Green Hippo has released a major upgrade to its Hippotizer software which introduces an entirely new design, pre-programming and content delivery workflow. Version 4.6 builds on the familiar flexibility of Hippotizer’s real-time media manipulation system with an all-new planning, visualisation and timeline control architecture, opening up further creative opportunities for designers.
“Version 4.6 is the result of some incredible work by our R&D team who have worked their trademark Hippo magic to implement a host of powerful, simple-to-use, project-enhancing features designed with the end user firmly in mind,” said Green Hippo Product and Development Director, Ryan Brown. “Hippotizer has always been the ‘pocket knife’ of media servers, delivering multiple solutions from a single box. Now, version 4.6 adds so much more.
“Version 4.6 combines Hippotizer’s familiar content and design practices with a redesigned, real-time 3D visualiser and projector planning tools for intuitive playback and control, giving designers the tools to manage, manipulate and plan projects with full visibility. Users can deliver on-the-fly changes, with easy control options, for an even faster and more creative toolset. In short, it’s the next giant leap in collaborative video design, production and content delivery.”
Key new design features include Projector Planning, giving full visibility of the projection environment and requirements, and improved integration with third party 3D tools (C4D, DAE, OBJ) and textures in Cinema 4D. The Hippotizer development team says this takes the guesswork out of projector placement, providing information on coverage, brightness and pixel manipulation, even before getting to site.
New features to enhance project preparation include the enhanced TimelinePlus, with access to hundreds of programmable playback parameters within this intuitive keyframe interface, and an upgraded SHAPE Visualizer, a full resolution, full frame-rate 3D pre-visualisation tool.
“TimelinePlus has been built from the ground up,” Brown continued. “It’s a non-linear editor with keyframe interface that has a familiar design and editing space with our built-in 3D Visualiser, with properties panels and editor all on a single window, but with massive amounts of extra functionality. This enables fast programming using keyframe, preset pallets, blind edit or with Hippotizer’s unique properties panel, with familiarity for both lighting and video programmers.
“With an intuitive workflow and seamless integration with Hippotizer’s dynamic real-time engine, users can easily manage multiple streams of content and make use of the popular playback features to help realise projects from the very beginning, making Hippotizer an integral tool for every collaborative environment.”
Some of the most exciting new built-in features in Hippotizer’s MultiController allow programmers to automate content and media playback to react to triggers. V4.6’s automated projector alignment MPCDI (Multiple Projection Common Data Interchange) is a VESA standard for exchanging information between systems needed to blend, colour correct and warp a projector. Hippotizer uses MPCDI data to interface with camera-based automatic alignment systems such as VIOSO and DomeProjection, meaning Hippotizer can now use cameras to warp, blend and colour correct common ‘simple’ projection surfaces such as domes or flat walls.
“It all adds up to a significant set of new or upgraded tools that take all of our Media Servers to the next level, and we’re excited to see real-world end users exploiting these new features to achieve fantastic results,” Brown concluded.
Hippotizer v4.6 is available for download here, where a full list of new features can also be found.