Lin Evans

Hi Bert, Whoever owned the link took it down, probably because of overload - LOL. Actually, the author of the animation, Joshua Held, also posted it on youtube so here's the alternate link: http://www.youtube.com/user/thenosesdotcom Lin

Hi Tom, I don't have a really "short" one, but I'll post the last show which really brings out the weakness. Give me a few minutes to make a link then I'll modify this post and put the link here... http://www.learntomakeslideshows.net/sample/fs.zip Link Above - about 16 meg.

Hi Igor, Yes, that's what I've concluded as well. It's primarily frame rate which at 29.97 fps (30) can't render the motion without either blurring or stuttering, especially when rotation is combined with mid-speed pans. I did try 1280x720 with 60 fps and it's very good but still has jerky movement on my rotates and pan rotate combinations. The movement I have programmed is a worst case scenario so just too much for the video to handle I think. It's been a learning experience to try to equal the executable, but so far not possible with this show. Best regards, Lin

I'm not sure what you are disagreeing with. I think you misunderstand me. It's not a PTE issue, it's a video issue. The HD video simply can't handle the rotate and pan smoothly regardless of the software used. I have about a dozen pieces of software which create HD video and "none" of them can make it look remotely like the executable. As for "professional" tools, I'm talking about tools used by the movie industry which cost many thousands of dollars not tools readily available to the consumer. Best regards, Lin

After tinkering with every imaginable way of creating high definition video I've decided that it simply doesn't compare with a good executable played by a system with a superior video card. Quick horizontal and rotational movement just doesn't render smoothly with video, at least with the video modes available to the consumer. I've tried custom with double pass encoding, 1080p high quality, varied the frame rates in every imaginable way and essentially getting smooth fast rotation and smooth horizontal movement when an object is rotating is not possible in my experience. One of the recent experiments with rotation and spinning of objects has convinced me that HD video, for the consumer at least, is best left to simple slideshows with transitions and minimal animation for superior results. Professional video (movies, etc.) have mastered getting smooth movement in every way, but apparently the tools they have are not available to the masses..... Lin

Fantastic animation and great stuff in general - Thank's Ken!!! Lin

Hi Dave, Though we agree that in general it's not a good idea to open, re-edit and save a jpg or mp3 file repeatedly because of file degradation, it becomes an issue of expediency and whether the degree of damage is important or not for the intended purpose, or whether the user elects to open an alternative version. Though some photographers work only with RAW files many of us save our work in low jpg compression (Photoshop 12 or equivalent) and archive that way on our main use hard disk for conservation of storage. With some of my cameras I shoot in RAW and keep the originals for subsequent manipulations and with others I shoot in JPG because there is little difference between the RAW and jpg. Not so with all cameras for certain. But what is the essential difference between keeping Audition open while using PTE and allowing an external program such as PTE to open it for you? The only relevant difference is that a file could be loaded by PTE but even that could be an option. It's certainly possible to have PTE open an external audio editor and make the tree structured folder path containing relevant files available (by reading the PTE path to the sound file) without loading a specific file. Then the user can choose whether to open an mp3, wave or other format. Best regards, Lin

Hi Peter, What I meant is that the "solution" was resolved in our discussions by saving under an alternate file name. The issue with doing that was having multiple PTE files which could be more of a problem than overwriting unintentionally so that solution was never implemented, at least as far as I know. Best regards, Lin

Hi Dave, Is it really any different in substance than clicking on an Icon and viewing a JPG in Photoshop or Irfanview, etc.? When we open a jpg in any image editor we have the option of viewing it, editing it and re-saving or closing and opening a different file. Is it really any different with opening an audio file? The use can opt to close an mp3 and open a wav if it's available. In many cases the user will not have a wav but only have the mp3 and still need or want to edit it or modify it in some way. In my own case I probably have a thousand mp3's and only a small percentage of these are duplicated as wav or other non-compressed audio formats. If I couldn't edit and re-save my mp3's for slideshows I probably wouldn't have any audio files in most of my slideshows. I almost never save the edited mp3 under the original file name so the originals are not affected by the manipulations which I think is good practice, but I do frequently modify mp3's, join several into a single file, add silence or other manipulations and resave the mp3's. Does it adversely affect the audio quality? Measurably, yes but not in a way that the listener could likely detect without sensitive instruments. Is it a common practice to alter an mp3 for a slideshow? I suspect it is and that most PTE users do this on a regular basis. So I suppose that one must weigh convenience versus "good or bad" practice in audio or image manipulations when deciding whether or not to implement a feature. In my own case I would find being able to open an mp3 in my choice of audio editor without leaving pte a convenience, however one still must close and re-open PTE before any changes would be evident. As a former programmer and commercial software developer, I often had to make decisions about whether a planned "feature" encouraged users to follow bad practices or not and it was not always an easy decision. I think making a feature "optional" with full disclosure of potential consequences is probably the best way to proceed. In some ways it reminds me of the "auto save" feature I lobbied for years ago with PTE. Auto save is a two edged sword. Many times I alter a slideshow for a limited special use and then save it under another name leaving the original unaltered. With auto-save there was the possibility that my original PTE file would be overwritten by an autosave before I had the chance to save under an new name. That issue was resolved by the autosave using an alternate file name and by the "choice" of implementing it or not by check-box. In the case of PTE automatically opening a choice of audio editor with the selected audo file open would that be useful? For me it would be, but I would want it optional and with full disclosure of potential file degradation issues. Best regards, Lin

http://www.emedialive.com/Articles/ReadArt...ArticleID=12157 Lin

Hi Dave, Absolutely correct. Once a file is degraded there is no recovery. On the other hand, having an automatic pointer to open an audio editor doesn't mean that one must alter an existing mp3, etc., it's only a convenience. Once the audio editor is open the user can choose the file to be edited, close any open files without saving, etc. It's somewhat like Windows setting file associations with various image editors for specific types of files so that when one click on an icon the file is opened with their choice of Photoshop, Irfanview, Fastone, PSP, etc. Best regards, Lin

Hi Dave, Actually, jpg's are decompressed every time they are displayed. It's not the act of re-compressing which causes degradation, the degradation is caused the first time they are compressed. Only when a "change" is made to the jpg and the file is again compressed is the image degraded. As long as there are no alterations, the act of decompressing and recompressing are harmless. Years ago, when computers had only small amounts of RAM, we used to play tricks on new programmers by compressing huge jpgs to reasonable sized files then watching the unsuspecting programmers squirm and scratch their heads when their systems locked up as the files expanded in memory to their full uncompressed sizes when the unsuspecting user tried to display them. Best regards, Lin

Hi Linda, It's not a PTE limitation - shows as large as 20 gigabytes have been created in MP4 so must possibly be VMWare issue. I am confused, however, about why you are approaching it this way. Why not just make a high definition MP4 directly from video builder which will play on your Mac directly? You don't need to make an uncompressed AVI at all, just make an MP4 and you can do it for a 4.5 minute slideshow in just a few minutes and the quality should be superb? Best regards, Lin

Hi Oscar, You're correct, it's limited to executable code and because disabling the program requires a change in the code by either reading the computer clock or altering a counting algorithm in the program it will only work on writable media so won't work on a read only drive and on rewritable media only when being played in a drive which permits writing to the media. Best regards, Lin

Hi Patrick, Beautiful images - makes me thirsty for fine French wine! Your settings are fine as you have them - show looks perfect on all our monitors at different resolutions. Best regards, Lin

Hi Bill, It's fun to mimic the weather here in Colorado. Recently we have had lots of white stuff followed by crystal clear nights, etc. Great time of year! Best regards, Lin

Hi Robert, Sometimes one feels like the "owl" but lately I fully understand the "mouse's" perspective - LOL. I will think on that possibility, maybe for the ornamental "spinner" which may me amenable to template creation and perhaps a modification of some sort for some of the other effects. The problem with these types of things are that they require the creation of disc shaped PNG's and this is pretty much subject dependent so though it would be easy enough to template the "effect," the raw material would be more difficult to automate. Perhaps I can talk Panos into creating a Photoshop/Elements action to at least semi-automate the creation of a PNG circular cut-out with a border of some time and minimal user intervention with standardized size which would make it much easier to template. Yes, the DVD labels were actually my "inspiration" for this latest "doodling"..... There can be some interesting effects by using a circular perspective such as you were going for in your "Turkey Football" show with the filter vignetting. As you mused, the degree of subtlety is always a consideration. Sometimes you need to hit the audience in the head with a concept and sometimes, depending on the audience, it can be quite subliminal I think. Best regards, Lin

Thanks, I loved the music too, but just "doodling" with the images for fun. Sometimes I get stuck in first gear and seem to spin my wheels on a concept - LOL. Best regards, Lin

Hey, that would have been cool! LOL... Lin

Sometimes - nothing to do with the end of year at hand and rampant aimlessness and stress creates a psychosis afflicting reason and sanity. This is mine ..... LOL - No rhyme, no reason but good music..... Madness.... Lin http://www.learntomakeslideshows.net/sample/madness.zip (17 meg)

What scared the bejesus out of my pit dog??? http://www.learntomakeslideshows.net/sample/WHAT!.zip Lin

Hi Steve, Betas, as you know, are for ferreting out bugs - use cautiously for production work until all known issues are resolved, especially when current beta is at 13 and you are seeing issues with relatively early beta. Many of us absolutely prefer superb quality executable shows, but the market demands online content such as Vimeo and Youtube. To keep up with market demands and continue to sell product it's necessary for the developers to serve both camps. As you know, without sales there can be no development and improvement so...... Best regards, Lin

Hi Bill, Well done! Beautiful and uncrowded scenic views and I love the friendly parrot! It looks like you had a great holiday there! Best regards, Lin