Sony ImageMixer Operating Instructions

Introduction

About This Manual

General notes Using this manual

Read Carefully

About trademarks Warning About pictures and images

Software Usage Contract

Chapter 1 Before Use

Chapter 2 Capture

Environment

Chapter 3 Album

Environment

Chapter 4 Movie Editing

Environment

Chapter 5 Layout

Environment

Chapter 6 Image Editor

Introduction About This Manual

General notes

● This manual is an HTML document which explains the functions of PIXELA

ImageMixer Ver.1.0 for Sony (henceforth, 'ImageMixer'). This manual does not explain the basics of Windows or Macintosh operating systems. Basic operations, such as working with individual windows, are based on general usage of Windows and Macintosh.

● Screenshots may differ slightly depending on each company's bundling of this

product.

● Most screenshots currently used in this manual relate to the Windows

version. The screenshots for Windows and Macintosh differ slightly. Moreover, images may vary according to monitor specifications.

● Due to the fact that the most recent information related to this software has

not been added to the manual, please consult the Read Me file, included on the CD-ROM.

Using this manual

This manual explains all ImageMixer's many functions. Any item can be referenced

by clicking the menu (table of contents) displayed on left-hand side of the screen.

● Blue text indicates a link. Clicking it will display the relevant item.Once that

item has been displayed, the link will appear in purple text.

● The end of the page can be referenced by clicking .

● The beginning of the page can be referenced by clicking .

● The preceding page (or preceding item) can be referenced by clicking .

● The following page (or following item) can be referenced by clicking .

● Issues of particular importance are indicated in red text. Please read them

carefully.

Homepage

The latest information on ImageMixer can be found on our home page:

http://www.ImageMixer.com/

Introduction Read Carefully

About trademarks

● 'Windows ®' is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation in the U.S.

and other countries. The official name of Windows is Microsoft ® Windows ® Operating System.

● Macintosh is a registered trademark of Apple Computer, Inc.

● In addition, the company names and brand names referenced in this manual

are themselves the trademarks, registered trademarks, and products of the respective companies.

Warning

1. All rights related to the user manual and software produced by our company (henceforth, 'product'), both of which are stored on the installation CD-ROM, belong solely to PIXELA Corporation.

2. Unauthorized reproduction or reprinting of the contents of the product, or any portion thereof, is strictly prohibited.

3. The contents of this product are subject to change without notice.

4. PIXELA Corp. offers no guarantees for this product. Moreover, PIXELA Corp.

assumes no responsibility for damage caused as the result of defects in this product (directly, indirectly, as a special case or in inevitable cases) even once an announcement has been made that such damage may occur. By the same token, PIXELA Corp. assumes no responsibility for costs incurred in the reproduction or recovery of any lost computer programs or data, when such loss is associated with the use of this computer program when included in another application.

All the rights to the picture data (including text characters) included in the product CD-ROM are protected by accompanying copyrights based on the Copyright Act.

No persons other than the copyright holder may engage in the sale, rental, transfer, or reproduction of this material without the consent of the copyright holder. Violations to the Copyright Act are subject to criminal punishment. Use of the picture data on this CD-ROM is permitted for individual use only.

The image data on this CD-ROM may not be duplicated for business purposes. Moreover, neither corrected nor altered parts of the data may be used for business purposes.

About pictures and images

● Keep in mind that pictures and images which may used with ImageMixer may

be protected or otherwise forbidden, irrespective of their purpose or use.

● As for general literary property, the approval of the rightful claimant of the

work is required except in the case of personal use.

● Duplicating any type of currency, negotiable instruments, securities, etc., is

illegal and punishable by law.

● Duplicating licenses, passports, various kinds of certificates, official

documents, private documents, etc., is illegal and punishable by law.

Software Product Use

Introduction

Consent Contract

You are permitted by PIXELA, Inc., according to the following use consent conditions of this use consent contract (henceforth, "this contract") to the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to use the software program (henceforth, "this program") and its add-ons, such as the user guide.

Consented matter

You are granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to install and use one copy of this program on a single computer.

The primary user of this program may copy parts thereof for backup purposes, with all usage rights, as set forth in this contract, remaining exclusive to the primary user.

Prohibited matter

This program cannot be used on a network. When it is used by two or more computers on a network, a royalty is required to be paid to PIXELA, Inc. for each additional computer.

Third person use or the use of this program by the method of re-use consent, transfer, distribution, loan, or others, is not allowed.

You may not correct, alter, reverse engineer, decompile, or disassemble all or part of this program. You may not allow a third person to perform such an act.

Termination of contract

When a customer reproduces this program or its add-ons without permission or breaks the above-mentioned consent conditions, this contract is automatically terminated, and other legal action may be taken by PIXELA, Inc. Upon termination of this contract, this program, its add-ons, and all duplicates thereof, shall be returned to PIXELA, Inc., or abandoned.

Guarantee and exemption from responsibility

This program, its add-ons, and the productions thereof, may not conform to your specific purpose, notwithstanding any representations, express or tacit. Moreover, PIXELA, Inc. does not guarantee that the functions of this program will agree with your needs, or that there are neither discontinuities nor errors in the functions of this program. PIXELA, Inc. does not take any responsibility for direct or indirect loss or damage accompanying or related to the use of this program, nor for any disputes arising between the customer and any third party related to use of this program or caused by this program.

Introduction

Chapter 1 Before Use

System Requirements

Windows Macintosh

Setup

Installation Uninstalling

Basic Operations

Starting ImageMixer ImageMixer startup screen Outline of tasks Selector Bar Status Bar Dialog box buttons Exiting ImageMixer Basic operations

Basic Terms

Chapter 2 Capture

Environment

Chapter 3 Album

Environment

Chapter 4 Movie Editing

Environment

Chapter 5 Layout

Environment

Chapter 6 Image Editor

1-1

System Requirements

In order for ImageMixer to work correctly, your computer must meet the following minimum system requirements. Please confirm that your computer system meets these requirements before installing ImageMixer.

Windows

Microsoft ® Windows ® 98/Windows ® 98 Second Edition/Windows ® Millennium Edition/Windows ® 2000 Professional/Windows ® XP Home Edition/Windows ® XP Professional (IBM PC/AT compatible)

(In Windows ® 98 and Windows ® 98 Second Edition, DV (IEEE1394) capturing is not supported. In Windows ® 98, USB capturing is not supported)

CPU

Intel MMX ® Pentium ® 200MHz or faster. (Pentium ® III 500MHz or faster for capturing a movie via USB or IEEE1394. Pentium ® III 800MHz or faster is

recommended.) Software DirectX 8.0a or later Sound 16-bit stereo sound card with stereo speakers Memory 64MB or more

Hard Disk

Approx. 200MB for program, 1GB or more of free

space recommended for work space

Graphics

4MB or more of VRAM, minimum of 800x600 at 16-

bit hi-color (65,000 colors); Direct Draw driver

compatible

ImageMixer will not run correctly in a screen area of less than

800 x 600, or in less than 256 colors.

Other

DirectX must be installed.

If the standard Windows fonts are not installed on

the system, characters will not be displayed correctly.

To install and use this software in Windows ® 2000

you must be authorized as a Power User or

Administrator; for Windows ® XP you must be

authorized as an Administrator.

Macintosh

Mac OS 8.5.1 or later (Mac OS X is not compatible)

Memory 64MB or more

Hard Disk

Approx. 100MB for program, 1GB or more of free

space recommended for work space.

Graphics

Minimum of 800x600 (32,000 colors)

ImageMixer will not run correctly in a screen area of less than

800 x 600, or in less than 256 colors.

Other

Pre-installed QuickTime 4 or later.

USB or IEEE1394 capturing is not available with

Macintosh.

1-2

Setup

Installation

Windows

1. Insert the ImageMixer CD in the CD drive.

After inserting the CD, the screen below is displayed. If this screen is not displayed, right click the CD icon in My Computer to explore the contents of the CD drive and then double click the 'install.exe' file.

2. Click [PIXELA ImageMixer].

3. Select a language from the list.

If ImageMixer has already been installed, a dialog box will appear prompting you to uninstall the application. If you wish to reinstall ImageMixer, complete the unstinallation process and then reinstall.

4. Continue clicking [NEXT], according to each of the displayed messages.

Installation process begins.

5. When the dialog box reads, 'ImageMixer setup is complete,' click the [Finish] button.

ImageMixer is installed after performing all of the steps above. The same type of process is used to install other applications, such as DirectX 8. ImageMixer requires DirectX 8 to

be installed.

Macintosh

1. Insert the ImageMixer CD.

The Menu screen appears automatically. If the Menu screen does not appear automatically, search for the [Setup Menu] icon by double-clicking the CD icon on the desktop.

2. In the Menu screen, click a desired language icon to begin the installation process.

Click the 'USB Driver' button when you want to install it.

3. Continue by following the instructions.

Uninstalling

Windows

1. From the Start menu, point to settings 'Settings' and open the 'Control Panel.'

2. Double-click the [Add/Remove Programs] icon.

The Add/Remove Programs property dialog box is displayed.

3. Select ImageMixer from the list of programs and click the [Add/Remove] button.

4. Select the language of the currently installed version of ImageMixer and click [OK].

The uninstall process begins.

5. When the dialog box says 'uninstall successfully completed,' click the [OK] button.

In some cases captured files may remain after the uninstall process is completed. To delete all ImageMixer information, delete the Program Files >Pixela > ImageMixer folder.

Macintosh

1. Drag the following folder to the Trash: 'System Folder: Preferences:

IM Default Settings , ImageMixerPreferencesFile'.

2. Drag the 'ImageMixer' folder from the HDD to the Trash.

1-3-1

Basic Operations

Starting ImageMixer

Windows

ImageMixer can be started by clicking on the Start Menu and pointing to Programs>Pixela>ImageMixer>PIXELA ImageMixer Ver.1.0. for Sony If a shortcut icon for ImageMixer was created at installation, an icon will be displayed on the desktop (see the example at right). Doubleclicking this icon will also start ImageMixer. Additionally, you can refer to this manual by selecting Start>Programs>Pixela>ImageMixer>Help.

Macintosh

ImageMixer is started by double-clicking the ImageMixer icon (created during installation) in the ImageMixer folder on the HDD.

ImageMixer startup screen (The Main Selector)

The first window displayed when ImageMixer is started is called the Main Selector.

Capture Environment button

Album Environment button

Movie Editing Environment button

Layout Environment button

Exit button Click to exit ImageMixer.

Explanation display

Click to begin

As the mouse pointer is moved over the

or button, a short explanation is displayed.

tasks related to capturing media files.

tasks related to albums.

tasks related to editing movie files.

tasks related to graphic layouts.

Outline of tasks

Tasks related to capturing media files (Capture Environment)

ImageMixer allows you to select which existing media you want to work with and import files from a memory card, such as one which is inserted in a digital camera connected to your computer. You can also record sound from audio CDs or by using a microphone. Capturing still shots or entire scenes from a digital movie camera is also easy with ImageMixer. You can then use the main screen to confirm these operations by double clicking the appropriate thumbnail and easily add media files to existing albums.

Tasks related to albums (Album Environment)

Albums help you organize media files to be used with ImageMixer. Available tasks include viewing still images and movies, running slide shows, displaying information related to individual files, performing file searches, and sorting files according to specific criteria. Using albums also means that you only need manage those files that serve the purposes you define.

Tasks related to editing movie files (Movie Editing Environment)

ImageMixer is a powerful application when it comes to editing movie files. To create professional quality movies, you can cut scenes, superimpose sound, add transition effects, and make custom tiles appear in specific places in the media stream. Also, since ImageMixer saves movie files in MPEG1 format, there is no degradation of image quality, since unedited portions do not need to be rewritten to disk.

Tasks related to graphic layouts (Layout Environment)

Creating customized labels for video cassettes, floppy disks, and other items is a snap with ImageMixer, as is designing other two-dimensional images. You can also choose from a wide variety of designing tools, such as those related to colors, text manipulation, shapes and textures.

Tasks related to editing still pictures (Image Editor)

Unlike conventional photographs, digital images can be altered in a variety of ways with ImageMixer, including applying masks to certain sections of an image, adding filters, changing background composition, etc.

1-3-2

Basic Operations

Selector Bar

The buttons located on this bar control the desired working environment and general actions associated with the current environment.

Capture Environment button

Album Environment button

Movie Environment button

Layout Environment button

Minimize button

Help button

Click to begin

Click to minimize the ImageMixer application window and display it in the task bar. (Windows only)

Click to bring up this manual and get help using ImageMixer. (Windows only)

tasks related to capturing media files.

tasks related to albums.

tasks related to editing movie files.

tasks related to graphic layouts.

Preferences button

Exit button Click to exit ImageMixer.

Status Bar

Click to confirm or make changes to settings related to the currently selected mode.

The bottom part of ImageMixer's application window is called the 'Status Bar.' When the mouse pointer is placed over an object, an explanation of its function is displayed in the Status Bar.

Dialog box buttons

Many of the dialog boxes in ImageMixer contain the following buttons.

[OK] or [Yes]

[Cancel]

[NO]

Exiting ImageMixer

Clicking the Exit button on either the [Main Selector] or the [Mode Select

Bar] will close the ImageMixer application.

1-3-3

Basic Operations

Basic operations in ImageMixer

Selecting an album

Once you select the album you want to work with, its icon turns bright yellow, so you are able to easily distinguish which album is currently active.

Selecting thumbnails

Thumbnails may be selected in a variety of ways.

● Selecting one thumbnail

Click to select.

● Selecting a series of thumbnails

Click the first thumbnail in the series, hold down the 'Shift' key, and then click the last thumbnail of the series.

● Selecting only individual thumbnails

In Windows, click the thumbnails of your choice while holding down the 'Ctrl' key. In Macintosh, use the 'Command' key.

● Selecting all thumbnails currently displayed

In Windows, hold down the 'Ctrl' key and press 'A.' In Macintosh, hold down the 'Command' key and press 'A.'

Selecting objects

Objects in a certain layout may be selected in a variety of ways.

● Selecting one object

Click to select.

● Selecting only individual objects

In Windows, click the objects of your choice while holding down the 'Ctrl' key. In Macintosh, use the 'Command' key.

● Selecting all objects in the layout

In Windows, hold down the 'Ctrl' key and press 'A.' In Macintosh, hold down the 'Command' key and press 'A.'

● Canceling object selection

Click anywhere in the layout there is no object.

Selecting a color in Windows (See below for Macintosh.)

When selecting a color, the following dialog boxes are displayed.

Click the color you wish to work with.

User-defined colors are displayed in . Click the color you wish to work with.

Click to display and . A user-defined color can be created by clicking an area in the color

spectrum or by inputting digits.

The color currently specified in or is displayed here.

Click this button to add the color currently specified in to . Once any color on the basic color palette or the custom color palette

has been selected, the selected color will be displayed in

Selecting a color in Macintosh

The following color select dialog boxes are displayed by double-clicking currently displayed color palette by clicking

. A color can be selected in the

Click the color palette type you wish to work with.

Click an area in the color spectrum to specify a color.

Input digits to specify a color.

1-4

Basic Terms

Basic terms used in ImageMixer

IEEE1394

Also called 'I Triple E 1394,' this interface is best known for facilitating very fast data transfer speeds (up to 400Mbps). It is used primarily as an output interface (DV connector) for digital video cameras or hard disk drives. Other names for this interface include i.LINK (in Windows), and FireWire (in Macintosh).

MPEG

MPEG stands for Moving Picture Experts Group. MPEG is an international data compression format for digital movies and Hi-Fi audio. MPEG-1 is the approved format for Video CDs, and its brilliant audio/video quality is comparable to that of VHS videotape. MPEG movies are stored as smaller files than DV (digital video) movies of the same length, making it the standard movie format for Internetrelated activities. The MPEG-2 format also creates high quality images, but is used primarily for DVDs and Digital Satellite Broadcasting.

Exif

Based originally on JPEG and TIFF file types, this format is used for still pictures taken with digital cameras. Exif files contain detailed information (such as the date/time the photo was taken, image size, shutter speed, etc.) on individual pictures.

Capture

This refers to activities related to bringing in still pictures and movie files from sources such as disks, cameras connected directly to your computer, and existing media, as would be the case in selecting and saving a single frame from a movie file. Capturing is also a term used in ImageMixer to refer to the recording of sound, from audio CDs or through a microphone, as well as moving images via a video camera connected directly to your computer.

Thumbnails Thumbnails are small graphic representations of files which have been added to a particular album. They are linked not only to the file on your computer, but also to information pertaining to that file, such as name, size, save directory, etc. Windows users might think of a thumbnail as a 'shortcut,' and Mac users may make a relationship to the term 'alias.'

Source files

Once movies, still pictures and sounds are added to the yellow albums, they become album files. All the information pertaining to album files is linked to their thumbnails.

Album files

Source files refer to the media stored on your computer. As opposed to album files or thumbnails, they can be considered the 'original' data files.

Trimming

This task refers to getting rid of unnecessary portions of an object.

Transition

The point at which one movie scene ends and another one begins is called a transition.

Templates

Upon installing ImageMixer, you will have a number of pre-designed pictures which you may like to use as backgrounds for your own layouts. These are called templates, and they may be accessed by clicking the [Templates] button.

Templates can neither be changed in size, nor edited.

Custom templates

ImageMixer lets you save your own designs for use as backgrounds in future layouts. They may be accessed by clicking the [Custom Templates] button.

Object

Figures, images, and text arranged in layouts are called objects.

Control point

Once an object in a particular layout is selected, the four corners surrounding the object are displayed as control points. They can be dragged to change the size the object.

Control points are displayed slightly differently in Windows and Macintosh.

Blocks

Blocks are the square areas which surround the control points.

Introduction

Chapter 1 Before Use

Chapter 2 Capture

Environment

Capture Environment

Opening Capture

Environment

Capture window

Capture Tasks

Import file mode display

Importing files

Digital Camera Import Mode

Digital camera import

display

Importing files from a digital

camera

Audio CD Recording Mode

Control panel

Caution

Recording music files

Troubleshooting

Sound Recording Mode

Control panel

Recording sound files

Recording sound files while

previewing movie images

Troubleshooting

USB Device Capture Mode

(Win)

Control panel

Connection status

Capturing movie scenes

Capturing still pictures

DV Camcorder Capture Mode

(Win)

Control panel

Changing the display size

Connection status

DV cassette indication

Capturing movie scenes

Capturing still picture files

Capturing/Recording

Preferences

Chapter 3 Album

Environment

Chapter 4 Movie Editing

Environment

Chapter 5 Layout

Environment

Chapter 6 Image Editor

2-1

Capture Environment

Opening Capture Environment

1. Open ImageMixer.

2. Click the [Capture Environment]

button on the Main

Selector.

3. Click the

Capture Mode Selector button which corresponds to the task

you wish to perform.

The selected mode is displayed.

Capture window

Capture mode selector

Click either

or , depending on

the method by which you wish to bring in media.

Control panel

This section changes depending on the mode selected.

Album list window Albums are displayed in a list.

Thumbnail list window

Depending on the capture mode selected, album file

thumbnails are displayed in a list.

Import File Mode button

Click to start

import file mode.

Digital Camera Import Mode button

Click to start

digital camera import mode.

CD Recording Mode button

Click to start

CD recording mode.

Sound Recording Mode button

Click to start

sound recording mode.

USB Device Capture Mode button

Click to start

USB device capture mode. (Windows

only)

DV Camcorder Capture Mode button

Click to start

DV camcorder capture mode. (Windows

only)

2-2-1

ImageMixer allows you to "drag and drop" media (still pictures, movies, and sound files) straight from disks on your computer into albums of your choice.

Capture Tasks

Import file mode display

and are displayed only when the displayed thumbnails are not

those related to still pictures.

Folder list window

Folders in the HDD and removable disks are displayed here in a format which is similar to that of Explorer in Windows. In Macintosh, this window resembles the Finder.

Still Picture File Display button

Movie File Display button

Sound File Display button

Display All Files button

Thumbnail list window

Capture button

Click to display only thumbnails of still picture files in the selected folder.

Click to display only thumbnails of movie files in the selected folder.

Click to display only thumbnails of sound files in the selected folder.

Click to display thumbnails of all media files in the selected folder.

Here you can see thumbnails of those files in the selected folder that can be added to albums. They appear according to the file type(s) sorted by

selecting one of the following buttons: or

Click to add the selected thumbnail(s) to the album currently selected in the album list window.

Album list window Albums are displayed in a list.

Displays a preview of the source file and provides detailed file information. In the case of movie files,

Preview window

the entire movie can be previewed in this window. The preview window is not displayed when a sound file thumbnail is selected.

A single fame and its position in the movie can be

Play position slider

previewed by dragging the slider. This is not displayed when a still picture is selected.

Play button Begins playback of the currently selected movie.

Pause button Pauses playback.

Volume control

In Windows, adjust the volume by dragging the slider. In Macintosh, click to display a vertical volume slider. Adjust the volume by dragging the slider up or down.

Preview ON/OFF

Switches the preview display on or off.

button Single Frame Rewind

Rewinds the movie frame by frame. (Macintosh only)

button Single Frame Advance

button Information Display

button

Advances the movie frame by frame. (Macintosh only)

Displays detailed information pertaining to the selected file.

2-2-2

Capture Tasks

Importing files

1. Select a disk/volume or folder from the folder list window.

Media files existing in a particular disk/volume or folder displayed in the folder list window can be added to albums. They appear as thumbnails in the thumbnail list window. In Windows, click click

to open volumes or folders and click to close them.

2. Select an album of your choice from the album list window.

This will be the album into which you will import files.

3. Select a thumbnail from the thumbnail list window.

More than one thumbnail may be selected at a time.

to open disks or folders and click to close them. In Macintosh,

4. Click the [Import] button.

The source file of the thumbnail selected in step 3 is added to the album selected in step

2. At this point, a copy of the source file is created and saved into the directory designated in the

Files can also be imported by dragging and dropping thumbnails from the thumbnail list window into the desired album. See below.

Capturing/Recording Preferences.

In Macintosh, it may be impossible to create thumbnails for files which cannot be opened

by QuickTime Player. Also, since Macintosh recognizes files by their contents rather than file extensions, some files may be added as certain file type which is not in accordance

with their file extension.

2-3-1

This mode allows you to import files from digital cameras and memory card reader devices.

This is possible when a removable disk is mounted.

Digital Camera Import Mode

Digital camera import display

Select memory card menu

Refresh button

Digital cameras and memory cards connected directly to the PC are displayed in a list.

Click to refresh the reading of data from the source currently selected in

Memory card list window

Comment input pane

Import button

Still Picture Display button

Movie Display button

Sound File display button

Available memory cards and similarly formatted sources are displayed here.

This pane allows you to add personalized comments which relate directly to individual files, which later may be added to albums.

Click to copy the source files of the selected thumbnails to the

save location, and add them to

the selected album. Click to display only thumbnails of still picture files

stored on the selected memory card. Click to display only thumbnails of movie files stored

on the selected memory card. Click to display only thumbnails of sound files stored

on the selected memory card.

Display All button

Click to display thumbnails of all media stored on the selected memory card.

Small Thumbnail button

Large Thumbnail button

Click to display small thumbnails in the thumbnail list window.

Click to display large size thumbnails in the thumbnail list window.

Here you can see thumbnails of those files stored on the memory card selected in and which can be

Thumbnail list window

added to albums. They appear according to the file types sorted by selecting one of the following

buttons:

or .

Album list window Albums are displayed in a list.

Preview window

Refer to

file capture mode

Information Display button

Displays information pertaining to the selected file.

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