Frequently asked questions

Yes, you can upgrade to a PLUS-edition or to the Creator+/Player or Creator+/Player+ bundle later.

Unfortunately we cannot issue licenses that are expire after a few days. The free trial version can be used to evaluate the software and its functionality:

• The easyDCP Creator(+) will burn a visible watermark into the images.
• The easyDCP Player(+) has a limited playback time of 15 sec. and reduced color transformation capabilities running in demo mode.
• The demo version of easyDCP KDM Generator is restricted in that it only generates KDMs with a maximum validity of 48 hours, starting from the time when the KDM was generated.

Strictly spoken: The faster - the better!
easyDCP Creator(+) is highly optimized for running on multi-processor/multi-core machines.
We recommend the following minimal system configuration:

• Windows PC (WindowsXP™, Windows Vita™(32 Bit or 64 Bit), Windows 7) or Intel Mac (Minimum of Mac OS from 10.5.X (Intel))
• You also need a minimum of 2 GB RAM
• installation occupies 100 MB free disc space
• fast hard disk is also recommended

easyDCP Creator(+) itself is not yet capable of loading DCPs. However, with the latest version of easyDCP Player+ you can unwrap or export a DCP - even an encrypted one - to j2c/dpx/tif/wav files. It will automatically create a project file for loading the unwrapped DCP into easyDCP Creator(+) while maintaining all metadata. There you can add subtitles or apply other changes including re-enabling encryption. When you re-generate the DCP, the process will be almost as fast as a copy operation since all input image sequences are already in the proper JPEG 2000 format. (You have to bypass the color transform for each video track file and disable JPEG 2000 re-encoding and automatic pillar-/letterboxing in the options menu).

The easyDCP Analyzer is not a product. Unfortunately there is no demo version available.

easyDCP Creator+ comes with a tool called easyDCP KDM Generator which allows for the generation of SMPTE compliant KDM files. It comes with a manual explaining the KDM generation process. A demo version of the easyDCP KDM Generator comes with the easyDCP Creator+ trial version download. A full commercial version is part of the easyDCP Creator+ product.

This is different in every country. We can’t send you the certificates. The best way is asking the cinema owner directly. They should have the certificates of the projection system in their screening rooms. Another idea is to contact the server vendors directly.

At this point, we are not working on a hardware-accelerated version because we gained an enormous speed-up since version 1.2.2, even allowing real-time encoding on current high-end multi-core/multi-CPU machines. Since verison 1.4.1, easyDCP Creator+ comes with an external JPEG 2000 Standalone Transcoder allowing to encode source material to JPEG 2000 sequences without packaging.

The JPEG 2000 Standalone Transcoder can be launched by right-clicking a picture track file in easyDCP Creator+ and selecting "export frames". Additionally, Windows users can also start it from the easyDCP Creator+ start menu entry. Mac users can find the executable within the easyDCP Creator+ bundle and can launch it from the terminal. You can purchase additional instances of the JPEG 2000 Standalone Transcoder to speed-up the encoding process by using several encoding machines in parallel. Subsequently, the prepared JPEG 2000 sequences can be loaded into easyDCP Creator(+) to assemble a DCP.

easyDCP Creator(+) creates SMPTE or InterOp compliant DCPs. JPEG 2000 files generated with easyDCP Creator(+) meet all necessary requirements.
However, one has to consider that, importing pre-generated JPEG2000 files as input format and disabling the "JPEG2000 Re-encoding" option, easyDCP Creator(+) does not check if these files are compliant to the current specifications and standards. The software merely copies the files into the DCP. This may end in a DCP being discarded by certain playback devices/digital cinema servers.
Furthermore, not all server systems in the market are able to playback all types of content and may behave differently.
Currently we are not aware of any problems regarding DCPs generated with easyDCP Creator(+).

Basically there are two different options for running easyDCP Player(+).

1. Realtime-playback using a fast Central Processing Unit (CPU).
   
   Allows for realtime-playback of 2K (stereoscopic) DCPs with 48 fps on a standard PC/Mac.
   Use this option if you have a sufficiently fast CPU anyway or need realtime-playback of stereoscopic (3D) DCPs.
   The software codec will work on Mac OS X and Windows Xp/Vista/7.
   
   Minimum system specification:
   • Hexa-Core CPU (at least 3,3 GHz);
   • at least 2 GB of RAM
   • 1x GeForce 200 series graphics device or newer with at least 500 MB memory attached to monitor
   • fast hard disk is also recommended
   
   
   3D Video Output Options:
   For best stereo video output, we recommend a Nvidia Quadro card with at least 500 MB memory (e.g. Quadro 600, 580 or 380 LP).
   In combination with a 120Hz LCD (e.g. Acer GD245QH) this allows watching stereo DCPs with active shutter glasses (e.g. Nvidia 3D Vision).
   Alternatively, a 3D projector can be connected via Dual-DVI.
   
   Furthermore, a 3D LCD can be connected via HDMI or DVI to play out stereo in side-by-side/top-and-bottom/line-by-line or other intereleaved modes.
   This does not require a professional Nvidia Quadro card, but can also be achieved with a Nvidia GeForce card.



2. Realtime-playback using a Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) as accelerator.
   
   Allows for realtime-playback of 2K DCPs with 24 fps.
   This option requires two graphics cards: a primary device for rendering and a secondary CUDA-enabled device for the JPEG2000 decompression
   The GPU-accelerated codec is only available for Windows Xp/Vista/7, not for Mac OS X.
   
   Minimum system specifications:
   
   • Pentium/AMD Dual Core CPU (at least 2 x 1,5 GHz)
   • 1x GeForce 200 series or newer / Quadro FX 380 or newer with at least 500 MB memory attached to monitor
   • 1x GeForce GTX 570/580/590 (at least 480 CUDA cores)- at least 1 GB of RAM
   • fast hard disk is also recommended




3. Performance comparison
   
   
   • 2D 250 Mbit DCP
     
   
   
   • 3D 250 Mbit DCP
     
   
   
   
4. Tested Graphic Cards
   
   

Type	Cores	Bus Interface	Tested	Theoretical
GeForce GTX 570	480	PCIe 2.0 x16	X
GeForce GTX 580	512	PCIe 2.0 x16	X
GeForce GTX 650Ti	768	PCIe 3.0 x16		X
GeForce GTX 660	960	PCIe 3.0 x16		X
GeForce GTX 660 (OEM)	1152	PCIe 3.0 x16		X
GeForce GTX 660 Ti	1344	PCIe 3.0 x16		X
GeForce GTX 670	1344	PCIe 3.0 x16		X
GeForce GTX 670	1536	PCIe 3.0 x16		X

There can be many reasons that subtitles cannot be displayed. easyDCP Player(+) performs a whole range of checks on InterOp subtitles. Make sure no warnings are raised when the DCP is opened by easyDCP Player(+). Please note that easyDCP Player(+) only supports most parts of the CineCanvas 1.0 specifications.

Playback of stereoscopic DCPs is an exclusive feature of easyDCP Player+. The basic edition - easyDCP Player - will play back stereoscopic DCPs, but it will only display a single channel.
In easyDCP Player+, on the other hand, you can select from a whole range of output options, all of which you can test in the demo version.
For the best 3D experience, you should use a professional Nvidia Quadro graphics card. Once you enable the stereo mode in your graphics driver control panel, you will be able to select the "Quad-buffered Stereo" output option in easyDCP Player+. Left and right images will be handed in full quality to the graphics driver. In the graphics driver control panel you can select from different output options. For instance, it is possible to play each channel on a separate DVI link and connect your stereo-capable projector. Or you can use the active shutter glasses (e.g. 3D Vision) and view DCPs on your 120 Hz LCD display.
But you can also screen your stereoscopic DCPs with a regular consumer-level GeForce graphics device. easyDCP Player+ implements all the widely-used interleaving modes, such as top-and-bottom, left-and-right, line-by-line, checkerboard, etc, providing compatibility with most 3D TVs. Just full screen easyDCP Player+ and hook up your 3D TV with a DVI or HDMI cable. Be aware, that for all interleaved modes, either the horizontal or vertical resolution will be halved.
Finally, you can select from a range of anaglyph viewing modes and others such as "difference", "blend", "left only", "right only" and "both channels alternating".

Currently, easyDCP Player(+) only ever reconstructs images in 8 bit color depth to render them with the graphics device. At this point, no native HD-SDI output is supported. However, you can use professional graphics devices with HD-SDI outputs (e.g. some high-end Nvidia Quadro models).

Beginning with version easyDCP Player(+) 1.3, you can enable v-sync by manually editing the "settings.ini" file and setting "enable_vsync=true" in the "[video]" section. Please refer to the user manual for the location of the "settings.ini" file.

Due to the enormous computational demands of decompressing up to 250 MBit/s JPEG 2000 images in real-time, easyDCP Player(+) has very specific hardware requirements. Please read the hardware requirements carefully to determine if your system should be capable of real-time playback. Next, enable the on-screen statistics (press 's') and drop-frames display (press 'd'). When a frame is dropped, its index is drawn in red, otherwise in white. The statistics list the data rate and the overall theoretically possible fps. When it says 100 fps, it means that decoding a single frame takes 1/100th of a second in average. It does not mean that it actually does display 100 frames per second. The software and GPU-based decoders read frames and decode them in parallel, i.e. either the disk-read, CPU processing power or GPU-processing power might be the bottleneck. The disk read sometimes takes too long when a DCP is played for the first time. Play a few minutes and then restart from the beginning to to benefit from the operating system’s cache. Also, the time it takes to render a single uncompressed 2K image must not be neglected and it is not taken into account in the fps statistics. Especially on Windows Vista, Windows 7 and Mac OS, the rendering performance can be improved by running easyDCP Player(+) in full-screen mode.
If you know your system is too weak, but want to playback DCPs in real-time nonetheless, you can leverage from the JPEG 2000 compression's scalability and discard resolution levels to decrease the computational demands. Enabling the "Fit to Window" option will cause the images to be scaled up to the window's current size. This comes almost at no cost.

This is different in every country. We can’t send you the certificates. The best way is asking the cinema owner directly. They should either have the certificates of the projection system in their screening rooms themselves or tell you the model and serial number. If they give you the model and serial number, you need to contact the manufacturer and ask for access to their database.

Usually, on the cinema server manufacturers FTP servers you can find both the public server certificate and the signature chain that was used to sign the certificate. If you decide to trust the certificate by examining the signature certificate chain, you only need the server certificate to create a KDM. It has either a *.pem or *.crt suffix. easyDCP KDM Generator will accept either, but do not use both. Furthermore, there will be pairs of certificate and chain that state "mpeg", "sha1" and "sha256". Like with DCPs, there are SMPTE and InterOp KDMs. Almost all modern servers prefer SMPTE KDMs. Only if you know your recipient only accepts InterOp KDMs, use the "sha1" certificate and remember to check the "Enable InterOp mode" option in the easyDCP KDM Generator's options tab.

Digital signatures are used to authenticate content. You can sign both DCPs and KDMs. For customers of easyDCP Creator+ we offer to generate signature chains for free. We would only need to know your URL (without www), which is stated within the signature, e.g. "fraunhofer.de". We will also send along a tutorial on how to set up the signature in the easyDCP tools.

easyDCP Creator+ generates a proprietary DCP digest file along with each encrypted DCP. This digest file contains all track files keys used for the encryption during the DCP creation process. Whenever one wants to generate KDMs, you can load this digest file into a separate tool called easyDCP KDM Generator. easyDCP KDM Generator is included in each purchase of easyDCP Creator+. All you need to do is collect your recipients public server certificates and put them into a local folder. Use only the "cert.sha256" files. Usually, they have either a *.crt or *.pem suffix. In easyDCP KDM Generator, you merely need to load the digest file, point to the folder with the server certificates and specify the start and end dates of the KDMs validity period. Upon clicking the "Generate" button, easyDCP KDM Generator will create KDMs for all server certificates in a single job. Note, that a digest file may contain multiple compositions, but a KDM only ever contains keys for a single composition. Thus, easyDCP KDM Generator will create x KDMs. Using the full version of easyDCP Player+, you can test the whole procedure by issuing a KDM to your easyDCP Player+ public server certificate. By the way, this procedure is the same when you want to issue a Distribution KDM (DKDM) for your client's mastering station.
The demo version of easyDCP KDM Generator is restricted in that it only generates KDMs with a maximum validity of 48 hours, starting from the time when the KDM is generated. A full commercial version is part of the easyDCP Creator+ product. For more details, please refer to the easyDCP KDM Generator user manual included in the installer.

A DCP contains one or more compositions. An exemplary use of multiple compositions would be, if you wanted to distribute a movie in multiple languages. For each composition you would use identical picture track files, but language-specific audio track files. Compositions will not be played one after another. Instead, the cinema operator will choose which composition to play. Don't forget to edit the composition's names or otherwise the cinema operator might not find it on the server. Starting with easyDCP Creator(+) 1.4.x, you can right-click the title and open an editor to compose a title according to the rules of the Digital Cinema Naming Conventions.

Each composition consists of one or more reels that will be played one after another. Each reel has at least a picture and a sound track file. Optionally, it also contains a subtitle track file. A reels' track files must all have the same duration. A single track file can be referenced from multiple reels of the same composition. This way it is easily possible to skip a scene or title by setting the track file's instances' in- and out-points accordingly.

We regard easyDCP Creator as a finishing tool. It does not scale or crop the images you import. However, by default, automatic pillar-/letterboxing is enabled in easyDCP Creator. Your images will be padded with black stripes on the left and right or on the top and bottom in order to fill the full 2048x1080 container. Commonly, DCPs are either Flat (1.85:1) 1998x1080 or Scope (2.39:1) 2048x858. It is recommended that your input material matches this resolution. In this case you should disable the "automatic pillar-letterboxing" option. You can do so in the menu bar->"Options"->"Automatic Pillar-/Letterboxing (Always fill up to full pixel container)".

Starting easyDCP Creator(+) 2.0, you can load a DCP using the "Open DCP" option in the "File" menu. Once loaded into easyDCP Creator(+), you can add subtitles, add a new composition or modify an existing one, change the names, etc. Provided you have not changed the essence, but only metadata, you do not even have to re-generate the DCP, but instead just overwrite the existing XML-based metadata files by clicking "Save DCP". Similarly, you can enhance the loaded DCP by generating a Supplemental DCP. To do that, just right-click the loaded trackfiles and mark them to be used as references. After importing new trackfiles and assembling a new composition generate a new DCP. Only the new trackfiles will be included in the generated DCP and therefore it cannot be played by itself. However, when you ingest both the original and the supplemental DCP into a cinema server, the server will find missing referenced trackfiles of the Supplemental DCP in the original DCP.

According to the specifications the following aspect ratios for DCPs are valid:

The pixel array size and frame rate shall be one of the formats listed in the table below:

• 2K Scope (2.39:1) Resolution: 2048x858 FPS:24/1 or 48/1
• 2K Flat (1.85:1) Resolution: 1998x1080 FPS:24/1 or 48/1
• 2K Full (1.90:1) Resolution: 2048x1080 FPS:24/1 or 48/1
• 4K Scope (2.39:1) Resolution: 4096x1716 FPS:24/1
• 4K Flat (1.85:1) Resolution: 3996x2160 FPS:24/1
• 4K Full (1.90:1) Resolution: 4096x2160 FPS:24/1

Stereoscopic picture essence tracks shall be limited to the 2K formats, and shall have a frame rate of 48/1 and an edit rate equal to half the frame rate.

You may apply for a facility code at . Every time a new version of easyDCP Creator is released, we download the latest list from there. In the meantime just pick any other facility code in the "Edit with Digital Cinema Naming Convention" dialog (right-click Composition title) and subsequently manually replace the code with your own. If you do not yet have your own code, leave the field empty.

A Distribution KDM is technically identical to a regular KDM. The difference is that it targets another mastering station instead of a cinema server. You can generate a DKDM with easyDCP KDM Generator. The procedure is identical to generating a regular KDM.
The other way around is also possible with easyDCP. Your distributor can generate a DKDM to your easyDCP Player+ public certificate. easyDCP Player+ is then able to open the encrypted DCP. Starting with version easyDCP Player+ 1.3 the DCP can then be exported and loaded into easyDCP Creator. This is explained in the section "I have an existing DCP. Is there a way to import the DCP into easyDCP Creator?".

In fact, this is the major difference between easyDCP KDM Generator and easyDCP KDM Generator+. While easyDCP KDM Generator can be used to issue KDMs for DCPs created and encrypted by yourself using easyDCP Creator+, easyDCP KDM Generator+ can also be used to generate KDMs for DCP that have been created by a third party mastering station. Just like easyDCP Player+, easyDCP KDM Generator+ also allows you to export its own public certificate. Provide this certificate containing your public key to the content owner so they can issue a Distribution KDM (DKDM) to your easyDCP KDM Generator+ installation. You can load this DKDM into easyDCP KDM Generator+ and generate new KDMs for other recipients from it. The new KDMs' time windows have to be completely covered by the DKDM's time window.

Windows:
There is no common way to run more than one instance of any easyDCP tool on Windows operating systems. The main reason is because several easyDCP tools are connected with certain file extensions during the installation process for convenience. For example, after a user clicks a *.dcpproj file twice, Windows will open easyDCP Creator (or easyDCP Creator+).

However, it is possible to run multiple versions in parallel. But please consider that Windows will always use the latest installed version if you open connected file-extensions as described above. This can be a problem if you are used to open *.dcpproj using the Windows Explorer. Imagine you have a licensed version on your PC and you install the latest demo version in parallel. Once you installed the demo version it will be connected to several the file extensions. If you create a DCP with this version it will embed the visual watermarking, no matter if you have a licensed version installed or not.

Please follow these steps to install multiple versions of any easyDCP tool in parallel.

• Install first version (e.g. easyDCP Creator V1) using the installer.
• Open Windows Explorer and browse to the folder where you installed version 1 (e.g. on Windows 7)
• Make a copy of the folder and place it next to the original folder. Windows will automatically rename the folder. You should have a folder structure like
  
  …\Fraunhofer IIS
  \easyDCP Creator
  \easyDCP Creator – Copy
• [optional]It is recommended to rename the copied folder, e.g. easyDCP Creator V1
• De-install the instance of easyDCP Creator using the de-installer.
• Install the other version of easyDCP (e.g. easyDCP Creator V2).

Note: Without creating shortcuts in the Windows Start menu it is not possible to reach Version 1 from there – the Start menu will only show V2.

Mac OS:
Since there is no dedicated installation process you can easily run multiple versions of any easyDCP tool on Mac OS. Just make sure to rename the installed version before you copy the new software to the Application folder.

Beginning with version 2.1, easyDCP Creator+ is capable of opening encrypted DCPs and using these DCPs as basis for new DCPs. There are basically two ways of providing the keys in order to allow easyDCP Creator+ to decrypt the content for the preview and for generating a new DCP.

If keys are provided by means of a proprietary Fraunhofer Digest file (*.dcpdig), it is assumed that the user generated the content and that he is in charge of the sources used for the original DCP generation. In this case you can alter all properties in easyDCP Creator+, including the deactivation of the encryption or the generation of a new encrypted DCP and Digest file.



If one provides the keys by means of Distribution KDM (or KDM), easyDCP Creator+ does not allow to disable the encryption nor does it generate the Fraunhofer Digest for the new DCP. In order to understand this behavior we have to explain that the Fraunhofer Digest stores the encryption key as plain text on the hard drive. If the Digest-option were not disabled, one could easily open an encrypted DCP together with a (D)KDM, generate a new encrypted DCP and store the encryption keys in plaintext. Since content-owners are very diligent with their content, Fraunhofer IIS decided to disable the option from the beginning.

Since the software does not permit you to generate a Digest, there has to be another way for communicating the encryption keys to another software. Using easyDCP Creator+ version 2.1 or higher this can be done by generating a (D)KDM directly from within easyDCP Creator+. The “Generate DCP…” dialog was extended to offer you to generate KDMs. By design, one (D)KDM will be generated for easyDCP Creator+ itself in order to make sure that one can open the DCP on the same computer using easyDCP Creator+ later. A second (D)KDM can be generated for another software being able to open (D)KDMs, including easyDCP KDM Generator+ and many other 3rd party hard-/and software tools.

Please study the answer to the question “Why does easyDCP Creator+ generate KDMs since version 2.1?” in order to learn, why easyDCP Creator+ (version 2.1 or higher) allows for the generation of (D)KDMs. Please notice that one can only generate one (D)KDM when generating a new DCP. For the generation of many KDMs, easyDCP KDM Generator is still the software of your choice allowing you to generate unlimited KDMs with a simple click.

Since version 2.1 of easyDCP Creator+ it is possible to open encrypted DCPs and to use these DCPs as a basis for new DCPs. There are basically two ways of providing the keys in order to allow easyDCP Creator+ to decrypt the content for the preview and before generating a new DCP.

If one provides the keys by a Fraunhofer Digest, we assume that the user generated the content and that he is in charge of the source content used for the first DCP generation. In such a case you can do everything in easyDCP Creator+, including the deactivation of the encryption and the generation of a new Digest when generating a new DCP.

If one provides the keys by a Distribution KDM (or KDM), easyDCP Creator+ does not allow to disable the encryption nor lets it generate the Fraunhofer Digest for the new DCP. In order to understand this behavior we have to explain that the Fraunhofer Digest stores the encryption key as plain text on the hard drive. Without disabling the Digest-option one could easily open an encrypted DCP together with a (D)KDM, generate a new encrypted DCP and store the encryption keys in plaintext. Since content-owners are very diligent with their content, Fraunhofer IIS decided to disable the option since version 2.1.

What is a hascode:

A hashcode is a generated machine hash for an individual easyDCP Programm on an individual hardware system. A hashcode looks like:

37458f4feb1b46d2ed1fea52217e58fb6537d5ec76aa4226fab12848ab9ba2fa94850046c119028bbe9ebbf201a9e0d54f08d997b
643e9385f354f8c6a4156d4c20924114a5603e2930c297104b03a4b6a9f9edc6a6d637c9995fbffe8afbdee6db790c1866b351568128
c457796f1a90718e860fa4c917bb971e8409b0e49606ee14d7090333223639fc4b014b06aa16da7612641cb3aa207598c3805f61576b
2a44afd58fc7c6ab54350e8739bf7ace17c39a7c7f954ed1c74a53f86428cd5adeb39967723af159611efb9d4759ea876b798e4d932d
efb0727651ef7290cb3d6d7b539b23da81c96b626838848be580d887da03edddf73e07a19708ed36948_v2

The hashcode is for every HW/SW combination individual and every time when a hashcode is generated it has a different content.

How to generate a hashcode:

1. Download and install the up to date easyDCP demo software or (easyDCP installer software if available) on the target hardware system
2. Start the choosen easyDCP Software and Press F3
   
   alternate
   
   Select menue „?“, „Licensing“ and then „Get machine system hash“
3. The box with the hashcode opens.

What to do with the machine hash:

Please copy/paste the complete hashcode to the predetermined entry screen in the webshop to start your operation when requested.

When you need a hashcode:

You always need a hashcode when you install a new easyDCP Software or something changes in your configuration. For instance:

1. Migration to another hardware
2. Update to a later version
3. Upgrade to a higher version
4. Significant changes in your hardware configuration

One easyDCP software license can be installed only on one computer system.

If you need to move the easyDCP license to another computer or operating system you can do this easy via function Migration using option Migration in your license status of www.easyDCP.com.

The migration is free of charge.

There is a limit of one move in 6 month without conversation. If you have a second migration within the 6 months period please advise us via email why it's necessary.

You can easy migrate your license online via webshop: www.easyDCP.com

How to generate a migration:

1. Please be prepared to use the new hashcode of your target hardware/software.
2. Login in your account at www.easyDCP.com.
3. Select license status.
4. Select the product you need to migrate.
5. Select: “migrate license”.
6. Copy your NEW Hashcode in the provided form.
7. Press "update license".

Your new license is now available license.

Note: After executed migration certificates of a easyDCP "+" versions become unvalid. All for this certs issued DKDMs are not more usable.