Rushworks A-LIST STREAMSTER User Manual

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User Guide v1.0

WARNING

As with all electrical items caution must be taken when installing and handling this system. It is

recommended that all connections be made before connecting the power cable and powering up the

system. Whenever working on computer systems a grounding strap is recommended.

Introduction to A-LIST STREAMSTER

A playlist is a simple, useful mechanism that lets you

specify WHAT you want to happen … and WHEN it

happens. Once a Playlist is created, automation takes

over, following the rules you’ve defined in the playlist.

In general, A-LIST Broadcast Automation utilizes Drag-and-

Drop and Cut, Copy and Paste to build your playlists.

Your presentation can be as simple as repeating the

contents of one or more folders … or as complex as

scheduling Events with playback accuracy down to the

second while communicating with other devices over your

network.

A-LIST supports a myriad of formats, styles, and schedule

types, letting you manage and produce the content

presentation that best fits your information display

requirements and visual style.

A-LIST Prep is an included utility that simultaneously runs

on the system and lets you create and/or edit playlists at

any time, except for the one that’s currently running with

the Streamster AUTOMATION ON. You can make changes

on the Streamster playlist up to about 15 seconds before

the next item or Event is scheduled to occur.

Traditional automation content typically includes two types of sources: (1)

MEDIA FILES: file playback of locally stored digital media,both clips and graphics

(e.g. mp4, MPEG-2, JPG, BMP, PNG), and (2) “LIVE” signals from a production

source such as a studio or remote venue.

Since there are no ‘baseband’ (BNC, HDMI) inputs or outputs on the Streamster, it uses a

network connection for sources other than the clips and graphics stored internally on the Solid

State Drive.

When you play clips accessible via a URL link (such as YouTube), you are essentially

playing back selected files over a network – the Internet. As with all networks there

is some latency to be expected, and the quality and continuity of your playback very

much depends on the quality and speed of your network connection to the

Internet.

And remote servers DO go down from time to time, and when they do you’ll not have access to

certain files for as long as your connection is disrupted. That said, let’s jump into the

Streamster!

QUICK START GUIDE

The A-LIST Streamster is a network-attached computer.

Connect the keyboard, mouse, monitor and network switch

before connecting the power cables.

With power connected and the Streamster connected to

your network switch, press the POWER button and the

system will boot up.

Connect1.

Power Up2.

Configure3.

After the system boots, the A-LIST software application will

automatically start. The default output resolution is 720p.

Click the Configure button to see your operating options.

Add Media4.

Copy clips and graphics into the AUTO-LOOP folder … OR …

organize files in subfolders in the D:\Media folder, then drag

and drop your clips, pictures and input selections into a Playlist.

Start Automation5.

Click the “START/STOP” button and start sending your stream

to your destination. The output can be set to 480p, 720p or

1080p, and be NDI, HLS or MPEG-DASH … with more to come.

CONTENTS

Hardware Overview1

Hardware Connections - Front2

Hardware connections - Rear2

The User Interface3

Main A-LIST Screen3

File Browser Window3

Text/Icon View3

Browse Button3

Find: full text search entry3

Media Sub-Folders3

Preview Window4

Motion Controls4

File Lock Status Indicator4

Playlist Window4

Header Information4

Automation Auto-Run & Auto-Load4

Media Item Color Codes5

Drag-and-Drop Playlist Items5

Drag-and-Drop Secondary Items6

Drag-and-Drop Manual Trigger6

Playlist File Menu6

Playlist Edit Menu7

Playlist Help Menu8

Program Window8

Program / Preview Audio Monitoring8

Bug On / Off (manual)8

Bug Selection9

Crawl 1 & 2 Controls9

MANUAL File Player Controls9

Automation Clock10

Audio Window10

DSK Window10

Settings Panel10

A-LIST Tab10

Audio Tab11

Encode Tab11

Stream Tab11

Configure Button (on the Settings Panel) 11

INPUT/OUTPUT Tab12

INTERFACE Tab12

CRAWLS Tab12

TEXT Tab14

Input Selection15

Using NDI sources as Inputs15

Using HLS and MPEG-DASH streams as Inputs15

Configuring and Naming a Virtual Router Input15

Playlist Naming and Rules16

Choosing a Playlist Template16

Setting Your Playlist Preferences17

AUTO-BUG17

AUTO-LOOP17

AUTO-LOOP Options17

AUTO-LOOP File Naming Tips18

AUTO-LOOP Rules18

AUTO-LOOP Example18

Adding Events to the Playlist19

Adding Events19

Editing Events19

CONTENTS (cont’d)

Adding Items Between Events20

Adding Clips and Pictures20

from the File Browser20

Finding Files in the File Browser20

Saving WEB Clips to the File Browser20

Select, Drag and Drop Files into Playlists21

Show File Location22

Scheduling LIVE Content23

Dragging an INPUT (live) Item 23

into a Playlist23

Specifying FIXED or FLEX 23

Input Segment Duration23

Using Folders in Playlists24

Scheduling and Managing Folders24

Normal Folders24

Slideshow Folders24

FILL Folders24

Edit Folders24

Managing Short & Long Events25

EVENT OK25

EVENT SHORT25

EVENT LONG25

Filling Unscheduled Time25

Adding Graphic Overlays to Playlists26

Manually Displaying a BUG26

Using AUTO-BUG26

Scheduling a BUG26

BUG Options27

Advanced BUG Options27

Editing existing BUG Properties27

Creating Multiple BUGS27

Extend a BUG over Multiple Items27

Manually Displaying a Crawl28

Scheduling a Crawl29

The Add Crawl Window29

Auto-Update Crawl from Text File30

EXTEND the Crawl over Multiple Items30

Setting the Crawl ON and OFF Times30

Editing Existing Crawl Properties30

Adding a Crawl Separator Image31

Scheduling a Text Overlay31

Drag and Drop31

Select and Click31

Right-Click Menu31

Creating Text and Timing32

Recording in A-LIST Streamster33

Record Scheduled Events33

Manual Recording34

Useful Markup Tags34

Defining a Play Length for Pictures34

Play Background Audio under Video Clips34

Hardware Overview

The standard A-LIST Streamster bundle includes the following:

A-LIST SystemFull HD MonitorKeyboard & Mouse

The A-LIST Streamster System

is configured in a Dell Micro

Workstation with a three-year

ProSupport warranty that

provides next business day

on-site service as/if required.

Monitor Cable

The system includes one

Display Port cable for

connecting the chassis to the

monitor.

The system includes a 22”

1920x1080 monitor with the

latest Display Port connection

for stunning digital clarity.

10’ Ethernet Cable

This is used to connect the

chassis to your network

switch as the data portal for

both output and input

signals.

Also included is the standard

Dell USB keyboard and

mouse.

You will need …

Internet access with enough

bandwidth to support the

level of streaming quality you

want to generate.

A-LIST Streamster is a turn-key scheduling and playback system. Should you need any

additional components or require a replacement part, please contact RUSHWORKS at

888.894.7874.

The A-LIST Streamster system features a Dell Optiplex 7060 Micro with a Xeon processor

and a single 512GB SSD. (1TB SSD optional)

Hardware Connections - Front

Power Button

Universal Audio Jack

Line Out Audio

USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type C

USB 3.1 Gen 1 Port

Hardware connections - Rear

RJ-45 Network

USB 3.1 Gen 1 (4 ports)

Display Ports

Power Connection

Hardware subject to change without notice.

SOFTWARE

Main A-LIST Screen

There are nine (9) windows in the A-LIST User Interface.

The following pages describe these windows, their features and functions.

(1) File Browser

(2) PREVIEW Window

(3) Playlist Window

(4) PROGRAM Window

(5) Automation Clock

(6) Audio Window

File Browser Window

(7) DSK Window

(8) Settings Panel

(9) Virtual Input Selection

Text/Icon View

By clicking the Text or Icon view buttons, the files

will be displayed according to your preference.

Browse & UP Buttons

When you click the BROWSE button, a Browse For

Folder window will open to assist in locating files.

You can use the UP button to move vertically

upwards through hierarchical folders as you

browse.

Find: full text search entry

The A-LIST File Browser supports a fast, full-text

search engine that lets you quickly locate files with

matching search criteria as you enter each new

letter. The backspace key will delete a character

and widen the search again. Click the X button to

clear the entry window.

Media Sub-Folders

The A-LIST File Browser works very much like

Explorer or any other file browser. However, there

is a specific folder structure included as the

default, with a Media folder at the root of the D

drive (D:\Media).

Inside that folder are six sub-folders, with four

accessible by the button shortcuts: CLIPS, PICS,

CGS and WEB. Two more sub-folders, BUGS and

CRAWLS, are also included in the Media folder for

your convenience. You can add as many sub-

folders as you wish to the D:\Media folder

structure at any time. This file structure is generally

useful as a starting point for organizing your media

library.

NOTE: The search is confined to the folder contents

currently displayed in the window, and NOT the entire drive.

NOTE: For optimal system stability the minimum

duration of a clip scheduled for playback should be

three seconds (:03).

SOFTWARE

Preview Window

Motion Controls

This window is used to preview video clips and image files without

alpha channels when they are selected in the File Browser or Playlist.

When a clip or graphic is selected, it turns GREEN in the

Browser/Playlist and is loaded into this window. Use the motion

controls to Play, Fast Forward, Fast Rewind, Go To File Beginning

and Go To File End.

The shuttle slider handle is used to scrub the video forward and

backward. This control is disabled while Automation is turned ON.

The current frame of the selected file’s LOCATION and its total

DURATION are displayed in the timecode boxes. The Preview player’s

status is also displayed in this area.

NOTE: CG files (PNG with transparency) are NOT previewed in this window,

but rather in the DSK (Down Stream Keyer) display in the User Interface.

File Lock Status Indicator

Since this window is associated with Playlist file cueing, it is unavailable

for user interaction seven seconds prior to the playback of the next file

in theplaylist. During that period of time, the graphic padlock will show

‘closed’. When it is open as shown here, files can be previewed at any

time.

Playlist Window

Header Information

The Playlist header tells you everything you need to know at a glance:

• The number of items in the list

• The currently playing file name

• The file path (location) of the playing file

• The duration, current time code and time remaining of the

playing file

• Time until the Next Event

• AUTO-LOOP on/off status

• AUTOMATION ON/OFF status

Automation Auto-Run & Auto-Load

The system Default is to automatically open and run A-LIST when the

system is started up. The Auto-Load function locates the appropriate

Playlist (DAY or DATE) and jumps to the exact point where the system

should be automating relative to the system clock. This feature is called

“Resume In Progress (RIP)”, so if Automation is turned off for any reason

and then turned back on, RIP will start playing at precisely the

appropriate time.

If Auto-Run Playlist at Startup is NOT checked, the application will open

and load the appropriate list, but will wait for operator instructions.

SOFTWARE

PLAYLIST Window (cont’d)

Media Item Color Codes

A-LIST utilizes colors to help you identify processes, procedures and

status indicators as the automation progresses.

Blue text on black background: The file is longer than two minutes

and two seconds (00:02:03)

Indented with White text on black background: The file is shorter

than two minutes and two seconds (00:02:03)

Red Background: The currently playing file.

Green Background: The currently cued file (a few seconds prior to

playing)

Gray Background: The file has already played in the Playlist.

Yellow text on black Background: File Error. Generally indicates the

file is MISSING or has been RENAMED.

Indented Files under a Folder Item: Files played/playing in an AUTO-

LOOP, AUTO-FILL, or any scheduled folder.

Drag-and-Drop Playlist Items

EVENT: Drag the clock icon into the list and drop it where you want a

new time Event to be created. A window will open where you specify its

properties.

INPUT: Drag the INPUT icon in the list where you want to insert a

network-available signal. At that point the input will pass through

(closed captioning included if present). You can add branding graphics

or other overlays to the INPUT signal.

FOLDER: Drag the FOLDER icon in the list, and you’ll be presented with

the option of inserting two types of FOLDERS:

(1) NORMAL – Any combination of video clips and graphics.

(2 SLIDESHOW – Folder containing graphics and audio files (mp3

and/or WAV).

FILL: Drag this icon to the end of a SHORT Event, and browse to any

folder you choose. The contents of that folder, including clips and

pictures, will fill remaining time with playout (looping if necessary) of its

content.

NOTE: if AUTO-LOOP is active and displaying the AUTO-LOOP folder

icon at the end of events, if you drag and drop a FILL folder above the

AUTO-LOOP folder, it will replace the AUTO-LOOP function FOR THAT

EVENT ONLY.

SOFTWARE

PLAYLIST Window (cont’d)

Drag-and-Drop Secondary Items

Secondary Items must anchor to a File or Input item (the “parent”

item). When you add these items to the Playlist they will appear as icons

to the right of the duration display on the parent item.

BUG: Drag this icon above the clip or input item over which you want to

display a graphic. This will need to be a PNG with alpha channel. A

dialog lets you enter Start and End offsets.

CRAWL: Drag this above the item where you want to display a crawling

message. An entry window lets you determine if it is Crawl 1 or Crawl 2,

and lets you enter Start and End offsets and # of repeats.

UP NEXT: Drag this on a file or input item to automatically display the

EVENT NAME and TIME text from the next upcoming Event header.

TEXT: When dragged on top of a file or input item you can manually

enter one or more lines of text to overlay the item. You can specify the

offset when the text appears and disappears and how long it displays.

See Creating and Adding TEXT in this Guide

for instructions on how to use this feature.

Drag-and-Drop Manual Trigger

The MANUAL BREAK button, typically used to start playback of one or

more files (a “BREAK”) during a ‘live’ event, is active and waiting for a

user click during an INPUT event. After the files in the BREAK have

played, the LIVE pass-through resumes.

Playlist File Menu

New Empty Playlist creates a playlist with NO Events or items.

New 24 Event Playlist (Hour) and New 48 Event Playlist (Half-Hour)

both load templates for creating new schedules. They are populated with

Events but no content. These are a great place to start when creating a

schedule from scratch.

Add to Playlist … opens the D:/Media folder and lets you browse for files

and/or folders you wish to add.

Open Playlist … Brings up a file browser window for you to select a

playlist to load. The system must STOP AUTOMATION to do so.

Save Playlist Brings up a file browser window for you to select a playlist

to load. The system must STOP AUTOMATION to do so.

Save As Playlist … Brings up a file browser window for you to select a

playlist to load. The system must STOP AUTOMATION to do so.

Show Item Duration flyout opens a menu that lets you select if you want

to show the Duration of the item, the Time the item will play, or both Time

and Duration.

SOFTWARE

PLAYLIST Window (cont’d)

PLAYLIST File Menu (cont’d)

Show Missing/Error Files … scans the current playlist for any missing

items or items containing errors, then creates and opens a text file

containing that list.

Reload and Restart Playlist… loads the most recently active playlist

and starts playing at the current Time of Day.

Open A-LIST Prep launches a separate application named A-LIST Prep.

This application enables editing of future playlists while A-LIST runs

your current playlist.

Playlist Edit Menu

All these operations are supported in A-LIST, along with their keyboard

shortcuts. These include Windows system standards:

Undo: Ctrl+Z

Redo: Ctrl+Y

Cut: Ctrl+X

Copy: Ctrl+C

Paste: Ctrl+V

Delete: Del

Repeat Untimed Playlist runs the current list of files in loop mode

when there are no scheduled Events. A-LIST will continue to play the list

in a loop until automation is turned off manually.

Configure… opens the Configure panel.

Auto-Run Playlist at Startup When checked (default), the automation

will automatically begin when the application is started. Uncheck this

selection and you’ll need to click START AUTOMATION when you’re

ready.

Set default Duration for Playlist Graphics … opens a window where

you set the duration for how long a graphic is visible in a playlist. The

default is ten seconds (:10).

NOTE: You can override the default duration on a graphic file (BMP, JPG,

TIF) by renaming the individual file - usually residing in the PICS folder in

the D:\Media partition.

Example:

Sunrise.jpg(default duration during playback = 10 seconds)

Sunrise[15].jpg(specific duration during playback = 15 seconds)

Use left and right brackets [ ] before the .extension.

This applies to renamed graphics in any folder, including AUTO-LOOP,

as well as files scheduled in the playlist.

SOFTWARE

NOW PLAYING indicates the video and audio

sources for what is currently playing in the

Program window (Streamster output)..

PLAYLIST Window (cont’d)

Playlist Help Menu

Show User Guide … Select this option to open the User Guide PDF

Visit RUSHWORKS on the Web … Select this to go to the RUSHWORKS

Web site, www.RUSHWORKS.tv, if you are connected to the Internet.

About A-LIST STREAMSTER … Select this for information about the

currently installed application Version.

Program Window

A-LIST features a large and versatile Program Display that is used for

monitoring the Program output, and for an operator to initiate several

manual real-time functions without having to make changes to the

Playlist. These include a BUG, two independent Crawls and two

independent Text layers.

Program / Preview Audio Monitoring

The Program audio from A-LIST will always be present on the output

you’ve selected, which will be either an NDI or RTMP stream.

Program Window

In addition, you can monitor both Program and Preview output using

the system sound Line Out connector along with any other audio

present on the system’s (Windows) Volume Mixer. It’s generally useful to

connect headphones or powered speakers to the Line Out for flexibility

in monitoring the signals. Click once on the icon to open the menu.

When No Computer Audio is selected, the headphones icon is GRAYED

OUT, and no audio is sent to the Line Out connector.

When Program to Computer Audio is selected, the headphones icon

turns RED indicating that the output is monitoring the Program audio.

When Preview to Computer Audio is selected, the headphones icon

turns GREEN indicating that the output is monitoring the Preview audio.

Note: after you’ve selected Program or Preview to Computer Audio, you can

then toggle back and forth by clicking on the red or green headphone icon.

Bug On / Off (manual)

You can display a BUG (usually a ‘branding graphic’) at any time by

clicking once on the BUG button. It will illuminate (glow RED) and the

currently selected graphic - a PNG file - will fade on. Click again to turn

off the BUG. The button will dim out, and the currently displayed

graphic will fade off.

Note: If AUTO-BUG is enabled it will automatically control the selection and

lumination of this button.

SOFTWARE

Bug Selection

To select the graphic associated with the BUG, right-click on the BUG

button. This bug will also be used for AUTO-BUG.

Select Logo Bug … A browser window will open, revealing the contents

of the BUGS folder. Select the desired graphic, and click OK. When you

click the Bug button to activate it, the attached graphic will fade on.

Reset Logo Bug … removes the current bug file association, so nothing

will be displayed with you click the Bug button.

Open File “file name” … opens the currently selected Bug graphic file

for verification.

Crawl Controls (3 Crawls Available)

Just like the BUG control, a left-click will display the corresponding Crawl

on the Program Output, and a right-click will bring up a context menu

for editing the crawl. To enter crawl text associated with Crawl 1 (Main

Crawl), right-click on the Crawl 1 icon.

Edit Crawl 1…

Reset Crawl

Select Message Logo…

Select Edit Crawl 1 … and enter the text you want to display, and enter

the number of repetitions of the crawl message you want to display (1-

50), or enter 0 to crawl continuously until you manually click on the

Crawl 1 icon on the Program Display to deactivate it.

Reset Crawl will clear the currently entered crawl text.

Select Message Logo … to open the CG folder where you should keep

your branding logos – both large and small. When selected, the Message

Logo can appear between lines in crawls.

Crawl 2 is a completely independent crawl layer, so just follow the

procedures above for Crawl 1. You can display either or both Crawl 1

and Crawl 2 at any time.

MANUAL File Player Controls

When Automation is OFF, you can manually select and play any file in

the Preview bus to the Program output (PVW to PGM).

Select (click) a file (clip or picture) in the

Playlist OR the File Browser and it will

cue (green). You’ll see the cued file in

the Preview window. The Play arrow on

the PROGRAM Window will become

active (blue). Click the arrow (PLAY) and

the file will play.

While the file is playing (red) you can

stop playback at any time by clicking

the square button (STOP).

When Automation is ON, these controls

are grayed out and not available.

SOFTWARE

Automation Clock

This clock reflects the current computer system clock time. Delivered

systems are set to synchronize to Internet time (NIST) once every hour.

You can toggle between 24 hour time (military) and AM/PM by simply

left-clicking on the yellow time display.

The clock also has a ‘stopwatch’ style timer for convenience. Just click

the Start Timer button to start, click it again to Stop… and click Reset

to set the timer back to zero.

Audio Window

This control actively changes the Output level of the Program audio.

(Input levels are controlled on the Audio tab in the Settings window.)

The two vertical LED-style meters show the current audio output level.

If you click the Mute button, the Program output will no longer be sent

to the system outputs.

The default output level is -12dBFS. To restore the Master Fader to that

level, just double-click on the sliding fader button.

Automation Clock

Audio Window

DSK Window

All PNG graphic files with transparency are displayed as ‘overlays’ to the

PGM stream, and are loaded into and generated by the DSK (Down

Stream Keyer) window.

Supported graphic file format for the DSK is PNG with Alpha.

While Automation is ON, open the CGS folder in the File Browser and

select a graphic. It will appear in the DSK PVW window. Click the AUTO

TO AIR (fade on) or TAKE TO AIR (cut on) … and that graphic will be

placed over the Program output.

When a CG graphic is being displayed over Program output, the ON AIR

indicator will glow RED, and the graphic will show in the DSK PGM

window. To remove the graphic, click AUTO OFF (fade out) or TAKE OFF

(cut out).

Settings Panel

There are FOUR tabs on this panel: A-LIST, Audio, Encode and Stream.

DSK Window

Settings Panel

A-LIST Tab

The default display is the A-LIST tab. On this tab you can quickly verify

the currently running program Version (lower right), click the Show

User Guide button to open that document, and click the Configure…

button to open the System Configuration set up window.

Stream

SOFTWARE

Stream

Record Duration

Audio Tab

Click the Audio tab to display the audio mixer.

LIVE controls the input level of audio on a selected virtual input source.

PLAY controls the playback level of actual or Web clips. Green indicates

the clip is playing on the PVW buss. Red indicates it is playing on the

PGM buss.

BGND controls the playback level of the MP3 or WAV audio files in the

D:\Audio folder OR a second audio-only input (CD, MP3, satellite music,

etc) if such a device is connected and you have selected external audio

as the BGND source.

Encode Tab

Click the Encode tab to open a window where you define parameters

for manually encoding anything on the Program output of the A-LIST

system. The system automatically stores all recordings in the

D:\Recordings folder. You can change that path if you wish using the

browse button at the right of the Recording Path field.

Enter a Program Name, select a File Format, and enter a Bit Rate. The

system defaults to mp4 (H.264) @ 12Mbps. There is also a display for

the approximate remaining space available on the drive and the

duration of the current recording. A-LIST will automatically add a time

stamp to the file name so that it is impossible to accidentally overwrite

a recording.

Your Name

Your Password

Stream Tab

Click the CONFIGURE button to open the Steaming Setup page, and

click the START and STOP buttons to turn STREAMING on and off.

Although there are several parameters to enter on the Streaming Setup

window, they are absolutely required when you’re setting up your

streaming output. Since you’ll likely be delivering your signal to a

Content Delivery Network (CDN), first select your provider by clicking

the arrow for the dropdown. Your two choices are ANYSCREEN™,

RUSHWORKS’ subscription hosting service,

or Manual Setup.

Copy each field from your CDN’s detailed settings page and paste into

the matching field on the CONFIGURE STREAM window. If Video Bitrate

and Audio Bitrate suggestions are not provided, then use the default

values.

For more specific information, please refer to the

Setup Streaming single sheet.

Configure Button (on the Settings Panel)

To access the Configure window click on the Configure... button on the

A-LIST Tab of the Settings window (also available on the Playlist Edit

Menu).

This opens a new window with FOUR tabs on the left side: INTERFACE,

INPUT/OUTPUT, CRAWLS, and TEXT.

SOFTWARE

Options

INPUT/OUTPUT Tab

The INPUT/OUTPUT Tab opens first by default. These settings are critical

in configuring your Streamster for operation.

Enable NDI Output, when checked, identifies your Streamster as an NDI

source on a connected network. Enter the NDI Name you wish people to

see after “Streamster” as the network node identifier.

Output Video Resolution choices are 480p, 720p and 1080p.

Background Audio Source selects the audio you want to use when

playing graphics. Choose internal Audio Folder or Chassis Input.

STATUS displays list of current connections, frame rates and other

parameters associated with your Streamster settings.

INTERFACE Tab

On the INTERFACE Tab you’ll find checkboxes for various Interface

Options.

Lock Panels

DSK Auto-Clear

Confirm Close Program

Windows Sort Order (Max 3000 items)

Lock Panels prevents users from moving any of the A-LIST interface

windows.

DSK Auto-Clear is a preference for file workflow through the DSK (Down

Stream Keyer). It clears DSK selections after taking them to air.

Confirm Close Program asks you for confirmation that you really want

to close A-LIST after clicking the X to close the program.

Windows Sort Order uses Windows file sorting order in the File Browser.

Note that performance degrades when displaying a folder that contains

more than 3000 items. In that case, uncheck this box.

CRAWL Tabs

A-LIST supports three independent crawls: Crawl 1, Crawl 2 and Crawl

3. Click the associated tab to review/change your preferences for each.

Streamster ships with default parameters for all three crawls. But you

can change those at any time by clicking any of the three CRAWLS tabs

on the Configuration page. Since there are a lot of display options to

consider, the following descriptions focus on the four sections you’ll

work with: SCREEN POSITION, FONT, MESSAGE FORMAT, and BANNER

OPTIONS.

The currently selected Crawl tab displays the associated Configuration

page. As a design aid when creating and positioning the three crawls,

you can check the preview boxes above the Crawl Preview screen to

confirm all the crawl properties.

Note: There is an Emergency Crawl (white text on a red banner)

that appears only when you enter and save text in the

EmergencyCrawl.txt file.

SOFTWARE

SCREEN POSITION

These controls are used to position the crawl (text and banner) vertically

on the screen. You can enter/modify the Offset from Bottom (default

for Crawl 1 is 15%), or you can click the Up and Down arrows to move

the position. You’ll see the result in the Crawl Preview window. You can

also use the keyboard Up and Down arrow keys to change the crawl

position.

FONT SELECTION

Click the menu button to the right of the Name field. It will open the

Windows Font selection panel.

Choose the Font, Font style, Size and Color using this menu. When you

click OK, you’ll see the values appear in the respective fields in the

Streamster FONT section.

Custom Color Selection

If you want to work with a wider range of color choices, click the menu

to the right of the Color field in the FONT section. This window will

appear, and you can pick from these Basic colors or click the Define

Custom Colors button.

That expands the window to provide thousands of color choices, or let

you enter RGB or HSL values to select a color.

You can Save that color by clicking the Add to Custom Colors button.

MESSAGE FORMAT

Set the Crawl Speed according to your preference. Message Spacing is

the number of blank characters that appear between each line of text

you enter in the Text Box when creating a crawl.

You can also add Text as a separator. To add a “Bullet” in addition to or

instead of the Message Spacing value, click the Use Bullet • button to

add it to the Text Message Separator. You can also enter any text or

character value in that field.

To use a Graphic (usually a small branding logo) as a separator, click the Graphic radio button, then click the

browse button to the right. Locate and select the PNG file you wish to use. Force ALL CAPS, when checked,

changes mixed upper/lower case to all uppercase for your crawls. This automatically adjusts the banner height.

REVERSE Text & Direction, when checked, changes the crawl to Left To Right for use with several international

character sets.

BANNER OPTIONS

Click the Background Banner checkbox to make it visible.

Select the Height of the banner, which defaults to the same size as the

font you’ve selected (in percentage). To make the banner larger than the

font, just enter a value greater than 100.

Click the browse button to the right of the Color display box to open the

same Color picker used for the font, and make your selection.

Enter a value for the Opacity of the banner in percent. The higher the

value, the less you can see the video behind the banner.

You can Indent the Left and Right Edges of the banner by entering a value representing a percent of the total

screen width. You can also ‘soften’ the Left and Right Edges of the banner by entering a Fade value in pixels.

SOFTWARE

TEXT Tab

The TEXT tab is where you configure the text and position properties of

text messages.

FONT SELECTION

Click the menu button to the right of the Name field. It will open the

Windows Font selection panel.

Choose the Font, Font style, Size and Color using this menu. When you

click OK, you’ll see the values appear in the respective fields in the

Streamster FONT section. Check the Drop Shadow box if you prefer.

Custom Color Selection

If you want to work with a wider range of color choices, click the menu

to the right of the Color field in the FONT section. This window will

appear, and you can pick from these Basic colors or click the Define

Custom Colors button.

That expands the window to provide thousands of color choices, or let

you enter RGB or HSL values to select a color.

You can Save that color by clicking the Add to Custom Colors button.

SCREEN POSITION

These controls are used to position the text on the screen. Use the top

three radio buttons to position the text vertically (Bottom, Middle, Top),

and the second row of radio buttons to position the text horizontally

(Left, Center, Right).

Or click the Custom radio button and move the text anywhere on the

screen using the Up and Down arrows. You’ll see the result in the Crawl

Preview window. You can also use the keyboard Up, Down, Left and

Right arrow keys to change the text position.

TEXT PREVIEW

When you select the TEXT tab it automatically shows a preview of your

text preferences for that layer in the Text Preview window.

Top Line Size and Line Spacing

It’s possible to automatically display the first line (top line) of multi-line

text in a different size. This can be used, for example, to show the title of

a music video larger than the artist name, which would be on the

second line of text. The default is 100%.

Line spacing, often called ‘leading’, can be adjusted by changing the

value in the entry field. Both numbers are based on a percentage of the

Font Size selected in the text layer configuration.

SOFTWARE

Input Selection

Streamster supports TWO types of network inputs:

1) NDI sources

2) HLS and MPEG-DASH live streams (with more types likely to be added)

Input Selection

Using NDI sources as Inputs

In addition to playing locally stored video clips and picture files, you can also define and select defined and

configured inputs to use as “on-air” sources in your playlists. You can configure up to EIGHT different sources

you can choose from for any given INPUT item.

NDI ‘streams’ can originate from devices connected to your network, including other computers and even video

cameras with NDI output capability. There are also several brands of NDI converters that can accept SDI sources

and convert them into NDI streams on your network. As such, NDI is a versatile and effective way to support a

variety of input sources for your Streamster.

Using HLS and MPEG-DASH streams as Inputs

The once-favored RTMP and Flash-based video are no longer considered optimal or appropriate for delivering

video to end users. The two currently favored stream types are both supported by Streamster.

HLS stands for HTTP Live Streaming, and is a protocol for sending live video over the Internet using standard

HTTP web servers. It will play video encoded with the H.264 or HEVC/H.265 codecs. It also features embedded

closed captions.

DASH is an open-source standard which is “codec agnostic”, supporting H.264, HEVC/H.265, VP9, and many more.

Configuring and Naming a Virtual Router Input

Click once on any non-configured router input button (None).

The New Input (Input #1-8) window will open.

For the Input Type select NDI, WEB Feed, or None. The Source Window

below will show the available sources for NDI and WEB Feed,

respectively. With NDI radio button active, select available sources from

the list. With WEB Feed active, copy and paste the URL of the HLS or

DASH live stream into the window, always starting with http:// or https://.

Enter a descriptive Button Name, and click OK to save.

The button will update with the name displayed.

New Virtual Input 1

SOFTWARE

Playlist Naming and Rules

A-LIST uses a simple yet powerful naming hierarchy that can handle

special events, holidays, any many other special exceptions with ease.

1. Single List Mode: This is a single, endlessly looping, 24-hour playlist.

This is useful for channels with mainly AUTO-LOOP content.

2. Weekly mode: This features seven daily playlists, one for each day of

the week. These are named monday through sunday (the full name of

each day) with the extension .rwpls. These lists automatically load at

midnight. This mode is great for channels where the schedule is

basically the same each week, with new “episodes” (recurring programs)

replacing those from the previous week.

Playlist filenames are YELLOW. Why?

If you see file names in your playlist that display in

yellow, followed by an an indication that the

scheduled file is in ERROR or MISSING, it’s likely

that the file has been renamed, moved or deleted

from the D:\Media drive (or from wherever it was

when you added it to

the playlist.)

Click the File tab and

select:

It will automatically create a .txt file and place it in

the Playlist folder. This will provide you with a list

of the files you need to locate and restore to the

D:\Media folder.

__<Playlist Name> MISSING OR ERROR.txt

3. Daily Mode (DATED Playlist): This supports playback of a new list

every day. These are formatted YYYY-MM-DD.rwpls. You can create

these as far into the future as you like.

NOTE: If you use Weekly Mode, you can create DATED

playlists to override the DAY NAME playlist. When the

system automatically loads the next day’s Playlist, it will

automatically ‘look’ in the Playlists folder for a DATED

list before loading a DAY NAME list. This allows you to

maintain a repetitive weekly schedule that runs

indefinitely, but also to create “special” playlists for

Holidays or other dates where you want a different

playlist to run.

Choosing a Playlist Template

If your operations model is more closely aligned with traditional Time of

Day (TOD) scheduling – such a broadcast TV station – there are two

templates you can use to create playlists. One of them features 24 one-

hour Events, and the other provides 48 half-hour Events.

In A-LIST, EVENTS are defined as Time-of-Day markers. You can

automate using only a single Event if you wish ... starting at midnight

every day. Or you can create as many Events as you wish at any times

you choose.

In A-LIST, ITEMS are defined as a files, folders, graphics, or “LIVE” input

segments inserted under an Event banner. A playlist generally consists

of one or more EVENTS, each with multiple ITEMS between them.

You can Add, Delete or Modify any of the time-specific Events at any

time after you’ve opened and named a Playlist file from a template, so

these templates simply provide an appropriate starting point for adding

content to your schedule.

From the dropdown menu select New 24 Event Playlist or New 48

Event Playlist. The selected template will open a new, unsaved Playlist.

Click the File menu again and select Save or Save As. When the dialog

box opens just name the list. It will automatically be saved in the

D:\Playlists folder.

SOFTWARE

AUTO-BUG(Automatic Channel Branding)

That little logo at the bottom corner of a television program that tells

you what channel you are watching is called a “bug” - or branding logo.

We’ve made it as easy as possible to add yours to A-LIST.

Turn on AUTO-BUG and A-LIST will automatically overlay your BUG over

any program length (> 2:03) clip or input segment. Three seconds after

the item begins the bug will fade up, and three seconds before the end

it will fade out. Set it once and forget it. You can schedule exceptions any

time you don’t want it displayed.

AUTO-LOOP

Drop some content in the AUTO-LOOP folder, enable the AUTO-LOOP

folder (click to turn on), then turn AUTOMATION ON and you’ll start

playback without scheduling a single item!

This feature is designed to fill any unscheduled time with an endless

loop of however many files you want to add. With AUTO-LOOP enabled

you will ALWAYS be playing content, 24/7/365.

If your content consists primarily of looping playback of clips and/or

graphics – with relatively few videos that need to be scheduled to play at

specific times – this feature makes managing your Playlist virtually

effortless.

The AUTO-LOOP folder is at the root of the D drive. You can also open it

by right-clicking on the AUTO-LOOP button at the top of the Playlist

window and selecting Open AUTO-LOOP Folder. Drag and drop clips

and graphics you want to play into this folder, or sub-folders within it.

The order in which the content plays is based on the normal Windows

sort order of the file and folder names.

(Automatic Unscheduled Time Filler)

AUTO-LOOP Options

Right click the AUTO-LOOP folder to (1) Open the AUTO-LOOP Folder to

view the contents, (2) check or uncheck the Play All Before Repeating

function, and (3) check or uncheck the Random Order playback function.

Play All Before Repeating means that automation ‘remembers’ what

has played in the AUTO-LOOP folder, and the next instance where

AUTO-LOOP plays files will resume with the file after the last played file.

If Random Order is checked, it will pick another previously unplayed

file.

NOTE: The Playlist changes WILL NOT BE SAVED until you click the SAVE icon at the top of the

Playlist header. It will automatically be highlighted in YELLOW when you’ve made any changes

and haven’t saved them.

Click on the AUTO-LOOP icon to activate it. If you have NO Events in the playlist … or any number

of Events with no files or segments … when you click the AUTOMATION ON ‘keyless ignition’

button, the contents of the AUTO-LOOP folder will play continuously, 24/7.

SOFTWARE

cont’d

AUTO-LOOP File Naming Tips

If you prefer to control the order in which the files and subfolders play,

you can use standard Windows file-naming techniques to assign leading

numbers to each of the content items.

This example is a hierarchical arrangement for playback of files, sub-

folders and various graphics in the AUTO-LOOP folder, and is based on a

user-defined numbering structure. Graphic files have a default duration

of ten seconds (:10) which can be changed under the Edit menu > Set

default Duration for Playlist Graphics.

You can override the default on individual graphics by adding a markup

tag to the end of the file before the extension in [brackets], e.g.

vincente[12].jpg, where 12 inside [brackets] indicates the duration, in

seconds, that the graphic will display.

AUTO-LOOP Rules

When the contents of the AUTO-LOOP folder are playing, the individual

files cue and play in order, appearing sequentially as indented playlist

items under the AUTO-LOOP folder placeholder.

The currently playing file is indicated in RED. The next file always cues

seven seconds (:07) before it plays, and will be displayed as GREEN while

it is cued.

Note: You can NOT make changes to the active playlist

when a file is in the ‘cued state’ for seven seconds.

AUTO-LOOP Example

In this example, a program was scheduled at 2PM, with a duration of

00:28:30;14. With AUTO-LOOP not enabled, the Playlist reports EVENT

SHORT by 00:01:29;16. The result would be the system would revert to

Black output for that period of time.

The same scenario but with AUTO-LOOP enabled the Playlist reports

EVENT OK and indicates the time will be filled by AUTO-LOOP, as

depicted by the AUTO-LOOP folder icon in the status line.

After the scheduled clip plays, the AUTO-LOOP function will

automatically initiate.

If Play All Before Repeating is checked, the system will scan the folder

for the next clip in order and start playing there and continue until the

next Event time. Whatever clip or graphic file is playing at 7PM will fade

out the video and audio one second (:01) before the beginning of the

next Event.

SUGGESTION: You may find it helpful to keep a shortcut to the

AUTO-LOOP folder (D:\AUTO-LOOP) on the Streamster desktop so

you can add or delete AUTO-LOOP files quickly.

SOFTWARE

Adding Events

If you’re building a playlist “from

scratch”, you can start with one of

the templates in the File Menu …

New 24 Event Playlist (Hour) or

New 48 Event Playlist (half-

Hour). Then add, delete, or modify

Events whenever you wish.

To add individual scheduled Events to an Empty Playlist, just select

New Empty Playlist from the File Menu, then click-

and-drag the EVENT icon from the PLAYLIST ITEMS

section into the Playlist. A red line appears as the

‘drop point’ for anything you drag and drop into a

Playlist. The New Event item menu will appear.

Enter the Start Time and a Name that describes the

Event.

You can also add Events BETWEEN existing Events. Be sure to specify

a time between the preceding and following Events.

If you already have content in your list you can

drag the Event into the middle of an existing

Event. This will create a new Event at this location.

This example indicates the Event (11:15 SPORTS

FLASH) you inserted between two previous Events

(11:00:00 MUZIK MUSIC and 11:30:00 STOCK UP!)

Editing Events

To change or edit the Event Type, right-click on the Event banner you

want to change (or double-click the banner) and select Event

Properties… from the drop-down menu. The window will open, and you

can change either or both the Start Time and the Name. Click OK to Save

the changes. Those changes will be reflected in both the Event Name

and the position in the Playlist (if you’ve changed the Start Time).

SOFTWARE

Playlists consists of EVENTS (which have Start Times and a Name), and

ITEMS, which are typically video clips and/or picture files that are

inserted between EVENT “headers”. Items also include Folders, Fill

Folders, and Inputs.

A-LIST keeps track of the total amount of time used by ITEMS in an

Event. Clips have definite lengths, and pictures have a default time they

display in the Playlist. The default is :10, but you can change that to as

little as :03 in the program configuration.

Adding Clips and Pictures

from the File Browser

Use the File Browser to locate the file(s) you want to drag into the

Playlist. The default Folder links are CGS, CLIPS, PICS and WEB. These

are all located at the root of the D:\Media drive in Streamster.

NOTE: You can add as many folders and sub-folders as you wish,

but it is strongly recommended that you keep those WITHIN these

four default folders to let you quickly search for and select

appropriate file types.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eWdMbQgquDc

LONNY

Finding Files in the File Browser

The Find field supports full-text searching for file names, but it’s

important to understand that the search is limited to the FILES being

displayed in a currently open Folder or Sub-Folder, and NOT WITHIN ALL

THE FOLDERS.

In this example, only the Files (in white) will be searched, and none of

the files within the Folders at the top of the list.

Saving WEB Clips to the File Browser

When you click on the WEB button, it opens the contents of that folder,

and displays the Add New WEB Clip … button. WEB Clips are URL links

you’ve saved and named, and placed in the WEB Clip folder. To create a

New WEB Clip, click the Add New … button, and it opens the WEB Clip

Properties window.

After you’ve located a WEB clip (using a Web browser) you’d like to Save

into the File Browser, copy the URL … and paste it into the WEB Clip

Source URL window. Be sure the link starts with http:// or https://

Enter a Name for the WEB Clip and click OK.

The clip is added to the D:\Media\WEB folder, from which you can drag

and drop Web clips into Playlists the same as clips that are stored locally

on the D:\Media\Clips folder on the hard drive. So you are essentially

using the Web as your RUSHWORKS Virtual Network Attached

Storage server (VNAS™).

You can always recognize a WEB clip in the File Browser or Playlist by the

extension: .rwweb.

SOFTWARE

cont’d

Select, Drag and Drop Files into Playlists

For this example we’ll be ‘populating’ the first half-hour of a Playlist

created by selecting the New 48 Event Playlist from the File Menu.

Click once on any file in the File Browser and it will be cued in the

Preview Window, turning green when the file is cued.

Hold down the Ctrl key and click on multiple, contiguous or non-

contiguous files to select as many as you wish. The file you click on first

will cueand turn green.

Click on a file then hold down the Shift key and click a file below to

select all the files in that range. The file you click on first will cue and

turn green..

files longer than 2:03 display in blue

In this example we’ve selected THREE non-contiguous files in the File

Browser, then dragged and dropped them into the playlist just beneath

the MIDNIGHT Event.

Note: you can move items within a playlist by left-clicking and holding the mouse down while you move the file

up and down in the list. You’ll see the red line indicating the ‘drop position’ as you hold and drag the mouse.

We then went to the D:\Media\CLIPS\SPOTS sub-folder and selected two

commercials - one at a time - and dragged them between the three

music videos. So the playlist will play a music video, a spot, another

music video followed by a spot, and the third music video.

You can also see at the bottom of the Event the words <<EVENT

SHORT>> showing you need 16:35:06 to fill up the Event.

SOFTWARE

cont’d

There are THREE ways to fill the remaining time in the Event.

1) Enable the AUTO-LOOP folder, as shown here. After the third music

video the contents of that folder will play until the next Event - in this

case for 16:35:06.

2) Drag in a FILL folder from the PLAYLIST

ITEMS section at the bottom of the playlist.

When this window opens you can select a

specific folder to play rather than the more

‘global’ AUTO-LOOP folder.

3) Continue selecting, dragging and

dropping clips and pictures into the playlist after the third music video

… monitoring the total amount of time left to fill in the Event.

In this example we’ve added more music videos, spots and a picture file

to fill the half-hour Event with content.

NOTE: If you see the << EVENT SHORT >> notification at the

end of the Event, when the scheduled content has completed

playing, the system will output one of THREE choices: Black,

Virtual Router Input, or Picture (JPG, BMP, PNG).

NOTE: If you see the << EVENT LONG >> notification at the end

of the Event, system playback will move to the next Event Time,

regardless of whether one or more files haven’t played prior to

the Next Event.

Show File Location

To show the location of a selected file, right-click the item in the playlist

and select Show File Location. It will open a browse window to the

containing folder.

SOFTWARE

Dragging an INPUT (live) Item

into a Playlist

The Streamster processing engine supports both input and output

(network sources and destinations), with graphic overlays on both “live”

pass-through and file/Web file playback.

The Virtual Routing Switcher in Streamster supports up the eight (8)

streaming input sources (NDI, HLS or DASH) that can be output as NDI

or RTMP, including Facebook Live and YouTube Live.

Drag and drop the INPUT icon where you want it to occur within an

Event. When the Virtual Router entry window appears, select any source

you’ve saved as an ‘input crosspoint’ on the Virtual Router.

Specifying FIXED or FLEX

Input Segment Duration

In the window for creating an Input item you can also enter a NAME for

the segment, and a DURATION.

If you specify a FIXED Input, that amount of time is added to the total

duration of the segment, so all the rules of LONG, SHORT, AUTO-LOOP

and AUTO-FILL will apply, just as if it were a file duration.

If you specify one or more FLEX Inputs with Manual Triggers within an

Event, the length of the FLEX input segments adjusts to the time of the

clips/pictures you’ve dropped before, after or between FLEX inputs.

Unlike the AUTO-FILL folder that can only be placed at the end of a

SHORT Event, an INPUT segment with no specified duration (FLEX) can

be placed anywhere in the Event, and can be dragged up or down

between other Event elements.

In the 5AM MORNING NEWS Event example on the left, a FIXED

DURATION input has been created. Notice that no Segment identifier

(e.g. SEG 1) is in the description – and that there are no parentheses

around the displayed duration.

In the 5:30 DRIVE TIME Event example, notice the Segment identifier

(SEG 1) is shown – along with the name (STREAM 1) of the router cross

point. The duration can FLEX as indicated by the parentheses around the

duration. And the DTMF icon indicates the segment is waiting for a

satellite delivered tone signal to trigger playback of any subsequent

clips.

Notice that since there are three FLEX inputs, their respective durations

add up to the Total Event Time minus the Total Clip Time.

SOFTWARE

Scheduling and Managing Folders

When organizing content it’s convenient to use a large number of folders

to organize groups of files before scheduling them in a Playlist. There are

three ways to add a folder (and its sub-folders, if any) to a Playlist.

1. From the File Browser window, locate the folder you want to add to the

playlist, and drag it to the desired position in the list.

2. Drag the normal Folder button from the PLAYLIST ITEMS group beneath the

Playlist.

3. Drag a folder in from Windows Explorer and drop it in the schedule.

In any case, when you drop in the Folder, a dialog opens where you

define the folder characteristics and behavior. Choose Folder ... Click to

open the “Browse for Folder” window and select the folder you want to

insert in the playlist, then click OK.

Normal Folders

This is the default selection, which means that all files will be played

using a Windows alphanumeric sort from the top down. The Total

Duration of the folder contents is displayed at the bottom right of the

window.

Note: If picture files have custom markup

lengths, those lengths will be observed, using

the total remaining time to create lengths for

the other files in the folder.

In the playlist these are displayed as a plain yellow folder with the

duration shown.

Slideshow Folders

This is an easy way to automatically display a collection of pictures with a

specific audio track or song playing under them. As indicated in yellow,

these folders are restricted to audio files and pictures, and NO video clips.

Place one or more audio files (.wav or .mp3) into a folder with any

number of images (JPG or BMP), and the total length of the audio clip(s) is

divided by the number of graphics to create a display duration for each

graphic. These items are displayed as folder with pictures and a music

note on top. Here’s a simple example of slideshow folder contents and

the resulting timing:

Audio file(s) = :60

10 x graphic files

:60 / 10 = :06 display per ‘slide’

When audio playback starts, the first graphic

fades from black, with dips to and from black

between each of the remaining graphics. The

Slideshow fades out the last graphic at the end of

audio playback.

FILL Folders

Use FILL Folders to fill unscheduled time at the end of Events. If your

Event is Short (total item time < Event time), drag a FILL Folder into that

area of the playlist. Much like the AUTO-FILL folder, the contents of the

selected FILL Folder will play until the Start Time of the next Event,

fading out audio and video before the next Event item plays.

If you have AUTO-LOOP on, you can drag a FILL Folder on top of the

AUTO-LOOP icon and replace that instance of AUTO-LOOP with the FILL

Folder. This lets you control specific content for the duration of the FILL.

Editing Folders

To edit Folders already in the Playlist, right-click and select Folder

Properties … or just double-click the Folder item in the playlist.

SOFTWARE

When scheduling content in your Events you will see a line as the last

item before the next Event indicating how much unscheduled time is

remaining. What happens during this time is determined by a

combination of settings.

<< EVENT OK >>

This means that you are less than two seconds SHORT… or two seconds

LONG. In general this is an acceptable window. In these cases, if you are

short, the system will play BLACK for that period of time. If you are long,

the last file will fade out before it completes, with the playlist advancing

to the Next Scheduled Event. When AUTO-LOOP is enabled, Events

will always indicate this status.

<< EVENT SHORT >>

While dragging content into an Event the available remaining time

displays in a placeholder at the bottom of the Event. As long as the total

duration of the content is shorter than the duration of the Event, the

placeholder will indicate << EVENT SHORT>> in yellow, as well as the

amount of time needed to exactly fill the Event. The far right of the

placeholder indicates what will show on air during this time. In this

example it will show whatever source is currently selected for the

Streamster input.

Managing Short & Long Events

EVENT OK

EVENT SHORT

<< EVENT LONG >>

By adding a few more items to the schedule we can see the total file

duration is now longer than the Event time, and the placeholder

indicates << EVENT LONG >> in red, as well as the amount of time that

exceeds the total time of the Event.

If you do NOT shorten the total file duration that exceeds the Event

duration (LONG), playback of the currently playing file will automatically

be terminated at the end of the Event, fading video and audio to black

one second before the beginning of the next Event.

EVENT LONG

Filling Unscheduled Time

If the total file duration is less than the Event time, the remaining time

will be filled based on the following user actions:

1) The screen will display either the default Input signal or Black. You can

specify a default Virtual Router cross point to be selected and

automatically displayed if an Event is short.

2) If AUTO-LOOP is enabled, the content will automatically play, fading

out the video and audio one second (:01) before the next Event begins.

3) Drag and drop the FILL icon at the end of the Event and select any

folder the contents of which you want to play during a ‘short’ condition.

Playback will fade out one second (:01) before the next Event begins.

NOTE: You can NOT add an AUTO-FILL folder to an Event that is displaying << EVENT LONG >>

If AUTO-LOOP is enabled, the AUTO-LOOP icon and functionality will disappear if an Event is displaying << EVENT LONG >>

SOFTWARE

Manually Displaying a BUG

Right-click the BUG icon on the Program monitor bezel, and choose

Select Logo Bug. This opens a dialog where you can select the graphic

you want to use for the primary BUG. Most often this will be a branding

graphic that’s typically displayed in the lower right corner of the screen.

Once that association is made, click the BUG icon it lights up, and the

selected graphic fades on. Click the bug icon again to deactivate it (fade

off). When you click the BUG icon again the graphic will fade off.

NOTE: For Bugs (and other graphics with transparency)

use PNG files with a size of 720 x 480 for Standard Definition (SD),

and 1920 x 1080 for 1080HD and 1280x720 for 720 HD.

Using AUTO-BUG

To enable or disable AUTO-BUG, just click on the AUTO-BUG button at

the top of the playlist window. When the AUTO-BUG feature is active, the

selected graphic will fade on and be displayed over any file or Event

duration over two minutes and three seconds long (>00:02:03:00).

It will automatically fade off when the next file or event is less than that

duration. When the graphic is being displayed, the BUG icon on the

Program monitor bezel will glow red. Manually turn off the bug at any

time by clicking on the icon.

Scheduling a BUG

Whereas AUTO-BUG fades the main Bug on and off over files that are

longer than 00:02:03:00, a scheduled Bug is associated with a specific

file or files. You can schedule multiple bugs (but not overlapping) over

the duration of an item, or extend them over multiple items. There are

three ways to schedule a Bug relative to a file.

1) Drag the BUG icon above the item where you want the bug to appear.

The red line indicates the drop point. When dropped into the list, the

Add BUG window opens. Click the Choose ... button to open the

D:\Media\Bugs folder where you can select the desired Bug graphic.

2) Click on the file you want to associate with the Bug … then click the

BUG icon at the bottom of the playlist. The Add BUG window will open

where you can select the desired Bug graphic, as well as the display

properties of that graphic.

3) Right-click the file you want to associate with the Bug. A fly-out menu

will appear. Select Add Bug … and the Add BUG window will open for

output selection.

To remove a Bug … select No Bug from the right-click fly-out menu.

SOFTWARE

cont’d

BUG Options

Click the Choose … button to open the

BUGS folder. That’s where you should place

ALL your BUG graphic files. Select the BUG

file you want to use and click Open.

Set the Bug ON and Bug OFF times,

selecting the From Start or From End radio

buttons for each.

The Default Bug is the one you have

currently selected by right-clicking the Bug

icon on the PGM monitor and selecting a

manual Bug graphic. Click the checkbox to

use it as a scheduled Bug.

Advanced BUG Options

Editing existing BUG Properties

To review and/or edit a currently scheduled Bug, right-click on the file to

open the Properties drop-down menu. Select the Bug fly out menu and

select Edit Bugs … to open the Edit Bug Properties window. You can also

select No Bug to remove it from the schedule.

This window is identical to the Add BUG window except for the title. It

lets you make changes to an already scheduled Bug graphic assignment.

Just follow the procedures in the preceding paragraphs to Clear, Choose,

or change the Bug ON and OFF timing properties relative to the

associated file.

Creating Multiple BUGS

If you’ve defined a Default Bug by right-clicking the Bug icon on the PGM

monitor then selecting a Bug graphic, that will also be the Default for

multiple Bug display. To use that same graphic just be sure the Use

Default Bug checkbox is checked.

Otherwise click the Choose ... button and select the appropriate Bug

graphic for each Bug you schedule. To add more than one Bug, after

you’ve specified the ON/OFF relative times for the first Bug, click the Add

button in the upper right. Enter the ON/OFF relative times for the 2nd

Bug, and use either the Default Bug or Choose another one.

Continue to click the Add button to add as many Bugs as you wish. If any

of the Bugs happen to overlap, you will receive a notification. You’ll need

to correct that condition before adding another or clicking OK to save the

Bug information. Click the Previous and Next buttons to review other

instances of the bug you’ve created. You can also Delete instances.

Extend a BUG over Multiple Items

Check this box and select EITHER the number of items over which you

want to display the Bug ... OR display the Bug until the next timed Event.

Once you’ve selected your Bug graphic and entered the desired display

and ON / OFF properties, click OK. The Bug icon will appear on the right

of the file display.

SOFTWARE

cont’d

Manually Displaying a Crawl

A-LIST supports THREE independent crawl layers. Crawl 1, Crawl 2 and

Crawl 3. Any can be turned on at any time by clicking their

corresponding buttons on the Program Window.

To prepare your first crawl message, right-click

on the Crawl 1 button. Choose Edit Crawl 1 and

the EDIT CRAWL window will appear.

You have three radio button selections options

for your Crawl Source:

Choose the Source you want to use for your Crawl display. Following is a

description of the functions of each of Crawl Source entry windows.

The default Crawl Source is Text Entry. Place the cursor in the scrolling

text box and enter your message.

Edit Crawl 1…

Reset Crawl

Select Message Logo…

NOTE: When you press the Enter key you create a line break

that the software interprets as a separator between messages.

Depending on your crawl configuration setting, the separator

can be spaces, a bullet (•), a small logo, or any combination of

characters. So to create a continuous crawl comprised of

several messages, just press Enter to create separators

between multiple messages.

The default number of Repetitions is 3. Change this value to the number

you wish, or enter 0 to create a Continuous crawl that will display until

you click the active Crawl icon on the Program bezel to deactivate it.

If you select Txt File in the Crawl Source drop-down, the window

changes slightly. To browse for the text file you want to use for your

crawl, click the Text from File ... button at the right.

The file path of the selected text file displays in the line at the top, and

the text appears in the scrolling window as formatted in the text

document. If you want the crawl to constantly check the text file for

changes and update the crawl after the current repetition, check the

Auto-Update Crawl from Text File box.

If you select RSS Feed in the Crawl Source drop-down, the window

displays a single entry box where you can paste a copied URL for an RSS

feed. If you want to save that address for later use, click the Save button

after you’ve pasted in the link. To recall that or other addresses at any

time just click the Load button. It will open a folder of saved addresses

for your selection. To enter a new address, click the Clear button to

clear the entry field so you can paste in a new link address or Load an

existing one.

To review or make changes to current Crawl Source selections and text,

right-click the crawl icon, select Edit Crawl 1… and make desired

changes on the Edit Main Crawl form.

SOFTWARE

cont’d

Scheduling a Crawl

You can schedule a crawl to be associated with a specific file or files.

There are three ways to schedule a Crawl relative to a file.

1. Drag the CRAWL icon above the item where you want the trigger

to ‘fire’. The red line indicates the drop point. When dropped into the

list, the Add CRAWL window opens, where you can select the desired

Bug graphic.

2. The second way to schedule the Crawl is to select the file you

want to associate with the Crawl … then click the CRAWL button at

the bottom of the playlist. The Add CRAWL window will open where

you can manually enter text you want to use for your Crawl message

… or select the desired CRAWL text file, as well as the display

properties of that crawl message.

3. The third way to schedule a Crawl is to right-click the file you want

to associate with the Crawl. A fly-out menu will appear. Select Add

Crawl … and the Add CRAWL window will open for output selection.

The Add Crawl Window

Use this window to manually enter a Crawl message or select text

from an existing text file. You will also enter the offset times when you

want the Crawl to appear and disappear relative to the file you are

associating with the Crawl display, and how many repetitions of the

message you want to display.

In the following example, what we’ve manually entered in the Crawl text

field will actually be displayed using the description as written.

1. You can enter up to 5000 characters in a single entry, allowing the

text to ‘wrap’ in the display. That message will display in its entirety

as entered.

2. When you press the ENTER key after a line of text, the next text

entry will follow the previous entry in the scrolling message, with

the two messages separated by a user-defined number of spaces.

The default is four (4) spaces.

Note: specify if you want to Use Text or Use Graphic in the CRAWLS

Tab of the Configure menu. The Bullet is the default Message

Separator.

You can also browse to and display text from any number of Text Files

that have previously been prepared.

Or paste RSS feed links for crawl display, with the option to Save and

Load links for your convenience.

SOFTWARE

cont’d

Auto-Update Crawl from Text File

When this box is checked, the system constantly monitors this file for

changes, and will update the displayed message even while it’s active. If

a change is made to the file (and Saved) while the file is active, the text

will update after the last displayed repetition.

EXTEND the Crawl over Multiple Items

When the EXTENDED CRAWL is checked, the Crawl duration is NOT

limited to the length of the file with which it’s associated. The crawl

message (manual or from a text file) will continue to display until (a) the

next scheduled Event in the playlist, or (b) until the number of specified

files has been played … whichever happens first.

Since the files and folders are managed in the standard Windows file

system you can store your text files in the Crawls folder … or create

sub-folders that are associated with your unique automation content

management.

In this example we’ll select the Emergency.txt file, and then click Open

… or double-click the file.

Setting the Crawl ON and OFF Times

The default setting is to fade the Crawl ON three seconds after Start of

file playback … and fade the Crawl OFF three seconds from the End of

file playback.

You can set the ON time and OFF time relative to the Start or End of the

file. Enter a number in the Repetitions field to specify how many times

you want the text message to repeat before going off. The default is 1. If

you set it to 0, it will display continuously until the next Event scheduled

in the playlist.

Once you’ve selected your Crawl text and entered the desired ON, OFF,

Repetitions and EXTEND properties, click OK. The red Crawl icon will

appear on the right of the item display.

NOTE: Enter EITHER the number of repetitions you want to display

OR a Crawl OFF time. 3 seconds is the minimum offset for each in

order to preserve automation system operation integrity

Editing Existing Crawl Properties

To review and/or edit a currently scheduled Crawl, right-click on the file

to open the Properties drop-down menu. Select the Crawl flyout menu

and select Edit Crawl … to open the Edit CRAWL Properties window. You

can also select No Crawl to remove it from the schedule.

SOFTWARE

Edit Crawl 1…

cont’d

Editing Existing Crawl Properties (cont’d)

This window is identical to the Add CRAWL window except for the title. It

lets you make changes to an already scheduled Crawl text or text file

assignment.

Just follow the procedures in the preceding paragraphs to Clear, Choose,

or change the Crawl ON, OFF, Repetitions and EXTEND timing properties

relative to the associated file.

Adding a Crawl Separator Image

You can select a Message Logo to use instead of a BULLET separator.

This is a global setting that applies to manually initiated crawls (from the

Program bezel on A-LIST) as well as to scheduled crawls. Right-click the

CRAWL 1 (or CRAWL 2) icon and choose Select Message Logo…

The BUGS folder will open in Windows Explorer, where you can browse

for the logo you wish to use. Use the BUGS sub-folder in the D:\Media

folder to keep graphics you want to use for branding or crawl Message

Logos.

Once you’ve assigned a Message Logo to the Main and/or Auxiliary

Crawl, the “Show BULLET …” changes to “Show LOGO” in the Add

CRAWL or Edit CRAWL properties window.

To clear the logo assignment, right click the Main or Auxiliary Crawl icon

and select Reset Message Logo.

NOTE: Unlike a full screen BUG, a “Message Logo” is a small PNG graphic. In

general, it’s recommended that you keep the vertical size of this image no

more than twice the font size you’ve specified for your crawls. This

assures an appropriate appearance relative to the height of the banner. You

can experiment with creating these small PNG logos and find what works

best for you. (Example: font size = 36, graphic = 72 pixels high MAX)

Scheduling a Text Overlay

Use the TEXT feature to display one or several lines of user-defined or

imported text over a clip or live input … or at the beginning AND end, as

is typical of a music video. There are three ways to add TEXT to a playlist:

Drag and Drop

Drag and drop the TEXT button on top of the clip or input you want the

text to appear over. This opens the text entry window where you can

enter the desired message you wish to display.

Select and Click

Single-click to select the desired file or input item and then click the TEXT

button at the bottom of the playlist to open the text entry window.

Right-Click Menu

The third way is to right-click on the file or input event, choose the TEXT

fly out and select Add Text.

SOFTWARE

cont’d

Creating Text and Timing

Once the text entry window is open, type one or more lines of text, using

the Enter key to start a new line. You’ll see the text appear in the Video

Preview window as you type. This window simulates the actual system

output to a TV screen. There is no limit to the number of lines you can

enter. However, if a line length extends past “title safe” on the video

display, a warning will appear below the entry window.

You can also specify a background image (PNG) that will be composited

with the text for enhanced visual effect. Just click the Choose… button to

browse for a desired image. When selected, the image immediately

displays in the Video Preview window. (Click No Image to remove it.)

If you click Preload Text, the image will be loaded into the DSK PVW

window, where you can AUTO to AIR or TAKE to AIR as you wish. Here is

the text with background displayed on the DSK PGM output after an

AUTO to AIR or TAKE to AIR.

This shows the composited DSK on the PGM (output) screen. If you are

passing a LIVE signal or playing a clip and use a PNG that doesn’t fill the

screen, you’ll see the LIVE or clip video behind the text - and PNG if

chosen.

Here are the rules for TEXT visibility. Short clips have text at the

beginning only. Longer clips display text at the beginning and at the end:

Single Text Clip Minimum - “00:00:15;00” duration

FrameOn “00:00:05;00” from start

FrameOff “00:00:12;00” from start

Dual Text Clip Minimum - “00:01:02;00” duration

FrameOn1 “00:00:10;00” from start

FrameOff1 “00:00:17;00” from start

FrameOn2 “00:00:20;00” from end

FrameOff2 “00:00:13;00” from end

NOTE: You can define the font, font size 1, font size 2, font

style, font color, horizontal screen position, vertical screen

position, and vertical line spacing for font 1 and font 2 on the

configuration window.

This playlist example shows a BUG is scheduled over the BEST

BUY clip; a CRAWL is scheduled over the Rock Steady clip; and a

TEXT file is scheduled over the Pop Power Opening clip. After

those three files play, the contents of the AUTO-LOOP folder will

play for the remainder of the half-hour Event (25:18:10).

SOFTWARE

Record Scheduled Events

You can record any scheduled Event, regardless of the contents of that Event. The Event may include any

combination of clips, graphics, or LIVE input segments. By definition, LIVE segments are those where a video

stream is configured as an input for the system, and passed through the automation engine to the output

stream for a specified duration. Sources can be NDI, HLS or MPEG-DASH formats.

To record a scheduled Event, right-click the Event banner and select

Event Properties … or double-click the Event banner to open the

Change Event Properties window.

Click the Record Event checkbox.

Click OK, and you’ll notice the RECORD LED indicator appears on the

Event banner next to the Event locked icon.

Record Duration

The recording will automatically start about a half second before the

Event playback begins. You’ll see the RECORD LED indicator glow bright

red to indicate record-in-progress.

The Settings panel in the lower right will also be outlined in red with the

file name of the currently recording file displayed in the upper right of

the window title bar.

If you click the Encode tab in the Settings window, you’ll see the name of

the file being recorded, a glowing red RECORD button, and a green timer

that indicates how long the file has been recording.

The file prefix is automatically copied from the Program Name of the

scheduled Event … followed by a date/time stamp in the complete file

name. The encoding parameters, such as file type and data rate, are

taken from the settings you have previously selected on the user-

defined fields on the Encode tab.

Manual Recording

Stream

Record Duration

You can record the PROGRAM signal at any time without having to

schedule the recording. Here’s what you do:

1. Click the Encode tab on the Settings window.

2. Verify the Recording Path. The default is D:\Media\Recordings

3. Enter a Name that describes what you’re going to record.

4. Select the desired Bit Rate.

5. Click the RECORD Button.

The duration counter will activate, and the name of the file will appear in

the upper right of the title bar. Recording can be stopped at any time.

Clicking stop will make the currently recording file available for playback.

Clicking Record again will start a new file with a new timestamp.

Note: You can select either MPEG-2 or MPEG-4 as the recording format.

The recommended settings for high-quality recordings are:

MPEG-225Mbps

MPEG-412Mbps

MPEG-4 files are much smaller than MPEG-2, so this is the

recommended recording format. That is the default when you open the

Encode tab.

Useful Markup Tags

A-LIST uses “markup tag” characters that are file specific, and which give

you added control in your content display and management. You use

brackets [ ] as part of the file name to ‘tell’ the software it is a special

instruction.

[ ]

Defining a Play Length for Pictures

When you use pictures in playlists (BMP, JPG, TIF) they have a default

‘global’ duration that applies to all such files (:10). But there may be

situations where you want to change how long a picture item is visible in

the playlist. (You can change the default duration under the Edit Menu.)

Example: Your picture is named “WhataDog.jpg”, but you want it to

display for 15 seconds instead of the global default of 10 seconds.

Presuming you keep your pictures in the PICS folder in the D:\Media

folder, open that folder, then right-click and select Rename from the

menu … or left-click once to select the picture then left-click again on the

name. The file name (but not the extension) will highlight. Place your

cursor at the end of the selected (blue) area and enter a Left

Bracket, the number 15, and a Right bracket - [15|.

Click anywhere outside the picture and it will be renamed. Whenever

that file is used in a playlist it will observe that specific play time.

Play Background Audio under Video Clips

The other useful markup tag is useful when you want to play

background audio files when video clips are playing while

AUTO-LOOP is active. Use the same procedure to rename the

video file, but add [bga] at the end of the file name but before

the extension: roadrace[bga].mp4

NOTE: BE SURE TO ENTER BRACKETS [ ] AND NOT PARENTHESES ( ) OR CURLY MARKS { }. THESE WILL NOT WORK!

for Technical Support:

888.894.7874 ext 2

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KEEPING IT SUPER SIMPLE!

Rushworks A-LIST STREAMSTER User Manual

Specifications and Main Features

Frequently Asked Questions

User Manual