Lin Evans

Hi Roger, Thanks! This song was only released on his Wildlife Concert Album which was recorded live. John wrote this about Olaus and Mardy Murie. Mardy was a great conservationst who did as much for preservation of Alaska's wilderness as perhaps anyone ever. Mardy and John were friends and when she lost her husband, Olas, John wrote this. You can read about Mardy's work here: http://www.muriecenter.org/ Best regards, Lin

Thanks Greg, He was a great singer and lyricist as well. Best regards, Lin

http://www.learntomakeslideshows.net/debbie/asongforalllovers.zip (zipped PC Exe file about 3 meg) Lin

Hi Xaver, I doubt if there are any members - senior or otherwise - who "make" people believe that technical applications of PTE are in any way "the high art of AV." I believe that the tool is used by forum members for a variety of purposes which include, but are certainly not limited to serious Audio Visual presentations. Each user of PTE has their own purposes and individual preferences in creating a slideshow or a demonstration. Some of the forum members are perhaps qualified to critique the finer points of Audio Visual presentations via their experience with shows and "contests," while others have no relevant experience in that arena. I would place myself in the later category. I can only comment on what I like or dislike about a particular presentation, and I never try to give advice where my advice would only be "opinion" and have no real value to the presenter. I think there are a sufficient number of forum participants who do give critical commentary to help those who have an interest in improving their skills in AV presentations. There are also a sufficient number who are willing to lend their experience and skills in helping those who are interested in "technical aspects" which some forum visitors and regulars seem to want to learn. I believe that we must keep in mind that not all users really "care" about the fine art of AV creation and presentation. Some only want to create simple displays of their photography for family and friends while other simply like to "play" with ideas and use PTE as an enjoyable hobby pursuit. The nice thing about this very fine tool is that it has appeal to many different people for many different reasons. As I've said in the past - I think those who post links to their presentations should indicate whether or not they welcome critical commentary. If there is no indication from the poster that he/she wants "advice" about how the presentation could be improved, then responders should limit their comments to perhaps whether or not they "enjoyed" the presentation. A lack of response would simply indicate non-interest. If each of us who regularly use the forum, would lend their own skills to helping those who "want" help to achieve their goals, then everyone might benefit. Of course it would be useful if one could be certain that the "teacher" actually had the skills they were offering others. This could be demonstrated by having each post some of their own demonstrations and work so that others could see the results and know that the advice they were getting was valid. I'm reminded often of certain photography forums I've visited for years where some of the most critical people who tell others what's wrong with their photographs have never posted one of their own for critical commentary. I've always believed that the "proof is in the pudding." As an example, I would never take "lessons" from a martial arts instructor who couldn't put me down quickly. I want to "know" that what I'm being taught is valid and not just someone's considered opinion. Just my thoughts...... Best regards, Lin

Hi Mary, The "start" time actually is the amount of audio you want to "omit." from the beginning of your audio selection. For example, let's say you had a three minute audio and you wanted to start it at the two minute position. You would then set the start time for 120 seconds and the audio would play the last minute of the song or voiceover, etc. I know - it's a bit confusing. But the thinking is like this: WHEN do you want to Start the playback along a timeline from beginning to end. If you think of it like that, it makes more sense. The "offset" determines when you want the "beginning" of your musical or sound track to start. The start time determines how far along in the playback you want it to begin. You can also alter the end time and functionally "cut" or stop a sound playback before the end. You can also fade in, fade out, cross fade and use the envelope feature to create volume level changes or actually kill the sound for any period of time during playback, then bring the sound back. You may want to watch these videos: http://www.picturest...ls-by-1colibri/ The above series of four videos was done by one of our French PTE users (Jean Claude) and are very helpful. I've got to go to that section and slightly modify the title because it is somewhat confusing since it refers to "streaming videos." Actually, the "streaming videos" are AVI format tutorials on "Audio"..... Best regards, Lin

Hi Mary, You go to the "Music" tab in the Project Options. Put in an "Offset" equal in time to the running time of slide one. This will hold the start of the music for the duration of display of slide one and begin it with your second slide. Best regards, Lin

Hi Sheila, It was back in 2009 in November, I believe, when I made the demo. I dug it up and emailed you a link. I doubt that your 3-D spatial awareness is really a "problem" - more likely it's just that girls generally grow up playing with dolls, learning arts like cooking and knitting, etc., and and concentrating on those areas of life and nature which are traditionally the female domain; while boys grow up taking things apart and playing with mechanical toys. Since our orientation begins differently because of our culture, guys tend to spend more time fiddling with numbers, measuring things and seeing how they work. I believe that all of us are fairly equal in "potential" for visualization, it's just that we don't all spend the same amount of time "practicing" that skill. If you want to see a man scratch his head in disbelief, try introducing him to an art such as complex knitting stitches, etc. I believe that with practice, you could visualize in three dimensions as well as anyone. One way to approach this is to make paper or cardboard cut-outs and play with them until you acquire a "feel" for how things will look when they are assembled. Another area which can help is to study origami. It is true that we differ in the extent of use of our right or left hemisphere, but I doubt it is, in general, genetic in nature, but rather more an acquired difference. Obviously, there are genetic components, but my own studies into this area tend to make me think that environmental issues are far more important. Best regards, Lin

Hi Sheila, Yes, it can be done. It's not terribly difficult but may be easier to "show" you rather than try to "tell" you how it can be done. Here is a link to a little demo I did quite a while back which uses a variety of cube and pyramid type constructs. If this looks something like you have in mind, email me and I'll dig up the PTE file and link you to it so you can examine the construct. email to: lin@learntomakeslideshows.net http://www.learntomakeslideshows.net/sample/alleycat1080.zip Best regards, Lin

Hi Igor, The bottom line is that it will be virtually impossible to have a single product (PicturesToExe) which has all the needed features and bells and whistles for the advanced user, yet is "simplified" for the casual user or beginner. To try to greatly "simplify" a complex product will ultimately result in the destruction of the very utility and power which makes PTE the "choice" of the professional AV user. It seems to me that the solution cries for two products: PicturesToExe Lite and PIcturesToExe Pro. Just like we have Photoshop and Photoshop Elements, Premier Pro and Premier Elements, etc., we need PTE Pro and PTE Elements. One product for the casual user with an upgrade path to the more sophisticated and powerful product which, I believe, should eventually be "linked" to the primary features of PixBuilder in an integrated fashion. Just a thought.... Best regards, Lin

Now yet - you can "mute" the sound, but PTE 7.0 is only in early beta version - perhaps in the future..... Best regards, Lin

Hi Barry, I have a similar problem with MOV from my camera, but I don't believe this is strictly a PTE issue, but rather perhaps a system or possibly software conflict. Try going to "Properties Tab" in Objects and Animations - click on the video to be sure it's selected then click beside "Don't include file to EXE". Create your executable and place the video in the same folder with the exe file and see if this makes a major difference. I'm betting that when you do this the MOV file at HD will play perfectly. The problem is yet to be resolved - but something is different on your system, my system and Igor's system. He doesn't have this issue with MOV files inside an executable on his system so the "cause" of the jerky response is yet to be determined. Best regards, Lin

Nice one Jeff, I've always enjoyed your productions in the past and love the way Sammy poses for you - but dang, now you've gone and trained him to get you to pose too, and it looks like he's learned to press the shutter - LOL. Really great solitude and perfect choice of background music. Nice job on the sunset and video at the end! Best regards, Lin

Hi Eric, Wow! Great grandson - that's pretty amazing. He's a fine looking baby. He has rather large and strong looking hands; he'll probably make a good sailor! In a few years you can teach him the ropes - er - lines that is - LOL... Nice family production - I like the ending and the music is a perfect fit. Best regards, Lin

Hi George, Right now, mpeg-2 works really well with the beta. You can get a decent, inexpensive converter to convert your AVCHD or m2ts to multiple formats including mpeg-2 for about $35 here: http://www.alivemedia.net/hd-video-converter.htm Best regards, Lin

Whoa Davy, I'll never see mermaids in the same light again - LOL Good one! Lin

Hi Derek, I don't believe that ProShow is "rubbish" at all, but there are significant differences between Proshow Producer and PTE. Which is "better" for one's purpose depends a great deal on what one is trying to achieve. PTE has, without a doubt, the ability to output better "quality" images in high resolution. It also has significant features which are not available in Proshow. Whether these features are important for the individual purpose depends a great deal on what the user wants to achieve. Let me try to list the essential differences so you can make an intelligent decision about which works better for your own purposes. First: What Proshow has that PTE doesn't: The ability to use multiple types of files in addition to jpg, png, bmp and gif. Proshow supports a huge number and types of file formats including /RAW files from digital cameras (with proper codecs, etc.) and also supports layer files directly from Photoshop. Proshow outputs to a much greater diversity of media such as BluRay, SVCD (video disc), XVCD (video disc), XSVCD (video disc), CVD (video Disc) and MiniDVD (video disc) Proshow has numerous "styles" available which make fancy show creation easier and more automated than PTE. It also has significantly more fancy text effects than PTE and offers the user the option of changing and adjusting the image right within the program itself. You can have sepia, black and white, color, etc., all without going to your favorite image editor. For some applications, this makes it a very useful tool. The down side of all these "features" is that along with great complexity comes numerous interaction "bugs" which forever plague the user. It's simply not the most stable software around, but when it works properly it is quite powerful and quite useful. Second: What PTE has that Proshow doesn't First PTE has Hardware Rendering. This means that the video card does much of the work of manipulating internal image creation and display leaving the CPU free to do other things. PTE animations are smoother by far than those done with Proshow. PTE has infinitely more powerful features for dealing with animation than Proshow. For example, the simple task of off-center rotation which can be done in seconds with PTE is a nightmare to try and achieve with Proshow. With PTE you just click and drag the center for rotation where you want it. With Proshow you have to try to calculate numeric coefficients and this generally involves a tremendous amount of "trial and error" and then you rarely get satisfactory results. With PTE you have the incredible power of parent/child relationships. This allows animations not possible at all with Producer. With PTE you have smoothing, sharpening, mip-mapping, anti-aliasing, internal mask creation, much more flexible motion control such as linear, non-linear, fast, slow, smooth, etc., all of which can be manipulated by the knowledgeable user to achieve motion effects simply not possible at all with Producer. With PTE you have a HUGE advantage with 3D transforms. This feature which can be applied to not only still images but also to videos allows three dimensional effects in two dimensional space. It allows you to create reflections, invert, do horizontal or vertical "flips" on images and create effects far out of the reach of Producer. PTE has far superior keyframe features. Producer's keyframe's are awkward and difficult for people to use. PTE has superior text quality with auto conversion to PNG if you wish and with much more control over shadows, etc., than Producer. PTE just doesn't have the fancy text effects such as drop letters, flying text, etc., which are available with Producer. But with PTE you can do things with text which are impossible with Prosucer because the 3D transforms are also available for text. PTE supports many more "layers" than possible with Producer so that amazing animation can be programmed. PTE loads video much, much faster than Producer because Producer converts all videos to its own format with no option to do otherwise. PTE will have the "option" of converting video to its own best format, but also as is now the case with beta versions, you can omit this step and video loads practically instantly. Essentially, the differences are that PTE is more like a nuts and bolts tool which lets you be the driver. Producer is like a Mac Truck with an automatic transmission while PTE gives you a 16 speed manual transmission with two speed rear axle and all wheel drive. Producer is "easier" for the novice user to use to make a fancy slideshow with little knowledge, but PTE has all the tools for those who want to really learn to "drive" to have far superior end results. Now the coup de grâce, PTE has free upgrades for life on the main program and a two year, very reasonable upgrade policy on Video Builder. Producer has "finally" lowered their prices to what the market will bear (they originally tried to sell it for over $500) but it still costs you around $200 and their yearly "upgrades" cost you more than PTE with Video Builder! The above is solely my take on it and in no way reflects any "official" attitude.... Best regards, Lin

Thanks you, Howard, That was a beautiful tribute, and one which I'm certain Peter would greatly appreciate were he able to watch. Who knows? He may very well have seen it. He will be greatly missed by all, not only for his charm and wit, but also his ability to produce poignant and stunning AV's, and write meaningful sonnets making even the mundane interesting and thought provocative. As your images clearly portray, Peter had many friends and relatives who gave him a lovely "send off" on his journey to the next great adventure which someday awaits us all. Best regards, Lin

Hi Fred, Glad to see you back! Actually, you download the beta from this forum - here: http://www.picturest...deluxe-70-beta/ Igor updates this link with the latest betas as they become available... Best regards, Lin

Cool system!! TIger changes their stripes so fast, this is "no longer available" per their search engine - LOL. That's a really neat system and should keep you busy tinkering with software installation and such for a few Heineken's worth of pleasure! Looking forward to hearing how it fares with video and such as time goes on. Best regards, Lin

Hi Dave, Actually, I've already done that. This is a new issue with an MOV which didn't come from my camera. I "wish" I had a smaller example, but this is the only one I have... Best regards, Lin

Hi George, To do this would require you to place the same image in the slide list two times. The first time on Objects and Animations, the slide to come from behind would be in the layer underneath the first image. Then use a "quick, no transition" to go to the second slide where you must match the "position" and "zoom" where the first slide left off, but have the slide which came from "underneath" as the top layer so that when it goes back to the original position, it will lie on top of the one which it came from underneath on the first slide. When properly matched and coordinated with identical zoom and pan numbers, this will appear as if it were all done on the first slide. There is no way to "change layers" during slide display on a single frame so it must be done as described above. here's a link to an example - this done with Beta 3 so be sure you use it to load. This is the PTE file so create a folder, extract the content of the zipped file in that folder then load the PTE file with beta 3 and you can see how to do this. http://www.learntoma...emo/example.zip here's a zipped exe example: http://www.learntoma.../exampleexe.zip If you wanted to add a tiny bit of "realism" to your animation, then adjust the "y" axis in Objects and Animations for the image which is moving about 8 degrees positive via keyframe just before it begins the "return" trip to cover the original slides. Be sure to set it back to zero as it covers the slide via keyframe. Best regards, Lin

Hi Igor, Still finding issues with MOV files. I'm emailing you a link and explanation for a large MOV file which plays perfectly well on Irfanview and other players, but is reported as "Image not found or damaged" in PTE Beta 3. Also, I'm having similar difficulties with some AVI files which play fine in other players but reporting identical "Image not found or damaged" in Beta 3. I suspect if you find the answer to the MOV issue in the file I'm linking to in my email, you will also have solved the AVI issue. Best regards, Lin

Hi Kim, I "think" you may have some confusion about Keyframes. If I'm correct, what you need to do is when you first open your slide in Objects and Animations view, a keyframe (little blue box at the start of the timeline) is automatically generated. For example, you want to zoom in on an area of your slide. So you "create" another keyframe further on the timeline and click on this new keyframe "before" zooming your image. Once the new keyframe is selected, then zoom the image. Now, to zoom back to where you started, create yet another keyframe further to the right on the timeline and click on it. Next zoom back to the same size (see values for zoom in the little boxes) where you started. Your image will then, over time, zoom in and then zoom back out. For rotate, the same thing must happen. You must create a second keyframe. Click on this new keyframe and change the rotate. The image will then rotate this number of degrees and direction "between" the times for the first and last Keyframe. Best regards, Lin

Hi John, On your question: A year or two was the last report on a full MacIntosh version. It turns out to be very complex and its necessary for the development team to learn an entire new language and port PTE to that new language in order to create a unified product serving both the MacIntosh and Window user. On your assumption: There is no "audio fiasco"... Many new and very useful audio functions have been added if you just take the time to learn to use them. I would suggest looking for the audio tutorials posted by Jean-Claude Colibri. There seems to be a broken link right now, but he has a series of four very good tutorials on audio which I hope with appear again soon. It's now possible to have multiple audio tracks, add audio to individual slides or via "comments" - expand and contract a sound envelope, use offsets, determine start and stop times, fade-in-fade-out. One has complete control over volume with audio and with the envelope it's possible to adjust that volume in real time. With the envelope one can easily insert one or more tracks into any position along the time-line, etc. It's quite powerful in my opinion. The major thing which remains is to help with user understanding. It might also be useful to have an overarching visual waveform showing multiple tracks simultaneously. As time goes on there will be continuous improvements in audio function just as there have been with visual function. Best regards, Lin

LOL - That will teach me to look at the "handle" as well as the first name - I confused you with Maureen Albright who has been under the weather the past few days.... We have two talented "Maureen's" from the U.K. here.... Best regards, Lin