Sony DVD Architect Studio Operation Manual

After the DVD Architect Studio™ software is installed and you start it for the first time, the registration wizard appears. This wizard offers easy steps that allow you to register the software online with Sony Pictures Digital Media Software and Services. Alternatively, you may register online at www.sony.com/mediasoftware at any time.

Registering your product will provide you with exclusive access to a variety of technical support options, notification of product updates, and special promotions exclusive to DVD Architect Studio registered users.

Registration Assistance

If you do not have access to the Internet, registration assistance is available during normal weekday business hours. Please contact our Customer Service Department by dialing one of the following numbers:

Telephone/Fax Country

1-800-577-6642 (toll-free) US, Canada, and Virgin Islands

+608-204-7703 for all other countries

1-608-250-1745 (Fax) All countries

Customer Service/Sales

For a detailed list of Customer Service options, we encourage you to visit

http://mediasoftware.sonypictures.com/support/custserv.asp. Use the following numbers for telephone

support during normal weekday business hours:

Telephone/Fax/E-mail Country

1-800-577-6642 (toll-free) US, Canada, and Virgin Islands

+608-204-7703 for all other countries

1-608-250-1745 (Fax) All countries

http://mediasoftware.sonypictures.com/custserv

Technical Support

For a detailed list of Technical Support options, we encourage you to visit

http://mediasoftware.sonypictures.com/support/default.asp. To listen to your support options by telephone,

please call 608-256-5555.

Sony Pictures Digital Inc.

Media Software and Services

1617 Sherman Avenue Madison, WI 53704 USA

The information contained in this manual is subject to change without notice and does not represent a guarantee or commitment on behalf of Sony Pictures Digital Inc. in any way. All updates or additional information relating to the contents of this manual will be posted on the Sony Pictures Digital Media Software web site, located at www.sony.com/mediasoftware. The software is provided to you under the terms of the End User License Agreement and Software Privacy Policy, and must be used and/or copied in accordance therewith. Copying or distributing the software except as expressly described in the End User License Agreement is strictly prohibited. No part of this manual may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or for any purpose without the express written consent of Sony Pictures Digital Inc.

DVD Architect Studio and Vegas are trademarks or registered trademarks of Sony Pictures Digital Inc. or its affiliates in the United States and other countries. All other trademarks or registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners in the United States and other countries.

Table of Contents

Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Welcome to DVD Architect Studio! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

System Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Technical support. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Installing DVD Architect Studio software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Getting help. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Accessing online help . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Main window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Toolbar. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Editing toolbar (Alt+1). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9

Text bar (Alt+2) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Transform bar (Alt+3) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9

Side panel (Shift+F11). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Bottom panel (F11) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Media Explorer tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Themes tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Keyboard command reference. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11

Project file commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Edit commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Magnification and view commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Insert commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Video object timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Mouse shortcuts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Getting Started. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

How it works . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Preparing files. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13

PCM audio (.wav) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

TABLE OF CONTENTS

NTSC MPEG video (.m2p, .mp2, .mpg, .mpeg) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

PAL MPEG video (.m2p, .mp2, .mpg, .mpeg) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Starting a new project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Opening an existing project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Choosing your media files. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Using Media Explorer views . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Downloading media from the Web . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Previewing media files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Adding files to your project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Setting your project properties. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Video format . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Introductory (first play) media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Summary information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Optimizing your project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Determining whether menus and titles are compliant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Using the Optimize DVD dialog to fine-tune your project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Saving your project. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Saving a copy of your project. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Creating a Menu-Based DVD. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Building menus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Editing a menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Adding a submenu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Inserting a scene selection menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Adding pages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Adding navigation buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Adding media. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Inserting a picture slideshow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Inserting a music compilation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Inserting a single movie object . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Inserting a graphic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Editing objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

Setting the thumbnail image . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

Setting the frame . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

Editing link information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

Changing an arrow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Moving and arranging objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Changing an object’s size . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Setting object order . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Inserting and editing text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Inserting text on a menu or page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Formatting text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Editing text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Moving text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Setting background audio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Applying themes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

What is a theme? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Choosing a theme . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Creating custom themes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

Creating a Music Compilation DVD. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Adding a music compilation to a menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Adding audio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38

Replacing an audio track . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Inserting images. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38

Replacing an image. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Setting image properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Adding text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Formatting text. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

Moving text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

Deleting text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .40

Setting thumbnail display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .40

Creating a Picture Slideshow DVD. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Adding a picture slideshow to a menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Adding images. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .42

Replacing an image. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Setting image properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Inserting an empty slide. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Adding text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Formatting text. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

Moving text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

Deleting text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .44

Adding background audio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

Deleting background audio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .44

Inserting a graphic. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .45

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Setting thumbnail display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Creating a Single Movie DVD or Object . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

Adding a movie object to a menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

Changing the video or audio file . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

Setting in and out points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

Setting the starting point . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

Inserting chapter markers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

Renaming chapter markers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

Repositioning chapter markers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

Deleting chapter markers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

Loading chapter markers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

Saving chapter markers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

Setting the thumbnail image for a movie object . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

Previewing projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Preparing and burning your DVD. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

Preparing your project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

Burning your prepared project. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

Preparing and burning your project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

Customizing DVD Architect Studio Software. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

Changing grid settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

Using the toolbar. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

Hiding and displaying the toolbar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

Reordering toolbar buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

Adding buttons to the toolbar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

Removing buttons from the toolbar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

Setting DVD Architect Studio preferences. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

General tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

Editing tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

Preview tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

Burning tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .i

TABLE OF CONTENTS

CHAPTER

Introduction

Welcome to DVD Architect Studio!

DVD Architect Studio™ software has everything you need to create and burn professional DVDs on your computer. With the DVD Architect Studio software, you’ll be creating picture slideshows, single-movie DVDs, music compilations, and menu-based DVDs on your computer in no time!

System Requirements

• 400 MHz processor

• Microsoft Windows®-compatible sound card

• Supported DVD-r/-rw/+r/+rw drive

• 7200 RPM hard-disk drive

• 24-bit color display recommended

• 128 MB RAM

• 40 MB hard-disk space for program installation

• Microsoft Windows® 2000 or Windows® XP

• Microsoft DirectX® 8 or later

• Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.5 or later

Technical support

The Web site at http://mediasoftware.sonypictures.com/support/default.asp has technical support, reference information, program updates, tips and tricks, and a knowledge base.

CHP. 1 INTRODUCTION

Installing DVD Architect Studio software

Insert the DVD Architect Studio CD-ROM. The DVD Architect Studio 2.0 Setup screen appears (if CDROM AutoPlay is enabled).

If CD-ROM AutoPlay is not enabled, click the button and choose appears, type the CD-ROM drive’s letter and add

Click Install DVD Architect Studio 2.0. The installation process begins.

Follow the screen prompts and enter the necessary information when required.

At the last screen prompt, click to conclude the installation.

Note:

DVD Architect Studio software uses the Windows

:\setup.exe. Click OK to start the installation.

Run. In the Run window that

Installer for all versions of Windows (e.g., Windows 98 SE, Windows ME). DVD Architect Studio software installs the Windows Installer and then asks you to restart your system.

Getting help

The DVD Architect Studio online help will assist you in getting the answers you need. To view the online help, you must have Microsoft® Internet Explorer 4.0 or higher installed on your system. If you purchased the boxed version of DVD Architect Studio, Internet Explorer version 5.0 is included on your CD-ROM.

Accessing online help

The online help is available in two forms: in a main help window or What’s This? help window. Both forms are available via the keyboard ( ) or by clicking the

Help menu.

Main help window

The main help window is accessed either by choosing Contents and Index from the Help menu or by pressing

. This window has four tabs that you can use to find the information that you need.

Toolbar

Tabs

Information pane

Contents tab provides a list of available help topics. Double-click a closed book ( ) to open the pages,

The and then click a topic page ( ).

INTRODUCTION CHP. 1

The Index tab provides a complete listing of the help topics available. Scroll through the list of available topics or type a word in the

Type in the keyword to find field to quickly locate topics related to that word.

Select the topic and click the button.

The

Search tab allows you to enter a keyword and display all of the topics in the online help that contain the

keyword you entered. Type a keyword in the

Type in the word(s) to search for field and click the

button. Select the topic from the list and click the button.

Favorites tab allows you to keep topics that you revisit often in a separate folder. To add a topic to your

The favorites, click the button on the

What’s This? help

Favorites tab.

What’s This? help allows you to view pop-up descriptions of DVD Architect Studio menus, buttons, and dialog boxes.

Click the What’s This Help button ( ) in the toolbar or the question mark ( ) in the upper-right corner of a dialog box. Alternately, you can choose

The cursor changes to a question mark icon: ( ).

Click an item in the program’s interface.

Help on the Web

What's This? from the Help menu or press .

Shift + F1

Additional DVD Architect Studio help and information is available on the Sony Pictures Digital Media Software Web site. From the

Help menu, choose Sony on the Web, and choose the desired location from the

submenu. The software starts your system’s Web browser and attempts to connect to the appropriate page on the Sony Web site.

CHP. 1 INTRODUCTION

Overview

DVD Architect Studio software is designed to be an easy, one-stop shop for DVD authoring. Many of the software’s operations, menu items, and shortcut keys are common to other popular software applications, as well as other Sony Pictures Digital applications.

Main window

This is the window that appears when you open the DVD Architect Studio software. The work area is divided into three primary areas:

• a workspace, where you assemble your project

• a side panel, where you set or view properties for media in your project

• a bottom panel, where you locate and preview media and choose themes

Workspace

Menu bar

Toolbar

Editing toolbar

Text bar

Transform bar

Bottom panel with Media Explorer and Themes tabs

To o l b a r

The main toolbar allows you to quickly access the most commonly used functions and features in the software. From the toggle display of the main toolbar, choose

Create new project Undo

Open existing project Redo

Save project Enable snapping to grid lines

Open project properties Preview project

Cut selected events or time range Make DVD of project

Copy selected events or time range What’s This? help

Paste items from clipboard into project

Options menu, choose Customize Toolbar to specify which buttons are displayed. To

Toolbar from the View menu.

Side panel

Media Preview window

INTRODUCTION CHP. 1

Editing toolbar (Alt+1)

The editing toolbar allows you to edit various object properties. To toggle display of this toolbar in the workspace, choose

Select and move objects Align all selected objects to the

Select and resize objects Make all selected objects the same

Align all selected objects to left edge of object that has focus

Align all selected objects to the top edge of the object that has focus

Align all selected objects to the horizontal center of the object that has focus

Align all selected objects to the vertical center of the object that has focus

Align all selected objects to the right edge of the object that has focus

Editing Toolbar from the View menu.

bottom edge of the object that has focus

width as the object that has focus

Make all selected objects the same height as the object that has focus

Adjust the selected objects so an equal amount of horizontal space exists between objects

Adjust the selected objects so an equal amount of vertical space exists between objects

Align selected objects to the horizontal center of the screen

Align selected objects to the vertical center of the screen

Text bar (Alt+2)

The text bar allows you to edit various text properties. To toggle the display of the text bar, choose Te x t ba r from the

View menu.

Choose the typeface that will be used for text

Choose the size (in points) of the typeface that will be used for text

Set text in bold typeface Align text to vertical center of text

Set text in italic typeface Align text to bottom edge of text box

Select position, color, and blurring of a shadow behind text

Align text to left edge of text box Make selected text box editable

Align text in center of text box

Align text to right edge of text box

Align text to top edge of text box

box

Set foreground color for text

Tra nsfor m b ar (Alt+3)

The transform bar allows you to view and edit the horizontal and vertical coordinates and height and width of an object. To toggle the display of the transform bar, choose

View or edit horizontal center of selected object

View or edit vertical center of selected object

View or edit width (in pixels) of selected object

Trans fo rm bar from the View menu.

View or edit height (in pixels) of selected object

Prevent image from being stretched or distorted

CHP. 1 INTRODUCTION

Side panel (Shift+F11)

Use this area to set or view properties for the media files you add to your project. The information displayed in this area changes, depending on the type of project you are creating. For more information, see Starting a

new project on page 15.

Bottom panel (F11)

This area contains two tabs: Media Explorer and Themes. Click a tab to bring it to the top.

Media Explorer tab

The Media Explorer tab is similar to the Windows® Explorer. Use the Media Explorer tab to select media files to drag to the workspace. You can also use the Media Explorer to perform common file management tasks such as creating folders, renaming files and folders, and deleting files and folders. Use the

Auto Preview ( ) buttons to preview files before adding them to the project. If you have the Auto Preview

button selected, any video or graphic file you click in the Media Explorer will automatically display in the Media Preview window.

Preview selected media files before placing them in the project.

Start Preview () and

Select drive or folder

Select media to place in the project by dragging or double-clicking.

Themes tab

The Themes tab is used to apply a theme to your menu-based project. A theme is a style sheet for your DVD menu page. Each theme can contain a background image, button type, layout style, button behaviors, text style, and embedded navigation behaviors.

You can apply themes to specific menu pages as you work. Each new page you add to that menu will default to using the same theme.

Some themes are included with the software for you to use, and you can also create your own themes and apply them to your projects. For more information, see Applying themes on page 34 and Creating custom themes

on page 35.

Double-click a theme to apply it to a menu

INTRODUCTION CHP. 1

Keyboard command reference

Project file commands

Description Keys

Create new project Ctrl+Shift+N Create new project and display Project Properties window Open existing project or media file Ctrl+O Save project Ctrl+S

Project properties Alt+Enter Exit Alt+F4

Edit commands

Description Keys

Undo last action Ctrl+Z Redo last action Ctrl+Shift+Z Cut selection Ctrl+X Copy selection Ctrl+C Paste Ctrl+V Delete Delete Select All Ctrl+A Move object to top/bottom Ctrl+Home/End Move object forward/back Ctrl+Page Up/Page Down Select object above/below Up Arrow/Down Arrow Select object to left/right Right Arrow/Left Arrow Move selected objects up/down by grid

spacing Move selected objects right/left by grid

spacing Move selected objects right/left one pixel

at a time. Move selected objects to top/bottom of

menu Move selected objects to right/left of

menu Switch to next editing tool Ctrl+D Edit selected text F2 Edit grid settings Ctrl+Shift+G Enable snapping F8 Snap to grid Ctrl+F8 Snap to objects Shift+F8 Snap to safe areas Ctrl+Shift+F8

Ctrl+N

Alt+Up Arrow/Down Arrow

Alt+Right Arrow/Left Arrow

Ctrl+Alt+Right Arrow/ Left Arrow

Alt+Page Up/Page Down

Alt+End/Home

Magnification and view commands

Description Keys

Show/hide editing toolbar Alt+1 Show/hide text bar Alt+2 Show/hide transform bar Alt+3 Show/hide bottom panel F11 Show/hide side panel Shift+F11 Show/hide grid Ctrl+G Show first/last page Home/End Show previous/next page Page Up/Page Down

CHP. 1 INTRODUCTION

Insert commands

Description Keys

Insert text Ctrl+T Insert submenu Ctrl+M Insert picture slideshow Ctrl+L Insert music compilation Ctrl+K Insert video from file Ctrl+F

Video object timeline

Description Keys

Zoom in/out Up/Down Arrow Move cursor left/right Right/Left Arrow Move one frame left/right Alt+Right/Left Arrow Play from in point Shift+F9 Play F9 Insert chapter M Set start point S Set in/out points I/O Set menu item thumbnail T

Mouse shortcuts

Description Keys

Copy object Ctrl+drag object Override horizontal snapping Shift+drag object Override vertical snapping Ctrl+drag object Constrain motion horizontally or vertically Resize object from center Ctrl+drag edge of object

Resize proportionally Shift+drag edge of object

Resize object proportionally from center Ctrl+Shift+drag edge of

Alt+drag object

with sizing tool

object with sizing tool

INTRODUCTION CHP. 1

CHAPTER

Getting Started

This chapter details what you need to know to start authoring your DVD in DVD Architect Studio™ software.

How it works

The basic process for creating a DVD using the DVD Architect Studio application is essentially the same regardless of the type of project you choose to create:

Start a new project and specify the type of project you want to create (menu based, music compilation, picture slideshow, or single movie).

Choose and add your media.

Preview your project.

Save your project.

Prepare and burn your DVD.

These steps are discussed in more detail in the following sections.

Preparing files

To ensure that your DVD preparation and burning process goes smoothly, you should attempt to save your media files in the supported formats prior to bringing them into your DVD Architect Studio project. The software supports a wide variety of file formats, but some will require transcoding or recompression by the DVD preparation process, lengthening the amount of time needed to complete this operation, and possibly resulting in degradation of quality. For more information on supported file types, see Choosing your media files on page 16.

The following files will not require recompression if encoded with proper parameters: MPEG-2 and PCM. MPEG elementary streams are not supported. Even if you plan to replace the audio with PCM, you will need to import muxed MPEG files.

Note:

templates that, if used without any modifications, result in files that do not require any recompression (unless the file size is too large to fit on a DVD).

Sony’s MainConcept MPEG-2 encoder provides

The precise settings to produce DVD Architect Studio-compliant (i.e., do not require recompression by the DVD Architect Studio software) MPEG-2 and PCM files are listed below.

CHP. 2 GETTING STARTED

PCM audio (.wav)

Sample size: 16, 20, or 24 bit

Sample rate: 48 or 96 kHz

Number of channels: stereo

Compression: uncompressed

NTSC MPEG video (.m2p, .mp2, .mpg, .mpeg)

If you’re using the MainConcept™ MPEG-2 encoder in the Vegas Movie Studio software, use the DVD

Architect NTSC video stream

need to render your audio stream separately according to the parameters listed in the PCM audio section above).

Frame resolution: 720x480

Aspect ratio: 4:3 or 16:9

Frame rate: 29.97 fps or 23.976 fps + 2-3 pulldown

Maximum GOP (group of pictures): 36

Maximum bit rate: 9.8 Mbps

No low delay

or DVD Architect 24p NTSC video stream template to render your video stream (you’ll

PAL MPEG video (.m2p, .mp2, .mpg, .mpeg)

If you’re using the MainConcept MPEG-2 encoder in the Vegas Movie Studio software, use the DVD Architect

PAL video stream

need to render your audio stream separately according to the parameters listed in the PCM audio section above).

Frame resolution: 720x576

Aspect ratio: 4:3 or 16:9

Frame rate: 25 fps

Maximum GOP (group of pictures): 30

Maximum bit rate: 9.8 Mbps

No low delay

or DVD Architect PAL Widescreen video stream template to render your video stream (you’ll

GETTING STARTED CHP. 2

Starting a new project

Using the DVD Architect Studio application, you can design a DVD as simple or as complex as you’d like, consisting of stills, video, and audio. Organization of these components is an important piece of the creation process. Organization is handled by a DVD Architect Studio project file (*.dar) that saves the relevant information about source file locations, insertion points, chapters, text, and more. This project file is not a multimedia file, but is instead used to create the final product when your editing is finished.

The greatest advantage of working with projects is not the organizational benefits, but the fact that you are working on and editing a project file, and not the original source files. When you copy, cut, paste, and otherwise edit your media, the process is nondestructive. You can edit without worrying about changing or corrupting your source files. This not only gives you a strong sense of security, but it also gives you the freedom to experiment.

From the File menu, choose New. The New Project dialog displays.

Choose the type of project you want to create:

• Menu Based: produces a DVD that displays a menu when played in a DVD player. Users can move through the menu items and select what they’d like to view. You can use any kind of media to a menubased DVD. In addition, you can add multiple menus, music compilations, picture slideshows, and movies. For more information, see Creating a Menu-Based DVD on page 23.

• Music Compilation: produces a DVD containing a compilation of only audio files. You can choose a still image or video to associate with each audio file. Music compilations contain no menus, but users can skip forward and backward through audio tracks using their DVD remote control. For more

information, see Creating a Music Compilation DVD on page 37.

• Picture Slideshow: produces a DVD that displays a slideshow of your still images. You can choose one background audio track to play while the pictures are displayed. Picture slideshows contain no menus, but users can skip forward and backward through pictures using their DVD remote control. For more

information, see Creating a Picture Slideshow DVD on page 41.

• Single Movie: produces a DVD containing a single movie. Single movies contain no menus or other media (aside from introductory video/audio, if desired). For more information, see Creating a Single Movie

DVD or Object on page 47.

Choose the appropriate video setting in the Project video format drop-down list.

Click the Summary tab, and complete the information in the fields as desired. This information is saved with the project.

•

Title: Enter the title of the project. Artist: Enter name of the artist who performed in the project.

•

Engineer: Enter the name of the person who mixed or edited the project.

•

Comments: Enter any comments you want to associate with the project.

•

If your projects typically use these settings, select the Start all new projects with these settings check box.

Note:

The project settings you chose in the New Project dialog can be changed at any time while you are working on a project, with the exception of the type of project you chose to create. To change any of these settings, choose

Properties

from the File menu.

We recommend saving your project at regular intervals to avoid loss of work due to system failure or power outages. For more information, please see Saving your project on page 21.

CHP. 2 GETTING STARTED

Opening an existing project

From the File menu, choose Open. The Open dialog displays.

Locate and select the project (.dar) file you want to open.

Click the Open button.

Choosing your media files

You can use the Media Explorer tab in the bottom panel of the DVD Architect Studio work area to find and add media files to your project. A wide variety of media files are supported. You may add any of the following media file types to your DVD Architect Studio project:

Format Extension Definition

GIF .gif 256 index color, lossless image and animation format widely used on

JPEG .jpg True color, lossy Internet image format. Macintosh AIFF File .aif Standard audio format used on Macintosh® computers. MPEG-1 and MPEG-2 .mpg Files compressed using a lossy audio/video compression method. MPEG Layer 3 .mp3 Highly compressed audio file. Ogg Vorbis .ogg A patent-free audio encoding and streaming technology.

Photoshop .psd Portable Network Graphic .png True color or indexed color, lossy or lossless Internet image format

QuickTime .mov, .qt Quicktime standard audio/video format used on Macintosh®

Sony Perfect Clarity Audio .pca Sony proprietary lossless audio compression format. Sony Wave 64 .w64 Sony proprietary Wave64 audio file that does not have a limited file

TARGA .tga True color, lossless image format that supports alpha channel

TIFF .tif Tagged Image File Format, a common bitmap format. You must have

Video for Windows .avi Standard audio/video format used on Microsoft® Windows-based

Wave (Microsoft) .wav Standard audio format used on Microsoft Windows-based computers. Wave (Scott Studios) .wav Standard audio format used with Scott Studios systems. Windows Bitmap .bmp Standard graphic format used on Microsoft Windows-based

Windows Media Audio .wma The Microsoft audio-only format used to create files for streaming or

Windows Media Format .wmv The Microsoft standard used for streaming audio and video media via

the Internet.

Adobe Photoshop® proprietary image format (flattened).

that supports alpha channel transparency.

computers.

size (unlike Windows WAV files that are limited to ~2GB).

transparency.

QuickTime™ installed to use TIFF files in the DVD Architect Studio software.

computers.

downloading via the Web.

the Web.

Note:

DVD Architect Studio software includes support for many file types and can convert your media to the formats required for DVD as needed. However, for best performance (decreased disc preparation time and recompression), use existing rendered files. For more information about the types of files that can be used without recompression, see Preparing

files on page 13.

GETTING STARTED CHP. 2

Using Media Explorer views

You can control the information that is displayed in the Media Explorer by clicking the Views button ( ) and selecting a view.

Tree View displays all of the available drives and folders that you may choose from to find files.

The

Summary View displays everything shown in the Tree View, but adds an area below the file list where

summary information for the selected file is displayed, such as the file type and properties.

Details displays all the properties for each file. The information is presented in a table format. You can sort

the files according to a category by clicking the column label for that category.

All files displays all file types in the selected folder.

Downloading media from the Web

You can also download media files from the Web for use in your project. To do so, follow these steps:

From the File menu, choose Get Media from the Web. The software starts your browser and attempts to connect to the Internet.

Search for and download files to use in your project.

Previewing media files

You can preview media files from the Media Explorer anytime before adding them to your project. To do so, simply click once on the file to select it, and then click the click the

Stop Preview button ( ).

You can enable automatic previewing of selected files by clicking the

Start Preview button ( ). To stop the preview,

Auto Preview button ( ). When this

option is enabled, any file you select in the Media Explorer is automatically previewed. To stop the preview, click the

Stop Preview button. To disable this option, click the Auto Preview button again.

Adding files to your project

Once you’ve located a file you want to use, add it to the project using one of the following methods:

• Double-click the file.

• Select the file and drag it to the DVD Architect Studio workspace.

Note:

If you have a display device that is susceptible to burnin (such as a rear-projection television), do not use static text or bright static graphics in any scene that will be displayed on screen for an extended period of time.

CHP. 2 GETTING STARTED

Setting your project properties

When you start a new project, you select various properties for the project. However, if you need to view those properties or make changes to them while you’re working on the project, you can do so at any time by choosing and

Properties from the File menu. The Project Properties dialog displays, containing two tabs: General

Summary.

If your projects typically use the same settings, select the

Start all new projects with these settings check box at

the bottom of the dialog.

Video format

You can adjust the video setting in the Project video format drop-down list on the General tab. The video format determines the DVD Architect Studio frame rate and frame size for DVD burning.

Tip:

The television frame rate in the US, North and Central

America, parts of South America, and Japan (NTSC) is

29.97 frames per second (fps). In many parts of the world, including Europe and much of Asia, the television standard is PAL at 25 fps. France, Russia, and most of Eastern Europe use SECAM, which is a variation on PAL and also uses 25 fps.

Introductory (first play) media

You can select an audio and video file to use as introductory media at the beginning of your DVD prior to the display of the main menu. Using the you want to use. For example, you could use this option to display copyright information before your DVD content begins.

Video/Image and Audio fields on the General tab, you can specify the files

Summary information

The fields on the Summary tab provide a place to enter information for Title, Artist, Engineer, Copyright, and

Comments, if desired. This information is stored with the DVD Architect Studio project.

Click the

OK button to save any changes.

Optimizing your project

To make your DVD preparation and burning process go as quickly and smoothly as possible, you can optimize your project ahead of time to identify and correct potential problems that might come up later. Using DVD Architect Studio’s Optimize DVD feature, you can:

• view the estimated project and individual media file sizes

• view and change project and file format settings

• verify which media files will require recompression by the software during the DVD preparation process:

indicates a file is compliant (requires no recompression by DVD Architect Studio software).

indicates a file requires recompression by the DVD Architect Studio software.

indicates you have specified to force recompression by the DVD Architect Studio software (see below

for information).

GETTING STARTED CHP. 2

Note:

If a media file’s format does not match the project format, the media file will be re-encoded during the preparation process. For example, if your media file is 4:3 MPEG-2 and your DVD Architect Studio project is 16:9, the file will be re-encoded.

To determine the best file format settings for DVD Architect Studio use, see Preparing files on page 13.

Determining whether menus and titles are compliant

Use the guidelines below to determine whether your menus and titles will require recompression during the DVD preparation process.

Menus

Menus always use the settings from the Project video format controls. All menus use the same audio format, aspect ratio (16:9 or 4:3), and frame size, but you can mix frame rates for menus within a single project.

A menu’s video will not be recompressed if it meets the following requirements:

• Any background video must match the

• No graphics can be added to the menu.

• Buttons must use highlighting only. Using button thumbnails or text will require recompression.

A menu’s audio will not be recompressed if its background audio is rendered in a compliant PCM format. For more information, see Preparing files on page 13.

If a menu requires recompression, it will recompressed using the project format. You can select a menu in the Optimize DVD dialog and use the

Format controls at the bottom of the dialog to override the default project

settings.

Project video format setting.

CHP. 2 GETTING STARTED

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