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Creating a Batch Asset Loading File

A Producer batch asset file is an XML file that follows standard XML conventions. The Producer installation includes an XSD file that defines the available elements. For a list of all the available elements and their attributes, with explanations, see the topic Batch Asset Loading File Syntax. A batch asset loading file can be created in any text editor.

A batch asset loading file must have at least one actions and/or presentation element.

To create a simple batch asset loading file, open a text editor such as Notepad and paste in the following code:

<?ProducerBatchFile version="2.0"?>
<producer>
    <actions>
        <action command="load">
            <param>G:\Projects\Producer\My presentation.MSProducer</param>
        </action>
    </actions>
</producer>

Save the file with a .MSProducerBF file name extension. This simple batch file loads an existing project called "My presentation" at the path shown inside the param element. Change this to point to an existing project on your own computer and try running it as explained in the topic Running a Batch Asset Loading File. Note that Producer stays open after the project is built. To cause Producer to close, add the following line before the </actions> tag:

<action command="exit"/>

Notice that the exit action takes no parameters, and so can be given as a single-tag element.

If you want to publish this presentation, add a publish destination, as the next code example demonstrates:

<?ProducerBatchFile version="2.0"?>
<producer>
    <actions>
        <action command="logging">
            <param>c:\ProducerBuildLog.log</param>
        <action command="load">
            <param>G:\Projects\Producer\My presentation.MSProducer</param>
        </action>
        <action command="build"/>
        <action command="publish"/>
    </actions>
    <presentation>
        <properties>
            <property name="PublishDestination">C:\temp</property>
            <property name="PublishName">MyPresentation</property>
            <property name="PublishProfile" index="0">PV000.PRX</property>
        </properties>
    </presentation>
</producer>

Note that, if you publish, you must specify both a publish destination and a publish profile (if they are not already defined in an existing file). Also note that you must specify the build action, because you are changing project data, in this case the publish destination, name, and profile. A logging file has been added in this batch asset loading file; logging files are very useful for debugging when building a batch loading file.

Using Producer to generate batch asset loading files automatically:

Producer can generate an XML batch asset loading file for you automatically. To have Producer do this, open an existing project or create a new one from scratch. Then, instead of saving it as a project file, save it as a batch asset loading file with the following steps. Note that this will only save your project data and settings; any actions such as build and save must be inserted manually by using a text editor. A good technique for creating a batch asset file is to create a project using Producer, save it as a batch asset loading file, then modify it to fit your needs. However, be warned that batch asset files can be quite large, and producing them this way can generate an unexpectedly large file.

  1. On the File menu, click Save As.
  2. Select the All Files option.
  3. Type in your file name, and specify .MSProducerBF as the file name extension. 
  4. Click Save. The batch file will be created.

Note   If you do not explicitly type in the .MSProducerBF file name extension, an Producer project file will be saved with the .MSProducer file name extension by default.

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