I've hit a roadblock in my attempts to convert all my QTVR's to Flash. I can't get Pano2VR to use the hotspots from my existing QTVR's.
I wrote a script to create the .p2vr file with hotspot tags for every hotspot in the QTVR. I can open it in Pano2VR just fine, and it lists all the hotspots - EXCEPT nothing is actually hot unless I "redraw" the hotspot in Pano2VR's hotspot editor.
I tried listing the .MOV file for both the panorama input file and the hotspots input file, but that doesn't help - it DESTROYS the .MOV when I save the project. I think it tries to write hotspot info back to the QTVR just like it was a PNG, and when it fails the .MOV ends up a 0 byte file.
Is there a way to extract the .PNG file from my QTVR's and then use that for the hotspot input file? Or SOME way to use my existing hotspots?
I'm at a complete standstill now. I don't know what else to try, so I have to abandon the project until I can get some help.
Ed
http://BigEyeInTheSky.com/
Converting QTVR's w/ hotspots to Flash
You can use those hotspots if your drag & drop the QTVR file onto the "drop your panorama here" zone or drag & drop the QTVR onto the Pano2VR icon. In this case also the hotspots including the descriptions + the user data is extracted from that QTVR.
Then just add an output format for Flash to it and you are done.
Then just add an output format for Flash to it and you are done.
MfG, Thomas
I still can't get it. Could this be a problem with my existing .mov files? Aren't there two way to create hotspots in a QTVR - one way has the url embedded in the .mov, and the other way it's defined in the HTML?
When I originally created all the .mov files the only hotspot info I gave Pan2QTVR was the PNG file. I've been handling all the URL's dynamically when I create each page's HTML.
So I'm trying to fill in the hotspot info in the .p2vr before I open it, and then get the actual hotspot colors from the .mov file. I've tried listing the .mov file for the hotspot file, and it sort of works - I can see the hotspot colors in the editor - but when I exit it tries to write to the hotspots file - in this case the .mov file - and turns it into a 0 byte file and all the hotspots are lost.
Here's the hotspot info I'm adding to the .p2vr file when I create it. I create the entire .p2vr file, but it's so many lines I'm only pasting the hotspots section.
<hotspots>
<hotspot>
<position/>
<next/>
<id>1</id>
<title>Logo [http://BigEyeInTheSky.com/]</title>
<url>http://BigEyeInTheSky.com/</url>
</hotspot>
<hotspot>
<position/>
<next/>
<id>31</id>
<title>Collapsed 1-35W bridge over the Mississippi River in Minneapolis, MN.</title>
<url>http://BigEyeInTheSky.com/ViewQTVR.asp?PID=932</url>
</hotspot>
</hotspots>
How can I make it use the colors from the .mov file, and the hotspot url info that I create in the .p2vr file?
The QTVR I'm testing is an easy one with only two hotspots (colors 1 and 31). If you need to see the QTVR it's at:
http://BigEyeInTheSky.com/pan/35w/qtvr/10thAve157.mov
Ed
http://BigEyeInTheSky.com/
When I originally created all the .mov files the only hotspot info I gave Pan2QTVR was the PNG file. I've been handling all the URL's dynamically when I create each page's HTML.
So I'm trying to fill in the hotspot info in the .p2vr before I open it, and then get the actual hotspot colors from the .mov file. I've tried listing the .mov file for the hotspot file, and it sort of works - I can see the hotspot colors in the editor - but when I exit it tries to write to the hotspots file - in this case the .mov file - and turns it into a 0 byte file and all the hotspots are lost.
Here's the hotspot info I'm adding to the .p2vr file when I create it. I create the entire .p2vr file, but it's so many lines I'm only pasting the hotspots section.
<hotspots>
<hotspot>
<position/>
<next/>
<id>1</id>
<title>Logo [http://BigEyeInTheSky.com/]</title>
<url>http://BigEyeInTheSky.com/</url>
</hotspot>
<hotspot>
<position/>
<next/>
<id>31</id>
<title>Collapsed 1-35W bridge over the Mississippi River in Minneapolis, MN.</title>
<url>http://BigEyeInTheSky.com/ViewQTVR.asp?PID=932</url>
</hotspot>
</hotspots>
How can I make it use the colors from the .mov file, and the hotspot url info that I create in the .p2vr file?
The QTVR I'm testing is an easy one with only two hotspots (colors 1 and 31). If you need to see the QTVR it's at:
http://BigEyeInTheSky.com/pan/35w/qtvr/10thAve157.mov
Ed
http://BigEyeInTheSky.com/
Sorry for the late answer but I hurt my back and had some trouble to site in front of the screen for the last few days.
To open your old QuickTimeVR files you need to set the input type in the input box to "QuickTime" and specify no hotspot file (this is a flaw. This field should not be visible). If you do this the hotspots will appear in the hotspot editor with your values. In this mode the areas of the hotspots are "read only" (another flaw, its not indicated) because they are not saved back into the original movie.
The best way to think of this is that the original QTVR is the (read only) input image and hotspot image in one file. I hope this helps you to understand what is going on. Btw: Your sample has only one (broken) hotspot on the nadir. The helicopter doesn't work in the QTVR.
To open your old QuickTimeVR files you need to set the input type in the input box to "QuickTime" and specify no hotspot file (this is a flaw. This field should not be visible). If you do this the hotspots will appear in the hotspot editor with your values. In this mode the areas of the hotspots are "read only" (another flaw, its not indicated) because they are not saved back into the original movie.
The best way to think of this is that the original QTVR is the (read only) input image and hotspot image in one file. I hope this helps you to understand what is going on. Btw: Your sample has only one (broken) hotspot on the nadir. The helicopter doesn't work in the QTVR.
MfG, Thomas
Thomas,
I just double checked the .MOV file you looked at, and both the helicopter and logo ARE hot. You can see the pointer change when you go over it, plus if you turn on hotspots in the player you see them both.
They don't actually work in the stand alone player because the .MOV doesn't have the URL. I've always added that in the HTML for each panorama. I didn't know any reason to embed that info in the QTVR. I can change a URL in about 5 second by just editing a DB entry, instead of building a MOV file again every time. Or I can build a client a set of web pages with the hotspots in the HTML, and not have to rebuild the entire project with a different set of URL's.
So, do you think that's the problem? Is there any way for ME to supply Pano2VR with the hotspot URL's, and have the PNG image come from the exisiting QTVR?
Here's what happens now:
If I start from scratch and open or drag and drop a QTVR, the Hotspots section always says "0 Hotspots defined."
If use a script to create the .p2vr file first, with hotspot tags and URL's taken from my DB, when I double click on the .p2vr file to open it, the Hotspots section says "20 Hotspots defined" but when I create the Flash file it has no hotspots.
If I click Select Input and enter a QTVR, it loads, I get the previews, and the Hotspots section changes to say "0 Hotspots defined."
I went back to my PSD files for one big group, and ran a script that resaves the .TIF and .PNG files, and rebuilds the QTVR. I added Pano2VR as the last step, using the equirectangular TIF and PNG for input, and it creates the .SWF file perfectly from that - all hotspots intact. It worked great!! I processed 60 Las Vegas panoramas last night while I slept, and all 500+ hotspots are working.
http://BigEyeInTheSky.com/?CID=Las_Vegas
But I'm testing right now with the .MOV files I just created, and if I open or drag and drop one of those into Pano2VR, it always says "0 Hotspots defined".
Ed
http://BigEyeInTheSky.com
I just double checked the .MOV file you looked at, and both the helicopter and logo ARE hot. You can see the pointer change when you go over it, plus if you turn on hotspots in the player you see them both.
They don't actually work in the stand alone player because the .MOV doesn't have the URL. I've always added that in the HTML for each panorama. I didn't know any reason to embed that info in the QTVR. I can change a URL in about 5 second by just editing a DB entry, instead of building a MOV file again every time. Or I can build a client a set of web pages with the hotspots in the HTML, and not have to rebuild the entire project with a different set of URL's.
So, do you think that's the problem? Is there any way for ME to supply Pano2VR with the hotspot URL's, and have the PNG image come from the exisiting QTVR?
Here's what happens now:
If I start from scratch and open or drag and drop a QTVR, the Hotspots section always says "0 Hotspots defined."
If use a script to create the .p2vr file first, with hotspot tags and URL's taken from my DB, when I double click on the .p2vr file to open it, the Hotspots section says "20 Hotspots defined" but when I create the Flash file it has no hotspots.
If I click Select Input and enter a QTVR, it loads, I get the previews, and the Hotspots section changes to say "0 Hotspots defined."
I went back to my PSD files for one big group, and ran a script that resaves the .TIF and .PNG files, and rebuilds the QTVR. I added Pano2VR as the last step, using the equirectangular TIF and PNG for input, and it creates the .SWF file perfectly from that - all hotspots intact. It worked great!! I processed 60 Las Vegas panoramas last night while I slept, and all 500+ hotspots are working.
http://BigEyeInTheSky.com/?CID=Las_Vegas
But I'm testing right now with the .MOV files I just created, and if I open or drag and drop one of those into Pano2VR, it always says "0 Hotspots defined".
Ed
http://BigEyeInTheSky.com