You can create annotated pop-ups that appear at set points in time for audio and video items.
Each annotation point will display a vertical marker along the player progress bar corresponding to the point in time it will appear.
The annotations themselves pop-up on top of the media item at the time you set.
These annotations can include text, image and an outside link, and they can also link to another Media or Title inside of the same Release.
They can also be set to not display a pop-up to serve as chapter markers that help in navigation.
Once an annotation is added, an Extras button on the player opens a list of all the annotations associated with the clip, allowing for quick navigation to those points.
A few uses for annotations include:
- Add visual elements to audio podcasts.
- Promote purchase links to related products.
- Add chapter markers for quick navigation.
- Extend your story with additional thoughts.
Adding Annotations to Media (audio or video)
From the Media window, select the audio or video file you'd like to add annotations to and click on it to open it. Then click the Annotations button.
This will open the files Annotations interface.
To add an annotation, click the play button in the on the progress bar and stop it at a point you'd like to annotate.
Then click the Add Annotation button.
This creates a new annotation at this point in the media, and opens an interface with settings that control it's appearance and behavior.
The Type checkbox settings control the nature of the annotation, and the settings and fields below adjust depending on the choice.
The Chapter selection makes the annotation link to the point in time it is set at. This is useful for setting special markers on the playlist that also display as quick links in Extras.
Using the accompanying interface, a label, a description and an image can be selected to appear in the pop up.
The Media/Title selection links to another element within that Release, such as another video (Media), or slideshow (Title).
Note: The Media or Title that you are linking to must be in the same Release as the Media carrying the annotation. While you add this link on the Media you can only preview this in action from the actual Release.
Use the Select Media or Select Title buttons to select the item from inside the Platform the annotation should link to.
Using the accompanying interface, a label, a description and a image can be selected to appear in the pop up.
If the Platform element being linked to is an audio or video file, you can set it up so the media file with annotations opens as a Picture-in-Picture item.
To read how to set up this up, see this document: Picture-in-Picture
The External URL selection makes the pop up link to any URL outside of the Platform.
Use the Link URL field to add the address the annotation should link to.
Using the accompanying interface, a label, a description and a image can be selected to appear in the pop up.
With any of the selections, you can use the Choose Media button to add a thumbnail image to the annotation.
Each type of annotation also allows for control of how the annotation displays using the Pop Up Style checkboxes.
None will disable the pop up. This is useful for things like chapter breaks, if you'd like to show a marker in the player's progress bar and list an item in the Extras menu, but not show a pop up.
Compact will display just the label entered, but not an image or description.
Expanded will display a label, a description and a thumbnail.
For each annotation, you can enter the time point at which the pop appears manually, or accept the spot on the playhead.
And you can set the duration each pop up appears for.
After filling the fields and making setting selections, hit the Save button.
The annotation will appear in a list underneath the preview player.
Annotations can be removed from the list by using the Trash/Delete icon.
When you've completed added your annotations, you can click the Preview button on the left to see them in action.
Any time the audio or video file is published, it will now display the annotations.
It can be added to Releases in the standard fashion.
To learn more about how to publish a Release, start with this document: Releases Overview