instruction manual WinMAX MAX Server Control Software v3.
Software License and Warranty Agreement LICENSE GRANT. AMX grants to Licensee the non-exclusive right to use the AMX Software in the manner described in this License. The AMX Software is licensed, not sold. The AMX Software consists of generally available programming and development software, product documentation, sample applications, tools and utilities, and miscellaneous technical information. Please refer to the README.
Table of Contents Table of Contents WinMAX - Overview and Installation ......................................................................1 Installation and Configuration............................................................................................ 1 Supported Operating Systems ................................................................................................. 1 Downloading the WinMAX Application.................................................................................
Table of Contents MultiSelect and Edit Mode .............................................................................................. 16 MultiSelect.............................................................................................................................. 16 Edit Mode ............................................................................................................................... 16 Deleting a CD or Track From the Server................................................
Table of Contents Downloading a Playlist to Your PC.................................................................................. 31 Removing Content From a Playlist.................................................................................. 31 Re-ordering Tracks/Chapters in a Playlist....................................................................... 32 Adding Video Segments to a Playlist .............................................................................. 34 Monitor Tab .........
Table of Contents iv WinMAX MAX Server Control Software
WinMAX - Overview and Installation WinMAX - Overview and Installation WinMAX is a free software program provided by AMX to enable control of MAX servers from any Windows PC. The PC must be connected to the MAX Server directly or via a network. Multiple PCs running WinMAX may control the Server simultaneously. It is recommended that WinMAX be used to establish initial communications with the MAX Server.
WinMAX - Overview and Installation Connecting Your PC to the MAX Server The first step in launching the WinMAX application is establishing a connection with the MAX server. The PC running WinMAX must be connected to the same LAN as the MAX Server that you want to connect to. The first time you launch WinMAX, you should expect to receive an error message indicating that you have not connected to the MAX server. Click OK to close the error message dialog, and WinMAX will launch.
WinMAX - Overview and Installation Troubleshooting Ethernet Communications Problems The Link (L) LED next to the Ethernet port should be on (FIG. 2). If not, check your cables and connectors. A - Activity LED lights when receiving Ethernet data packets A L L - Link LED lights (full-on) when the Ethernet cables are connected and terminated correctly FIG. 2 Ethernet port LEDs Verify that the IP address and Subnet Mask settings are appropriate for your network configuration.
WinMAX - Overview and Installation The WinMAX User Interface The functionality of WinMAX is separated into several tabs: Music, Movies, Monitor, Record, Parental Control, User Data and System Information (FIG. 3). FIG. 3 WinMAX User Interface (Music tab) The Music tab (FIG. 8 on page 9) provides music search and playback capabilities, as well as custom play-list management and music database management functionality.
WinMAX - Overview and Installation The System Information tab (FIG. 57 on page 53) provides a quick view of system status, as well as access to several troubleshooting tools. This tab becomes the default view if the PC is unable to establish communication with the server when the application is launched. In this case, refer to the Troubleshooting Ethernet Communications Problems section on page 3 for troubleshooting information.
WinMAX - Overview and Installation Play Options (Random/Repeat) To the right of the Transport Control bar are the Play Options checkboxes: Random and Repeat. Check to enable either or both of the following modes: • Random: The current selection (CD, individual track/chapter or Playlist) will play its tracks in random order. By default, this option disabled (unchecked). • Repeat: The current selection (CD, DVD, individual track/chapter or Playlist) will automatically repeat when it reaches the end.
WinMAX - Overview and Installation Generating a Print-Out of the MAX Music and Movies Libraries The Music and Movies tabs both have a Print button in the upper-right corner of the dialog (FIG. 7). Use this option to generate a hard-copy printout of either your music collection or movies collection, depending on which tab you access the Print button from (assuming that your PC is connected to a printer). Click to open the Print dialog Print dialog - Music Print dialog - Movies FIG.
WinMAX - Overview and Installation Other Printing Options Additional options available via the Print dialog include: • Preview: Click to open the Print Preview dialog. • Print: Click to print immediately (no preview). • Page Setup: Click to specify page setup options for the printout. • Cancel: 8 Click to cancel the print job.
Music Tab Music Tab Overview The Music tab (FIG. 8) provides music search and playback functionality, as well as custom playlist management and music database management. To view the music options for the connected server, click on this tab and select the desired output Zone from the drop-down list at the lower-left of the screen.
Music Tab Listening To Music There are two simple steps involved to playback music from the MAX server’s music library: 1. Select a playback zone - If you have multiple playback zones for audio, you should first select which zone(s) you want your music to played in. See the Playback Zone Selection section (below) for details. 2. Select music for playback - Once you have specified the zone(s) that you want to play your music in, you can select the music you want to play.
Music Tab Browsing For Music One approach to selecting music to play is to browse the music library by Artist, by Genre or by title. Use the drop-down menu in the upper-left corner of this tab (FIG. 10) to select a browse method: Genre/Artist drop-down menu Artist list Genre list FIG. 10 Browse selection drop-down menu All - This option will list every item in the server’s library (including all CD and DVD titles) in the Search Results window (FIG. 8), sorted alphabetically.
Music Tab 1. Type the first few letters of the selection you wish to find into the Search For field. You can type any portion of the Song or CD title, the Artist’s name or a Genre name. All matching selections are displayed in the Search Results window (FIG. 11). 2. When the search results appear in the Search Results window, click to highlight a CD title for playback. The track list for this CD is then displayed in the Track List window (FIG. 14).
Music Tab Playing an Individual Track 1. Click to select the CD that contains the track you want to play (in the Search Results window). 2. Select a track in the Track List window. 3. Press the Play button from the transport control bar on the bottom of the screen (FIG. 14). Search Results window To select an individual 1 track for playback, first select the CD that the track is on in the Search Results window. Track List window Then select the desired track in the Track 2 List window.
Music Tab CD Details dialog Double-click on any CD title (in the Search Results window) to access the CD Details dialog (FIG. 15). FIG. 15 CD Details dialog This dialog displays the CD cover art and provides read-only information about the selected CD. You can manually edit some of this info, as indicated below: • Title: Displays the title of the CD. Click and type to edit. • Genre: Displays the genre associated with this CD.
Music Tab 3. Locate and select a JPG image file to be used as the cover art image for the selected DVD. The image file must have the extension *.JPG. The maximum size for cover art images is 225 x 225 pixels. The cover art window is 151 x 200 pixels, so to avoid distortion and to fit the image in the cover art window, try to match those dimensions as closely as possible. CD Titles context menu Right-click on a CD title (in the Search Results window) to open the CD Titles context menu (FIG. 16). FIG.
Music Tab MultiSelect and Edit Mode The MultiSelect and Edit Mode checkboxes are located to the right of the Search For text box (in the Music tab): MultiSelect The MultiSelect option checkbox located to the right of the Search For window (FIG. 17) allows you to select multiple items at a time (without holding down the Shift key). MultiSelect is only used for selecting tracks for downloading. See the Downloading Music From the MAX Server to Your PC section on page 17 for details.
Music Tab Downloading Music From the MAX Server to Your PC WinMAX supports downloading selected tracks from the MAX Server to your PC as WAV files, via the Download option in the context menu. When you download tracks to your PC, you must specify a target directory for the files. 1. Select one or more tracks in the Track List window (to select multiple tracks, check the MultiSelect option in the lower-left corner of the dialog). 2. Right-click on the selected track(s) to open the context menu. 3.
Music Tab Playing All CD Titles by a Selected Artist 1. Click the down-arrow in the title bar of the Artist/Genre List Window and select Artist. 2. Click to select an Artist. All CD Titles associated with the selected artist are then listed in the Disc list window. 3. Click the Play button on the Transport Control bar (or right-click on a Artist and select Play from the context menu) to play all of CDs by the selected Artist (in random order). Playing All CD Tiles in a Selected Genre 1.
Movies Tab Movies Tab Overview The Movies tab (FIG. 19) contains controls that provide search and play functionality, as well as custom playlist management and movie database management. To view the movie options for the connected server, click on this tab and select the desired output Zone from the drop-down list at the lower-left of the screen.
Movies Tab Playing Movies There are two simple steps involved to playback movies from the MAX library: 1. Select a playback zone - If you have multiple playback zones for audio/video, you should first select which zone(s) you want your movie to played in. See the Playback Zone Selection section below for details. 2. Select movie for playback - Once you have specified the zone(s) that you want to play your movie in, you can select the movie you want to play.
Movies Tab Searching For Movies Use the Search For field at the top of the Movies tab (FIG. 19) to perform a search for movies based on an DVD Title, Genre or Keywords. When the Search For field is empty, the entire DVD collection is listed alphabetically in the Search Results window. The columns labeled Title, Genre, and Keywords indicate why a particular DVD was displayed as a result of a search.
Movies Tab Search Results window To select a DVD for playback, click 1 to select a CD title in the Search Results window Chapter List window 2 Click to play the selected DVD or chapter(s) FIG. 22 Selecting an entire DVD for playback Playing an Individual Chapter 1. Click to select the DVD that contains the chapter you want to play (in the Search Results window). 2. Select a chapter in the Chapter List window. 3. Press the Play button from the transport control bar on the bottom of the screen (FIG. 23).
Movies Tab WinMAX Remote Press the Remote button (beneath the Chapter List window) to open the WinMAX Remote (FIG. 24), which allows access to additional DVD functions. WinMAX Remote works like most physical DVD remote controls.
Movies Tab • Play Options: These buttons allow you to set three parameters affecting the playback of the selected DVD: • Display: Toggles the default aspect ratio between 4 x 3 (fullscreen) and 16 x 9 (widescreen). • Audio: Toggles the default audio output between Digital and Analog. • Start At: Toggles the default startup between DVD Menu (Menu Screen) and Skip Menu (play movie immediately). DVD Titles context menu Right-clicking on a DVD Title in the Search Results window opens a context menu (FIG.
Movies Tab Editing DVD Information Use the options in the Movie Details tab of the Edit Movie Description dialog to view/edit various details for a selected DVD: 1. Double-click on the DVD title in the Search Results window (or select Details from the DVD Titles context menu) to invoke the Edit Movie Description dialog, open to the Movie Details tab (FIG. 26). 2. Click in any of the editable fields (Title, Genre, Keywords, etc.) to activate that field for manual text editing.
Movies Tab With the exception of the Credits, Awards, UPC Code and MPAA Rating fields, all of the information in this tab is editable. To change the information for any of the other fields (Title, Director, Genre, etc.), just click inside the text field and type. To change the Genre for this DVD, click the down arrow next to the Genre field and select from the list of Genres. The User Rating field refers to any user-specified content rating (G, PG, PG-13, R or NC-17) for this movie, if one exists.
Movies Tab User Defined Fields tab The User Defined Fields tab (FIG. 28) contains any user-defined descriptive fields that have been set up via the options in the User Data tab. See the User Data Tab section on page 51 for details. FIG. 28 Edit Movie Description dialog (User Defined Fields tab) Working With Bookmarks WinMAX allows you to Bookmark your movies. A Bookmark is a marker that is placed at a particular point in the running time of a movie.
Movies Tab Removing Bookmarks Right-click on a bookmark (in the Bookmarks window of the Movies tab), and select Delete from the context menu. Note that you must click inside the grey box to the left of the Title column to select a bookmark for deletion. The program will require you to verify this action before the bookmark is deleted. Deleting a DVD From the Server 1. Highlight the DVD to be deleted from the MAX Server (select a DVD title in the Search Results window). 2.
Working With Playlists Working With Playlists Overview WinMAX allows you to create and maintain an unlimited number of custom playlists. Custom playlists can contain music (entire CDs or individual tracks), movies (entire DVDs or individual chapters), or any combination of both. The Playlist window in the Music and Movies tabs (FIG. 29) lists each custom Playlist by name (in the Title column), number of tracks/chapters (in the Items column) and total playing time (in the Time column).
Working With Playlists Adding Content To a Playlist Click and drag selections from the Search Results and/or Track windows into the Playlist window to add them to a custom Playlist. To add an entire CD or DVD to a Playlist - click on a CD or DVD in the Search Results window, drag it to the Playlist window and drop it on the particular Playlist to which you want to add the selection.
Working With Playlists Downloading a Playlist to Your PC You can download the contents of a (music-only) Playlist to your PC as a set of WAV files, using the Download option in the Playlist context menu: 1. Right-click on a Playlist and select Download from the context menu. 2. Specify a target directory for the WAV files in the Browse For Folders dialog. 3. Click OK in the Browse For Folder dialog to begin transferring the files to the specified target directory.
Working With Playlists Re-ordering Tracks/Chapters in a Playlist You change the order of the items in a Playlist via the Reorder option in the Playlist context menu. To reorder a Playlist: 1. Click to select a Playlist (in the Play List window). 2. Right-click and select Reorder from the context menu. This opens the Re-order Playlists dialog (FIG. 32). FIG. 32 Re-order Playlists dialog 3. In the left window, select and highlight the items in the order that you want to be occur in the reordered Playlist.
Working With Playlists 4. Click OK to save your changes to this Playlist. FIG. 34 Re-order Playlists dialog (showing the results of reordering a Playlist) Click the left-arrow button to remove a selected item from the Reordered Playlist window. Click Reset to clear the Reordered Playlist window and start over. Click Cancel to close the Re-order Playlists dialog without saving any changes.
Working With Playlists Adding Video Segments to a Playlist WinMAX allows you to add movie bookmarks (created via the Movies tab) to a Playlist. Typically, within the context of Playlists, movie bookmarks are used to define a segment of a DVD to be included for playback. To Use Bookmarks To Add a Video Segment To a Playlist 1. Create a bookmark at the point that you want to start the segment (as represented by B1 in FIG. 35 below). 2.
Monitor Tab Monitor Tab Overview The Monitor tab (FIG. 36) provides real-time status display for each output zone in your system. Each column lists various information and status for each active output zone FIG. 36 WinMAX - Monitor tab Each output zone is represented by a row in the table displayed in this tab. Each row displays the following status information: Zone: This column indicates which output Zone is being represented in this row, by output zone number.
Monitor Tab 36 WinMAX MAX Server Control Software
Record Tab Record Tab Overview The options in the Record tab (FIG. 37) allow you to load music or movies to the MAX Server. Additionally, the Upload Files option in this tab allows you to uploading MP3 or WAV files from your PC to the MAX Server. Select a method of recording movies or music (Local CD ROM, Server CD-ROM or Upload Files) from this drop-down list Disc Title information Record command buttons Track/Chapter list FIG.
Record Tab Loading a CD or DVD 1. Select either Local CD/DVD-ROM (to use the CD or DVD-ROM drive on your PC), or Server CD/DVD-ROM (to use the CD or DVD-ROM drive on the MAX server) from the Method drop down at the top right of the dialog (FIG. 38). Select to use the CD or DVD-ROM on your PC Select to use the CD or DVD-ROM on the MAX Server Select to upload files from your PC to the MAX Server FIG.
Record Tab Click to display details about the selected CD or DVD (requires an active internet connection). FIG. 40 Multiple Matches dialog (with detailed view) 5. Select the title from the Title list that matches the CD or DVD.
Record Tab need to manually enter the disc information, by clicking and typing directly into the disc information fields in this tab. 6. Select or deselect individual tracks to specify which tracks/chapters to include in the recording process as desired. By default, all tracks are selected and will be included. 7. Click the Start Recording button.
Record Tab You can use the search and play features without interrupting the recording process. However, the recording process may cause some sluggishness and hesitation in the search and play performance. Using the DVD Disc Type Options If you load a DVD disc, a set of additional options specific to the different types of DVDs is made available at the top of the screen. As indicated in FIG.
Record Tab recording (use the up/down arrows to adjust this value). For example, if you are recording the second disc in a set, set this field to "2". Note that WinMAX will automatically create a bookmark for each episode. By default they are named "Bookmark 1", "Bookmark 2", etc. Note that this scenario also does not support a listing of disc chapters in the Movies tab.
Record Tab For either search method, avoid using asterisks or other wild-card characters to achieve the best results. 3. Click the Search button. A list of titles matching the search criteria are listed (FIG. 44). Use the scroll buttons to scroll through this list and select the appropriate match for the CD or DVD. FIG. 44 Multiple Matches dialog - Title search results Click the Details button to view cover art and detailed information about the selected title (FIG. 45).
Record Tab Duplicate entries If the system suspects that the disc has already been recorded to the MAX Server, the Possible Duplicate field will display Yes (FIG. 46). Indicates that the disc loaded has possibly already been recorded to the MAX Server. Search the Music or Movies tabs to verify that you want to add this title to the collection before recording. FIG.
Record Tab 4. Enter the value representing the CD-ROM drive on your PC that you want to use for reading: 0 = The first CD-ROM drive on your PC 1 = The second CD-ROM drive on your PC Uploading Music Files From Your PC To upload MP3 or WAV files resident from your PC to the MAX Server: 1. Select Upload Files from the Method drop down menu at the top right of the Record tab. 2. Click on the small square button (...) to the right of the first row of the list (FIG. 48) to invoke the Select Music File dialog.
Record Tab Click to start transferring the files Track List Title information Manually enter album Title, Artist and Genre info FIG. 50 Uploading files from your PC to the MAX Server 5. Click and type in the Title, Artist and Genre text fields to enter this information as you want it to appear in the MAX music library. 6. When complete, click the Upload button at the top right of the screen. The files will be uploaded and categorized according to the information entered.
Parental Control Tab Parental Control Tab Overview The Parental Control tab (FIG. 51) provides parental control of DVD content. By default parental control is disabled. The Master password is required to enable or disable parental control, and a Parental Control password is applied to each rating level (G, PG, PG-13, R and NC-17). This button enables the parental control functions (default = disabled - unlocked) MPAA ratings list.
Parental Control Tab The MPAA rating given in the content meta-data will be used to determine the level of access required to view the content. Viewing content is defined to include viewing any details about the content as well playback of the content. For each of the five rating levels a separate password will exists.
Parental Control Tab Applying Parental Control To a Ratings Level To apply parental control to a particular rating level (G, PG, PG-13, R, or NC-17), you will set the password for that level. This action requires using the Master password. Once parental control is applied and enabled, a password will required in order to play back any media with that rating. For example, if you apply a password to the "R" rating level, that password must be entered before any R-rated media can be played. 1.
Parental Control Tab Changing the Rating for a DVD In some cases, you may want to change (override) the MPAA rating associated with a DVD so that parental control can be applied. This action also requires using the Master password. For example, perhaps a DVD with a MPAA rating of PG contains some violent scenes that you don’t want your children to watch. In this case, you may wish to override the PG rating so that this DVD will be password-protected as a R-rated film. 1.
User Data Tab User Data Tab Overview The User Data tab (FIG. 55) allows you to add user-defined fields to the detailed movie information (accessible via the Edit Movie Description dialog - User tab). List of all user-defined fields Type a name for the new user-defined field here FIG. 55 WinMAX - User Data tab As an example, you might want to add your own ratings to each movie in your collection.
User Data Tab Creating a New User-Defined Field For Movies 1. Type the name of the new field in the text box at the bottom of this tab (in our example, "My Ratings"). 2. Click the Add command button to add the new field. Note that the new field is added to the list in this tab. The new field is also added to the User tab of the Edit Movie Description dialog (FIG. 56). FIG.
System Information Tab System Information Tab Overview The System Information tab (FIG. 57) provides a quick view of system health and status. A number of troubleshooting tools are also available through this tab, as described below.
System Information Tab Server Storage Data The read-only fields and graphic in the upper-left corner of this dialog indicate the following content storage statistics for the MAX server: • DVD Movies: Indicates the number of DVDs currently stored in the server. • CD Titles: Indicates the number of CDs currently stored in the server. • Number of Play Lists: Indicates the number of Playlists currently stored in the server.
System Information Tab Server Configuration (MAX Admin Menu) Click the Server Configuration button (see FIG. 57) to launch a telnet session with the MAX server in order to access the MAX Admin Menu. Use the options in the MAX Admin Menu to view and/or configure various aspects of the server. The main options in the MAX Admin Menu include: • System Information: This page displays the following system hardware and status information (read-only).
System Information Tab Software/Firmware Version and RAID Status Information The area directly beneath the AMX logo contains read-only information regarding the current software and firmware versions in use, as well as RAID status and copyright information (see FIG. 57): • WinMAX version: Displays the version of the WinMAX software currently in use. • MAX Server Version: Displays the version of the firmware currently loaded in the MAX server.
System Information Tab WinMAX MAX Server Control Software 57
065-004-2797 4/06 ©2006 AMX Corporation. All rights reserved. AMX, the AMX logo, the building icon, the home icon, and the light bulb icon are all trademarks of AMX Corporation. *In Canada doing business as Panja Inc. AMX reserves the right to alter specifications without notice at any time.