Pinnacle SHOWCENTER, User Manual

Page 1: ...Pinnacle ShowCenter ...

Page 2: ...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 rev...

Page 3: ...ting 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 Mu...

Page 4: ...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 Agr...

Page 5: ...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 t...

Page 6: ...g 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 ...

Page 7: ...mental 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...

Page 8: ...nd 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 yo...

Page 9: ...Basics The Idea in a Picture This overview shows one possible setup of the system components in your house 5 ...

Page 10: ...ly 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 ...

Page 11: ...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 ...

Page 12: ...p 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 ...

Page 13: ... 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 settin...

Page 14: ...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 ...

Page 15: ...owing 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 co...

Page 16: ...eges 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 CD ROM The installer will launch and display the following dialog box 2 Choose La...

Page 17: ...ld 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 ...

Page 18: ...wCenter 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 ...

Page 19: ...RT 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 televisio...

Page 20: ... 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 yo...

Page 21: ...nalog 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 Playe...

Page 22: ...ally 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 c...

Page 23: ...er 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 ...

Page 24: ... 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 confi...

Page 25: ...r 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 ...

Page 26: ...x 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 wi...

Page 27: ...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 t...

Page 28: ...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 no...

Page 29: ...ward 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 ...

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Page 31: ...iles 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 ...

Page 32: ...e 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 Fil...

Page 33: ...ly 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 ...

Page 34: ...he 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 longe...

Page 35: ...responding 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 Shortc...

Page 36: ...splay 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 ...

Page 37: ... 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 You can open the menu with the button and determine which columns should be displayed in the sort view We r...

Page 38: ...ield 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 old search term or clear the field by cli...

Page 39: ...ne 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 ...

Page 40: ...er 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 chan...

Page 41: ...p 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 w...

Page 42: ...a 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 Righ...

Page 43: ...ds 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 b...

Page 44: ...lected 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 i...

Page 45: ...lders 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 impo...

Page 46: ...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 i...

Page 47: ...he 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...

Page 48: ...ach 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 def...

Page 49: ...mport 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 h...

Page 50: ...es 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 ...

Page 51: ... window Define Create new watch folder Click this button to define create a new watch folder New watch folders start out active by default To deactivate a watch folder click the option button in the first column of the list Options for watch folders If you click the last column in the list of watch folders a menu will appear where you can select additional options for each watch folder Subfolder I...

Page 52: ...d from the database the folder itself will still be stored on your hard drive To make the folder appear again in the database you will have to redefine it as a watch folder Scan watched directories again Click this button to scan all of the watched directories again This is useful if for example the Media Server has been switched off temporarily 48 ...

Page 53: ...ction you can import Rhapsody playlists into the MediaManager Database The Real Rhapsody application needs to be active in order for the playlists to be displayed In the left column of the list you see an option button for every playlist Select the option button for any number of playlists you would like to have imported Start When you are finished setting preferences click the Start button You ca...

Page 54: ...re this to the display underneath and click OK Movies When importing movies the default categorization criteria for Genre is the name of the folder where the movie is found If the movie is made up of multiple parts these parts are automatically grouped together into a collection The categorization criteria Series is not set by default You can change this via the File Preferences Import menu For ex...

Page 55: ...e it a snap at some later date to filter out all the files in My Wedding from the rest of the files in the Media Library Assigning several keywords an example You can assign several keywords to one file For example some of the files to which the My Wedding keyword has already been assigned can be assigned one or more additional keywords such as At the rehearsal dinner At the church or At the recep...

Page 56: ...al keywords to a single file Select one or more files in the Media Library list and click the button to create a new keyword for the selected files Deleting a keyword Select the keyword you want to delete from the database and then click the button Field and value changing organizing tags Whenever you select an entry in the Media Library list you will also see the value assigned to each field By d...

Page 57: ...have yet accepted them by clicking the button Rotate clockwise counterclockwise for photos Selecting a photo from the Media Library will open it in the Media Player You can rotate the photo by clicking on these two buttons Next click the button to have the new position saved to the database The new position will be used whenever the photo is displayed on the television Restricted access You have t...

Page 58: ...your own criteria Since each playlist can only contain one type of media you will be creating playlists for music movies or photos You cannot mix these different types of media in one playlist Playlist catalog All the playlists are displayed in the left column Individual playlist contents The right column displays the contents of the individual playlists Selecting a playlist in the left column wil...

Page 59: ...dia files you want in this playlist Select one or more files from the Media Library in the database and drag them up to the right hand section If you do not want to drag with the mouse you can use the button instead Organizing items in a playlist Select the file you want to move within the playlist and drag it to its new position Or if you prefer you can use the two and buttons instead Deleting pl...

Page 60: ... order to set the time for all photos 2 If you want to play background music during a slideshow then select an appropriate music playlist from the drop down list This list will be played to your photos on the output device Playback in the Media Player Double click an entry in the playlist to play it back with the Media Player Once that particular item is finished the application will automatically...

Page 61: ... in the Tools section In this section you can export copies of media files from your MediaManager playlists to a New folder on your hard drive M3U playlist CD burner or DVD burner The following sections explain the features for the individual categories in more detail DRM protected files and music from the Rhapsody service cannot be exported ...

Page 62: ...ia files Playlist Select a playlist from the drop down menu Folder Use the Browse button to the right to select the folder you want the playlist to be exported to Create subfolders Select this check box to have subfolders created based on the sort criteria of the original files for example artist album photo album If a particular file does not have all the tags this option will create a subfolder ...

Page 63: ...will both export the selected playlist to a folder and create an M3U compatible playlist Start When you are finished with your settings click the Start button The progress bar will display 100 once all the files have been exported You will also be told how many files were exported ...

Page 64: ...ylist to an M3U playlist The playlist will contain references to the actual location where your media files are stored Playlist Select the playlist you want to export from the drop down menu File Use the Browse button to the right to select the file you want exported to the selected playlist Then enter the name you want to give to the file Start When you are finished with your settings click the S...

Page 65: ...system or in your car s CD player Any MP3 files will be automatically decoded MP3 Data CD DVD You want to burn MP3 files to a CD or a DVD All the tracks in the playlist will have to be converted to the MP3 format Data CD DVD You want to burn original music files MP3 WMA or WAV to a CD Any converted versions will not be used Movies Depending on what format the media files are in and whether convert...

Page 66: ...ick Start The progress bar will display 100 when the burning process is complete The CD DVD burner in the Pinnacle MediaManager is optimized for fast easy burning It cannot create DVD menus nor can it spread long files playlists over several discs If you need more sophisticated burning features we recommend using Pinnacle Studio MediaSuite 62 ...

Page 67: ... for the new playlist For more information refer to the Creating and Editing Playlists section Play Selection Select one or more files from the Media Library and choose this option The selection will now be played back or displayed in the Media Player Preferences Choosing this menu option opens a dialog box where you can configure all the settings for the Pinnacle MediaManager Audio CD Import Form...

Page 68: ...k Playback settings device and memory buffer Key Commands Choosing this menu option opens a dialog box where you can create edit and delete customized key commands and macros Quit Choose this option to exit the Pinnacle MediaManager ...

Page 69: ...e the text and click Paste in the menu The text will remain at its current location and will also be inserted at the new location Paste This command allows you to paste text at one location that you have cut or copied from another location using the Cut or Copy commands Delete Select the files and then choose this option from the menu in order to permanently remove the files Select All This option...

Page 70: ...u to simultaneously select all the files in an active area for example the Media Library list or to undo an existing selection Browse This option brings you to the Media Library sort view There is a separate more detailed section in the manual for this feature ...

Page 71: ...rked in the left column with their own icons Backup database With of this function you can save an existing database Select the option and then indicate the desired target directory and file name This procedure generates an XML file You can also generate more than one XML file for example at different intervals Restore database This function is used to restore a saved database The Pinnacle MediaMa...

Page 72: ...atically imports all the titles and radio stations in your Rhapsody Library and even lets you combine Rhapsody music with other titles to create new playlists Due to licensing restrictions not every version of the Pinnacle MediaManager supports the Rhapsody Music Service Installation and registration To use the music service you need the Rhapsody application as well as a subscription you can get b...

Page 73: ...onization settings or deactivate the synchronization process via File Preferences Rhapsody Note that the synchronization of a large library can last several minutes In the Pinnacle MediaManager Rhapsody titles are marked with their own icon You can create playlists of Rhapsody titles as well as mix playlists of Rhapsody music together with for example MP3 titles All the playlists created with the ...

Page 74: ...are marked with their own icon Note that it can take several minutes until newly added music is displayed in the ShowCenter Player Radio stations in the Rhapsody Library are automatically made available via Music Internet Radio Rhapsody Radio You can play back Rhapsody music via the ShowCenter Player only if the Rhapsody application has already been started and you have logged in 70 ...

Page 75: ...WMA Supported video file formats Standard Definition MPEG 1 MPEG 2 also VOB files MPEG 4 AVI versions 3 4 5 simple profile Xvid AVI simple profile DV AVI WMV Supported video file formats High Definition MPEG 2 HD up to 1080i MPEG 4 AVI HD up to 720p WMV HD up to 1080i Supported photo formats JPG PNG GIF BMP ...

Page 76: ...menu of the Pinnacle MediaManager Here you can also configure an automatic media conversion as well as keep track of the current status of running conversions In order to convert a media file select it in the Media Library right click and then select the format you want via the Shortcut menu Convert Convert to You can initiate conversions for more than one medium at a time These conversions are th...

Page 77: ...image size 352x240 or 288 The data rate is 1 15 Mbps in total That means that one CD 650 MB can hold a little over an hour s worth of video and audio While the video quality is rather poor VCDs can be played back in most DVD players SVCD SuperVideoCD The video is compressed using MPEG 2 with full vertical resolution and 2 3 horizontal resolution The data rate is 2 5 Mbps and one CD can only hold a...

Page 78: ...esults in excellent video quality The audio is always compressed using the MPEG 1 layer 2 format stereo Delete converted files With of this function you can delete the converted files The original files remain unchanged Cancel conversion A scheduled or already running conversion is cancelled The original file remains unchanged ...

Page 79: ...ver options menu The ShowCenter Player will now automatically detect all available server PCs in the network Server PCs are computers on which the ShowCenter software has been installed and the ShowCenter Server is active They will be displayed after a few seconds on the right side marked with a green checkmark Select one of the servers with the arrow keys and press OK to connect to it 75 ...

Page 80: ...annot connect to inactive servers When you connect the ShowCenter Player to a server PC for the first time you are required to register due to security reasons To do this follow the instructions on the screen When you connect again the ShowCenter Player is automatically detected and does not need be reregistered 76 ...

Page 81: ...the selected media type It is easy to differentiate between media types because they are shown in different colors The main screen which is always set to New Media shows the ten most recently imported media files to the right These files may be music movie or photo files If new files have been imported since the last time you opened this menu this is indicated by a symbol next to the New Media but...

Page 82: ...ith the Pinnacle MediaManager application is displayed If you select a playlist and then press OK then all of the titles in this playlist are shown Auto Playlists Automatic playlists are created for the Pinnacle MediaManager categories Top rated Most played Least played and Not played which are then accessible via this menu option Internet Radio While the ShowCenter is being installed on your PC t...

Page 83: ...l and then press OK Internet Radio is not active unless you have Internet access You can deactivate this menu option via Music Options in the Settings menu We recommend that you use the program Winamp from Nullsoft to listen to Internet radio on your PC It is available on the Internet at www winamp com Genre A list of the different music genres is displayed You can access a list of the correspondi...

Page 84: ...tion will open a text entry field Enter a search term of your choice and then press OK All files found containing the search term are then displayed in the list on the right hand side of the screen You can also use the number keys 2 9 or A Z to search for entries in alphabetical order Press 1 to return to the previous list Remote Control Functions While Playing Music button Detailed information ab...

Page 85: ...n Next Track and Previous Track buttons These buttons let you play the next previous music title of the selection It is not possible to scroll through the music collection while music titles are being played 81 ...

Page 86: ...e OK button on your remote control to resume playing the selected movie Use the A button on your remote control to delete entries from the list Playlists Displays a list of all of the playlists that have been created If you select a playlist and then press OK all of the movies in this playlist are displayed Auto Playlists Automatic playlists are created for the Pinnacle MediaManager categories Top...

Page 87: ...vies which consist of several files are automatically grouped and the files are played successively You can switch between the individual files during playback with the Next Track and Previous Track buttons on the remote control Special Functions in the Movies Menu The buttons A B and C on the remote control and their functions in the Movies menu are described below These buttons are displayed on ...

Page 88: ...s 2 9 or A Z to search for entries in alphabetical order Press 1 to return to the previous list Remote Control Functions While Watching a Movie A button This button lets you change the screen size of the movie currently being shown The standard setting is made in the Settings Video Start Size menu B button This button can be used to switch between soundtracks for movies with several different soun...

Page 89: ...ovie currently being shown Number keys 1 to 9 Use the number keys 1 to 9 to enter a desired percentage value 10 20 etc for skipping to another position in the movie currently being shown Next Track and Previous Track buttons These keys are used to show the previous next movie in a playlist or collection ...

Page 90: ...rol and press OK Slideshows This function displays a list of all slideshows stored To see a slideshow on screen select the slideshow and then press OK Auto Slideshows Automatic slide shows are created for the Pinnacle MediaManager categories Top rated Most played Least played and Not played which are then accessible via this menu option By Date This is where you can perform a search for photos acc...

Page 91: ...Special Functions in the Photos Menu The A B and C buttons on the remote control change function according to which part of the menu you are currently in The applicable functions are displayed in the bottom right section of the screen Press the relevant button to perform the desired function After opening the Photo Album menu you have the following options 87 ...

Page 92: ...o search for entries alphabetically Press 1 to return to the previous list After opening a photo album you have the following options The A B and C buttons which are displayed in the lower left hand corner of the screen or the corresponding buttons on the remote control have the functions described below in the Photos menu Press the relevant button to activate the desired function A Play Album All...

Page 93: ...kground music is paused in this mode B button Use this button to rotate the photo displayed Press the Play button to move on to the next photo The background music is paused in this mode C button Use this button to show or hide the title of the photo currently displayed button Pressing this button will show details about the photo currently displayed Next Track and Previous Track Buttons These but...

Page 94: ... a full list of ShowCenter compatible PCTV products Installing a PCTV Product If a PCTV product has already been installed on your PC before you install ShowCenter the system automatically detects the PCTV product and adds the PCTV option to the ShowCenter TV menu If the PCTV option does not appear in the TV menu select Settings General and then PCTV Detection The PCTV option will be available aft...

Page 95: ...This menu allows you to schedule recordings Press the A button on the remote control and set the desired recording date using the calendar displayed configure the other options and the channel you want Then confirm your recording details with Apply Press C to cancel the scheduled entry All the recordings currently scheduled are now listed in chronological order Press B to edit these entries or C t...

Page 96: ...e MediaCenter application Storage location for TV recordings All TV recordings are stored in the Media Library of the Pinnacle MediaManager under Media Type Movies and under the TV movie genre where they can be organized or deleted Capture format The capture recording format for example VCD or SVCD can be configured in the PCTV Vision or Pinnacle MediaCenter settings ...

Page 97: ...nacle MediaManager application and now want to have full access to all files proceed as follows First confirm the Lock field enter your PIN number and then press OK You now have unrestricted access to all media files If you want to reapply restricted access press OK Media files that are to be subject to restricted access are selected separately in the Organize tab of the Pinnacle MediaManager appl...

Page 98: ...essful the PCTV functions will be available via the TV menu Reload firmware This option is used to reload the firmware of the ShowCenter Player This should only be performed in conjunction with a software update Music Options Shortcut keys Use this function to assign music playlists auto playlists and Internet radio stations to the number keys 0 9 on the remote control Using the menu option New me...

Page 99: ...ed by pressing the A button on the remote control Dolby Digital output By default the ShowCenter Player plays movies with Dolby Digital sound only via the digital audio output jacks If you would also like to play back Dolby Digital sound via analog audio connections you will need to first pay a fee and activate this function This occurs on the server PC via Start Programs Pinnacle ShowCenter Optio...

Page 100: ...tion function automatically improves the quality of the photos displayed Pressing B on the remote control displays a comparative selection of photos from the ShowCenter database as they would appear with and without color correction Photo titles This function allows you to switch the photo titles on or off This function can also be activated while photos are being displayed by pressing the C butto...

Page 101: ...eo out connector After a new output has been selected the ShowCenter uses this as the standard output and waits several seconds for you to confirm with OK If it does not receive confirmation the ShowCenter returns to the original output Menu Resolution With this menu option you can set the resolution of the TV menu on your device Standard Definition or High Definition HD If an HD variant has been ...

Page 102: ...ch media are to be exported to the TV B Advanced Press this button on the remote control to proceed to the firmware settings page This is where for example the network configuration settings are made Note that the A B and C buttons have additional functions depending on the media type and category selected The categories are always displayed in the lower left corner of the screen 98 ...

Page 103: ...Remote Control Remote Control Keypad Layout This image gives you an overview of what functions you can perform with the ShowCenter remote control 99 ...

Page 104: ...rted by the ShowCenter is installed on your PC you can use this button to display the PCTV menu When you are in the server selection menu this button also lets you switch between the individual video outputs The video output selected is displayed on the screen If you do not see an image on your screen press the button repeatedly until an image is displayed Using this button to switch the video out...

Page 105: ...r VOB files with subtitle tracks It has no influence on the subtitles in AVI files While showing photos A button After pressing the A button use the arrow buttons and the OK button on the remote control to alter the size of the image zoom or of a detail pan Press the Play button to move on to the next photo The background music is paused in this mode B button Use this button to rotate the photo di...

Page 106: ...arger than a window in which you can scroll up and down recognizable by the arrows above and below the selection menu The entire table of contents is visible in this window Arrow buttons Up Down Left Right With these buttons you can move back and forth within a window and select functions You can see which function has been selected by its highlighted background You can use the right arrow and lef...

Page 107: ...s installed on your PC you can use this button to open the Record Now menu Fast forward Rewind With the Fast forward Rewind buttons you can move forward or backward to a specific part in a movie Play With this button and depending on the chosen medium you can start the playback of a movie a piece of music or a slideshow Playback can be paused by pressing the Pause button Press the Play button agai...

Page 108: ...n you have access to lower case letters upper case letters or numbers You can delete the letters or numbers you just entered by pressing the Delete DEL button You can use the number keys 2 9 or A Z to search for entries alphabetically when a list of media files is displayed on the right side of the TV menu For example if you press the 2 key once all the entries starting with the letter A B or C ar...

Page 109: ...remote control right at the receiver The angle to the receiver should not exceed 30 Is the remote control too far away from the receiver The remote control has a range of around 16 feet Is there a clear line of sight between the remote control and the receiver Have the batteries been properly inserted in the remote control Do the batteries still have enough power ...

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Page 111: ...OK button The directories and files on the device are displayed and can be played back individually This works even without a connection to the server PC Note that DRM protected files cannot be played via the USB connection Dolby Digital Sound Playback The ShowCenter provides Dolby Digital Sound for VOB and MPEG 4 AVI formatted movies via the digital audio outputs For this a Dolby receiver decoder...

Page 112: ...um has its own directory If you now put a JPG file named AlbumArt jpg in a directory with music files this image will be used as the album cover When you play this album in the Pinnacle MediaManager or in the ShowCenter Player or on your TV this image is displayed while you listen The search for album cover files is a background process whose parameters are configured in the Pinnacle MediaManager ...

Page 113: ... are played and uses this information to generate Auto Playlists under the categories of Most played Least played and Not played Detecting Missing or Modified Media If you delete move or rename a media file the corresponding ShowCenter database reference is displayed as empty A new background process detects this missing medium and marks it with a broken link icon in the Pinnacle MediaManager libr...

Page 114: ...d files Use the arrow buttons to browse through the selected music and check whether the template assignments are correct When you activate Update ID3 tags in music files your music files also updated Organizing Movies By Series If you have a lot of movie files there may be too many to reasonably organize them only according to Genre You now have the option of activating an additional level of org...

Page 115: ...rt Color Component Video Out 3 x Cinch Output Composite Video Cinch S Video Mini DIN 2x Stereo Audio 2x Cinch each One set to hook up the television and one set to hook up the stereo system Digital Audio Output Toslink and S PDIF Ethernet Connection 10 100BaseT Integrated WLAN adapter 802 11b g Processor Standard processor with MPEG MP3 hardware decoder Sigma Designs RealImage EM 8620 ...

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Page 117: ...quently read questions In addition you can also sort the documents according to problem categories To do this use the pull down Category menu Please use the search function to obtain answers to special questions 2 Ask a Question and Get an Answer Simply enter your question or the symptoms of your problem and you will obtain a list of the most obvious solutions If you do not obtain a satisfactory s...

Page 118: ...stems online discussion forum to see whether your question has already been asked and a suitable answer found To use the service ask your question in the discussion forum and you will receive help from Pinnacle Systems or other users A search function is provided in the discussion forum If you enter poor picture for example contributions on this subject will be displayed When you use Pinnacle Syst...

Page 119: ...f you transfer possession of any copy of the Software to another party your License is automatically terminated 2 License Restrictions You may not or allow any third party to a rent lease sell loan or otherwise transfer the Software or any of your rights and obligations under this License b install the Software on a network for use by multiple users unless each user has purchased a license c rever...

Page 120: ...n order to protect the integrity of certain third party content Pinnacle and or its licensors may provide for Software security related updates that will be automatically downloaded and installed on your computer Such security related updates may impair the Software and any other software on your computer which specifically depends on the Software including disabling your ability to copy and or pl...

Page 121: ...S WHATSOEVER EVEN IF PINNACLE HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES IN NO EVENT SHALL PINNACLE S LIABILITY EXCEED THE TOTAL AMOUNT OF THE FEES PAID FOR THE SOFTWARE Some states jurisdictions do not allow the limitation or exclusion of incidental or consequential damages in certain circumstances so the above limitations may not apply in some circumstances 11 General This License is go...

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Page 123: ...pixels are used without adjustment circles are displayed as ovals This distortion can be eliminated by factoring in the aspect ratio see also Pixel AVI Abbreviation for Audio Video Interleaved the standard format for digital video on PCs see also Video for Windows C Client A system computer or program in a network or on the Internet that requests files or services The system computer or program th...

Page 124: ...ncrypted data format and a corresponding player or decoder program which can detect whether a user has the right to view or copy certain data DSL Short for Digital Subscriber Line This technology allows users with DSL modems to download up to 6 Mbps and upload 0 6 Mpbs over short distances of 3 miles or less DSL connects using copper landlines DVD Short for Digital Versatile Disc formerly known as...

Page 125: ...efore more data accumulate significantly higher processing power is required for compression and decompression see also SD HTML Abbreviation for HyperText Markup Language A document standard developed during the World Wide Web project that provides a simple logical structure for titles headings paragraphs numbering forms tables and mathematical formulas as well as a language for defining hypertext...

Page 126: ...s based on private transmission media and equipment Ethernet and Token Ring are common LAN technologies Letterbox The letterbox format is created when an image recorded in 16 9 format or wider is displayed on a normal television 4 3 This format typically displays the picture between black bars on the top and bottom of the screen This term was probably derived from the wide thin format that looks a...

Page 127: ...There are more than 70 such forums online PHP The abbreviation PHP officially stands for Hypertext Preprocessor PHP is a widely used scripting language designed for general use It can be embedded in HTML and is ideal for Web applications PHP is easy to learn offers excellent database and Internet Protocol interfaces and supports many additional function libraries PHP is the ideal development tool ...

Page 128: ...ion see also S Video VHS S Video S Video signals deliver brightness and color information separately through several cables This means that the video does not need to be modulated and demodulated and image quality is not impaired as a result see also Composite Video SCART Type designation for the EuroAV plug a 21 pin standardized connector for all video and audio lines Signals are not converted pr...

Page 129: ...CDs A Video CD can hold up to an hour of digital video and stereo quality sound The data rate of the MPEG 1 stream is constant around 170 kB per second 224 kpbs sound 138 kB video PAL This standard offers image and sound quality that is comparable to that of a HiFi VCR see also SVCD VHS Abbreviation for Video Home System System used by many VCRs for recording and playing back sound and video from ...

Page 130: ...igital cameras scanners and other devices Widescreen See 16 9 format WLAN Abbreviation for Wireless Local Area Network see also LAN WMA Abbreviation for Windows Media Audio Microsoft s audio playback method that unlike its rival MP3 has an integrated rights management system see also MP3 WMV Abbreviation for Windows Media Video Video file format developed by Microsoft X XviD Another version of the...

Page 131: ... 9 H Hard Drive 9 Hardware Specifications 111 Hardware 6 7 Housing 1 I Import Audio CD 42 Import Digital Camera 45 Import Drives 41 Import Files 40 Import Folder 39 Import Rhapsody Playlists 49 Import Watch Folder 47 Import Tab 38 Installing the Software 11 12 Internal Components 1 K Keywords 51 52 L License Agreement 115 M M3U playlist 57 60 Main Window 28 Media Library 30 33 34 35 Media Player 3...

Page 132: ...he Media Library 34 Server 6 Settings 93 Showcenter idea 4 5 Software 6 7 Sort View in the Media Library 33 Sound Card 9 Supported File Formats 71 System Requirements 9 T Technical Support 113 Television 77 78 82 86 90 93 The Components 6 Tools Menu 67 Turning on the Television 75 TV Menu Introduction 77 78 82 86 90 93 U USB 14 107 W Watch Folder 47 Where to install the device 1 WIA drivers 45 Win...