Creating EXE presentations

An EXE presentation is an executable file which contains the display data for all images, the sound track, as well as a "Wings Vioso RX" player. Videos are located in a separate folder. The presentation can be started by double-clicking the file and runs on every modern Windows computer (XP or later). For playback Wings Vioso RX uses 3D graphics cards hardware acceleration, thus ensuring a high quality. To prevent unauthorized usage by third parties after passing on an EXE presentation, it can optionally be provided with password protection and an expiry date.

An EXE presentation supports the following media and functions:

For Pictures it supports the full range of functions contained in Wings Vioso RX incl. camera movement and zoom, as well as picture effects.

Videos and picture sequences are automatically integrated in the form of intermediate video data which require no codec installation for playback. Please note that video loops are not supported. Videos are not integral part of the EXE presentation but are stored separately in folder Data. Only if this folder and the EXE presentation are both located in one and the same folder will the videos be played back.
In order to keep the data volume as low as possible we recommend converting all video objects to Wings videos before preparing the EXE presentation. Otherwise the full-length original video files are always used which may inflate the data volume. See Converting video objects to Wings videos.
Certain functions, such as transparency masks or picture effects, such as Chroma/Luma Keying require a very powerful graphics card in the presentation computer. The video tracks in an EXE presentation are always set to "Automatic" to play the presentation at full quality.

The Soundtrack is mixed down to a stereo file in MP3 format. Note: Multi-channel sound, loop for audio files and asynchronous sound are therefore not possible.
Audio is always output at the audio output chosen by default in the Windows Control Panel.
Navigation in an EXE presentation via the Navigation Bar requires the Starter version or higher. Right-clicking the screen causes a bar to be displayed which represents the current location. By clicking the corresponding location on the bar you can jump to that location. Note: The colors in the navigation bar can be customized. See Screen Properties.
Depending on the full version used, however, certain markers such as Pause, Position or Jump to are available for playback control. See Licenses and functions.
Triggers and linked screen objects allow you to create menus for playback control. During the presentation you can trigger certain functions, such as Pause, Continue or Jumping to markers with a mouse-click only. This function is available with the Advanced License or up. Please note that normal EXE presentations may contain one timeline only, i.e. jumping to other timelines is not possible. See Trigger actions and Executing triggers via screen objects.
Jumping to various other timelines via an extended trigger function is possible as interactive multi-timeline EXE presentations using the corresponding additional module. This type of output can already be tested with the Pro License and up. In this case, however, the screen shows a large logo to start with and the text "Created with Wings Vioso RX" later on. See also Interactive multi-timeline EXE presentation.
File Markers for starting other programs, such as PowerPoint, are not supported.
External control via a remote control port (Speaker Support) or control of other devices is not supported.
Important: An EXE presentation is a presentation medium and no backup of your project! You need to generate a separate backup of your project incl. all the media for the show to remain editable. This gives you the chance to create new EXE presentations later on to reflect changed operating conditions, e.g. if you get hold of a better video projector or any other operating system. See Backup of project files.

Important: For playback of an EXE presentation, the multimedia interface DirectX 9.0c of June 2010 or later must be installed in Windows. If necessary, copy a folder containing the installation files on the data carrier used for passing on the EXE presentation. Folder DirectX 9.0 can be found an any current Wings Vioso RX CD-ROM under Software.
We have prepared start pictures showing the most important operating instructions which you can be used at the beginning of an EXE presentation... Show start picture. Moreover, there is also a readme file containing all the important bits of information for playback of EXE presentations. You can write this readme file onto the data carrier together with your EXE presentation, if you want to pass it on. Start pictures and readme file can be found in the Wings Vioso RX program folder Exe Presentation\English, unless you deselected "Sample pictures" when installing the program from the Wings DVD or USB-stick. Open the folder by clicking Extras in the main menu followed by Open folder Media Samples and double-clicking folder Exe Presentation/English.

For navigation and playback control you can use various markers. See Playing EXE presentations.

And this is how you create an EXE presentation:

Open your show. Unless you have already done so, take the following preparatory steps:
Optimize the picture size ...achieves better sharpness of the pictures and reduces the burden on the computer. See Optimizing display data for picture and text objects.
Optimize the soundtrack level control ...ensures lossless and correct audio playback. See Sound track peak level.
Create intermediate video data ...is a must if the show contains videos. See Optimization through Intermediate Video Data. Alternatively, it is also possible to use Wings videos that may possibly offer the benefit of reduced data volume.
Convert the video objects into Wings videos ...creates Wings videos from the video objects, that extend only over the length of the object. This saves a lot of data volume, if only shorter portions of longer videos are to used in the show. In such a case no Intermediate video data are required. See Converting video objects to Wings videos.

Save any modifications in the show by pressing Ctrl + S.
In the main menu, click Output – EXE presentation...
For normal shows, the settings for Start Timeline and Screen can remain as they are. You only need to choose the corresponding screens or timelines, when you are using several screens and timelines for your project. Function Output all timelines must not be checked unless you have a license for multi-timeline EXE presentations. See also Interactive multi-timeline EXE presentation.
Option Fill output display stretches the image to fit the size of the screen. This is necessary for playback of 3D-stereo shows on TV units using the “Side-by-side” method. This option should be disabled for normal shows as it may result in a distortion of the image.
Under Timeline portion, select the portion to be output as presentation. The following options are available:

Complete timeline from 0:00 seconds ... Just like the timeline, the show starts at zero seconds, so that a possible trailer up to the first object is also included. It finishes after the last object
Complete timeline starting with first object ...The show starts before the first and finishes after the last object. (... recommended for standard presentations)
Only selected portion of timeline ...Only the portion marked in the timeline is considered. When no portion is marked, this option is not available. ...Marking a portion.

The next section allows you to specify the position where playback of the presentation is to be started. The following options are available:
At the beginning of the created presentation ...normal start of the presentation at the beginning.
At the current locator position ...starts the presentation at the current locator position. You may have to terminate this process and position the locator before your can continue.

Under Start mode you can choose whether the presentation is to be started immediately or to wait in Pause Mode to be started by pressing a button.

Setting At end allows you to choose whether the full screen is to be exited at the end of the presentation or whether it is to remain open. In the latter case it needs to be closed by hitting Shift + Esc.
Usually, fullscreen mode is maintained at the end of playback. If, however, the Windows Desktop is to reappear at the end of an EXE presentation, you can set a reset marker at the end of the show. See Using markers.

Usually right-clicking the screen causes a navigation bar to show up, which allows jumping within the EXE presentation. If you want to prevent the navigation bar from appearing, remove the checkmark next to Allow navigation bar.

Note: The colors in the navigation bar can be customized. See Screen Properties.

Under Settings for picture display data click on Set optimum size. In the dialog popping up click Adapt to monitor/projector with resolution of... and enter the resolution of the output device that is to be used for optimum playback of the EXE presentation. The resulting reference size of the display data is indicated below. Click OK to close the dialog.

You can have the image data compressed, thereby distinctly reducing the file size of the EXE presentation. Place a checkmark next to Compress pictures and enter the degree of compression below. We recommend values between 1 and 10. Too high values will lead to quality losses.
Images containing an alpha channel or transparent background cannot be saved as JPG file, as JPG format does not support transparency. In such cases image files are not compressed.
In the Media Pool, you can specify that a picture is always to be used uncompressed. This setting is only appropriate for pictures with a critical gradient, as JPG compression may cause steps in the gradient to become visible. See Picture Properties.

The data rate for MP3 is preset to 128 kBit/s, which corresponds more ore less to CD quality. If your demands to the audio quality are very high, increase the data rate.
Under Save exe file as enter a name and the desired folder for saving your presentation. Click on Select file name and enter the required target directory and file name. Tip: The best thing would be to create a new and empty folder, e.g. My Holiday.
The checkmark next to Copy intermediate video data to destination folder should usually be in place for the necessary intermediate video data to be copied to an automatically created subfolder. This subfolder, which contains the presentation name, e.g. My Holiday Data, must be passed on along with the EXE presentation.
If you want to make sure that the EXE presentation also runs under Windows XP you should check the box Compatible with Windows XP. Attention: Enabling this options may prevent the EXE presentation from running without jerks on notebooks with Nvidia Optimus graphics chip!
Under Security you can take precautions against unauthorized usage:

Next to Allow presentation only until..... you can enter an expiry date. If the presentation is started after the date has expired, the file Name.exe, which is essential for the presentation, deletes itself. For safety reasons, the folder Name Data containing the video files, that may possibly have been created, will not be deleted. It is up to you to inform the recipient of a show about this or not.
When you add a checkmark next to Presentation requires password, you can enter a password in the field below. When starting this presentation this password needs to be entered to execute the presentation.

Click Start to create the EXE presentation. If this is not the case and a message is displayed saying that intermediate video data still need to be created, click Yes. Once creation of intermediate video data is completed (to be recognized by the status display below the locator time) start creation of the EXE presentation again.

What is contained in the folder that Wings Vioso RX used for saving the EXE presentation?

Note: Only if the complete folder containing all the data is passed on will playback on the presentation PC be successful. See also Playing EXE presentations.

An EXE presentation must not be larger than 4 GB, otherwise it cannot be executed by Windows (limit by the operating system). In such a case you need to reduce the size through JPEG compression. The size of its original pictures and the file format (TIF, JPG, etc.) are irrelevant for the size of an EXE presentation. The decisive factors are only output size, i.e. the entry at , the compression of the display data and the MP3 data rate for the soundtrack.
Any cues for show control devices contained in the project will be ignored for the EXE presentation. An EXE presentation exclusively supports images, sound and video, as well as a few marker types for playback control. See also Playing EXE presentations.
When an EXE presentation is larger than one Gigabyte, the standard file symbol will appear instead of the Wings Vioso RX file symbol. This is due to Windows and has no further consequences.