Max Media Manager PRO Please refer to the paper manual for a more sections including podcasts and later information. Contents Max Media Manager PRO ............................................................................................. 1 2. Getting Started ........................................................................................................... 2 2.a. Product Contents ................................................................................................. 2 2.b. General Introduction ........................................................................................... 2 2.c. Installation and Connection................................................................................. 2 2.d. General Overview ............................................................................................... 4 VIEW TABS .................................................................................................................. 4 RIP DVD .................................................................................................................... 4 IMAGES Transfer images to your SD card for viewing on you Wii. ....................... 4 VIDEO Encode and transfer video. ........................................................................... 4 RIP CD Create MP3's directly from an audio CD and transfer them to your SD card. ............................................................................................................................ 4 SAVES ­ WII ............................................................................................................ 4 AUDIO Transfer MP3s to your SD card for listening on the move. ......................... 4 3. Working with Video .............................................................................................. 5 3.b. Simple Mode ....................................................................................................... 6 3.b.i.Choosing the right settings ............................................................................ 6 3.b.ii. Encoding and copying to your SD ............................................................... 7 3.c. Expert Mode ........................................................................................................ 7 3.c.i. Quality Settings Tab (QUALITY) ................................................................ 8 3.c.ii. Dimensions Tab (DIMS).............................................................................. 8 3.c.iii. File size Tab (FILESIZE) ........................................................................... 8 3.c.iv. Time Tab (TIME)........................................................................................ 9 3.d. DVD Ripping Specific Information .................................................................... 9 3.e. Suitable Source Media ........................................................................................ 9 3.f. Batch List Encoding .......................................................................................... 10 Technical Information .................................................................................................. 10 Why are videos split into 20 minute files?............................................................... 10 Video Conversion ­ Making Small Files ................................................................. 10 Wii Game Saves ....................................................................................................... 11 CodeJunkies Powersaves and Community .......................................................... 11 Backup Saves From your Wii to your PC ............................................................ 11 Saves From Internet Websites ............................................................................. 11 Playing MP3's on your Wii ..................................................................................... 12 Technical Support .................................................................................................... 12 1. General Introduction Congratulations on your purchase of Max Media Manager PRO. Max Media Manager PRO is the most fully featured media management solution for Wii on the market. Using Max Media Manager PRO you can create Wii friendly audio and video directly from CDs, DVDs* and video clips from the internet, control every detail of video, audio and image transcoding and even enjoy all the Wii gamesave management features. 2. Getting Started Error! Reference source not found.. Product Contents Your Max Media Manager PRO product should include the following; check the box to make sure everything is there: · · · · 1 1 1 1 x x x x SD Card USB adaptor SD Card "Max Media Manager PRO" PC software disc User manual Error! Reference source not found.. Error! Reference source not found. To get maximum functionality out of your Max Media Manager PRO pack you need a set-up that meets the following minimum requirements: MINIMUM SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS Computer / Processor Communication 1GHz+ processor Internet connection (for CDDB lookup, gamesave downloading, product activation, podcast downloading) USB Port (USB 2.0 highly recommended) Windows® XP, Vista or 2000. 512Mb RAM Install size: 10MB of free hard-disk space for program installation plus additional hard drive space for storing media (Up to 2GB recommended for larger video files) 800X600 SVGA or higher, True Colour CD-ROM drive (for installation and CD ripping) Operating System Memory Display Drive Error! Reference source not found.. Installation and Connection Insert the CD-ROM titled "Max Media Manager PRO" into your PC CD-ROM drive and wait a couple of seconds (if you have auto-run enabled) for the installation to start. If you don't have auto-run enabled find the SETUP.EXE program on the CD and run it. Follow the on-screen instructions. Place the SD card in the SD card readers slot firmly. Put the SD card reader into a USB port on you PC. When you first run your PC application you will be asked whether you would like to look online for an upgraded version of the software. It is highly recommended that you do this as new features and improved support for different file formats are being added all the time. NOTE: Because Max Media Manager PRO can be improved and revised through this online update, you may find in the future that functionality described in this manual becomes out of date. If this is ever the case, the new functionality will be covered in the `readme' file included with the new release. Error! Reference source not found.. General Overview VIEW TABS The main functions of the application are controlled by the various tabs along the top of the Max Media Manager PRO software screen. The different tabs perform the following functions: RIP DVD Create Wii friendly video directly from an unprotected DVD IMAGES Transfer images to your SD card for viewing on you Wii. VIDEO Encode and transfer video. SAVES PC List the gamesaves stored on your PC's hard-drive. RIP CD Create MP3's directly from an audio CD and transfer them to your SD card. SAVES ­ WII List the gamesaves stored on your SD Card (you can transfer them in the Wii's memory manager via the "Wii" menu). AUDIO Transfer MP3s to your SD card for listening on the move. SAVES - WEB Connect to the Codejunkies.com server to download new gamesaves or view gamesaves you have uploaded. SUB TABS When on the video encoding tab, use the sub tabs to determine whether you are copying directly to the SD Card or to a `Batch List' for encoding more than one video at a time. MAIN WINDOW Depending upon which main view tab you are on you will see different content displayed in the main window. PC MEDIA CONTROLS These buttons vary depending upon which view tab you are currently on. Use the media controls for such functions as EDIT, DELETE, DOWNLOAD etc. APPLICATION CONTROLS Use the application controls to CLOSE, MINIMISE and MAXIMISE the Max Media Manager PRO software, including accessing the program's many options. 3. Working with Video a. Introduction and Overview The Wii will only allow playback of video files encoded to the MJPEG specification, MAX Media Manager PRO takes care of this process for you. MAX Media Manager PRO has two ways for you to create perfect Wii ready video, either from a file already on your system (use the VIDEO tab) or directly from an unprotected DVD (use the DVD VIDEO tab). Since the video encoding options for creating a Wii video from a file or DVD are the same, we will use the VIDEO tab as an example in this section. To create a video from a DVD, use the information in the section along with the additional information specific to DVD ripping discussed in section 3.d. ADD MEDIA TO LIBRARY Click to browse for video content to prepare for playback. (Note: if you wish to use a DVD disc as the source for your video conversion, use the DVD VIDEO tab). PC MEDIA VIEW Adding a file or files to your PC MEDIA LIBRARY does not move or duplicate the original file(s), the PC Media Library simply lists links to files you add so that you can easily encode and copy them. PC MEDIA CONTROLS These controls affect the media items that have been added to your `Media Library' list. Choosing to delete an item will remove it from your list only, the file you added to the list will remain in its original location. MEDIA CONTROLS These controls affect the video files. Choosing to delete a file will permanently delete it from your SD memory card. When on the Batch List tab, use the EXCECUTE button to encode all jobs in the batch queue. ENCODING OPTIONS Changing the quality setting of the video encoder will affect the size and look of your videos when played back. Lower quality settings result in smaller file sizes (allowing you to fit more video on your memory sticks) but lower visual / audio clarity. Experiment with different settings to see which suit your needs best. ENCODE / COPY Press this button after selecting a source video file and choosing your encoding settings using either the Expert Mode or Simple Mode options. EXPERT MODE TABS When in `Expert Mode' (click the MODE button to toggle between modes) use these tabs to control different aspects of your video encoding. SUB TABS Select Wii to encode immediately onto your SD Card or select Batch Mode to add jobs to a batch queue pending execution of the batch list. Wii (or Batch) CONTENTS When on the Wii tab (SD Card), this window shows you the contents of the Video specific folder on your SD Card. When on the Batch tab, this window will display the list of encoding job waiting to run when you click `Execute'. SD CAPACITY METER This bar shows the amount of space you have left on your SD's storage device (memory card or hard drive) for storing video. ENCODE / COPY BUTTON Use to convert video (using quality set in VIDEO QUALITY SETTINGS) without transferring to your SD card. The encoded video is output to the same folder as the source video. SIMPLE / EXPERT MODE SWITCH Press the MODE button to switch between simple mode and expert mode encoding options. In simple mode you will see a reduced set of encoding options, in expert mode you will have access to MAX Media Manager PRO's full set of encoding options. ENCODING PROGRESS (not shown) Encoding progress is displayed along the bottom of the screen after you have selected a source file and clicked the CONVERT or COPY buttons. Video encoding could take several minutes on large video files. 3.b. Simple Mode A quick and easy way to get perfectly good video onto your SD Card is to use MAX Media Manager PRO's video encoding capabilities in `Simple Mode'. In this mode you will still have access to basic encoding options such as compression quality, screen aspect and encoding type, sufficient for many encoding jobs. To understand the encoding options, see the section below on choosing the right settings, then, when you are ready, follow the steps in 3.b.ii. to create your Wii video. 3.b.i.Choosing the right settings QUALITY The quality settings affect the amount of compression MAX Media Manager PRO uses when it encodes the selected video files. Higher settings (to the right) mean sharper, smoother video but larger file sizes. Lower settings (to the left) mean less sharp, lower quality videos but smaller file sizes. Using a setting of MEDIUM or HIGH will usually produce an output file of good quality for a reasonable file size. Results will vary from video to video based on the amount and type of movement in the source video so experiment with different settings to find ones that work best. 3.b.ii. Encoding and copying to your SD To create your first Wii ready video file from a video file you already have on your PC, follow these steps (see section 3.e. for information on what types of video make suitable source files): 1. Click the ADD MEDIA button to browse for a video file to add. You can only add videos ...