------------------------------------------------------------------- Emily the Strange(tm) Tooncast Studio Copyright Cosmic Debris, Etc.,Inc, NetToons Inc. and Smith Micro Software Inc. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Thank you for purchasing Emily the Strange(tm) Tooncast Studio! This readme includes important information about your new software, some of which is not included in other documentation. SmithMicro Software Inc. is committed to creating stable and functionally rich software tools. ------------------------------------------ Contents ------------------------------------------ - The Smith Micro Commitment - Registering Emily the Strange Tooncast Studio - Copyrighted files on the CD-ROM - What's New in Version 1.1 - Known Issues - Advanced User Tips - Technical Support - Copyright & Trademark Notice ------------------------------------------ The Smith Micro Commitment ------------------------------------------ In our efforts to fulfill our commitment to our customers, we post updaters for our products on an ongoing basis. Please visit http://www.smithmicro.com to check for updates. ------------------------------------------ Registering Emily the Strange(tm) Tooncast Studio ------------------------------------------ Emily the Strange(tm) Tooncast Studio requires registration in order to receive updates and tech support. Upon creating an online account you are registered and may opt-in to emails and receive product updates. US AND GLOBAL CUSTOMERS: EMAIL - cs@smithmicro.com POSTAL MAIL - Smith Micro Software Inc.,(Attention: REGISTRATION), 51 Columbia, Aliso Viejo, CA 92656, USA FAX - +1-949-362-2300 ------------------------------------------ Copyrighted files on the CD-ROM ------------------------------------------ The copyrights for the sample files included on the CD-ROM belong to the original authors of those files. Please refer to the End User License Agreement ("EULA") for more information. ------------------------------------------ What's New in Version 1.1 ------------------------------------------ - The application now requires less CPU power. - The Share interface is faster and easier to use. - The Save button is now enabled after every editing change. - The Transport Controls frame counter no longer jumps back a frame after inserting an object into the Tooncast. - The Span Preview now dynamically updates with each edit you make. - Using Span Editor buttons works on spans only and not entire layers, making editing more controlled and precise. - The Span Editor delete span button can now be used to delete spans in audio layers. - The Layer Ladder accurately displays icon status on the current frame for every frame change. - The Content Navigator now displays correct audio track length. - Selecting the Check for Update menu command will confirm that you have the latest update installed. - The application version has been removed from the main screen. You can find the version of the software by selecting About. - Windows only: Tooncast Studio is now accessible in your Programs menu in the NetToons subfolder. ------------------------------------------ Known Issues ------------------------------------------ Sharing - You need to be connected to the Internet to use the Share feature. If you experience problems with this feature and you believe your Internet connection is good, make sure you have access to Google's web site at http://www.google.com/. This ensures your machine is ready to use this feature. - If you've created a Tooncast in a version of the software prior to this version (1.1), you will need to Save the older Tooncast to the new format before you Share it. First open the Tooncast, then select Save As and choose a new filename. You can then click Share to share the Tooncast. - When you choose to share to a social network or bookmark service, the screen will indicate that a browser window should have opened. In fact, you need to click the Copy button, then open your browser and paste into the location field in your browser. - If you choose to copy the HTML embed data to your clipboard, paste the HTML code into your favorite HTML web page editor anywhere in the tag. Editing - After placing an animated object into your Tooncast, if you later choose to extend the length of the object span using the Span Editor extend buttons, the animation will not continue to animate during the length of the new span. To add an animated item that animates for the entire new length of the span, drag a new copy of the object from the Content Navigator to the stage at the start of the span and click and hold to animate to the desired length. - Double-clicking audio in the Content Navigator won't insert the audio item as it does for visual items. To insert audio, drag from the Content Navigator to the stage or the Layer Ladder. Sounds that are longer than 1 minute can take several seconds to complete insertion. Installation Windows only: Some users running Windows 7 64 bit operating system have reported problems installing or updating the software. This can result in the following message: "Sorry an error has occurred. The application could not be installed. Try installing it again. If the problem persists, contact the application author." The following are suggestions to try before contacting SMSI support. 1. This error may occur during installation if the user has turned off User Account Control (UAC) operating system feature and is a standard or restricted user. From Control Panel, Open UAC and enable it. A reboot may be required - once complete, re-try the installation. 2. The Logitech Video driver (LVPrcSrv.exe) is known to cause issues with the installation of the runtime. If the application is loaded, end the process by selecting it from the Windows Task Manager. 3. Verify that your Windows installation has the latest Windows Service Packs and updates are installed on the system. These include updates for Windows Installer. 4. Turn off any peer blocking software. 5. Close all other applications. 6. Turn off Windows firewall both private and public. Remember to turn back on once Tooncast Studio has been installed. 7. Reboot If all the above fail then you can try: 1. Create a new user with administrator level. 2. Switch to the newly created user. 3. Turn off firewall. 4. Perform install or update. 5. Turn firewall back on. 6. Switch back to original user. The following online article has additional information help for installation issues: http://kb2.adobe.com/cps/403/kb403150.html Other Issues Windows only: Adobe Acrobat or similar PDF viewing software must be installed on your computer in order to view the User Manual. Mac only: On Mac OS X 10.6 or later, viewing the application icon in a pop up window from a Dock folder may display a broken looking icon. This only occurs after a new install or update and will fix itself after rebooting your machine. ------------------------------------------ Advanced User Tips ------------------------------------------ - Double-click an object on the stage to toggle between selecting a single frame of the object or the entire animation span of the object. If the object has a green glow around it, you have selected the entire span of the object. - When dragging a new item from the Content Navigator onto the stage, you can drag the item onto another item already on the stage to "snap" it to the same placement of the existing item. This is called "autostitching" and can be used to "automatically stitch" the new item into the right place. Here's how it works in detail: 1. Prepare a Tooncast with existing items on the stage, set to a frame where you want to change one of the items. 2. Open the Content Navigator and select a new item to replace the existing one. Drag the item over and drop it onto the stage, releasing the mouse button. 3. The item is now under your control and ready for you to begin animating. Drag the item over the item you've chosen to replace, and hold it still. Soon the old item will turn grey indicating it is ready for replacement, and the new item will snap into the place of the old one. 4. You're now ready to click to insert your animation, just like any other animation operation. ª in place, or click and hold to autostitch and then move your mouse to animate the object further as the animation records. (If you don't like how the new item snaps into place, before you click down you can move your mouse to "unstick" the item and perform a normal animation action.) Autostiching works best with similar objects, but it's up to you to decide how to use it! Bonus points: try rotating and resizing an item, then perform an autostitch. - There are other ways to quickly insert items into your Tooncast besides dragging an item from the Content Navigator and dropping in on the Stage. You can also drag an item from the Content Navigator directly to the Layer Ladder, and it will smartly find the best layer and insert itself into the center of the Stage. Alternatively, you can double-click an item in the Content Navigator and it will instantly insert an animation placed in the center of the Stage. - If you're quickly looking for more stuff to fit into empty Layer Ladder slots, double-clicking an empty Layer Ladder slot will instantly open the Content Navigator to show you what items can be placed in that slot. - Rolling over the colored span bars in the Span Preview will display the name of the object contained in that span. - If you have a large display, the entire application window can be resized to give you more room. This is handy for placing the Content Navigator off to the side when you're placing new stuff into your Tooncast. ------------------------------------------ Technical Support ------------------------------------------ You must be registered to receive technical support. US & GLOBAL SUPPORT: Please visit our Web site for the latest information on registration and technical support. For up to date information on our technical support policies or for our online frequently asked questions go to: http://www.smithmicro.com/support. Note: Smith Micro reserves the right to change its support policies at any time. ------------------------------------------ Copyright & Trademark Notice ------------------------------------------ Smith Micro Software Inc., and Emily the Strange(tm) Tooncast Studio, are trademarks of Smith Micro Software Inc. Cosmic Debris, Etc.,Inc, and NetToons Inc. All other product names mentioned in the Program, the Documentation, or other documentation, are used for identification purposes only and may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies. Registered and unregistered trademarks used herein are the exclusive property of their respective owners.