To install a MerlinIP card with BRec and MPlay on a Windows7-based machine, first have the following folders available from the Skymicro_Releases dropbox folder:

\win7 driver

\Latest_Merlin

https://www.dropbox.com/home/Skymicro_Releases/Skymicro_Manuals

The MerlinIP card should have firmware release 04-02 loaded into the active quadrant.  Instructions for installing the win7 driver and instructions for running the application software can be found in the Skymicro_Manuals folder, in a document named “Skymicro MerlinIP Software Installation Guide.pdf”.

BRec writes an operations log every time it runs.  In order to write the log, the BRec image must have read/write access to the folder BRec is run from.  Usually, running BRec in administrator mode will clear the error message.   If using a shortcut, this option is found in the properties of the shortcut.

MerlinIP boards can support 2K and 4K simultaneous input/output via the attached expansion panel.  The 2K and 4K model panel has 3G HD-SDI inputs and outputs.  The MerlinIPB board can support 2K Input/Output via optional firmware.

Using the optional Intopix JPEG-2000 codec firmware, 2K and 4K files may be encoded or decoded on the board at a variety of frame rates.

As of this posting date, the current version of Quicktime available is 7.7.1 and is supported for both BRec and MplayHD. RC255  There is a copy of the the installer in the Skymicro_Releases Dropbox folder.

For simple record and playback the best examples in the SDK are CRecHD and CPlayHD.   These are console (command line) applications.  There are several C++ files used by CRecHD and CPlayHD  that you don’t need to understand.  CRecHD.cpp and CPlayHD.cpp should be all you need to familiarize yourself with. Those files are only about 20 lines of code each.   A version of CPlayHD with a TCP socket interface is available and a version of CRecHD with TCP can be provided as well.

Lowest level encoding and capture control can be accomplished by programming of hardware register settings, using the MerlinIP board’s regmap documentation.   For uncompressed capture and custom ingest applications, the urec.exe (simplerec) program may be used.

For control of JPEG-2000 firmware based encoding and decoding, a different software interface is used.

Lowest level playback control can be accomplished by programming of hardware register settings, using the MerlinIP board’s regmap documentation.

Skymicro still carries its PCI-X related products, the MerlinHD/Producer and MerlinHD/Director, but as OEM products only.   Firmware, drivers and supplied applications are frozen at current release levels.