I have been using the 'simplest' suggestion you make, and I guess this is the way to go. Resizing the visible layer is what really stumped me... but it's only through playing that i'll learn the quirks of the program.

Thank you, bStro.

Worley

Hey there...

I think you may have addressed the first part of my question, ie: using normal text or image for the 'text', and then only 'adding' a button as the "selection graphic".

But is it possible for me to also have a custom drop shadow/frame when I rollover 'video thumbnails/links" ?

Here are samples of what I'm trying to do:
The first two are the 'red underscore' selection I'd like, and the last one is the custom drop shadow effect I would like to add to the video:

http://www.mediamax.com/jamesgerber/Hosted/page_1.jpg
http://www.mediamax.com/jamesgerber/Hosted/page_2.jpg
http://www.mediamax.com/jamesgerber/Hosted/page_3.jpg

Is the drop shadow effect possible? if not, will 'any' other dvd authoring program do it? or it's a limitation of DVD technology in general?

thanks,

jG

-- edit --

I'm able to get the 'drop shadow' effect on the thumbnails (going to actually place each 'scene thumbnail' as an image, and have the drop shadow effect as the button.

But it seems to use the menus "color settings"... so I adjusted the settings to be "black". My problem is, how will I get the other buttons (the under line graphics) to be red?

The shadow around the thumbnail I would try setting as a custom frame.

The red underline (under the text) is the same principal as I'll have to use to create my button selection indicator - bStro's 'simplest' method.

You cold go one better and create a completely customised menu with all the layers, masks, and highlights contained within a single .psd file. But that's too complicated for me (at the moment)!

Worley

The think with the drop shadow around the thumbs, is that the drop shadow "only appears" when it is selected. And I think a Frame will be there all the time.

So basically there will be "two different" selection graphics on a single page.

-- edit ---

As a temporary work around for this particular project, I think I can get away with setting the highlight coloring to "white", so that now the drop shadows are more of a "white glow" and the lower button selection is a white graphic as well. But eventually I would like (if possible) to have the upper selection items be "black" and the lower ones be "red" : )

I can tell I'll have to read the manual carefully - again - and have a serious play to find out how to achieve the effects I want...

Worley

After doing many searches through-out the internet... knowledge bases, etc... it appears you can only do "one" color.

A friend told me that I might be able to do what I want in DVD-Lab or a different DVD authoring program... but I'm not sure it they will do what I want either.

It may just be a limitation of DVD technology/authoring in general?

Specifically, you're limited to one color set. You can use more than one color in highlighting by creating your own highlight masks, changing the button's highlight style to custom, and changing its mask mapping setting to Intensity or Color Channel. Then edit the color set for that menu to use the colors you want for highlighting. I haven't experimented a whole lot with this, but some interesting effects can be achived this way, including having multiple colors in the same button.

Essentially, the color channel setting allows you to assign a highlight color to each channel that was used in your mask image. The fill color is assigned to any red in the image, anti-alias color is assigned to any green in the image, and the background color is assigned to any blue in the image. I don't know a whole lot about color channels in general, so colors other than those three kind of have me stumped. I thought that a shade of blue would still be assigned the background color, but that doesn't seem to be the case. *shrug*

Setting Mask Mapping to Insensity is another option, but I've experimented with that even less.

Rob

I'm still not really good at the buttons/highlights yet either, but have been playing with buttons/highlights for probably over the past 2 weeks, and am actually using Custom masks.

It is true that you can get interesting effects adjusting different color sets, and using different mask settings.

After experimenting, (a lot), it appears that no matter what your mask image is, when it is being used as a mask it is treated as a greyscale image. Different levels of grey (black & white), will offer different levels of opacity.

In terms of colorsets...

Anti-Alias is actually an attribute for the pixels that help blend your image into the background. It is true, you can create interesting effects by using a different color for the Anti-Alias Effect of your buttons highlights, but in my case I have White Drop Shadows... so to create a smooth blend of my drop shadow into the background, I used both a white fill, as well as a white anti-alias color setting, and then adjusted the anti-alias opacity to something I liked. This 'button' was then placed behind my video thumbnails, to give them a white glow when 'highlighted'.

I might have to go thru my collection of Commercial release DVD's to see if it is possible at all... and then perhaps see what DVD Authoring packages are able to do it.

I suspect that you didn't change Mask Mapping to Color Channel, as I suggested. The color set components are used completely differently when you do.

Rob

Yes... I did.

I created a GREEN image in photoshop, saved as PSD file, and used it as my Masked Shape, and tried out every option in the Mask Shape section, and was unable to get it to appear green when I tested it. (unless of coarse, I made the Fill color set to green... but I can't do that for what I want, otherwise 'all' the items on the menu page will have a green highlight)
(I have done the same, exporting the image as a PNG file as well from Photoshop CS2)

The only thing changing the 'color' setting did, was change the ways my mask effected the button.
Ie: the masked shape would appear in reverse, posative, subractive, overlay style, addative, etc....
(for lack of better terminology/discription)

I have purchased DVDA via webdownload, so I do not have a physical copy of the manual, but have inquired about this to Tech Support. In addition I have posted this on other msg boards, and no one else can confirm they are able to do what I propose, which leads me to think this is impossible to do, and in addition to that I have not been able to find any web-based information in regards to it either.

Let me propose you with a challenge:
Mind posting a working DVD-A menu. (a simple one of coarse) where it will have 3 White squares... and when you roll over the first one it is Blue, the second one Red and the Third one Yellow?

Trust me, if you can do this, A LOT of other users, including myself, will greatly benefit! And I would be extremely greatful : )

-- edit --
As an afterthought, just thinking if it would be possible to start off with the buttons themselves being different colors, then masking them, and some how "unmasking" them when highlighted. I quickly tried it unsuccessfuly.

Here's a sample of something I did as a test (I have not played with it to try and get the highlight edges smoother) .

This download will work for two weeks -- it includes the assets used, and also a compiled DVD.

http://tinyurl.com/y3ge8a

Here's a zip file. To create the same file on your own, follow these steps using the included image and video files.

The button labels are just plain text items, not part of the buttons themselves.

The squares are the actual buttons. After adding your three items, be they video files, compilations, or whatever (in this example, they are blue.mpg, red.mpg, yellow.mpg), do the following:

1. Select all three buttons (but NOT their labels).
2. On the Transformations tab of the Button Properties window, resize them to your liking -- in the example, they're 50x50.
3. On the Highlight tab, change Style to "Custom". Change Mask Mapping to "Color channel".
5. Click once on the menu workspace in order to deselect the button items, and then select the first square (but NOT its label).

For steps 6-8, keep in mind that I have named the highlight mask images according to their content (the solid color used) and the color channel that DVD Architect is looking for. Functionally, it makes no difference what they're called, but it makes more logical sense than naming them after the highlight color you intend to use, particularly if you later change your mind about what colors to use. Moving on:

6. Still on the Hightlight tab, activate the Mask setting and locate red.png.
7. Select the second square, and change the Mask setting to green.png.
8. Select the third square and change the Mask setting to blue.png.
9. Click on the menu workspace so that no buttons are selected.
10. On the Color Sets tab of the Menu Page Properties window, edit the color set you want to use for highlighting. Fill color to blue, anti-alias color to red, outline/background color to yellow. By default, these will have various levels of opacity -- change their Alpha settings to 255 so that they are opaque.

I'd recommend going to the General tab of the Menu Page Properties and setting the Activated Button Colors to use the same color set as the Selected Button Colors. Or you could set it to Transparent, or you could edit Color Set 2 as you want. (Maybe the same colors as Color Set 1, but with a lower Alpha setting.)

I also added a music (a bit of a misnomer, but that's what Sony calls it) compilation that collects all three videos. I did this so that there could be a menu item other than the three squares. The compilation is assigned to the Play Movie link, which is just a button with its Button Style set to Text Only. Its Highlight Style is set to underline, which does not make use of the Mask Mapping setting.

Rob

Huge thanks to the both of you!!!!!

Now I'm going to have to go thru it on the weekend to see if I can get it working.

George, did you do pretty much the same thing as Rob had? or are there different ways of doing it?

Do you guys mind if I post these files on another forum?
(camcorderinfo.com/bbs)... (giving you credit and a link to this thread ofcoarse)

Unless you are already active there... my question was posted in their Sony Vegas/DVDA forum.

Thanks again!

jG

Hi JG,

I did pretty much the same as Rob (just used different colors, and had them in a different order). Rob also made a good suggestion of changing the "Activated" colors (I just left them at Color Set 2).

I'm not a member of the forum you mentioned, but feel free to post my example if you like (keep in mind the link will only be active for two weeks).

Rob's post and project looks cleaner -- as he has the details on the individual steps, and the highlight edges are alot smoother than my example...

forgot to mention -- have you considered the Inverse Selection trick? This is a nice little effect because you can have full-color buttons appear as you navigate your menu items.

It works when you can place your full-color buttons on top of a solid background (for instance black). Then you change the "Inactive button colors" to match the solid background color -- this in effect covers the full-color buttons.

You also change the "Selected button colors" to be "transparent" -- so when the button is selected, the full transparent setting allows the button to show in full color. Set the Activated Colors to choice.

If you do a search in this forum on "Inverse Selection", there are some examples of the process...

Cool.. thanks. : )

I'm going to be applying it to my current project which has a 'drop shaddow' effect, so I'm not sure if it's going to be trickier to apply this technique to it. Hopefully not. I can't imagine it being any different than the squares or "yinyang" shapes.

I'll have to check out the inverse selection... in this case I'm against a textured background, so not sure if it'd still work without any problems, but definate consideratino for solid backgrounds!

thanks again