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A zone is a designated segment of your display, a rectangular partition on the screen where content plays independently from other zones. Think of zones as windows on a single TV: each one can show its own image, video, app, or playlist at the same time.
Diagram of a digital signage screen with three zones, Zone 1 as a large video panel on the left, Zone 2 as a weather app on the top right, and Zone 3 as a full-width RSS news ticker bar along the bottom, with callouts for up to 8 zones per slide, independent playlists, and layout-defined boundaries

Each zone is an independent content area. A single screen can run video, apps, and a news ticker at the bottom, all at once.

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How zones fit together

Zones do not exist on their own, they are defined inside a layout, and you fill them with content when you build a composition.
New to layouts or compositions? Start with Create a layout, then Create a composition.

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What can run inside a zone?

Within each zone you can display distinct content to meet your requirements:
  • Images and videos from your media library
  • Apps from the Pickcel App Store, YouTube, RSS feeds, tickers, text, clocks, weather, web URLs, slides, maps, and more
  • Multiple items in one zone as a playlist, each with its own play duration
This lets one screen run several pieces of content side by side, for example, a promotion video in Zone 1, live weather in Zone 2, and a news ticker in Zone 3.

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Zone limits

Pickcel does not generally recommend spreading multiple videos across different zones, playback can vary by device. The safer pattern is to keep videos in a single zone as a playlist. See the Compositions & Zones FAQ for player-specific notes.

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Design zones in the layout editor

Zones are created when you design a layout. Open Composition → Add Composition → + Create Custom Layout, then use + Add zone to place partitions on the canvas.
Pickcel layout designer with the + Add zone button in the right panel
After adding a zone, drag its edges or corners, or enter Width and Height values to resize it. Click + Add zone again to create more partitions, and you can overlap zones when your design calls for layered content.
Pickcel layout designer showing multiple zones placed on the canvas
When you are done, click Save layout to save it. The layout then appears under the Custom tab on the layout selection page.

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Add content to zones in the composition editor

After you choose a layout, the composition editor opens. Zones are listed on the right (Zone 1, Zone 2, and so on). Click a zone, then click the + on a media row on the left to add it to that zone’s playlist.
Pickcel composition editor with the zone tabs on the right and media library on the left
For each item in a zone you can:
  • Set play duration with the inline − and + controls (the zone total is shown under Total Duration). Duration applies to images; videos always play for their full length.
  • Reorder items by dragging the handle on each row
  • Remove an item by hovering over it and clicking the remove icon
Switch between zones to build each playlist, then click Preview to check the final look before saving.
Pickcel composition editor showing media added to a zone with duration controls

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Reorder overlapping zones

If your layout has overlapping zones, one zone placed on top of another, you can control which zone appears in front using zone reordering. Reordering adjusts the stacking order (z-index) so the correct content is visible on top. This is useful for designs where a smaller zone sits over a full-screen background zone, or when transparent areas in one zone should reveal content behind it.
1

Open the layout in the layout designer

Open your custom layout from the Custom tab of the layout picker to reopen it in the layout designer.
2

Select the zone to move

Click the zone you want to bring forward or send backward. Overlapping zones highlight on the canvas.
3

Use zone reordering controls

Use the reorder controls in the layout designer to move the selected zone up or down in the stack. Zones higher in the list render on top of zones below them.
4

Save the layout

Click Save layout to save the new stacking order.
Zone reordering applies to custom layouts with overlapping zones. Standard built-in templates cannot be edited, duplicate a template first if you need to change zone stacking.

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How images and videos fit inside a zone

When you add an image or video to a zone, choose how it fills the partition:
Player and version notes
  • Fit, aspect ratio, and crop require Pickcel player v3.4 or above.
  • Aspect ratio cannot be set differently on multiple copies of the same image in one composition.
  • Cropping works poorly on low-resolution images and videos.
  • Samsung Tizen, only one video plays at a time in multi-zone layouts; use Fit to zone for video (aspect ratio does not work across zones).
  • Android (v3.4+), video aspect ratio does not work across multiple zones; use Fit to zone instead.
See the player comparison chart and Compositions & Zones FAQ for full details.

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Common zone layouts

Pickcel also ships standard layouts (single-zone landscape/portrait, two-zone landscape, and more) if you do not want to design from scratch.

Create a Composition

Choose a layout and assign media to each zone.

Layouts

Design custom layouts and place zones on the canvas.

Multi-slide

Use different zone arrangements on each slide in one composition.

Compositions & Zones FAQ

Zone limits, cropping, editing layouts, and player-specific behavior.