Compared to previous years we were quicker to air, we had complete flexibility which graphics we could use at any time, the graphics looked great and explained what was happening better. Everest's performance, design oriented authoring tools and programmability were key to the successful delivery of the graphics in the show. Everest runs on Silicon Graphics Onyx computer systems. Background Information Everest offers authoring tools, with which the design for the one air look is defined and agreed and all the templates are created. Colors, animation, fonts, transparencies and position on screen are all designed at this stage.
Performance is checked to make sure any required combination of graphics executes flawlessly.
When the design is finished, it's time to build tools for the production team and the links to the historical and incoming results data. Everest enables the director to use any graphic at any time, without concern for other graphics simultaneously running. For example, a lower third can be brought on while a clock or headshot with a caption is already in use. The system produces digital video plus a key channel. For Elections '98 CBS developed two proprietary control systems.