background_color? Gets the RGB value for the current video background.
cd! Change directory to the current directory name. Default is LYMB.
delete_message! Delete message from the file specified by the current msg_id. This message is used implicitly by chyron instance whenever a message is stored on disk.
delete_page! Clears the page on chyron interface monitor.
directory= Sets the directory name value.
directory? Returns the directory name value.
font_family= Sets the font family to be used when text is displayed. Currently only one family can be used at a time. The choices are: SWISS 721, SWISS 721 BOLD, CLARENDON 701 CLARENDON, BRUSH 431 DOM CASUAL, SWISS SLABSERIF 722 SERIFA. The default is SWISS 721. It takes about a minute to download the new font family into the Chyron.
font_family? Get the current font family name.
font_size= Set the number of scan lines a character will have as a height. The current implementation has 18, 24, 30, 38, 48, and 58 scan line fonts. The default
size is 58.
font_size? Returns the current font size.
free! Closes connection to chyron and frees the instance.
initialize! Reboots the chyron character generator, and loads the default fonts. This is a very time consuming activity (a few minutes). Sometimes the Chyron is hung and needs to be powered off and on first. If the initialize! doesn't change the chyron display monitor... then try powering the unit off/on.
kerning_toggle! Toggle the use of internal ACG font kerning tables.
keyer_toggle! The text and background can be output as video OR the text can be laid over the composite video signal and output. After the initialize! message is sent, the chyron is in the text/background mode. For the software toggle to work, the manual keying button on the front of the chyron must be on... unfortunately this is a toggle so you have to make sure that the video output on the chyron display is also showing on the video equipment rack monitor. Also make sure that the chyron is not being skipped on the video rack plug board.
line= Clears any existing text and specifies the first line of text
line+ Adds an additional line of text to the video display
mkdir! Creates directory with the name equal to directory instance variable value.
msg_id= Sets message identifier value in the range from 0 to 9999. Default is zero.
msg_id? Returns the message identifier value.
new! Creates new instance of chyron and opens serial port communication to chyron hardware.
open! If you were just using the chyron and had to exit LYMB, then you can re-enter LYMB create a new chyron object and send it an open! message. This message takes no time (as compared to initialize!).
pause= Sets the value of pause instance variable. This is measured in frames number. There are thirty frames in a second.
pause? Returns the value of pause instance variable.
read: Reads the message stored in the file specified with the message identifier given by argument to the message. This message usually precedes several "read_next!" messages. The messages should be previously stored in files with consequent numbers.
read_next! Reads the next message.
record_background_only! Record only the background of the composed message.
record_function_keys! Records function key sequence!
record_one_row! Records one row of the composed message.
record_page! Records the composed message into the file with message identifier equal to the value of msg_id instance variable. This message saves text, background and tabs. For future roll of the text of this message overlaid on the video "record_text!" should be used instead.
record_palette! Records the palette of the composed message.
record_roll_control_message! Records the composed roll control sequence.
record_slow_reveal! Records slow reveal message.
record_tabs! Records tabs of the composed message.
record_text! Records the text of the composed message.
rm! Removes the directory specified by instance variable directory.
roll: Composes roll sequence of the messages specified by the list of arguments. Arguments should be message identifier numbers (from 0 to 9999).
roll_start! Executes roll sequence composed with "roll:" message.
roll_stop! Aborts roll sequence. This can be used in interactive mode after "roll_start!" if for some reason you do not want to wait to the end of roll.
roll_times! Prints out the table of roll times as function of speed and page numbers.
serial_port= Sets the serial port that the workstation communicates to the chyron over. The Chyron is currently set up to use /dev/ttyb on battenkill.
serial_port? Gets the serial port that the workstation communicates to the chyron over.
slow_reveal: Slow reveals a list of messages specified in the argument list (message identifiers with numbers from 0 to 9999).
speed= Sets the speed of message roll. The range is from one to 9. Default is 4. The total roll time depends on speed but not on messages content. It depends nonlinearly on the number of messages in the roll sequence and the speed. This should be investigated a little more and a time table should be stored in the chyron class for retrieval. Has not done yet.
speed? Returns the value of speed instance variable.
use_keyboard! This message transfers control to the chyron keyboard. It is superfluous since "set mode key" (the left upper key) in enabled all the time.
chyron new: cg; cg initialize!; cg background_color=(0,0,1); cg line="Hello" line+"There" line+"World";
The second example assumes that you were just recently
using the Chyron thru LYMB, but exited LYMB and now have returned.
chyron new: cg; cg open!; cg font_size=18; cg font_family="BRUSH 431 DOM CASUAL"; cg line="I'm back :-)";
The third example shows how to overlay text on top of the composite video.
chyron new: cg; cg initialize!; cg line="" keyer_toggle!; cg line="this is" line+"an" line+"overlay";
The last example shows how to record and roll messages.
xhyron new: cg msg_id=0 line="Page 0" line+"This is the second line" line+"This is the third line" line+"This is the forth line" record_page! -- page 0 msg_id=1 line="Page 1" line+"This is the second line" line+"This is the third line" line+"This is the forth line" record_page! -- page 1
/* here pages 2-3 are skipped */
msg_id=4 line="Page 4" line+"This is the second line" line+"This is the third line" line+"This is the forth line" record_page! -- page 4 speed=5 roll:(1,2,3,4) roll_start! ;