Uploading Media
The following media formats can be uploaded to UpStage:
- audio: mp3 ONLY
- graphics: swf, png, jpg and gif; swf will give the best quality result, as all files are converted to swf on upload. swf and png will allow for transparency.
You must first create your media in a graphics or audio application, before uploading; please see the section on Creating Media for more information about this.
Note: due to an issue in Chrome for Mac, at the time of writing it is not possible to upload .swf files from a Mac computer using the Chrome browser. Until such time as Chrome fixes this issue, you will need to use an alternative browser such as Safari or Firefox to upload .swf files.
How to upload media
Click on Upload Media in the Workshop navigation bar, and you will see the following screen:
When you click on the radio button for the type of media you want to upload (Avatar, Prop, etc) the screen will expand to provide the upload form.
We will look at each media type in detail.
Upload an avatar
When you select the Avatar radio button, the screen will expand to give you the form below:
Enter a name and any tags you want to attach to this media item (tags can help you to find a media item later) then click Browse to navigate to where your media item is on your hard drive or online.
Avatar voice
Select a voice for your avatar from the dropdown menu of voices. To hear what each voice sounds like, click Test Voice (you can change the text that will be spoken in the input box). There is more information about the different voices in the appendix Text2speech Voices.
Multi-frame avatars
One way to create animated or multi-frame avatars is to use an application such as Flash that can generate a multi-framed swf file. Another option is to create multi-frame avatars in the upload process. You will need to prepare each frame beforehand, making sure that each image is the same size, then upload them using the number of frames dropdown menu.
- Select the number of frames you require, which will create additional fields below Filename 1: for each frame.
- Click Browse to navigate to the file that you have created for each frame of the avatar.
Assign to a stage
You can assign your avatar to any of the existing stages as part of the upload process:
- Click on the name of the stage in the Unassigned list to select it.
- Click on the arrows to move it to the Assigned list.
Upload!
When you're ready, click Upload to upload your media. If you've forgotten to enter any required information - such as a name - a dialogue box will prompt you. You can also change information later by editing your media.
Upload a prop
To upload a prop, click on the Prop radio button and you will see a similar form to that for uploading an avatar, minus the voice selection and test.
Upload a backdrop
Backdrops also work in the same way as props; select the Backdrop radio button and the form is the same.
Upload an audio file
Select the Audio radio button, navigate to find your file, and select any stages that you wish to assign the audio to. The only difference this time is that you are also asked to select either Sound Effect or Music as the type of audio file. Audio files MUST be MP3.
Upload a video avatar
This last option allows you to send a stream of jpeg images from a live webcam to an avatar on the stage. Please see the separate chapter on Webcams for information on how to do this.