Introduction

This tutorial is meant for people who have experience with Viz|Artist 2.x and want to
switch to Viz|Artist 3.0.
It is recommended to refer to the Viz|Artist 3.0 user manual for additional and more
detailed information.

What you will do

9 Learn about the local version of Viz|DbServer

9 Create a project and sub folders
9 Import objects and create links
9 Create a simple lower third scene
9 Use the search functionality
9 Define a font style
9 Create an alpha and position animation
9 Create two directors to control one object
9 Write a simple script
9 Import data from Viz|Artist 2.x

Terminology and Conventions

Text blocks with an orange border provide hints on how to use Viz|Artist efficiently

Text blocks with gray background provide background information on new features

Represents drag movements.

Viz|DbServer is the new client/server data storage for Viz|Artist 3.0. Viz|DbServer
can either run locally to serve one Viz|Artist or centralized to serve multiple clients.
Viz|DbManager is the administration tool for Viz|DbServer.
Viz|DbTerminal is the basic control tool for Viz|DbServer to start and shutdown the
services associated with Viz|DbServer.

Folders usually contain objects of the same type. To organize your work use Projects
with sub folders.
Projects are a way to keep your tree organized. The tree view representing the content
of the data pool can be restricted to show only the active project and all its associated
elements. This is the main difference between projects and folders.

A Base Font is the raw representation of an imported true type font. Base fonts exist in
the data storage as vertex fonts and as texture fonts.
A Font Modifier changes the appearance of a vertex or texture font.
A Fontstyle is defined by a base font and one or more font modifiers.

A Property can either be a single parameter or a compound of multiple parameters.

The value of a parameter at a given time is calculated from the spline defined by key
frames.
A Key Frame is a snapshot of a property stored on the time line at the specified time.

A Channel consists of multiple key frames controlling the behavior of a certain property
over time.
A Director contains one or more channels.
The Stage contains one or more directors.

A Script is a function which can be executed by Viz|Artist on container or scene level.

Getting started

After having installed Viz|Artist on your computer you will see two new icons on your
desktop.

Viz|DbManager will start Viz|DbManager

Viz|DbTerminal will start Viz|DbTerminal

Viz|Artist 3.0 greets you with a logon dialog. If you accept the default values all your
work is stored in your local Viz|DbServer database. The Guest account does not require
a password by default. Click on Login to start working with Viz|Artist 3.0.
(Please refer to the manual on how to use Viz|DbManager to create and manage a
multi-user environment.)
Since the data management has completely changed in Viz|Artist 3.0 the data
selection/import/archive view of Viz|Artist 2.x was eliminated. Instead Viz|Artist 3.0
starts with an empty scene.
To add a project to the database

Several new terms have been introduced with Viz|Artist 3.0. Project is one of them. It
is an aid to keep scenes and their accompanying objects together and can assist in
maintaining a corporate identity throughout all scenes.

Let’s create our first project called ‘Tutorial’. Drag the P to the server tree view. Enter
‘Tutorial’ and confirm by pressing Enter.

NOTE: Sub-Projects can only be created underneath Projects!

To create folders in the database

Next we create two folders. The ‘AllMyImages’ folder on the root level will hold images,
which will be used by many different projects. The sub folder ‘images’ underneath the
newly created ‘Tutorial’ project will hold images specific to this project.

To import images

Click on the Import button in the main menu. The following illustration shows a folder
tree on the right side. From the drop down menu you can choose which object type you
want to import. We choose Image.
Select your folder ‘AllMyImages’ and drag the images into the database view to import
them.

NOTE: to get back to design view click the ‘Server’ button in the main menu.

The same way of thinking applies to all object types. Typically you would create folders
like ‘AllMy3D-Objects’ and ‘AllMyFonts’ for global use and local folders for objects specific
to this project.
Use the selection bar above the icon view to define which project or folder content you
would like to see.

S shows only scenes.

O shows only objects.
M shows only materials.
I shows only images.
F shows only fonts.
A shows only audio clips.
All shows all elements
Auto shows the type of elements of which the most exist in the folder or project.

Try switching between the different object types. You will note that some of the projects
and folders in the tree get grayed out. These do not contain any objects of the selected
type.

To create links

As mentioned before projects will help you to organize your data. But how can
Viz|DbServer help you maintain your corporate identity? This is done via the unique
identifier model, which is the basis of the data storage. During the import of an image
into our database an entry with a unique identifier was created in the database. The first
link to this entry was automatically created in the ‘AllMyImages’ folder. We could use this
image directly in our new scene, which resides in the ‘Tutorial’ project. However it would
be much more elegant to have the image reside in the working project. Let’s create a
link from the ‘AllMyImages’ folder to the ‘image’ folder in the ‘Tutorial’ project.
Hold the Alt button pressed while dragging the image from ‘AllMyImages’ to
‘Tutorial/images’.

Both links are pointing to the same unique entry in the data storage. If you change or re-
import the image it will have an effect on all scenes which reference to either
‘AllMyImages’ or ‘Tutorial/images’. This philosophy will not only guarantee an update of
all involved scenes, but will also save you storage space.
After this operation the icons of the images will look like this:

The indicates, that the object is linked to more than one folder.

NOTE: To create a copy of an object you need to press and hold the Ctrl-Key while
dragging the object.

To find all links of an object right-click on the icon and a context menu will appear.

Click “Show Folder Links…” to open a view with all links to this object. In the following
illustration you can see that ‘gra03_orange256’ is linked into two folders.
Clicking on an entry in the list will open up the selected folder and automatically select
the object.

To restrict the tree view to the current project

Since we want to focus on the ‘Tutorial’ project from now on we will use another new
feature of the user interface. Click the button located above the tree view. The tree
shows only the selected project and its subprojects and folders. This feature is only
available for projects and not for folders and is the main difference between the two.

NOTE: The acts as a toggle button to switch between all projects view and working
project view.

restricts the view to working project.

We can only scratch the surface of the functionality provided by Viz|DbServer. You will
learn how to use the search functionality later in this tutorial.
The following table describes the main features and advantages of Viz|DbServer.
 Viz|DbServer
Consistent data storage
Viz|DbServer provides the same comfortable file-handling as used by most operating systems,
whilst maintaining data consistency. This means objects are always aware of all the objects to
which they are referencing and, vice versa, they have the knowledge of all objects referring to
them.
References stay consistent no matter where you move an object to or how many copies of this
instance exist in your folder tree. Removing a file only decreases the reference count, but does not
physically remove the object from the storage unless the reference count goes to zero.
This “reference awareness” will prevent a situation where scenes are not useable anymore because
of missing objects through accidental deletion.

Corporate identity consistency

Establishing and changing a consistent corporate look and feel is made easy with Viz|DbServer.
The reference model guarantees that all scenes using a corporate font will be updated as soon as
the font changes. The same applies of course to all other object types.

Flexible data organization

Organizing scenes and all relevant objects together in one project simplifies the task of handling
complex designs.

Data locking
A user can have exclusive access to a scene or objects by applying a lock to them. Two locking
methods are available; an automatic lock to prevent two or more graphic artists working on the
same material and a general lock, which can only be released by the user who applied it.

Audio/Video streaming
Viz|DbServer currently supports audio streaming and will support video streaming in a future
release.

Administrative tools
Viz|DbServer comes with a management tool. Its main purpose is to migrate archives and data
pools from version Viz|Artist 2.x. During the import process, a sanity check is performed on all
objects reporting missing references. Multiple instances of Viz are used to import huge data assets
in the most efficient way. The Viz|DbManager helps you to add users, keywords and
permissions. Statistical information is provided regarding disk usage, connected users and server
traffic. Viz|DbManager assists the user in finding duplicate items and combines them on user
request.

User management
The integrated user management allows a protection of crucial assets. It also serves as a journal
to find out who modified what, and when.

Search functionality
All object properties can serve as search criteria. A simple keyword search will return all associated
objects. To restrict the search, the user can limit the result by specifying the object type, creation
and modification dates, ownership and permission within a specific branch, or globally.

Messaging/notification
The server state gets broadcasted to all connected clients via a tailor able notification system.
Online collaboration between Viz|Artist 3.0 and Viz|DbManager users is handled by
Viz|DbServer as well.
To create a scene

You can create a new scene by either using the context menu in the icon view or via the
Server – Scenes drop down menu. Click on Server – Scenes and select the Create
menu item.

Enter a name for the new scene. The scene is created in your current working project.
Double click on the scene icon to open it.

To create a container

Populating a scene with graphic elements is very similar to what you are used to from
Viz|Artist 2.x.

We start by adding two groups to our scene tree. First click on the button. A new
group container is created at the current location of the scene tree. Since there are no
other containers in the tree it will be the root container. Now drag and drop the same
button to the right of the first group container. A new child container was created.
This duality of the menu buttons in the Viz|Artist user interface was briefly described in
the project section. It can save you a lot of mouse movements and is consistent
throughout the whole user interface.

To add favorites

Every designer has her/his favorite build ins, materials and so on. As we will need the
rectangle quite often during this tutorial we add it as a favorite.

Click on the first to open the favorites bar just above the scene tree view.
Now click on the Built Ins Button in the top menu. Select Primitives from the drop
down menu below to show all the geometry plug-ins available in your installation.

Now drag the Rectangle plug-in to the favorite bar above the scene tree view.
Again this will save you a lot of mouse movements while designing a scene.
To use favorites

Drag the rectangle plug-in from the favorite bar directly onto the second group container.

You can drag the favorites directly out of the favorites-list e.g. into the scene-output
window, the scene-tree, even into the tree-search or the container editor, just like you
would use objects from the database or the plug-in view.

To use the database property search

One of the most time consuming tasks in Viz|Artist 2.x was the search for the right
image, geometry or font. The database search will help you find what you are looking for
in many different ways and in no time at all.
The next container we create will be a textured rectangle. First let’s create one more sub
container using another option. Right click on the root container. Select the Create Sub
Container item in the context menu. A new container was created.
Next we look for the right image. Click on the Server button in the top menu. Bring up
the drop down menu and select the Search item. Alternatively you can press Ctrl-s to
bring up the search dialog. The following illustration shows the start screen of the
database search.

As we are looking for an image we will select the type ‘Image’ in the top menu.
Select ‘Properties’, because we want to search by name.

Typing in ‘gra*’ will give you all images, which begin with ‘gra’ in the whole database!

Since we keep all relevant images, fonts and so on in our project we can restrict the
search to the project and its sub folders by activating Directories and clicking on the

recursive button.

Click on the button to start the search.

The result will look very similar to the one shown in the next illustration.

Drag on of the images from the search result onto your container.

NOTE: Clicking on the found data icon will automatically open up the folder in the server
view and select the icon of the found image.
To use the database reference search

Sometimes you might remember the scene in which you used object you now need, but
not the location of the object. The reference search of the database is the tool which will
help you locate the geometry, image and so on, you are looking for.
Let’s assume you have one scene in the database which contains the geometry of your
TV-stations logo.
In the scene view right click on the scene and select Search Reference from the context
menu.

In the result view of the database search all elements which are referenced by this scene
are displayed.
You can drag the found geometry directly into your scene.

NOTE: as soon as you split the geometry, the reference will be lost!

The next thing we will do is add some background to the logo. Drag in a rectangle, adjust
the transformation and vertex colors as usual, and your scene will look similar to the
scene in the following illustration.

Since the background belongs to the logo it’s a good idea to group them. Select the two

containers and click on the button.

NOTE: You can also ungroup containers by selecting the group and clicking on . This
button will be activated as soon you select a group.
To use fonts

The way fonts are used in Viz|Artist 3.0 is significantly different to how it was in
Viz|Artist 2.x. A font is represented by its base font and so called font-styles. Font-
styles are derivations of the original font where different font modifiers have been
applied. The base font exists as a vertex and as a texture font.
To create your own font-style double-click on an imported font to open the font-style
editor.

Let’s create a font-style which reflects the color ramp used for the background image of
the logo.
Drag the vertex color modifier onto the font-style modifier list.

Adjust the vertex colors and save the font-style by clicking on the Save As button.

NOTE: if you want to use this font-style in other projects too, save this font outside of
your ‘Tutorial’ project and link it!

Add a new container, attach the font-style to it and do the common adjustments.
To color the scene tree

Most likely this container will receive its content via an external control application. To
find containers which are externally controlled easier Viz|Artist 3.0 offers you the option
of coloring specific containers in different shades.
Right click on the container, select Change Color and select the appropriate color.

This mark will also be saved to the scene. So you can use this feature for any kind of
highlighting the container.

To find performance killers

Another new feature in the tree editor will help you find the performance-killers if there
are problems with rendering in real time.

Sort the tree by selecting Sort from the drop down menu above the tree view.
The tree is now displayed as a sorted list of containers. The sort criteria can either be

Number of vertices

Render time

Texture size

In our example the logo has the most vertices in the scene.

To search the scene tree

Viz|Artist 3.0 gives you the possibility of the advanced tree search. To open the tree
search select the entry Search in the top menu.

What you will see is that the bar on top of your scene-tree will change to:
Drag the property you want to search for onto .
Let’s search for all rectangles in our scene.

The button will then select all containers that hold a rectangle.

If you have used different background colors for your containers to highlight them you

can also search for them by clicking on one of these buttons .

If you want to find all marked containers, search for the grey ones and select them all.
Then you will easily discover the colored ones.

These two buttons will search for all hidden or all locked containers.

NOTE: you can also search for your favorites in the scene tree. Just open up the
favorites list and drag in the property-drop-site the item you want to search for.

Naturally the tree-search also provides you with the possibility to drag objects from the
server-view (or built-in-view) directly into the tree-search.
To minimize mouse clicks, Viz|Artist 3.0 will provide you in the context menu of the
scene tree with an entry called Tree Search for <property>.
Selecting Tree Search for EXTRUSION will automatically switch to the tree-search and
will invoke the search for Extrusions in your scene-tree.
To create an animation

The way you can create and modify animation has changed significantly from Viz|Artist
2.x to Viz|Artist 3.0. Since so many new features and functions have been introduced
you may find the way Viz|Artist 3.0 handles animations more complicated. Once you’re
familiar with the concept you will love the new stage and its endless possibilities.
Let’s start with a simple animation of the alpha value to achieve a fade-in fade-out effect
of your lower third graphics.

To find the function plug-in, which determines the alpha value of a container click the
Build Ins button in the main menu. Select the Function Container menu item from the
drop down menu.

Drag and drop the Alpha Function onto the top group of your scene tree.
Click on the Alpha icon to open the editor for this function. Leave the value for alpha to
100. This will be the value for the first key frame we add to the stage.

The following screenshot shows the timeline editor, which gives you control over your
animations.

Click the button to set a key frame at time 0. The auto increment of the
timeline is set to 50. The time displayed for the next key frame is now set to 50.

Change the Alpha value in the property editor to zero.

Click the update button again. A second key frame with a value of 0 for
alpha was created at time position 50.

Click the Stage button in the main menu to bring up the stage editor. The following
illustration shows the new look of the stage editor.

The view in the lower half displays a spline representation of how the value of alpha
changes along the timeline.
To copy key frames

In Viz|Artist 3.0 key frames can be copied to any destination on the time line. Select
the first key frame by clicking on it. Drag and drop the key frame to the desired position
in time while holding the c key pressed.

keep c pressed to copy a key frame

To fine adjust an animation

The way a value controlled by key frames behaves over time is defined by the spline
drawn in the stage. Let’s zoom in to get a better view of the spline anchors and the
attached handles.
Hold the z key pressed while dragging the mouse over the alpha channel.
Now what’s the spline all about? It shows the value of the property at any given point in
time. The nice thing about it is that you can modify the way the value changes over time
by moving the handles attached to the anchors. Try to move the first handle so it is
pointing almost straight down. You will notice that the red line has a very steep gradient
at the beginning.
Play the animation with the play button in the timeline control.

The graphics will fade out very quickly and will keep a low alpha value for some time
before reaching 0. In fact you’re controlling the acceleration and velocity of a property
with the spline.

Viz|Artist 3.0 provides you with a number of shortcuts in the stage and throughout the
whole application. Please consult the manual for a detailed description of the shortcuts.
You can also use the spline buttons located at the top of the stage editor to adjust the
handles.

To animate container positions

Many scenes contain animations of container positions. We create one which will cause
the text to slide in from the right.
Select the text container by clicking on its icon in the scene tree.
Click on the transformation icon to open the transformation property sheet.
Change the value for X so the text is not visible anymore.
Check that the time for the next key frame is set to one hundred.
Click the Add Key Frame button to a new key frame.
Change the value for X until the left side of the text almost touches the logo.
Click the Add Key Frame button again.
The following illustration shows the stage and the spline representation of the channel
value.
One could expect to see three lines in the spline view. One for the x-, one for the y- and
one for the z coordinate. The spline for a position channel shows the distance a container
traveled along the path at any given point in time. The actual path on which the object
moves is drawn in the scene editor.

position path

To move a container forth and back along a path

For an ordinary slide in animation this may look like an added level of complexity which is
not needed.
As mentioned before, one could think of the spline view as an acceleration/velocity
diagram. This is particularly true if we talk about position animations.
Let’s image a more complex animation where the text gets attracted by the logo but
bounces back several times because it hit the logo too hard until it reaches its final
position. An animation like this would have been very hard to do in Viz|Artist 2.x and
would have required many key frames.
Let’s investigate how we can create an animation like this in Viz|Artist 3.0 with just a
few mouse clicks.

First we will add one more key frame to the distance spline by clicking on it.
Move the anchor point and the handles so the distance will decrease before it increases
again.

You just created one bounce of the text of the logo. Play the animation and watch the
result. You can add more key frames and decrease the amount by which the text travels
back at each key frame until the position remains static.

NOTE: An animation of the scaling properties will require 3 splines. Viz|Artist 3.0 will
provide you with this possibility. You can then handle your scaling in x, y and z
independent of each other with 3 different splines. You can switch between them by

clicking or using the shortcuts ‘Ctrl-z’, ‘Ctrl-x’, ‘Ctrl-c’.

To animate one property with multiple directors

One of the shortcomings of Viz|Artist 2.x was the limitation that one property was
animated by one director. This has changed in Viz|Artist 3.0. Now multiple directors can
be created to animate one property. This opens many possibilities for building your
scenes. The operator can now decide which animation should be triggered at run time.

Let’s create a new director by clicking the button.

Enter ‘textout’ as the director’s name.

Next copy the position channel of the text into the new director.

Select the position channel of the textout director.

Click on the key frame in the middle of the animation and press Delete on your
keyboard.
Your second animation is now a plain slide in again.
Set the start time for this director to 0 by dragging the director in the dope-sheet to
zero.

Depending on which director is active when you start the animation the container
behaves differently.

Multiple directors animating one property give you the opportunity to design your
animations in different ways.

The hierarchical grouping of directors provides a clear representation of complex

animations. It also ensures that all relevant directors get triggered with one command,
which simplifies the task of creating a control application and reduces the risk of not
being able to start directors simultaneously.

NOTE: you can also add properties, you want to animate, by selecting them with the
context menu in the stage.
 Animation

Channels and Keyframes

Spline representation of channels

The stage has a built-in spline editor. A spline defines the value of an animated parameter at a
given time. The user can control the animation by changing the spline via the key frame value and
the attached handles.

Independent splines for transformations

For compound channels, each parameter has its own modifiable spline.

Multi-selection of key frames

The stage sports a multi-select feature allowing access to more than one key frame at a time. To
select multiple key frames, the user can either hold the control key down while clicking on a series
of key frames or drag up a rectangle over the desired key frames.

Copy functionality
Multiple key frames can be copied at once.

Pre loop/swing
Swing and loop can be assigned to the start of the animation.

Infinite loops
The number of loops for an animation can be set to infinite.

Animation path / position channel

The path on which the object travels is defined by position key frames. This path can be changed
interactively in the scene editor. The color segments along the line provide information on how far
an object will travel during one field. An additional spline controlling those distances, respectively
the speed, is part of the animation.

Material channel
All properties are now combined into one channel to simplify the handling of material animations.
Directors

Multiple directors animating one property

Objects need to be animated in different ways, depending on the state of the scene or to achieve
different effects using the same containers. An unlimited number of directors can be created to
animate one property. During play out the operator decides which animation will be triggered.

Nested directors
The hierarchical grouping of directors provides a clear representation of complex animations. It
also ensures that all relevant directors get triggered with one command, which simplifies the task
of creating a control application and reduces the risk of not being able to start directors
simultaneously.

Reverse playing directors

An animation can be executed in both directions.
Merge/Split preserves director hierarchy
A group containing animations can be merged and split again without losing the animation
information. This way a graphic artist can design objects and reuse them in multiple scenes without
the need to redo the associated animations.

Stage

Scene parameters
Certain parameters of a scene, like the current camera, can be animated. Sophisticated animations
utilizing multiple cameras are easy to create and modify.

Adding animation in the stage

Viz|Artist 3.0 supports two methods of creating an animation. The traditional method inserts a
key frame in the timeline whenever the user presses the Set Key Frame button. New additional
method: the user can insert a new channel directly from within the stage editor.

Undo/Redo
Viz|Artist 3.0 supports undo/redo functionality in the stage.
To add scripts

The ability to control the behavior of containers or complete scenes via scripts opens the
door to create intelligent scenes with Viz|Artist 3.0. Viz users with programming
knowledge in C++ have been able to add their own creative ideas to Viz products in the
past. With the introduction of the Viz|Scripting Language this advantage is now
available to people with very little programming experience. Better yet you can stay in
Viz|Artist 3.0 while coding and test your plug-ins on the fly. Since scripting in
Viz|Artist 3.0 is a very powerful tool this tutorial will try to give you an idea of what’s
possible instead of explaining the complete set of features.

A script is a function object containing code written in the Viz|Scripting Language. Any
container can hold a script, known as a container script. In addition, the scene has its
own scene script.
A script-based plug-in is a plug-in created from a script.
A script may define script parameters that are controllable from outside Viz|Engine.
A script procedure is a sub-routine within a script.
An event handler is a script procedure that is automatically called by Viz in response to
an event such as user input.

We will add a script to the scene which will change the displayed text to the current time
at each rendered field.
Let’s add one more container containing text in our scene.
Next drag and drop the Script function plug-in onto this container.

Click on the script icon to open the script property sheet.

Click on the Edit button to open the script editor.
Type the following code in the editor window:
sub OnExecPerField()
dim time as datetime=GetCurrentTime()
geometry.text=time.hour&":"&time.minute&":"&time.second
end sub

The following illustration shows the script editor containing a script which will set the text
to the current time in the format: hh:mm:ss.

Click the button to get an executable script in Viz|Artist 3.0.

 Scripting
The script language
Viz|Artist 3.0 includes a built-in scripting language that enables designers to create scenes in
which complex tasks are performed by user-defined code. Script code can be assigned to the whole
scene or to individual containers.
The language supports all elements of a modern script language, including arrays, loops,
procedures, and user- defined data types.
The syntax is very much like VB script, with the extension of object orientation.

Procedures
Script code resides in procedures that either gets called by Viz internally or as a response to user
input.

Script interoperability
A script may call a procedure of another script and share data via global variables.

Scripts with parameters

A script may define public parameters in order to make its behavior controllable from the
Viz|Artist GUI or from external control software.

Integration with Viz

Viz scripting is tightly integrated with the Viz|Engine 3.0. Each object type in Viz, such as
Container, Scene, or Texture, has an equivalent data type in the script language. Through these
types, script programmers can access an object's properties in an object-oriented manner.

Script-based plug-ins
Scripts are similar to Viz plug-ins - both allow the integration of user-defined code into Viz. Scripts
are more user-friendly, though, as they are written and modified within the Viz artist environment,
and can be tested on the fly.
Once a script is finished, it can be turned into a function plug-in by dragging it into the plug-in
pool. This way a script can be used multiple times.

Applications

Building intelligent scenes

Scripting in Viz is particularly useful when it comes to creating complex scenes that need to be
modified in real- time. Traditionally, this task required elaborate, tailor- made external control code
that often sent a large number of commands to Viz.
With scripts, the task of updating the scene's properties is performed within the scene itself. The
logic moved from the control application directly into the scene. This not only reduces the time of
building a working control application scene relationship, but also allows for last minute changes
only on the Viz side.
A script procedure can be called from outside Viz, via the script object's INVOKE command.

Creating complex animations

Scripts can be used to create animations which are difficult or impossible to do using key frame
animations. Mathematical formulas and models define the movement of containers over time.
Awareness of other objects in the scene might also influence the behavior of a container.

Interactivity
Scripting greatly simplifies the otherwise difficult task of creating interactive scenes. Using callback
functions, a script can intercept input events and trigger actions in response to them. It's easy, for
example, to determine which key has been pressed, over which container the mouse cursor is, or
which container has been clicked.

Building control applications

The Viz scripting language provides functionality for sending commands to other Viz|Engines via
TCP/IP. This feature, in combination with the ability to process mouse and keyboard input, enables
the creation of scenes that act as interactive control applications.
To import Viz|Artist 2.x data

For importing Viz|Artist 2.x data and archives use Viz|DbManager which comes with
Viz|Artist 3.0.
Start the application by double clicking on:

As you know from Viz|Artist 3.0 already you need to logon to a Viz|DbServer.

Select the entry Program/Import in the main menu at the top.

You have the possibility to import either Viz|Artist 2.x data or Viz|Artist 2.x archives.
Select your choice in the Import Menu. After that you will be ask for the source directory.
By default the standard Viz|Artist 2.x data path will be displayed.
Click OK to get a list of objects which can be imported.
The following illustration shows the screen layout of the import client.
Select the data that you wish to import.
Click the Import button to start.

Next select the target folder in the Viz|DbServer storage.

By default you should stick to the folder ‘Viz_2x’ to ensure that external control
applications will find your data. The different data types (like images, objects a.s.o.) are
stored in separate paths in Viz|Artist 2.x. As the data in Viz|Artist 3.0 is stored in one
folder tree it is necessary to convert the Viz|Artist 2.x directory structure.
If you want to control the imported Viz|Artist 2.x data it will be necessary to switch on
the viz2x-mode via the command ‘MAIN*VIZ2POINTX_MODE SET 1’. Viz|Artist 3.0 will
automatically convert your external control commands to the Viz_2x folder structure.
The following illustration shows the progress during import.

The progress bars inform you of the different states reached during import.
According to the size of the Viz|Artist 2.x data the import can take some time to
guarantee the referential integrity.
Viz|DbManager provides detailed information and log commentaries.
In the Corrupt Files view you can see warning and import errors. E.g. an image cannot
be found but is referenced in a scene, which should be imported.

In the Process Log view you can check the state of the current import.

In the Imported Files view all successfully imported files are listed.
Notes:__________________________________________________________________
Notes:__________________________________________________________________
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