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Sierra Design Labs Quick Frame via Ethernet

The Quick Frame (also known as the HP VDR) can act as a frame buffer because it can receive images digitally across the Ethernet. (If the Quick Frame is receiving a digital video signal through the D1 port, the frame buffer section of the Quick Frame is effectively being bypassed.) In order to use the Quick Frame completely across the Ethernet without sending a D1 video signal to it, two Quick Frame configuration entries must be defined: one for the video controller functionality and one for the frame buffer functionality. For more information on the Quick Frame video controller, see page 287.

Tip: The frame buffer functionality of the Quick Frame can only be used if the video controller functionality is being simultaneously used. Thus, the buffer statement in the video controller configuration entry must contain the exclusive keyword when referring to its Quick Frame frame buffer, indicating that this frame buffer can only be used with that Quick Frame video controller device and both must have the same name field entry.

If multiple workstations are connected to your network, you can access the Quick Frame from any of them provided that they have Ethernet access to the Quick Frame. Please refer to your workstation's network configuration manual for instructions.

If you have multiple Quick Frames on your network, you may want to create a configuration entry for each of them. Be careful to ensure that the video controller configuration entries refer to the corresponding frame buffer configuration entries for the same physical device.

Syntax

The syntax is:

device frame buffer name
          server_name server
          server_id socket
          server_host host
          defn
                    name ethernet_name
                    format format
          enddefn
enddevice
device frame buffer name

The name is used by the Quick Frame video controller configuration entry to refer to this device. Since your Quick Frame also has an Ethernet name, you may want to use that same name here. This name can be the same as the name of the corresponding video controller device.

server_name server

The server is the name of the executable that controls the Quick Frame. It resides in the product_bin. The server should be fbdhpvdr for the Quick Frame. (If you relocate the server executable, or if the server is running on a different host than your application, you must specify the server as a full UNIX pathname.)

server_id socket

The socket is the socket number through which your application communicates with the Quick Frame server process. This number must be unique to your UNIX system for each defined device and (Alias|Wavefront and non-Alias|Wavefront) server process. If you are defining multiple Quick Frame configurations, you must use a different socket number for each Quick Frame. The socket numbers must be different for the video controller and frame buffer configuration entries for the same Quick Frame.

server_host host

The host is the name of the workstation on which the server executes. This is different than the Ethernet name of the Quick Frame. This can be any of the workstations on your Ethernet network, but you must ensure that your application has been installed on the server workstation as well. If your application is accessing a Quick Frame from many workstations, you must ensure that each workstation's configuration file defines the same host (and not localhost) for that Quick Frame server process. The same host should be specified in both the video controller and the frame buffer configuration entries for a given Quick Frame.

Device-specific statements

name ethernet_name

The ethernet_name is the name of the Quick Frame on the Ethernet network.

format format

The format indicates whether your Quick Frame recognizes NTSC or PAL-sized images. If this line is omitted, NTSC is used by default.



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