tvnima documentation

TVnima is an online Realtime 3D application that allows anyone to create a TV news program using their personal media (photos, images, videos).
You can add a voice and import media, choose your camera angles and presenter gestures in just a few clicks.

That's it; you're the director!

TVnima is made with Virtools, a 3DVIA technology.

TVnima Documentation

TVnima is still in alpha stage, some features may not work properly.

TVnima is organised in different screens:

  • Project Screen: allows users to create new projects or load previous work.
  • Customisation Screen: allows users to customise a presenter and the 3D set.
  • Director Screen: allows users to add media, camera and gestures on the timeline.

CAUTION : In this documentation, we suggest you to use several software (Fraps, windows media encoder). Please be sure to carefully read their instruction before using them. We are not responsible for any troubleshooting related to their usage.

The Project Screen

tvnima project screen If you are new to TVnima or you want to create a new project: Please enter your project name and click on the "new project" button.
To start with this project, please click on the "load project" button and select the .tvn file.

If you want to continue an existing project:
Please click on the "load project" button and select your .tvn file.

Customisation Screen

tvnima customisation screenTo customise your program choose your avatar, presenter style and preferred stage setting and background. At any time, you can return to this screen to change your avatar or the 3D scene without losing your work.

Director Screen

tvnima director screenThis interface is divided into five parts: the top menu, the library; the timeline; the animation control; and the real-time 3D preview.

Top Menu

The Top Menu is divided into 7 parts: (from left to right)

tvnima top menu

  • Project name
  • Save command. Once you press the save button, your former project file is overwritten
  • The "Incremental save" button will save the project to another file by adding a number at the end of the project name (ie: my-project_04.tvn,my-project_05.tvn ...). We advise you to use this command at each major step of your project.
  • Save as button enables you to change and save your project under a different name
  • Press the load button to load a project (a .tvn file)
  • Customize : If you want to try your tv show with another presenter or a different set, please click this button. All your current work (medias, gestures and cameras ) will be kept.

The library

The library contains all the media and events that can be applied to the timeline.

The library is divided into four panels:

  • Screen panel: all images and videos that can be displayed on the screen.
  • Voice panel: voice files, which when added to your timeline, are automatically synchronised with the presenter's lips.
  • Camera panel: all possible camera angle options.
  • Gesture panel: all possible gestures that can be applied to your presenter.

At the bottom of the library window, the "add media" button allows you to import media to your library (image, videos and sound).

tvnima library

Adding an image to the library:

To add an image, left click on "add media", select "image", go to the bottom of the screen and click on the browse button, locate your file on your hard disk then click ok to validate. For some reasons it might happen that the "Files of type" field in the browse box is set to Pictures or HTML. In this case you will not be able to select your video. Please be sure to set the "Files of type" to "All Files (*.*)".

If the import is successful you will see the message "filename.xxx added to your library". Activate the Screen panel to see the file.

Adding a video to the library:

To add a video, left click on "add media", select "video", go to the bottom of the screen and click on the browse button, locate your file on your hard disk then click ok to validate. For some reasons it might happen that the "Files of type" field in the browse box is set to Pictures or HTML. In this case you will not be able to select your video. Please be sure to set the "Files of type" to "All Files (*.*)".

If the import is successful you will see the message "filename.xxx added to your library". Activate the Screen panel to see the file. Video can exist with or without sound.

If the video has embedded sound, the sound will be displayed during the animation.

Adding a sound to the library:

To add a sound, left click on "add media", select "voice", go to the bottom of the screen and click on the browse button, locate your file on your hard disk then click ok to validate. For some reasons it might happen that the "Files of type" field in the browse box is set to Pictures or HTML. In this case you will not be able to select your video. Please be sure to set the "Files of type" to "All Files (*.*)".

If the import is successful you will see the message "filename.xxx added to your library". Activate the Voice panel to see the file.

Supported files types:

Images:
common image formats supported include: jpg, png, tga, tif and bmp. Gif format is not supported.

Videos:

Video support is based on the codec you have installed on your computer. By default, windows OS supports many formats. If you are able to launch the file with windows media player (Windows OS), this file should be supported by the TVnima application. Warning: Players such as VLC or GOM player have their own embedded codecs. Being able to read a file with those players will not guarantee a TVnima compatibility.

In some rare cases, wmv video files can be transparent in TVnima application. In this case, please convert the wmv file to another format.

Some type of formats do not have a search option, meaning the file cannot be read if it is not played from the start. This type of video will not be displayed correctly during the real-time preview.

Sounds:

TVnima supports any audio format that is supported by your operating system. For example, if you have ogg filters installed, the TVnima application should normally be able to read this type of file. Standard formats are mp3 and wav for windows 2000, XP or vista.

Empty media:

By default, the screen and voice panels contain an "empty media".
When you add the "empty media" from the screen panel in the timeline, the default "TVnima screen" will be displayed.
When you add the "empty media" from the voice panel in the timeline, the character will stop speaking.

Library actions:

If you left click on any item in the library, a menu appears with the following actions:

  • insert at the end: insert the selected media at the end of its corresponding channel.
  • cursor insert: insert the selected item close to the timeline cursor.
  • rename: rename the selected item (renaming the item does not affect the original media. For example, if you import test.jpg, it will be represented by "test" in the library. If you rename it to test2, it will still refer to test.jpg.
  • modify colour: Change the colour of the bars that represent items in the timeline.
  • remove: remove the item from the library and corresponding segments from the timeline. The remove action works only for images, video and sound. You can use the delete key to remove an item.
  • preview: display a preview of the selected item.

Timeline Windows

The timeline allows you to set apparition and disparition of a media or an event. This is where all of your director's work will take place.

Any events or media will be represented in the timeline by a coloured bar on one of the four lines.

The four lines correspond to four channels:

  • the Screen channel (What is viewed on the TV screen)
  • the Voice channel (What the avatar says)
  • the Gesture channel
  • the Camera channel

timeline

For any media or events, it is possible to modify length and apparition order by dragging it to the right or to the left. It is also possible to delete media or an event.

Adding media/camera/gestures to the timeline:
Any media or events will be automatically inserted in its corresponding channel.
To add media navigate to the library windows and left click on the item you want to add. A menu appears that enables you to add the item.

Modifying media/event length:
To modify length, click or drag the light grey potion at the end of the bar.

Deleting media/event:
Left click on the coloured bar and select delete on the menu. You can also click on a coloured bar and press the delete key. Deleted segments are replaced by an "empty media" segment to ensure the timing of the production is not altered.

Animation Control Windows

This window allows you to play the programmed timeline. To view the animation during the "pause mode" drag the cursor mouse over the timeline, this will show a real-time 3D preview.

tvnima animation control

To launch a preview of your animation, click on the play button. Note that the replay will start from a red line. You can reposition the red line by clicking or dragging on the timeline (during pause mode). During the play mode, a blue line will represent the current time on the replay.

Actions:

  • play/pause: To play or pause the video. Press the space key to play or pause the production.
  • Caution : In this beta version, sounds are read from their beginning: if the red line is located on a sound segment (not at the start) the sound will be badly replayed. To check a sound portion, please set the red line at its beginning.
  • stop: Stop the production and rewind to the red line.
  • rewind: Return the production to the beginning of the timeline.
  • record: Watch your production as any spectator would see it. All panels and timeline are hidden in this mode. If you want to record and broadcast your video, you need to use video capture software during this mode.

Miscellaneous

About recording videos
For publishing purposes, you need to capture the TVnima application with a Video Capture Software. For performances purposes, we advise you to use Fraps. The free version is limited to a 30 seconds capture. You can also use Camtasia. More info about the capture process in the tutorial.

About video compression
Most video capture software produces video too large to be uploaded to the web. To reduce the size, you need to use compression software that will convert your original video in a lightweight file. The typical resolution during a TVnima screen capture is 1024x768. It is advisable to reduce the resolution in the compression software. There are a lot of free video compression tools that can be found over the web - you can use for instance "Windows Media encoder" or "Super".

Technical Requirements

Compliant browsers
IE6 and higher, firefox 1.5 and higher, Mozilla, Netscape, Safari or Camino Plug-ins
* 3D Life Player - for more info please visit virtools troubleshooting (http://www.virtools.com/downloads/player/doctor.asp) website

3D Engine
DirectX 9 or higher / OpenGl

Operating System
Microsoft Windows (95, 98, 98SE, ME, 2000, XP, or NT 4.0 with Service Pack 6) or Apple MacOS X (at least 10.2.4)

Recommended System

  • Microsoft Windows
    - Direct3D or OpenGL compatible 3D accelerator graphics card with at least 32 MB of RAM
    - DirectX 9 or higher / OpenGl
    - Internet Explorer 6.0 or Firefox 1.5 or higher
    - Monitor color display set to 16 bit (65536) or 32 bits (True Color)
  • Apple Mac OS
    - Intel Core Duo
    - Firefox 1.5 or higher
    - Monitor color display set to 16 bits (65536) or 32 bits (True Color)
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