DATATON UNVEILS WATCHOUT 4
At Infocomm 2008 Dataton launches version 4 of WATCHOUT, the leading multi-display production and presentation system. Stronger than ever, it adds new
dimensions to your presentations, including interactivity, control functions and
sheer productivity, WATCHOUT 4 is guaranteed to wow producers and clients
alike. Check it out at Infocomm, PLASA or PALME Asia.
In brief: WATCHOUT 4 adds Auxiliary Timelines, Compositions, Stage Tiers, Movie and Audio
Export capabilities. It bridges to other commonly used systems using familiar DMX512, MIDI,
TCP/IP and serial data control capabilities.
Auxiliary Timelines resemble the main show timeline in WATCHOUT. The big difference is that
an Auxiliary Timeline lies dormant until you call it into action - manually or by an external input.
Use an Auxiliary Timeline as a backup track or for a quick escape to other show elements if you
suddenly have to change tack midstream. Or trigger an Auxiliary Timeline from an external input
to interact with your show as it runs.
Composition is a new concept in WATCHOUT 4, designed to make life a whole lot easier for
producers. It lets you group a set of cues on their own sub-timeline and then treat them as a
single, cohesive media element. It's a snap to re-use or shuffle show sections, or to apply motion
or other effects to the entire group. Use Compositions to re-use or transform complex animations
involving stills, video, audio and other elements, complete with all the powerful effects
WATCHOUT has on tap.
External control is your gateway to interactivity in WATCHOUT 4. Use MIDI or DMX512
signals as inputs to trigger tasks and control tween-tracks in your WATCHOUT show. Output
DMX512 to control lighting channels and other devices, or send arbitary data from WATCHOUT
to other systems or devices via TCP/IP, UDP or serial data protocols. A simple but practical
example: send commands to the projectors in your WATCHOUT rig to put them on standby.
Stage Tiers provide greater control of the display devices in your show. Use tiers to group
associated displays - edge blending occurs only between displays on the same tier. Timeline
layers can be restricted to specific tiers, allowing you to freely mix overlapping and detached
displays with detailed control over which images appear where.
Some of the most eagerly awaited new features in WATCHOUT 4 are the Export Movie and
Audio commands. They allow you to export a stand-alone movie file or a complete audio mix-down, straight from your WATCHOUT presentation. Ideal for sharing ideas with your clients, or
for integration with the Dataton PICKUP audio guide for personalized sound playback.
WATCHOUT 4 also offers numerous additional new features for multi-timeline control, enhanced
animation capabilities, enhanced geometry correction, large display management, display color correction,
motion tracks, timecode synchronization and user interface enhancements.
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