Amiga Format 61/af061sub.adf/MainActor1_5.lha/MainActor/Docs/MainActor.doc

Text File | 1994-04-18 | 88.3 KB | 2,688 lines

MainActor 1.5 Documentation
***************************

Warm Up
*******

   MainActor is shareware. The program may be freely distributed and
copied as long as the following conditions are acknowledged:

   - The sales price must not be higher than the cost of an (empty)
     disk plus a nominal copying fee plus costs for shipping. The total
     price must not be higher than US 6 $ or 10 DM.

   - All parts of the program and the documentation must be complete.
     The distribution of single parts is not allowed.

   - MainActor or parts of it must not be sold in combination with
     commercial software without the written permission of the author.

   - Program and documentation must not be changed in any ways.  The
     repacking of this distribution with different packers is, however,
     allowed.

   - Permission is granted to include this archive in Public-Domain
     collections, especially in Fred Fishs Amiga Disk Library (including
     CD ROM versions of it).

   - The author is not responsible for misuse, or damage caused by
     MainActor.

Installation
************

   Just copy the MainActor drawer to a device of your choice and add an
assign to your user-startup, like

   `assign MainActor: <Path>'

   The `Locale', `Rexx' and `Docs' directories should stay in the
`MainActor' directory.

   The default configuration file will clone your Workbench, the
positions of the windows are however saved according to my setup and
may look strange on yours.

   If you have an older version of MainActor installed, make sure to
delete it before installing the new version (except perhaps the
preferences files).

Introduction
************

   MainActor is a full featured animation program. You can create /
edit / time / play animations of any size on your native amiga chipset
or your graphic card (if supported).

What is MainActor ?
===================

   MainActor is a modular animation package for the `Amiga'. At the
moment, there exist four different kinds of modules:

   1) Animation Loaders

   2) Animation Savers

   3) Picture Loaders

   4) Picture Savers

This can change in the future.

   You can handle up to five projects; every project can have an
animation or picture loader, as well as an animation or picture saver.
This makes it possible to convert everything in any ways, the number of
available modules can be easily upgraded.

Features
========

   - Intelligent caching/tracking, MainActor can cache your animations
     and picture lists, if you have not enough memory it will directly
     access your data from any device. This makes it for example
     possible to create/edit/play a 400MB animation on your 2MB Amiga.

   - If you run OS 3.0 or higher, you will get an extra speed bonus on
     animations by the use of the new graphic routines.  For OS2.0/2.1
     users there are specific routines in the modules, which will give
     them the best playback speed possible on their system (and my
     knowledge :)).

   - Under OS 3.0 you will get the extra features of showing pictures or
     playing animations in a scrollable, resizable window on your
     MainActor or Workbench screen. The colors will be properly
     adjusted to your screen attributes.

   - The modules have play routines of their own, so it will be possible
     to redirect the input/output of special modules to graphic boards
     or other hardware.

   - The play routines support a timecode per frame option. A sound
     module (per frame) option will be there in one of the next
     releases.

   - MainActor has a totally user reconfigureable GUI. The settings of
     your sessions can be saved, this includes the size/position of
     windows as well as the status of the projects.

   - MainActor has an arexx port, nearly all functions can be accessed
     through it. You can for example scale or dither whole animations
     on the fly through the use of an image processor, scripts are
     included.

   - MainActor lets you setup and save nearly everything concerning the
     display mode for playing an animation or showing a picture.  For
     example you can set the X/Y offsets, the display mode ID of your
     screen (view) and so on.

   - MainActor supports localization (wb 2.1+ required).

New features in v1.1
====================

   - You can now map your arexx scripts to the function keys.

   - New IFF-Anim8_32, IFF-Anim8_16, PCX modules.

   - The new Universal modules allow you to easily load all of the
     supported graphic formats.  The Universal_Picasso-II modules remap
     the output of all modules directly to the Picasso-II graphics
     board from Village Tronic.

   - MainActor now has a powerful external player named 'MainView', it
     can view all animations/pictures for which MainActor has the proper
     loader module.  It is executeable from the Workbench or CLI and
     supports, per tooltypes or CLI arguments, all of MainActors view
     options.

   - MainActor now (optionally) saves icons for your newly created
     animations or pictures, enabling you to view the
     animations/pictures by selecting their icons. These icons support
     the same tooltypes as MainView.

   - You can now control how many times MainActor/MainView plays
     animations.

   - The new 'Flash' option allows you to profile your animations.

New features in v1.2
====================

   - MainActor/MainView now have a center option which allows highly
     accurate centration of your images or animations.

   - New BorderBlank option.

   - MainActor has a new window called Project Information Window.  The
     new functions included in the window are:

        * An information window which will give you detailed
          descriptions of your current animation or picture list.

        * You can now view the size and time profiles of your projects
          as a graphical representation.

        * You can compare the decompression times of your projects
          through new timer functions.

   - New GIF/FLI/FLC/DL loader modules and FLI/FLC saver modules.

   - Chunky pixel modules (GIF/FLI/FLC) will fly if loaded through
     universal modules which support graphic cards (like
     Universal_PicassoII etc.). You can of course also view them on
     your native chipset as normal.

   - Introduction of a new (light) registration package. It does not
     have the handbook or the disk based updates but is cheaper.

   - You can now use the save/append functions again, even if you have
     not registered MainActor. You will have to deal with requesters
     though.

New features in v1.5
====================

   - Major hd playback improvements of all modules. Average speed
     increase is about 2 - 5 times the speed of v1.2, giving you
     maximum performance.

   - Sound Support. MainActor now has Sound Modules which allow you to
     associate sound effects to every frame of an animation. This works
     for pictures too. The sound information is module independent, that
     means that you could use the same sound information ("#?.snd") on
     every module type MainActor supports.

   - New Real3D, IFF-Anim3, IFF-AnimJ, Picasso and AVI animation loader.

   - The usage of the Append function is now easier. The saver module
     now recognizes automatically if the destination project is of the
     right type. That means that you can now use the universal modules
     for appending.

The Menus
*********

   You are able to access most of MainActor's functions through the
various menu items and their equivalent shortcuts. Some functions can
only be accessed in the menus.

Project Menu
============

`Open New Project'

   will open a new project window. You can open up to five project
windows, see Project Window.

   The attributes of the project window will be set, according to the
defaults selectable in the MainActor Preferences Window.

`Project'

   Consists of several submenu items, their functions are identical to
the gadgets of the Project Control Panel Window.

`Open Prefs'

   Opens an ASL-requester which lets you choose a MainActor preferences
file, saved with one of the two following menu items.  When you have
choosen a prefs file, the display AND all projects and their contents
will be closed, MainActor will then be reopened with the settings of
the preferences file.

   You can also activate MainActor by simply clicking on the icons of
the preferences files.

`Save Prefs As ...'

   Saves your current setup of MainActor; nearly everything will be
saved : the complete project information, all view settings, the actual
project name, the size and position of all windows, the settings of the
system preferences ... .

   An self-executing icon will be created for the preferences file.
You should save every setup you use frequently !

`Save Prefs As Defaults'

   This will save your setup as the default preferences file, which will
be automatically loaded when you start MainActor.  The default
preferences file is `MainActor:Prefs/Default_Prefs'.  Replace the
default by your most used setup.

`Iconify'

   MainActor will be terminated and the MainActor icon will be placed
on your Workbench. If you want to reactivate MainActor, just click on
the icon.

`About'

   Gives you some information of the current version of MainActor and
it's author.

`Quit'

   Will close all projects and quit MainActor.

Text Buffer Menu
================

   MainActor uses the Text Buffer Window for presenting feedback to the
user.

`Print Buffer'

   Prints the information stored in the Text Buffer Window.

`Save Buffer As ...'

   Will let you choose a file into which the contents of the Text
Buffer Window will be saved.

`Clear Buffer'

   Will clear the Text Buffer Window and delete its buffer.

Selection Menu
==============

   The Selection Menu is very important for easy selection of the items
in your source project. You can select or deselect all or a range of
items.  The menu items are only accessable when a project is loaded
into the source project.

`Select All'

   Will select all items (frames/pictures) in your source project.

`Select Range'

   A requester will pop up, just enter the start/stop frame for the
range of items to be selected.

`DeSelect All'

   This item will deselect all frames/pictures in your source project.

`DeSelect Range'

   A requester will pop up, just enter the start/stop frame for the
range of frames/pictures to be deselected.

`Invert'

   Inverts the selection status of the items in the source project. All
selected items will become deselected and all deselected items will
become selected.

Miscellaneous Menu
==================

   The menu items of this menu will only be accessable when a project
is loaded into the source project. The `Set Timecode' item will only be
activated if an animation project is loaded into the source project.

`Project Information'

   This menu item is identical to the `Project Information' function of
the Project Information Window.

`Project Profile'

   This menu item is identical to the `Project Profile' function of the
Project Information Window.

`Set Sound'

   This function opens the `Sound Module Requester', which allows you
to associate sound effects to every frame of an animation or picture
(list).

   The listview requester to the right shows you the name of the
pictures for which a sound effect was associated. Only one effect per
picture is possible. You can select the pictures in the listview
requester with your mouse, the name of the currently selected picture
is visible in the text field to the right of the `Choose Frame' gadget.

Add Sound
     This gadget will add a new item to the listview requester named
     "Choose Frame". You can now select a picture for it through the
     `Choose Frame' gadget.

Clone
     If you have selected an item in the listview requester, you can
     use this gadget to add a new item to the listview requester. This
     new item will have the same `Choose Sound Module' and `Choose
     Sound Object' fields of the old item. The only thing you have to
     do is to select a picture for it.

Remove
     If you select this gadget, the currently selected item in the
     listview requester will be removed from the list.

Test
     If you have initialized the currently selected sound item
     correctly, you will be able to test it through this gadget.

Channel Cycle Gadget
     You can choose between three different settings :

    Left Sound Channel
          If you have choosen this setting, the sound effect will only
          use the left sound channel (and therefore only the left
          speaker).

    Right Sound Channel
          The same as above, only for the right sound channel.

    Stereo Sound
          This setting will enable stereo mode, the sound effect will
          use both sound channels at the same time.

Choose Frame
     You can (re)select the picture for the currently selected sound
     effect by clicking on this gadget. You can see the currently
     selected picture for the sound effect to the right of this gadget.
     If this field contains "Choose Frame", you will have to select a
     picture for it, otherwise it will not be saved.

Choose Sound Module
     Select the sound module in the requester, the sound module should
     bear the anme of the format of your sound object.  If you have,
     for example, selected a sample as sound object, you will have to
     use the `IFF-Sample' module as sound module.  You can see the
     currently selected sound module to the right of this gadget.

Choose Sound Object
     Choose the sound object itself in the ASL-Requester or enter the
     name in the string requester to the right.  You can select the
     initial path for your sound objects in the `Choose Sound Path'
     gadget of the MainActor Preferences Window.

     If you want to test if the combination of sound object and sound
     module is ok, just select the `Test' gadget.

Ok
     This gadget writes the sound information to your harddisk under
     the name of the source project + ".snd".  You can test it out by
     playing the animation or showing the pictures for which a sound
     effect was added.

Cancel
     Will quit the `Sound Module Requester' without saving the changes.

   If you want an example how to use the Sound Module Requester, load
the provided example animation and examine the settings of the sound
items.

`Set Timecode'

   Enter the timecode in the requester which you want to be applied to
all selected frames in the source project. Remember to hit return after
you typed a new value into the integer gadget.  The new timecode will
be set immediately.  All timecodes are entered in 1/60 of a second,
MainActor calculates the right timecode for your vertical beam
frequency itself.

   After setting the timecode, playback of the animation will be
adjusted to the new timecodes. If you for example set the new timecode
for frame 1 to 120/60 of a second, playback will stop for two seconds
at the first frame of the animation.

Arexx Menu
==========

   See The Arexx Interface, for more information of MainActor's arexx
capabilities.

`Install Arexx Scripts'

   This menu item will open a window in which you can map your most
used arexx scripts to the function keys.  The cycle gadget in the upper
part of the window will let you choose the function key on which you
want to install an arexx script.  The function keys are displayed as F1
... F20, F10 ... F20 mean the function key + one of the shift keys.
You can choose the function key by clicking on the gadget or (the
faster method) by simply pressing the appropriate function key.
(Remember that you have to press F1 together with the shift key to get
the F11 key).

   Below the cycle gadget are the `Select Script ...' gadget and a
string gadget. The arexx script which is currently associated to the
actual function key displayed in the cycle gadget is visible in the
string gadget.  You can enter a new arexx script or edit the name of the
existing one in the string gadget.  You can use the `Select Script ...'
gadget to choose the arexx script via an ASL-requester.

   The three gadgets in the lower part of the window are labeled `Save',
`Use' and `Cancel'.

`Save'
     saves your definitions of the function keys, they will be
     automatically reloaded the next time you start MainActor.

`Use'
     will keep the definitions, but will not save them

`Cancel'
     ignores the changes you made to the definitions.

`Start Arexx Script'

   Will let you choose an arexx script, which will then be executed.

Windows Menu
============

   This menu will let you open/close the different MainActor windows by
simply selecting the desired menu item.

The Windows
***********

   The windows are MainActor's main interface to the user. Their use is
however optional, you can close all of them (except the Project Windows)
and only use the menus. The choice is yours. The position and status of
the windows will be saved in the preferences files.

   The following is a detailed description of MainActor's windows and
their gadgets.

Project Window
==============

   A new Project Window will be opened by selecting the `Open New
Project' menu item in the Project Menu.

   You can open up to five Project Windows, the number of your Project
Window will be displayed in the title bar, in front of the project
name, like `1: HAM8_Animation'. If no project is loaded, the title is
`Unused Project'.

   The Project Windows are mainly controlled by the Project Control
Panel Window.

`Project Mode Gadget'

   Depending on your project's mode, it will be labeled "Source
Project", "Destination Project" or "DeActivated Project".

"The Source Project"
     You can only have one source project. This is the project on which
     all actions from the Project Control Panel Window will be
     executed. The gadgets of the Project Control Panel and the Project
     View Settings will be set up according to the source project.

"The Destination Project"
     This is the project into which all selected data from the source
     project will be appended through the `Append' gadget of the
     Project View Settings Window.

     There can only be one Destination Project.

"The DeActivated Projects"
     These projects are waiting to be switched into the source or
     destination mode. There can be more than one DeActivated Project.

   You can change the project mode by clicking on the `Project Mode
Gadget', for example if you click on the source project's `Project Mode
Gadget', it will be changed into the destination project and the former
destination project will changed into the source project.

   If you click on a DeActivated project's `Project Mode Gadget', it
will change into the source project.

   If only one Project Window is open, you cannot change the `Project
Mode Gadget'.

   Everytime you switch the source project, the gadgets in the Project
Control Panel Window and the Project View Settings Window will be
adjusted to the settings of the new source project.

`Caching'

   This is a simple toggle gadget. If it is checked, it means that your
project is cached or is going to be cached in ram.

   If you do not have enough ram, you will have to disable it. That
means that, for example animations will be directly played from your
harddisk, which will be much slower than playing them directly from ram.

   You can only toggle the status of the `Caching' gadget when the
project window is unused. As soon as you load a project, it will become
"ghosted".

`Select Load Module'

   When clicking on this Button Gadget, a requester will appear in which
you can select the load module for this project.

   The cycling gadget in the requester will let you switch between
"Picture Loaders" or "Animation Loaders".

   When hitting the `Load' gadget in the Project Control Panel Window,
MainActor executes the animation/picture loader you have selected for
the source project.

   The name of the current load module is visible in a text gadget
directly under the `Select Load Module' gadget.  Next to the name is a
small recessed box with an `A' or `P' in it.  They stand for
`A'nimation or `P'icture loader.

   The `Select Load Module' gadget will be ghosted as soon as you load
a project.

`Select Save Module'

   When clicking on this button gadget, a requester will appear in which
you can select the save module.

   The cycling gadget in the requester will let you switch between
"Picture Savers" or "Animation Savers".

   When hitting the `Save' gadget in the Project Control Panel Window,
MainActor executes the animation/picture saver you have selected for
the source project.

   The name of the current save module is visible in a text gadget
directly under the `Select Save Module' gadget. Next to the name is a
small recessed box with an `A' or `P' in it. They stand for `A'nimation
or `P'icture saver.

   The `Select Save Module' gadget will only be accessable when a
project is loaded.

`The Scrolling Frames/Picture List'

   The scroll list will let you choose the frames or pictures you want
to execute a certain operation on.

   If you have an animation loader for this project window, the scroll
list will show you the numbered frames of the animation along with
their timecodes.

   If you have a picture loader, the scroll list will show you the
names of the pictures you have loaded.

   Just (de)select the frame/picture by clicking on it's text. For
multiple selection do not release the mouse button and move over the
items to be selected. The list will scroll if you come to the top or
bottom border.

   See MainActor Preferences Window, you can select how many items
shall be displayed in the scroll list. You can also select a special
font for it. (The default is Topaz 8 for the font and 8 for the number
of items which shall be visible).

Project Control Panel Window
============================

   This window executes it's functions on the current source Project
Window.

`Load'

   If you have an animation loader selected for the source project, an
requester will appear in which you have to select an animation of the
appropriate type.

   If you have a picture loader selected, the first requester will ask
you about the first picture, after selecting this picture the second
requester will ask you about the last picture.  MainActor will now
alphabetically sort the pictures and load them.  For example, if you
have a picture list:

     Amiga_Pic.00001
     Amiga_Pic.00002
     .
     .
     Amiga_Pic.00155

   and select Amiga_Pic.00055 in the first requester and
Amiga_Pic.00100 in the next, all pictures from Amiga_Pic.00055 to
Amiga_Pic.00100 will be loaded.  The second requester is optional, that
means you can abort it by clicking on `Cancel' if you just want to load
one picture.

   MainActor checks the icon (if there is one) of the project for the
following tooltypes: "Window", "FrameInfo", "NoCaching", "BBlank",
"XOffset", "YOffset", "Repeat". If you saved the project with
MainActor, these tooltypes will restore the settings of the Project
View Settings Window.

   The `Load' gadget is only available if you have not loaded a project
into the source project yet.

`Unload'

   Is the gadget directly under the `Load' gadget. It will unload the
current project of the source project.

   It is only available when you have loaded a project into the source
project.

`Play'

   Is next to the `Load' gadget. It is only available when you have
loaded an animation project into the source project.

   If you play your animation on a screen, there are two routines
available.  MainActor checks automatically if you run an OS Version
lower than Amiga OS 3.0 and will play it the old fashioned way. If you
have OS 3.0 or higher you will profit from the new double buffering
routines.

   The animation will be played according to the settings of the
Project View Settings Window.

   The following keys can be used to control the playing of the
animation:

ESCAPE OR A MOUSEBUTTON
     will abort playing the animation

SPACE
     will stop playing the animation. While the animation is stopped
     you can use the "TAB" key to flip to the next frame.

RETURN
     will enable the timecodes you see in the scroll list of the source
     project and which you can change (these timecodes are default).

THE CURSOR KEYS
     scroll the display, the offset changes will be shown in the
     Project View Settings Windows x and y offset gadgets.

N
M
     If you have activated the `Frame Info' option, you can cycle the
     color of the info text using N and M up and down.

THE FUNCTION KEYS
     are used to set the frame rate, they override the defaults.  You
     can reactivate the defaults by pressing "RETURN".

    F1
          sets the timecode to 1/60 Second (60 fps)

    F2
          sets the timecode to 2/60 Second (30 fps)

    F3
          sets the timecode to 3/60 Second (20 fps)

    F4
          sets the timecode to 4/60 Second (15 fps)

    F5
          sets the timecode to 5/60 Second (12 fps)

    F6
          sets the timecode to 10/60 Second (6 fps)

    F7
          sets the timecode to 20/60 Second (3 fps)

    F8
          sets the timecode to 40/60 Second (1.5 fps)

    F9
          sets the timecode to 60/60 Second (1 fps)

    F10
          sets the timecode to 120/60 Second (0.333 fps)

`Show'

   Is the gadget under `Play'. It will display all the frames/pictures
you have selected in the source project's scroll list.  This gadget is
available for both animation and picture projects.

   The frames/pictures will be shown according to the settings of the
Project View Settings Window.

   The following keys can be used to control the showing of the
pictures:

ESCAPE OR A MOUSEBUTTON
     will abort showing the pictures.

SPACE
     will show the next pictures you have selected.

THE CURSOR KEYS
     scroll the display, the offset changes will be shown in the
     Project View Settings Windows x and y offset gadgets.

`Save'

   If you have an animation saver activated in your source project, it
will ask you about the name of the new animation. Then it will build up
the new animation in the appropriate animation format. It will only
save the frames you have `SELECTED' in the source project's scroll
list. If you just want to convert or resave the animation, you have to
select all the frames in the scroll list.

   If you have a picture saver activated in your source project, a
requester will appear in which you have to select the directory and the
base name of the pictures.

   Example: You have activated an animation loader and a picture saver
and loaded an animation. The animation is called `Example_Anim'. Now
you select the first ten frames of the animation and click on the
`Save' gadget. In the requester, you type `Ram:' for the Directory and
`Example_Pics' for the base name.  The ten pictures will then be saved
as

     Ram:Example_Pics.00001
     Ram:Example_Pics.00002
     .
     .
     Ram:Example_Pics.00010

   This is also valid if you have a picture loader and a picture saver.

   If you have an animation saver, some more requester will appear and
ask you for some specific attributes of the new animation, like
`Palette per Picture' and `Looping Animation'.

The following combinations are possible:

  1. Animation Loader and Animation Saver

  2. Animation Loader and Picture Saver

  3. Picture Loader and Animation Saver

  4. Picture Loader and Picture Saver

   In this way, you can easily convert any picture/animation format
into any picture/animation format.

   If frames or pictures of the source project, which have MainActor
generated sound effects associated to them, are saved, the sound
information for these frames will be saved for usage in the new project.

`Append'

   You can append the frames/pictures you have selected in the source
project to the destination project. The destination project has to be
an animation project.

   The source project's animation saver has to belong to the
destination's loader module (for example the IFF-Anim5 loader and
saver).  The destination project must `NOT' be cached.

   Some animation types have to fulfill some other attributes, for
example the IFF-Anim5 format can only append to non-looping animations.
When you want to append frames to a loop Anim5 animation, just resave it
and select `NO' in the loop animation requester, then append the frames.

   If you want to add a loop to a non-looping animation, just append
two pictures which are identical to the first two, then reload the
animation.

   See The Modules, for more information about the specific attributes
of the modules.

Project View Settings Window
============================

   This window controls the output of the `Play' and `Show' gadgets of
the Project View Settings Window. The values will be set individually
for each project and will be saved with the preferences files.

`Select Display'

   You can choose the view mode for your project with this gadget.
This will override the old value, if you resave the animation/picture,
the new view mode id will be saved.  This gadget will be disabled if
you view your project in the window mode.

`X/Y Offsets'

   With these two integer gadgets, you can select the offsets for your
project. If you scroll a frame (while playing an animation or showing a
picture), the values of the gadgets will immediately be set up to the
new values. These gadgets will only be enabled if the `Center' option
is disabled and you dont use the window mode.

`Display Mode'

   This cycle gadget will let you choose between the screen and window
mode. In the screen mode the animation/pictures will be shown on a
screen (view) of its own.

   In the window mode your project will be shown in a resizeable,
scrollable window on your MainActor screen.

   THIS OPTION IS ONLY AVAILABLE ON SYSTEMS RUNNING OS3.0+.

   The more colors the MainActor screen has available (see System
Preferences Window), the better is the dithering of your frame/picture.
If you show a 256 color picture on a 4 color screen, you will be
disappointed by the result.  The timecodes of the animation will be
ignored, the animation will be displayed as fast as possible.

`Number of Repeats'

   This integer gadget controls how often MainActor will play an
animation.  If it contains for example a "1", MainActor will play it
one time.  Possible values are 1 to 9999.

   This gadget is only enabled if the source project contains an
animation.

`Frame Info'

   This switch (when activated) will give you informations about the
current frame while playing animations, it is only availaible if the
source project contains an animation.

   If playing on a screen you will see the info on the top right edge
of the screen. When you see no info text, use the M and N keys while
playing to cycle the color of the info text up and down.

   When playing in a window, the window's title text will display the
infos for the current frame.

   This gadget is only enabled if the source project contains an
animation.

`Center'

   If you enable the center option, MainActor will automatically center
the display for your project.The x and y offset gadgets will be disabled
but will contain the values for centration. The gadget will be disabled
if you use the window mode.

`BBlank'

   If you enable the BorderBlank feature (BBlank), MainActor/MainView
will set the color of the border of your display to black.

Example:

   You have an 320*200 animation with blue as color 0. Without the
BorderBlank option the whole screen has blue as color 0. If you enable
the BBlank option only your animation (320*200) will have blue as color
0, the border (the rest of the display) will be black.

   The BBlank gadget is only availabe if you view your images in the
screen mode.

Project Information Window
==========================

   This window will supply you with informations about your current
source project.

`Project Information'

   This gadget opens an information window which should give you all
needed information about your current source project.  The window is
opened centered on the visible part of your working screen. It's title
bar shows you which project you are informed about (the actual source
project that is).

Width, Height :
     This line shows you the width and height of your project in pixels.

Number of Pictures/Frames :
     Shows you the number of frames in your animation or the number of
     pictures in your picture list.

Number of Colors :
     Shows you the number of colors of your project.

Special Flags :
     This line shows you special attributes of the project (if there
     are any).  The flags can currently be:

    ---
          for no flags

    HAM
          for HAM pictures or animations

    EHB
          for extra halfbrite images

Size of Project in Bytes :
     Shows you the size of your animation or the total size of all
     pictures in your picture list in bytes.

Supports Chunky Pixels
     This line will only appear if your source project is chunky pixel
     based. Chunky pixel based formats are for example : GIF/FLI/FLC.
     If you dont have a chunky pixel device (like Retina or the
     Picasso-II), decompression time of these formats are higher, as
     they have to be converted to the amiga's bitmap format.  You can
     prove that for yourself through the BitMap/Chunky Pixel Time
     functions.

Animation Text
     This line will only appear if your source project is an animation.
     It informs you if you have a color palette per frame or only one
     color palette per animation and if the animations has a loop or
     not.

Picture/Frame List Gadget
     This gadget (the one under the black line) lists your frames or
     pictures.  You can only select one at a time, the size and
     compression attributes of the currently selected picture are given
     in the two gadgets below.  If you have a looping animation, this
     gadget will contain two more pictures which are not given in the
     `Number of Pictures :' line !  These two pictures represent the
     loop. Some animation formats (like the IFF-AnimBrush loader) need
     only one picture for the loop information.

Size in Bytes
     This gadget shows the size of the currently selected picture or
     frame in bytes.

Comp. Method
     Informs you about the compression method used for the currently
     selected picture. For example "ByteRun" for IFF images or "Delta5"
     for IFF-Anim5 frames. Consider that the first frame of an IFF-AnimX
     animation mostly has an IFF-ByteRun image for the first frame.

`Size Profile'

   This function opens a window and shows you the sizes of the images
in your animation/picture list as a graphical representation.  The
largest picture has the biggest vertical image, the smallest picture
the smallest one.  The graphic is layed out to be 600 pixels in width,
so the horizontal pixel width for every frame is calculated by : 600 /
Number of Pictures.  If there are more than 600 Pictures in your source
project the pixel width will be 1 for every picture and you may have to
scroll with the windows scroll gadgets to see the whole graphic.

`Time Profile'

   This function opens a window and shows you the time needed to
decompress the images in your animation as a graphical representation.
The image which has the slowest decompression time has the biggest
vertical bar, the fastest the smallest one.

The bars can have two different colors:

black
     This indicates that this image could not be decompressed in the
     given timecode. If for example image nr.3 of your animation has a
     timecode of 3/60 of a second, its bar will be black if the
     decompression time is bigger than 3/60. The first frame of your
     animations have mostly black bars, as these images can not be
     stored with delta compression.

blue
     Everything is ok. This image could be decompressed within its
     timecode.

Things you have to consider:

   * If you have black bars, consider that these images will decompress
     fast on fast machines and slow on slow machines. Try to increase
     the timecode of these frames until they have blue bars.

   *  If you want to be sure your animation runs smoothly on an A1200,
     remember to check the color of the bars on an A1200, your current
     machine (A3000 etc.) could be faster.

   *  The Time Profile function will always decompress the animations
     in their native format : Bitmap based animations will be
     decompressed in bitmap mode, chunky animations will be
     decompressed in chunky mode.

   The graphic is layed out to be 600 pixels in width, so the horizontal
pixel width for every frame is calculated by : 600 / Number of frames.
If there are more than 600 frames in your animation the pixel width
will be 1 for every frame and you may have to scroll with the windows
scroll gadgets to see the whole graphic.

   The Time Profile function is only available if your source project
is an animation.

`BitMap Time'

   If you select this gadget MainActor will decompress the whole source
project one time in bitmap format. That means that chunky formats like
FLI will take more time due to the conversion to the amiga's bitmap
format.

   If the source project is an animation, MainActor will decompress the
animation (without the loop frames) one time, if the source project is
a picture list, MainActor will decompress each picture in the list one
time.

   The time needed for decompression is given in the text gadget below
the `BitMap Time' gadget. The time is displayed in seconds.

   Note that the time given for decompression has nothing to do with the
time needed to actually play the animation on a screen. The decomp. time
function will just decompress the frames as quickly as possible and
does not care about time codes or vertical blank interrupts.  It is
therefore quiete accurate.

   It is quiete useful to be able to compare the decompression time of
animations who have different animation formats. Choose the format who
has the best decompression time and compression ratio and suits you
best.

`Chunky Time'

   This gadget will only be enabled if the source projects module format
supports chunky pixels (i.e. FLI/GIF etc.).

   If you select it, MainActor will decompress the whole source project
one time in chunky format.

   If the source project is an animation, MainActor will decompress the
animation (without the loop frames) one time, if the source project is
a picture list, MainActor will decompress each picture in the list one
time.

   The time needed for decompression is given in the text gadget below
the `Chunky Time' gadget. The time is displayed in seconds.

System Preferences Window
=========================

This window handles everything concerning the outer appearance of
MainActor.

`Select Font'

   Choose your font for MainActor. This font will then be used for all
windows, gadgets, menus. Only the list items of the Project Window will
be displayed in a different font, you can select it in the MainActor
Preferences Window.

   The actual font and it's size are displayed beneath the gadget.  The
`Select Font' gadget is not activated when you clone the Workbench
screen.

   OS 2.0 will display the font requester only on the workbench screen
and not on the MainActor screen.

`Select Display'

ONLY AVAILABLE AT OS 2.1 +

   Choose your display mode for your MainActor screen. The current
display mode is displayed beneath the gadget.

   This gadget is only activated when

   * MainActor has a screen of its own

   * You dont clone the Workbench screen

`Use own Screen'

   If enabled, MainActor uses a screen of its own, if not, MainActor
will use the Workbench screen or the actual public screen.

`SHANGHAI Windows'

   If enabled, MainActor uses the SHANGHAI public screen mode, that
means that for example shell windows will automatically pop up on the
MainActor screen.

   This gadget is only activated when you run MainActor on a screen of
its own.

`Screen Size'

   This gadget is only available when you have enabled the `Use own
Screen' gadget.  You can choose MainActor's screen size and it's
overscan mode with this cycle gadget. The screen size of the current
mode is displayed in the two integer gadgets to the right of the
`Screen Size' gadget.  The screen size depends on the screen mode you
selected with the `Select Display' gadget.

   You can select the following screenmodes:

"WorkBench"
     Clones the Workbench screen properties (screen size, overscan
     mode, display mode, font)

"Custom"
     Enter MainActor's screen size in the two integer gadgets to the
     right.

"Standard"
     Use the standard screen size, without overscan ( for Example 640 *
     512) at Pal: HighRes Interlace).

"Text Overscan"
     The normal overscan mode, which the Workbench uses.

"Video Overcan"
     Tries to open as big a screen as possible. Flickers on normal
     displays at the right border.

"Max Overscan"
     Slightly smaller than the Video Overscan mode, but as useless on
     normal displays due to its flicker.

`Palette Size'

   Select the colors of your palette with this gadget. The value left
to the slider gadget shows the current colors available on your
MainActor screen.

   This gadget only makes sense if you display pictures or play
animations in the window mode. More colors == better dithering of your
frames/ pictures. (the window mode is only available under OS 3.0 +).

   This gadget is only activated when

   * MainActor has a screen of its own

   * You dont clone the Workbench screen.

`Use System Preferences'

   If you want to enable the changes you have made to your display just
click on this gadget.

MainActor Preferences Window
============================

   This window lets you choose/enter some special MainActor attributes.

`Select Default Load Module'

   Lets you choose the default load module. Everytime you open a new
project window, the default load module will be the one choosen for
this new project's load module.

`Select Default Save Module'

   Lets you choose the default save module. Everytime you open a new
project window, the default save module will be the one choosen for
this new project's save module.

`Select List Item Font'

   Choose the font for your list items in your Project Window, this
font must have a fixed width, the current font and its size are
displayed to the right of the gadget, the default is topaz.font 8.

`Select Sound Path'

   Select the initial path for your sound objects. This path is then
used by the Choose Sound Object function, integrated in the Sound
Module Requester.

`Number of List Items'

   You can enter how many list items will be displayed in the project
windows with this integer gadget, the default is 8.

`Save Icon'

   If you enable this gadet, MainActor will save an Workbench icon for
every animation/picture you create. You can then view them by double
clicking on their icons. The icons support the same tooltypes as
MainView, see MainView.  The initial settings of the tooltypes clone
the settings of the source project (from which you create the new
animation/picture).

`Use MainActor Preferences'

   Will enable the changes made to the MainActor preferences.

Text Buffer Window
==================

   This window shows and buffers messages for feedback to the user.
You can use the cursor up/down keys to scroll the text one line up/down.
Control+cursor up/down will move to the start/end of the buffer.  You
can also use the window's scrollbar to scroll through the buffer.

   See Text Buffer Menu, for more functions concerning the text buffer.

The Modules
***********

   MainActor has animation and picture modules of which each has load
and save modules. Since Version 1.5, MainActor has also sound modules,
which can be associated to every frame or picture of the source project.

The Animation Modules
=====================

Anim Universal
--------------

   This module examines the animation format and executes the proper
animation module. You should mostly use the universal modules as they
are able to directly redirect the output of the modules to special
hardware (PicassoII,Retina etc.).

Pecularities:

   - The "Append" function will not work if the destination project has
     an Universal loader.

Anim Universal_Merlin
---------------------

   This module examines the animation format and executes the proper
animation module. It redirects the output of the modules directly to
the Merlix board from X-Pert.

Pecularities:

   - Attention : During playback you have to use the digi keys (1 - 0)
     to adjust playback speed, *NOT* the function keys like normal.

   - It is faster to view animations of the bitmap formats (like
     Anim-5/7/8) on the native chipset as these formats have to be
     converted to the picasso's chunky pixel mode.

   - Animations of the chunky formats like FLI/FLC are of course much
     faster on the Merlin than on the native chipset.

   - The frame info, display mode etc. options have of course no
     meaning for this module, the handling of the time codes is however
     correct and you can still stop the animation and flip to the next
     frame like normal.  The digi keys also control the speed of the
     animation.

Anim Universal_PicassoII
------------------------

   This module examines the animation format and executes the proper
animation module. It redirects the output of the modules directly to
the Picasso-II board from VillageTronic.

Pecularities:

   - It is faster to view animations of the bitmap formats (like
     Anim-5/7/8) on the native chipset as these formats have to be
     converted to the picasso's chunky pixel mode.

   - Animations of the chunky formats like FLI/FLC are of course much
     faster on the Picasso-II than on the native chipset.

   - The frame info, display mode etc. options have of course no
     meaning for this module, the handling of the time codes is however
     correct and you can still stop the animation and flip to the next
     frame like normal.  The function keys also control the speed of
     the animation.

Anim Universal_Retina
---------------------

   This module examines the animation format and executes the proper
animation module. It redirects the output of the modules directly to
the Retina board from MacroSystems.

Pecularities:

   - It is faster to view animations of the bitmap formats (like
     Anim-5/7/8) on the native chipset as these formats have to be
     converted to the retina's chunky pixel mode.

   - Animations of the chunky formats like FLI/FLC are of course much
     faster on the Retina than on the native chipset.

   - The frame info, display mode etc. options have of course no
     meaning for this module, the handling of the time codes is however
     correct and you can still stop the animation and flip to the next
     frame like normal.  The function keys also control the speed of
     the animation.

AVI
---

   This is the `Video for Windows' format from MicroSoft. It is chunky
pixel based and mostly has audio streams associated with the animation.

Pecularities:

   - MainActor supports CRAM and BI_RGB codecs, MainActor is also
     currently limited to 8 bit animations.

   - Audio streams are ignored, it is not yet possible to play them
     within MainActor.

   - It is not possible to influence the timecodes of AVI animations.

DL
--

   DL animations are chunky pixel based and dont support data crunching.
MainActor supports type 1 and type 2 DL animations. Type 1 animations
are fixed to an resolution of 160*100, type 2 animations can contain
resolutions of 320*200, 160*100 and 80*50. The image depth is fixed to
8 bit.

Pecularities:

   - The images of DL animations are stored as raw data, therefore no
     loop frames are needed.

   - MainActor plays DL animations in a linear fashion, the playlist at
     the end of DL animations is ignored.

FLI
---

   FLI animations are created by Animator Pro, an animation program
only available on pc computers.  It is quiete old, it can only contain
320*200 animations and its depth is fixed to 8 bit. The successor of
FLI is FLC.  I have included the FLI modules because a lot of animations
(especially on CD-ROM) are in this format.

Pecularities:

   - FLI animations always contain a loop, so it is not possible to
     append to FLI animations. The FLI saver is therefore not able to
     append to FLI animations.

   - FLI animations have only one (global) timecode, it applies to all
     frames of the animation. The `Set Timecode' function will therefore
     only be able to set the global timecode and will not set a timecode
     per frame as usual.

   - Because of the missing timecode per frame feature, a lot of
     animations contain 'Dummy' frames. This are empty frames who shall
     time the animations.  N Dummy frames will for example delay the
     playback of the animation for n * global timecode. You can
     recognice Dummy frames in the `Project Information Window', they
     have a bytesize of 0 and a compression type of Dummy.

FLC
---

   FLC animations are created by Animator Pro, an animation program
only available on pc computers.  FLC is the successor of FLI. FLC
animations are not fixed to 320*200 resolutions like FLI and have
faster DELTA chunks.

Pecularities:

   - FLC animations always contain a loop, so it is not possible to
     append to FLC animations. The FLC saver is therefore not able to
     append to FLC animations.

   - FLC animations have only one (global) timecode, it applies to all
     frames of the animation. The `Set Timecode' function will therefore
     only be able to set the global timecode and will not set a timecode
     per frame as usual.

   - Because of the missing timecode per frame feature, a lot of
     animations contain 'Dummy' frames. This are empty frames who shall
     time the animations.  N Dummy frames will for example delay the
     playback of the animation for n * global timecode. You can
     recognice Dummy frames in the `Project Information Window', they
     have a bytesize of 0 and a compression type of Dummy.

IFF-Anim3
---------

   The opcode 3 animation format is very old. I did find some old
Tobias Richter animations which used this format and decided to support
it.

Pecularities:

   - Some odd sized animations can cause trouble on AGA machines as
     opcode3 animations assume that the bitmap width should only be
     divideable by 8. AGA machines in higher fetchmodes need bitmaps
     which are divideable by 32/64, if you experience this, your only
     chance is to avoid higher fetchmodes by selecting a LowRes display.

IFF-Anim5
---------

   The IFF-Anim5 specification was created by `Electronic Arts'.

   It is a "good at compressing but slow at playing" format.

Pecularities:

   - You cannot append to looping animations. You can bypass this by
     resaving it to a non-looping animation and then appending the
     frames.  You can make a non-looping animation to a looping
     animation by appending two frames which are identical to the first
     two (you have to reload the animation to make the loop appear).

   - There are some bad animation packers out there, which do not save
     the first ANHD chunk before the BODY chunk. In this case MainActor
     cannot insert the timecode for the first frame and will give you
     an error message (the other timecodes will be set).  If you want
     to time the first frame, just resave the animation with MainActor
     to avoid this problem.

IFF-Anim7
---------

   The IFF-Anim7 specification was created by `Wolfgang Hofer'.

   It is a quite good compromise between speed and animation size.  The
IFF-Anim7_16 modules use words (16 bits), the Anim-7_32 modules
longwords (32 bits) for compression.  Therefore the 16 bit variant
compresses slightly better than the 32 bit modules, but playback is
slower.

   The IFF-Anim7_32 modules are, in my opinion, the best choice for
timeable, fast animations.

Pecularities:

   - You cannot append to looping animations. You can bypass this by
     resaving it to a non-looping animation and then appending the
     frames.  You can make a non-looping animation to a looping
     animation by appending two frames which are identical to the first
     two (you have to reload the animation to make the loop appear).

   - There are some bad animation packers out there, which do not save
     the first ANHD chunk before the BODY chunk. In this case MainActor
     cannot insert the timecode for the first frame and will give you
     an error message (the other timecodes will be set).  If you want
     to time the first frame, just resave the animation with MainActor
     to avoid this problem.

   - The modules do NOT support animations with a DLTA chunk instead of
     a BODY chunk as the first frame.

   - Make sure that the width of the animation is divideable by 16 for
     IFF-Anim7_16 animations or 32 for IFF-Anim7_32 anims.  Otherwise
     you will see a small area to the right of the screen which will
     not be updated correctly.

IFF-Anim8
---------

   The IFF-Anim8 specification was created by Joe Porkka of `ASDG'.

Pecularities:

   - You cannot append to looping animations. You can bypass this by
     resaving it to a non-looping animation and then appending the
     frames.  You can make a non-looping animation to a looping
     animation by appending two frames which are identical to the first
     two (you have to reload the animation to make the loop appear).

   - There are some bad animation packers out there, which do not save
     the first ANHD chunk before the BODY chunk. In this case MainActor
     cannot insert the timecode for the first frame and will give you
     an error message (the other timecodes will be set).  If you want
     to time the first frame, just resave the animation with MainActor
     to avoid this problem.

   - The modules do NOT support animations with a DLTA chunk instead of
     a BODY chunk as the first frame.

   - Make sure that the width of the animation is divideable by 16 for
     IFF-Anim8_16 animations or 32 for IFF-Anim8_32 anims.  Otherwise
     you will see a small area to the right of the screen which will
     not be updated correctly.

IFF-AnimBrush
-------------

   The IFF-AnimBrush specification was created by `Dan Silva' of
Electronic Arts.  Anim Brushes are used/saved by DPaint.

Pecularities:

   - There is no save module at the moment.

IFF-AnimJ
---------

   The IFF-AnimJ (.movie) format was created by `Eric Graham', who also
made the famous Juggler demo. Which in fact is an IFF-AnimJ animation.

Pecularities:

   - This animation format is quite old and is supported for nostalgic
     reasons only.

Picasso
-------

   This animation format was especially created for the Picasso graphic
board from VillageTronic. The modules can handle resolutions of 8/16/24
bit.  Picasso animations are only recognized by the
`Universal_PicassoII' universal module.

Pecularities:

   - The functionality of the Picasso modules are the same as that of
     the IFF-AnimX.  That means that you can add a loop to animations,
     select if you want to have a color palette per frame (of course
     only in 8 bit mode), set the timecode for each frame etc.

   - If you want to create a 24-Bit animation you will be asked if the
     resolution shall be dithered down to 16-Bit. 16-Bit is faster than
     24-Bit and offers nearly the same image quality so you should give
     it a try.

Real3D
------

   The Real3D animation format is used by Real3D, a commercial raytracer
available for the Amiga.

Pecularities:

   - The animation format only allows one color palette per animation,
     animations always contain a loop.

   - No compression is used on the delta data, which allows fast
     playback but results in bigger animations.

The Picture Modules
===================

Picture Universal
-----------------

   This module examines the picture format and executes the proper
picture module. You should always use the universal modules.

Picture Universal_Merlin
------------------------

   This module examines the picture format and executes the proper
picture module. It redirects the output of the modules directly to the
Merlin board from X-Pert.

Pecularities:

   - The frame info, display mode etc. options have of course no
     meaning for this module.  The only options you have is to press
     space for the next picture or escape to abort viewing.

Picture Universal_PicassoII
---------------------------

   This module examines the picture format and executes the proper
picture module. It redirects the output of the modules directly to the
Picasso-II board from VillageTronic.

Pecularities:

   - The frame info, display mode etc. options have of course no
     meaning for this module.  The only options you have is to press
     space for the next picture or escape to abort viewing.

Picture Universal_Retina
------------------------

   This module examines the picture format and executes the proper
picture module. It redirects the output of the modules directly to the
Retina board from MacroSystems.

Pecularities:

   - The frame info, display mode etc. options have of course no
     meaning for this module.  The only options you have is to press
     space for the next picture or escape to abort viewing.

GIF
---

   A widely spread image format, designed by `CompuServe'. Revisions
87A and 89A are supported.

Pecularities:

   - This format is chunky pixel based, so it will be fastest if viewed
     through the universal modules which support chunky pixel devices
     (like Universal_PicassoII etc.), otherwise the module will convert
     the image to your native chipsets bitplane mode, which will take
     somewhat longer.

   - No saver module yet.

IFF
---

   This is the standard Interchangeable File Format (IFF), the
specification was designed by `Electronic Arts'.

Pecularities:

   - Starting from MainActor Version 1.02, the IFF modules can load/save
     IFF24 (24-Bit) pictures.

PCX
---

   PCX is a picture format heavily used on PC's, it was designed by
`ZSoft'.

Pecularities:

   - No save module yet

Workbench-Icon
--------------

   These modules support the Workbench icons.

Pecularities:

   - The save module will append ".info" to the save name.

The Sound Modules
=================

IFF-Sample
----------

   The IFF-Sample module is able to play back samples of any size.

Pecularities:

   - Stereo samples are not supported, you can however play mono samples
     in stereo mode.

   - The IFF-Sample module does not support fibonacci compressed
     samples.

Sound Support
*************

   MainActor's sound support is module independent. That means that you
can use the same sound information file on every animation or picture
format MainActor supports.

   If you use the `Sound Module Requester', available through the `Set
Sound' function of the Miscellaneous Menu, to apply sound to a loaded
project, MainActor will write an information file to your harddisk
which has the name of the source project + ".snd".  The sound
information for the supplied example animation "Examples/CountAnim7_32"
has for example the name "Examples/CountAnim7_32.snd".

   Now imagine you have a 200 frame `FLI' animation with the name
"Test" and want to use the same sound information for it. To do this,
just rename the "CountAnim7_32.snd" file to "Test.snd". It does not
matter if "Test" has more or less frames than "CountAnim7_32":
MainActor/MainView will check if the frames for which sound information
is supplied exist within the provided animation.

   The same, of course, applies  to single pictures or picture lists.
It does not matter if the `.snd' file points to an animation or picture
(list).

   Remember that the sound objects will have to be cached in chip-ram,
MainActor does not yet support to play the objects directly from hd.
The maximum amount of chip-ram you can have is 2mb, so be careful which
and how many samples you use inside your animation.

   For further information have a look into the `Set Sound' function or
into the `Tutorial'.

The Arexx Interface
*******************

   MainActor's arexx port name is `MAINACTOR'.

Format:

<>
     Parameters in these angle brackets have to be supplied

[]
     Parameters in square brackets are optional

|
     Vertical bars mean OR and are used to seperate options of which
     you can choose one : [ON | OFF]

   The result variable contains the result of the operation, it's
possible contents are listed in the command reference.

   Look at the `MainActor:rexx' directory for examples. Note that
MainActor does not support blanks in filenames, which are arexx
arguments.

The arexx commands integrated in MainActor 1.5 are:

Append
======

`Format:'

   Appends the selected frames/pictures of the source project to the
destination project.

result: -

DeSelectAll
===========

`Format:' DeSelectAll

   Deselects all frames/pictures in the source project.

result: -

DeSelectRange
=============

`Format:' DeSelectRange <start> <stop>

   Will deselect all frames/pictures in the source project from the
integer value `start' to `stop'.

result: -

DeSelectRangeRequest
====================

`Format:' DeSelectRangeRequest

   The DeSelectRange requester will appear, letting you choose the
frames or pictures to deselect.

result: -

GetSPInfo
=========

`Format:' GetSPInfo

   Returns information about the current source project:

   The width of the source project, followed by it's height, followed
by the amount of colors (`HAM6',`HAM8',`EHB' will be given back
literally for AdPro compatibility), followed by the number of
frames/pictures in your project, followed by `CACHING=NO' or
`CACHING=YES' depending if you have caching en/disabled, followed by
`LOOP=YES' or `LOOP=NO' depending on the loop status and at last
`CPF=YES' or `CPF=NO' depending on your color per frame status.

   Picture lists have `LOOP' disabled and `CPF' enabled.

result: width height colors #ofpics caching loop cpf

`Examples':

   result=320 256 HAM6 220 CACHING=YES LOOP=YES CPF=NO

   result=320 256 16 10 CACHING=YES LOOP=YES CPF=YES

GetSPLoader
===========

`Format:' GetSPLoader

   Returns two arguments, the first is `ANIM' or `PIC' depending of the
load module type of the source project.  The second argument is the
name of the module itself.

result: ModuleType ModuleName

GetSPName
=========

`Format:' GetSPName

   If the source project has an animation loaded, it returns the full
animation name with path, else it returns two arguments, the first is
the name of the first picture with full path, the second is the name of
the last picture without it's path.

result: Name of animation or name of first and last picture.

GetSPSaver
==========

`Format:' GetSPSaver

   Returns two arguments, the first is `ANIM' or `PIC' depending of the
save module type of the source project.  The second argument is the
name of the module itself.

result: ModuleType ModuleName

Invert
======

`Format:' Invert

   Ths function inverts the selection status of the items in the source
project. All selected items will become deselected and all deselected
items will become selected.

result: -

LoadProject
===========

`Format:' LoadProject <Name1> [Name2]

   LoadProject will load an animation or picture list, according to the
type of the load module of the source project.

   `Name1' is the name of the animation or the name of the first picture
of the picture list.

   `Name2' is only needed if you want to load a picture list, it is then
the name of the last picture.

`Examples':

   LoadProject Graphics:CountAnim.00001 Graphics:CountAnim.00010

   LoadProject Graphics:CountAnim.00001 CountAnim.00010

   LoadProject Graphics:Test/mandel7_32

result:-

OpenNewProject
==============

`Format:' OpenNewProject [CACHING]

   Opens a new project window (up to five).  If you supply the
`CACHING' parameter, the project window will have caching enabled,
otherwise it will be disabled.

result: -

PlayProject
===========

`Format:' PlayProject

   Plays the animation contained in the source project, will fail if
the source project is a picture list.

result: -

PrintTxt
========

`Format:' PrintTxt <text>

   Displays `text' in the Text Buffer Window.

result: -

PrintAndStoreTxt
================

`Format:' PrintAndStoreTxt <text>

   Displays and buffers `text' in the Text Buffer Window.

result: -

Quit
====

`Format:' Quit

   Closes all projects and quits MainActor.

result: -

RequestFile
===========

`Format:' RequestFile <text>

   This command pops up an ASL-file requester, `text' will be displayed
in the requester's title bar.

`Example:'

   RequestFile "Select File Name"

result: full path of selected file

RequestInteger
==============

`Format:' RequestInteger <InitValue> <text>

   This command pops up an integer requester, `text' will be displayed
above the integer value which was initialized with `InitValue'.

`Example:'

   RequestInteger 640 "Enter new Width"

result: integer value

RequestSaveFile
===============

`Format:' RequestSaveFile <text>

   This command pops up an ASL-savefile requester, `text' will be
displayed in the requesters title bar.

`Example:'

   RequestSaveFile "Select Save File Name"

result: full path of selected file

Save
====

`Format:' Save <Name> [CPF=YES|NO] [LOOP=YES|NO]

   An animation saver will save the selected frames into a new animation
under the name you put in the `Name' parameter. `CPF' decides wether
you want a color palette per frame or not, `LOOP' decides if you want
to have a looping animation. `LOOP' and `CPF' overrule the normal
behaviour, if you don't supply them, everything will be saved as though
you had activated the `Save' gadget.

   If you have a picture saver, `Name' is the base name for the
pictures, `LOOP' and `CPF' have, in this case, no meaning.

result: -

ScreenToBack
============

`Format:' ScreenToBack

   Flips the MainActor screen to the back.

result: -

ScreenToFront
=============

`Format:' ScreenToFront

   Flips the MainActor screen to the front.

result: -

SelectAll
=========

`Format:' SelectAll

   Selects all frames/pictures in the source project.

result: -

SelectRange
===========

`Format:' SelectRange <start> <stop>

   Will select all frames/pictures in the source project from the
integer value `start' to `stop'.

result: -

SelectRangeRequest
==================

`Format:' SelectRangeRequest

   The SelectRange requester will appear, letting you choose the frames
or pictures to select.

result: -

ShowPictures
============

`Format:' ShowPictures

   Shows the selected pictures/frames of the source project.

result: -

SetSPLoader
===========

`Format:' SetSPLoader <ModuleType> <ModuleName>

   Sets the load module of the source project to the module type
`ModuleType' with the module name `ModuleName'.

`EXAMPLES:'

   SetSPLoader PIC IFF

   SetSPLoader ANIM IFF-Anim5

result: -

SetSPSaver
==========

`Format:' SetSPSaver <ModuleType> <ModuleName>

   Sets the save module of the source project to the module type
`ModuleType' with the module name `ModuleName'.

`EXAMPLES:'

   SetSPSaver PIC IFF

   SetSPSaver ANIM IFF-Anim5

result: -

SetTimecode
===========

`Format:' SetTimecode <Timecode>

   Sets `Timecode' (a value from 1 to 999) to the selected frames of
the source project.

result: -

SwapDeActivatedToSource
=======================

`Format:' SwapDeActivatedToSource

   Flips the first deactivated project to the source and the source
project to the destination project.

result: -

SwapProjects
============

`Format:' SwapProjects

   Flips the destination project to the source and the source project
to the destination project.

result: -

UnloadProject
=============

`Format:' UnloadProject

   Unloads the current project of the source project.

result: -

Version
=======

`Format:' Version

   Will return the actual version string of MainActor.

result: MainActor xx.xx (xx.xx.xx)

WBToFront
=========

`Format:' WBToFront

   Flips the Workbench screen to the front.

result: -

MainView
********

   MainView is MainActor's external player. It can display all
animations/pictures for which MainActor has the proper load modules.

   The key commands while playing animations or showing pictures are
the same as if you would view them directly with MainActor.  That is
the reason for not listing them here again, have a look at the Project
Control Panel Window under `Play' and `Show'.

   If MainActor saved an icon for the animations/pictures to view,
MainView will take the view settings from this icon (overruling its own
settings)!  You can change this behaviour through the `IgnoreIcons'
option.

   MainView will use MainActors center option (which centers the
display of your animations or pictures) by default. If you specify an X
or Y Offset the center option will be disabled and the specified
offsets will be used instead.

   You can start MainView from the workbench or form the cli.

`Starting MainView from the Workbench'

   If you start MainView from the Workbench (per icon), you can select
the file(s) to view in an ASL-requester. For multi selecting just press
one of the shift keys and select the files with the mouse. (Starting
from OS 2.1+)

MainView supports the following tooltypes:

"Window"
     This tooltype enables the window mode, all animations or pictures
     will be displayed in a window on the current public screen.  It is
     disabled by default.

"FrameInfo"
     FrameInfo enables the FrameInfo mode. It is disabled by default.

"NoCaching"
     Disables caching. With caching disabled MainView plays direct from
     the harddisk (or whatever). This allows you to play big animations
     even if you have not much ram.  It is disabled by default.

"IgnoreIcons"
     Ignores the icons of the animations/pictures It is disabled by
     default.

"BBlank"
     Enables the BBlank option. It is disabled by default.

"XOffset=<Value>"
     You can directly set the start x offset. 0 is the left border.  If
     you specify an XOffset centration will be disabled !

"YOffset=<Value>"
     You can directly set the initial y offset. 0 is the top border.
     If you specify an YOffset centration will be disabled !

"Repeat=<Value>"
     Repeats the animation <Value> times.  For example `Repeat=1' would
     play the animation one time.  Defaults to 100.

"Directory=<Path>"
     This is the initial directory for the ASL-requester.

"Anim_Module=<Module>"
     Chooses the default load module for animations.  Default is the
     `Universal' module.

"Pic_Module=<Module>"
     Chooses the default load module for pictures.  Default is the
     `Universal' module.  If you want to view all pictures for example
     on the Picasso-II gfx board, choose the `Universal_PicassoII'
     module.

`Starting MainView from the cli'

   Starting MainView from the CLI will give you enhanced functionality.
You can, for example, define patterns for animations or picture lists.

   Usage is : MainView [-<options>] <file>

   You can enter as many files as you like.

MainView supports these options :

     -w           : enables the window mode
     -fi          : enables the frameinfo option
     -nc          : turns caching off
     -i           : ignores the icons for the animations/pictures
     -bb          : enables the BorderBlank (BBlank) option
     -xvalue      : value describes the initial x offset
     -yvalue      : the same for the y offset.
     -rvalue      : value describes how often the animation
                    should be repeated
     -amodule     : where module is the default animation loader
                    for example `-aUniversal' selects the universal
                    loader (default).
     -pmodule     : where module is the default picture loader
                    for example `-aUniversal' selects the universal
                    loader (default).
                    If you want to remap your pictures to the
                    Picasso-II board enter `-pUniversal_PicassoII'

Examples:

`MainView -nc -r1 Graphics:Pics/#? Animation/#?8_32' will show all
files in the Graphics:Pics/ directory as well as all files in the
Animation/ directory which end with '8_32' and all animations will be
directly played from the harddisk (one time).

`MainView -pUniversal_PicassoII Graphics:#?_24Bit' will display all
pictures which names end with '_24Bit' on the Picasso-II board.

Tutorial
********

   This tutorial will try to (quickly) explain the tasks you can
perform with MainActor.  It is just meant to give you the idea behind
MainActor, you still have to read all of the documentation to get the
most out of MainActor.

`This tutorial will tell you how to'

Load Animations
===============

   You need an unused project to load an animation into MainActor.
Select the `Select Load Module' gadget of the Project Window and select
the proper animation format (if you, for example, want to load an
IFF-Anim5 animation, select the IFF-Anim5 loader or the Universal
loader).  If you want to cache the animation (buffer the animation in
memory), enable the `Caching' gadget. Now select the `Load' gadget of
the Project Control Panel Window and select the animation in the opening
ASL-requester. MainActor will now examine the animation and load it
into memory (if caching is enabled).  After that, the frames of the
animation are listed in the scroll list area of the project window,
also all gadgets (except the `Load' and perhaps the `Append' gadget) of
the Project Control Panel Window are now enabled.

Load Picture(s)
===============

   You need an unused project to load a picture or a picture list into
MainActor.  Select the `Select Load Module' gadget of the projects
window and select the proper picture format (if you, for example, want
to load an IFF picture, select the IFF loader).  If you want to cache
the picture(s) (buffer the picture(s) in memory), enable the `Caching'
gadget. Now select the `Load' gadget of the Project Control Panel
Window and select the first picture of the picture list in the opening
ASL-requester. If you want to load only one picture, you can cancel the
second requester, otherwise select the last picture of the picture list
in the second requester.  MainActor will now load the selected
picture(s) and buffer them into memory (if caching is enabled).  After
that, the picture(s) are listed in the scroll list area of the project
window, also all gadgets (except the `Load' and `Play' and perhaps the
`Append' gadgets) of the Project Control Panel Window are now enabled.

Play Animations
===============

   You have to load an animation first.  Just click on the `Play'
gadget of the Project Control Panel Window.  For further details have a
look into the documentation.

Show Pictures
=============

   You have to load an animation or a picture list first.  Select the
pictures you want to show in the source project's list view gadget,
after that simply press the `Show' gadget of the Project Control Panel
Window.  For further details have a look into the documentation.

Create/Convert Animations
=========================

   You have to load an animation or a picture list first.  Select the
pictures which should be included in the new animation in the source
projects list view gadget. After that select the `Select Save Module'
gadget and select the proper animation format.  Now click on the `Save'
gadget of the Project Control Panel Window and enter the name of the
new animation.  MainActor will then create the animation, you may have
to answer some requesters (looping or non looping animation and so on).
For further details have a look into the documentation.

Save Pictures From Animations
=============================

   The procedure is exactly the same as before, just select a picture
save module instead of an animation module.  For further details have a
look into the documentation.

Convert Picture Formats
=======================

   The procedure is exactly the same as before, just load a picture or a
picture list and select another picture format's save module.

Append To Animations
====================

   Load an animation or picture list into the source project and an
animation into the destination project.  The `Append' gadget of the
Project Control Panel Window should now be enabled. Select the pictures
you want to append (to the destination project) in the source project.
After that select the `Append' gadget, MainActor will now append the
selected pictures of the source project to the animation in the
destination project.  For further details have a look into the
documentation.

Time Animations
===============

   Load an animation and select the pictures you want to give a new
timecode.  Now select the `Select Timecode' item in the Miscellaneous
Menu and enter the new timecode into the integer gadget.  MainActor
will now write the new timecodes to the animation, you can check the
new timecodes by playing the animation.

Associate Sound Effects
=======================

   Load an animation or picture (list) and select the `Set Sound'
function of the Miscellaneous Menu.

   Choose the `Add Sound' gadget and select the picture for the sound
effect with the `Choose Frame' gadget, select the sound module type
with the `Choose Sound Module' gadget and choose the effect file itself
trough the `Choose Sound Object' gadget.

   If you want to test the sound effect, just press on the `Test'
gadget.

   Now click on `Ok' and play the animation.

   Load the supplied "CountAnim7_32" animation in the "Examples"
directory as example how to use the `Sound Module Requester'.

   For further information have a look at the `Set Sound' function and
at the Sound Support chapter.

Execute Arexx Scripts
=====================

   You can directly execute arexx scripts by selecting the `Start Arexx
Script' item in the Arexx Menu and selecting the arexx scripts.  You
can map arexx scripts to the function keys through the `Install Arexx
Scripts' item (again in the Arexx Menu). You can really speed up your
work by using them, take a look at their header to get a short
description of what they do.

Show Pics/Anims On Graphic Boards
=================================

   Just use the proper universal module (like `Universal_PicassoII'),
they remap the output of every module to the proper gxf board.  Note
that it is faster to view animations of the bitmap formats (like
Anim-5/7/8) on the native chipset as these formats have to be converted
to chunky pixel modes. Chunky pixel animation formats like FLI/FLC are
on the other hand faster on the graphic boards as on the native chip
set.

Tips and Tricks
***************

   * Remember that the Amigas native display is bitmap based !  Chunky
     pixel based animation formats like FLI/FLC/DL or the GIF picture
     format have to be converted to bitmaps ! This is slow !  You have
     to have a chunky pixel based display (like the Picasso-II or
     Retina gfx cards) to be able to view them full speed (use the
     Universal_#? loader). On the other hand bitmap based formats like
     IFF-Anim5/7/8 are slow on these cards as they have to be converted
     from bitmap to chunky pixel.

   * Always try to create animations with only one color palette per
     animation (CPA). They are faster than animations with color
     palettes per frame (CPF), especially if you have deeper (8-bit)
     displays.  CPF animations also have slower playback rates from hd.

   * Remember that FLI and FLC animations are always identified as CPF
     animations, even if they dont have a color palette per every
     frame. Try to convert them to an CPA animation first if you are
     not sure if the color palette changes inside of the animation.

   * IF you use the IFF-Anim7_16 or IFF-Anim8_16 animation savers,
     remember that the source frames should have a width which is
     divideable by 16 !  The same for the IFF-Anim7_32 and IFF-Anim8_32
     savers which need a width which is divideable by 32. If you ignore
     this, you will get a small area to the right of your screen which
     is not updated correctly.

   * The preferences files are *SNAPSHOTS* of your current settup of
     MainActor, that means that if you save a prefs file and start
     MainActor later with it you will have exactly the same environment
     as before.

Registration
************

   If you want to register MainActor you can choose between two
different packages :

Package One
     The registration fee for this package is `$50' (85 german marks)
     or any aquivalent sum in your local currency.

     What you get for this package:

        * A packet consisting of:

             - A TeX set, printed handbook

             - The latest version of MainActor

             - A keyfile

        * Two free disk based updates (you have to contact me for your
          free updates)

        * Additional updates are $20 (30 DM) with and $10 (15 DM)
          without a new handbook

Package Two
     The registration fee for this package is `$25' (40 german marks)
     or any aquivalent sum in your local currency.

     What you get for this package:

        * A packet consisting of:

             - The latest version of MainActor

             - A keyfile

        * Additional updates are $20 (30 DM) with and $10 (15 DM)
          without a new handbook

You can send cash or international money order to

     MainConcept, GbR Moenig/Zabel
     Im Johannistal 36
     52064 Aachen
     Germany
     Tel : (49) - 241- 707032
     FAX : (49) - 241- 707839
     BBS : (49) - 241- 707138

If you prefer direct transfer:

     MainConcept, GbR Moenig/Zabel
     NO. 20020251
     Sparkasse Aachen
     BLZ 390 500 00 (Germany)
     Usage: MainActor
     PLEASE INCLUDE YOUR NAME ON THE TRANSFER ORDER !!

If you transfer money to our account from the outside of europe, the
price for MainActor is $55 or $30, bank cost included.

If you have questions/suggestions feel free to contact me through email:

     Internet    [e-mail]
     Internet    [e-mail]
     ADSP        [e-mail]

The Future
**********

Future enhancements which are on my list:

   - Support for EGS and Graffity (oMniBus) will be out soon.

   - An animation loader/saver for VRLIs Vista Pro format (VANIM).

   - MPEG and JPEG loader.

   - More picture and animation modules (in general).

   - Far more arexx scripts (sinus (de)-acceleration scripts and more).

   - German documentation.

   - Special modules for commercial hardware (digitizers,gfx boards ..)
     are possible.

   - The modules are designed to be expandable, that means that future
     expansions like image processing modules or multimedia effect
     modules are not only possible but were planned from day one of the
     development.

Your suggestions are always welcome.

Credits
*******

This package was developed by usage of the following products:

   - Dice, from Obvious Implementation Corp

   - Devpac 3.04, from HiSoft

   - WShell2.0 and Arexx, from Wishful Thinking Corp

   - TurboText from Oxxi

Thanks for producing high quality software.

Special thanks to:

   - Stefan Becker for his Amiga knowledge, without him this project
     would not have been become possible

   - All GAMMA and BETA testers

   - Norbert Bogenrieder for the icons

   - Thanks to Marc Podlipec for descriptions of some of the supported
     animation formats

   - All registered users for their support and trust in my work

Index
*****



 Amiga                                  What is MainActor ?
 Anim Universal                         Anim Universal
 Anim Universal_Merlin                  Anim Universal_Merlin
 Anim Universal_PicasssoII              Anim Universal_PicassoII
 Anim Universal_Retina                  Anim Universal_Retina
 Animator Pro                           FLC
 Animator Pro                           FLI
 Append                                 Append
 Append To Animations                   Append To Animations
 Arexx Menu                             Arexx Menu
 ASDG                                   IFF-Anim8
 Associate Sound Effects                Associate Sound Effects
 AVI                                    AVI
 CompuServe                             GIF
 Convert Picture Formats                Convert Picture Formats
 Create/Convert Animations              Create-Convert Animations
 Credits                                Credits
 Dan Silva                              IFF-AnimBrush
 DeSelectAll                            DeSelectAll
 DeSelectRange                          DeSelectRange
 DeSelectRangeRequest                   DeSelectRangeRequest
 DL                                     DL
 Electronic Arts                        IFF-Anim5
 Electronic Arts                        IFF
 Eric Graham                            IFF-AnimJ
 Execute Arexx Scripts                  Execute Arexx Scripts
 Features                               Features
 FLC                                    FLC
 FLI                                    FLI
 GetSPInfo                              GetSPInfo
 GetSPLoader                            GetSPLoader
 GetSPName                              GetSPName
 GetSPSaver                             GetSPSaver
 GIF                                    GIF
 IFF                                    IFF
 IFF-Anim3                              IFF-Anim3
 IFF-Anim5                              IFF-Anim5
 IFF-Anim7                              IFF-Anim7
 IFF-Anim8                              IFF-Anim8
 IFF-AnimBrush                          IFF-AnimBrush
 IFF-AnimJ                              IFF-AnimJ
 IFF-Sample                             IFF-Sample
 Installation                           Installation
 Introduction                           Introduction
 Invert                                 Invert
 Load Animations                        Load Animations
 Load Picture(s)                        Load Picture(s)
 LoadProject                            LoadProject
 MacroSystems                           Anim Universal_Retina
 MainActor Preferences Window           MainActor Preferences Window
 MainView                               MainView
 MicroSoft                              AVI
 Miscellaneous Menu                     Miscellaneous Menu
 New features in v1.1                   New features in v1.1
 New features in v1.2                   New features in v1.2
 New features in v1.5                   New features in v1.5
 OpenNewProject                         OpenNewProject
 OS 3.0                                 Project Control Panel Window
 PCX                                    PCX
 Picasso                                Picasso
 Picture Universal                      Picture Universal
 Picture Universal_Merlin               Picture Universal_Merlin
 Picture Universal_PicassoII            Picture Universal_PicassoII
 Picture Universal_Retina               Picture Universal_Retina
 Play Animations                        Play Animations
 PlayProject                            PlayProject
 PrintAndStoreTxt                       PrintAndStoreTxt
 PrintTxt                               PrintTxt
 Project Control Panel Window           Project Control Panel Window
 Project Information Window             Project Information Window
 Project Menu                           Project Menu
 Project View Settings Window           Project View Settings Window
 Project Window                         Project Window
 Quit                                   Quit
 Real3D                                 Real3D
 Registration                           Registration
 RequestFile                            RequestFile
 RequestInteger                         RequestInteger
 RequestSaveFile                        RequestSaveFile
 Save                                   Save
 Save Pictures From Animations          Save Pictures From Animations
 ScreenToBack                           ScreenToBack
 ScreenToFront                          ScreenToFront
 SelectAll                              SelectAll
 Selection Menu                         Selection Menu
 SelectRange                            SelectRange
 SelectRangeRequest                     SelectRangeRequest
 SetSPLoader                            SetSPLoader
 SetSPSaver                             SetSPSaver
 SetTimecode                            SetTimecode
 Show Pics/Anims On Graphic Boards      Show Pics-Anims On Graphic Boards
 Show Pictures                          Show Pictures
 ShowPictures                           ShowPictures
 Sound Support                          Sound Support
 SwapDeActivatedToSource                SwapDeActivatedToSource
 SwapProjects                           SwapProjects
 System Preferences Window              System Preferences Window
 Text Buffer Menu                       Text Buffer Menu
 Text Buffer Window                     Text Buffer Window
 The Animation Modules                  The Animation Modules
 The Arexx Interface                    The Arexx Interface
 The Future                             The Future
 The Menus                              The Menus
 The Modules                            The Modules
 The Picture Modules                    The Picture Modules
 The Sound Modules                      The Sound Modules
 The Windows                            The Windows
 Time Animations                        Time Animations
 Tips and Tricks                        Tips and Tricks
 Tutorial                               Tutorial
 UnloadProject                          UnloadProject
 Version                                Version
 VillageTronic                          Anim Universal_PicassoII
 Warm Up                                Disclaimer
 WBToFront                              WBToFront
 What is MainActor ?                    What is MainActor ?
 Windows Menu                           Windows Menu
 Wolfgang Hofer                         IFF-Anim7
 Workbench-Icon                         Workbench-Icon
 X-Pert                                 Anim Universal_Merlin
 ZSoft                                  PCX