alphavcr(1mms) — Commands
NAME
alphavcr − Records and plays AVI files having both audio and video, plays MPEG files, and records single frames.
SYNOPSIS
alphavcr [-live] [-play filename] [-out filename] [-record filename] [-pal] [-secam] [-ntsc] [-colormap type] [-controlPanel mode] [-graphics type] [-exit] [-loop mode] [-nowait] [-flush] [-geometry geom] [-help]
DESCRIPTION
The AlphaVCR utility program records and plays AVI files having both audio and video, plays MPEG files, and records single frames.
AlphaVCR can play AVI files that contain JPEG, Motion JPEG, and Indeo format compressed video data, 8-bit X image and 24-bit X image, and YUV uncompressed video data.
AlphaVCR can play MPEG-1 and MPEG-2 files. AlphaVCR cannot play Cinepak or Quicktime files. The File Info feature allows you to view the format for AVI or MPEG files.
CONTROL PANEL
The AlphaVCR control panel has the following menus:
File Menu
The following items are available under the File menu:
New
Creates a new video file.
Open
Opens an existing video file.
Saves an existing video file in a different format.
Live
Displays live video input.
Exit
Exits the AlphaVCR utility program.
Options Menu
The following item is available under the Options menu:
Preferences
The Preferences option displays the Preferences dialog box. The following tabs are available:
Audio
Provides a single location for the control of all settings associated with recording and playback of audio.
The following fields are found on the Audio preferences tab:
Input Audio Device Selection Menu: This menu lets you select the input audio hardware device from the list of available devices.
Input Audio Format Selection Menu: This menu lets you select an input audio format.
Output Audio Selection Menu: This menu lets you select the output audio hardware device (for output) from the list of available devices.
Playback
Provides a single location for the control of all settings associated with playback of video clips.
The following fields are found on the Playback preferences tab:
Display Preference Buttons: Video Out & Screen, Screen Only.
Hardware Device Selection Menu: Select the hardware video output (decompression) device from the list of available devices.
Video Standard Selection Box: Select the Video Standard setting choices. Choices are: NTSC, PAL, SECAM, SVIDEO525, and SVIDEO625.
Auto Repeat Button: Select this button to loop while playing a file.
Record/Live
Provides a single location for the control of all settings associated with the record and live video functions of AlphaVCR.
The following fields are found on the Record/Live preferences tab:
Video Capture Device Selection Menu: This menu lets you choose a capture device from a list of available devices.
Video Standard Selection Box: This selection area lets you choose a video standard. Choices are: NTSC, PAL, SECAM, SVIDEO525, and SVIDEO625.
Video Input Port Selection Buttons: These buttons indicate the input port number. The chosen Video Standard setting determines which ports are available.
File Record Format Selection Menu: This menu lets you choose a file format setting. Choices may be Motion JPEG Color, JPEG Mono, JPEG Color, X image 8-bit, X image 24-bit, and YUV. For some formats, the preview feature may not be available and appears as Format (No Display). Choices depend on the hardware capture device selected.
File Image Size Selection Box: This selection area sets the image size that will be used when recording a file.
Compression Quality Slider: When recording in JPEG format, a Compression Quality slider will become available in the Video Selections dialog box. This slider allows you to choose the quality of your recording.
File Record Rate: This selection area lets you choose the frame rate for the file. The choices are: Full, One-Half, One-Third, or One-Quarter.
Provides a single location for the control of all settings associated with the way AlphaVCR displays video on the workstation screen.
The following fields are found on the Display preferences tab:
Brightness: Move the slider to the right to brighten the display.
Saturation: Move the slider to the right to increase the saturation.
Contrast: Move the slider to the right to increase the contrast.
Image Size: The Image Size menu offers the choices: Default, Half, Quarter, Double, and Triple.
OPTIONS
AlphaVCR accepts the following command line options:
−live Plays live video and audio on startup as captured by a videocamera or any other input source such as a videocassette recorder or a television signal.
−play filename
Plays a specified AVI or MPEG file on startup.
−out filename
Plays a specified file on startup to the output device.
−record filename
Records the AVI file specified on startup. You cannot record MPEG files. When recording on startup, the default audio format is 11 kHz 16-bit PCM.
−pal Tells the program to use the PAL video format for input and output.
−secam Tells the program to use the SECAM video format for input and output.
−ntsc Tells the program to use the NTSC video format for input and output.
−colormap type
Specifies which colormap type for AlphaVCR to use. The two types are default (for default colormap) and private (for private colormap). To get the correct colors while playing 8-bit X image format files, you must use the private colormap. A 24-bit X graphics display automatically uses the private colormap. When using the private colormap for 8-bit X image format files, the display will flash while the cursor is in the TV screen. This flashing does not occur when using a 24-bit graphics display.
−controlPanel mode
Specifies the AlphaVCR control panel configuration. Modes are:
attached -- control panel is attached to video window
detached -- control panel is detached from the video window
none -- control panel is not displayed
−graphics type
Specifies the display image format. The two formats are X image (default) and YUV. Type ximage to specify X image format, and type yuv to specify YUV format. If you play an 8-bit X image file, you must use the X image display type.
The -graphics YUV option displays YUV format images. When using a 24-bit graphics display, this option will display a true color image instead of an 8-bit dithered image. A private colormap is required with an 8-bit display and will be used automatically. The -graphics YUV option requires graphics hardware that supports YUV display. If you choose YUV display and it is not supported on your system, AlphaVCR automatically uses X image display instead.
When using YUV display, display images are scaled up using the graphics hardware. This results in better performance for large image sizes for both 8- and 24-bit displays, especially for full screen display. This also results in more scaling options for playing MPEG and Indeo files. For Live, the maximum capture size when using YUV display is 320 x 240 for NTSC, and 384 x 288 for PAL and SECAM. To capture full frame sizes during Live, use X image display. When recording AVI files, a File Image Size of "Double" will capture and record full frame images.
−exit Exits the program once the operation is complete.
−loop mode
Tells the program whether or not to continuously play the specified file. The two mode types are off and on. Off (default) tells the program to play the file once (do not loop). On tells the program to loop while playing.
−nowait
Tells the program to start the operation without waiting for the user to click on the designated function button for that operation. Unless this switch is used, the operation will not immediately start. Nowait is functional on the initial operation, and only if an additional operation has been chosen in the command line.
−flush Specifies the number of frames to record before flushing them to disk. AlphaVCR recordings that last more than 30 seconds may experience a 1 to 3 second dropout. This dropout can be avoided by using the -flush option. This option writes all buffered frames to disk at the specified interval (number of seconds). The recommended interval is 20 (-flush 20). Note that use of this option may cause the recorded frame rate to be slower, but smoother and with fewer dropouts.
−geometry geom
Specifies the video window location offset from the upper-left corner of the graphics display. The syntax is [+,-]X[+,-]Y. For example, -geometry +100 +200 will display a video window at 100 pixels from the left edge and 200 pixels from the top edge of the graphics display.
−help Displays help information.
FILES
/usr/bin/mme/alphavcr
/usr/lib/X11/app-defaults/AlphaVCR