User guide

50
BrightSign Shell
BrightSign has a command line shell that can be accessed via the serial port. The shell
allows you to type in commands to trigger tasks such as running scripts, playing video,
trying different video modes, etc. It is not required that you use the shell. You can
simply put your content on a CF card and configure it to auto play on power-up (see
Playing Media with BrightSign
).
You may find it useful to use the shell to test various options or for debugging. Follow
these steps to access the shell:
1. Connect the DB9 connector on the BrightSign to your PC’s Serial Port using a
“null modem cable” (available at Frys, RadioShack, etc).
2. Run a “terminal emulator”, such as HyperTerminal on Windows XP (Start | All
Programs | Accessories | Communications | HyperTerminal.)
3. Configure the terminal for: 9600 baud on the HD600 or 38400 baud on the
HD2000, 8 data bits, no parity, 1 stop bit, NO flow control, “TTY mode”.
4. Insert a CF card into BrightSign with some test files on it (BMP graphics, 48KHZ
mp3 files, MPEG-2 video, etc)
5. Connect speakers and/or a monitor to the BrightSign
6. Power-up the BrightSign
7. After a few moments you should see the BrightSign shell appear. It should also
show you the software version number. Verify it is 1.0.72 or greater.
List of Shell Commands
With the shell running, type: help <enter> for a list of commands. Type the command
on a line by itself for more information on a particular command.
Example Shell Commands: Playing Files & Changing Settings
All files on the CompactFlash card should be referenced with a “/” in front of the
filename.
For a Directory of the cards contents use:
dir /
To show the contents of a sub-directory named images, use:
dir /images
To play a video named “myvideo.vob” on the CF card, enter this command:
videoplay /myvideo.vob
To play a video with a space in its name, my video.vob: