Lin Evans

Here's a sample Geoff - just do it like this: http://www.lin-evans.net/geoff/geoff.zip Best regards, Lin

I still think the problem is with the transition. You "can't" get rid of the 3000 transition. No matter how you set it, it remains. Look at the timing on the first keyframe (the keyframe itself) - it's not zero even though it shows zero in the keyframe block. Set the slide to "quick, no transition". The transition remains at an indicated 3000ms (three seconds) even though the customize slide shows a setting of 1000ms (one second). Setting things to zero for transition then copy/paste slide results in no transition indicated. Remove the slide then move up the one with zero and the 3000 ms re-appears. Delete the one keframe at that point and it still remains. The timings will never be accurate as long as there is a bug with the transition time. Your "assumption" is that you have a 30 second slide when in fact you do not have a 30 second slide because of the incorrect transition time.... Look at your first slide. You have zero transition set yet there is a 1000ms transition indicated on the timeline???? On further reflection, I think this whole issue is related to the problem which will be addressed shortly where the PTE file is not being updated properly. You probably made multiple changes over time in your experiments and these changes were not properly updated in the PTE file resulting in any number of problems which show up as strange timings, transition times which will not delete, etc. Best regards, Lin

Hi Peter, I just looked at your sample and I think the issue is not the timing itself but rather the 3000ms transition which is causing the problem. It doesn't seem to want to be deleted and I've not yet determined why. It's quite easy to get the precise 15000 second timing. Don't try to slide the keyframe around but enter the value in the keyframe field instead. As it is right now, entering 14000 will result in 15000 at the keyframe because of the transition which amounts to about 1 second. The essence is that rotation stops at the beginning of the transition which is about one second before the 30 seconds elapsed time so the rotation at this time will not be as you expect. If the transition were deleted (quick, no transition) then the calculations "SHOULD" be correct. I'm perplexed as to why I can't delete the transition. I can set the customize slide function to "quick, no transition" then copy and paste the slide below and it has no transition. If I then remove the original with the transition and move up the copied slide which has no transition, the transition time again appears. Very perplexing...... If there is a bug, I think it's in the transition issue rather than the keyframe issue. I'll check further. Lin

Hi Peter, Back with version 5.0 I was trying to simulate video with PTE by decompiling a video sequence then playing back one frame at a time at high speeds. To better the typical video rate of 29.97 fps, I set the sequence to run at 20ms and the result was that it dropped frames. After consulting with Igor I learned that even though 4.x would easily do even 15ms, 5.0 would not go faster reliably than about 75ms to 100ms and really was designed more for 150ms between frames. The bottom line is that 25ms timings "may" be too optimistic for the video engine. I don't remember the technical reasons for this but I do remember that there is a way to create a "log" file using command line sequence which can reveal if a frame is dropped. I don't recall the syntax for this but I'm sure Igor can give you that if you email him. I'm not certain that this is your problem but I suspect it may well be. Best regards, Lin

Depends on whether you mean the "file name" or "slide number" but proceed as follows: Go to Project Options - Comments Tab and choose "insert template" (underlined in blue) then choose the appropriate template whether you want the actual slide name such as IMG304.JPG or the sequence number of the slide then click on "set for existing slides". Lin

Yes and no. You can combine the slides and animations, etc., but not the sound. The way you approach this is first decide which PTE show you want to add to the other and open that show. Go to the main slide list and select the slide or slides you wish to add to another show then right click and choose "copy". Next do not exit from the program but rather click on "file open" and open the show you wish to add to. Go to the main slide list and right click then "paste" and the two shows will be combined with the exception of the audio which you will have to do manually. Best regards, Lin

LOL - I have to double check everything in Braille myself to prevent seeing two of everything - getting old is hell, going blind is worse if that's possible! I guess I'm going to have to break down and wear the eyeglasses which were prescribed for me about 10 years ago if I can find them - HA! Lin

Hi Peter, Actually it is there in Jeff and my user guide on page 34: Best regards, Lin

Hi Connie, Once again, we need to see the results of the dxdiag on the "Display" tab. Make a screen capture and post it or email it to me at: lin@learntomakeslideshows.net There are a number of reasons why video may not be seen. If you will create a zip using the "file" "create backup in zip" and post the zip file we can see what's going on. This could be as simple as a driver update or a missing codec but to help you further it's necessary to know your system and driver information provided by dxdiag. Best regards, Lin

Hi Connie, I need the information from the "Display" tab of dxdiag to help you with the Video Builder issue. Best regards, Lin

Beautiful photos and presentation Igor! Nice to have the little "mice" patrol too!! Best regards, Lin

Hi Geo, Yes, that's correct. Your selected fonts must be resident on the computer on which the show is played or Windows will substitute its own font. If you want to avoid this then use the "Rasterize Text to PNG image" feature found under the "Properties" tab in the Objects and Animations section. By putting a checkmark in this block your text will be automatically converted to a PNG image and therefore be available to all PC's exactly as you create it regardless of which font you use. Best regards, Lin

Hi Connie, Please go to the start button then left click. Now left click on "run" and type in "dxdiag" (omit the quotations) and then click on O.K. After the diagnostic runs click on the System tab and report the findings then on the Display tab and report the findings. This will tell us about your hardware configuration and resources. It sounds as if perhaps you are trying to use larger images such as original captures from a digital camera which are exceeding your resources in terms of the video card and/or RAM. This all has to do with the problem of not seeing transitions (which is what I assume you mean by "conversions"). You may want to downsample a copy of your images for testing to something around 1024x768 and try the same PTE file with them and see what happens. As for Video builder giving you sound but no images, this could have several causes but first let's find out about your resources then we will address the video situation. Best regards, LIn

Hi Patrick, We would all love it if life were so simple (what you see is what you get) but, unfortunately, it is not. There is no way to have the features which the market demands and still make everything incredibly simple. What you seem to want is for PTE to remain as it has been for years rather than change. If Version 4.8, etc., is comfortable for you then there is no reason to use anything else. Others may enjoy the new capabilities, but to use some of these new features requires additional hardware resources. Other software programs also may be designed to use these resources and there are virtually unlimited software programs all sharing a common resource. When you go to the Cinema and see a new movie with special effects this did not happen without major changes in technology. Perhaps you do not care for special effects and are quite content with motion pictures as they were made in the 1950's. If so that is fine - everyone has a right to their own preferences - this is neither good nor bad - those are subjective terms. "Choice" is good. This is my subjective opinion. With PTE you have "choice". You "can" have everything as it was with older versions if you do not "choose" to avail yourself of the new features, or you can have the new features and learn to use them. You don't "have" to think about "child objects" or make esoteric calculations. You can leave things as in the default and let someone else make the choices for you if that's what you prefer, or use older versions of PTE where there are fewer choices. These new features are designed to give the author more control over the finished product. For some this is appreciated and others seem to prefer things to be comfortable. Such is human nature. What this thread is really about was really quite simple but we are straying far away from discussing the original question and using the opportunity as a "soap box" platform to address our preferences about everything "except" Igor's question. The place for these discussions is the thread "Ideas and Suggestions" not here where we were simply asked to discuss a single feature change. So what do you think about replacing "Original Size" with Igor's suggested change to specifying fixed pixel dimensions? Best regards, Lin

Hi Peter, It's definitely a bug in the creation of the PTE file. To test this I saved the project to a new file name and the need for a file named C-background.jpg still exists. I erased the file and got the same error you are getting. It doesn't matter what the "content" of the file - just a single pixel with the file name C-background.jpg will suffice but the program "wants" that file name. I suspect it may have to do with reading a cache but Igor needs to look at it. Best regards, Lin

Hi Patrick, What Igor is referring to is that when "original mode" is used with objects and people have either different screen resolutions than the one creating the show or when the resolution is changed by creating DVD, AVI, etc., the objects will not behave as expected. For example, I created a small animation of rainfall with a jet airplane crossing the sky and going in and out behind some clouds. The clouds were small PNG duplicates ovelaying the background clouds on the base jpg image. In the executable code everything worked perfectly as expected but when I created an AVI/DVD the cloud objects were displaced in position from their original place perfectly overlaying their counterparts on the background jpg. I had used "original" size for the png objects and "fit to slide" for the background jpg and cover png files. This in no way makes PTE more "difficult" it simply is a discussion about features which many may never use but which are important for users who choose to do fancy animations using PNG objects. I would agree with Xaver about PTE being much more akin to Wings Platinum and m.objects than Proshow Producer. I would have to disagree that Proshow Producer is "easier" to use. In fact, many things which can "easily" be done with PTE are quite difficult and some impossible to do with Producer and as you know the image quality isn't even remotely comparable. There is nothing preventing anyone from simply using version 4.8, etc., for producing slideshows - we have the best of both worlds. We have incredible power with PTE 5.5 and a relatively simple to use older version which isn't going away. I find the majority of the "problems" people are having with PTE 5.5, etc., stem from user error or misunderstandings not from program bugs. In fact, PTE 5.5 is one of the most stable of all presentation slideshow software availble. Producer is MUCH less stable than PTE. As power increases so does complexity and the need for one to thoroughly acquaint oneself with the user guide if they wish to avail themselves of the additional features and power. If the need is to only make simple, elegant slideshows with no fancy animations, etc., then that is easily accomplished with little need to study the documentation and experiment. What more could we ask for than the simplicity of 4.8 and the elegance and power of 5.5? We indeed have the best of both worlds and it just keeps getting better! Best regards, Lin

The Maid of the Mist are diesel powered boats which take passengers into the mist at the base of Niagara Falls. They go to the Horseshoe Falls area on the Canadian side of Niagara and the newer versions of the boats carry 300 passengers as seen below. This is an attempt to give a feel for the esperience without actually being there. It's a work in progress and the size (25 meg download) is much larger than it would have to be for the 1 minute duration of the repeating show but in due time when it's finished it will be evident why. Anyway a fun attempt to animate and show what it's like for the 300 passengers wearing blue rain ponchos crammed together for this unique experience. Here's the link: http://www.learntomakeslideshows.net/demos/niagara.zip and here's a closeup of the "Maid" used for the animation:

Incredibly cute, Herhey! Love Mojo and his "sidekick"! Lin

Hi Dom, Thanks for watching! Actually, it was done for my daughter who loves rodeo and competes in rodeo barrel racing so really not intended for a general audience which is why I warned "only for die-hard rodeo fans". That's why I didn't just put a few selections in a short slideshow. Best regards, Lin

It seems like this works except for the difficulties in coordinating your reaction time. I know of no way you can synchronize a single keystroke with both programs. Since you can precisely begin your sound and place it where you wish with the timeline in PTE I'm not cetain of the advantage of doing it this other way over looking at the precise nature of knowing to the fraction of a second where you are beginning and ending your sound. It seems like your method allows reasonably precise positioning of perhaps voice-overs into a single sound track with the background sound/music using Audacity, so in that way may be somewhat quicker than using individual slide "sound comment" or "customize this slide" in PTE, but I guess it's easier to get your timings for voice-over, etc., within a time frame of a single slide this way. Best regards, Lin

Hi MC, Yes, that's correct - your upgrade from 4.48 is free if you own an earlier version of PTE and you can purchase Video Builder separately for the difference in price between the deluxe and regular versions. Lin

Hi Gary, Here's a sample - quick and dirty....

Hi Gary, Video Builder is a purchased video "library" so perhaps there are some things which are not so easy to do as with one's own code. I don't know enough about the details of how it's incorporated to really give you a good answer. Developers often use what are called "libraries" which are code segments written by specialists in certain areas. These libraries are seamlessly integrated into a product and though modification and additions "may" be possible to some extent, it's not as easy as making changes to your own basic code so there may be technical reasons why this is more difficult than it may seem to implement. You have the ability to add as many as 99 different PTE projects (avi files, etc.) to a single DVD. To place more than one on your DVD you simply drag them down from the large (upper right) window into the smaller long horizontal window below. By creating a couple one page PTE "do nothing" files you could drag them down and include them with the file you wish to use for your DVD. For example. Create a PTE file with a single image just displayed for four seconds and save it. Create another perhaps identical with a different name and save it. What you then have will end up as two tiny files which if converted to DVD would just result in a four second display of a single image on a DVD. Drag down your main PTE show then drag down the two "dummy" shows. First move the two dummy shows thumbnail to an obscure location such as the far upper right corner. Set the display size to something like one pixel and the display to zero opacity for each. Use the little text which says 2 filename 3 filename for additional text lines with each having its own font and color and change the "2 filename," etc., to whatever you want for additional text. As long as the user doesn't click on the text (and they would have no good reason to do so) they would just serve as additional text lines saying whatever you wish. The arrow button then could be moved under the thumbnail to start and run the show you intend to the viewer to use. Yes, it's a bit "cludge" but a viable temporary "work around" until a better solution is found. Best regards, Lin

Hi Gary, You can have as many lines as you wish and up to two fonts by doing as you have now discovered (pressing ENTER after the first line) but also using the text which appears under the thumbnail image as your second font choice. This text may be moved anywhere, sized as you wished and fonts, colors, etc., selected independently of the main "text". The "button" is all you really need to run the show so put it under the thumbnail, etc. You could also "cheat" a little by adding a couple tiny avi files which do essentially nothing, setting the attribute for their images to zero opacity, moving the images off to a corner and resizing to a single pizel or so then modify their text (2 show 2 - 3 show three, etc.) to use a yet more text each with a different color and size. Obviously this isn't as "elegant" as having the features you want but it will "work" until those feature may someday be added. Best regards, Lin

That's the down side of any good image/file recovery system - it works against the protection formerly provided by executable files, but truthfully, there never really has been true protection from a dedicated thief. The only real protection is to limit the resolution of the images used in the original and, of course, that defeats the main strength of a PTE show. We must simply accept the fact that anything we put out there for public consumption is going to be vulnerable to theft. The best we can hope for is to keep the honest people honest and to not get too upset when we find our images stolen. It's happened to all of us who make our livings in photography and long ago I learned to stop fretting over things I can't control. Best regards, Lin