Preview plays one playlist from start to finish, with your graphics shown over the vision. Use it every time you build or change a playlist, so you can check the order, timing and look before it runs in a real match.
Before you start
You have the Graphics module, which Automation needs.
The playlist has at least one item on its timeline, such as an overlay graphic, an action, multimedia, an advertisement or an ad template.
You've saved your latest changes to the playlist, so the preview shows the current version.
Preview a playlist
Go to the Automation tab and open your game plan.
Find the playlist you want to check. Pre-match, post-match and break playlists sit on the Pre/Post Match & Breaks tab. The Default playlist and the playlists that run during play sit on the In Game (Live) tab.
Expand the playlist if you'd like to see its timeline while it plays. This makes it easy to match what's on screen to the items you placed.
Click Preview on the playlist.
The Playlist Preview opens and plays the playlist through, with your graphics over the vision. Watch it all the way to the end.
To see it in a different look, choose another skin.
When you're done, click Hide Preview to close it and return to the game plan.
What you're seeing
The preview runs the playlist exactly as it's built on the timeline:
Overlay graphics animate in at their start time, stay on for their duration, then animate out. The animation time is part of the duration. Items set to Loop stay on until the playlist ends.
Actions happen at the moment they're placed. Hide all clears every graphic, including the scorebug. Hide all except scorebug clears everything but the scorebug. Show scorebug brings the default scorebug back.
Multimedia appears in the position you set on the canvas, above your graphics or under them if you chose Behind Graphics.
Advertisements and ad templates show in their positions for their set times. An ad template with Loop on keeps cycling its adverts in the order set in the template.
For example, in a sponsor playlist with Hide all at 00:00, an ad template at 00:01 and Show scorebug just after the ad ends, the preview shows the scorebug clearing, the ad appearing a second later, then the scorebug coming back.
Graphics are filled with sample data in the preview, so team names, scores and players may not match a real fixture such as Harbour City (HCF) v Ridgeview (RVR). That's expected. The point is to check the running order, timing, position and style, not the data.
Choose a skin
A skin is a different visual look for the same theme. If your theme offers more than one, pick a skin in the preview to see how the playlist looks in that style. The timing and order stay the same; only the look changes.
This is useful when you're still deciding which look suits your broadcast. It's also a quick way to spot a graphic that reads well in one look but clashes with another.
What to check
Order. Does each item appear in the order you expect?
Gaps. Is there enough time for one graphic to animate out before the next comes in?
Durations. Does each graphic stay on long enough to read, but not so long it gets in the way of play? Event graphics usually look best on screen for 8 to 10 seconds.
Positions. Do multimedia and ads sit clear of the scorebug and lower thirds?
The finish. Does the playlist end cleanly so the screen is ready for what comes next? A live playlist should end by returning to the scorebug, with Show scorebug or Hide all except scorebug as the final step.
If something looks wrong, click Hide Preview, adjust the item on the timeline, save, then preview again. A few quick rounds now saves surprises on match day. For more on how items are laid out, see Understanding the playlist timeline.
Tips and common mistakes
Leave a small gap between graphics. Graphics animate in and out, so back-to-back timings can cut an animation short. Leave about 2 seconds between items.
Don't put Hide all on an item's end time. A Hide all placed exactly where a graphic ends can cut its out-animation short.
Give every item its own start second. Two transitions on the same second can wipe each other. A red warning icon on the playlist flags problems like this, and an orange info icon gives advice. See Playlist warnings and timing tips.
Save before you preview. If you preview without saving, you may be watching an older version of the playlist.
Preview checks one playlist. It doesn't test triggers, priority or how playlists interact. To see how all your playlists work together across a real match, use Review Match.
Refresh open overlays. After you save changes to a game plan, refresh any overlay that's already loaded so it picks them up.