Inscriber Shell Extension

Inscriber Shell Extension

The Inscriber Shell Extension is a plug-in extension for Windows Explorer. It expands the functionality of Explorer to include: Editing .via animation files. See Edit .via Files below. Publishing and downloading files and folders from Harris Connectus servers. See Publish to Connectus on page 4. When the Inscriber Shell Extension is installed, you can publish files and edit .via files directly within Windows Explorer without needing to launch a Harris product.

Install Inscriber Shell Extension

The Inscriber Shell Extension is automatically installed with Harris products. You do not need to install it separately. To ensure that the Inscriber Shell Extension is installed on your system, right-click on a file in Windows Explorer and choose Send To from the right-click menu. You will see a Connectus option in the Send To menu.

Edit .via Files

.via files are animated clips created and supported by Harris applications. The Inscriber Shell Extension allows you to: View information and a thumbnail for each .via. Resize .via files. Convert .via files to the most recent version. Change the way .via files are decoded. Change the .via thumbnail and loop point.

To edit a .via with Inscriber Shell Extension, right-click the .via file within Windows Explorer and choose Properties. Within the Properties window, switch to the Inscriber Info tab. The top section of the Inscriber Info tab displays information about the selected .via, including its size, length, and version.

Figure 1-1: Top Section of Inscriber Info Tab

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Inscriber Shell Extension

Resize a .via

Click the Resize button to change the size of the .via. The Resize VIA window opens.

Figure 1-2: Resize VIA Window

Use the options in the window to resize the .via. If you want to replace the original .via file with the resized .via, select the Replace VIA With New Format radio button. Otherwise, select the Rename radio button to add a .old.via extension to the end of the original .vias filename. Use the Scale Factor fields to set how the resized .via is scaled. Numbers greater than one will increase the size of the .via on that axis, and numbers less than one will decrease it.

Click the Go button to resize the .via file.

Convert a .via

To convert a .via file to the most recent version, click the Convert To 2.0 button. The Convert To Latest window opens.

Figure 1-3: Convert To Latest Window

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Inscriber Shell Extension

If you want to replace the original .via file with the converted .via, select the Replace VIA With New Format radio button. Otherwise, select the Rename radio button to add a .old.via extension to the end of the original .vias filename. Click the Go button to convert the .via file to the latest version.
Change .via Files Decoding Setting

Depending on their content, some .via files are most efficiently decoded with the Complex setting enabled. If you find that a .via file tends to stutter on playback, try checking the Complex checkbox.
Note:

The Complex setting can degrade system performance. Do not use this setting unless your .via file requires it.

Figure 1-4: Middle Section of Inscriber Info Tab

Change .via Thumbnail and Loop Point

The image at the bottom of the Inscriber Info tab displays the current thumbnail for the .via.

Figure 1-5: Bottom Section of Inscriber Info Tab

To change the thumbnail, click the Change Thumbnail button. The Thumbnail window opens. Use the slider in the Thumbnail window to select a new image for your thumbnail. Click the OK button when you have selected the image you want to use.

To change the loop point for looping .via files, click the Change Loop Point button. The Thumbnail window opens. Use the slider in the Thumbnail window to select a new loop point for your .via. Click the OK button when you have selected the loop point you want to use.

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Inscriber Shell Extension

Publish to Connectus

The Inscriber Shell Extension allows you to send files and folders to Connectus from within Windows Explorer. To edit your connection settings or to publish a file or folder with the Inscriber Shell Extension, right-click a file or folder within Windows Explorer and choose Send To > Connectus.
Connect to Connectus

You must add the Connectus system to the Locations list in the Inscriber Shell Extensions Publisher Settings window. You can add more than one Connectus to the list if you plan to publish content to multiple Connectus servers. 1 2 Within Windows Explorer, right-click on a file and choose Send To > Connectus. The Publish Content to Connectus window opens. Click the Publisher Settings button. The Publisher Settings window opens.

Figure 1-6: Publisher Settings Window

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Set your creation stations Name and Location in the Publisher Identity section of the window. Click the New button. A new untitled location appears in the Locations list.

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Inscriber Shell Extension

Enter the details for the Connectus server selected in the Locations list. In the Name field, enter a descriptive name for the Connectus server the creation station will connect to. In the Connectus Location field, click the Choose button to select the network computer name for the Connectus server system. You can also identify the Connectus system by entering the systems IP address in the Connectus Location field. If you want to change the port that the creation station uses to communicate to the Connectus system, type a new number in the Connectus Server Port field. In the E-Mail Contact field, enter the email address of a person who should be notified every time content is updated. This information is optional.

To add more Connectus systems to the Locations list, press the New button and enter details for the new Connectus.

Click the OK button to close the Publisher Settings window when you are finished adding and editing Connectus locations.
Publish to Connectus

Once you have added Connectus servers within the Publisher Settings window, you can publish files and folders to Connectus with the Inscriber Shell Extension. The files and folders are classified as User Packages within Connectus. 1 2 Open Windows Explorer. Right-click on a file or folder and select Send To > Connectus. The Publish Content to Connectus window opens.

Figure 1-7: Publish Content to Connectus Window

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Inscriber Shell Extension

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Enter a name for the content project in the Publish field. Select the Connectus you want to publish to from the drop-down list. The list displays the Connectus systems defined in the creation stations location list. To add, edit, or remove Connectus systems from the list, see Connect to Connectus on page 4. Set how you want to publish the content. Type any notes or reminders about the content into the Comments area. Check the Set File CRC checkbox to set Connectus to check the content for errors that may have occurred during publishing. Selecting this option ensures the integrity of your files but they may take longer to publish.

Click the Publish button to publish the content. If an error tells you that the creation station doesnt have permission to publish to the Connectus system, contact the Connectus operator. The creation station must be enabled on the Connectus system as described in the Connectus User Guide.

To send the content to another Connectus, select a different Connectus system from the drop-down list and click Send again.

Click Done when you are finished publishing the user packages to your Connectus systems.
Download Content From Connectus

You can download User Packages from the Connectus servers you are connected to. 1 2 3 Open Windows Explorer. Create a folder for storing the downloaded content. Right-click on the folder and select Download From Connectus. The Download Content From Connectus window opens.

Figure 1-8: Download Content From Connectus Window

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Inscriber Shell Extension

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Select the Connectus you want to from in the drop-down list. The list displays the Connectus systems defined in the creation stations location list. To add, edit, or remove Connectus systems from the list, see Connect to Connectus on page 4. Use the drop-down lists to choose the content you want to download from Connectus. Edit the Download Location field if you want to choose a different location for storing the content. Click the Download button to download the selected content to the download location Click the Done button when you are finished downloading content.

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