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 DKDMs time window.

Yes, easyDCP Player+ and IMF Player supports all Blackmagic Design Ultra Studio and DeckLink series output devices for video and audio.

The performance of such a set-up depends on various parameters and is not only determined by the HD/SDI interface card.
The Graphic Board Check (PDF) table shows some example set-ups as well as the measured performance using certain HD/SDI interfaces.

Limitations:

• Stereo 3D output is not supported.
• Recently 4k output via HD-SDI is not real-time capable.
• The minimally required driver version is 9.7.7.
• HD-SDI output is a feature exclusive to easyDCP Player+. It is not available in the basic edition.

Different versions of easyDCP can be installed side-by-side

However be aware that the all share the same user application data folder, where state settings, KDMs, server and signer certificate and license are stored.  

The conversion of DPX or TIFF sequences (as well as many other video formats) is one of the basic functionalities of easyDCP Creator and easyDCP Creator+.

In order to outsource the time consuming conversion to another workstation or to operate in parallel, each version of easyDCP Creator+ contains a free single version of easyDCP JPEG 2000 Transcoder.

Additional licenses can be purchased on demand.

With easyDCP Player and easyDCP Player+ you have the chance to check an original DCP on a standard MAC or Windows PC. easyDCP Player+ even allows the playback of encrypted DCPs.

For further information please refer to:

• easyDCP Player
• easyDCP Player+

This FAQ helps you for understanding what is a DKDM and how to generate it or how to use it. 

A Distribution KDM (DKDM) 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.

NOTE: Normally, the validity of a DKDM is significantly longer than a KDM distributed to a cinema playback system.  

The other way around is also possible with easyDCP. Your distributor can generate a DKDM to your easyDCP Player+ or easyDCP Creator+ public certificate (they each have theire own certificate). easyDCP Player+ or easyDCP Creator+ are then able to open the encrypted DCP.

Starting with version easyDCP Player+ 1.3 the DCP can 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?".
Please check also: I have an existing DCP. Is there a way to import the DCP into easyDCP Suite?

How to generate KDMs and DKDMs in easyDCP: 

easyDCP KDM Generator(+): see manual section from section 4
easyDCP Creator+: see manual section 10 

Due to the computational demands of decoding JPEG 2000 images and rendering images up to 4k in real-time, easyDCP Player has very specific requirements.

First, the performance bottleneck must be identified. To do that, enable the fps statistics (Playback | Statistics). The statistics list the data rate and the overall theoretically possible fps. When it says 100 fps, it means that decoding (or reading or rendering) a single frame takes 1/100th of a second in average. It does not mean that it actually does display 100 frames per second. easyDCP Player reads, decodes and renders images in parallel, i.e. either disk-read, CPU processing power or GPU-processing power or OpenGL rendering might be the bottleneck.

If "disk read" is the bottleneck:

Disk read sometimes takes too long when a DCP is first played. Play a few minutes and then restart from the beginning to benefit from the operating systems´s cache. Alternatively, copy the package to a local drive, preferably to a SSD.

If "decoding" is the bottleneck:

Please read the hardware requirements carefully to determine if your system should be capable of real-time playback.

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. Either change the decoder´s performance-to-quality trade-off in Options | Codec | <your current codec> or alternatively discard one or more resolution levels using the drop-down box in the main control bar. Enabling the "Fit to Window" option will cause the images to be scaled up to the window´s current size, which causes virtually no overhead.

If "rendering" is the bottleneck:

Since v3.0 easyDCP Player has two render modes: V-sync-independent rendering and V-Sync-rendering.

•  V-sync-independent rendering: This was the only option in all versions prior to v3.0. It is still the right choice if the display runs with 60 Hz (default for "regular" computer monitors). It is also the fallback option, if V-Sync is not available or not enabled.
•  V-sync-rendering: Especially, if the target display is a LCD-TV or a projector, or if the max. refresh rate is significantly lower than 60 Hz (e.g. only 30 Hz), then the V-Sync rendering mode should be selected. It can be activated in Options | Video | V-Sync, but only if Options | Video | General Rendering | V-Sync is currently on. Whether or not V-Sync is actually made available to easyDCP Player by the graphics driver is stated in round brackets next to the Options | Video | General Rendering | V-Sync checkbox. When you start playback in V-Sync-Rendering mode, the package´s frame-rate as well as the display´s refresh rate will be started in curly brackets next to the "Render"fps line (e.g. "Render (24 fps @ 24 Hz) in the statistics window. easyDCP will now explicitly translate between the packages´s frame-rate and the display´s refresh rate, which gives best results when both rate are equal or when the display´s refresh rate is an even multiple of the package´s frame-rate.

You experience very heavy stuttering ? If you have multiple displays attached to your computer, it is important that the V-Sync rate is identical to the refreh rate of the display, where easyDCP Player´s canvas is located. To make sure that the display is actually the V-Sync-Display open up http://www.vsynctester.com/detect.html and verify that the measured Hz-rate matches the display´s refresh rate.

Hint: Configure the display, where the canvas is loacated, to be your main display. (Windows 7: right-click desktop | Screen resolution | <select display> | Check "Make this my main display"

Hint: When using two Nvidia graphics cards (e.g. one for rendering and one for decoding with CUDA), it might be necessary, to manually specify the graphics card that will be rendering: NVIDIA Control Panel | 3D SSetings | Manage 3D settings | Global Settings | OpenGL rendering GPU | <select the graphics card that drives the display where easyDCP Player´s canvas is located>. We found that this can make a huge difference in terms of render performance.

If there is no obvious bottleneck:

Is´s likely the rendering that causes the stuttering. See "If `rendering`is the bottleneck:".

There can be many reasons that subtitles cannot be displayed.

easyDCP Player performs a whole range of checks when it loads the subtiteles.

It will automatically verify that the XML document´s structure meets the specifications and it will also make sure that all characters used in the subtitle document are actually present in the enclosed font file. (Font)

If any potential issues were identified, they will be shown in the log window.

In short, make sure no warnings are raised when the DCP is opened by eayDCP Player.

Please note: 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".
• For dual projector playback please follow this instruction provided from NVIDEA 

A DCP contains one or more compositions.

Each composition consists of one or more reels that will be played one after another. Each reel has at least a picture an a sound track file.

Optionally, it also contains a subtitel track file. A reel´s track files must all have the same duration. In easyDCP Creator, you can edit in-and out-points by right-clicking a track file that you already dragged onto a reel.

This way you can skip a run-in or sync your audio and video track files. Keep ini mind that an Interop subtitle must not contain any time stamps beyond the reel´s duration.

Time stamps are relative to the reel´s first visible frame. A single track file can be refrenced 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.

An exemplary use of multiple compositions would be, if you wanted to distribute a movie in multiple languages. For each compositon you would use identical picture track files, but language-specific auto 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.

For example, the following two composition names indicate that one version has German audio ("DE") without any subtitles ("-XX") and the other version is Engish ("EN") with German subtitles ("-DE")

MYDCP_FTR_S_DE-XX_ 51_2K_20150707_FHG_OV
MYDCP_FTR_S_EN-DE_ 51_2K_20150707_FHG_OV

Hint: You can right-click the title and open an editor to compose a title according to the rules of the Digital Cinema Naming Converions.

There are two different options for running easyDCP Player+/IMF Player.

1. Real-time-playback using a fast CPU.

Allows for real-time-playback of 2k/4k DCP and IMF-Packages on a standard PC/Mac. Use this option if you have a sufficiently fast CPU. The software codec will work on macOS 10.14 and Windows 7/10 64-Bit.

Minimum system specification:

• 6-core CPU
• At least 4 GB of RAM
• Graphics device with at least 500 MB memory attached to monitor (primary graphics card)
• Fast hard disk is also recommended

2. Real-time-playback using a Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) as accelerator.

Allows for real-time-playback of 2k/4k DCPs and IMF-Packages *) on a standard PC.
*) limited to lossy with code block size 32x32

This option requires two graphics cards:

1. GPU: Primary device for rendering (OpenGL) to which the display is attached.
2. GPU: Secondary CUDA-enabled device for the JPEG 2000 decompression.

Minimum system specification:

• 4-core CPU
• 1x primary graphics device attached to monitor
  
  • recent NVIDIA GeForce or Quadro series graphics device
  • at least 1 GB VRAM
  • preferably connected with 16 PCIx lanes
• 1x secondary graphics device not attached to monitor
  
  • NVIDIA GeForce with at least 500 CUDA cores
  • least 2 GB of VRAM
  • preferably connected with 16 PCIx lanes
• At least 4 GB RAM
• Fast harddisk/SSD is also recommended

The GPU-accelerated codec is only available for Windows, not for Mac OS X.

3D Video output options:

For best stereo video output, we recommend a NVIDIA Quadro device with at least 2 GB memory (e.g. Quadro K600). When using Nvidia 3D vision, the display needs to have a refresh rate of at least 120 Hz (e.g. Acer GD245QH). Alternatively, a 3D projector can be connected via Dual-DVI. This does not require a professional Nvidia Quadro card, but can also be achieved with a NVIDIA GeForce card.

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 interleaved modes.

HD-SDI output option:

easyDCP Player supports Blackmagic Design UltraStudio oder DeckLink series output devices.

When Option HD-SDI "enable subtitling, color processing and scaling" is enabled, decoded images will first be processed by the primary graphics card, before they get sent to the SDI-output device.

This works best, when the primary graphics card is a NVIDIA Quadro card. 

View our performance test:

CPU-accelerated encoding with CUDA^®-enabled graphics card was introduced in easyDCP Creator 3.3 and easyDCP Creator+ 3.3 (Windows^® only).

You can now encode DCPs faster than real-time.

We recommend enabling GPU-accelerated encoding in the menu "File|Options|Image Processing|GPU Encoding" as it usually outperforms the CPU-based encoder significantly:

Please note: The easyDCP JPEG 2000 Encoder also supports GPU acceleration. The easyDCP Publisher does not yet support GPU acceleration.

You can download the manual here.

You can download the manual here.