Route Test for Stream Labs GC

Three or four years ago and completely casual way, we found on the web a couple of references to StreamAlpha video cards manufactured by the Russian firm Stream Labs (www.stream-labs.com). As announced video cards with SDI output at very attractive costs, we were quite intrigued by the products of this company, which we find is virtually the owner of the MARKET of graphics for television in the countries of the old Soviet bloc and has a significant presence in Europe Western but, unfortunately, the only way to knowing some details about Stream Labs products was resort to free translations of the web, as the largest some of the information available was in Russian, German or Finnish. Now, the page www.stream-labs.com has content in English and Spanish.

Stream Labs decided enter our market and establish distribution channels for the entire region, with a main office in Montevideo. And this decision gave us the opportunity to try for a while how many weeks the Alpha Pro 2.0 character generator, one of the star products of the Russian firm. It is a generator of Windows-based characters that are distributed as a kit to be installed on an ordinary PC.

As usual, on TV and Video let's start the review at the end: our Conclusion is that Alpha Pro does the task by an excellent cost-benefit ratio. It's a piece of software surprisingly stable, working on the family of StreamAlpha video cards, which offer signals excellent quality video, a lot of flexibility in terms of installation and a very interesting performance in production of effects.

The software can be a little bit difficult to address definitively, it is not a product that handles itself, but any operator of character generators, assembly of the manual and some patience, can produce graphics with fluid movements, complex sequences and animated logos, in three or four hours. But in relation to the software there is an interesting news: a working group supported by Stream Labs representatives for Latin America, it is about to launch a new one on the market locally developed character generator for cards StreamAlpha (see additional note).

Hardware
Stream Labs offers several packages for installing characters based on StreamAlpha cards, which are offered in three versions according to the type of signals they handle: StreamAlpha SDI, which handles 601, 8-bit or 10-bit CCIR signals; StreamAlpha Component, with inputs and outputs in component analog, and StreamAlpha Plus, with composite video signals and Y/C.

All versions include key outputs and can operate indistinctly in upstream modes or downstream that is, they can work together with a video mixer or independently. Did our trial for about three weeks with a card StreamAlpha Plus, which operated for almost 200 hours and was at air in a couple of live events, without giving us no unpleasant surprises, even though in some cases it operated in frankly hostile conditions.

As you might expect, the cards they can work in both PAL and NTSC, although it should be noted that on some occasion the driver of our card test refused to accept that we were operating in NTSC and was you need to remind the software of a couple of details of the configuration a delay of a couple of minutes, just after a reinstallation. Hardware settings are very simple to perform, and apart from the inevitable timing adjustment that is required to synchronize the GC with a switcher external, we had no need to manipulate these controls.

An interesting feature of these cards incorporate a fail-safe function: in emergency case, for example, if the card runs out of power, input signal passes directly to the output of the card. In a properly synchronized installation, the that transition is more likely to be transparent, or that just cause a small jump in the video.

StreamAlpha cards have a very complex architecture and strictly speaking they are not completely leveraged by pieces of software like Alpha Pro. Besides insert graphics over moving video streams without processing which implies that the signals pass through the card in downstream mode do not deteriorate, StreamAlpha cards could capture compressed or uncompressed video compression, making conversions between analog signals and digital and, quite possibly, apply a limited repertoire of 2D effects via software.

By comparing the video before and after the card, using a good monitor in the form of wave, we found that the card is almost transparent: only we detect the small timing errors of the signal that were to be expected. In fact, it would be perfectly possible. cut from before to after, with a video jump that the normal viewer would not notice.

All of the above means that, counting on a software development effort, the family of StreamAlpha cards could support non-editing applications linear, media servers, automated playback or information systems. So far, in addition to its line of character generators, Stream Labs has developed products for automated streaming with playback support of video as Stream Tele 2.1 and Stream Multiscreen, a multiple display that uses multiple cards in parallel to handle up to 16 signals simultaneously.

However, other companies Russian, Central European and Latin American have used the Stream Labs hardware to develop products for applications as specific as information systems for airports, subtitling systems with code support SMPTE time, gaming platforms for applications interactive on TV, support for SMS applications in television or recognition-based security systems facial.

Returning to our test, we find that the user receives the chosen version of the card, a pair of disks, a security key for the software and documentation. Carefully following the instructions included in the package and with a medium PC capacity, this package can become a generator of fully functional characters in less than 20 minutes.

After 20 or 30 minutes of tests with an open PC, we found an important factor for assemble the computer: StreamAlpha cards heat up significantly when operating, so they require a platform with good ventilation perhaps, even, with something more than the popular extra fan in the part Back. In our tests the card never raised the internal temperature of a PC more than seven or eight degrees after nine- or ten-hour work sessions but this is enough to think that you need to plan carefully arrange the cards on the PC, and if it is not possible to have a good flow of air at the inlet of the machine, you may need to study options of forced ventilation.

Stream Labs representatives recommend the use of monumental PCs built with parts Intel, but the truth is that Alpha Pro worked correctly in all the PCs in which we install it even an old one AMD Athlon aware that it was not the platform recommended- 1Ghz. and a Pentium IV 1.6 Ghz based on a all-inclusive style motherboard we couldn't even identify. Obviously, the performance is not the same, in special when it comes to playing great animations size but hardware, which proved to be very stable, always delivered electronically perfect signals and texts with fluid movements, even in cases where the RAM availability was quite limited.

A medium data in key for the character generator operators: Alpha Pro can seamlessly roll a text in crawl with letters as high as the screen, including shadows, borders, effects, smoothed border and a background texture. This test of fire for any character generator, Alpha Pro passed it on all our test platforms, without exception.

Our basic platform of Test was a Dell PC with plastic case based on the 965 chipset, a 3.0 Ghz Pentium CPU, and equipped with a Pretty ordinary Nvidia video card. The truth is that with that machine the performance of Alpha Pro is simply brilliant: almost everything happens instantaneously, with exception of the initial loading of the software that requires how many seconds in which the PC seems to be doing nothing.

and software
I think there is something that should be highlighted: in a period of almost a month of testing, with many work sessions and collaboration of various curious using Alpha Pro in all ways Possible, the software never crashed. we use windows 2000 and Windows XP and never, I repeat, never, had to restart a PC irregularly shaped. Only once when trying to roll simultaneously five animated logos required a restart manually the explorer, but in fairness, it must be said that we had several additional processes running simultaneously on pc, and Alpha Pro never went off the air.

The installation of the software is really simple, if the instructions printed in the product. At the end of the installation process and according to the purchased package, the user finds the shortcuts to Alpha Pro and a few utilities to prepare animations and limited support for external data access. The software has a bit of a primitive look, style Windows 95, you might say, but once you can understand the language of the application, is very easy to use and extraordinarily fast.

As expected by its origin, Alpha Pro perfectly supports the literacy platform Windows International, in addition to TrueType fonts that are installed on Windows although, as usual when deals with clone sources or non-professional origin, Alpha Pro have problems with fonts involving font errors compilation or character spacing defects.

Alpha Pro creates sequences of pages called scenarios or scripts, which can be easily manipulated to generate sequences complex with moving transitions and sophisticated alpha wipes between page and page. Perhaps one of the biggest Shortcomings of the program is that it does not allow to visualize through graphics the pages that make up a scenario, although this functionality is supplemented with a text list perfectly suitable for the regular user. And you have an advantage monumental: it is possible to keep many open simultaneously scenarios, which significantly increases the flexibility of the package.

Operation
Like all Windows-based GCs, the Alpha Pro interface operates as a preview channel, allowing you to compose pages new while having content on the air. In your version Current, Alpha Pro does not generate watches, although with a good operator it is possible to hold a moving logo on the screen while update the pages.

Each page has a basic mode, and when you define it menus appear contextual that allow you to adjust the relevant parameters. The pages can be composed with update of the output of program in real time or in mode outside of line, and various screen layout options allow adapt to the power of the platform, although, in reality, using any Pentium IV machine that has 2D graphics acceleration is possible to operate in what-you-see-is-what-you-get mode permanently.

Alpha Pro combines in a very interesting the possibility of handling the text in independent layers with the traditional use of a blank page, which allows you to use tabs and pin the text in fixed positions. It's like having better of two worlds: texts in fixed positions very quickly Inscriber-style and sophisticated Deko-style composition with an operation very fast in the best style of Chyron.

The agile operation of the package requires using many keyboard shortcuts, although it is curious that some essential functions can only be invoked using the mouse. In principle, Alpha Pro does not have the option of a dedicated keyboard, but we rehearsed a couple of pieces of software for keyboard macro management and we were able to assign the most frequently used shortcuts to function keys although we failed to bring menu functions to keys Dedicated. Apparently, the handling of the mouse in Alpha Pro does not allow you to implement this type of trick

The use of blocks or layers standalone makes it easy to generate templates that can fill in with absurd speed, and the package includes a template management pack extraordinarily flexible. The styles or settings of text can be stored as well, and the vast majority of controls needed to make adjustments are always visible in the right side of the screen.

Compose pages in roll or crawl is very simple, although we must mention that in some of our test platforms needed to be reviewed the drivers of the video cards, because we found PC screen update issues when composing long texts on crawl pages. Virtually any graphic file can be imported and manipulated as a character, and any sequence of frames in TGA format with Alpha channel can become an animated logo. However, and as always, the best companion of a generator of characters is a good painting program The success of the Graphic package of a TV show is more in the previous design work than on the hardware.

Alpha Pro allows you to use the port PC parallel to implement a contact interface or GPI. We found that with a soldering iron and a little ingenuity, the GPI support allows you to achieve very interesting things, such as doing that the GC interrupts the playback of a sequence for respond to an extraordinary event something interesting for live applications, or to insert emergency messages.

Connectivity
Stream Labs offers, for free, an API (Application Program Interface) and an SDK (Software Development Kit) that allow you to develop extensions or complete pieces of software using StreamAlpha cards. Multiple Stream Partners Labs have used the SDK in order to develop complex platforms for production of type channels Bloomberg, and even a couple of packages for handling election information, but without much effort a competent programmer could use the API to create from MS Visual Basic a bridge intended to access databases of OBDC data or to take information published on the web and generate pages automatically.

It is even possible to take plain text file or sensor information temperature without major inconvenience, and update the pages no need for operator intervention. By making a couple of cold tests, we found that there is a time of latency of a couple of seconds in the update of the pages, but most likely that's because of our (in)competition as programmers, rather than to some problem with the software.

The SDK supports VBScript, which allows you to think about the possibility of generating applications for remote updating of pages via the web, or simple systems of telephone voting or mail-based surveys electronic, SMS or web any type of information that can be presented in HTML can be easily aired with Alpha Pro. And these days that means any Thing Even, with a couple of tricks it is possible to put on the air a digital watch, although officially Alpha Pro does not support

A couple of Inconvenience
If you Google the Stream Labs site, it is very likely that ends up on the main site of the company, which is located in Russian. Don't be fooled (as happened to us at the principle), the site in English is www.stream-labs.com and there you can download manuals and other backup materials. By your part, the Stream Labs office for Latin America, in charge of Ricardo Vásquez, has already produced some manuals in Spanish and is working on more. This office is also creating a distribution chain, supported by representatives serious and committed that will support your commercial and support.

On the other hand, the software has a couple of vices related to its origin in the PAL world: when configured to operate in ntsc it is necessary to adjust parameters such as the presentation of the security area and the resolution of the display on the PC with values but these are lesser evils versus package strengths and SDK capabilities.

Another small problem is a design decision that can be easily corrected, but that can make a bad first impression on a unsuspecting user: character width values, spacing, border, and shadow that Alpha Pro uses by default, no are terribly lucky based on fashions current what may require an intervention of the operator as a defender of good television taste.

In short, Alpha Pro is a very good quality product, with interesting options of updating and a good cost-benefit ratio. At IBC 2006 a new version of streamalpha cards based on the in the PCI Xpress standard, which will apparently allow to handle HD signals, will include the possibility of handling several streams of video and will bring hand in hand an important update of software. If you are in the market looking for a generator of mid-range or low-end characters, be sure to search for a space to meet Alpha Pro Despite its peculiarities, it really deserves a chance.