User Guide

contents login library importing files  organising files  revision tracking  clip sequences importing LUT files deleting assets managing media player  A/B split A/B blend channel controls applying a LUT camera controls playback controls missing frames

login

To log in, you will need to have a user account on the system. If you do not have one, contact your system administrator. Once you have been added your user name will appear in the list of users.

To log in, select your user name in the list of users, then enter you password and click 'Log In' After logging in, you will be presented with the list of projects that you have been assigned to. If you do not have access to a particular project, please contact your systems administrator. To open a project, simply select the one you want to work on in the list, then click 'Launch Project'.

library

After launching a project you will be taken into the library, which is the hub of all activity in your mogul system.

importing files

You can import files of any format into the library.

Select 'Open Browser' under the 'Import' tab, to bring up the file browser that allows you to browse your system disks and network drives mounted on the system.

If you have 'Import as Link' selected, mogul will create a reference to the media without moving it. If you select 'Import as Media' before dragging your assets to the library the asset will be copied to the main mogul storage device. To import an asset, select it in the file browser, then drag and drop the asset into the folder view at the top of the library.

If your asset does not show up after import, this may be because you are viewing a smart folder that does not contain this asset. Try for example to switch to viewing the 'Footage' folder if you are importing clips to ensure that you are in a folder that will display the file being imported.

organising files

mogul has sophisticated search based organisational tools, which allows you to quickly retrieve assets and group them in smart folders. Smart folders allow you to organise assets based on search criteria and meta data associated with each asset.

To create a smart folder, click the  'Add Smart Folder' icon.

Name the smart folder, e.g. 'DPXs for Review', in the smart folder name field.

To add a new query to a smart folder, click the 'Add Query' icon. This will add a new query to the smart folder, which will influence the content of the smart folder.

To e.g. have a smart folder show all .dpx files that have been tagged 'For Review' you would add two queries; One that selects assets with 'file_name contains .dpx' and one that selects all assets with 'meta_tag equals For Review'

As we used a 'meta tag' in the above folder, we now need to create the corresponding tag. This is  done by first selecting an asset, e.g. a sequence to be tagged, which cause the smart folder controls to disappear and be replaced by the asset controls.

In the tagging section, enter the name of the new tag, in this case 'For Review'.

Press enter and the new 'For Review' meta tag is created and will appear in the tag bin for the selected asset.

To apply the meta tag to other assets in the library, simply select the tag in the tag bin, then drag it onto another asset. Now all dpx files that have been tagged with the 'For Review' meta tag will appear in the smart folder.

revision tracking

Revision tracking is a powerful feature that allows you to organise multiple revisions of a clip in a revision stack. This helps reduce clutter in the library and also facilitates comparing different revisions of the same asset.

To add a new revision to an asset already in the library, first select the new revision in the file browser.

Now simply drag the revision of the asset from the file browser and drop it on the existing asset in the library.

The icons in the bottom right-hand corner of the library thumbnails will inform you have many revisions are attached to a particular asset. Furthermore, the blue icon indicates that you are on the latest revision of the clip and the revisions number is displayed the adjacent box and a yellow icons indicates that you are not viewing the latest revision. By clicking on these icons you can also cycle through the different revisions.

clip sequences

When reviewing a shot it is often necessary to show it in context. This can be easily achieved by creating clip sequences.

To create a clip sequence use one of the following approaches: Holding down the 'shift' key while selecting assets will select all sequences between the first and last sequence selected. Holding down the 'ctrl' key while selecting assets, select/deselects individual assets. Pressing both the 'ctrl' and `a' keys together, selects all assets in the folder.

To save a clip sequence for later use, click 'Save Sequence' in the library toolbox, name the clip sequence and click 'OK'

A sequence icon in the top left-hand corner of a thumbnail indicates that it is a clip sequence.

importing LUT files

mogul supports .lut files for applying 1D and 3D color space conversions. 1D and 3D .lut files can be imported like any other asset by selecting them in the file browser and dragging them into the library.

deleting assets

To delete an asset, simply select the asset and click the 'Delete Asset' button on the 'Asset' tab and then click 'Confirm'.

managing media

mogul allows you to delete the source files from disk (as opposed to simply removing the asset from the project as described above) as well as promoting a file that was imported as a reference.

player

The player gives you the opportunity to review and perform quality control checks on clips.

Changing revision

Under the 'Shot' tab in the player you can select which revision of a shot you want to view.

A/B split

You can easily compare two clips, two clip sequences or even two revisions of the same clip side by side.

To set the ‘A’ clip, go into the library and select a clip or clip sequence.

Now click 'Set Reference' in the 'Reference' section.

Now select your ‘B’ clip or clip sequence in the Library.

To compare two revisions of a sequence, select the same clip or clip sequence for both the 'A' and 'B' input. In the player, select the revision to use for the 'B' input in the 'Shot' tab

In the player, select the 'A/B Compare' controls for option to split the screen.

By moving the central dividing line you can position and compare any part of the two images. Selecting the dividing line towards the edge allow you to rotate the dividing line.

Selecting the ‘resize tab’ allows the set screen image to standard formats; NTSC, PAL, 720, 1080 and 2K, making it easier to compare clips with different resolutions. It also allows you to crop, scale and letterbox the image being resized to fit the aspect ratio.

A/B blend

You can blend between images by selecting ‘Blend’ on the 'A/B Compare' tab and keying a percentage or using a rotation gesture to control the value with the pen.

channel controls

The channel controls allow you to switch individual channels on and off. You have the option of showing the output as 'Color' or 'Greyscale'.

applying a LUT

Clicking on the LUT tab will list the various LUTs that are currently loaded in your library.

When you select a LUT within the player you can use the 'A/B Compare' functions to compare the clip with the LUT applied to the original clip.

camera controls

You have controls to pan, zoom and rotate the clip within the viewport.

playback controls

You can choose the following playmodes; Normal, Loop and Ping-Pong.

The frame rate can be set to: 23.98, 24, 25, 29.97, 30, 50, 59.94 and 60 fps

missing frames

If a frame is missing or corrupt, the player will highlight this by showing a message that includes file details, to facilitate identifying the problem frame.

© 2008 Imagineer Systems Ltd.