Movies At Night Construction Set An Animation Conversion Utility for the "Movies at Night" Warp 9 Extendo-Save Module Version 1.0 February 10, 1994 Copyright 1994, By Anthony Watson ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1 - SHAREWARE Information 2 - Introduction 3 - Loading Animations 3.1 - Loading a Degas picture series 3.2 - Loading .MOV animation files 3.3 - Loading .SEQ Cyberpaint animations 4. Adjusting Movie Parameters 4.1 - Changing the Movie Title 4.2 - Changing the Authors Name 4.3 - Setting Playback Speed 4.4 - Testing the Animation 5 - Saving Animations 5.1 - Saving a Degas Series 5.2 - Saving a .MOV animation file ------------------------- 1 - Shareware Information ------------------------- The Movies at Night Construction Set is SHAREWARE!!! The SAVE functions have been disabled in the DEMO version. All other functions are fully operational. To receive a fully working version send $10.00 to: Mountain Software 6911 NE Livingston Road Camas, Washington 98607 United States In return for your support you will receive: - The Movies at Night Construction Set - The Warp 9 Extendo-Save module - A documentation file discussing the .MOV animation format ---------------- 2 - Introduction ---------------- The Construction Set allows users to create their own screensaver animations from a series of Degas picture files, or to convert Cyberpaint animations for use as screensaver animations. In addition, the Construction Set allows users to view and modify .MOV animation files even if they do not own Warp 9. ** NOTE:I am very interested in adding .FLI animation support to the construction set if someone would be so kind as to furnish me with specifications on the animation format! Until then, the public domain FLICONV.TTP utility can be used to convert a .FLI file to a series of Degas files which in turn can be loaded into the Construction Set. Memory requirements for this program depend on the animation you are loading. However, a minimum of 1 Meg is suggested to store the various screen buffers needed by this program. Also, this program is restricted to ST Medium use ONLY!!! ---------------------- 3 - Loading Animations ---------------------- 3.1 - Loading a Degas picture series ------------------------------------ A series of uncompressed degas pictures (.PI1 format) may be loaded by clicking on the ".PI1" button under the "Load" category. A file selector will appear allowing you to locate your degas pictures. You may click on any frame in the series to start the loading process. Once all frames have been loaded you will have the option of deleting the original Degas series of pictures. The various frames may be named anything you like as long as all frames have the same name, and are numbered sequentially. Up to 999 individual frames are supported, and they may begin with any number you wish. Examples of acceptable frame titles: NAME001.PI1 FRAME0.PI1 TITLE1.PI1 NAME002.PI1 FRAME2.PI1 TITLE002.PI1 NAME003.PI1 FRAME4.PI1 TITLE__3.PI1 NAME004.PI1 FRAME6.PI1 TITLE04.PI1 NAME005.PI1 FRAME8.PI1 TITLE5.PI1 Note that frame numbers do not require leading zeros, can skip numbers if needed, and may vary in format in the same list. The only "trick" is to click on the frame that best describes the other frames. For example, you would not want to click on TITLE__3.PI1 in the third list above, as the Construction Set would start searching for other frames starting with "TITLE__". 3.2 - Loading .MOV animation files ---------------------------------- .MOV files are "Movies at Night" animation files. The Construction Set allows you to load them for viewing without Warp 9, or to modify playback speed or other movie parameters. To load a .MOV file click on the ".MOV" button in the "Load" category. A file selector will appear allowing you to locate and select your desired .MOV file. 3.3 - Loading .SEQ CyberPaint animations ---------------------------------------- .SEQ files are Cyberpaint animation files. While this format provides better compression than the "Movies at Night" .MOV format, it has the drawback of requiring decompression time. To load a .SEQ file click on the ".SEQ" button in the "Load" category. A file selector will appear allowing you to locate and select your desired .SEQ file. Note that loading .SEQ files can take a while as the file is decompressed and converted to .MOV format as it is loaded. ------------------------------ 4 - Adjusting Movie Parameters ------------------------------ 4.1 - Changing the Movie Title ------------------------------ The Warp 9 control panel displays the title of the Extendosave module you currently have loaded. While this works fine for most modules, it would hold little value if every MOVIE you loaded had the same title. Therefore, "Movies at Night" stores the title of each movie within the animation file itself. This information is then transferred to the Warp 9 control panel when you load the .MOV file. To change the movie title, click on the "Title" button. A small dialog box will appear allowing you to enter or modify the movie title. Press the return key when you are finished. 4.2 - Changing the Authors Name ------------------------------- As with the movie title above, "Movies at Night" stores the authors name within the animation file itself. This information is then transferred to the Warp 9 control panel when you load the .MOV file. To change the author name, click on the "Author" button. A small dialog box will appear allowing you to enter or modify the movie title. Press the return key when you are finished. Please respect the original authors of .MOV animation files and do not alter the author name of an animation file! 4.3 - Setting Playback Speed ---------------------------- As with the movie title and author name, the playback speed of the animation is stored within the animation file itself. Since playback speeds can vary from one animation to the next, it is not convenient to set playback speed through the Warp 9 control panel. Also, configuring playback speed in the construction set simplifies the playback Extendo-Save module. To change the playback speed click on the appropriate 'arrow' key to increase or decrease playback speed. Values of 10 to 20 are common for most animations. 4.4 - Testing the Animation --------------------------- If you would like to preview the animation click on the 'Play' button. Click the mouse or press any key to return to the main menu. This is most often used when adjusting the playback speed, or to view the animations on machines not using Warp 9 --------------------- 5 - Saving Animations --------------------- 5.1 - Saving a Degas Series --------------------------- Each frame of an animation may be saved as an individual Degas .PI1 picture. Most often this would be used for "touching up" an animation in an art program, though it could also be used for loading animations into other programs. To save an animation as a series of Degas files click on the ".PI1" button in the "Save" category. A file selector will appear. Locate the directory you wish to save the files in, but DO NOT select a file. Note that individual frames of the animation can use a LOT of disk space!!! Be prepared... Frames will be titled FRAME001.PI1, FRAME002.PI1, FRAME003.PI1, etc... The save feature is disabled in the DEMO version. 5.2 - Saving a .MOV animation file ---------------------------------- The .MOV animation format is used by the "Movies at Night" Extendosave module. Converted animations should be saved in this format. To save an animation in this format, click on the ".MOV" button in the "Save" category. A file selector will appear. Locate the directory you wish to save the file in and enter the desired title in the file selector. The save feature is disabled in the DEMO version.