goddi

================ Thanks Lin, The upside down/flipped problem started after I installed the Ace Mega Codec Pack last week. I just re-installed the lastest free DivX codec and that seemed to have corrected this problem. Your tutorial now works correctly on my PC. And thanks for the clear tutorial. I also re-installed my Flash 9...but I still get the error message when I try to play your Flash version. Has to be something going on with my PC. Gary Ken... Thanks for the links... very interesting that I am not the only one. But I seem to have fixed the upside down problem with just the reinstall of DivX.

Hi Lin, I have tried to download/play your files, both the AVI and the flash version. A couple strange things are happening: 1- When I play the AVI file, it plays upside down and flipped. Other AVI that I have play OK. Got any idea why this happens??? 2- When I play the flash version, I get "not a valid Win32 Application". This might be a problem with my WindowsXP but if you have any ideas, I'd appreciate any help. Thanks... Gary

Greetings, I was trying out the Custom conversion to AVI video method in the latest Beta. I have been using it in the 4.48 version but I see there are a few different choices to make and some have remained the same. My first question has to do with the choice of Codec. In my experiments, I have found that the 'DivX Mpeg4-Fast Motion' seems to be the best choice and delivers a useable AVI file. (However, it is not as good as what is produced using the PTE Codec and buring it directly to a DVD). So my question here is, is this the best Codec to use when using the Custom choice? When using the Custom method, I have gone into the Configure menu and made changes to the Datarate, and other choices. But when it is played, those items do not seem to stick. The datarates stay the same as the defaults settings and the quality does not seem to change. Should these have any affect on the final quality??? If so, how do you decide what the changes to these setting should be??? I am making these Custom AVIs so I can post them on sites like Google Video, etc. The quality does not come out real great but it is another option to use. If anyone has any hints on using the Custom method to get the best quality, I'd appreciate any help. Thanks... Gary

Al... I think my problem was that the 2 icons to the far right of the drive letters do not show any text as you float the mouse over them. So I was not sure what exactly to expect. But now I see I have to click on them in the sequence that Hawk pointed out and then it works. Thanks all for your help. Gary Hawk... I like to use the "Classical" look without the "Show Tree." With these "views", your steps work the same in both versions. Thanks.... Gary

Hawk.... Thanks very much.... That combination of keystrokes worked. I had tried everything except that. Much appreciated. Gary

Yes, that is what I would expect but I can not get to the Desktop or for it to be shown. I can only see my: A:, C:, D:, E:, F:, G:, and H:. Not sure why this is. I have clicked on the little arrow but these are the only drives I see. When in C:, I can't go "up" to get to the Desktop. Still stumped.... Gary

I have never been able to get to any folders I have created on the Desktop when using the File Window in PTE. I can only get files on C:, D:, etc. Is it just me or is there a way to get back to folders on the Desktop. I have made a PTE5Beta folder for all these examples that have been made but just can't get to them. I'd like to leave them there since they are more temporary. Any ideas???? Thanks... Gary

Other ways to send large files is to get on Yahoo IM or Skype (both parties together) and send the file "live". It does not go through email. It is sent PC to PC. Yes, having a broadband connection helps. Usually, it works pretty well. Another way, is to use Dropload: http://www.dropload.com/ I have not used it personally, but my nephew has sent very large video files with it (up to 100mb). Gary...

Hi Lin... Thanks so much. I haven't had time to go through it yet but I will print it out and see how you do your puzzles. Much appreciated... Gary

Lin... Thanks for the instructions. I printed them out and I'll give them a try. I'm a little PTE'd-out at the moment. All these new features can get me into brain-lock!!!! Thanks much. Gary

thedom... I looked at what I did and I do have them as separate objects...if I understand it right. Here is what it looks like: Objects (10) Image1 Image2 Image3 (etc...) I have found that there is a difference in making the images as above versus subobjects: Objects (10) Image1 . . .....Image2 (etc...) But I really don't have a handle on why I would want to use one or the other method...yet. I just do something, and something happens.... When I click on an "Imagex", I just don't see what I should be seeing. Usually, nothing seems to be highlighted......very confused at this point. Gary

Lin... Yes, I see how to rename the images, now. I think you really have to do this as you add the images because it is not that easy to detect which image is which. I have also found that if you toggle the 'blur' choice on and off, you can double check that that is the image you are renaming. But I am not too successful on changing the 'Order' and highlighting a keypoint. When I highlight a keypoint, all the images are moving. I could not get it to allow resizing. The images just stayed 'glued' together. I'll have to take a break and work on it some more. I might have created my puzzle a bit different than yours so it might not be reacting the same as yours does. But thanks...I am inching along. Gary

oopppss.... Sorry, I thought the upload got there. It should work now. Thanks... Gary

Well.... I am getting a little closer to your technique...not that close, though. My big problem is that I don't know which image I am working on. In the 'Objects:' list, each one is named "Image". When I click on one of them, the specific image does not get highlighted. I did something....but still confused........ Second try: http://mysite.verizon.net/goddi1/birdpuzzle-2.zip Gary

Lin... Thanks, but your puzzle is much more creative. The Photoshop part was the easy part... I don't know how you got all the parts spinning around all at the same time. With my 'technique', I had to add in all the previous pieces to each piece's annimation. For example, for the 5th piece on the top row, I had to copy in pieces 1 - 4, and then animate the 5th piece. For the 6th piece, I had to add in pieces 1-5, and then animate the 6th piece. I really don't have a good understanding of an easier way of doing it but....at least I got something done. I hope the manual will be 'good for dummies'. Thank... Gary

Lin.... Yikes....!!!! I don't know how I did this but I finally got something to look like a puzzle with animaition. Was a good learning exercise. It is rough but my head was about to explode until I finally got the hang of it...sort of. Thanks for the push!!! Gary Added.... I thought I could attach the .exe file but not having much luck... Is it possible??? Let me see if this works... http://mysite.verizon.net/goddi1/birdpuzzle.zip

Load the action in PhotoShop and run it, adjust any parameters such as contour, outer-glow, texture, etc., to suit your taste then open the results in ImageReady and export the separate layers as PNG files. The rest is just import into P2E on separate layers, adjust the animations for each and you have a "puzzle" slideshow. Lin

Lin... It worked just fine on my PC. Neat stuff!!! In fact, I was trying to do a similar 'puzzle' last week but I could not figure out how to 'cut up' an image without going completely crazy. Can you tell us what software or method you used to create the puzzle pieces??? Thanks... Gary

Al.... Thanks for your patience. I am now smiling because I now got "the hang of it". I played around with a show with just one slide, added slides, and poked around using your instructions. I am always amazed that someone can write a program that includes stuff that I didn't even know that I would want to do. I think that is what makes it difficult sometimes to understand what some functions do. It is like someone trying to teach me new words but I have never seen what the words really represent. It takes a great leap...at least for me. Thanks... Gary

Al... It is really facinating to me that I can have a murky thought in the back of my head that needs to be clarified...and then someone puts some light on the thought and makes it clear and concise before and better than I did. Yes, that is exactly what was bouncing around my head. Thanks... Gary

Yikes!!!!!!!!!! I'd better get a new pair of bi-focals!!!!!!!!! Thanks... Gary

That is a great demo. Thanks very much for sharing it. I have a general question, though, that might help me understand how to get an understanding how you did this. When I fiddle around and move around some of the Keypoints to see what would happen, is there anyway to "Cancel" what I just did and return back to the original settings? I find that when I hit the "x", I have to close the program without saving. Don't see any way to just "Cancel." It would be nice to be able to just "Cancel" any changes made in "Objects and Annimation". Is there a way??? Thanks... Gary

Thanks, Al, I now, I think, get your second point on "Arrange All Points." However, when I de-select "View / Auto adding of new transition points ... " in the Timeline window, and add a slide to the slidelist, the new slide and its transition effect DOES display in the timeline. Obviously, I am missing something. But for now, I will just stay away from these choices. I don't think I am creative enough to dabble with these 'esoteric' commands.... Thanks much, Gary

Al, I feel I should be writing 100 times on the blackboard that "I am dense". However, I confess that I still do not grasp the difference between these 2 choices or when/why I should use them. 1- You stated "The difference is that if you have extra slides on the slide list, and have not yet added transitions to them on the timeline,...". How can there be 'extra' slides with no transitions? When I put slides in the Slide List, the transitions I chose from the Project Options/Effects, usually the Fade In/Out, have already been applied to all the slides in the Slide List and the Timeline. To test this, I changed the Effects for one slide from "Fade In/Out" to "Quick (no transition effect)." Then I chose "Arrange All Points" but the transition for that slide in the Timeline did not get change from "Quick" to "Fade..." as I thought it would. Since that slide was already "spread", I assume the only thing that "Arrange All Points" would do would change the transition from "Quick" to "Fade". But it did not. 2- You stated ""Add Arranged Points" will first add the additional slides to the timeline, and then spread them all evenly...". When I add a new slide to the Slide List, it is automatically added to the Timeline with its transition, without any need for "Add Arranged Points". I assumed that, in para. 4.7.1, in Jeff Evan's PDF, the "Auto Adding of Transition Points" has to be deselected for this to occur. However, when I deselected "Auto Adding of Transition Points" , and then added a new slide to the Slide List, the image automatically appeared in the Timeline with the Fade In/Out transition. So I still don't see what "Add Arranged Points" is supposed to do. Apologies for beating a dead horse. Gary...

Jeff.... Thanks so much for your reply and the PDF instructions. I have read them and they helped quite a bit. The thing that still puzzles me a little is the differences between: Add Arrange Points and Arrange All Points. It seems that both, whether the delete all points or not, will "add at equal intervals over the length of the music files." I am still missing something here, but I am way ahead of where I was. The PDF instructions were great. Thanks... Gary