Getting Started > User Interface

•The Playback Editor is your main editing window for building a timeline and arranging your show

•All content (audio, video, devices) in a sequence or playlist is arranged in Clip Containers.

•Clip Containers can be moved around freely, as they are not time-locked like in common video editing suites.

•Use individual tracks to arrange and layer your Clip Containers.

User Interface

•The Playback Editors UI is timeline based.

•Arrange and layer your Clip Containers using separate tracks

•Cues are markers that have various functions in show control

Basics

	Playhead	shows current Playback time/position
	Cue	marker/step on the timeline
	Track	arranging and sorting the layering hierarchy of Clip Containers in a sequence - top track is the first layer, always visible
	Clip Container	host for different types of content, settings or devices

Playback and Playback Provider Selection

	Activate Playback	Default: on Switch off to deactivate a playback. When deactivated, no content is rendered.
	Playback Selection	Drop-down menu allows the selection of separate playbacks.
	Playback Provider	Shows the playback provider of this playback. Drag a sequence or playlist from Project Explorer and drop them into this field.

Playback and Cue Control

	Transport Buttons: Play, Pause, Stop	Starts, pauses and stops the playback. Stop button: playhead jumps back to the beginning of the sequence.
	Current Playback Time	Shows the current timecode of the playback / the playhead's current position. Double-click to enter a time and the playhead will jump there.
	Count-Down To Next Cue	Shows the remaining time until the next, upcoming cue.
	Cue Number Status: Previous \| Next	Shows the playback's position by cue numbers: Cue number before the playhead \| and upcoming cue number.
	Add Cue	Click to create a new cue at current playhead position. Continuous numbering of cues starts for each Playback with No 1. Number increases with every additional cue created.
	Go to Previous/ Next Cue	Playback jumps back to previous / or forward to next upcoming cue on the timeline.
	Select a Cue Jump to Cue Fade to Cue	Drop-down selection of a cue to jump or fade to. Alternatively, just enter a cue number and confirm with ENTER to jump. Makes the playhead jump to the cue selected in the drop-down menu. Renderer instantly shows content at cue position. Makes the playhead fade to the cue selected in the drop-down menu. Renderer crossfades to content at cue position. When using the FadeToCue command, the playhead will jump to the new point on the timeline, while its "ghost" will remain at the old position for the duration of the crossfade. The duration of the crossfade can be set in the sequence's settings in advanced mode inspector under Fade To Time. FadeToCue and FadeToTime are essentially the same functions.

Layout Options and Quick Access

	Zoom	Zooms in or out of the timeline at position of the playhead.
	Zoom Reset Zoom To Item	Zooms out completely. Zooms in on selected item(s).
	Auto Scroll	off: default follow: sequence window refreshes when playhead runs past the displayed portion of the timeline. center: the running playhead continuously stays in the center of the sequence window.
	Track Height	click once to minimize/ maximize height of selected track(s), and double-click to adjust all tracks.
	Add Track on Top / at Bottom	Adds a new track above or below.
	Cut all Clip Containers	Edits (cuts) all Clip Containers at current playhead position.

Programmer and Playback Mixing Engine

	Programmer Selection	When working in Programmer Mode, select the programmer to work with ( e.g. Live or Preview)
	Switch Playback Mixing Enginge (PME) between Live und Preview(s)	Switch whether your Playback editor should show the live environment or if you want to work in a Preview Colors: Grey (Default) - Live state Orange: Preview State
	Track Live PME	When enabled and swapping live and preview PMEs, the editor window always follows the live PME.

Snap

•The Playback Editor comes with an smart snap function that will help you with the correct positioning of Clip Containers and cues

•Orange labels show you the details of what you're currently snapping to.

Clip Container2 snaps to Cue2

Settings

•By default the snapping is enabled to all elements

•You can customize it to your needs

•Right-Click with your mouse at any position into the Playback Editor and open the Context Menu

•Select "Snap to" and customize

Working with the Playback Editor

•all content and all devices are arranged in clip containers

•clip containers can be plotted and layered on tracks, as well as moved freely between tracks

•a Canvas or output can be assigned as render target to each clip container - independent from the clip containers order on a track

•the top track is rendered on top (when the default settings of a clip container are used)

Live and Preview Mode

As with the render editor, any playback editor has got two possible modes: live and preview.

The default mode is live mode: a blue colored playhead shows the playback's position at the live output.

The playback editor in preview mode

• is highlighted with an orange border

• has got an orange colored playhead

•shows the live mode playhead's position in a pale shade of blue.

Click here for further reading on Playback Mixing Engine (PME).

Keyboard Shortcuts

•Each editor window in VERTEX has got a varying set of shortcuts that are automatically created and updated.

•Press the F1 Key to open a list of shortcuts corresponding to the current window/ editor in focus.

Focus Playback Editor and Press F1 Key.
A window with all available shortcuts for your Sequence opens.

Examples of Common Workflows:

•drag and drop content or devices on a track and automatically create a corresponding Clip Container.

•Video FX or Geometry Modifiers can only be dropped on top of a Clip Container.

•select a Clip Container and edit all properties in the Inspector

•Pin a certain clip container to a new Inspector to edit properties

•add a track (go to context menu by right-click)

•Move Clip Containers on a track or between tracks ( grab Clip Container with your mouse and move it around)

•snap Clip Containers to the playhead

•push or pull with the mouse on the edge of a Clip Container to change its length

•draw a multi selection rectangle with your mouse to select multiple containers to edit

•Copy/ paste Clip Containers (context menu or shortcuts)

•Double-click on a clip container to edit Keyframes

•insert a specific time between clip containers (go to context menu by right-click)