------------------------------------------------------------------ README for XingMPEG (TM) Encoder for Windows 95 and Windows NT April 1998 ------------------------------------------------------------------ (c) Copyright Xing Technology Corporation, 1998 This document provides complimentary or late-breaking information to supplement the XingMPEG Encoder 2.20 documentation. -------- CONTENTS -------- Getting Started Guide New for 2.20 MPEG Layer 3 Pre-defined Stream Profiles Support for Apple's QuickTime .mov Files Batch Processing Notes Apple's QuickTime .mov Files DirectDraw Overlay Issues Restoring Stream Profiles from a Previous Install Long Pause when Setting Up or Starting a Batch Job Attention VideoCD Creators Extracting Stream Profiles from VideoCD Files Active Movie Web Browser Error Stream Profile Wizard Data Rates Known Limitations .TIF File Support Mono to Stereo Conversions Extracting an .mpx with MPEG-2 Audio Time Remaining Feature for Encoding XingMPEG Encoder Main Window Size Audio Sample Rates Video Playback with Certain Direct Draw Overlay Modes Video Format Width and Height Video Transition Windows NT --------------------- Getting Started Guide --------------------- This is a general overview to help you begin encoding. When you have finished reading the overview, follow the simple steps below to encode your first job. Source Files ------------ To start encoding, you a need source file such as an .avi, .wav, .mov, or MPEG file. You can create your own source files using capture hardware and software designed to create audio and video source material. Generally, if an .avi or .wav file will playback on your system, the XingMPEG Encoder can encode it. See the Source File Requirements section in the on-line help for more information. Stream Profile -------------- Once you have a source file, you need to choose a Stream Profile. A Stream Profile defines what characteristics will be included in the encoded MPEG file. These characteristics include settings such as Target Platforms, Data Rates, Frame Rates, and Sample Rates. The Encoder comes with a comprehensive set of pre-defined Stream Profiles, or you can create (custom) Stream Profiles. Job --- The job includes the Stream Profile, an audio source and/or a video source, and the name of your target file. The job is automatically added to the Job Queue when you complete the information for the job. Encode ------ When you click the Encode button, the jobs waiting in the Job Queue are encoded. See how easy it is to use the XingMPEG Encoder by following these simple steps. 1) Start the New Job Wizard From the XingMPEG Encoder main menu, click the New button. 2) Use the default Match Source Stream Profile From the Job Wizard - Select a Stream Profile window, click the Next button. 3) Browse for a source .avi file From the Job Wizard - Source and Target Files window, click the Browse button and select an .avi file. The Target Filename and path are automatically set. 4) Finish setting up the Job Click the Finish Button. 5) Start Encoding the Job From the XingMPEG Encoder main menu, click the Encode button. The job is encoded. 6) Playback and review the Job When the job is done encoding, click the Play button. ------------ New for 2.20 ------------ MPEG Layer 3 Pre-defined Stream Profiles ---------------------------------------- Create .mp3 streams using pre-defined Stream Profiles. The Encoder includes three new folders containing layer 3 Stream Profiles: Audio Only Layer 3, StreamWorks Audio Only Layer 3, and StreamWorks Audio/Video Layer 3. -The Audio Only Layer 3 folder contains Stream Profiles for making a variety of high quality MPEG-1 and MPEG-2 layer 3 audio only files. -StreamWorks Audio Only Layer 3 folder contains Stream Profiles for making layer 3 audio only files for use with Xing's StreamWorks products. -StreamWorks Audio/Video Layer 3 folder contains Stream Profiles for making MPEG-1 system streams (audio and video) with layer 3 audio for use with Xing's StreamWorks products. Support for Apple's QuickTime .mov Files ---------------------------------------- Installing Apple's QuickTime 3.0 on your system will allow you full access to standard QuickTime audio and video files, allowing QuickTime files to be fully encoded into the MPEG format. Note: The QuickTime support in this package is for standard audio/video files. The Encoder does not support QuickTime-VR, sprites, paths, transparencies, or any of QuickTime 3.0's real-time processor effects. Also, for premium audio quality, we suggest the use of QuickTime files with audio sampled at 11025, 22050, or 44100 kHz. Some minor audio artifacts may be heard at some non-standard sampling rates. Batch Processing ---------------- Encode the same file types in an entire directory using a single 'Make Batch' button. A wildcard is added preceding the file's extension, and all similar file types are encoded as a single job using one profile. A great time saver! ----- Notes ----- Apple's QuickTime .mov Files ---------------------------- The first time you attempt to use a QuickTime .mov file with the Encoder, a long pause may be experienced by some users as the program checks for QuickTime 3.0 to be present on your system. If you have just finished setting up a job, and the program seems to have hung, please be patient for the program to finish checking your machine. DirectDraw Overlay Issues ------------------------- Due to the number of video cards and drivers on the market today, some users may experience a cosmetic problem when re-encoding MPEG files to another MPEG format. The problem shows itself by placing an extra preview window in the upper left corner of the screen. We are currently working to rectify this issue and would like users to know that this has no adverse affect on output file quality. Restoring Stream Profiles from a Previous Install ------------------------------------------------- If you replaced your previous Stream Profiles at install time with the new profiles, and you later wish to restore the previous version, follow these steps. 1) First close the XingMPEG Encoder application. 2) Open the Windows 95 or Windows NT file explorer. 3) Browse to the \Program files\Xing\Xingmpeg Encoder directory. (Usually found on C Drive). 4) Rename the current profiles.xdb in this directory to profiles.new. 5) Find the file called profiles.old and rename it to profiles.xdb. 6) Start the XingMPEG Encoder again and the old profiles will be restored. Long Pause when Setting Up or Starting a Batch Job -------------------------------------------------- When creating a batch job, the program must process all files included in the batch before it will let you save the job to the job queue. This includes checking the files' integrity, as well as checking that there is enough disk space for all target files. With increased numbers of files in one batch job, the wait for the program to process all the files may make the program seem to be 'hanging'. If you experience a long wait while setting up or starting a batch job, please be patient. Attention VideoCD Creators -------------------------- The pre-defined VideoCD Stream Profiles include an Audio Pack Null Bytes setting which is enabled by default. When using some VideoCD tool kits, the Audio Pack Null Bytes feature should be disabled (no check in the checkbox). We suggest that you create a new (custom) VideoCD Stream Profile with the Audio Pack Null Bytes setting disabled. For information on creating (custom) Stream Profiles, see the on-line help documentation. Extracting Stream Profiles from VideoCD Files --------------------------------------------- If you need to use a Whitebook Stream Profile, use a pre-defined VideoCD Stream Profile. Do not extract Stream Profiles from a VideoCD file. System Data Rates and Pack Size are inconsistent for VideoCD files that are extracted. Active Movie ------------ When you install ActiveMovie on your system after installing the XingMPEG Encoder, ActiveMovie may disable the Encoder's ability to use .mpg, .mpv, and .mpx as a video source. If you have installed ActiveMovie since installing the XingMPEG Encoder, you may need to re-install the XingMPEG Player and XingMPEG Driver. Run the XingMPEG Encoder installation and choose Custom. Re-install only the XingMPEG Player and XingMPEG Driver. If you have Active Movie installed as the default (or you do not have the XingMPEG Player installed), attempting to playback .mpa files in the Encoder for the Windows 95 platform causes a program error. Web Browser Error ----------------- The installation program provides an option to Visit Xing on the Web, which launches your Web browser and takes you to the Xing Technology Corporation Home page. If you select this option, and you do not have a Web browser installed or correctly configured, an error appears. This does not affect the installation or use of the XingMPEG Encoder program. Stream Profile Wizard Data Rates -------------------------------- When using the Stream Profile Wizard, we recommend that you do not change the Data Rates in the Target Platform Properties window, or you may create an invalid Stream Profile. Instead, use a Stream Profile that most accurately matches the required Data Rates, or edit the Stream Profile in Edit Stream Profile Properties window. See the on-line help documentation for step by step instructions on editing Stream Profiles. ----------------- Known Limitations ----------------- .TIF File Support ----------------- .TIF file support for creating still image plus audio or sequential still videos is not available in this version. Mono to Stereo Conversions -------------------------- Certain mono to stereo conversions will not produce a valid MPEG file. Use the Match Source Stream Profile or a Stream Profile with a mono setting. Extracting an .mpx with MPEG-2 Audio ------------------------------------ When extracting an .mpx file with MPEG-2 audio, the audio properties values in the Stream Profile Properties fields may be unpredictable. However, the file plays correctly. Time Remaining Feature for Encoding ----------------------------------- The XingMPEG Encoder informs the user of time remaining for encoding a job only when converting system .avi files to MPEG files. XingMPEG Encoder Main Window Size --------------------------------- When your Windows Display Properties are set to 800 by 600 pixels or larger with the Font Size set to Large Fonts, the XingMPEG Encoder main window size appears enlarged, however the program functions properly. To correct the window size, change the Windows Display Properties Font Size to Small Fonts. Audio Sample Rates ------------------ To retain the source audio quality, you must supply source files with audio that can be up-sampled by a multiple of 2. For example, if the target file is an MPEG-1 audio at 44100khz, the source audio must be 44100khz, 22050khz, 11025khz, or 5512khz. If you provide a source using any other audio sample rates, the audio sample rate will be adjusted which may affect the audio playback speed. Video Playback with Certain Direct Draw Overlay Modes ----------------------------------------------------- With some video boards using DDOverlay, moving the XingMPEG Encoder interface partially off screen will cause the video window to stay in its initial location. The XingMPEG Encoder interface with a blank screen colorkey surface can be seen in the background. Using certain DDOverlay boards, embossing of the playback box will occur if the encoded file's video properties are less than full SIF. A dark gray area will border the video. Video Format Width and Height ----------------------------- Some custom frame resolutions (especially smaller sizes) are not supported and may result in a program error during encoding. Video Transition ---------------- The Encoder cannot handle extreme scene changes in source video such as dissolves, quick fades, and other transitions created by certain video editing programs. When using these types of transitions, artifacts may appear in the video playback. Windows NT ---------- Creating a VideoCD job containing a still image with audio may produce a system error. When creating VideoCD with still images jobs, we recommend that you create these jobs separately from other jobs. In addition, encode the VideoCD jobs in small batches (such as 5 or 6 jobs) at a time.