bjc

wideangle, There is no doubt that the video editing capabilities of CS6 should not be ignored. That of course is dependent on what capabilities you are after. If basic file format conversion and file length cropping are all that you require, then CS6 is not really needed. If you would like to have the additional option of ALL the modifications made possible by conventional Photoshop Layer techniques / the use of Masks / Adjustment Layers etc. etc. etc ~ with the added functionality of being able to 'animate' those Layers, Masks and Adjustments (position / opacity / visibility etc) then CS6 offers all these extra features and more. If you are up-to-speed with Photoshop ~ using Layers / the use of Adjustment Layers / and Masks etc ~ then there is very little else you will need to learn when 'tweaking' a movie in CS6 (apart from understanding the use of the 'timeline' if you wish to include the animation of your various elements). CS6 takes your video editing possibilities and control to a whole new level ~ which is FANTASTIC !! ~ but only if that is what you want to do ~ otherwise it's just overkill. bjc

Thank you Brian ~ I wasn't aware of this know issue, and you have explained it well ~ it,s easily overcome by pre-converting, as you have suggested ~ thank you again for your clear explanation. Yachtsman1 / Peter / Xaver ~ thank you for your input. bjc

Hi Xaver, Please forgive me for being a tad thick ~ but 'VLC media player' doesn't ring a bell with me ~ however, the original files DO play correctly in Window Media Player (etc.etc.) bjc

Hi Xaver, I've just found out ~ Nikon are using (AVI) Motion-JPEG for this camera. bjc

Hi Yachtsman1, Thanks for the feedback. Have you allowed PTE to adjust the file, & have you tried it without the PTE adjustment? Full original file (Nikon AVI) = audio out of synch Full original file 'converted' by PTE = audio out of synch Cropping either of above does not correct the issue (not suprising) Same file converted using 3rd party software to .mov / .mp4 / etc. ~ cropped or uncropped ~ plays perfectly in PTE ~ and still plays perfectly even if re-converted by PTE. Very strange !? It must surely be a Nikon (D3s) avi file format mismatch (?) . Hi Xaver, As mentioned just above ~ the files are native Nikon D3s avi files (not sure at this stage which codec is being used by Nikon). bjc

Is it just me, PTE, Nikon video files, or my computer system that is at fault ? When using my Nikon DSLR video clips within PTE, the video's audio track is heard between 14 and 18 frames out-of-synch with the video (sound happens 14 to 18 frames before the visuals). This differential is maintained even after cropping. Video files pre-edited (cropped and/or) and then resaved using 3rd party software (Photoshop CS5 / Premier Elements 4) do not exhibit this same error when used in PTE. I'm puzzled as to where the issue lies ~ could it be some form of incompatibility, within PTE, to 'generated-in-camera' Nikon video files ? ~ or a performance issue with my computer ? Feedback from those experiencing the same / or from those with knowledgeable suggestions as to the cause or cure, much appreciated. bjc

My all-time favorite PTE-AV has always been, and remains, "A National Park Struggles to be Born" (2004) by Roger Turenne. Superb use of AV to get a point across ~ top marks !! Judy and Tom, thank you for the mention of "The Grand Tour" ~ I'm surprised, and very honored. bjc

Hi John, This may, or may not, be a relevant factor, but I notice you mention Win 7 !? With Win 7 there is always the issue of 'Run as administrator' relating to running programs (.exe files). This could well crop up when trying to run one program (.exe file) from an instruction contained within another program (.exe file). This could be one slideshow trying to call up another slideshow, or indeed PTE (which is an .exe file) running in 'Preview' mode trying to call up another external .exe file. I have encountered this when (under Win 7) I'm trying to 'run a JPG' from within a PTE slideshow (which calls up an runs Photoshop by association) ~ both the PTE slideshow and Photoshop have to have administrators rights before each will work with each other. It can get confusing at times !? This MAY be relevant to what you're experiencing. bjc

Hi Igor, This is just for your information. It is not a complaint, or a bug report. I think it is most likely to be a 'computer error' rather than an issue with PTE. But I thought you might be interested, on the off chance that others experience similar (?). Over the last few days I have been compiling a 'Lecture Platform' using Beta version 7.15. Prior to yesterday the project contained almost 300 images (small) of which 10 were linked (via button) to open images (some JPG, some PSD, some RAW) into Photoshop using 'Run application or open file' for tutorial demonstration purposes. When (yesterday) I came to continue the development of the project, I found I was unable to open the .pte file. I kept getting a "Data error (cyclic redundancy check)" message. After which PTE would open, but with a totally scrambled and incomplete screen layout. I downloaded Beta version 7.17 and installed it. Unfortunately that produced the same results. The .pte file must surely have become damaged/corrupted ? (I still have that file if it is of any interest to you) Luckily I had previously produced an .exe file of the as yet unfinished project (as a test file), which enabled me reconstruct, in just a few hours, an identical copy of the project that had previously taken me days to compile. (we all get lucky sometimes !?) As I say, I don't think this was a PTE error,,, most likely a computer glitch when the .pte file was written to the hard drive (?). But something went wrong,,, hopefully it was a one-off isolated case. By the way, congratulation and a huge thank you for the continued development of PTE,,, it's becoming more powerful than we could ever have imagined. FANTASTIC !! Regards, bjc

Wow !! Igor,,, this is unbelievable !! You are a genius (as I've mentioned before). My first test with v7.0 was a very basic one. All I did was take an existing 6 minute MP4 movie (35.9MB) ~ drop it in to PTE as a single 'slide' ~ then, over the 6 minute duration of the movie, had it decrease in size / move around the screen / spin / rotate in 3D / fade / re-appear etc. etc. etc. (just about everything I could think of) ~ and then I produced the finished .exe file (PC). The resultant .exe file not only played perfectly, with no apparent loss of quality at all (that I could detect), but it was only 38.5MB in size !! That's an increase in file size of just 2.6MB ~ for an .exe file instead of MP4 file ~ with all that movement etc. included. This really is something extraordinary ~ and it is bound to appeal to a much wider audience than just the basic AV community. Well done Igor. FANTASTIC !! bjc

Lennart / Tom ~~ thank you both, very much, for your (perhaps overly generous) comments re: my slideshow 'The Grand Tour'. It was originally put together as 'a bit of a laugh' and as something of a stab at how things used to be back in 'the good old days' of mechanical slide-projectors and dusty slides. I have to admit to being just a little embarrassed that you two consider it 'THE MASTERPIECE' and 'still my favourite slideshow after many years' ~~ but I very much appreciate your comments all the same. Bill ~~ thank you for offering to host 'The Grand Tour' on Beechbrook ~~ I have uploaded the necessary files to you today, so that others, who (may) wish to view it, may do so via the Beechbrook.com link. Thank you once again for your generosity. Best wishes to all, bjc

Ken ~ Lin Wow !! You guys are quick,,, I've only just posted that !? That's for the kind comments. Cheers Guys !! bjc

I am delighted to see that Animated GIF's are now enabled in PTE. About ten years ago I went through a phase of generating "AniGifs". So,,, having just downloaded v.6.5 (Beta) I thought I would dig out some of these old animations and see how they worked in PTE. The linked file (below) is a compilation of 7 AniGifs, put together as a slideshow ~ which I thought I would share with you, on the off chance that some of you might enjoy seeing them. .zip file / 1.3MB / 7 minutes long / 1024x768 CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD ZIP FILE

Igor, re: Windows 7. (Home Premium 64bit) I installed Win7 three days ago (on a new hard drive) ~ and have just noticed the forum thread re: possible issues with PTE 6.x So,,, in order to hopefully provide some useful feedback I started a new project in PTE (v.6.0.2) I included some image animation / text animation etc. etc. --- add slides --- removed slides --- and everything worked perfectly, however I DID encounter some issues in O&A. More often than not, when I clicked on a 'button', something other than what I was expecting happened. For example:- when I clicked on the 'size/position' button the next slide in the sequence would come up on-screen. (and similar such occurrences). This appeared to be resolved when I resized the PTE screen smaller, to something closer to 1024x768 - or smaller (my monitor resolution is 1920x1080) - this seemed to resolve the issue (for me). With the PTE screen reduced in size it continues to work perfectly. Could it be that there is some sort of cursor/screen reference point issue with PTE in Windows 7 ? That might explain others experiencing non-functional buttons and the suchlike !? I output an HD video rendition of the slideshow / an iTunes version of the slideshow / and an 'exe' file --- all worked perfectly well --- apart for the fact that the 'exe' file took about 25secs to complete (10secs to reach 100% + 10secs more to clear + 5secs more to abandon hard-drive activity). That is all I can report at this time --- I hope it will be of help. Intel Core2 Duo 3Ghz Ati Radeon 4850 1GB 8GB 800Mhz Regards, bjc

Hi Gary, What you want to achieve IS possible ~ I’ve just been back to my template and quickly done it, however, the explanation would be more complex to word (and comprehend) than the process itself is to do. So please forgive me for not typing out all the precise details in full. If you really must add the text using PTE wording all I can say is:- Add the text to the ‘Rectangles’ as additional children, not as children to the images themselves, and then go through the process of ‘experimenting’ until the penny drops as to what is required to achieve the effect you desire. Once understood it really isn’t all that complex, but believe me, the process would be very difficult to explain in writing. That said, and to make life REALLY easy, why not simply add the text to the images themselves (in Photoshop or whatever) and re-save the images back to the same folder ~ the images will be automatically updated in PTE, and your task will be complete. bjc (Thanks to everyone else for their kind comments)

As there have been requests for the template, I’ve knocked together a revised (low file size) version to pass on to you. I have replaced the actual images used (in the version you watched) with ‘place-holder’ images ~ simply white .jpgs with the numbers 1 to 34 on them ~ not a very interesting slideshow I have to admit, but all you have to do now is replace those images with your own images, and the book becomes your book. I have also created a set of simple instructions (.pdf file) on what to do and how to do it ~ including image size and image name requirements etc. The template .zip file (link below) is 273KB The instructions .pdf file (link below) is 189KB I hope it all works OK for those that choose to experiment with it. Link to Template zip file Link to the instructions .pdf (Tom: Photoshop was used to create the book shadow .png file) Regards bjc

On the off-chance that anyone is interested, I’ve just completed an experiment based on my “Flipping Images” (simulated page turning effect) of some years ago. Now that PTE offers 3D image rotation and flip, I thought it worth a go to re-enact that same effect, only this time using the new features in PTE. And of course, it goes without saying, PTE does the job perfectly, even better than the original experiment (well done Igor !!). The file (link below) is a 3.32MB zip file (no audio), which displays a series of images in ‘Book’ form ~ some of the pages contain text, but for the purposes of this exercise they too are jpg images. The reason for the latter being to enable the .pte file to be re-used to auto-create subsequent ‘Books’ without the need to re-work anything (just substitute the original image files in the folder for the new image files ~ and Bob’s your Uncle). If anyone wishes, I will make the project files available for download ~ with instructions on how to do the necessary. For anyone wishing to create their own ‘Book’ from scratch (mine’s only 1024x768) ~ it’s not too complicated (although it’s somewhat time consuming), the only processes used were ~ Y axis rotation only ~ and Show front side/Show back side ~ other than that it’s pretty straightforward. I would appreciate any comments and/or observations should any be forthcoming. Link to .zip file ~ Regards, bjc

Hi Lin, You can output 3D video, although so far I have only experimented with 3D animated GIF's myself. As for transparent backgrounds ~ I very much doubt it,,, you can of course have black, white, and/or any other colour you wish. Hope that helps. bjc

Hi Guys (and Gals), I too have encountered the ‘fuzzy comments’ issue. This has occurred when (and on the very rare occasion that) I have used ‘comments’ to display the image title, authors name and any photographic distinctions, for a slideshow of exhibition images for our local Photographic Society. On each of these occasions the images have had their JPG-name changed in advance to provide the relevant information (e.g: Summers Day by B J Colquhoun FRPS FBIPP DPAGB.jpg). Then, under the ‘Comments’ tab of the Project Options, <%MainImg.FileName%> has been used to put this information up on-screen beneath each of the relevant images. This issue has nothing to do with the placement of conventional text on an image via ‘Objects and Animation’. What I have encountered on these occasions is that ‘occasionally’ the on-screen text for a particular image will, for no apparent reason, suddenly become (extremely) blurred. This is unpredictable, and happens randomly within the slides contained in the show. I can see, or have found, no reason for this to happen. Not all slides are affected. A slide for which the text has displayed perfectly well for a number of slideshow test-runs may (or may not) suddenly become blurred, and will remain so until corrected. The only method I have encountered so far, to put matters right, is to delete the comment for that particular slide, and then reinstate the comment. Once all the comments are showing correctly for all of the slides, an ‘exe’ file is created. This bug (and I do think it is a bug of some sort) relates to something that very few of us will ever need to do very often, if ever. Which is why (I think) it has not been reported more than once or twice in the past. I have never bothered to report this issue myself as my need to use this feature occurs (at most) once every year. So,,, no big deal !? I would imagine that, to sort this issue out, and to find what the problem is, would take more work (and longer) than the problem warrants. Although I have to admit it can be very annoying when the problem does occur. bjc

Barrie, I'd not come across Sony Cinescore before ~ talk about an AV creators dream !? I went and watched all the product tutorial videos on the Sony web site ~ seems to me like there could hardly be anything better than Cinescore for producing a never ending supply of royalty free background music for AV's - on demand. I can only imagine what would be possible if you combined both Acid Music and Cinescore together ~~ wow ~~ the mind boggles !! Thanks for the info ~ I think I'll get myself a copy of Cinescore a.s.a.p. bjc

I thought I’d just pop my head around the corner on this one. Can you make your own music on a PC ? Well,,, yes you can ~~ very much so ~~ even if (like me), you can’t play a musical instrument to save your life. The product you require (for non-musicians) is called ‘Acid Music’ (now owned by Sony). The software comes in three flavours ~ Acid XPress (currently re-named ‘American Idol Extreme Music Creator’ – how naff is that !?) ~ Acid Music Studio ~ and Acid Pro 7. Priced at £29 / £45 / £245. Link: http://www.sonycreativesoftware.com/products/acidfamily.aspLink to Acid Music In addition to the above software you require ‘loops’ ~ ‘loops’ are what you create your music with. ‘Loops’ are snippets of real recorded musical instruments ~ ranging from 4-beats / 8-beats / 16-beats / right up to longer musical snippets. You get some loops included in with the software ~ more with the more expensive software. You can also download, free of charge, ‘8-packs’, which are released each week (?) which provide you with additional loops that you can add to your loop library. Link: http://www.acidplanet.com/downloads/8packs/Link to 8-packs Needless to say, you can also buy loops ~ which come in a whole range of musical styles, from Orchestral to Hip-Hop etc. But they’re not cheap. Buy downloading the free ‘8-packs’ you can, over time, build up a substantial library with which to create your own music. I currently have over 50GB of loops in my own personal library ~ although I have now given up on creating my own music ~ that said, I had immense fun doing so whilst I was actively ‘composing’. If you can’t play a musical instrument at all, then you will find this process incredibly satisfying and enjoyable ~ although I cannot guarantee that others will enjoy(?) your ‘music’ quite as much as you will !? The process is easy ~ if you fancy having a go then I can highly recommend it ~ although, much like AV, it can take over your life if you’re not very careful. If you fancy having a listen to a few of the tracks that I put together some time ago using Acid Music, here is a link: (5MB) http://www.bjc100.co.uk/PTE/MusicFiles.zipLink to music files I cannot promise that you will actually ‘like’ any of these ‘tunes’, but they are representative of what I was enjoying doing when I was creating my own music. bjc

Hi Igor, Thank you for responding so quickly with a temporary solution to the 'second bug' ---- I have reworked my 'menu' with the slides all set to 4000 seconds (!?) and now all the links work perfectly, across all the slides. Great solution -- why didn't I think of that -- because I'm not at bright as you, that's why. Well done Igor. bjc

Baldsparky & Peter, I think you are right --- this does appear to be a bug. I have been using PTE as a lecture platform for many years now -- and it has always worked perfectly --- recently I have been putting together a new 30 'slide' options menu for a new lecture tour and I have been suffering the same problem as has been described by baldsparky --- I thought it was ME doing something wrong !? I do not have a solution to this problem -- but I thought I would just confirm that the problem exists. bjc

Peter, (Do you have any objections to my “borrowing” your idea ?) Absolutely no problem,,, my pleasure. That said, I could hardly claim ‘interference patterns’ as being an idea of mine. (?) I look forward to seeing what you come up with if you do decide to do another animation sequence. Ken, I’m glad my animations ran OK on your PC ~ why on earth you are encountering problems with ‘Kaleidoscope’, I cannot imagine. Alan, (“,,, do the light show for the London Olympics 2012.” !?) Wouldn’t that be something !? Although outdoing Beijing may prove to be a little tricky. That said, and taking the logo they’ve chosen to represent the London Olympics into consideration, we could well be in with a chance. Maybe Igor could give a free copy of P2E to the organisers of the London Olympics !? Tom, I enjoyed your show too ~ well done. Regards, bjc

Peter,,, ‘Kaleidoscope’ ~ great fun !! Well done !! I really enjoyed watching it, and can imagine the fun you must have had putting it all together. The music is just perfect to demonstrate P2E’s ability to affect precision timing. I had a ‘play’ with some animated PNG graphics a while back, attempting to create some unusual visual effects, although I didn’t go so far as to add music. On the off chance that you might be interested in seeing what I came up with, I have uploaded a short demo (zipped) PTE file. LINK TO PTE FILE (file size = 2.77MB) Once again, well done on creating an entertaining ‘graphics only’ PTE presentation. Regards, bjc