Lin Evans

I've been using Flash for some time to share P2E and Proshow Gold shows on the web. Windows has made some major improvements to their Media Encoder and I thought I would pass along what I've learned. The free Windows Media Encoder with take your AVI files produced with P2E and convert them to Windows compatible streaming slideshows. There are some real advantages and some disadvantages over Flash. First the disadvantages. Flash is compatible with both MacIntosh and Windows based computers, where the Windows Media Video (.wmv) format is only compatible with Windows based computers. Flash does a better job with smaller tighter code, but if you have broadband to upload, the Windows Media Encoder will produce a superior file especially at about 640x480. The streaming works very well I think and the Windows Media Player is usually defaulted to play the files though they can be played with other players such as IrfanView as well. Here's two samples. I would appreciate feedback to let me know how well it works. The first show is about 2 minutes long, is about 9 meg in executable format and about 42 meg the way I have encoded it with Windows Media Encoder. It should begin playing after a short buffering period but with normal broadband it should play very quickly. The second is about 63 meg and 4 minutes 50 seconds long. Both should stream without long delays. Click the links below: http://www.lin-evans.net/p2e/planets.wmv http://www.lin-evans.net/p2e/reflect.wmv Best regards, Lin

Hi Bob, Depending on exactly what you are using for a background, there are a couple ways to proceed. First, if you want a solid or gradient background, there is no need to use Photoshop at all, it can all be easily done in P2E. I'll explain a bit later. If you have a background which you want to use with each slide and you have previosly created this background in Photoshop and saved it as a jpg, bmp, png, etc., then you can do as suggested earlier and add it to each slide by making it the first image on the Objects and Animation screen. Let's start with the first possibility - that is use a background or gradient background. Open Project Options then click on the Screen Tab. Choose either Solid Color or Gradient Filling by clicking in the small circle. If you choose Gradient Filling you will have two colors to chose. The one on your left as you view the screen becomes the background and the one on the right becomes the gradient. So if you have bright blue on the left and black on the right you will get a blue screen which changes to blue/black either from top to bottom or from left to right depending on which you choose in the drop-down menu. This will be the same for each image on screen so all images which are smaller than your screen display size will have this background as a border around the visible areas extending to the edges of your display. Right now, the "tiled" option isn't yet enabled. If you want to use your own, then you go to the Objects and Animations screen, zoom the screen to a small percentage such as 10% so you see lots of grey outside the black area representing your monitor. Right click your mouse in the grey area far away from the balck and ADD the background file. This will default so that the background is on its own layer and in the FRONT. You don't want it in the FRONT but rather in the BACK so Right Click the Mouse on the background file in the Objects List then choose ORDER then SEND TO BACK (alternatively you can just select it and press SHIFT/PG DN. Do this for each slide. Beset regards, Liin

Translation - Rough - my Spanish isn't flawless - LOL - Lin Thanks to all for your answers. I have been trying to understand the manuals that I find, and even in the version Beta 5, already I can see the works and examples carried out. What I do not understand, because do not they explain in any of the manuals I have read, is how "to make" the effects. I have almost all the examples and I have been analyzing them. For example I use Memories on TV, Proshow Producer, and I find a lot of information that helps me. With the program Pictures To exe, I have been able "to transfer" some effects I've been able to do in Proshow Producer, but not with the great quality of the PicturesTo Exe Pictures to exe examples I've seen. It seems p2e is "spectacular" to work with and with better results. Excuse the modelers, but I prefer to write in Spanish, because it is easier to explain my problems in understanding. Greetings and Thanks.

Hola Silva, Morales (Morasoft) has offered to help translate the tutorials into Spanish once we get them written. We are waiting until Igor finishes version 5 to try to put together a collective and comprehensive tutorial. Check back shortly after version 5 is released and hopefully those of us who are creating tutorials and help manuals will have more information. We hope to convince a number of bilingual people to help translate these into numerous languages but it would not be wise to do this until the release version is ready. Best regards, Lin

Most excellent tutorial! It all works for me with the exception of the Dom's Action.SWF which seems to have been corrupted very shortly after the start. It simply stops well before it should so I suspect some issue with the file during the zip or such. Best regards, Lin

The Flash show requires that the Flash 8 player be installed. You probably don't have this enabled so go to the Macromedia site and just download and install the latest version (which I think is Flash 9) and this should work fine. Players such as IrfanView are only enabled up to Flash 5 or so. Also see Ken C.'s sucggestions for downloading flash players on other posts. I don't know why the AVI would play upside down and flipped - that's really strange but quite likely because you don't have the proper codec. This is one of the ongoing difficulties with AVI - there are so many codecs out there and trying to find one which is resident on everyone's system is a problem. On my first tutorials I used Cinepak codec by CTi and on later ones I used DIVX Pro. I suspect the one you are having problems with is the Cinepak codec. That's why I made that one tutorial in both Flash and AVI for maximum compatibility. Best regards, Lin

Hi Gary, Let's start with the second part of your question. Yes, the data rate and other issues do make a difference, especially when the AVI is played back at higher resolutions and not over the web. The settings that affect image quality are: Frame rate (the number of frames captures per unit of time - usually per second). Whether "progressive" or "interlaced." The interlaced mode is designed to accommodate broadcast television where the image is created by tracing one scan "line" at a time and skipping every other line on the first pass then returning to "fill in" the missing lines on the second pass. For example, in the United States, the NTSC standard calls for 525 lines and 60 cycles (Hz) per second. This means that lines 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, etc., are traced from left to right (as you view screen) then when line 525 has been traced the electron beam quickly sweeps back to the beginning and traces lines 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, etc. The persistence of the phosphor triads when excited by the electron stream from the CRT is long enough that we see minimal flicker so this "interlaced" method works pretty well. But on a high quality LCD or CRT on a computer, the "progressive" mode (lines 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, etc.) trace produces a cleaner image with less flicker and is preferred. I'm not sure why you are not seeing some difference in the playback when choosing different parameters, you definitely "should" see differences. Codecs (compress/decompress) algorithms resident on your computer account for different choices on the "Create Custom AVI" menu. There are numerous codecs and whenever you install new software you may be adding to the list. You can also download free codec "packs" such as the "ACE Mega Codecs Pack" where you can install as many as you wish. As far as which are "best" - the answer varies according to your intended use. Some codecs compress more than others so are preferred when trying to minimize file size for the web, etc., Some compress very little and for playing on a computer, compression isn't a big issue. Generally, the Microsoft MPEG 4 video codec is considered one of the "better" for image quality, but the DivX Pro codec is also quite good and has many, many quality "settings". The purpose for having different data rates, bitrates, etc., is to facilitate being able to play the files over a limited bandwidth medium such as the web. If the datarate exceeds the ability of the connection to feed the data to the computer via the web, then the show will stall, start, stop, etc. Those with broadband may be able to play fairly high datarate shows, but dial-up connections will be overwhelmed. For playback directly from a hard disk, CD or DVD on a computer, fast datarates are fine and there is no sacrifice in image or audio quality by choosing even an uncompressed mode. When you post you shows on the web, whether AVI, MPEG I/II or Flash, you must use a fairly low bitrate so as not to overwhelm either the storage capacity or load time or cause the viewer to have to wait for lengthy periods as the show downloads. Because of this, the quality will necessarily be compromised. At best, the DVD quality is significantly under the quality of an executable show because the resolution must be compromised to fit the "standard" being used. Best regards, Lin

Since it's easy with ImageReady to export layers as files (but not crop) there is no real advantage to any script which does not actually crop the PNG's created, so the second one has little advantage except saving the step of switching to ImageReady to export. The first one appears to do as explained when I tested it with a text file created in transparency on Photoshop CS, but I can't get it to work with the Panos puzzle action. I first tried it with a 56 piece puzzle thinking it would create separate files, but it wouldn't work. Then I used ImageReady to export the 56 piece (actually 48 pieces because of the aspect ratio) puzzle to separate PNG files. I then opened the first one and the script promptly allowed me to export a cropped version, but when I opened the second piece and attempted to perform the same script it successfully cropped the second piece but overwrote the first with the same file name, to to be effective one would have to have a separate folder for each piece. I then tried a four piece puzzle thinking that perhaps 48 pieces were too much (I ddn't actually try reading the Java code to see how it works) and it wouldn't recognize the four pieces as separate layers. I'm not certain what the issue is. Have you tried the original script (the one which is incompatible with CS) after creating puzzle pieces with the Panos Action? Just curious if it recognizes the separage layers. Best regards, Lin

Hi Manfred, Which one of the tutorials are you having difficulty with reproducing? If it's the Cube Creation, then perhaps you don't have the 3D plugin? I have versions 5, 7, and CS presently on my development computer so if you let me know which issue you can't reproduce perhaps I can test it for you. Best regards, Lin

Hi Jill, Perhaps I'm interpreting this incorrectly, but I think having the option of a different name in the "Objects" list (different from the true file name) is a good thing. Frequently one might want to include the same file (object) multiple times in the Objects list and assigning independent names facilitates ease of picking the correct one from the many possible duplications. Remember back on the original beta when everything in the Objects list was named "object1" "object2" and we had to rename using the Properties Tab? Perhaps I'm confused by what you mean by "file list"? Do you mean the actual Windows list of files found on the left side of the screen in the "Classical View"? Perhaps what's confusing me is the need to rename the object in the "file list", if that's what you mean by it. Why can't you just rename the object in the Properties tab on the Objects and Animation screen? My guess is that when you rename a file on the "file list" a duplicate is being created if that file already exists in the slide list? Best regards, Lin

I've found syntax (primarily object spelling) errors at lines 172, 280, 329, 395, 484, 585. 663 amd 751 and corrected them, but there are other issues which are apparently incompatible with CS. I'm not a Java programmer so can't proceed further. After correcting the syntax errors and removing line #7 as a test, the code stopped at line 8 on the parse with yet another unrecognized command error so I think someone who speaks Java will have to take it from here - LOL Best regards, Lin

The major difference is the choice to crop the PNG's to remove the excess transparency and the fact that you don't need to leave Photoshop. Best regards, Lin

Hi Granot, Certainly you can "save" the reversed file - I just did it! It's a free evaluation, download and test it for yourself! You can convert from AVI to MPG, etc., - very powerful program! If you post a link to a short clip, I will reverse it, save it, and post a link to the changes. Make it reasonably small such as 600x800.... Here: I reversed a quick AVI which I used a screen video capture to make. I reversed it and exported the reversed file as an MPG. It's very easy..... Link to two zipped files. http://www.lin-evans.net/p2e/test.zip Best regards, Lin

Hi Dom, There may be some incompatibility with Photoshop CS - I get this error message: Lin

Isn't there one more step? I think you must rename the file because if you download after opening the link you end up with an html and if you save as you end up with a .txt extension?? I just tried it but can't get it to work with layered files even after renaming. Do you have to have the "Script Listening" plug-in installed to make it work?? Looks good though - THANKS! Best regards, Lin

Hi Granot, I couldn't play a video with te software so couldn't check what "mirror" actually does. So what you want to do is reverse the clip? That is play the last frame first followed by next to last, etc., so you end up with the last frame first? If so I found this: http://ali.apple.com/callas/crs_imovie2/9_...ing2/page2.html This is apparently a MacIntosh program and I haven't been able to find out if it's available in Windows format, but I doubt it. Vegas Movie Studio 6 lets you reverse an "event" so apparently you can play selected segments backward. Here's a jpg capture from the help menu.... http://www.lin-evans.net/p2e/reverse.jpg I just tested it and it will indeed reverse the clip and play frames from last to first. You can also reverse audio or not...... but it just occurred to me that I'm not clear exactly on what you want to happen? If you will post a link to an mpg or avi file you want reversed, I'll "reverse" it in Vegas Movie Studio and save it and post a return link for you to see if it's indeed what you are looking for. I don't know whether Vegas Movie Studio has an evaluation or not.... Best regards, Lin

Yes, I'm wrong about that - it hasn't yet been activated as of Beta 5.... Best regards, Lin

Hello Luc, Still in Beta - Version 5 has not been released and there are still many features not yet implemented in the beta version. Right now is beta 5 and there will be at least beta 7 before version 5 is completed. You can use transparent background PNG files created in Photoshop or other software to do amazing text effects with beta 5. There have been numerous tutorials written on how to add and use text effects. Go to theDom's web-site for links. Look up theDom on the search engine here on the forums or just click on any of his links. I have written tutorials myself in audio-visual format as well as in PDF format so there is plenty of information about how to do this available. The best way to put background and voice is to use MP3 format for your background. Add it by clicking on the Project Options, Music, then Add Music. It's best to put your voice over by using the Custom Slide feature to add the voice. If you want you "could" use Audacity (find it free on the web) to combine voice over with music and make a single MP3. You can add multiple MP3's by just using the Project Options just like in the release version (4.xx) of PicturesToExe. Look at some of the slideshow samples linked here or on Beachbrook to see what can be done with the beta versions. You can see some samples from the "Slideshow Demo" link on my site at: http://www.lin-evans.net These are in zipped executable format. Just clilck on the picture next to the description to download the zipped executable. Best regards, Lin

This is just a very brief addendum to the previous AVI tutorial on how to create the StarWars text effect. Previously I took the viewer through the creation of text in Photoshop, the addition of the Layers Blending Options effects of Drop Shadow, Bevel, Contour, etc., then the use of the Warp Text tool to give the spread at the bottom compressed at the top appearance with a slight "laid back" look. I neglected to say that it's possible to then apply some perspective distortion to the then finished text, so this brief AVI is just designed to show the user how to select and use the Free Transform tool to give the text yet some more "laid back" perspective. For those who are already familiar with the Free Transform use this will be rhetorical and un-necessary, but for those who are unfamiliar with using this tool or who haven't already looked at the "How to Make a Photo Cube" tutorial, this may be helpful. Here's the link: http://www.lin-evans.net/p2e/starwarsaddendum.zip Best regards, Lin

You "may" have some bad RAM on your Video card. If you download my puzzle tests and run them and can't run the second one, it's almost certain that the issue is RAM. You have plenty of RAM and an excellent video card (The 9800 Pro is an outstanding card) and it "should" run any P2E show without difficulty, but if there is a defective RAM chip it may be causing this problem. Here's a link. Download both these and run them. The smallRAM program will run even on a 32 meg video card but the large RAM model taxes even my 9800 Pro card as well as Igor's card. It should run fairly smoothly, but if you have bad RAM between zero and 128 meg it will show up. The second link below is to the large RAM model. The center piece in the front which circles around and around will be slightly "jerky" on a decent working video card. The sound will begin several seconds before the image on this one. http://www.lin-evans.net/p2e/puzzlesmallRAM.zip http://www.lin-evans.net/p2e/puzzle.zip Best regards, Lin

Hi Angie, That sounds like Roxio can't use the codec you used to create the AVI file. Do you remember when you created the "Custom AVI" which video codec you chose? Can you open P2E, load any p2e file then go to Video, Create Custom AVI then click on Video Codec and write down the available codecs then report back? I suspect either you took the "default" which is the P2E codec which is only a template for encoding audio and informing one of the supported burn programs, or you chose a video codec which Roxio doesn't understand. There are a great number of free codecs available and all of them are not supported by software such as Roxio LTE which comes with many DVD burners. The one which you should use is Microsoft MPEG 4. If you don't have this one listed, then you should download and install the free ACE Mega CodecS Pro pack here: http://www.soft32.com/download_3916.html Lin

Hi Granot, I downloaded Blaze Media Pro thinking I might be able to help figure out how to make it reverse video but the evaluation copy immediately reported that my "15 day trial had expired" - LOL - the fastet 15 day trial on record I suppose. I have emailed the company asking for help and will let you know when they respond and if I can get an evaluation copy to work so I can perhaps help figure out what you need to do. best regards, Lin Hi Again, They sent me an "extension" so I can open the program, but I can't get it to show any video so I can't "test" this, but the way you are supposed to be able to get it to reverse a video is: Open the program - Open the Video Editor from the File menu - Load your file - go to Transform - choose Mirror then save.... Lin

Hi Dom, Try downloading and using the evaluation copy of Screen Recorder Gold: http://www.capture-screen.com/ I had Camtasia's demo on my computer but erased it when I bought Gold so I can't test it on my system. Gold seems to work fine for doing this (the O&A windows) but these screen recording tools are all a bit different in my experience. I also purchased AutoScreenRecorder 2.1 Pro, and it won't allow me to start P2E from my Windows desktop, but does fine if I wait until after starting P2E to start the recorder. When I first bought Gold, it had a bug which wouldn't read my codecs so I contacted the developer and explained that all my other screen capture programs I was testing worked fine in that respect. The developer of Screen Recorder Gold also make another screen recorder program called "Hero" which also wouldn't work. The developer fixed the problem and promptly notified me and I downloaded the program again and it works fine now. It's an inexpensive program without all the bells and whistles of Camtasia so you can't do any video editing (but most of us have other software to do that anyway) or produce SWF files, etc., but it does seem to produce really nice AVI's and now reads all the codecs. It also has the red circle for mouse click that you asked about. It's strange that Camtasia doesn't see the O&A window, but it doesn't surprise me because there is lots going on at the system level and it seems that no two of these screen recorders work in exactly the same way. Best regards, Lin

The red and blue circles (left and right mouse click) are part of the Screen Recorder Gold program: http://www.capture-screen.com/ The larger black and white circle is a feature of the software which came with my wireless mouse (Hewlett-Packard). If you go to "Control Panel" "Mouse" "Pointers" you probably have a number of options for your mouse. One of these on my system is to allow dedicating the "Ctrl" key to create the circle effect whenever you depress it. Best regards, Lin

Hi bjc, Yes, I was wondering whether you used the XY axis at all in P2E but couldn't tell exactly. The way you have done it is a superior method because it doesn't require using extended edges on the turning page and actually truly effects the perspective changes throughout the image rather than just simulating it by masking the edges. Fortunately, few have truly observed carefully the legitimate effect and studied the entire image so this goes largely unnoticed in the deception by the majority I think. It would be nice were the capabilities inherent in p2e but there are so many more things Igor has yet to accomplish that perhaps this may be later considered for some future upgrade edition. Best regards, Lin