NewTek TriCaster Advanced Edition Automation and Integration Guide - Manual (Page 45)

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7.3.2 FILE WATCHER
Among other sources as described earlier, TriCaster Advanced Edition monitors files in designated
DataLink Watch folders for changes to keys and their values. The DataLink Watch folder system is
implemented per-session, allowing you to automatically provide different video programs you produce
with unique DataLink key setups. You will find the folder on your local TriCaster host at (Your session
volume):\Sessions\session-name\DataLink Watch Folder.
FIGURE 29
Hint: If you enable the Share Media Folders and Buffers option in TriCaster’s File menu (Live Desktop), this folder
will be accessible to other systems on the network (Figure 29).
ASCII T
EXT
DataLink pulls data from ASCII text files (.txt) residing in the (constantly monitored) DataLink Watch
folder. As this is arguably the simplest source available to DataLink, let’s use it to demonstrate a few basics
before continuing.
1. Create a new text file in the folder (the filename doesn’t matter), and open it in a text editor
(Notepad will do).
To supply usable values for DataLink, the text files should contain only key-value pairs, arranged in the
following format: [key] = [value]
Key names from the file(s) will be available as DataLink entries in your title pages. The value you enter
beside the key name in the text file will be shown when the page is displayed on output.
Two Key-Value pairs entry examples are shown below:
city = San Antonio
temperature = 98°
Note: Keys and values may contain punctuation and spaces.