are yourvideos are in a much lower resolution than that anyway.)
3. Click OK to apply the settings and close the dialog.
NOTE: The Intended Display Resolution is also used todetermine the size of the overlay display when running insingle-screen mode. See 8.4, Overlay display.
8.4 Overlay display MediaShout is designed to be used in dual-screen configuration, with thecontrol screen appearing on the primary computer monitor, and the displayscreen output feeding the projector, TV or other display device being seenby the audience.
There may be times, however, when you’ll want to run a presentation on asingle screen: For example, you may get stuck using a computer thatdoesn’t have dual-screen capability, or perhaps you want to show apresentation to just a few people in a meeting and don’t want to set up aseparate display screen. Whatever the reason, you can run a MediaShoutpresentation on a single screen using the overlay display — a virtual displayscreen that lays on top of the MediaShout control screen.
To activate the overlay display: Click the Overlay Display button, or
choose Screens > Overlay Display. (Keyboard shortcut: Ctrl+Shift+O)The overlay display will appear over the control screen.
To turn off the overlay display: Press the Escape key.
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To control a presentation while in overlay display mode: By default, whenthe overlay display is active, MediaShout goes into slide show mode. Themouse acts like a remote control to the Script: click the left button to fire thenext cue, the right button to fire the previous cue.
This option can be turned off so that the program behaves normally whilethe overlay display is active: Choose Tools > Settings. On the Display tab,uncheck Automatically switch to slide show mode.
To change the size of the overlay display: The size of the overlay display isdetermined by the Intended Display Resolution.
1. Choose Tools >Settings, then click theDisplay tab.
2. In the Intended DisplayResolution section,enter the Width andHeight you want imagesto be displayed at. (Ifyou want the overlaydisplay to cover theentire screen, you setthe IDR to match theresolution of the screenas chosen in Windows.)
3. Click OK to apply the changes and close the Settings dialog. See 8.3,Actual vs. Intended resolutions, to learn the full effects of this setting.
8.5 Underscanning vs. overscanning Computer display devices generally underscan the displayed image: Theentire image is visible, with no cropping. Under typical conditions, every pixelof the original image (say, a graphic file) is seen on the display device.
Most video display devices — television monitors, video projectors, etc. —overscan the displayed image. This means that as much a 20% of the imagefalls outside the visible screen area and cannot be seen. The visible result isan image that’s been zoomed in, thus cutting off the edges. Professionals
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who create images for display on video devices understand the effects ofoverscanning and therefore keep text and other important objects in theimage within the screen’s “safe area” – the center 80% or so of the frame.
A problem arises when images that don’t observe a safe area are shown ona video display device: Text near the edge gets cut off, and objects thatenjoyed a visually comfortable margin from the edge appear too close to it,thus degrading the image aesthetically.
If your MediaShout presentations are to be shown on a video display device,the best way to deal with overscanning is to make sure you abide by a safearea when creating visual media: Avoid placing any text or other importantobjects outside the center 80% of the frame. For example, when creating agraphic that’s 800 x 600 pixels, keep the critical content within a safe areathat’s 640 x 480 pixels. The visual itself (i.e., the background) should befull-size so that it does indeed fill the display screen. (The amount ofoverscanning differs from one device to another, so it’s dangerous to try tosize a background to fit within the safe area too.)
If you can’t create your media using a safe area — or you’re using mediathat’s been created for display on an underscanning device — try adjustingthe zoom on the scan converter: the device that’s being used to convert thecomputer’s RGB signal into a video signal. Better scan converters have suchan adjustment.
The third option is provided in MediaShout itself, on the Display tab of theSettings dialog. See 8.6, Adjust screen for video display for details.
8.6 Adjust screen for video display If you’re using a TV monitor or video projector for your display device (asopposed to a computer monitor or data projector), the image will beover-scanned, thus cropping the image by up to 20%. If this results in cuttingoff critical information in the image — and you can’t zoom out the image withcontrols on the scan converter — you’ll want to use MediaShout’s ownzooming feature to reduce the size of the display image.
1. Fire a cue to the display screen. Choose one that contains afull-screen background, plus text or other important objects near itsedges — objects that are being cut off by the overscanning.
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2. Choose Tools > Settings to open the Settings dialog. Click the Displaytab.
3. Check the Reduce image for TV option. Click Apply and check thedisplay screen to see the effect. Adjust the percentage of reduction,then click Apply again. Repeat till the critical objects in the image arecomfortably within the frame of the display screen, yet the backgroundstill fills the frame (i.e., no black border appears around thebackground).
8.7 Using a wide-screen display MediaShout is capable of displaying wide-screen media to a wide-screendisplay, as long as your computer is set up for this format and can recognizethe display device’s wide-screen resolution. There are four components to awide-screen display system:
1. Display device: Obviously, you’ll need a wide-screen display device suchas a higher-end data projector or plasma display screen. Most such deviceshave two or more modes for standard and wide-screen display, andoftentimes many additional settings for optimizing a particular mode. Consultthe manual to learn these settings, and spend some time experimenting withthe settings to ensure that you’re getting the best image possible.
2. Display adapter: The graphics card or display adapter used to feed thedisplay screen must be capable of wide-screen resolutions. Manyhigher-end graphics cards for desktop computers are now equipped for this,as are many laptop display adapters — especially those installed on laptopsthat have a wide-screen LCD monitor. To determine if your computer is soequipped, attach a wide-screen display device as the secondary monitor,make sure it’s configured for wide-screen display, and check the Settingstab of the Display Properties dialog in Windows to see if it recognizes thedevice and allows for a wide-screen resolution. (You may need to click theAdvanced button to find the right settings.)
3. MediaShout: If you create your presentations while the wide-screendisplay device is attached and recognized by Windows, visual cues willautomatically be formatted for wide-screen display. If you’re working withoutthe display device attached, you’ll want to be sure that MediaShout’sIntended Display Resolution (IDR) is set to the resolution you intend to showthe presentation at. This will ensure that the text in Lyric, Bible and Text
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cues looks the same on the wide screen as it does in previews on thecontrol screen. (See 8.3, Actual vs. Intended resolutions.)
Under these conditions, MediaShout will indeed format visuals for display atthe IDR. If the IDR is at a standard, 4:3 aspect-ratio resolution such as 800 x600, text will be formatted to wrap between the margins on such a screen. Ifyou then display the presentation at a wide-screen aspect ratio, the distancebetween the margins will be greater, thus causing the text to wrapdifferently. And if the cue contains soft page breaks, text will wrap back up tothe previous page, since there’s now more room for it. The cues will stilldisplay just fine, but they won’t look like they did when they were created.
The moral of this story: Build your presentations with the wide-screendisplay attached, and if you can’t do that, just make sure the IDR is set tothe proper aspect ratio for wide-screen display.
4. Media: For best results, you’ll want to use media that’s formatted forwide-screen display. Oftentimes, however, you’ll need to display somestandard-aspect media along with your wide-screen pieces. Here’s how thePicture Format settings in the cue properties box will affect graphics andvideos appearing on the wide-screen display:
The following examples show how MediaShout’s Picture Format settingaffects the appearance of standard- and wide-aspect pictures on a 1280 x768 wide-screen display:
A 4:3 (800 x 600) image in wide screen:
Original Size Full Scale Full Stretch
A 16:9 (1080 x 600) image in wide screen:
Original Size Full Scale Full Stretch
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8.8 Other display screen optionsThe display tab of the Settings dialog (choose Tools > Settings) offers threeoptions that affect how the MediaShout display screen obeys (or disobeys)Windows display rules:
Force display image to stay on top: When this option is checked, the displayimage will always remain on top of the display monitor, even if you openother windows on that monitor. When it’s unchecked, Windows is allowed toplace other windows over it. In general, it’s safer to leave this option checked,but if you intend to use a third-party “screen painting” application to draw onthe display image, you must uncheck this option.
Minimize display image with application: When this option is checked,minimizing MediaShout will cause the display image to disappear from thedisplay screen, revealing the Windows desktop or any other window orapplication open on that monitor. When it’s unchecked, the display image willremain when MediaShout is minimized. Unchecked is generally safer.
Hide mouse pointer on display: When this option is checked, the mousepointer will disappear from view whenever you drag it onto the displayscreen. When it’s unchecked, the mouse pointer will be visible there. Toavoid accidental appearance of the pointer in front of the audience, keep thischecked.
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PRESENTATIONS
9. Scripts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
10. Cues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
11. Cue Templates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
12. Cue Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
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9. Scripts
Overview A MediaShout presentation file is called a Script. The native Script file formatin v3 is .ssc, but it can also open and save v2.5 Script (.mss) and Box (.box)files.
chapter contents:9.1 Create a Script9.2 Open a Script9.3 Insert media in a Script9.4 Pack a Script9.5 Script properties9.6 Default Scripts9.7 Finding missing media9.8 Checking media files9.9 Boxer9.10 Lock a Script
9.1 Create a Script
1. Open a new blank Script: Choose File > New.
2. Insert media as cues in the Script: Choose the cue type in the Insertmenu, or right-click and choose Insert in the context menu.
3. To change the settings of a cue: Click its icon in the Script window (orright-click the cue and choose Properties in the context menu). Thecue will open into the cue properties box. Make changes to settings onthe Content, Foreground, Background, Soundtrack and Control tabs,then click OK.
4. To manage cues in the Script window: Drag a cue to relocate it; selectit and press Delete to delete it; click its Fire button to play it to theaudience.
5. Save the Script: Choose File > Save.
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9.2 Open a Script Choose File > Open and select the Script file to open it into the Scriptwindow. A Script can also be opened by dragging it from Philo and dropping itinto the Script window. (See 6.7, Philo.)
9.3 Insert media in a ScriptInsert media in a presentation by creating a cue for it: Choose the media typein the Insert menu (or right-click in the Script window and choose Insert), thenselect the song, Bible passage, file or video source in the selection dialogthat appears.
9.4 Pack a Script The Packer feature provides a quick and simple way of packing a copy of apresentation for distribution to another computer. It does this by making acopy of the Script file and every media file used in the presentation, thenplacing these copies in the presentation folder you designate. Thispresentation folder can then be copied to a disc or other device and loadedonto another computer.
To pack a presentation: 1. Open the Script into the Script
window. Make sure any mediafiles it uses are closed in anyother application.
2. Choose File > Packer to open thePacker wizard. Click Next.
3. Designate a presentation folder:Typically, you’ll find it mostconvenient to create a new folderby typing its name in the Folder field. This will ensure that the foldercontains only the files used by the presentation. You may also renamethe Script file if you like.
4. Click Finish. A confirmation dialog will appear when the packing iscomplete.
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9.5 Script Properties The properties of a Script can be viewed in the Script Properties dialog.Choose File > Script Properties.
The Summary tab providesgeneral information about theScript, including the size of all itsmedia files and the number ofcues by type. This tab alsoprovides a way of locking theScript from changes to its cues.See 9.10, Lock a Script.
The Media tab contains a list ofmedia files used by the Script.This list can be filtered to showonly files of a specific type:Check the types you want tosee. To sort the list by filename,location, modified date, or type,click the appropriate header inthe list. Click the Copy button tocopy the list to the clipboard;click Print to print the list.
The Songs tab contains a list ofsongs used by the Script’s Lyriccues, if any. Click the Copybutton to copy the list to theclipboard; click Print to print thelist.
9.6 Default Scripts The program allows you choose what will open into the Script window whenMediaShout is launched: a blank Script, a specific Script, or the most-recentlyopen Script. Similar choices are available for Boxer. To change thesesettings, choose Tools > Settings, and make your selections on the Files tabof the Settings dialog.
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9.7 Finding missing media Whenever a Script is opened, the program checks to be sure that its mediafiles are where the Script says they are. If it fails to find a file at its expectedlocation, Missing Media Finder can search for it automatically. And if it cannotfind it on its own, it can prompt you to show the program where it is.
The Files tab of the Settings dialog (choose Tools > Settings) provides youwith options that determine how Missing Media Finder behaves:
• Automatically search for the missing files: This default settingcauses the program to go looking for files it doesn’t find in theirexpected locations.
• Ask me before searching: Under this setting, if the program failsto find a file at its expected location, it will notify you, then askwhether it should go looking for the missing file.
• Include other drives in search: When checked, this optioncauses the program to search other drives attached to thecomputer. When unchecked, searches are confined to the drivecontaining the Script itself.
• Prompt me before replacing: When checked, this option causesthe program to ask to confirm its choice for the replacement of amissing file. When unchecked, the program will replace fileswithout asking.
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9.8 Checking media files The Missing Media Finder runs automatically whenever a Script is opened.You can also run it at any time after a Script has been opened: Choose File >Check Media Files.
TIP: This feature is handy when you’re in a hurry and want toopen a Script without having to search for its missing media files.When Missing Media Finder prompts you to help it find missingfiles, cancel the search so the Script opens with its affected cuesdisabled. Then when there’s time to fix them, run the CheckMedia Files procedure on the open Script.
9.9 Boxer Use Boxer as a storage bin for cues. Drag a cue from the Script window tocopy it into Boxer. Drag a cue from Boxer to copy it into the Script window. Toinsert a cue, right-click and choose Insert.To open or close Boxer, click his name inthe Window menu.
Click Boxer’s Options button to
change the view (thumbnails, icons,or list), or to arrange the cues byname, type, or modified date.
Boxer saves files in v3 Script format (.ssc).He can also open and save v2.5 Script(.mss) and Box (.box) files.
9.10 Lock a ScriptThe Summary tab of the Script Properties dialog provides a way to lock aScript from changes. Cues in a locked Script cannot be inserted, modified,moved or deleted. When a Script is locked, the message “(Locked)” willappear after its name in the Script window title bar.
To lock (or unlock) a Script that’s open in the Script window: Choose File >Script Properties. Check (or uncheck) the Lock this Script option, then clickOK.
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To lock (or unlock) a Script that’s open in Boxer or Audie: Click the feature’sOptions button and choose Script Properties in the popup menu. Check (oruncheck) the Lock this Script option, then click OK.
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10. Cues
Overview MediaShout works with cues, not slides. A cue is like a programmableshortcut, telling the program what media to play, when to play it, and how itshould look or sound.
chapter contents: 10.1 Insert a cue10.2 Change a cue’s settings10.3 Change the settings of multiple cues at once10.4 Script Control cues10.5 Comment cues10.6 Move a cue’s foreground picture to the background layer10.7 Move a cue’s background to the foreground layer10.8 Export a cue’s text to an RTF file10.9 Export a cue to a graphic file
10.1 Insert a cue In the Insert menu, choose the cue type you want (or right-click in the Scriptwindow and choose Insert). If it’s a media cue, a selection dialog will open soyou can choose the song, Bible passage, file or clip you want the cue to play.Click Select and the cue for it will be created and inserted automatically.(Exception: When a Text cue is inserted, the cue properties box will open soyou can enter its text in the preview/edit box.)
NOTE: In previous versions of MediaShout, a new cue alwaysopened into the cue properties box before it was inserted. In v3,new cues are generally inserted directly, so the cue propertiesbox doesn’t open. Of course you can open it after it’s inserted:Just click its cue type icon in the Script window. However, if youprefer the older behavior, you can tell the program to act thatway: Choose Tools > Settings > Control, then check the Opencues into cue properties box before inserting option.
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10.2 Change a cue’s settings Click its icon in the Script window (or right-click it and choose Properties fromthe context menu). The cue will open in the cue properties box. Makechanges:
Content tab: Change the cue’s name,foreground, background, or soundtrackmedia assignment, template, transitionand advance
Foreground tab: Change the content,formatting, effects and playback settingsof foreground text or picture
Background tab: Change the content,formatting, and playback settings of thebackground picture, if any
Soundtrack tab: Change the contentand playback settings of the soundtrack,if any
Control tab: Change how the cue looksand behaves on the control screen
Data tab (Lyric cues only): Change songdata such as title, author and copyright
Click OK to save the changes to the cue. For more on the cue properties box,see Chapter 12, Cue Properties.
10.3 Change the settings of multiple cues at once The settings of two or more cues of the same type (e.g., multiple Graphiccues) can be changed together:
1. Select multiple cues of the same type (Ctrl+click each cue), thenright-click and choose Properties in the context menu to open the cuesin the cue properties box.
2. Make changes.
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3. Click OK. Any changed settings will be applied to all cues in theselection.
NOTE: If the Properties item in the context menu is disabledwhen you have multiple cues selected, check to see that all theselected cues are of the same type. The program does not allowsettings changes to multiple cues of more than one type at once.
10.4 Script Control cues Use a Script Control cue to automatically loop a sequence of cues or
jump to any cue anywhere in the Script. To create a Script Control cue,right-click in the Script window and chooseInsert > Control > Script Control. Thenchoose the settings on the Content tab of thecue properties box:
Action: Choose whether this cue is tofire the first cue or the selected cue.Then enter the number of times thisaction is to be performed (to repeat theaction indefinitely, choose Loop).
Advance: Choose how the cue is toadvance when the action has beenperformed the selected number oftimes (this is disabled when the actionis set to loop).
Click OK to insert the cue.
NOTE: When using a Script Control cue to loop a sequence ofcues, place it below the last cue in the sequence. Rememberthat the cue repeats a sequence after it has “peated,” or playedonce on its own. So if you want the sequence to play twice, setthe Play field to 1 repeat; to play the sequence three times, setthe Play field to 2 repeats; and so on.
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10.5 Comment cues Use a Comment cue to insert a comment, title or other short message
for yourself into the Script. To insert a Comment cue, right-click in the Scriptwindow and choose Insert > Comment. Type the comment into the CueName field.
10.6 Move a cue’s foreground picture to the background layer The foreground of a Graphic, Animation or Video cue can moved to thebackground layer to allow you to place a Bible passage or other text inforeground layer. Since it’s a cue’s foreground media that determines its type,this action actually converts the cue from one type to another.
To convert a picture-based cue to a Bible cue: 1. Select the Graphic, Animation or Video
cue in the Script window.
2. Choose Edit > Convert > FG to Bible CueBG.
3. In the Select Passage dialog that opens,select a passage and click Select.
To convert a picture-based cue to a Text cue: 1. Select the Graphic, Animation or Video
cue in the Script window.
2. Choose Edit > Convert > FG to Text CueBG.
3. Click the cue’s icon to open it into the cue properties box. Add the text,then click OK.
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10.7 Move a cue’s background to the foreground layer The background of a Bible or Text cue can be moved to the foreground layer.This action converts the cue to a Graphic,Animation or Video cue, depending on themedia type.
1. Select the Bible or Text cue in the Scriptwindow.
2. Choose Edit > Convert > BG to GraphicCue (or BG to Animation Cue, or BG toVideo Cue).
NOTE: In each case, the cue’sforeground text will be deleted.
10.8 Export a cue’s text to an RTF file The text content of a Lyric, Bible or Text cue can be exported to an RTF textdocument — a feature that comes in handywhen you want to copy a cue’s text into ahandout, lesson outline or sermon notes. Here’show:
1. Select the Lyric, Bible or Text cue in theScript window. If the cue contains multiplepages, make sure that it’s expanded. (Toexpand a collapsed cue, click the plussign next to its cue number.)
2. Choose Edit > Convert > Export to RTFFile. In the Save Text dialog that opens,name the file, then click Save.
NOTE: Cue text is often white, which won’t show up in mostword processing applications. If the document looks blank whenyou open it, press Ctrl+A to select all the text, then change thefont color to black. (In Word, WordPerfect, or ShoutWriter,choose Format > Font, then click the Color field or button andselect black.)
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10.9 Export a cue to a graphic file The composited image of a cue (i.e., the image the audience sees) can becaptured like a screenshot and saved as a JPEG file. For example, if youexport a Text cue to a graphic, the JPEG imagewill show the text over the background. When amultiple-page cue is exported graphically, theprogram generates a JPEG for each page. Toperform this type of export:
1. Select the cue in the Script window. If thecue contains multiple pages, make surethat it’s expanded. (To expand a collapsedcue, click the plus sign next to its cuenumber.)
2. Choose Edit > Convert > Export Cue toGraphic File. In the Save Image dialogthat opens, name the file, then click Save.
TIP: If it’s a multiple-page cue, place the number 1 at the end ofthe filename. The program will use this name for page 1, andreplace this number with the next higher number for eachsubsequent page.
NOTE: This feature is designed to give you graphics whosequality is suitable for inserting in your lesson outline or otherpresentation. If you need high resolution graphics for publishing,you’ll want to use a proper screen-capture program. Werecommend SnagIt, from TechSmith (www.techsmith.com).
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11. Cue Templates
Overview A cue template is a file containing a set of preferred cue properties. Theprogram copies these properties to a cue when it is created, thus saving youfrom having to set all these properties manually. A template can also beapplied to an existing cue: In this case, the program changes the cue’sproperties to match those of the template.
Each cue type has its own set of templates, and this set can contain anynumber of templates.
chapter contents: 11.1 Select a cue template11.2 Save changes to a cue template11.3 Create a cue template11.4 Set the default template11.5 Change the folder in which templates are stored
11.1 Select a cue template For a new cue: Select a template in the media selection dialog that openswhen you insert the cue. (The default template for the chosen cue type will beused unless you select a different template.)
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Select a template for an existing cue: In thecue properties box, select a template on theContent tab. (To reapply the selectedtemplate to the cue, click the Templatebutton and choose Reapply Template in themenu.)
WARNING: Applying (orre-applying) a template to anexisting cue replaces the cue’sproperties with those of theselected template. In the case ofa Lyric, Bible or Text cue, anycustom text formatting andpagination you’ve applied to cuewill be lost.
11.2 Save changes to a cue templateOn the Content tab of the cue properties box, click the Template button andchoose Save to Template in the menu. The cue’s properties will be saved tothe selected template.
11.3 Create a cue templateOn the Content tab of the cue properties box, click the Template button
and choose Save to New Template in the menu. Name the template and clickSave. The cue’s properties will be saved to the new template.
To designate which types of properties are to be saved in the template, clickthe Template button and choose Template Properties in the menu. Check oruncheck items in the properties lists, then click OK.
11.4 Set the default template To designate a template as the default, select it in the Templates
field, then click the Template button and choose Set as Default Template from the drop-down menu.
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Note that the default template for a given cue type is the one that will be usedto create any new cue of that type, unless you select a different templatemanually by choosing it in the Template field of a media selection dialog. Thedefault template will also be used under any of the following conditions:
• When a cue is inserted by dragging a media file from Philo (orWindows Explorer) and dropping it into the Script window, Boxer,or an Audie playlist.
• When media is fired directly from Philo by double-clicking amedia file. (Firing a graphic this way applies the default Graphiccue template to it; firing a video file from Philo applies the defaultVideo File cue template to it, and so on.)
11.5 Change the folder in which templates are stored By default, cue templates are installed and stored in the following location:My Shout\Plugins\Cue Templates. But you can designate a different folder ifyou like. For example, if you want to keep different sets of templates fordifferent types of presentations, you can create a templates folder for each,and then change the designated folder when you want to load a different set.
To change the designated templates folder: 1. Choose Tools > Settings.
2. On the Files tab, click the Browse button next to the Cue Templatesfield, select a folder, then click OK.
3. Click OK to close the Settings dialog and apply the change.
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12. Cue Properties
Overview A cue’s properties determine how it will look and sound when played to theaudience, as well as how it will appear on the control screen. These settingscan be changed in the cue properties box. To open a cue into the cueproperties box, click its icon in the Script window, or right-click it and chooseProperties from the context menu.
chapter contents: 12.1 Cue Properties Box – general controls12.2 Cue Properties Box – Content tab12.3 Transition properties12.4 Advance properties12.5 Foreground, Background, Soundtrack and Data properties12.6 Control properties
12.1 Cue Properties Box – general controls The top half of the cue properties boxprovides general controls for previewing andfiring the open cue, as well as buttons forapplying changes to it.
If a video, animation or sound is assigned tothe cue, additional controls appear, allowingyou to preview the clip.
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When a Lyric, Bible or Text cue is open, thepreview box becomes a text editor. Textformatting tools appear above and to theright of the preview/edit box. Page selectionand firing controls appear below it.
12.2 Cue Properties Box – Content tab The Content tab contains controls for the most frequently used settings:
• the cue name
• the names of media assigned to the foreground, background andsoundtrack layers
• the name of the template most recently applied to the cue
• the transition (see 12.3, Transition properties)
• the advance (see 12.4, Advance properties)
Because the Content tab provides you with the ability to change theforeground, background and soundtrack media assignments, you can often
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make quick changes to a cue right here. Of course, to make more advancedchanges, you’ll need to visit the other tabs.
TIP: To open a cue directly to the Content tab, click its Advanceicon in the Script window.
12.3 Transition properties A cue’s transition properties determine the visual effect that’s to be renderedbetween this cue and the previously fired cue. These properties are found onthe Content tab of the cue properties box. (To open a cue directly to theContent tab, click its Advance icon in the Script window.)
There are three transition properties:
Type: the basic type of transitioneffect — cut, dissolve, wipe, etc.
Subtype: the direction or variation tobe applied to the selected type —left to right, top to bottom, etc. (notall types have subtypes)
Speed: the speed at which the transition is to be rendered
Note that page transitions for a multiple-page Lyric, Bible or Text cue are thesame as the transition applied to the cue itself. Page transitions for Slideshowcues (i.e., between slides) are determined by the transition settings in thePowerPoint file.
WARNING: The speed of a transition is affected by such thingsas the speed of the computer, the graphics card and its RAM,and the resolution of the display screen. When using acombination of transition settings that you’re not familiar with, it’sbest to test-fire the cue to the actual display screen to make sureit renders at the speed you want.
The types of transitions available for a cue depend on the types of media itplays:
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media type available transitions
text and graphics all transition types
animation cut only
video cut, dissolve
PPT file cut (transitions between pages/slides are determinedby the PPT file)
If a text-based cue has a video background, it’s limited to a cut or dissolvetransition; if it plays an animation in the background layer, its transition will bea cut.
12.4 Advance properties A cue’s advance properties determine when a cue willadvance to the next cue. These properties are set on theContent tab of the cue properties box.
The types of advances available for a cue depend on its typeand media content (see below). The full list of types:
Manual: cue will remain current till another cue is fired manually
Timed: cue will advance automatically after the number of seconds
selected in the Duration field
End of FG: cue will advance automatically after its foreground video or
animation ends
End of BG: cue will advance automatically after its background video or
animation ends
End of ST: cue will advance automatically after its assigned sound
ends
End of Action: cue will advance when control action is completed
Immediate: cue will advance automatically the moment it’s fired
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Each page of a multiple-page Lyric, Bible or Text cue obeys the advancesettings applied to the cue itself. If a Slideshow cue is set to Timed advance,each page (slide) in the PowerPoint file may advance on the selectedduration, thus overriding auto-advance settings in the file.
Advance choices by cue and media type:
Manual, Timed, Immediate available for all cues
End of FG Video and Animation cues
End of BG cues with video or animation BGs
End of ST cues with sound file soundtracks
End of Action Script Control and Sound Control cues
12.5 Foreground, Background, Soundtrack and Data properties Properties found on most tabs of the cue properties box are described inother chapters.
Foreground & Background tabs: The properties available on these tabsdepend on the type of media assigned to it. See these chapters:
Chapter 13, AnimationsChapter 14, Bible PassagesChapter 15, GraphicsChapter 16, SlideshowsChapter 17, Song Lyrics Chapter 19, Text Chapter 20, Videos
Soundtrack tab: Properties available on this tab affect how a sound fileassigned to a cue will play when fired. See Chapter 18, Sounds.
Data tab: This tab appears only with Lyric cues. See Chapter 17, Song Lyrics.
12.6 Control properties Most cue properties — playback, foreground, background, soundtrack —determine how a cue will look or sound when played to the audience. A cue’scontrol properties have no effect on performance: They simply determine how
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the cue will look and behave on the control screen, which the audiencedoesn’t see. Control properties are found on the Control tab of the cueproperties box.
Cue name: When a cue is created,the program automatically generatesits name from its primary media: itsforeground media file, song title,passage reference or video source.(A Sound cue gets its default namefrom its sound file.)
The cue name can be changed onthe Content or Control tab of the cueproperties box. But it can also bechanged in the Script window itself:Click and hold on the Cue Namefield to put it in edit mode (or right-click the cue and choose Rename in thecontext menu), then enter or change the name. Click outside the field to exitedit mode and apply the new name.
Skip cue: This option allows you to temporarily disable a cue that you don’twant to be played, rather than to delete it. When checked, the program willignore the cue when it advances out of the cue above it. If the previous cue isset to advance automatically, it will advance to the next playable cue belowthe skipped cue. Same thing if you press the space bar while the previouscue is current. A skipped cue can still be fired manually by clicking its Firebutton or double-clicking it — in case you decide you want to play it after all.
TIP: To toggle this option for a cue without opening it into the cueproperties box, right-click the cue and choose Skip Cue in the contextmenu.
Auto-expand: This option, available only for compound cues (Lyric, Bible,Text and Slideshow), causes the cue to expand automatically when it’s fired,thus revealing its pages. When unchecked, the cue will remain collapsedunless you click its Expand button to the left of the cue number. (The pagescan still be fired — you just won’t see them in the Script window.)
Auto-collapse: This option is also available only for compound cues, andcauses the cue to collapse in the Script window when another cue below it is
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fired. When unchecked, the cue will remain expanded unless you collapse itmanually by clicking its Collapse button.
Auto-compress: If a compound cue contains just one page, this optioncauses it to be depicted in the Script window as a simple cue that doesn’texpand or collapse. When unchecked, such a cue will hide its page till it’sexpanded manually or automatically. (This option has no effect if the cuecontains multiple pages.)
Hide thumbnails: When checked, the cue will appear in the Script windowwithout a thumbnail. Its height in the Script window is therefore determined bythe contents of the Note field, which allows you to see more pages in thewindow without scrolling. (This setting is ignored when the Script window isset to Compact view, which hides all thumbnails and notes anyway.)
Cue note: A cue’s note appears to the right of its thumbnail when the Scriptwindow’s view is set to Full Script (choose View > Full Script). The note cancontain any text you type or paste into the Note field on the Control tab of thecue properties box. The note appears only in the Script window, so you canuse this feature to include reminders, operator or presenter instructions, orwhatever. The audience never sees the note. A few “notes” about notes:
• Notes are available only for visual cues — i.e., cues withthumbnails. Sound, Script Control, Sound Control and Commentcues can’t display notes in the Script window. (Tip: The cuename field can be used for a short note to a non-visual cue.)
• Lyric, Bible and Text cues also have page notes: The note foreach page contains the text to be displayed from that page.Unlike cue notes, page notes cannot be edited.
• To hide cue and page notes, choose View > Compact Script,which also hides all cue thumbnails. To display a cue’s note buthide its thumbnail, choose View > Full Script, then check theHide thumbnails option on the Control tab of the cue propertiesbox.
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WORKING WITH MEDIA
13. Animations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
14. Bible Passages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
15. Graphics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
16. Slideshows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
17. Song Lyrics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
18. Sounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
19. Text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
20. Videos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
21. Web Pages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
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13. Animations
Overview MediaShout plays Flash animation files from Animation cues and from thebackground layer of text-based cues. The program relies on MacromediaFlash Player to do this. To get a free copy of the latest Flash Player, visitwww.macromedia.com. chapter contents: 13.1 Insert an Animation cue13.2 Play an animation instantly13.3 Use an animated background13.4 Change the picture properties of an animation
13.1 Insert an Animation cue Drag the Flash animation file from Philo into the Script window. (Or
right-click in the Script window and choose Insert > Animation, then select the file and click Select.)
13.2 Play an animation instantly In Philo, double-click the Flash file.
13.3 Use an animated background
1. Open the cue into the cue properties box (click its icon or right-clickand choose Properties).
2. Click the Browse button next to the Background field.
3. Select a Flash file, then click Select.
13.4 Change the picture properties of an animation The properties that determine how an animation will appear when displayedare located on the Foreground tab (Animation cue) or Background tab(animated background) of the cue properties box.
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Picture Format: The Picture Format field offers two choices:
Full scale: This causes the animation to play at the largest size to fitthe display screen; the original aspect ratio is retained, and the pictureis centered.
Custom: This indicates that the custom formatting settings in the
Picture Format dialog are used instead. To open this dialog, click thePicture Format button.
• Custom Size: Enter acustom width andheight; to maintain thepicture’s original aspectratio, check theConstrain proportionsoption.
• Custom Position: Forhorizontal position,enter the number ofpixels the picture is tobe placed from the left,right or center of the frame; for vertical position, enter thenumber of pixels it’s to be placed from the top, bottom or middleof the frame. Type a minus sign to enter a negative value.
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14. Bible Passages
Overview MediaShout can display any passage from any version in the Bible library.The passage text is copied from the selected version and pasted into the cue,where it can be formatted and edited. Changes to the text are never savedback to the Bible library, so you need not worry that edits made in the cue willalter the original Bible text.
chapter contents: 14.1 Insert a Bible cue14.2 Display a Bible passage instantly14.3 Selecting passages14.4 Change the text properties of a Bible cue14.5 Change the text style14.6 Apply custom text formatting14.7 Check spelling14.8 Display the passage reference in a header or footer14.9 Use a BookBack for a Bible cue background14.10 MediaShout Bible library14.11 Bob
14.1 Insert a Bible cue In Bob, type the passage reference and press Enter, then drag the
Bible cue icon into the Script window. (Or right-click in the Script window andchoose Insert > Bible, then enter the passage reference, click Add to select it,then click Select.)
To search for a passage in Bob or Select Passage dialog: Click the
Search mode button to right of the Version field. Enter a word orphrase in the top field and press Enter.
14.2 Display a Bible passage instantly In Bob, type the reference into the Passage Reference field and press Enter.(If in Search mode, select a reference in the search results list.) Use the pagecontrols below the preview window to select and fire the cue’s pages. Asingle-click on a page in the list selects it; a double-click fires it.
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14.3 Selecting passages Bob (the Bible browser feature) and the Select Passage dialog provideseveral ways of selecting a Bible passage.
In Passage Picker mode: Click this button to bring up the Passage
Picker controls, which provide two methods of selecting a passage:
• Type the reference: Enter the reference by typing it into thePassage Reference field at the top of the form, then press Enter.The field auto-completes the book name as you type.
• Click the reference: In the Passage Picker box, click the name ofthe book, then the chapter number, then the verse number, thenthe word “Done” (or the end verse number, if you want to selecta multiple-verse passage).
In Search mode: Click the Search Mode button to bring up the search
controls. Type a word or phrase in the Search field, then press Enter.All instances of the text string are listed in the search results list. Anypassage in the list can be previewed by selecting it.
Searches in Bob are performed on the entire Bible. In the Select Passagedialog, use the Look In and To fields to confine the search to the Old or NewTestament, or within a book or range of books. In all cases the search isperformed on the selected version; to search another version, select thatversion and click the Go button next to the Search field.
14.4 Change the text properties of a Bible cue Text properties for a Bible cue are found on the Foreground tab of the cueproperties box.
Passage: To select a different passage for the cue, click the Browsebutton and select it in the Select Passage dialog.
Text Effects: Click the Text Effects button to reveal its drop-down
menu. To toggle the shadow or outline effect on or off, select it in themenu. To define the properties of these effects, choose More; this willopen the Text Effects dialog for this cue.
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NOTE: Text effects cannot be seen while the preview box is inedit mode. To see them, click on any other tab.
Text Format: Select a standardlayout in the Format field, orchoose Custom to set specificmargin widths.
Vertical Alignment: Use thisfield to align the text with thetop, bottom or center of thescreen.
Headers and Footers: Thesefields determine which pages, ifany, a header or footer is toappear on. See 14.8, Displaythe passage reference in aheader or footer.
Text Style: Click the Text Stylebutton to choose the font,auto-pagination setting andother text properties to beapplied to the entire cue. See14.5, Change the text style.
14.5 Change the text style When a Bible cue is created, it gets its text style — font, line spacing,auto-pagination, etc. — from the template used to create it. To change thesesettings, click the Text Style button on the Foreground tab of the CueProperties Box.
Font settings: Choose the fontface, size, style, color andhorizontal alignment
Paragraph settings: Click theParagraph button to choose linespacing and other paragraph properties.
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Auto-pagination style: • One verse per page: This setting arranges the passage so that
each verse is confined to its own page. Note that the programmay need to adjust the font size to ensure that the longest versefits on a single page; all other verses will appear in this samefont size to maintain consistency.
• Allow splitting: This setting obeys the default font size and allowsa verse to wrap to additional pages. Each verse begins on itsown page.
• Wrap text: This setting treats the entire passage as a singleblock of text; the text wraps to additional pages just as in a textdocument.
WARNING: Changing a cue’s text style removes all its customformatting — fonts, line and page breaks, paragraph formatting,etc.
14.6 Apply custom text formatting Settings that affect all pages and their text are found on the Foreground tab.The cue properties box also provides tools for custom-formatting individualcharacters, words, lines, paragraphs and pages. These tools are locatedabove and beside the preview/edit box at the top of the cue properties box.
The font toolbar across its top allows you to choose font face, size, attributes,color and alignment. Buttons along the right side provide additional options:
Edit button: Click to bring up the Edit menu for standard editing
commands, including spell-checking. (See 14.7, Check spelling.)
Insert button: Click to open the Insert menu, which allows you to insert
special punctuation marks, indents and page breaks. For Bible cues aBible Data submenu lets you insert data tags for displaying thepassage reference in various formats. (See 14.8, Display the passagereference in a header or footer.)
Format button: Click to open the Format menu, whose choices open
dialogs for setting the font, paragraph and text style.
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TIP: By default the program displays the cue’s background in theedit/preview box. To hide the background here while you’reediting, toggle the BG Preview button.
14.7 Check spelling To check for spelling errors in a cue open in the cue properties box, click theEdit button to the right of the preview/edit box and choose Check Spelling inthe drop-down menu.
NOTE: The spell-check feature contains dictionaries for USEnglish, UK English, Spanish, German and several otherlanguages. US English is the default dictionary. To designate adifferent dictionary, choose Tools > Settings; on the Control tab,select a language in the Spelling Dictionary field.
14.8 Display the passage reference in a header or footer
1. Open the cue into the cue properties box (click its icon or right-clickand choose Properties).
2. On the Foreground tab: In the Header field, choose where you want theheader to appear — First page, Every page, Last page, or Don’t show.(To display or hide a footer, do the same thing in the Footer field.)
3. Insert Bible data: In the preview/edit box, click in the header or footerspace on the appropriate page to create an insertion point. Then clickthe Insert button, choose Bible Data, then select the style you want thereference to appear in (e.g., Book CC:VV). Format the data object asyou would any other text — font, alignment, etc.
NOTE: The header or footer can display the page number thepassage appears on in most printed TNIV Bibles. To display thepage number, you must of course select TNIV as the cue's Bibleversion. You can insert the page number as a data object in theheader or footer, as described above; or you can try one of theBible cue templates in which this object has already beeninserted.
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IMPORTANT: If the TNIV page number fails to appear, it meansyou have an older version of the TNIV Bible file. Visit the v3Updates page of the MediaShout website to download andinstall the newer version: In MediaShout, choose File > Checkfor Updates.
14.9 Use a BookBack for a Bible cue background MediaShout’s BookBacks feature allows you to assign a book-specificgraphic background to any passage automatically. The included BookBackcollection contains 66 graphics — one for each book of the Protestant Bible.When the background to a Bible cue is set to BookBack, the program findsthe graphic that matches the book of the passage and assigns it to the cue.
BookBack collections are actually folders containing specially-named graphicfiles. To select a different BookBack collection, choose Tools > Settings toopen the Settings dialog, then click on the Text tab. Click the Browse buttonnext to the BookBack field to select another collection’s folder.
To assign a BookBack to a Bible cue: 1. Open the cue into the cue properties box (click its icon or right-click
and choose Properties).
2. On the Content or Background tab, select BookBack in the Backgroundfield’s drop-down list. The BookBack for the Bible book containing thecue’s passage will be assigned to the cue automatically.
14.10 MediaShout Bible library In version 3, Bibles are treated as “plugins”: When the program launches, itlooks in the designated Bible library folder for MediaShout Bible files. Eachfile contains a version of the Bible, and all versions found in the library folderare made available for use in Bible cues.
In some cases, however, you may not want all versions in the library toappear in the Version list in Bob and the Select Passage dialog. For example,you may prefer not to have to scroll through a long list of rarely used versionsto find the versions you use most often. Here’s how to prevent a version fromappearing in the list:
1. Choose Tools > Settings to open the Settings dialog.
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2. On the Text tab, uncheck the versions you want to hide, then click OKto close the dialog.
This action doesn’t delete or otherwise remove the Bible file in the library; itsimply hides the version in the Version list in Bob and the Select Passagedialog. To make the version accessible again, repeat these steps and checkthe unchecked version.
14.11 Bob Use Bob (Big Onscreen Bible) to create Bible cues, or to display Biblepassages to the audience instantly. To open Bob, click his name in theWindow menu.
Select a passage by typing:
Enter the book, chapter andverse in the PassageReference field and pressEnter.
Select a passage by clicking:
Click the book, chapter andverse.
Search for a passage: Click
the Search button, then enter aword or phrase in the top fieldand press Enter.
Insert a passage as a cue: Drag the Bible cue icon (or a passage
reference in the search results list) and drop it into the Script window.
Display a Bible passage instantly: Press the Go button next to the
Reference field to place it in the QuickBible preview box, then use thecontrols below this box to preview and fire pages.
Extend the range of a passage: Click the Extend to Previous button toinclude the previous verse in the passage. Click the Extend to Nextbutton to include the next verse in the passage.
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Preview a Bible cue page’s text contents: Page text in Bob’s previewbox can be hard to read in a small font over a busy background. Topreview only the text, place the mouse pointer over the page name inthe list: the text will appear in a tooltip.
To enable (or disable) this feature, choose Tools > Settings. On theControl tab of the Settings dialog, check (or uncheck) the Show contenttooltips in the Pages listboxes option. Note that this option applies tothe page lists in Lyra, Bob and Ted.
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15. Graphics
Overview MediaShout can display a graphic file from the foreground of a Graphic cueor the background layer of most other cue types. Most standard file formatsare supported, as well as Photoshop’s proprietary .psd format.
chapter contents: 15.1 Insert a Graphic cue15.2 Display a graphic instantly15.3 Use a graphic background15.4 Change the picture properties of a graphic15.5 Apply custom picture formatting15.6 Choose a graphics editor15.7 Use Photoshop as the graphics editor15.8 Edit a graphic assigned to a cue
15.1 Insert a Graphic cue Drag the graphic file from Philo into the Script window. (Or right-click in
the Script window and choose Insert > Graphic, then select the file and clickSelect.)
15.2 Display a graphic instantly In Philo, double-click the graphic file.
15.3 Use a graphic background
1. Open the cue into the cue properties box (click its icon or right-click and choose Properties).
2. Click the Browse button next to the Background field.
3. Select a graphic file, then click Select.
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15.4 Change the picture properties of a graphic The properties that determine how a graphic will appear when displayed arelocated on the Foreground tab (Graphic cue) or Background tab (graphicbackground) of the cue properties box.
Picture Format: The Picture Format field offers the following standard formatsfor graphics:
format result
Original size original file size; centered
Double scale double height, double width; centered
Full scale largest size to fit within display screen; originalaspect ratio is maintained; centered
Full stretch height and width are stretched to fill entire displayscreen; original aspect ratio is ignored; centered
Lower third original file size; top of picture is placed at the pixelrow equal to 67% of the display screen’s verticalresolution
Upper third original file size; bottom of picture is placed at thepixel row equal to 33% of the display screen’svertical resolution
Tile original file size, duplicated to cover entire displayscreen
Transparent stretch same as Full stretch, but transparent
Transparent tile same as Tile, but transparent
Custom size and position determined by settings in thePicture Format dialog
15.5 Apply custom picture formattingThe Picture Format dialog provides custom size, position and
orientation settings. To open it, click the Picture Format button on theForeground or Background tab choose More in the drop-down menu.
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Size: Choose a standardsize, or select Custom fromthe list and enter a customwidth and height; to maintainthe picture’s original aspectratio, check the Constrainproportions option.
Custom Position: Forhorizontal position, enter thenumber of pixels the pictureis to be placed from the left,right or center of the frame;for vertical position, enter the number of pixels it’s to be placed fromthe top, bottom or middle of the frame. Type a minus sign to enter anegative value.
Rotation: Choose 0, 90, 180, or 270 in the first field, or type a customnumber of degrees in the second field.
Flip: Check Horizontal or Vertical to flip the picture over; check bothoptions to flip it in both directions.
15.6 Choose a graphics editor MediaShout displays graphic files created in other applications. If you havesuch an application, you can set MediaShout to open it whenever you want tocreate or edit a graphic:
1. Choose Tools > Settings > Pictures.
2. Under Graphics, click the Browse button to find and select the graphicsapplication you want MediaShout to use for its graphics editor. ClickOpen to assign the application.
The assigned application will open whenever you click Create in the mediaselection dialog, or the Edit button on the Foreground or Background tab ofthe cue properties box when a graphic is assigned to that layer.
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15.7 Use Photoshop as the graphics editor MediaShout can play Adobe Photoshop (.psd) files in their native format —no need to convert them to JPEGs or some other standard file type.Photoshop and Photoshop Elements provide a setting that optimizes savedfiles for maximum backward compatibility. This is essential for use withMediaShout — files not so optimized may not play. Here’s how to select thissetting:
1. In Photoshop or Photoshop Elements: Choose Edit > Preferences >Saving Files.
2. In the File Compatibility section of the Preferences dialog, checkMaximize backwards compatibility in Photoshop format. Click OK toclose the dialog.
15.8 Edit a graphic assigned to a cue
1. Open the cue into the cue properties box (click its icon or right-clickand choose Properties).
2. On the Foreground (Graphic cue) or Background (graphicbackground), click the Edit button to open the graphics application.
3. Edit the graphic:
• If it’s a Photoshop (.psd) file, edit, save and close the file.
• If it’s a copy saved from a master file, close the file, and open themaster. When you’re done, save the master file, then export orsave a copy — use the same filename you used before.
4. Return to MediaShout and click the Refresh button on the Foreground(Graphic file) or Background (graphic background) tab.
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16. Slideshows
Overview MediaShout 3 plays PowerPoint slideshow files from Slideshow cues.Slideshow cues are enabled only if Microsoft PowerPoint, or PowerPointViewer 97, is installed on the computer.
chapter contents: 16.1 Insert a Slideshow cue16.2 Change the picture properties of a slideshow16.3 Choose the slideshow playback engine16.4 Choose a slideshow editor16.5 Edit a slideshow assigned to a cue16.6 Convert PowerPoint slides to graphics
16.1 Insert a Slideshow cueDrag the slideshow file from Philo into the Script window. (Or right-click
in the Script window and choose Insert > Slideshow, then select the file andclick Select.)
16.2 Change the picture properties of a slideshow The properties that determine how a slideshow will appear when displayedare located on the Foreground tab of the cue properties box.
Picture Format: The Picture Format field offers two choices:
Full scale: This causes the slideshow to play at the largest size to fitthe display screen; the original aspect ratio is retained, and the pictureis centered.
Custom: This indicates that the custom formatting settings in the
Picture Format dialog are used instead. To open this dialog, click thePicture Format button.
• Custom Size: Enter a custom width and height; to maintain thepicture’s original aspect ratio, check the Constrain proportionsoption.
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• Custom Position: For horizontal position, enter the number ofpixels the picture is to be placed from the left, right or center ofthe frame; for vertical position, enter the number of pixels it’s tobe placed from the top, bottom or middle of the frame. Type aminus sign to enter a negative value.
16.3 Choose the slideshow playback engineSlideshow cues look and behave their best when MediaShout usesPowerPoint as the playback engine for PPT files. However, if you don’t havePowerPoint installed on the computer, but do have PowerPoint Viewer 97installed, you can use it for the playback engine instead. To choose whichplayback engine it will use, choose Tools > Settings > Pictures. In theSlideshows section, choose the application in the Playback Engine field.
16.4 Choose a slideshow editorMediaShout plays PPT files created in PowerPoint. If PowerPoint or acompatible application is installed on your computer, you can set MediaShoutto open it whenever you want to create or edit a PPT slideshow:
1. Choose Tools > Settings > Pictures.
2. Under Slideshows, select PowerPoint to designate it as the slideshoweditor. To assign a compatible application instead, click the Browsebutton to find and select the program.
.The assigned application will open whenever you click Create in the mediaselection dialog box, or the Edit button on the Foreground tab of the cueproperties box when a Slideshow cue is open in it.
16.5 Edit a slideshow assigned to a cue
1. Open the cue into the cue properties box (click its icon or right-clickand choose Properties).
2. On the Foreground tab, click the Edit button. The slideshow file willopen in the slideshow editor you’ve designated on the Pictures tab ofthe Settings dialog.
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3. When you’ve finished editing the slideshow file in its application, saveand close it, then return to MediaShout and click the Refresh button onthe Foreground tab.
16.6 Convert PowerPoint Slides to Graphics While MediaShout can play PowerPoint files from Slideshow cues, you mayfind it more convenient at times to convert PPT slides to graphic files andplay them from Graphic cues in MediaShout. Here’s how:
1. In PowerPoint: Open the presentation and select the slide you want toconvert to a graphic file.
2. Choose File > Save As to open the Save As dialog.
3. Select the file format you want to use in the Save as Type drop-downlist: you’ll probably find that JPEG files play best in MediaShout. Thefilename is entered automatically as the slide number.
4. Click Save. The converted slides can be assigned to Graphic cues inMediaShout.
Note the following issues when converting slides to graphic files for use inMediaShout:
• Animations and builds: If a slide contains an animation, theanimation will be lost. If the slide contains a build, only thecompleted build (i.e., all the points together) will be saved. Tosave each step of the build, you’ll need to copy the slide a fewtimes in PowerPoint, then edit each slide so that it representsone step of the build. Each slide will become a graphic file whenconverted, which can then be assigned to a Graphic cue inMediaShout. Arrange these cues in proper order, and you’ll haveyour build (though it won’t be animated, of course).
• Destination folder: You may want to save the graphic file into thefolder of the MediaShout presentation you intend to use it in,rather than the default folder PowerPoint will choose.
• Multiple slides: In some cases PowerPoint will ask if you want tosave the entire presentation as a series of graphic files. If you
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have lots of slides to convert, this is quicker than doing them oneat a time. Once the slides are converted to graphic files, you caninsert them as Graphic cues all at once by selecting all the filestogether in Philo and dragging them into the Script window.
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17. Song Lyrics
Overview Lyric cues are stored as records in the song library. Any record in the librarycan be copied to (inserted in) a Script. Under normal conditions, changesmade to a Lyric cue in the cue properties box are saved back to its record inthe library.
chapter contents: 17.1 Insert a Lyric cue17.2 Display song lyrics instantly17.3 Change the text properties of a Lyric cue17.4 Change the text style17.5 Apply custom text formatting17.6 Check spelling17.7 Display song credits in a header or footer17.8 Create a song17.9 Add and manage stanzas17.10 Choose a play order17.11 Use a title page17.12 Use a blank page17.13 Import songs17.14 Format a song text file for import17.15 Prepare a song data file for import17.16 Export songs17.17 Print songs17.18 Back up the song library17.19 Compact and repair the song library17.20 Working with song groups17.21 Lyra
17.1 Insert a Lyric cue Drag the song title from Lyra into the Script window. (Or right-click in
the Script window and choose Insert > Lyric, drag the song title into theSelected list, then click Select.) To search for a song in Lyra or the SelectSong dialog, enter a word or phrase and press Enter.
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17.2 Display song lyrics instantly In Lyra, click a song title in the songlist. Use the controls below the QuickLyricpreview window to select and fire pages to the song.
17.3 Change the text properties of a Lyric cue Text properties for a Lyric cue are found on the Foreground tab of the cueproperties box or ShoutSinger.
Text Effects: Click the Text
Effects button to reveal its drop-downmenu. To toggle the shadow oroutline effect on or off, select it in themenu. To define the properties ofthese effects, choose More; this willopen the Text Effects dialog for thiscue.
NOTE: Text effectscannot be seen while thepreview box is in editmode. To see them, clickon any other tab.
Text Format: Select a standard layoutin the Format field, or choose Customto set specific margin widths.
Vertical Alignment: Use this field toalign the text with the top, bottom orcenter of the screen.
Headers and Footers: These fields determine which pages, if any, a headeror footer is to appear on. See 17.7, Display song credits in a header or footer.
Text Style: Click the Text Style button to choose the font, auto-paginationsetting and other text properties to be applied to the entire cue. See 17.4,Change the text style.
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17.4 Change the text style When a song record is created, it gets its text style — font, line spacing,auto-pagination, etc. — from the template used to create it. To change thesesettings, click the Text Style button on the Foreground tab of the cueproperties box or ShoutSinger.
Font settings: Choose the font face, size, style, color and horizontalalignment
Paragraph settings: Click the Paragraph button to choose line spacingand other paragraph properties.
Auto-pagination style:
• One stanza per page: Thissetting arranges the lyrics sothat each stanza is confined toits own page. Note that theprogram may need to adjust the font size to ensure that thelongest stanza fits on a single page; all other stanzas will appearin this same font size to maintain consistency.
• Allow splitting: This setting obeys the default font size and allowsa stanza to wrap to additional pages. Each stanza begins on itsown page.
WARNING: Changing a cue’s text style removes all its customformatting — fonts, line and page breaks, paragraph formatting,etc.
17.5 Apply custom text formatting Settings that affect all pages and their text are found on the Foreground tab.The cue properties box also provides tools for custom-formatting individualcharacters, words, lines, paragraphs and pages. These tools are locatedabove and beside the preview/edit box at the top of the cue properties box.
The font toolbar across its top allows you to choose font face, size, attributes,color and alignment. Buttons along the right side provide additional options:
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Edit button: Click to bring up the Edit menu for standard editing
commands, including spell-checking. (See 17.6, Check spelling.)
Insert button: Click to open the Insert menu, which allows you to insert
special punctuation marks, indents and page breaks. For Lyric cues aSong Data submenu lets you insert data tags for displaying the songcredits. (See 17.7, Display song credits in a header or footer.)
Format button: Click to open the Format menu, whose choices open
dialogs for setting the font, paragraph and text style.
TIP: By default the program displays the cue’s background in theedit/preview box. To hide the background here while you’reediting, toggle the BG Preview button.
17.6 Check spelling To check for spelling errors in the cue properties box or ShoutSinger, clickthe Edit button to the right of the preview/edit box and choose Check Spellingin the drop-down menu.
NOTE: The spell-check feature contains dictionaries for USEnglish, UK English, Spanish, German and several otherlanguages. US English is the default dictionary. To designate adifferent dictionary, choose Tools > Settings; on the Control tab,select a language in the Spelling Dictionary field.
17.7 Display song credits in a header or footer
1. Open the cue: Right-click it and choose Properties to open it into thecue properties box. (If you’re working in ShoutSinger, open the songrecord by double-clicking it in the songlist.)
2. On the Foreground tab: In the Header field, choose where you want theheader to appear — first page, every page, last page, or don’t show.(To display or hide a footer, do the same thing in the Footer field.)
3. Insert song data: In the preview/edit box, click in the header or footerspace to create an insertion point. Then click the Insert button, choose
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Song Data, then select a data object (e.g., Title, Author, Copyright).Repeat to insert multiple data objects. Format the data objects as youwould any other text — font, alignment, etc.
17.8 Create a songShoutSinger provides a wizard to guide you through the simple steps ofadding a new song to the library.
NOTE: If you prefer to create a new song without using thewizard (that is, by entering the data and lyrics directly intoShoutSinger itself), choose Settings from ShoutSinger's Filemenu, then uncheck the Use wizard for new songs option, thenclick OK.
To open the wizard, click the New Song button, or choose Song > New Songin the ShoutSinger menu bar. Here are the steps it will guide you through:
1. Choose a template: A songrecord/Lyric cue gets its defaultdisplay and playback propertiesfrom the Lyric cue template youuse to create it. Any of theseproperties can be changed at anytime, So in this step, just choosethe template that comes closestto the look you want for the cue.Then click Next.
2. Title the song: Enter a title for thesong in this step. You can alsogive it a unique cue name andSong ID if you like, or just let theprogram fill in these fieldsautomatically. Click Next.
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3. Add author and copyright: Enterthis information, then click Next.
4. Add lyrics: Choose a stanza type(Verse, Chorus, Bridge, orEnding) and its number, thenenter the lyrics. Click Add Stanzato save the it to the song record.Repeat till you've added all thestanzas, then click Next.
5. Set the play order: To add astanza to the play order, drag itfrom the Contents list. To removeit from the play order drag it to theContents list. To move it withinthe play order, drag it to the newposition. When you’re done, clickFinish.
When the wizard finishes adding the new song to the library, it will tell you.Click Close to close the wizard, or New Song to add another song.
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17.9 Add and manage stanzas Stanzas can be created, duplicated, renamed and deleted in the cueproperties box and in ShoutSinger. To add a stanza: Click the Edit button tothe right of the preview/edit box andchoose New Stanza. Confirm its name,enter its lyrics, then click OK. Once thestanza is created, you can enter it into thesong’s play order by dragging its namefrom the Contents list to the Play Orderlist on the Foreground tab.
To duplicate a stanza: Select the stanzain the Contents list on the Foregroundtab, then click the Edit button to the rightof the preview/edit box and chooseDuplicate Stanza. Confirm its name, thenclick OK.
To rename a stanza: Select the stanza inthe Contents list on the Foreground tab,then click the Edit button to the right ofthe preview/edit box and choose RenameStanza. Confirm its new name, then clickOK.
To delete a stanza: Select the stanza in the Contents list on the Foregroundtab, then click the Edit button to the right of the preview/edit box and chooseDelete Stanza. Click OK to confirm the deletion.
WARNING: Deleting a stanza deletes its lyrics from the songrecord, and this action cannot be undone. To prevent a stanzafrom appearing in a Lyric cue without deleting it, simply drag itfrom the Play Order list to the Contents list.
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17.10 Choose a play order The contents of a song consist of its stanzas stored in the song record. Theplay order of a song determines which stanzas are to appear in the Lyric cue,and in what order. The play order is managed on the Foreground tab of thecue properties box or ShoutSinger.
To add a stanza to the play order:Drag it from the Contents list to thePlay Order list. A stanza can beadded to the play order multipletimes.
To remove a stanza from the playorder: Drag it from the Play Order listto the Contents list.
To move a stanza within the playorder: Drag it within the Play Orderlist and drop it into the desired position.
17.11 Use a title page Some users prefer to place a song’s title and credit information on a title pagerather than in a header or footer of a lyric page.
To insert a title page into the play order: On the Foreground tab of the cueproperties box or ShoutSinger, drag the [Title] item from the Contents list tothe Play Order list.
To insert title pages automatically: Check the Title page option under theContents list. If you save the cue or song record as template, this setting willbe saved with that template, and therefore a title page will be insertedautomatically for each cue or song record you create or modify using thistemplate.
To compose the content of a title page: 1. Select the title page in the Play Order list to open it in the preview/edit
box. Click in the preview/edit box to create an insertion point.
2. Click the Insert button to the right of the preview/edit box and chooseSong Data from the drop-down menu, then select the data tag you wish
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to add to the title page: Title, Author, etc. Repeat for each item youwant to appear on the title page.
3. Use the text tools above and to the right of the preview/edit box toapply formatting to the data tags. You can also enter static text on thetitle page by typing it into the preview/edit box.
17.12 Use a blank page A blank page in a Lyric cue/song record is simply a page that shows thebackground but no text. It’s useful to play at the beginning, end orinstrumental portion of a song. The play order can contain any number ofblank pages.
To insert a blank page into the play order: On the Foreground tab of the cueproperties box or ShoutSinger, drag the [Blank] item from the Contents list tothe Play Order list.
To insert blank pages automatically: Check the Blank page first or Blankpage last option under the Contents list. If you save the cue or song recordas a template, this setting will be saved with that template, and therefore ablank page will be inserted automatically at the top or bottom of the play orderfor each cue or song record you create or modify using this template.
17.13 Import songs 1. In ShoutSinger, choose File > Import Songs to open the Import Songs
wizard.
2. Select the type of file or library to be imported, then click Next.
3. Click the Browse button to select the file (or files) or folder containingthe songs or library; click Select, then click Next.
4. Choose how you want the program to handle duplicate songs, thenclick Finish.
When the importing is done, a confirmation box will appear to tell you whichsongs were imported.
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17.14 Format a song text file for import Songs can be imported from properly formatted text files, which can becreated or modified in virtually any word processor. To prepare a text file forimporting, you must first add codes to its contents so that ShoutSinger knowshow to treat each item (title, author, stanzas, etc.). Then you must save thefile in TXT (.txt) format.
To add codes to the song text: During the import process, ShoutSinger looksfor codes that tell it what to do with each line in the file. If the proper codesare there, the file will import seamlessly. If they’re not, the data will end up inthe wrong places, or the import may fail entirely. To ensure a successfulimport, arrange the coded text in the following order. The codes are shownhere in italics, and all lines are optional unless noted:
Title: (required)Author:Copyright: CCLI: (CCLI’s reference number for the song)Song ID: (MediaShout’s reference number for this song record)Hymnal: (hymnal song or page number)Notes: (anything that’s to go in the song record’s Info field)PlayOrder: (see note on this below)(blank line)Verse 1: (Lyrics below the stanza code, on as many lines as you like. Note that thestanzas can appear in the file in any order, and you need only write a stanzaonce, since the play order will be determined elsewhere. Also note that thefirst instance of the code Verse #: is interpreted as Verse 1, the second as Verse 2, and so on, regardless of the number entered in the code.) (blank line) Chorus 1: (Lyrics for this stanza, on as many lines as you like. Continue entering anynumber of verses, choruses, bridges and endings as needed, separatingeach stanza with a blank line.)
To enter another song in the file, separate it by at least one blank line fromthe last stanza of previous song, then repeat the codes and text for the nextsong: When the program sees Title: again, it’ll treat it as the start of anothersong. A file can contain as many songs you like.
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NOTE: The PlayOrder: code can be used to include a defaultplay order with a song. The play order itself should be typed witha comma separating each stanza reference. Spaces andcapitalization don’t matter, and you can use full stanza names orabbreviations. Examples:
Verse1, Chorus1, Verse 2, Bridge 1, Ending1 v1,c1,V2,b1, e1
When you’re done preparing the text, you must save the document in TXT(.txt) format.
To save coded song text as a TXT file in Word: 1. Choose File > Save As to open the Save As dialog.
2. Choose Text Only (*.txt) in the Save as Type field’s drop-down list.
3. Click Save. To save as a TXT file in WordPerfect: 1. Choose File > Save As to open the Save As dialog.
2. Choose ASCII DOS Text in the File Type field’s drop-down list.
3. Click Save.
17.15 Prepare a song data file for importShoutSinger's Import Songs wizard can now import song records stored in aspecial database file called a ShoutSinger data file, which is simply aMicrosoft Access (.mdb) file containing a properly named table and fields. Soif you have a library of songs saved in Access file format — or in an Excelspreadsheet (.xls) or other database file that can be opened in Access andsaved to .mdb format — you can import it as a ShoutSinger data file byensuring that it's structured as follows:
Filename: Any name will work as long as it has the .mdb extension.
Table name: The table containing the song data must be named songs. Anyother tables in the file are ignored on import.
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Field names: Except as noted, it can contain any or all of the following fields,named exactly as they appear here. Fields other than those listed here areignored on import.
Title (required)AuthorCopyrightCCLI (CCLI’s reference number for the song)SongID (MediaShout’s reference number for the song record)Notes (any information that’s to appear in the song’s Info field)PlayOrder (e.g., verse 1, chorus 1, verse 2; or v1,c1,v2)Verse# (# = any number; any number of Verse# fields are allowed)Chorus# (# = any number; any number of Chorus# fields are allowed)Bridge# (# = any number; any number of Bridge# fields are allowed)Ending# (# = any number; any number of Ending# fields are allowed)
NOTE: If a stanza field contains hard line breaks, these breakswill be retained on import.
TIP: To view a sample ShoutSinger data file with properly formattable and fields, browse to My Shout\Song Library\SampleSong.mdb and open it in Access.
When the data file has been properly prepared, it can be imported withShoutSinger's Import Songs wizard: Just choose ShoutSong data file as thesource type in the first step of the wizard.
17.16 Export songs
1. In ShoutSong, choose File > Export Songs to open the Export Songswizard.
2. Select the type of file you want the exported songs to be saved to, then click Next.
3. Click the Browse button to give the new file a name, then click Next.
4. Select the songs you want to export, then click Finish.
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When the exporting is done, a confirmation will appear to tell you whichsongs were exported.
17.17 Print songs In ShoutSong, choose File > Print.
17.18 Back up the song libraryShoutSong provides for manual and automatic backup of the song library.
To back up the song library manually: Choose File > Back Up Library.
To back up the song library automatically whenever MediaShout closes: InShoutSong, choose File > Settings (or Tools > Settings > Text fromMediaShout's main menu bar). In the Song Lyrics section on the Text tab,check the Back up library on close option.
To change the location of the library backup file: By default, the programsaves the backup file to the folder containing song library file itself. To have itsaved to a different location, choose File > Settings in ShoutSong (or Tools >Settings > Text from MediaShout's main menu bar). In the Song Lyricssection on the Text tab, click the Browse button next to the Backup Folderfield, navigate to the folder you want the file to be saved in, then click OK.
NOTE: The backup file is named libraryfilename-backup.mdb,where libraryfilename is the name of song library file currentlyassigned to MediaShout on the Text tab of the Settings dialog. Ifyou assign a song library file with a different name, any backupto it will be saved into a different backup file.
To restore the song library from the backup file: 1. Close MediaShout. In Windows Explorer, navigate to the folder
containing the backup file and copy the file.
2. Navigate to the folder containing the song library file you want toreplace. Rename this file (just in case). Now paste the copy of backupfile into this folder, and remove -backup from its name.
When you re-open MediaShout, it will use the restored copy for its songlibrary.
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17.19 Compact and repair the song libraryThe song library file can grow quite large as you add and format songs in it.In some cases the file can be reduced in size by compacting it. InShoutSong, choose File > Compact and Repair Library. This process cantake up to a minute.
17.20 Working with song groups The song library maintains a list of song groups — special categories thatyou can assign songs to — to make it easier to find and manage songs. Anysong can be a member of any number of groups ... or none at all. Groups canbe used in any number ways: For example, you might have a group forChristmas hymns, another group for songs used in youth services, andanother containing all the songs of a favorite worship leader. If you want to beable to call up a particular set of songs quickly, consider creating a songgroup for them. Song groups can be managed from any song record open in ShoutSong, orany Lyric cue open in the cue properties box. The controls are found on theData tab.
To create a new song group:
Click the button next to the listto open the Song GroupManager dialog. Click New,enter a name, then click OK.
To delete a song group: Click
the button next to the list toopen the Song Group Managerdialog. Select the group nameto be deleted, then click Delete.Click Yes to confirm thedeletion. Note that no songs will be deleted; only the group name itselfwill be deleted from the library.
TIP: Song groups can also be managed from Lyra, andShoutSinger’s songlist. Click the Song Group Manager button.
To add a song to a group: Open the song record/Lyric cue in ShoutSong orthe cue properties box. On the Data tab, check the name of the group the
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song is to be added to. (To add a song to a group from the songlist in Lyra or ShoutSong, right click it in the list and choose Add to Song Group.)
To remove a song from a group: Open the song record/Lyric cue inShoutSong or the cue properties box. On the Data tab, uncheck the name ofthe group the song is to be removed from. (To remove a song from a group inthe songlist in Lyra or ShoutSong, right click it in the list and choose Removefrom Song Group.)
TIP: Use the songlist in Lyra or ShoutSong to add multiple songsto a group at once. Use Ctrl+click or Shift+click to select multiplesongs in the list, then right-click and choose Add to Song Groupin the context menu. (To remove multiple songs from a group atonce, do the same thing but select Remove from Song Group inthe context menu instead.)
17.21 Lyra Use Lyra to quickly add Lyric cues to a Script and to display lyrics to theaudience instantly. To open Lyra, click her name in the Window menu.
Search for a song: Enter a portion ofits title or lyrics, then press Enter.(To limit the search to a specificsong group, select the group, thenclick the Go button.)
Insert a Lyric cue from Lyra: Drag asong from the songlist to the Scriptwindow. Display a Lyric cue instantly: Selectthe song in the songlist, then usethe . page selection controls belowthe QuickLyric preview box topreview and fire pages.
Add a song to a song group: Right-click the song in the songlist and chooseAdd to Song Group in the context menu. In the dialog that opens, select agroup and click Add. (To create a new group, click New.) To add multiple
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songs at once, Ctrl-click or Shift-click to select multiple songs beforeright-clicking.
Remove a song from a song group: Right-click the song in the songlist andchoose Remove from Song Group in the context menu. In the dialog thatopens, select a group and click Remove.
Manage song groups: To create a new song group, click the Manage
Song Groups button, then click New. Enter a group name and click OK.To delete an existing group name, select it and click Delete. ClickClose when you’re done managing the song groups.
Preview a Lyric cue page's text contents: Page text in Lyra's preview box canbe hard to read in a small font over a busy background. To preview only thetext, place the mouse pointer over the page name in the list: the text willappear in a tooltip.
To enable (or disable) this feature, choose Tools > Settings. On the Controltab of the Settings dialog, check (or uncheck) the Show content tooltips in thePages listboxes option. Note that this option applies to the page lists in Lyra,Bob and Ted.
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18. Sounds
Overview Sound files can be played from Sound cues, soundtracks assigned to othertypes of cues, or from Audie, a standalone audio player feature.
chapter contents: 18.1 Insert a Sound cue18.2 Play a sound file instantly18.3 Assign a sound to a cue’s soundtrack18.4 Change the settings of a soundtrack18.5 Set a cue’s soundtrack to continue through multiple cues18.6 Sound Control cues18.7 Choose a sound editor18.8 Edit a sound file assigned to a cue18.9 Audie
18.1 Insert a Sound cue Right-click in the Script window, Boxer or an Audie playlist and choose
Insert > Sound from the context menu. Select a sound file, then click Select.(A Sound cue can also be inserted by dragging its file from Philo.)
18.2 Play a sound file instantly In Philo, double-click the file.
18.3 Assign a sound to a cue’s soundtrack
1. Open the cue into the cue properties box (click its icon or right-click and choose Properties).
2. Click the Browse button next to the Soundtrack field.
3. Select a sound file, then click Select.
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18.4 Change the settings of a soundtrack Open the cue into the cue properties box (click its icon or right-click andchoose Properties). On the Soundtrack tab, change the settings you want:
• In: Click the Play button, then click the Mark Frame button tomark where you want the sound clip to start; choose the lengthof a fade in
• Play: Choose the number of times the sound is to play (or loopit); choose the volume
• Out: Click the Play button, then click the Mark Frame button tomark where you want the sound clip to end; choose the length ofa fade out; choose whether the sound is to stop playing when thecue ends, or is allowed to continue
Click OK to save the changes to the cue.
NOTE: Settings on the soundtrack tab affect only a soundassigned to a cue’s soundtrack layer. If the cue plays a videothat contains a soundtrack, the video’s volume is controlled fromthe tab the video is assigned to (i.e., Foreground orBackground).
18.5 Set a cue’s soundtrack to continue through multiple cues Open the cue into the cue properties box, and uncheck the End with cueoption on the Soundtrack tab.
The program’s “sound stacking” feature allows you to play multiple sounds atonce. Therefore, an emancipated sound — i.e., one that plays beyond itsoriginating cue — will continue to play regardless of the soundtrack settingsof subsequent cues, till it stops on its own, or gets stopped by a SoundControl cue (see next section), or is stopped manually from the Playback bar.
18.6 Sound Control cuesA Sound Control cue provides you with a way of controlling the
playback of a soundtrack that's been fired by another cue. Here's how thisnew cue type can serve you:
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Say you want a fire a soundtrack from one cue, have it play through two morecues, then stop when the presentation gets to the next cue after that. Once asoundtrack has been allowed to play past the cue it originates from (its homecue) it is considered fully emancipated: no other media cue has the authorityto stop it. But a Sound Control cue has that authority: Its sole purpose is tocontrol an emancipated sound so you can stop it wherever you like.
A Sound Control cue can not only stop a soundtrack, it can pause it, releaseit from pause, or just change its volume level — all with or without a fade.
To insert a Sound Control cue: 1. Right-click in the Script window and choose Insert > Control > Sound
Control from the context menu. The new cue will open into the cueproperties box so you can choose its settings.
2. Select the soundtrack to be controlled: Click the Soundtrack field tosee a list of all sound files assigned to cues in the current Script. Selectthe one you want to control. (If you select All sounds in this list, allsoundtracks playing when thisSound Control cue is fired will beaffected at once.)
3. Choose an action: In the Actionsection, choose whether youwant to stop, pause, release thepause, or change the volume of the selected soundtrack. If you want this action to be performedwith a fade, check the Fadeoption and choose the fade'sduration.
4. Set the advance: Choosewhether you want the SoundControl cue to advancemanually, or after a specificduration, or after it's completedits action (e.g.,after the fade iscomplete), or immediately. Thenclick OK to apply the settingsand close the cue properties box.
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To test the Sound Control cue, first fire the cue containing the soundtrack it'sprogrammed to control, then fire the Sound Control cue itself. Note that aSound Control cue has authority of a soundtrack only if it's playing (orpaused) at the time the Sound Control cue is fired. Once the soundtrack hasstopped, the Sound Control cue can do nothing for it.
18.7 Choose a sound editor MediaShout plays sound files created in other applications. If you have suchan application, you can set MediaShout to open it whenever you want tocreate or edit a sound:
1. Choose Tools > Settings > Sound.
2. Click the Browse button to find and select the sound application youwant MediaShout to use for its sound editor. Click Open to assign theapplication.
The assigned application will open whenever you click Create in the SelectSound dialog, or the Edit button on the Soundtrack tab of the cue propertiesbox when a sound file is assigned to that layer.
18.8 Edit a sound file assigned to a cue
1. Open the cue into the cue properties box (click its icon or right-clickand choose Properties).
2. On the Soundtrack tab, click the Edit button to open the soundapplication.
3. Edit the sound file, then save and close the file.
4. Return to MediaShout and click Refresh on the Soundtrack tab.
18.9 Audie Audie is a dual-deck audio player. Audio playlists created in Audie are savedas standard MediaShout Script files containing only Sound cues. To openAudie, click her name in the Window menu.
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Use the Options button at the top
of a player to open, save orcreate a playlist.
To insert a Sound cue, right-click in theplaylist and choose Insert Sound in thecontext menu (or drag a sound file fromPhilo and drop it into a playlist).
To edit the properties of a cue,right-click it and choose Properties inthe context menu.
Use the Playback Mode field to choose how the playlist is played:
Normal: the program obeys each cue’s advance setting
Manual: the program treats every cue as if it were set to advancemanually
Auto: the program advances each cue automatically till the last cue isreached
Loop: same as Auto mode except that last cue advances to the firstcue, causing the entire playlist to repeat
Shuffle: same as Auto mode except that each cue advances to arandomly chosen cue
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19. Text
Overview A Text cue in MediaShout 3 can display text embedded in the cue itself, orfrom a document assigned to the cue. Text can also be superimposed overother cue types on the fly, using Kim.
Two other text-based cue types, Lyric and Bible, are specially designed fordisplaying Bible passages and song lyrics. They are described in Chapter 14,Bible Passages and Chapter 17, Song Lyrics.
chapter contents: 19.1 Insert a Text cue19.2 Assign a document to a Text cue19.3 Change the text properties of a Text cue19.4 Change the text style19.5 Apply custom text formatting19.6 Check spelling19.7 Ted19.8 Kim19.9 ShoutWriter
19.1 Insert a Text cue Right-click in the Script window or Boxer and choose Insert > Text cue
from the menu. In the cue properties box that opens, enter text in thepreview/edit box, then click OK to insert the cue.
19.2 Assign a document to a Text cue By default, a Text cue in version 3 embeds its text in the cue itself. Here’show to create a cue that displays text from a document file linked to the cueinstead: 1. Right-click in the Script window or Boxer and choose Insert > Text Cue.
2. In the cue properties box that opens, click the Browse button next tothe Foreground field. Select the document file in the selection dialog,then click Select.
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3. Click OK to insert the cue.
To edit the document file linked to a cue, open the cue in the cue propertiesbox and click the Edit button on the Foreground tab. This will open the texteditor.
By default, MediaShout uses ShoutWriter as its default document text editor;to use Word instead, choose Tools > Settings > Text, and select thisapplication under Text. (See 19.9, ShoutWriter.)
19.3 Change the text properties of a Text cue Text properties for a Text cue containing embedded text are found on theForeground tab of the cue properties box.
Text Effects: Click the Text
Effects button to reveal its drop-downmenu. To toggle the shadow oroutline effect on or off, select it in themenu. To define the properties ofthese effects, choose More; this willopen the Text Effects dialog for thiscue.
NOTE: Text effectscannot be seen while thepreview box is in editmode. To see them, clickon any other tab.
Text Format: Select a standard layoutin the Format field, or choose Customto set specific margin widths.
Vertical Alignment: Use this field toalign the text with the top, bottom orcenter of the screen.
Text Style: Click the Text Style button to choose the font, auto-paginationsetting and other text properties to be applied to the entire cue. See 19.4,Change the text style.
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19.4 Change the text style When a Text cue is created, it gets its text style — font, line spacing,auto-pagination, etc. — from the template used to create it. To change thesesettings, click the Text Style button on the Foreground tab of the cueproperties box.
Font settings: Choose the fontface, size, style, color andhorizontal alignment
Paragraph settings: Click theParagraph button to choose linespacing and other paragraphproperties.
WARNING: Changing a cue’s text style removes all its customformatting — fonts, line and page breaks, paragraph formatting,etc.
19.5 Apply custom text formatting Settings that affect all pages and their text are found on the Foreground tab.The cue properties box also provides tools for custom-formatting individualcharacters, words, lines, paragraphs and pages. These tools are locatedabove and beside the preview/edit box at the top of the cue properties box. The font toolbar across its top allows you to choose font face, size, attributes,color and alignment. Buttons along the right side provide additional options:
Edit button: Click to bring up the Edit menu for standard editing
commands, including spell-checking. (See 19.6, Check spelling.)
Insert button: Click to open the Insert menu, which allows you to insert
special punctuation marks, indents and page breaks.
Format button: Click to open the Format menu, whose choices open
dialogs for setting the font, paragraph and text style.
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TIP: By default the program displays the cue’s background in theedit/preview box. To hide the background here while you’reediting, toggle the BG Preview button.
19.6 Check spelling To check for spelling errors in the cue open in the cue properties box, clickthe Edit button to the right of the preview/edit box and choose Check Spellingin the drop-down menu.
NOTE: The spell-check feature contains dictionaries for USEnglish, UK English, Spanish, German and several otherlanguages. US English is the default dictionary. To designate adifferent dictionary, choose Tools > Settings; on the Text tab,select a language in the Spelling Dictionary field.
19.7 Ted Short for Text Entry and Display, Ted provides a simple way to create Textcues, as well as a way to instantly enter and display text to the audience. Toopen Ted, click his name in theWindow menu.
To create and insert a Text cue
with Ted: Enter text just as youwould in a word processor, thendrag the Text cue icon to theScript window.
To display text instantly: Enter
the text and click Ted’s Firebutton.
19.8 Kim Kim is short for Keyed Instant Messenger. Use her to superimpose, or key,text over the current visual. To open Kim’s toolbar: Choose View > Toolbars> Kim.
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To display a message: Enter it in the text field, then press Enter. To
remove the message, toggle the Key button.
To change how messages appear: Click the skeleton key icon to the
left of the message field and choose Properties from the menu.
19.9 ShoutWriter In previous versions of MediaShout, a Text cue got its text from a documentassigned to the cue, so the program included ShoutWriter, a separate wordprocessing application. In version 3, no document assignment is necessary:the text can be embedded in the Text cue itself. But to ensure compatibilitywith Text cues created in v2.5, MediaShout still includes ShoutWriter, sothese cues can still be edited in it.
When you install MediaShout, ShoutWriter is the designated text editor fordocuments assigned to Text cues. (You can choose another word processingapplication as your text editor on the Text tab of the Settings dialog.)
To open ShoutWriter: Choose Tools > Text Editor.
For ShoutWriter help: In ShoutWriter, choose Help > Help Topics.
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20. Videos
Overview MediaShout 3 can play video files from Video File cues, DVD clips from VideoDVD cues, and external video feeds from Video Feed cues. The program canalso play these three types of video sources from the background layer ofLyric, Bible and Text cues.
chapter contents: 20.1 Insert a Video File cue20.2 Play a video file instantly20.3 Use a video file as a cue background20.4 Change a cue’s video file settings20.5 Insert a Video DVD cue20.6 Use a DVD clip as a cue background20.7 Change a cue’s DVD settings20.8 Insert a Video Feed cue20.9 Use an external video feed as a cue background20.10 Change the picture properties of a video20.11 Apply custom picture formatting20.12 Choose a video editor20.13 Edit a video file assigned to a cue
20.1 Insert a Video File cue Right-click in the Script window or Boxer and choose Insert > Video >
Video File from the context menu. Select a video file, then click Select.
20.2 Play a video file instantly In Philo, double-click the video file.
20.3 Use a video file as a cue background 1. Open the cue into the cue properties box (click its icon or right-click
and choose Properties).
2. Click the Browse button next to the Background field.
3. Click the Video File button, select a video file, then click Select.
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20.4 Change a cue’s video file settings
1. Open the cue into the cue properties box (click its icon or right-clickand choose Properties).
2. On the Foreground tab (Video File cue) or Background tab (video filebackground), change the settings you want:
Picture: Choose a format in the format field or click the Formatbutton for more options
In: Click the Play button, then click the Mark Frame button tomark where you want the animation to start
Play: Choose the number of times the video is to play (or loop it);choose its volume (or mute it)
Out: Click the Play button, then click the Mark Frame button tomark where you want the video to end; if the video plays in thebackground layer, choose whether it is to stop playing when thecue ends, or is allowed to continue
20.5 Insert a Video DVD cue
1. Load the disc into the computer’s DVD-ROM drive.
2. Right-click in the Script window or Boxer and choose Insert > Video >Video DVD from the context menu.
3. The DVD should begin playing automatically (if it doesn’t, click Play),bringing up the disc’s root menu screen in the preview box. Click a titleor chapter on the menu screen to play it. Use the controls to the right ofthe preview box to designate a specific title or chapter; click the MarkFrame buttons to set specific start and stop frames.
4. Click Select to insert the cue.
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20.6 Use a DVD clip as a cue background
1. Load the disc into the computer’s DVD-ROM drive.
2. Open the cue into the cue properties box (click its icon or right-clickand choose Properties).
3. Click the Video DVD button in the Select Background dialog. The DVDshould begin playing automatically (if it doesn’t, click Play), bringing upthe disc’s root menu screen in the preview box. Click a title or chapteron the menu screen to play it. Use the controls to the right of thepreview box to designate a specific title or chapter; click the MarkFrame buttons to set specific start and stop frames.
4. Click Select when you’re done.
20.7 Change a cue’s DVD settings
1. Open the cue into the cue properties box (click its icon or right-clickand choose Properties).
2. On the Foreground tab (Video DVD cue) or Background tab (DVDbackground), click the Browse button.
3. In the selection dialog that opens, use the controls to the right of thepreview box to change the title or chapter; use the playback and MarkFrame buttons to change start and end frames. To bring up a menuscreen, click the Menus button and choose it in the drop-down list.
4. Click Select when you’re done.
20.8 Insert a Video Feed cue
1. Connect the camera or other source to the computer (via FireWire,USB or video capture card input); make sure that the device ispowered up, and that Windows recognizes the device.
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2. Right-click in the Script window or Boxer and choose Insert > Video >Video File from the context menu.
3. Select the video device, then click Select to insert the cue.
20.9 Use an external video feed as a cue background
1. Connect the camera or other source to the computer (via FireWire,USB or video capture card input); make sure that the device ispowered up, and that Windows recognizes the device.
2. Open the cue into the cue properties box (click its icon or right-clickand choose Properties).
3. Click the Browse button next to the Background field. In the selectiondialog that opens, click the Video Feed button, then select the name ofthe device. Click Select when you’re done.
20.10 Change the picture properties of a video The properties that determine how a video will appear when played arelocated on the Foreground tab (Video cue) or Background tab (videobackground) of the cue properties box.
Picture Format: The Picture Format field offers the following standard formatsfor videos:
format result
Original size original file size; centered
Double scale double height, double width; centered
Full scale largest size to fit within display screen; originalaspect ratio is maintained; centered
Full stretch height and width are stretched to fill entire displayscreen; original aspect ratio is ignored; centered
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Lower third original file size; top of picture is placed at the pixelrow equal to 67% of the display screen’s verticalresolution
Upper third original file size; bottom of picture is placed at thepixel row equal to 33% of the display screen’svertical resolution
Custom size and position determined by settings in thePicture Format dialog
20.11 Apply custom picture formatting The Picture Format dialog provides custom size, position and
orientation settings. To open it, click the Picture Format button on theForeground or Background tab and choose More in the drop-down menu.
Size: Choose a standard size, orselect Custom from the list andenter a custom width and height; tomaintain the picture’s originalaspect ratio, check the Constrainproportions option.
Custom Position: For horizontalposition, enter the number of pixelsthe picture is to be placed from theleft, right or center of the frame; forvertical position, enter the numberof pixels it’s to be placed from the top, bottom or middle of the frame. Type aminus sign to enter a negative value.
20.12 Choose a video editor MediaShout plays video files created in other applications. If you have suchan application, you can set MediaShout to open it whenever you want tocreate or edit a video:
1. Choose Tools > Settings > Pictures.
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2. Click the Browse button to find and select the video application youwant MediaShout to use for its video editor. Click Open to assign theapplication.
The assigned application will open whenever you click Create in the SelectVideo dialog, or the Edit button on the Foreground or Background tab of thecue properties box when a video file is assigned to that layer.
20.13 Edit a video file assigned to a cue
1. Open the cue into the cue properties box (click its icon or right-clickand choose Properties).
2. On the Foreground tab (Video cue) or Background tab (videobackground), click the Edit button to open the video application.
3. Edit the video file, then save and close the file.
4. Return to MediaShout and click Refresh next to the Edit button.
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21. Web Pages
Use Annette to display full-screen web pages to the audience. To openAnnette click her name in the Window menu.
To fire a web page: Select it in the Favorites or History list, or enter its
address and click Annette’s Fire button.
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STUFF AT THE BACK
End User License Agreement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
Sales and Site Licenses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
Shortcuts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
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END USER LICENSE AGREEMENT
Important! Read this agreement before proceeding with installation! The MediaShout software (“Software”) is a licensed product ofMediaComplete Corporation (“Company”), and your rights are limited andrestricted to those set forth below. Installing the Software constitutes youracceptance of the Software and the terms of this Agreement. If you do notagree with the terms and conditions of this Agreement, do not install theSoftware. In return for acquiring a license to use the Software anddocumentation, you agree to the following terms and conditions:
This Agreement (“License”) permits you to install the Software on up to twocomputers to be used for the creation, management and/or delivery of yourpresentations and media. Under no circumstances are you permitted to installor use the Software on more than two computers.
You will not make or have made or permit to be made any copies of theSoftware, documentation, or any portions thereof except for copies solely foryour personal backup purposes or such copies as are necessary for theinstallation of the Software in accordance with the terms of this Agreement.
You may assign your rights under this Agreement to a third party who readsand agrees in writing to be bound by this Agreement prior to the assignment,provided that you transfer all copies of the Software and relateddocumentation to the third party or destroy any copies not transferred. Exceptas set forth above, you may not assign your rights under this Agreement.Renting or leasing this software is prohibited.
The Company retains title and ownership of the Software and all subsequentcopies of the Software, regardless of the form or media in or on which theoriginal and other copies may exist. Except as stated above, this Agreementdoes not grant you any rights to intellectual property rights in the Software.You agree not to modify, adopt, translate, reverse engineer, decompile ordisassemble or create derivative works based on the Software. The use oftrademark as herein authorized does not give you any rights of ownership inthat trademark. The structure and organization of the Software are thevaluable property of the Company.
This product is covered by a limited warranty. This warranty and any impliedwarranties are effective for a period of thirty (30) days only from the date of
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delivery (the “Limited Warranty Period”) as evidenced by a copy of yourreceipt. This Software will be free from errors under normal use and servicefor a period of thirty (30) days after delivery to you. The Company does notand cannot warrant the performance of results you may obtain by using theSoftware or documentation. This Limited Warranty is void if failure of theSoftware or hardware has resulted from accident, abuse, or misapplication. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE COMPANY BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR ANYCONSEQUENTIAL OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES, INCLUDING ANY LOSTPROFITS OR LOST SAVINGS, OR FOR ANY CLAIM BY ANY PARTY,EVEN IF A REPRESENTATIVE OF THE COMPANY HAS BEEN ADVISEDOF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. Some states or provinces donot allow the exclusion or limitation of incidental or consequential damages.
This Agreement will be governed by the laws of the State of Tennessee,without giving effect of the conflict of laws principles thereof. Venue for allactions arising under this Agreement shall be the courts located in Nashville,Tennessee, USA.
By the use of this Software you acknowledge that you have read thisagreement, understand it and that it is the complete and exclusive statementof your Agreement with the Company which supersedes any prior agreementoral or written and any other communications between the Company, itssuppliers, or other agents and you relating to the subject matter of thisAgreement and that your obligations under this Agreement shall inure to thebenefit of the Company. No variation of the terms of this Agreement will beenforceable against the Company unless the Company gives it expressconsent in writing signed by an authorized officer of the Company.
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Support
In MediaShout:
Coach: This quick help feature is a palette in the crew window. (If he’snot open there, choose Window > Coach.)
Help Topics: Choose Help > Help Topics to open this feature inMediaShout, whose contents are much more extensive than Coach’s.Many features have a Help button or a Help item in their Options menu,which opens Help Topics to the page specific to that feature.(Context-sensitive help can also be reached by pressing the F1 key.)
Tutorials: Several tutorial Scripts are available in the MyShout\Tutorials folder. To take a tutorial, open like you would anyScript: Choose File > Open, then select the tutorial’s Script file andclick Open.
User Guide: The user guide is provided in PDF format and can beviewed and printed in Adobe Reader. The file can be opened bychoosing Start > Programs > MediaComplete > MediaShout 3 > UserGuide.
Online: The MediaShout website’s Support area offers free software updates, a knowledge base containing articles on common problems and their solutions, and a user forum where you can exchange questions and answers with other users and members of the MediaShout support team: www.mediashout.com/support
Email: Support via email is free and unlimited: [email protected]
Phone: REGISTERED USERS ONLY. Support by phone is free for the first year to registered users. Hours are Monday to Friday, 9 am to 5 pm, Eastern time. 866 857-1292 (toll-free withinU.S.) 615-754-2947 (direct)
To register online, visit www.mediashout.com/support/register.cfm
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Sales and Site Licenses
MediaCompletePO Box 24625Nashville, TN 37202615 754-0755
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Shortcuts
F1 HelpF2 Fire Ted cueF3 —F4 —
F5 Fire Logo buttonF6 Fire Black buttonF7 Fire Bars buttonF8 Stop All
F9 Fire previous Script cueF10 Fire next Script cueF11 Fire selected Script cueF12 Fire selected Boxer cue
