Controlling slide show via buttons

[fergy]

I am trying to create a show where, after the first few slides, the show only progresses when certain buttons on the screen are pressed.

The idea I have is to use old street photographs of our town, of which I have many, to create a Google Street View type presentation.

With up to 6 buttons with different actions eg -

Look at view to left

Look at view to right

Look at view behind

move forward

move back

go to main menu

Each of these actions will move the presentation on to a certain slide in the show, with each slide having its own

What slide length should I set ?

Do I need to tick "Permit Control Using Keyboard" ?

If so, do I need assign actions to the mouse buttons, or leave them at "None" ?

Apologies if this has been covered elsewhere, but I can't find it after various searches

[davegee]

Add Button - fourth Icon from left in O&A.

With button highlighted go to COMMON Tab in O&A and set the Action on Mouuse Click.

In Customize Slide set Wait for Key Press (Right Arrow) - or configure mouse buttons.

DG

[fh1805]

These instructions apply to version 7.0. To set up a manually controlled show, you need first to ensure that "Wait for a Key press..." is ticked in Project Options...Control. You might also wish to have the Mouse Cursor set to "Show" so you can use it as your on-screen pointing device. Having "Permit Control Using Keyboard" active will allow you to use the Space Bar as a Pause/Resume toggle control. It will also allow the Left and Right cursor arrow keys to give you advance to the next slide and step-back to the previous slide. N.B. These are "absolute" slides i.e. if you are looking at slide 25, Left will take you back to slide 24 and Right will take you on to slide 26.

Your buttons will need programming with the Go to Slide With Name... action.

What you want to do can be done but will be time consuming to get it programmed correctly. Be warned, you can easily become lost in the maze which you are about to create. I've been there and done it. But it does give you tremendous flexibility of presentation options on the night. Go for it!

regards,

Peter

[fergy]

Thank you both for the advice

By trial and error I had just about got there - but still not sure about using R/L mouse click to move back/forward in absolute terms - does this only work when you are NOT right clicking on a button ie does button action take precedence ?

I have also noticed another problem ( or should I say opportunity ?)

My transitions were all set to fade, but when I go to my chosen slide, it doesn't fade from my existing slide, but from the previous one in the slide list ie let's say I am slide 1 and the button action sends you to slide 4. the fade is not existing ( slide 1 ) to slide 4 but from slide 3 to slide 4.

I've changed to fast transition to avoid this, but any ideas ?

As regards the maze that I may be constructing, I am currently trying to work it out, and it is somewhat convoluted (understatment). I am sure that I'll get there, as long as I keep my hand against the left wall

Ian

[davegee]

Put a short blank black slide in front of the one you are pointing at and it will fade in from black.

DG

[fergy]

Will give it a go

[fergy]

It works - Thank you

Ian

[davegee]

putting a blank slide between your "image skides" is a good way to fade to black between images.

i have used it extensively over the last couple of years and always when hyperlinking between index page and images for single image competition use.

dg

[fergy]

Thank you both for the advice

By trial and error I had just about got there - but still not sure about using R/L mouse click to move back/forward in absolute terms - does this only work when you are NOT right clicking on a button ie does button action take precedence ?

I have also noticed another problem ( or should I say opportunity ?)

My transitions were all set to fade, but when I go to my chosen slide, it doesn't fade from my existing slide, but from the previous one in the slide list ie let's say I am slide 1 and the button action sends you to slide 4. the fade is not existing ( slide 1 ) to slide 4 but from slide 3 to slide 4.

I've changed to fast transition to avoid this, but any ideas ?

As regards the maze that I may be constructing, I am currently trying to work it out, and it is somewhat convoluted (understatment). I am sure that I'll get there, as long as I keep my hand against the left wall

Ian

[fergy]

Now started to create my Street View presentation and following previous advice :

In Project OPtions - ticked "wait for for key press", ticked "permit control using keyboard", showing mouse cursor, with everything else unticked and "no action" on mouse buttons

Within each slide I currently have two buttons - named "forward"/"back" and in each there is an action - "go to Slide named *****".

Each slide is set to "wait for key press

Unfortunately when I try to run the presentation, these buttons do not appear to be "live" . They don't seem to activate when the mouse hovers over them.

What am I missing ?

Ian

[davegee]

There will be no indication that they are live - just click.

DG

[fergy]

There will be no indication that they are live - just click.

DG

[fergy]

Thanks

Ian

[Howard Bagshaw]

Ian,

You can set the button so that you can see when the mouse is over it and it's active.

Once you have set the action for the button ('previous slide', 'go to slide 25', etc) then return to the 'Properties' tab in O&A while that button is selected. You will see that the text colour option has changed and that you can enter 3 different colours. These represeent the colours of the text normally, the colour when the mouse is over the button and the colour when the button is clicked. Change these colours to something suitable and you will be able to see when the button is 'hovered over' and when you have clicked it.

Incidentally, in this situation I use text rather than buttons (a personal preference). You can use text in just the same way as a button to hyperlink to a different slide.

regards, Howard

[fergy]

Thanks for that advice

I had wondered what those colour pickers were for, and searched in vain, but now I know

Very handy and will be put to use

Many THanks

Ian

[newsposter]

"Kiosk Mode"......

Wow. I didn't know that we had this available in v7. Nice.

Can PTE also be controlled with the standard Media Center remote buttons this way? Or can we somehow program PTE to use Media Center remote control buttons, etc?

[nobeefstu]

newsposter,

Can PTE also be controlled with the standard Media Center remote buttons this way? Or can we somehow program PTE to use Media Center remote control buttons, etc?

I dont know what Media Center offers in features and commandline options ... so I cannot comment.

1- PTE has limited commandline parameters that can sent to its slideshows. These commands can be used in the Run Application and Run Slideshow actions, and can also be run from a shortcut file, a BAT file, or applications that can send commandlines.

"slideshow.exe" -cover

"slideshow.exe" -display X

"slideshow.exe" -slide X

"slideshow.exe" -desktopalign

*See PTE User Guide p78 for details.

2- PTE can send commandline parameters to other applications as long as they have their own commandline options available. Check the applications help file for any commandline parameters or switches it offers/receives. Use the Run Application action to send the commandline option to the application.

* Note

PTE does not send keyboard shortcuts or hot keys.

[davegee]

The only Sony Media Centre Controls that appear to work with MP4 (other brands and models may differ) are:

Fast Forward and Reverse

Play

Return to Slide One

Stop

Strangely, I can't find a Pause Control?

DG

[fergy]

These instructions apply to version 7.0. To set up a manually controlled show, you need first to ensure that "Wait for a Key press..." is ticked in Project Options...Control. You might also wish to have the Mouse Cursor set to "Show" so you can use it as your on-screen pointing device. Having "Permit Control Using Keyboard" active will allow you to use the Space Bar as a Pause/Resume toggle control. It will also allow the Left and Right cursor arrow keys to give you advance to the next slide and step-back to the previous slide. N.B. These are "absolute" slides i.e. if you are looking at slide 25, Left will take you back to slide 24 and Right will take you on to slide 26.

Your buttons will need programming with the Go to Slide With Name... action.

What you want to do can be done but will be time consuming to get it programmed correctly. Be warned, you can easily become lost in the maze which you are about to create. I've been there and done it. But it does give you tremendous flexibility of presentation options on the night. Go for it!

regards,

Peter