Adding a Linked Lyrics Menu

A Linked Lyrics Menu is a form of ASV display that the DVD-Audio specification refers to as a Sequential Slideshow. In a Linked Lyrics Menu, the transitions between ASVs, as well as the selection of buttons on each individual ASV, is synchronized to times defined as Markers in an Audio Track (see section 7.4.3 above). Before a Linked Lyrics Menu is brought into the layout in Author, it is imported into the project in Import Menu (see Chapter 5, section 5.2.3).

Building a Project 145

In the project layout, a Linked Lyrics Menu is associated directly with an Audio Track (not part of a Slideshow or Stillshow). A Linked Lyrics Menu must be used alone in a Track or ASVU range; it may not be associated with another Linked Lyrics Menu [makes Format crash] or with any other icons.

To add a Linked Lyrics Menu to an Audio Track:

1 Drag a Linked Lyrics Menu icon from the icon bar and drop it onto the Audio Track icon in the Layout window.

2 The new Linked Lyrics Menu icon will appear in the layout, underneath the Audio Track icon, at the next lower level of hierarchy (the column of icons that is fourth from the left).

3 A label with a generic name will appear to the right of the new icon.

The name may be changed in the Properties window (see below).

SPECIFY THE MENUPAGE FILE

Once an icon for a Linked Lyrics Menu is present in the layout, the icon must be associated with the MENUPAGE file generated for the Menu by Import Menu.

To specify the MENUPAGE file for a Linked Lyrics Menu:

1 In the Layout window, right-click on the icon for the Linked Lyrics Menu, and choose "Import XML" from the pop-up menu. An Open dialog will appear.

146 Chapter 7, Author

2 Click in the "Look in" field at the top of the dialog. Using the drop-down list, look in the PROJECT folder to find the folder (menuname) that you created for this particular Linked Lyrics Menu when you imported the Menu’s TIFF files into Import Menu. Double-click on the folder to open it.

3 Double-click on the MENUPAGE file (menuname_MENUPAGE-DOC.XML). The dialog will close.

4 The Folder indicator on the Buttons tab (see below) will now show the path of the folder that contains the MENUPAGE file.

LINKED LYRICS MENU PROPERTIES

To display a Linked Lyrics Menu’s properties in the Properties window, click on the Menu’s icon to select it. The Linked Lyrics Menu Properties window includes three tabs:

• General tab (one property):

- Name — if desired, enter a name for the Menu in the Name field.

(Menu names have no effect on the functionality of a completed album.)

• Buttons tab (one property, one list):

• "Menu Builder" [shouldn’t this say "Import Menu", or XML file"?] Data Path — shows the filepath of the folder containing the files generated by Import Menu for the current Menu (see Defining the XML file above).

• Menu Buttons list — a list of all the buttons defined in the Menu. The list contains three columns:

Name: [this column seems redundant to Status; I’ve only seen either the red X (broken or invalid) or the chain (resolved). If the heading of this column is not going to be changed, how do you want this seemingly mislabeled column described?]

Building a Project 147

Target: [I understand that this indicates the label that will be applied to the button when it is opened in Command Editor. But it seems like this is actually the Name of the button, so I’m not sure how to describe it]

Status: The status of each button in the list will be shown as invalid.

Buttons in Linked Lyrics Menus do not become valid until their links are defined in Command Editor.

[IMAGE: Linked Lyrics Menu Properties window showing Buttons tab with filepath and list of buttons]

Slideshows and Stillshows

Slideshows and Stillshows are containers for one or more ASVs that are displayed during playback of an Audio Track. Either type of container may contain an individual Slide, a series of Slides, or a Multi-Page Menu.

Slideshows and Stillshows are two versions of a form of ASV display that the DVD-Audio specification refers to as "Browsable pictures." They are very similar, but differ in terms of presets related to two parameters of ASV display:

Display Order Determines the order in which ASVs in a given Slideshow or Stillshow are played back. The order may be:

• Sequential, with ASVs displayed in a predetermined order;

• Random, with ASVs displayed in an order generated at random by the player during playback; or

• Shuffle (same as random, but no ASV is repeated until every ASV has been shown).

148 Chapter 7, Author

Duration Determines the length of time for which each ASV is displayed, with the same setting used for all ASVs in a given Slideshow or Stillshow.

The setting may be:

• Fixed, with display advancing to the next ASV after the same interval on each ASV;

• A range, with the player randomly choosing a duration for each slide that is between Max and Min settings defined in Command Editor (see Chapter 8, section 8.X); or

• Infinite, meaning that each ASV will be displayed until the end-user navigates away with an on-screen button or skips to an adjacent page with the PREV/NEXT keys on the remote control.

Note: If the Duration of a Slideshow or Stillshow is not set to infinite, and presentation of the ASVs is completed before the end of the Audio Track, the presentation will start over from the beginning unless there is a subsequent icon (Single-Page Menu, Slideshow, or Stillshow) associated with the Track, in which case playback continues on to the ASVs in the subsequent icon (see section 7.4.4 above).

The Display Order and Duration parameters are each handled differently in Slideshows and Stillshows:

Slideshow:

• The default Duration is fixed (5 seconds), making what is defined in the specification as a "Browsable pictures with automatic transition."

However, you may enter a different value in Author and may also modify the setting later in Command Editor.

• The Display Order may be set in Author to sequential, random, or shuffle

Building a Project 149

Stillshow:

• The Duration is automatically set by Author to infinite ("0"), making what is defined in the specification as a "Sequential Browsable pictures without automatic transition." However, the setting may be modified later in Command Editor.

• The Display Order is preset by Author to sequential, and may not be changed

ADDING A SLIDESHOW OR STILLSHOW

When defining a Slideshow or Stillshow in Author, first the container is associated with the Track, then the icon or icons for the ASV-series are brought into the container (covered in sections 7.4.8 and 7.4.9 below).

To add a Slideshow or Stillshow to an Audio Track:

1 Drag a Slideshow or Stillshow icon from the icon bar and drop it onto the Audio Track icon in the Layout window.

2 The new Slideshow or Stillshow icon will appear in the layout, underneath the Audio Track icon, at the next lower level of hierarchy (the column of icons that is fourth from the left).

3 A label with a generic name will appear to the right of the new icon.

The name may be changed in the Properties window (see below).

150 Chapter 7, Author

SLIDESHOW PROPERTIES

To display a Slideshow’s properties in the Properties window, click on the Slideshow’s icon to select it. The Slideshow Properties window includes two tabs:

General tab (one property):

Name If desired, enter a name for the Slideshow in the Name field.

(Slideshow names have no effect on the functionality of a completed album.)

Slideshow tab (two properties):

Display Order \The default setting is sequential. To change the Display Order, click on the down arrow at the right side of the display field, and choose random or shuffle from the drop-down list.

Duration The default setting is 5 (seconds). To change the Duration, enter a different value in the field.

Slideshow Properties

Building a Project 151

STILLSHOW PROPERTIES

To display a Stillshow’s properties in the Properties window, click on the Stillshow’s icon to select it. The Stillshow Properties window has one tab:

General tab (one property):

Name If desired, enter a name for the Stillshow in the Name field.

(Stillshow names have no effect on the functionality of a completed album.)

Adding a Slide

A Slide is an individual ASV with no buttons. Unlike Menus, Slides are added to a project directly in Author, without first being imported in Import Menu. A Slide or series of Slides may be added to a layout only as part of a Slideshow or a Stillshow.

To add Slides to a Slideshow or Stillshow:

1 Drag a Slide icon from the icon bar and drop it onto the Slideshow or Stillshow icon in the Layout window.

2 The new Slide icon will appear in the layout, underneath the Slideshow or Stillshow icon, at the next lower level of hierarchy (the column of icons that is fifth from the left).

3 A label with a generic name will appear to the right of the new icon.

The name may be changed in the Properties window (see below).

4 To add additional Slides to the Slideshow or Stillshow, repeat the steps above. The most recently added slide will appear just under the Slideshow or Stillshow icon. Drag and drop a Slide to change its order in the display sequence.

152 Chapter 7, Author

SLIDE PROPERTIES

To display a Slide’s properties in the Properties window, click on the Slide’s icon to select it. The Slide Image Properties window includes two tabs:

• General tab (one property):

- Name — if desired, enter a name for the Slide in the Name field.

(Slide names have no effect on the functionality of a completed album.)

• Image tab (one property, two additional panes):

- Filename — the filepath for the source file for the image (see Specifying the source image below).

- Details pane — shows format and resolution attributes for the image.

- Preview pane — shows a thumbnail of the specified source image.

SPECIFYING THE SOURCE IMAGE

The source image file for a Slide is specified in the Image tab of the Slide Image Properties window. See Chapter 13, "Asset Preparation," for the specifications of source files that may be used in a DVD-Audio Creator album.

To specify the source file for a Slide:

1 On the Image tab of the Slide Properties window, click the Select...

button at the right of the Source pane. A Locate Image Source dialog will appear.

2 Click in the Look in field at the top of the dialog. Using the drop-down list, find the source file for the image that you wish to associate with current Slide icon.

3 Double-click on the source file (or click on the file to select it, then click Open). The dialog will close.

Building a Project 153

4 On the Image tab of the Slide Properties window, the Filename filed in the Source pane will show the filepath of the specified source file.

Once a source file is associated with a Slide, the Details pane of the Image tab displays the file’s attributes, and a thumbnail of the image is shown in the Preview pane.