Import - Advanced

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NEW Since V1.6 — Important Changes!

Since present4D version 1.6, you can also create new projects using the Create button on the Project Portal. This launches a graphical user interface that leads the user to add content to a project in a step-by-step manner.

If you prefer to create projects by manually gathering the content files, this is possible with the Advanced Import method. All the content must be copied into specific subfolders of the Input Folder, just as was done in older versions of present4D. Starting in version 1.6, the \data subfolder has been replaced with a folder named with your clientID, which is also called the Portal Key.

What is Advanced Import?

Advanced Import is a method of gathering all your desired content into a folder and file structure that present4D can use to create a new project. This is all done outside of present4D by manually naming and copying files with Windows File Explorer. Once the content is correctly structured, the new project can be created with just a single click.

While Advanced Import can save time when creating a new project, it requires that you strictly adhere to the file and folder conventions required by present4D. Similarly, it is also possible for other software programs to externally set up a present4D project by creating the proper file and folder structure. Some of the current methods to perform Advanced Import of a project include:

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  • Import a Folder Structure that was manually created with Windows File Explorer
  • Import a present4D Project from a previous version
  • Import a project that was exported from FARO® WebShare
  • Import a project that was exported from FARO® ScanPlan

Not Advanced? Use the Step by Step Import

The Advanced Import process is just one way to create new projects. Most users will find that the Step-by-Step import mode is easy and reliable, even if it takes slightly longer. For more information on creating new projects, refer to these chapters:

Import a Folder Structure of 360° Locations and Multimedia

Overview

Creating a new VR Project using present4D is generally a very simple task. To help you understand the concepts quickly, start by watching these tutorial videos on the first steps:

Prepare the Folder Structure

To successfully create a new project using Advanced Import, it is important that you follow these instructions carefully.

  1. Create a Project Import Folder to collect all of the project data files. Normally, this is a subfolder under the project folder called: input
  2. Copy your 360° content files that will become the project locations into this Project Import Folder. Use typical 360°-images or already prepared cubefaces.
  3. Copy the various multimedia content (such as images, documents and videos) which you wish to be accessed at the specific 360° locations into subfolders of the Project Import Folder. These will form the Slideshows and sound effects of the project.

In the example, below, the project is to have a Slideshow of images, called Blood Report, available on the 360° location called “1_Front View”. Follow these steps to add this multimedia content so it can be imported:

  • Create a subfolder under the input folder that exactly matches the filename of the desired 360° Location (omit the filetype extension). In this example, the subfolder is called “1_Front View”
  • For each Slideshow you wish to have, create a subfolder under this folder that has the location name. In this example, there is a subfolder called “Blood Report” and a second subfolder called “Witness”. Both of these media folders must be created under the folder called”1_Front View”.
  • Copy the images, .pdf documents, or videos you wish to include in each Slideshow into each of the media subfolders you created, above. For example, the Slideshow labeled “Blood Report” will contains these images: IMG_8324.jpg, IMG_8326.jpg, and IMG_8328.jpg. The Slideshow labeled “Witness” contains the video: 8165.mp4.
  • Copy any audio files that will only play when a particular Slideshow is opened into those specific media folders. In this example, the audio file called “street-sound.wav” will play whenever the Slideshow “Blood Report” is opened.
  • Copy any audio files that will always play at this location into the the subfolder that has the location name (NOT into the media subfolders).
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  1. Prepare the entire Project according to these conventions.

Warning

Please ensure there are no necessary files in the folder structure the may cause present4D to not work correctly.

Import the Folder Structure

  1. Launch present4D.
  2. In the Project Portal click on + Create
  3. On the “Create a new Project” window, select Advanced Input
  4. Enter a name for this Project.
  5. Choose Advanced Import. Windows File Explorer is opened to the Input subfolder that is automatically created under the new project folder. The project folder has the name data_myproject, where myproject is the name you entered for the project.
  6. Open a second window of File Explorer and browse to your Project Import Folder - the folder where you have copied all your content.
  7. Copy all the files and subfolders from your Project Import Folder and past them into the File Explorer window with the Input Folder that was previously opened by present4D.
  8. Close the File Explorer windows.
  9. Press Start now to complete the import process and create the project.

present4D will automatically start into the first panorama Location. You should see your multimedia content as Slideshow and sound icons in the corresponding 360° locations. You may have to search around the location to find the icons. Once located, you can drag the icons to the desired location in the view.

Note

What happens during the Import process

  • Subfolders with the names 1_1, 1_2 etc. are created under the folder data_myproject.
  • The 360° location files are sorted into these new folders.
  • The files are renamed to counter operating system related issues.
  • Subfolders for the various Slideshow files are created under the proper location folders.
  • Stereoscopic videos may lose some metadata to ensure they can be displayed properly.

For advanced users: Import Order

Order during import

If you add a number with two underscores as prefix to the the filename, you can control the order of the import of the media. The numbers and underscores will not be shown later.

Example:

1__Side View.jpg
2__Front View.jpg
2__Front View (:term:`Assigned Multimedia Folder`)

Attention

This feature is only available for the advanced import. The import via Add Media in the iMenu is not affected by this.

Import old Projects

Automatic Conversion of an Old Project

To automatically convert a present4D Project that was created with an earlier version of the software:

  1. In the Project Portal, enter your License Key or Portal Key .
  2. Copy your old folder data beside present4D application (.exe) or inside the Project Portal folder xxx-xxx.
  3. Restart present4D.
  4. The conversion starts automatically and you are prompted to enter a name for the Project.

Manual Conversion of Multiple Old Projects

To manually convert multiple present4D Projects that were created with an earlier version of the software, follow these steps for each project:

  1. Rename each the old presentation´s folder called data to the new convention data_myproject - where data_myproject represents the the new name for the respective presentation.
  2. Copy the folders data_myproject into the Project Portal folder xxx-xxx .
  3. Start present4D

Set an individual Preview Image off line

Each project has a preview image that is displayed on the Project Portal. To display a custom preview image:

  1. Create a .jpg image with a size of 1280 x 960 pixels.
  2. Rename the image to have exactly the same file name as the presentation but start it with an underscore, such as: _myproject.jpg.
  3. Copy the image file into the folder: xxx-xxx/ImageCache where xxx-xxx is your Portal Key.
  4. Restart present4D.

Import a FARO® WebShare Cloud Project

This is currently an expert feature, OSX version is currently not supported. The process will be simplified soon. If you need support please contact support@present4D.de

Prepare

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  1. Open your project in Scene.
  2. Go to the tab export.
  3. Press on WebShare Cloud
  4. Press on Export WebShare Project
  5. Use the default settings in the following dialog, but disable Export grey scale images at Color settings.
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Import

  1. Launch present4D.
  2. Create a new Project in the Project Portal
  3. Enter a name for this Project.
  4. Choose FARO® WebShare Project
  5. Press Start
  6. Select the path to the *.Lsproj file
  7. Press Open in the Windows File Browser to start the import process

present4D will automatically start into the first panorama Location. You should see your multimedia content as slideshow symbols in the corresponding 360° Locations.

The following processes are running in background:

  • Copy the FARO images into present4D folder structure
  • Convert the images to 3840 x 1920 pixel if you wish to have iOS compatibility
  • Copy the original image names for present4D Location menu and HotSpots
  • Delete the folder WebShareCloudData

Import a FARO® ScanPlan Project

The FARO Scanplan is a hand scanner for the generation of floor plans and linked digital information. Not only photos, pictures, files, voice messages but also 360° panorama photos can be captured with the Ricoh Theta camera and added to the floor plan. The ScanPlan has an export to a present4D project built in, immediately after uploading the project is ready to be reviewed by others worldwide in Conference Mode.

If you want to edit the ScanPlan Projects, you can of course purchase the full version of present4D.

Load a ScanPlan Project from the Cloud Server

  1. On your ScanPlan device use Export to present4D and upload the Project to the present4D cloud server.
  2. When the upload is done, the Project is directly available in your Project Portal.

Import a ScanPlan Project from an USB Stick

  1. On your ScanPlan device export the Project to present4D | VR-Suite and choose Export Mode Offline
  2. Connect the USB stick with the PC
  3. Start present4D
  4. Create a new Project in the Project Portal
  5. Enter a name for this Project.
  6. Choose FARO® ScanPlan Project
  7. Press Start
  8. Select the path to the data.zip on your USB stick
  9. Press Open in the Windows File Browser to start the import process

Add or Change 360° Locations and Multimedia Content

Once you have created your project using the Advanced Import method, there are two ways to add more content. From within present4D, open Editor Mode and open the iMenu. Use one of these ways to select additional 360° panorama photos or other files for Slideshows:

  1. From the Locations tab of the iMenu, click the Folder icon on the left side of the Location’s name. From the Media tab of the iMenu, click the Folder icon on the right side of the Location’s name. This launches the Windows File Explorer so you can manually copy to add or replace files.
  2. From the Locations tab or the Media tab of the iMenu, use the features at the bottom of the menu to add 360° locations or media files

For more information on adding content to a project, refer to: Add 360° Locations and Add Slideshows and Multimedia.

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Note

After adding content, you must either restart the project or, while in Editor Mode, select the Sync Media button in the upper right corner of the iMenu.

Externally Add Content Using the Input Folder - Option 1

After a project has been created, it is still possible to use the Input Folder to add more content. The advantage of this method is, the filenames and folder names are carried over from Windows. Follow these steps:

  1. Using File Explorer, copy further 360° Locations or folders, named with the format 1_X, into the Input Folder.
  2. Launch present4D.
  3. All the new content will be automatically copied and sorted into the folder “data_myproject” and numbered in ascending order. This process is the same as described earlier in this chapter for Advanced Import of the initial content.
  • Attention: This can lead to renaming of folders like 1\_6 to 1\_7 in case of the folder 1\_6 already existing.

Externally Add Content Using the Data Folder - Option 2

Another option for adding content to an existing project is to externally copy files directly into the data_myproject folder, with these steps:

  • To add a new Location, create a new subfolder under with the “data_myproject” folder with a name like 1_x, but with the next number in the sequence. (File names will not be carried over)
  • To add a new Slideshow, cr directly into a Location (for example 1_1). (File names will not be carried over)

Advanced Users: Large Projects

If you want to manage several project parts in one Project more clearly, you can number the Locations with digits in the hundreds. This can be helpful if you want to use the numeric keys for fast navigation. For example:

  • Start Image 1_1
  • Company site 1 from folder 1_1xx
  • Company site 2 from folder 1_2xx
  • etc.
Method
  1. Create a folder 1_200 in the data folder before importing Site 2 as a trick to make the importer move all your data in the Input Folder into the consecutive folders starting with 1_201.
  2. Select Sync Media and then use Windows File Explorer to delete the folder 1_200. Select Sync Media again.

Remove 360° Locations

To manually delete 360° Locations from the project:

  1. Using Windows File Explorer, delete the desired folder, such as 1_x, from the data_myproject folder.
  2. In Editor Mode, open the iMenu and select the Sync Media button in the upper right corner.
  3. Any folders that were deleted are removed from the Project.

Remove Multimedia Content

  • Delete the corresponding multimedia folder from the folder 1_x.
  • After the deletion, select the Sync Media button in the upper right corner of the iMenu during Editor Mode.
  • The slideshow will now be completely removed from the presentation.

Synchronize - Sync Media

The Sync Media function is used to synchronize changes made externally to content files, such as when using Windows File Explorer to copy files into the project folders or delete folders. To synchronize the project’s content:

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  1. Editor Start Mode
  2. Launch the iMenu
  3. Click the button Sync Media on the upper-right corner of the iMenu.
    • The files may be renamed to remove special characters and ensure compatibility with the GearVR or Cardboard.
    • All existing Locations are synchronized to add any new Slideshows.
    • The content of the slideshows are processed during run-time when you open the slideshow. Therefore you can update the content of the Slideshow Folder any time without using “Sync Media”.

Warning

Any files and folders that were deleted externally are removed from the project, such as 1_x folders and Slideshow content. Make sure that the subfolder structure in the folder “data_myproject” remains valid.

Tip

If you select the folder name left of the Location name in Editor Mode, the corresponding folder will be opened in Windows File Explorer.

Example File and Subfolder Structure of the Input Folder

present4D Projects can have many different types of content, including:
  • Panorama Locations - the name will be transferred to the Project
  • Folders with Multimedia Content
  • Folders for Slideshows - the name will be transferred to the Project
  • Multimedia content to be played

Here is a sample Project folder tree structure with all the content in the Input folder so it is ready for Advanced Import:

Project Folder Structure

xxx-xxx (Your Portal Key)
 └─ data_Sample Project
       └─ Input
              ├─ Entrance.jpg First 360° location
              ├─ Entrance (Folder) Folder for multimedia files for first location
              │    ├─ History (Folder) Name of Slideshow
              │    │    ├─ Contructionphase1.jpg First image in Slideshow “History”
              │    │    ├─ Constructionphase2.jpg Second image in Slideshow “History”
              │    │    ├─ flood 1874.jpg Third image in Slideshow “History”
              │    │    └─ restoration 1912.jpg Fourth image in Slideshow “History”
              │    └─ welcome-piano_bg.wav Background Sound file for this location
              ├─ Restaurante.mp4 Second 360° location
              └─ Restaurante(Folder) Folder for multimedia files for second location
                     ├─ Day Menu(folder) Name of first Slideshow for Restaurante
                     │    ├─ appetizer-stereo.jpg First image in Slideshow “Day Menu”
                     │    ├─ main course-stereo.jpg Second image in Slideshow “Day Menu”
                     │    └─ dessert-stereo.jpg Third image in Slideshow “Day Menu”
                     ├─ Celebrity Visitors(folder) Name of second Slideshowfor Restaurante
                     │    ├─ Madonna.jpg First image in Slideshow “Celebrity Visitors”
                     │    ├─ Michael Jackson.jpg Second image in Slideshow “Celebrity Visitors”
                     │    └─ Interview-Monroe.mp4 Video in Slideshow “Celebrity Visitors”
                     ├─ Bar-Piano_bg.wav (stereo) Background Sound file for this location
                     ├─ People.wav (3D) Positioned sound file for this location
                     ├─ People2.wav (3D) Positioned sound file for this location
                     └─ open fire.wav (3D) Positioned sound file for this location

Video Tutorials

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