How does the offline collection work?

The tutorial below provides a complete overview.

 

 

MediaZilla allows content creators to export a collection for offline viewing. The project can then be placed on a USB thumb drive or similar and provided to the viewer. When you export a collection for offline viewing, we compile two versions, one for Windows and one for Mac. The collection looks and functions identical to the web browser version but does not require any internet connection.

You can download the offline collection for Mac or Windows once, follow the steps on the extraction and you can add the files to a cloud folder, your computer, or copy them into a different USB to give to your clients.

Creating the Offline Collection

To export a collection for offline viewing, click the title of the collection in your dashboard and select "Export Offline".

 

 

This will open a screen which displays the status of the build process and allows you to start the build. You may close the window after initiating the build.

 

Click "Build Now" and we will begin processing your request. We provide an estimate of when your file will be ready to download.

 

Only the content creator is able to download this file. Clients and Digital Delivery recipients cannot at this time.

When the build process is complete, you will receive an email notification to download the file. You can also return to the "Export Offline" screen of the collection where you will see a button to download.

 

 

Windows Users

Downloading on Windows

If you are on Windows, download the file normally.

 

Extracting on Windows

Once downloaded, right-click on the zip file and select "Extract All" from the menu. Choose a location and click "Extract". If you are delivering to a client, provide them with all the files extracted from the zip archive.

 

Running the App on Windows

To launch the collection, double-click on the executable (it is appended with "-win" and has the Z icon). You may receive a warning that Microsoft Defender prevented an unrecognized app from starting. Click “More info”, then “Run anyway”.

 

Mac Users

Downloading on Mac

If you are downloading on a Mac with Mojave or older, you must use a third party tool "The Unarchiver" to extract the contents of the zip archive. The default application, Archive Utility, does not support files over 4 GB and will produce partial/corrupt files if any of the files in the archive are over 4GB. This issue was resolved on newer versions of MacOS, starting with Catalina.

Also, the default behavior of Safari is to automatically extract the contents of a zip file using Archive Utility after downloading. If you are downloading via Safari in Mojave or older, please update your browser preferences to prevent this (instructions below).

1. Safari > Preferences > General
   
2. Uncheck "Open Safe Files After Downloading"

Extracting on Mac

If you are on Mojave or older, Right-Click > Open With > The Unarchiver.

If you are using Catalina or newer, you may use Archive Utility to extract the contents.

If you are delivering to a client, provide them with all the files extracted from the zip archive.

 

Running the App on Mac

Perform these steps the first time you launch the collection (similar to installing other apps on Mac):

1. Double-click the dmg file to mount it. The mounted disk should then appear on your desktop with the “Z” icon.
2. Double click the icon on your desktop to launch it. This should open a window with the application icon inside (pictured below).
   
   
3. Following the instructions, drag the application from this window into the same location as the dmg file and videos folder (pictured below).
   
   
4. Double-click the application that you just dragged over to launch it.
5. Accept the prompt about it being downloaded from the internet. The collection should then open.

To open the collection again, simply double-click the application instead of using the dmg file.

Please make sure to always keep the “videos” folder in the same location as the collection or else the videos will not work.

 

Limitations

Computer Use Only

The offline export will only work on a computer. Smart TV's are not designed to load menus from a USB drive, only video files. For TV or mobile viewing, please use the MediaZilla apps which provide the best experience.

 

Single Video Quality

Currently, 4K viewing is not available with the offline export. Only a single resolution, up to full HD quality, will be provided with the download. We will be providing guidance in the near future on how to swap the HD version with a 4K version before delivering to the client.