User manual PINNACLE SHOWCENTER

Pinnacle ShowCenter Pinnacle ShowCenter User's Guide D/GB March 2005 41005345 © Pinnacle Systems GmbH 2005 All rights reserved. No part of this manual may be reproduced or transferred to other media without explicit written permission from Pinnacle Systems GmbH, Braunschweig, Germany. All brand or product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders. Manufactured under license from Dolby Laboratories. "Dolby" and the double-D symbol are trademarks of Dolby Laboratories. This product incorporates copyright protection technology that is protected by U.S. patents and other intellectual property rights. Use of this copyright protection technology must be authorized by Macrovision, and is intended for home and other limited viewing uses only unless otherwise authorized by Macrovision. Reverse engineering or disassembly prohibited. Content providers are using the digital rights management technology for Windows Media contained in this device ("WM-DRM") to protect the integrity of their content ("Secure Content") so that their intellectual property, including copyright, in such content is not misappropriated. This device uses WM-DRM software to play Secure Content ("WM-DRM Software"). If the security of the WM-DRM Software in this device has been compromised, owners of Secure Content ("Secure Content Owners") may request that Microsoft revoke the WM-DRM Software's right to acquire new licenses to copy, display and/or play Secure Content. Revocation does not alter the WM-DRM Software's ability to play unprotected content. A list of revoked WM-DRM Software is sent to your device whenever you download a license for Secure Content from the Internet or from a PC. Microsoft may, in conjunction with such license, also download revocation lists onto your device on behalf of Secure Content Owners. This manual is printed on chlorine-free, bleached paper using solvent-free ink. Pinnacle Systems GmbH has written this manual to the best of its knowledge, but does not guarantee that the programs/systems will fulfill the users' intended applications. No warranty is made as to the specifications of features. Pinnacle Systems GmbH retains the right to make alterations to the content of the manual without obligation to inform third parties. All quotes, sales, supply and manufacturing contracts from Pinnacle Systems GmbH, including consulting, installation and other contractual services are subject exclusively to the General Sales and Delivery Terms of Pinnacle Systems GmbH. Table Of Contents Basics....................................................................................................................1 Safety Instructions.............................................................................................1 The Idea in Words .............................................................................................4 The Idea in a Picture..........................................................................................5 The Components................................................................................................6 Package Contents ..............................................................................................7 System Requirements ........................................................................................9 Set up Your ShowCenter System........................................................................11 Set up Your ShowCenter System in Two Steps - Overview ...........................11 Installing the Software.....................................................................................12 Connecting Your Devices ...............................................................................14 Network Connection Configuration ................................................................20 Pinnacle MediaManager .....................................................................................27 Overview .........................................................................................................27 The Media Library...........................................................................................30 The Media Player ............................................................................................36 Importing Media Files .....................................................................................38 Organizing Media Files ...................................................................................50 Using Playlists.................................................................................................54 Exporting Media Files .....................................................................................57 The Menus.......................................................................................................63 Real Rhapsody Music Service.........................................................................68 File Formats.....................................................................................................71 Television ...........................................................................................................75 Turning on the ShowCenter Player and the Television...................................75 Introduction to the TV Menu...........................................................................77 TV Menu - Music ............................................................................................78 TV Menu - Movies ..........................................................................................82 TV Menu - Photos ...........................................................................................86 TV Menu - PCTV............................................................................................90 TV Menu - Settings .........................................................................................93 iii Pinnacle ShowCenter Remote Control...................................................................................................99 Remote Control Keypad Layout......................................................................99 Button Descriptions in Detail ........................................................................100 Troubleshooting for the Remote Control ......................................................105 Special Functions..............................................................................................107 Attaching USB Devices.................................................................................107 Dolby® Digital Sound Playback ...................................................................107 HD Playback..................................................................................................108 Album Cover Display....................................................................................108 Playing Music Without Turning on the TV...................................................108 Displaying Movie Subtitles ...........................................................................109 Automatic Playlists........................................................................................109 Detecting Missing or Modified Media ..........................................................109 Music Information From Directory and File Names .....................................110 Organizing Movies By "Series" ....................................................................110 Specifications....................................................................................................111 Hardware .......................................................................................................111 Technical Support .............................................................................................113 Getting Technical Support.............................................................................113 License information ..........................................................................................115 Pinnacle End User License Agreement .........................................................115 Glossary ............................................................................................................119 Index .................................................................................................................127 iv Basics Safety Instructions WARNING: This product contains chemicals, including lead, known to the State of California to cause birth defects or other reproductive harm. Wash hands after handling. Please read and follow these instructions for your own safety, and to ensure that your device functions properly. Power Cable and Plug Please make sure to obey the following instructions in order to prevent the device from malfunctioning and to prevent electrical shock, fires, and injuries: When disconnecting the power to your device, always unplug it by pulling the plug itself and not the cable. Don't ever plug in or unplug the power cable with wet hands. Keep the power cable away from heaters and radiators. Never put heavy objects on the power cable. Don't try to repair the power cable yourself or to modify it in any way, shape, or form. Regularly clean off the dust, dirt, etc. from the plug. If you drop the device or damage it in any fashion, turn it off and disconnect the power plug. If the device produces smoke, strange smells, or noises, turn it off and disconnect the power plug. Contact your dealer immediately. Where Not to Install the Device Do not install the device in any of the following locations: In direct sunlight, next to radiators or other heat sources or in vehicles parked in direct sunlight with all the windows rolled up and the doors closed. Locations with extremely high temperatures (95°F or greater) or levels of humidity (90% or greater). Very dusty or sandy locations. Locations where there are vibrations, shaking or slanted surfaces underneath. This could damage the components in the device. On flammable surfaces such as cloth-covered tables. 1 Pinnacle ShowCenter Keep the device away from flower vases, bathtubs, sinks, etc., and from locations where the device is exposed to precipitation. The device may be severely damaged if any liquid enters it. Problems With Other Devices Set up the device in a horizontal position and do not place any heavy objects on it. Do not place the device on an amplifier or any other device that gives off heat. Housing and Internal Components Never remove or open any part of the housing and do not try to perform any repairs yourself. Any maintenance or repair work should be done by a qualified repair person. Keep fingers and objects away from the inside of the device. It is dangerous to touch any of the components inside the device. Doing so may injure you and damage the device. Do not place any foreign objects on the device. Condensation Condensation may develop in the device in the following circumstances: Right after a nearby heater or radiator has been turned on. In a very humid or steam-filled room. If the device has been moved from a cold location to a warm one. Condensation in the device may cause it to malfunction. In this case, turn off the device and wait around 1 hour until the condensation has evaporated. Then you can use it again. Non-Use Turn off the device when you are not using it. If you are not planning on using the device for a long period of time, you should unplug it from the power socket. Accessories Use only the accessories included with or recommended for the device in order to minimize the risk of fire, electrical shock or interference. Batteries Put in the batteries shipped with the device as shown in the remote control battery case. 2 Basics NEVER combine old and new batteries or different types of batteries (alkaline and non-alkaline). Once the batteries are discharged, make sure to dispose of them in accordance with legal and environmental requirements. Copyrights Make sure not to violate any copyrights when you use music, movie and digital photo files. Any changes or additions to the printed documentation can be found in the read-me file on the CD-ROM included with the device. The CE Declaration of Compliance and the FCC Compliance Statement for Pinnacle ShowCenter are included as PDF files on the CD-ROM included with the device. 3 Pinnacle ShowCenter The Idea in Words Pinnacle ShowCenter allows you to playback the following media types: Music files Movies and other video files Digital photos You can download them from various sources, including the Internet, and manage them on your PC, view them on your TV or play them back on your stereo system. And, so that you don't have to get up from the couch to switch files, it comes with a convenient remote control. Pinnacle ShowCenter combines a living-room component, a home PC, a remote control, and media-management software. Pinnacle ShowCenter organizes all your media files in an intelligent multimedia database on your PC so that you can easily find them and have easy, convenient access to them. Do you use the broadband Internet access on your PC (DSL or cable modem) to download audio and video files, but would like to be able to organize them and play them back any time you want? Do you want to archive your digital photos, movies, and audio CDs so that you have instant access to them? Pinnacle ShowCenter is the perfect solution in both cases! Pinnacle ShowCenter allows you to organize your media collection so that you can play back your favorite movies, view your favorite photos and listen to your favorite music on your stereo system any time you want. Pinnacle ShowCenter allows you to create one simple system that keeps your PC out of your living room but still lets you enjoy all the benefits of modern media. At the end of this manual is a section entitled "Glossary" where you can look up definitions of unfamiliar terms. If you're still not sure what to do, please consult the manuals for your television, your stereo system, and your PC components. 4 Basics The Idea in a Picture This overview shows one possible setup of the system components in your house: 5 Pinnacle ShowCenter The Components The Pinnacle ShowCenter system consists of the following components: Hardware ShowCenter Player The ShowCenter Player creates a multimedia home network together with your PC and your television and/or your stereo system. The ShowCenter Player acts like a network client, allowing you to view on your television or play back on your stereo system any movies, photos, and songs that are stored on your PC. Depending your model, your network connection may be wired or wireless. Remote control (infrared) The remote control allows you to use the menu displayed on the television screen. Software Pinnacle MediaManager The Pinnacle MediaManager application, which is installed on your PC, permits you to import, manage, and organize music files, movies, and digital photos in your continuously updated ShowCenter Database. You can also create playlists where your favorite music, movies, or photos are organized according to your own special criteria. The media files on your PC can come from the Internet, from your audio CDs or from your digital camera. ShowCenter Server The ShowCenter Server installed on your PC is what connects the ShowCenter application to the ShowCenter Player. The server delivers data selected in the TV menu to the ShowCenter Player so that you can play it back on your television set or stereo system. ShowCenter Database The ShowCenter Database is used by the Pinnacle MediaManager Application and the Server to exchange information across all media. The database contains all the information about storage locations and file types and stores any other available information (for example, playlists). This ensures that the Pinnacle MediaManager can easily find all the data and that the server can make any file available to be played back on your television and/or stereo system. 6 Basics Package Contents Before you start the installation, check to make sure that you have all the package contents. If a part is missing or damaged, contact your dealer immediately. Keep the packaging material in case you have to transport the original parts again. Your Package Contains Hardware ShowCenter Player with integrated power supply Remote control with batteries (Figure is an example) WLAN antenna Power cable (different for each country) SCART cable (only in Europe) Video and audio cable (only outside Europe) Ethernet cable (only for some models) CD-ROM with applications, sample files and drivers 7 Pinnacle ShowCenter Documentation QuickStart guide User manual Online Help Note that some models may not have the same package contents as shown above. Software You will find the ShowCenter software for Windows 2000 or Windows XP on the CD-ROM included in the package. You also need the following equipment: Computer Television and/or stereo system 8 Basics System Requirements Your system must meet the following requirements for your Pinnacle ShowCenter to work properly: Computer Hardware Processor You must have at least a Pentium® III 1.5 GHz, or a comparable AMD processor - We recommend a Pentium® 4 1.8 GHz or a comparable AMD processor. RAM 256 MB minimum - 512 MB recommended. Hard drive At least 5 GB available storage space on your hard drive. Graphics card DirectDraw-compatible graphics card (AGP graphics card with MPEG 2 decoding support recommended) with 16 Bit color depth (65536 colors) or greater and 800 x 600 pixel or better resolution. DirectDraw support: Before you can use the application, you must have a graphics card and DirectX 9.x installed. The installer will check to make sure that your system meets these requirements and, if necessary, will automatically install DirectX 9.x. Sound card DirectX 9.x-compatible sound card. Ethernet connection 10BaseT - 100BaseT recommended. For setting up a wireless network connection your PC must have a WLAN adapter or must be connected to an existing access point. If you are using a 10BaseT Ethernet connection, you may encounter problems when streaming high-bandwidth video files. We strongly recommend that you have a 100BaseT connection, especially if you are using other network functions. 9 Pinnacle ShowCenter Computer Software Windows 2000 with Service Pack 4 installed (or higher) or Windows XP with Service Pack 1 installed (or higher). In order to play DRM-protected Windows Media files, Microsoft Windows Media Connect will be installed on your computer. This requires Windows XP with Service Pack 2 (or higher). 10 Set up Your ShowCenter System Set up Your ShowCenter System in Two Steps Overview This section provides an overview of how to set up your ShowCenter system. Each step will be explained in detail in the following chapters. We recommend the following procedure: 1. Install the Software First install the software on your computer. You will install the following components: Pinnacle MediaManager ShowCenter Server Sample files 2. Connect Your Devices Now connect the ShowCenter Player to your computer as well as your television and/or stereo system. Depending on your model, you may use wired or wireless network connections. 11 Pinnacle ShowCenter Installing the Software This section explains how to install the ShowCenter software on your PC. The installer will create a Pinnacle ShowCenter program group with several subgroups where it will copy all the software components you need. You will need administrator privileges to install the software under Windows 2000 / Windows XP. You must be a member of the "Power User" group or higher in order to use the applications. 1. Insert the Installation CD Insert the installation CD in your CD drive. The setup program will either launch automatically or you will have to launch autorun.exe from the CDROM. The installer will launch, and display the following dialog box: 2. Choose Language, Click Next Choose your language for the installation and the software and then click Next. 12 Set up Your ShowCenter System 3. Click Next Click Next again to continue with the installation. 4. Agree to the License Agreement and Click Next Please read the license agreement carefully, agree to it by selecting the corresponding option, and then click Next. 5. Enter Your User Information and Click Next Enter the user information and serial number (see CD case). 6. Select the Setup Type and Click Next Next, you select a setup type. Complete The program is installed with full functionality. This option takes up the most space on your hard drive. Custom You can choose which options should be installed yourself. Recommended for advanced users. Among other things, you can also change the destination path for the directory where the software is installed. Click Next once you are finished. 7. Select Components, Click Next If you have chosen the Custom setup, you will be asked to select which components you want installed. Once you are finished with this, click Next. This step is not necessary if you have opted for the Complete setup. 8. Start the Installation The system is now ready to install. Click the Install button in order to start copying. 9. Reboot Your System If Windows asks you to reboot, you should reboot your system now. 10. Install Third-Party Applications After rebooting, you can install any other programs that you have selected as components (such as Acrobat® Reader). 13 Pinnacle ShowCenter Connecting Your Devices ShowCenter Player - Front View The following operating and signaling elements are located on the front of the ShowCenter Player: Power on/off switch LED status indicator - stand by, on/off Infrared receiver for the remote control LED indicator for signals (for example, "New files in watch folder") USB2 connection (see the "Special Functions" section) ShowCenter Player - Rear View The connections on the rear of the ShowCenter Player are explained in detail in the following steps. 14 Set up Your ShowCenter System 1. Connecting the WLAN Antenna to the ShowCenter Player Firmly screw the WLAN antenna that came in the package into the connection hole on the rear side of the ShowCenter Player. Make sure the antenna is in an upright position. 2. Connecting the ShowCenter Player to the Television SCART out / video and audio out Europe: Connect the SCART cable included in the package to the SCART output on the ShowCenter Player and to an available SCART input on your television. If at all possible, select a SCART connection on your television that supports RGB signals, since this will provide the best possible image quality. Make sure to change the settings in the ShowCenter Player's Preferences menu to SCART RGB. U.S.: Connect the analog video output to an analog video input on your television using the video cable (yellow plug) from the package. Next, connect the "A" analog audio out jacks to the stereo audio in jacks on your television using the stereo audio cable (red and white plugs) from the package. 15 Pinnacle ShowCenter More information on the video out jacks S-Video Out: Offers better-quality images than the normal analog video out jack. Component Video Out: This connector offers the best possible video quality because it transmits the video components separately. HD formats as well as "PAL progressive" are only available via the component video out connector. Note that the first time you turn on the ShowCenter Player, the only active connections will be the SCART out, the analog video out and the S-video out connectors. So you will see no picture if you have a VGA monitor or a television connected to other outputs. You can switch to the other outputs by pressing the "TV" button on the remote control. Just press the button and wait for five seconds. If you haven't gotten a picture yet, just press the button and wait again. You may have to repeat this process up to eleven times in order to cycle through all the video out modes. The next time you turn off the ShowCenter Player, you will first have to select the correct video out from the Preferences menu since any setting made with the video out button is not permanent. 3. Connecting the ShowCenter Player to Your Stereo System Analog audio out jacks Connect the analog audio out jacks - for example the "B" jacks (left/right) to the corresponding input jacks on your stereo system. Make sure to not mix the colors. 16 Set up Your ShowCenter System Digital audio out jacks If you have a surround-sound system, you can use either the coax connector or the fiber-optic connector (optical) on the ShowCenter Player for these connections. By default, the sound for movies with Dolby® Digital is delivered only over digital audio outputs, not over analog audio outputs. This means that to play Dolby® Digital movies, you need a separate Dolby® Digital decoder connected to the digital audio outputs on the ShowCenter Player. Or you can pay a fee to activate Dolby® Digital stereo through the analog audio outputs. This is done on the PC where the ShowCenter software is installed via Start/Programs/Pinnacle ShowCenter/Options/Activate Dolby Digital soundtracks on analog audio outputs. After this, you need still to select the function in the TV Menu under Settings/Movie options. 4. Connecting the ShowCenter Player to Your PC There are various ways of connecting your PC and the ShowCenter Player through the network: Network connection - wired with a direct connection between your PC and the ShowCenter Player (crossover) Network connection - wired, PC, and ShowCenter Player are connected via a router or similar device Network connection - wireless ("wireless LAN" or "WLAN") Select whichever option is the most suitable for you depending on your equipment setup. 17 Pinnacle ShowCenter Direct wired network connection (crossover) Use a crossover cable to connect the Ethernet port of the ShowCenter Player to the network card on your PC. Note that a crossover cable is NOT included in the package. The following image shows how this connection essentially works: Wired network connection via a router If you have a network router attached to your PC, connect the ShowCenter Player's Ethernet port to an available Ethernet port on the router using an Ethernet cable. The following image shows how this connection essentially works: Network connection - wireless ("wireless LAN" or "WLAN") Make sure that the WLAN antenna is installed and that no network cable is connected. The WLAN configuration is described in detail in the following section. 18 Set up Your ShowCenter System 5. Connecting to the Power Outlet Use the power cable from the package to connect the ShowCenter Player to the power outlet. 6. Putting Batteries in the Remote Control Put the batteries from the package in the remote control as shown in the remote control battery case. Once you have connected everything, you can turn on the ShowCenter Player and the other devices. Now you just have to sit back and enjoy your new Pinnacle ShowCenter! 19 Pinnacle ShowCenter Network Connection Configuration After you turn on the ShowCenter Player, you see the following Server Selection menu on the connected television. The configuration differs depending on the type of connection (Ethernet cable or wireless). Ethernet Network Connection For a network connection via an Ethernet cable, choose the Wired (Ethernet) button by selecting it with the arrow buttons on the remote control and then pressing the OK button. The ShowCenter now automatically detects the PCs in your network which have ShowCenter software running. They are listed on the right. Select one of these PCs and press OK to create the connection. Pressing the B button lets you access further menu pages for the ShowCenter network configuration. This is only necessary for special settings, for example, if you want to manually configure the IP address of the ShowCenter Player. 20 Set up Your ShowCenter System Wireless Network Connection A wireless network connection (WLAN) can be created in two ways. The first way is to create a wireless connection directly between the ShowCenter Player and a PC. This is also called "ad-hoc mode" or a "wireless direct connection". For this, your PC must have a WLAN adapter. The second way is to use "infrastructure mode" via a WLAN access point (WLAN router). In the following, PC configuration for a wireless network is described first. Wireless direct connection (ad-hoc mode) The ShowCenter Player supports a high-speed 11g connection in ad-hoc mode. However, many 11g PC-WLAN adapters are not able to provide this and only offer low transmission rates in ad-hoc mode according to the 11b standard. With this connection, movies can only be played without any problems in just a few cases. Therefore, we recommend a wireless direct connection only in exceptional cases and urgently advise you to use a WLAN access point. First make sure that the WLAN adapter on you PC is properly installed, activated, and functioning. Open the control panel via Start/Settings. Double-click the Network and Dial-up Connections icon and then the icon for the WLAN adapter on your PC. Click Advanced and then Add. If you have installed Windows XP Service Pack 2, click Modify advanced settings, then click the Wireless Networks tab and then click Add. In the following dialog window, enter a name for the network (letters and numbers without spaces) and then for the network authentication type, select Open. If you would like to encrypt your network, select WEP as data encryption and deactivate the check box The key is provided for me automatically. Now enter a network key. However, we recommend that you first deactivate the encryption to make it easier for you to check whether the wireless connection is functioning correctly. The network key is the "password" for your wireless network. It has to be entered in hexadecimal format (digits 0 to 9 and letters a to f only). For 64-bit encryption, the key needs to be made up of exactly ten Hex characters. For 128bit encryption, it is 26 Hex characters. Make a note of the key, since you will also need to enter it in the ShowCenter Player. 21 Pinnacle ShowCenter Finally, do not forget to activate the check box This is a computer-tocomputer (ad-hoc) network and confirm it twice with OK. Your PC is now waiting for a wireless connection with the ShowCenter. Connecting to an access point (infrastructure mode) Make sure that your access point is activated and properly configured and that there is a network connection to the PC which has ShowCenter software running. If your wireless network uses WEP encryption, you need the WEP key as a Hex character string for the following. Wireless network configuration for the ShowCenter Player Disconnect the Ethernet cable. Select the Wireless (WiFi) button in the Server Selection menu of the ShowCenter Player by selecting it with the arrow buttons on the remote control and then pressing the OK button. Or you can press the C button to do this. The ShowCenter Player then performs a reset, scans for wireless networks, and after a few seconds, displays the results. In this menu, choose the name (SSID) of your wireless network and press OK. If no network is displayed, check the configuration of your WLAN adapter or WLAN access point and select Re-Scan to perform a new search for wireless networks. 22 Set up Your ShowCenter System After choosing the network, you see the following menu: The network name (SSID) here has already been preset. Select the Ad-hoc check box if you are using a wireless direct connection. For a connection to an access point, select Infrastructure. If you use WEP encryption (here Security) in your network, select the key type and enter the key under Key. When entering a hexadecimal key, you may only use the numbers 0 to 9 and the lower-case letters a to f. The C/N key can be used to switch between upper and lower-case letters and between letters and numbers. After completing your entry, press the SAVE button. The ShowCenter Player restarts and after a few seconds the Server Selection menu appears again. An attempt is made to connect to the previously configured wireless network - this may take a few minutes. When the connection has been made, the PCs on your network, which have ShowCenter software running, are displayed on the right. Select one of these PCs and press OK to connect the ShowCenter Player with this server PC. More Network Configuration Tips Firmware updates The latest versions of the ShowCenter software usually contain the latest version of the ShowCenter Player firmware. This is automatically loaded after the installation. After a firmware update, you may need to reconfigure a new wireless network, since the current settings can be deleted by the firmware update. 23 Pinnacle ShowCenter Manually adding a server If your server PC is not automatically detected, you can add it manually. To do this, first open a command prompt on your server PC and enter the command ipconfig. Windows now displays the IP addresses of all the network adapters. Make a note of the IP address of the adapter, over which the connection to the ShowCenter Player should be made. After this, press the A button in the Server Selection menu and then select Add a server. Enter a name for the server and the previously noted IP address, and save the settings. The new server PC now appears in the Server Selection menu. Automatically connect with a server If you only use one server PC, you can automatically connect to this server. To do this, press the A button in the Server Selection menu. Then select Edit a server and choose your server PC. Now select the check box Always connect to this server and save the setting. Manual network configuration You can access the setting pages for manually configuring Ethernet and wireless networks by pressing the B button in the Server Selection menu. We recommend using these settings only in special circumstances or when no connection can be made otherwise. WLAN range and data rates The range of wireless networks is limited and decreases drastically when devices are separated by walls. Many manufacturers of WLAN products indicate ranges based on measurements made on open fields and under ideal circumstances. In practice, actual performance does not even come close to the ranges indicated. In our tests, we have found that the distance of transmission is not more than eleven yards if there is a wall in the way. In addition, you should also only use a single wireless transmission link, since each additional link cuts the data rate in half again. When the ShowCenter Player is connected via wireless to your access point, your PC should be connected to the access point per cable, not per wireless. The maximum data rate possible for realtime video transmission with the 802.11g standard is about 10 to 12 MBit/sec. This is sufficient for almost all standard definition video formats as well as for DVD formats. In addition, this data rate is, in most cases, sufficient for MPEG 4 HD AVI files as well as for Windows Media Video HD up to 720P. On the other hand, MPEG 2 HD and Windows Media Video HD 1080I usually require an Ethernet cable connection. 24 Set up Your ShowCenter System Firewalls If you use a firewall between your PC and ShowCenter, then ports 8000 (TCP) and 1900 (UDP) must be enabled because they are required for communication between the ShowCenter Player and the server. Many WLAN access points are at the same routers, that is, they establish connections to the Internet (for example, via DSL or cable modem). In this case, a firewall is integrated which only works "outward" (that is, in the direction of the Internet). These ports should not be enabled for this kind of firewall because the contents of your media database will otherwise be visible on the Internet. Permanent IP address By default, the ShowCenter Player uses an IP address assigned via DHCP. If no DHCP server is on the network, ShowCenter selects an IP address itself. You can also manually assign a permanent IP address to the ShowCenter Player for special network configurations. To do this, press the B button on the remote control in the Server Selection menu. Now select IP Config and then Switch to manual. Now you can enter the values. 25 Pinnacle MediaManager Overview What the Pinnacle MediaManager Does The Pinnacle MediaManager is installed on your PC so that you can import the following: Music files Movies and other video files Digital photos You can manage and organize these files in the MediaManager database which is constantly updated. You can also create personal playlists ­ compilations of your favorite songs, movies or photos organized according to your own criteria. These playlists can also be exported so that, among other things, you can burn audio CDs. 27 Pinnacle ShowCenter Main Window of the Pinnacle MediaManager You can launch the Pinnacle MediaManager from the Pinnacle program group in the Start Menu or by double-clicking the Desktop shortcut. The following window will open: The window contains the following sections: Section 1: The Tools section with the Import, Organize, Playlists, and Export tabs, located in the upper left-hand corner. Section 2: The Media Player in the upper right-hand corner. Section 3: The Media Library with the Music, Movies, and Photos tabs, located in the bottom half of the window. Menu Bar: At the very top of the window is the menu bar, which contains the File, Edit, Tools, and Help menus. 28 Pinnacle MediaManager The window layout varies depending on what tools and lists you have selected; the three sections work together closely and interactively. How the sections work individually is explained in detail in the following chapters. We will first focus on the Media Library and the Media Player to give you the basic tools you need to use the program. In later chapters, we will look at the more advanced functions ­ Import, Organize, Playlists and Export ­ as well as the menus. 29 Pinnacle ShowCenter The Media Library Introduction to the Media Library Media types The Media Library displays the contents of the database sorted by media type. Access each media type by clicking on the corresponding tab: Music tab Movies tab Photos tab Categories For each media type, you can toggle between the categories listed on the lefthand side. Library Displays all the files in the database. Last imported Displays the most recently imported files. For example, if you import 3 CDs in a row, you will only see the tracks from the third CD. New Media All the files imported over the past twenty-four hours. Missing Media Although the media displayed here exist as entries in the database, the associated files are no longer where they were saved originally. They can no longer be found because they have been either accidentally deleted, moved or renamed. These entries are marked in the left column of the Media Library with the corresponding icon. 30 Pinnacle MediaManager The Pinnacle MediaManager automatically looks for missing media at certain time intervals. You can set the time interval via the File under Settings. If you want to do a manual search, select Find missing media from the Shortcut menu or via the Tools menu. You can access the Shortcuts menu by right-clicking the entry you want in the Media Library list. From here, you can use the Repair missing media function to browse for missing files or you can "repair" broken links by entering the new file location or file name. Modified Media (applies only to music files) If you use a different software program to modify the ID3 tags of your music files, the data no longer corresponds to the values in the Pinnacle Media Manager database. This situation is automatically detected in a way similar to Missing Media. The entries are marked in the left column with the corresponding icon. You can now enter new values for the ID3 tags via the function area Organize. Or you can update the database by reading the values of the modified ID3 tags from the file. To do this, select the entries, right-click and then select Update values from file in the Shortcut menu. Top rated Files given a four or five star rating are displayed here. The rating is assigned either via the Shortcut menu or via the function area Organize and displayed using star icons. Playback counter The Pinnacle MediaManager contains a playback counter, which displays and categorizes media files according to the following categories: Most played: The media files displayed are the ones you play most frequently. Least played: The media files displayed are the ones you play least frequently, but you have played them at least once. Not played: The media displayed are the ones, which have not yet ever been played. The playback counter can be reset via the Shortcut menu. Automatic playlists are created and constantly updated for the categories Top rated, Most played, Least played, and Not played. 31 Pinnacle ShowCenter User-defined playlists The files in the selected playlist are displayed. Details The right-hand list displays details for individual files. These details will vary depending on whether you have selected the Music, Movies or Photos media type tab. These sorting criteria are also called tags. Depending on which media type you select, you may see the following information: file status, track/movie/photo name, date created, etc. As in Windows Explorer, you can left-click a column header to resort the files in the list. You can change the order of the columns by left-clicking the column headers and dragging them to a new location. Right-clicking a column header will open a pop-up menu where you can choose which columns to display and which not. Icons The icons in the left column of the Media Library have the following meanings: The file has accidentally been deleted or moved or it can no longer be found because it has been renamed. The original organizational identifiers of the file have been modified. The file originates from the Rhapsody Music Service. The file is currently being played back. The playback of the file is currently on hold. The file is protected by Microsoft DRM. There are further icons associated with file conversion. They are explained in the section "File Conversion". Shortcut menu Please note that you only need to right-click a list entry in the Media Library to access the extensive Shortcut menu. Most Media Library functions are available here in order to access them more quickly. Simply select the option you want. Read the following sections carefully to learn how the Media Library can help you find, sort, and delete your media files. 32 Pinnacle MediaManager The Sort View in the Media Library button to the right of You can toggle the sort view on and off by clicking the the tabs. Clicking this button will split the list horizontally into two new sections. The upper half of the list can be used to sort or filter the media files displayed in the lower half. In other words, in the upper half you set a filter that selects which files can be displayed in the lower half. Example: You have activated the Music tab and now want to display all the tracks in your database in the Soul genre. button and determine which columns You can open the menu with the should be displayed in the sort view. We recommend listing photos, for example, according to date. 33 Pinnacle ShowCenter Searching in the Media Library On the far right-hand side of the Media Library is the search field: To quickly find a particular media file in the database, just enter any search term in the search field. You can use the button to determine whether only certain ranges in the database should be searched, for example, according to "Name", "Artist" or "Album", or whether the entire database should be searched. Any files that have names containing the search term will be displayed in the list. To enter a new search term, simply click in the search field and replace the button. old search term, or clear the field by clicking the 34 Pinnacle MediaManager Deleting Files in the Media Library Deleting files button. To the right of the tabs is a Select one or more files in the list and then click this button. The entries are deleted from the database. The associated media files can also be deleted from the hard disk if you select the corresponding option in the dialog box displayed. If you want to include the files in the database again, you will have to reimport them. 35 Pinnacle ShowCenter The Media Player Using the Media Player and Its Controls The Media Player plays the media files in the database on your PC. Video files and photos are played/displayed on its 16:9 screen. To toggle full-screen playback on your PC monitor, double-click the Media Player screen. Doubleclick the screen again to revert to the main Pinnacle MediaManager view. Audio files are played back using your sound card and computer speakers. Audio files also require you to use the Media Player controls. To make them easier to use, all controls have a Tooltip field that appears when you move your mouse cursor over the buttons. Individual Explanations of Controls: Start/Pause Playback Select a file in the Media Library and then double-click it. The movie or the photo will appear on the Media Player screen, and the button will change appearance. Click the button again to stop playback. In the left column of the Media Library next to each entry, the corresponding icons appear in miniature. Previous Click this button to play back the previous file in the playlist. 36 Pinnacle MediaManager Next Click this button to play back the next file in the playlist. Shuffle The music, video or photo files will be played/displayed in random order. Repeat If you click this button while a playlist is being played, the list will be played back over and over until you deactivate the feature by clicking the button again. Video format While playing a movie, you can click this button to select the video format (standard 4:3, letterbox or widescreen 16:9. Note that a Tooltip field will appear when you place your mouse cursor over this button. The video format you select for a movie will be saved in the database ­ you won't have to reset it the next time you watch the movie. Progress bar This slider indicates by its position how much of the current audio or movie file you have heard or seen. You can also move back and forth to anywhere in the file by dragging the slider with your mouse. Time display This shows you how long the audio or video file has been playing. Volume control Located on the right-hand side of the screen section, this slider can be dragged up and down with the mouse to set the volume. Mute Click this button to turn the sound on and off. 37 Pinnacle ShowCenter Importing Media Files Introduction to the Import Tab You will see the following window if you select the Import tab in the Tools section: You can import media files to the MediaManager Database from the following sources: Folder: From a folder on your PC. Files: One or more files from a selected folder. Drives: From any drive on your PC. Audio CD: From the audio CDs that you wish to archive in the MediaManager Database. Digital camera: Photos taken with your digital camera. Watch folder: From a watch folder on your PC. Rhapsody playlists: Download Rhapsody playlists onto your PC. Due to licensing restrictions, this function is not available in every version of the Pinnacle MediaManager. In the tab for a particular media type in the Media Library, you can see the imported files in the Last imported category and in other categories. Right-click the list and select the Display in Explorer option from the pop-up menu in order to open the folder on your PC hard drive where the files are stored. The following sections explain the features for the individual categories in more detail. 38 Pinnacle MediaManager Import - Folder You will see the following window if you select the Folder category in the Import tab in the Tools section: Folder Click the Browse button to select which folder on your computer you want to import media files from. Once you have found the folder, click the Open button. The folder and the number of files selected will be displayed above the progress bar. Scan subfolders If you select this check box, the application will import any files it finds in the sub-folders. If you are importing photos, the names of the subfolders will also be imported as photo album names. Movie titles act as names for collections. If a movie consists of several files, these files will be grouped together in a collection. Start When you are finished with your settings, click the Start button. The progress bar will display 100% when the import is complete. You will also be told how many files were imported and how many, if any, were rejected because their format wasn't supported or they were already listed in the database. All imported files will be displayed in the Media Library in the bottom half of the window, listed by media type and category. 39 Pinnacle ShowCenter Import - Files You will see the following window if you select the Files category under the Import tab in the Tools section: Files Click the Browse button to select the files you want to import to the database from a folder on your hard drive. Once you have selected the files, click the Open button. The folder and the number of files selected will be displayed above the progress bar. Start When you have made your selection, click the Start button. The progress bar will display 100% when the import is complete. You will also be told how many files were imported and how many, if any, were rejected because their format was not supported or they were already listed in the database. All imported files will be displayed in the Media Library in the bottom half of the window, listed by media type and category. Playlists from other programs can also be imported by using this function (M3U format). 40 Pinnacle MediaManager Import - Drives You will see the following window if you select the Files category under the Import tab in the Tools section: Hard disk In the drop-down list, select the hard drive on your computer that you wish to import media files from. Ignore 'Windows' and Ignore 'Program files' If you have selected these check boxes, the program will not scan the Windows and/or Program files folders. This is usually a good idea because these folders generally do not contain any noteworthy media files. If you are importing photos, the names of the subfolders will also be imported as photo album names. Movie titles act as names for collections. If a movie consists of several files, these files will be grouped together in a collection. Start When you are finished with your settings, click the Start button. You will be told how many files were imported and how many, if any, were rejected because their format wasn't supported or they were already listed in the database. All imported files will be displayed in the Media Library in the bottom half of the window, listed by media type and category. 41 Pinnacle ShowCenter Import - Audio CD Due to licensing issues, this function is not available in all versions of the Pinnacle MediaManager. You will see the following window when you select the Audio CD category under the Import tab in the Tools section: This feature allows you to import your audio CDs to the MediaManager Database. The tracks on each CD are read in and separated into individual MP3 files. Audio CDs with copy protection cannot be imported. Insert the CD and select the drive Insert the audio CD into your CD drive. If your computer has several CD or DVD drives, you will have to select the drive from the Drive drop-down list. The application will read in the CD tracks and display them by number in the Track column. 42 Pinnacle MediaManager Get Titles You need an active Internet connection to use this feature. The names and titles of all known audio CDs are stored in an internet database. The Get Titles feature allows you to import this information to the MediaManager Database along with the tracks from the CD. If you click this button, the application will search for the data online and will display it immediately as shown below. If you cannot connect to the Internet or if your CD is not listed in the Internet database, you can enter the titles as well as artist and album names manually. Left-click the corresponding fields to enter this information. You can also play back individual CD tracks by double-clicking the title. The Media Player will display an icon indicating that you are playing a CD. 43 Pinnacle ShowCenter If you look in the Start column, you will see an option button for each track. Selecting these option buttons allows you to choose which tracks you want to import. Here's a helpful tip: if you want to select all the tracks at once, right-click the Start column and choose Select all from the pop-up menu. Start When you are finished with your settings, click the Start button. During the import, each track is assigned its own progress bar. The progress bar at the bottom will display 100% once all selected titles have been imported. In the Music tab in the Media Library, you can see the files imported from your audio CD in the Last imported category and in other categories. Unless you have already defined a folder in the Preferences item in the File menu, imported audio files will be saved by default to the ...\My Documents\My Music folder on the hard drive of your PC. Ejecting the CD Click this button to eject the CD from the drive. Closing the CD drive You can close the CD drive by clicking this button. 44 Pinnacle MediaManager Import - Digital Camera At present, only cameras with WIA drivers are supported. Since Windows 2000 does not support WIA, this feature is only available in Windows XP. You will see the following window when you select the Digital camera category under the Import tab in the Tools section: Camera To import photos to the MediaManager Database directly from a digital camera, select the camera from the Camera drop-down list. If you connected a new camera to your PC while the MediaManager was active, just click the Refresh button. It will then appear in the drop-down list. Album Enter a name for your album. Delete photos on your camera Select this check box to have the photo files removed from the camera memory after being imported. 45 Pinnacle ShowCenter Start When you are finished with your settings, click the Start button. The progress bar will display 100% when all files have been imported. In the Photos tab in the Media Library, you can see the imported files in the Last imported category and in other categories. Unless you have already defined a folder in the Preferences item in the File menu, imported photo files will be saved by default to the ...\My Documents\My Pictures folder on the hard drive of your PC. 46