How to use The Web Video Player™ Maker
The Web Video Player™ makes it a breeze to add powerful, interactive web video presentations to your web sites. You have complete control. For example, you can have...
- Intro "Click to Play" graphics
- Clickable on-screen logos
- Clickable exit images
- Looping videos that automatically replay
- "Call-to-action" images and links
- And much more...
Plus, you're able to quickly and easily update your videos on all your sites in real-time, without having to make any changes to your web pages. Here's an example of a working player. Go ahead, click on it: Here's everything you need to know to start using the Web Video Player™... Naming the Player ConfigurationThe first thing you need to do is create a name for your player configuration. For each video you want to put online, you will create a new configuration. The name is only visible within your account, and is for your records. Example names for a player configuration are:
- Painting Video 1
- Golf Swing Intro Video
- Location Tour 06/01/05
In the future, when you want to make changes to the player configuration, simply click on its name in your control panel and you will be able to easily edit the settings and options. Once you come up with a name for your player configuration, hit the "next" button to proceed to the options section. Choosing the Video SourceThis is where you give the Player Maker a little bit of information about your video file. Where will it be used? If on a website, choose "website" from the output location drop-down box. If you plan to use it on eBay, or another location where you cannot add javascript code to the page (e.g., MySpace), choose the "eBay" option. What's the size of your video? Indicate the width and height of your video. Your video can be any size, with any aspect ratio (e.g., standard 4:3, or widescreen 16:9). For example:
- 320x240
- 400x300
- 300x300
- 420x270
Where is your movie? If your WVZ account does not include hosting, then specify the full URL to the file's location. For example: http://yoursite.com/videoname.flv
http://www.yoursite.com/directory/your-video.flv If you do have a WVZ hosting account, select the video you'd like to use in this configuration from the drop-down box, or upload in a new one where it says "Upload your movie here."
After specifying the movie file location, scroll down to select options... Player OptionsThis is where you configure the look and functionality of your player. For all instances where a URL "path" is required, be sure to include the "http://" in the form field. A. Background Color - the color of the player itself Select a color from the drop-down box, or specify a numeric hex value for the color. For example: The hex value for the color red is #FF0000.
(You do not need to include the "#" symbol in the text field.) Think about using a color that goes well with the theme of your site and video content. B./C. Border Options - colored frame around the player If you would rather not have a border, leave this option set as "No Border." Otherwise, choose the width from the drop-down box (1 = smallest, 5 = largest), and specifiy a color. For best results, you'll want to use a color that contrasts with the player color, but at the same time, one that goes with the main colors on your site. D. Initial Volume - Volume level of the player The default setting is 75. This means it will start playing audio
at 75% of the user's current computer volume level. If the audio level of your video is high, consider setting this number lower, and higher if the audio level is low. Otherwise, just leave it at 75. Your viewers can easily adjust the volume once the video starts to play. E. Auto Start - Plays video automatically Do you want your video to start playing automatically as soon as the page loads? In most cases, the answer is no, which is why this is the default setting. There may be times when it is useful to auto-start your movie. However, be careful if you set this to "yes" as people may be annoyed by a movie that starts to play without first choosing to view it. F. Buffer Time - Pre-loading your video You will want to buffer your video to improve the quality of the playback for your visitors. The default buffer time is 5 seconds which is suitable for most videos. For longer videos, you may want to increase this number to 10 seconds. But keep in mind, the longer the buffer period, the greater the chance your viewer will get bored and leave your web page. You can decrease the chance of this happening by showing a... G. Buffering Message - While video is buffering (optional) This is a small text message that flashes on the bottom of the player while the video is buffering. It currently says "Buffering...", but you can change it to something else (e.g., "One moment, please..."). H. Default Click-to-Play Image - Built-in graphic
The player comes with a default built-in image that says "Click to Play Movie". Clicking on the screen or the play button starts the movie. If you would prefer not to use this default image, but instead one of your own, leave this set to "No" and then specify a... I. Custom Intro Image Path - Where is your intro image? The Intro Image is what displays in the screen area after the player loads, but before the viewer chooses to play the video. You can use any gif, .jpg or .png graphic, but it should be the same size as your video (e.g., 320x240). J. Intro Message - Video title (optional) This is a small text message that displays at the bottom of the player before the video starts to play. You can use this to provide a title or information about the video (max. 25 characters).
K. Logo Image Path - (optional) You can have a clickable image/logo display while the video plays. You specify the logo, URL, location and page target (see below).
For example: a "buy now" button, your company logo, a "more info" button, etc. For the Logo Image Path, you specify the full URL, for example:
http://yoursite.com/your-logo.gif L. Logo Position (required if Logo Image is specified) This is where you specify the position of the logo in the viewable screen area. If you choose to display a logo, you need to set the logo position. For example: bottom right, top left, center, etc. M. Logo Click URL If you'd like to make the logo a clickable link, specify the URL of the page to which you would like to direct your viewer. N. Log Click Target (required if Logo Click URL is specified) Specify where you would like the link to open.
For example:
"_blank" = new window
"_self" = current window If you choose to have it open in a new window, the video will continue to play in the existing window, but will not be visible (because a new window will have opened on top of it). If you choose the current window, the video will stop playing, and the Logo Click URL will open in the current browser window. O. Exit Image Path (optional) After your video is done playing, you can have an Exit Image display in the player. You can use any gif, .jpg or .png graphic, but it should be the same size as your video (e.g., 320x240). The Exit Image offers a good opportunity for you to provide a "call to action" where you encourage your viewers to do something. For example:
- Click for more information
- Call this number to learn more
- Go to this web site to buy now
(see Exit Click URL below for more on this)
P. Exit Message (optional) Similar to the Intro Message, this is a small text message that displays at the bottom of the player after the video is done playing. You can use this to provide more information, or encourage a call to action. (max. 25 characters) Q. Exit Click URL (optional) If you'd like turn the Exit Image into a link, enter its URL here. For example, if your Exit Image says, "Click here to buy now...", you would use the URL to your shopping cart. If your exit image says, "Click here to learn more...", you could enter the URL to the web page where you offer more information. R. Exit Click Target (required if Exit Click URL is specified) Similar to Logo Click Target, except this applies to the URL for your Exit Image. If you've chosen to make the Exit Image a clickable link, specify the window where you would like the web page to load. S. End of Movie Action Once your movie has ended, you have several choices for what should happen next:
- Nothing - displays the last frame from your video
- Reset - returns back to the Intro Image ("Click to Play")
- Loop - continues to play the video over again automatically
- Replay Button - displays a clickable "replay button" that will cause the video to start again once pressed.
- Image With Pause - displays the Exit Image as specified in the Exit Image Path above. If this option is selected, you need to specify a Pause Time in the box to the right. This is the number of seconds that the Exit Image will display, before the video resets to the Intro Image.
T. End of Movie Auto Redirect URL (optional) You can elect to have a new web page load automatically once the video ends. Specify the page to which you would like to redirect your viewers. Be careful how you use this feature, as many people will not like being automatically sent to a new web page without their knowledge or consent. It may be a good idea to let them know what's going to happen before they get sent to a new page. U. End of Movie Auto Redirect Target (required if Auto Redirect is selected above)
Choose the target (e.g., new web browser or current browser) where you would like to the page to load. Saving Your Player ConfigurationAfter you've specified your options above, it's time to save the configuration. Simply press the "Save Configuration" button at the bottom of the page. You will then see a real-time working version of your video player, along with a small piece of javascript code. At this point you can click on the "edit config" link at the bottom to make any changes to your player. When you're satisfied with how it looks and works, copy the javascript and paste it into your web pages where you'd like it to appear. That's it - you're done! Here's the greatest part about the WVP Maker... If you want to make changes to your player, you do so by editing the configuration in your control panel. You can change the Intro/Exit Images, links, text messages, even the video file itself -- and it will automatically update on your web site. You don't have to do anything to your web pages. No need to edit or add new code. Everything updates automatically, in real-time! Cool, huh? We take pride in the fact that the WVP Maker is the most powerful, easy to use web video player available. If you can think of any suggestions or additional features, please let us know. Thank you!
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WVZ Control Panel
