What is OBS?
OBS is a free and open source software for video recording and live streaming.
More information on their website.
Adding an OBS 'device' to the Automator
In the top right corner of the Automator, we see 'Devices' - this can be either in red or green depending on the status of the configured devices. Click it and select 'Add device'.
Next, select 'OBS' from the 'Device type' dropdown list, then give it a name.
Once the OBS device is selected and given a name, we will see all fields needed to configure it so it can be used with the Automator.
Basic device configuration
You can enable or disable the OBS, you can enter the hostname, as well as the WebSocket Port and password. Once these settings have been entered, the device should show as 'online' (green) in the top right corner.
The settings that are entered by default by the Cuez Automator represent the default settings needed for OBS if the Automator is installed on the same computer as the OBS itself. You'll have to change these settings as needed, depending on your exact configuration.
To find these settings in OBS, go to the 'WebSocket Server Settings' menu. Make sure to enable the WebSocket server, then set the info as needed and use the 'Show Connect info' button to see the settings needed for the Automator.
Media handling configuration
Next, check the box to indicate that this OBS will be handling media. More settings will appear, allowing you to configure where media needs to be downloaded and which media to download for our OBS.
Download folders
The 'Download folder' is the folder where OBS will download all media to, with its location seen as from the Automator. If OBS and the Automator are installed on the same computer, then this will be a local folder. If OBS and the Automator are on separate devices, this will be with an IP address on the local network.
The 'Device media folder' is the folder where OBS will download all media to, with its location seen as from OBS itself. This is most likely just a local folder on the same computer.
Keep filenames
Automator offers the option to keep the original filenames of the media that will be downloaded from the Episode into the download folder. By default, Automator saves the files with a unique ID. In case you want to manually check the files in the download folder, it can be helpful to check the box to keep the original filenames to have the files be more recognizable.
Automatically delete files
We can also set files to be automatically deleted after 24 hours or a week. This way you don’t keep all downloaded media in case it is not needed anymore.
Define Blocks with media
Finally we can configure which Blocks will need their media downloaded for our OBS. For this, click 'Add media field' at the bottom, select your Block configuration (for example 'Graphic') and then the field name of the media (usually 'Media'). Repeat this step for all Block configurations that need their media downloaded by the OBS you are configuring.
As soon as these final settings have been configured, the media from the Episode will start downloading to the folders that were defined. A green checkmark next to a thumbnail (in the Script) indicates the media was successfully downloaded.
Configuring actions
The next step is then to configure each Item and Block configuration with the (set of) functions you want to perform on the OBS when triggering the Item or Block - more on that in this article.
Playing video clips from the Automator on OBS
Media such as graphics can be sent to OBS with the default functions that are available for OBS in the Automator. To send video clips to OBS, our Cuez Media Player is needed. The Cuez Media Player allows you to play video clips in a browser, which can then be added as a browser source in OBS.