Bravo! Frequently Asked Questions

After you download Bravo! Show Creator, there should be a BravoShowCreator2.0.exe installer file on your hard drive. If you can't locate this file, try using Windows Explorer to search for it. If you can't find it with Windows Explorer or if you think you may have accidentally erased the installer file, download Bravo! Show Creator again. Be sure to note the name of the destination folder used for downloading. Double-click the file to install the software.

Q-1.2 How do I install Bravo! Show Creator?

Download Bravo! Show Creator from our web site. Locate the setup file on your hard drive and double click the file to launch the install wizard. Follow the instructions presented by the install wizard.

Q-1.3 I own Bravo! - Can I upgrade to Bravo! Show Creator?

Yes. If you already own a licensed copy of Bravo!, you can upgrade to Bravo! Show Creator 2.0 for free. Your Bravo! serial number will work unlock Bravo! Show Creator. Bravo! Show Creator can read the older Bravo! project files and convert them the newer .bpx format.

2. Licensing and Registration

Q-2.1 How do I register Bravo! Show Creator?

You can purchase a Bravo! Show Creator license from our web site using a credit card and our secure payment system. When the credit card is verified, you will be given a registered Serial Number. You enter the Serial Number into the software to unlock a fully licensed version. In the Bravo! Show Creator menu, choose Help > Register Software. You will see entry fields for your Name and Serial Number. Once the information is accepted, you must exit and restart Bravo! Show Creator.

Q-2.2 Can I sell the screen savers I make with Bravo! Show Creator? Are there any runtime royalties?

You own the screen savers you create with Bravo! Show Creator. You can freely use, sell and distribute your screen savers however you please. There are no royalty fees to be paid. The recipient does not need to have Bravo! Show Creator installed for the screen saver to function. Make sure you have or obtain the rights to any photos or audio files in your show.

3. Bravo! Show Creator Projects

Q-3.1 What is a Bravo! Show Creator project?

A Bravo! Show Creator project is a file created by Bravo! Show Creator to hold the list of image files, sound files, and settings that define a Bravo! Show Creator show. By default, Bravo! Show Creator project files have a .bpx extension. Bravo! Show Creator can read the older Bravo! projects which have .bpj extensions. Project files do NOT have copies of the image files within them. You can also reference an image or audio file from more than one project.

Q-3.2 When I delete a Bravo! Show Creator project file, are the project's image and sound files also deleted?

No. Deleting a Bravo! Show Creator project file does not affect your image or sound files in any way.

Q-3.3 When I add an image or sound file to my Bravo! Show Creator project, does it get copied?

No. The files you add to a Bravo! Show Creator project are not copied. Only file location references are kept in the project file. If you export a screen saver or BAM file, copies of the images are placed in the exported file.

Q-3.4 How do I create a Bravo! Show Creator project for the first time?

Each time you launch Bravo! Show Creator it creates a new, empty project. You can use the project wizard to initialize the project with your image and sound files. Or you can simply drag and drop image files from Windows Explorer into the Images tab of the Project Contents panel to initialize your project.

Q-3.5 Can I share my Bravo! Show Creator projects with others?

Yes, you can share your Bravo! Show Creator projects with other Bravo! Show Creator users. Note, however, that a Bravo! Show Creator project file does not make copies of the files you add to it. Only file location references are kept in the project file. So when you share a project file, be sure and share all the image and sounds files in the project file too. If you export a screen saver or BAM file, copies of the images are placed in the exported file.

Q-3.6 What types of image files can I add to a Bravo! Show Creator project?

Bravo! Show Creator currently supports BMP, GIF, JPEG, PNG and TIF image files. Transparency information from PNG alpha channels are used if enabled in the project settings.

Q-3.7 What types of sound files can I add to a Bravo! Show Creator project?

Bravo! Show Creator supports WAV and MP3 audio files.

Q-3.8 Can I create my own show styles?

Yes. You can create new styles, and even copy and paste existing styles together.

Q-3.9 If I move my Bravo! Show Creator project file to a different place on my hard drive, will it still work?

Yes. Bravo! Show Creator will detect that the project file has been moved and make the necessary adjustments to keep the project file working. It will first look for content files (i.e. image and audio files) in their original location. If not found, it will try to look in locations relative to the project file's new location. So if you move projects to a new drive, or burn them onto a CD, make sure the project file has the same relative location to the project contents.

4. Bravo! Show Creator Shows, BAM Files, and Screen Savers

Q-4.1 What's a BAM file?

BAM stands for Bravo! Archived Media and it is the perfect way to share your shows with friends and family for viewing on a computer at full screen resolution. BAM files can be played with the Bravo! Player application. BAM files contain copies of all the image and audio files in your show, so you only have one file to distribute to share your show. You can email BAM files or copy them to a CD.

Q-4.2 Can I create DVDs and VCDs with Bravo Show Creator?

Bravo! Show Creator does not burn DVDs or VCDs, but it can export your show as a video file. Video files can be burned to DVD or VCD using any standard disk authoring software, such as Roxio Easy DVD Creator, Nero Burning ROM, or any number of such applications.

Q-4.3 Can I share my slide shows with my friends and family?

Yes. You can generate a stand alone show in the form of a BAM file, screen saver or video file. BAM files and screen savers contain copies of all the image and audio files in your show, so you only have one file to distribute to share your show. BAM files can be played by the free Bravo! Player. Video files can be burned to DVD or VCD for playback on a standard DVD player.

Q-4.4 Why do I get the message “Preview unavailable for current Display Settings” in the preview window?

This indicates the resolution and color settings that you are currently using with your Windows desktop are not compatible with DirectX, which Bravo! Show Creator relies on for rendering the show. Window-based shows will also be disabled when this message is displayed. Note that full-screen shows will still work provided DirectX is properly installed and your graphics hardware is capable of at least 800x600 support for DirectX.

If you want to change your display settings to a compatible mode, you can find the compatible modes for your hardware by viewing the DirectX Properties. The DirectX Properties should be in Control Panel. (For XP users, you may need to select “Other Control Panel Options” to find the DirextX icon if you are using the new category view). Once you have the DirectX Properties open, select the DirectDraw tab. This shows the list of video modes that DirectX can be used with for your hardware. Change your display settings to any mode shown that is 800x600 or above, and Bravo! Show Creator should be able to support the Preview feature.

Q-4.5 Why does my show run extremely slow, or slow to an unacceptable rate in mid show?

This indicates that your graphics system is in a state known as “texture thrashing.” It means within the slow frames, you are trying to put more on the screen than your graphics subsystem can hold in its available memory. There are several things you can do, however, that may well make your show run just fine on your existing hardware. Here are some things to try and check, in the recommended order:

a.) Verify that your timing settings don’t have an unusually high number of images on screen at one time. In the detailed settings of the Styles panel, select the Timing tab. Near the bottom of the timing panel you will see Maximum Images On-Screen, which is computed from your timing settings. This number can be lowered by increasing the Appearance Interval, and by lowering the “Number of images each interval.” Make sure you don’t have more images on screen at once than your show needs.

b.) If you are running with background images, try using a lower resolution image. (You can still stretch a lower resolution image to cover the entire background.) Tiling a smaller image is also a good way to get a nice background that doesn’t consume too much of your graphics memory. (A tiled image only consumes as much graphics memory as one of the tiles. It can be repeated across the background without consuming more graphics memory.)

c.) Limit the size of images in the show to maximum width, height (or both) to 500 pixels. This can be done without modifying any of your images. In the detailed settings of the Styles panel, select the On Screen tab. In the Stationary Image Size area, select “Scale down to specified size,” and choose 500 for one or both of the values. (Limiting both width and height to 500 will have a greater impact.)

d.) Change the video mode of the show (not your desktop Display Settings). To do this, select the Performance button on the toolbar, and try using a lower video mode. You can try lowering the resolution (ex: 1280x1024 down to 1024x768), lowering the number of colors (ex: 32-bit down to 16-bit), or both. Very often, lowering to a 16-bit color mode is enough to make the difference, and the show quality will seem very close to that of 32-bit mode (to most people). When running in 16-bit mode, Bravo! Show Creator requires half the graphics memory it does as compared to 32-bit mode. So a 32 Mb graphics card running in 16-bit mode can achieve frame rates comparable to what a 64 Mb graphics code would get in 32-bit mode by using this approach.

e.) Reduce the number of images that are on screen at any one time. Go back to (a.) above for a description of how to do this. If you are running with a 32 Mb graphics card (or less), you may simply not be able to run with the number of images on screen at once that you really want to.

f.) Lower the image quality. Again, select the Performance tab. Move the Image Quality slider to the left. The further the slider is moved to the left, the grainier images will become. Larger images will be affected more so than smaller images.

g.) Lower the animation quality. Select the Performance tab, and move the Target Animation Quality to the left. This reduces the number of frames that Bravo! Show Creator will attempt to render each second. This can result in a “jumpy” look to the movement of images if set too low, but it also can make the movement consistent between heavily loaded portions of the show and the rest of the show.

h.) If all else fails, and you really, really want a show with 8 or 10 images on screen at once in full resolution and color depth, consider upgrading your graphics hardware. The key factor that will affect performance of Bravo! Show Creator is the amount of texture memory on the card. 32 Mb is fair, 64 Mb will be very good, and 128 Mb will be smokin’! Increasing system RAM can also help increase show quality.

Q-4.6 How many pictures can I add to my show?

There is no hard limit. You can create shows that are within the limitations of your computer's memory resources. In testing, we have created shows with more than 2,000 images.

Q-4.7 How many sound files can I add to my show?

As many as you like, subject to the limitations of your computer's memory resources.

Q-4.8 How do I share my BAM files or screen savers files with others?

The .scr and .exe screen saver files and BAM files created by Bravo! Show Creator are ordinary files. They can be copied to a CD-ROM or emailed to a friend just like any other file. Unlike project files, screen saver files and BAM files contain copies of the images in the show, so no other files need be distributed. Of course exporting the show as a video increases your options, such as posting the video on YouTube.

Q-4.9 I created a show that looks great on my machine, but doesn't run very well on my friend's machine. What's wrong?

More than likely, the graphics hardware on your friend's computer is not as powerful as yours. This situation is very similar to the situation described in the FAQ 'Why does my show run extremely slow, or slow to an unacceptable rate in mid show?' See that FAQ for things you can do to get your show to run better on your friend's less powerful machine. (Also, make sure your friend's machine has all of the system requirements, including DirectX.)

Q-4.10 Can I edit a BAM file or screen saver file I created with Bravo! Show Creator?

No. Once you have created a screen saver (i.e., an .scr or .exe file) or BAM file you can not edit those files with Bravo! Show Creator. Instead, load the project that was originally used to generate the file.

Q-4.11 If I make a screen saver to share with others, do they have to have Bravo! Show Creator installed on their machine to run it?

No, but they do have to have DirectX 9.0 (or higher) installed on their machine.

Q-4.12 If I make a screen saver to share with others, do they have to have DirectX installed on their machine to run it?

Yes, they must have DirectX 9 or higher. Their machine should meet all the minimum system requirements.

Q-4.13 How do I uninstall a self-installing screen saver?

Self-installing screen savers copy themselves to the Windows system folder.To uninstall a self-installing screen saver, find the screen saver file you want to uninstall under the system folder for your machine. Once you have located the file, either delete the screen saver file (it will end in .scr) or move it out of the system folder.

Q-4.14 I want my show to play only once and then stop after the last image has disappeared. How do I do this?

In the Styles panel, bring the Show Details into view. Select the Timing tab. In the Timing tab locate the Master Timing control group at the top of the tab panel. Locate the Repeat checkbox in the Mater Timing control group. Unchecking this checkbox will cause your show to stop after the last image has disappeared. Note: Screen savers ignore the repeat option and repeat indefinitely. Videos ignore the repeat option and play through one time.

Q-4.15 How can I make my BAM file or screen saver file smaller?

You can reduce the size of your BAM file or screen saver file in three ways:

1) Reduce the number and/or sizes of the image and sound files in the project you used to create the file.

2) In the Show Builder Wizard, choose a smaller show size (note: this will result in reduced image quality).

3) Use any file compression utility to compress your file even more. There is a small amount of room for additional file compression in the files produced by Bravo! Show Creator.

Q-4.16 Can I display the images in my show in random order?

You can sort to a random order, but the show will always play in that order until you sort again. Set the sort option to Random and select the sort command from the toolbar button. See documentation for more details.

Q-4.17 Why is there a long pause (with screen going black) before a show starts playing when I start a full-screen slide show with certain projects?

If the video resolution of the project is different from that of your current desktop settings, Bravo! Show Creator will change the video resolution of your monitor to that of the project when a full-screen show starts. To eliminate this delay, assuming your current desktop mode is supported by Bravo! Show Creator, you can change the project's target resolution to that of your desktop. To do this, select the Performance button on the toolbar. The dialog displays your current desktop settings for reference, and has a pulldown menu of choices for the project's resolution. The menu contains all of the modes that Bravo! Show Creator supports given your computer's graphics capability. An alternative is to change the desktop resolution to match that of the project using the Display dialog of Control Panel. Note: When you create a new Bravo! Show Creator project, it will always default to your current desktop resolution, but at 16-bit color depth.

Q-4.18 In some shows, why do images appear to be missing, or appearing late (such as when they are already transitioning out)?

There is a throughput problem on your system. This is a technical way of saying that images aren't being loaded fast enough for the show style you have chosen. This can be due to a slow processor, long access times from the hard-drive due perhaps to fragmentation or slow disk rotation speed (as in an older drive), slow system bus access, insufficient memory, or a combination of these problems. The way to get a smooth show on older systems is to limit the number of images being loaded at once. Consider trying styles that have one or two images on screen at once rather than four or five. Try show styles that have images entering one at a time rather than multiple images entering at once. Bravo! Show Creator attempts to push the envelope in what we have to come to expect from a slide show, and it does this by taking advantage of recent advances in graphics hardware, hard drive advances, and increasing availability in RAM.

Q-4.19 When running preview, I attempt to adjust the volume via the controls on the Audio tab, but the preview stops running. Why?

Whenever a change is made to a project, any show that is playing will be stopped automatically. The volume and balance controls on the Audio tab are for setting the playback volume relative to the system's overall volume. To adjust the volume while a show is playing, use either the Windows volume control or the mechanical control on your speakers. A real-time volume and mute control for use during preview or window-based shows is planned for a future release.

5. DirectX and Graphics

Q-5.1 What is DirectX?

DirectX is Windows software technology developed by Microsoft that enables software applications to take full advantage of a computer's underlying graphics and sound hardware. Bravo! Show Creator uses DirectX to exploit the power of the advanced graphics and audio hardware found in modern PCs. DirectX is most often referred to in the context of game software. DirectX is available for free from Microsoft and may be downloaded from the Microsoft website. For more details, go to http://www.microsoft.com/windows/directx.

Q-5.2 I already have an older version of DirectX, and I’m afraid of not being able to run my games if I upgrade. Do I really need to upgrade to DirectX 9?

Bravo! Show Creator requires certain interfaces that are only available in DirectX 9 and higher. DirectX is designed to be backwards compatible, so games that are written for previous versions will find their required interfaces in DirectX 9 without any problem.

Q-5.3 Why do I get a message that "Direct3D hardware acceleration is currently unavailable", followed by Bravo! Show Creator shutting down when I try to start the application?

Bravo! Show Creator requires the DirectX component known as Direct3D to be available and to have hardware acceleration support from your computer's graphics subsystem. If you are getting this message, either Direct3D acceleration has been turned off on your computer, or your graphics hardware is unable to provide the necessary support. To see if Direct3D is simply turned of, do the following:

On the Windows Start menu, select the Run command.
In the Run window, type DxDiag and select OK.
If DirectX is properly installed the DirectX Diagnostics Tool will open.
Select the Display tab.
In a section labeled DirectX Features, you will see the text Direct 3D Acceleration, followed by text that says either Enabled or Disabled.
If the text says Disabled, select the Enable button to the right, then Exit DirectX Diagnostics. Bravo! Show Creator should now run.
If the Enable button is grayed out, your computer graphics card does not support Direct3D, and Bravo! Show Creator will not run on this system.

6. Miscellaneous

Q-6.1 What version of Bravo! Show Creator am I running?

Launch Bravo! Show Creator Select '"Help > About Bravo! Show Creator"