AMP Server Workflows and Suggestions

AMP Server for OnTheAir Video makes your video playback smarter, and more dynamic than it has ever been before. OnTheAir Video's engine can sequentially play media files with Mix & Match: Frame rate, Resolution, & Codecs. This eliminates video workflows that require a lengthy conversion process to a certain format and wrapper for playback.

With that being said, let's talk about the many ways AMP server can be leveraged in a production. 

Switcher Controlled

When adding AMP server to your switcher, you will need the Mac's IP address. The port number will always be 3811, as the protocol has defined. Your switcher should have documentation on how to add devices. For the channel assignment, OnTheAir Video 1-4 will represent video channels 1-4, respectively. 

When using AMP Server with a switcher, playlists open in each OnTheAir Video act as folders to the switcher. This makes it convenient if you want to categorize content for your show. For instance, you might have playlist for categories like sports, news, or persistent content. As OnTheAir Video also supports fill & key on each channel, it might be an advantage to have all the graphic transitions in their own playlist as well. It is also good to know that the same playlist does not have to be open in each OnTheAir Video channel. You could leave channels 1 and 2 for your media files, and channel 3 for music, and 4 for your graphics. 

Production Automation

Solutions such as Sony ELC, Grass Valley Ignite, and Ross Overdrive support AMP for video playback control. For those systems, it is much more convenient for automation operators if all the media exists in one root folder. OnTheAir Video can behave the same way with folder based playlists.  

In OnTheAir Video, click File>New Folder-based playlist... Select the folder your media will be sent to. The playlist will immediately open and show all the compatible file types within.

Note: MacOS will only prevent duplicate file names with the same extension. Keep in mind that advanced media protocol only asks for the file by name, excluding extension. If you were to have in one playlist File1.mov and File1.jpeg, AMP Server could randomly choose one of these files. 

Solution for Unique Filenames

For some video production workflows, a unique filename is generated before the content exists. This is common in news productions where a video name will be assigned to a story as it is being written in a NRCS like ENPS or iNews. As soon as the filename is created, an offline status is reported back from the video server. The editor will then create the video asset, and then export the file with the assigned name to the video server. At that point the video server should tell the NRCS the file is online. This same workflow can be achieved by adding OnTheAir MOS Gateway to the workflow.

First, a folder based playlist will be created in OnTheAir Video pointed to a location for your media files. Important: You must save the playlist with the same name as the folder. In OnTheAir MOS Gateway's settings, point the media path to the same folder as the playlist. OnTheAir MOS Gateway will inform the NRCS of all the files it has, and also add the files to the OnTheAir MOS Gateway plugin webpage.

For more information on OnTheAir MOS Gateway settings: Learn more here

When a user makes a new MOS object in the plugin, they can either:

• Drag and drop from the media list onto the MOS object
• Write a custom file name in the "Media Filename" field
• Leave it blank.
  • When the MOS object is added to a story and saved, a unique filename is automatically generated. 

The unique filename will be checked against OnTheAir MOS gateway's known clips, and will report back an offline status to the NRCS. At the same time, the production automation will ask for the video status to OnTheAir Video via AMP Server. AMP Server would also respond the file is offline. 

When an editor has the file ready, they will copy the assigned filename from the plugin, then export the file to the media location with that copied name. OnTheAir MOS Gateway will detect the file is ready and change the status in the NRCS to online. Simultaneously, OnTheAir Video will detect the file and alert AMP server of the new file. When the production automation system asks for status again, AMP Server will confirm the file exists. 

Auto Play on Cue

Turning on "Auto Play on Cue" means OnTheAir Video stops acting like a traditional AMP controlled video server and acts more like OnTheAir Video. Specifically that OnTheAir Video can be playing a video and immediately begin playing another video on a user's command. There is no need to follow the typical "STOP-EJECT-CUE-PLAY" structure. This is great for workflows where cueing a clip might be unnecessary or inconvenient.

For instance, it is common to have a monitor in studio showing some type of looping graphic. You cannot cue a second graphic to the same video channel on a typical video server. That would cause the first frame of video to pause on screen until the play command was triggered. The workaround was to require a second video channel for the second graphic. If you wanted a transition between the two graphics, well that meant a Mix Effect board from the switcher needed to be routed to the monitor.

That complicated setup is unnecessary as OnTheAir Video can seamlessly play clips. With "Auto Play on Cue" enabled, you can have "FileA" playing in channel 1. Then send a "cue" command for "FileB" on channel 1. OnTheAir Video 1 will immediately begin playing "FileB". If "FileB" was set to have an animation, the animation would have played then "FileB" would start - entirely on channel 1.