MoviePlayer allows you to put a mask on a movie, so you can easily create a movie that plays within a non-rectangular shape.

You can use any QuickTime movie. Here we've used a small, low-frame rate sample:



(If you're not able to see the movie, you need to get Apple's QuickTime plug-in if you're using Navigator 3.0 or Explorer 2.1, or the MovieStar plug-in if you're using Netscape 2.0 or Explorer 2.0.)

To create your own movie with a mask, you'll first need to create a graphic of the shape you'd like (using any graphics editor) and save or export it as a PICT file. (Or, you can download and use one we created, Star.)

  1. Open any QuickTime movie in MoviePlayer.

    (You'll need to be sure you have the MoviePlayer plug-ins in the same folder as MoviePlayer. These are files called Authoring Extras and Goodies. If you got MoviePlayer from BMUG's 2.5 Update CD-ROM, you have the plug-ins; you can also get them from the QuickTime FAQ software page.)

  2. In the Movie Info window (which you access by choosing Get Info in the Movie menu) choose Video Track from the left pop-up and Mask from the right pop-up.

  3. Click Set.

    You'll get a standard open file dialog.

  4. Choose the pict file that has the graphic you'd like to use as a mask.

  5. The shape (stretched to fit the dimensions of the movie window) will show in the dialog box and the movie will take on that shape.



  6. To embed this movie in a web page, as we did at the top of this page, make sure to save it properly, and use the following html:

    <EMBED SRC="your.mov" HEIGHT="120" WIDTH="160" CONTROLLER="FALSE" AUTOPLAY="TRUE">

    The value you use for src should be the name of your movie. The height and width should be the height and width of your movie, which you can get easily by using the Get Info command in MoviePlayer, and choosing Size in the right pop-up.

    If you want the controller to show, don't include CONTROLLER="FALSE", and add 24 to the height value.

Thanks to Dan Meriwether, BMUGs webmaster

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copyright 1996-97  Judith L. Stern and Robert Lettieri, jandr@ccnet.com
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