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Graphics Plugin Administrator Guide

Version 2.2 | Published September 14, 2023 ©

Windows-based NLE Systems

Installing the Graphics Plugin for Windows-based NLE systems, the Configuration Tool and an NLE version of Viz Trio are also installed.

Viz Trio is an advanced character generator that is used to produce content for use with a Windows-based NLE system. Viz Trio requires a Viz Engine and a Media Sequencer, see illustration in System Components.


A typical setup using Viz Trio is as follows:

  • NLE machines

    • NLE system

    • Graphics Plugin (includes bundled Viz Trio)

  • Media Sequencer

  • Viz Engine

    • Graphic Hub with graphic scenes

    • Optional: Datapool plugins for Viz Engine


Viz Pilot and Viz Pilot Edge can also be used as the graphics editor for NLE systems, but is not bundled with the installation, and requires a Viz Engine and a Viz Pilot database. The Viz Pilot database (Oracle 10g) is where the templates, template data elements, and its associated data is stored.


A typical setup using Viz Pilot is as follows:

  • NLE machines

    • NLE system

    • Viz Pilot/Viz Pilot Edge

    • Graphics Plugin

  • Viz Pilot database installation

    • Oracle 10g

  • Viz Engine

    • Graphic Hub with graphic scenes

    • Optional: Datapool plugins for Viz Engine


Note:

Viz Engine and the Media Sequencer both run on Windows versions 7 or newer. Viz Engine 3.7, and later, do not support Windows XP. It is recommended to run the Media Sequencer on a separate machine. In smaller production environments, however, the Media Sequencer may run on the Viz Engine machine.

This section contains information on the following topics:

Installation

Installing the Graphics Plugin for EDIUS, Adobe, Avid or Quantel on Windows, the Configuration Tool and the NLE version of Viz Trio are also installed.

Notes

  • The installer requires a Windows user with administrator privileges.

  • Adobe Premiere Pro must be installed on the workstation before installing the Graphics Plugin for Adobe.

  • Separate installers apply for 32- and 64-bit NLE systems. The 32-bit installer should be used together with Media Composer 5/NewsCutter 9 (or older), the 64-bit installer with Media Composer 6/NewsCutter 10.

Configuration

A Configuration Tool is installed with the Graphics Plugin.

Please see the Graphics Plugin User Guide on how to access the Configuration Tool in Adobe, Avid and Edius, and the Configuration Tool section for its settings.

Advanced Configurations

This section explains how to set up a default configuration for all users of a computer by adding a master settings file.

A master settings file is useful in large installations where a system administrator can collect common settings into a shared file, and have this picked up by all users on a computer or all users on a network (by putting the file on a Windows share). There is currently no facility in the Configuration Tool to edit such a shared settings file, but an advanced user should be able to get this to work by copying the %APPDATA%\Vizrt\VizNLE\vizplugin.xml file that the Configuration Tool produces into the desired shared location.

If a master settings file is loaded and a user settings file is loaded later, then the latter will take precedence in case of any conflicts. If for instance the loglevel defaults to "none", and the master settings file sets the loglevel to "report" and the user settings file sets the loglevel to "extreme", then the value of "extreme" is the one that is respected by the Graphics Plugin. But if the master settings file sets the Viz Engine hostname, and the user settings file is silent on this point, then the Viz Engine hostname in the master settings file will be used.

Before loading the user settings, the master settings file is looked for and potentially loaded as follows:

  • The Graphics Plugin asks the Windows registry for the SettingsDir string in the registry path under the listed registry locations.

  • If the string is found, and its content turns out to be a path to a folder, then the filename vizplugin.xml is looked for at that location.

  • If that file is present, it is loaded as a default configuration before loading the individual user settings file.

Registry paths:

Host system

Registry path

Adobe

HKLM\SOFTWARE\[vizrt]\NLE\After Effects

Avid

HKLM\SOFTWARE\[vizrt]\NLE\AVX2

Quantel

HKLM\SOFTWARE\[vizrt]\NLE\Quantel

Edius

HKLM\SOFTWARE\[vizrt]\NLE\EDIUS