Eric Athroll

However, if I use your project file and create AVI, it plays very badly (flickers) in Windows Media Player - if I use your images and use version 4.48 to create an AVI File it plays OK. I shall experiment with burning DVDs from your file using Nero Vision Express tomorrow. By the way, my version of Nero is 6, not the latest version 7, but it always worked fine before with PTE 4.48.

No, it makes no difference.

As I said in my original post, with PTE Version 4.48, the AVI File can be previewed flawlessly (with correct timings and fades and synchronisation of music etc but of a lower image quality) in Windows Media Player and will also produce an exact rendering on a DVD after the AVI File is imported into Nero Vision Express and a DVD made (and with excellent image quality on my TV). With Version 5.0 (both Beta 15 and the other one without the VideoBuilder trial option), and despite trying all the various settings, both the AVI File played in Windows Media Player and on a DVD produced from it with Nero Vision Express is totally unacceptable - timings, transitions etc are all over the place and the images flicker very badly in both cases. I have Windows XP Home Edition, Pentium 4 3.0 Ghz Processor, 2 Gb RAM and a nVIdia FX5600 Video Card with 256 Mb RAM. I have had no problems in showing many of the sample shows made with the new version including pans, zooms etc so I don't think it is anything to do with my Hardware.

Hi I am using the latest (beta 15) and am trying to compare the DVD conversion time and quality between my Nero Vision Express and your VideoBuilder before deciding whether to upgrade. If I do upgrade to include VideoBuilder I would need to make sure that I can use both methods to produce DVDs mainly because Nero Vision Express appears to be much more comprehensive but takes almost twice the time to complete. I shall try your suggestion of disabling hardware acceleration and see what happens and also try the version without VideoBuilder and let you know of the results. If I do upgrade to include VideoBuilder does this mean that when the final release is available I would need to install both versions (ie one with and one without VideoBuilder) to meet my needs?

Hi I have recently downloaded the new Version 5.0 and find that the AVI File no longer works as it did in Version 4.48. When I create an AVI File using version 4.48 it plays flawlessly in Windows Media Player. However, when I create the AVI File from Version 5.0 the format, timings and fades are all over the place. I have always used Nero Vision Express to produce my SVCDs and DVDs by importing the AVI File producing very acceptable results - now, with this new version, it appears that I cannot do that. What has happened to the AVI File? Is there something I need to do in Version 5.0 that is different to Version 4.48? I notice the change in project options>screen but cannot see anything else that might be the culprit. Any comments or suggestions would be appreciated.

Hi I have just watched your show and on my PC it ran extremely well - I stopped it after the fifth cycle. I have a Pentium IV HT, 2 Gb RAM and a nVidia FX5600XT with 256 Mb RAM if that is any help. Am looking forward to the new release. Eric

Hi Ken Thanks for that - I should have realised that everything I need is on the DVD Player handset. Silly me! Eric

Hi No, strangely it doesn't - this was my first thought but then wondered if there was some other option I have to check to make it work. Eric

Hi I want to make a video show from a PTE show that will display a video control panel so that the show will auto run by also may be paused or moved back and forth between images. I have no p[roblems with the making of the PTE show or making an SVCD/DVD from it but am not familiar with the inclusion of a video control panel. Is this possible and how does one do it? Eric

Yes, I always keep two copies of everything I purchase over the Internet; one on a CD and one on an external HDD. I still cannot understand why this happened as the updates from Nero were continuous, with no mention that I can recall of any need to uninstall Version 2 before installing the update to Version 3. If I could be bothered, I would start again with the latest update to Version 2 and then apply the Version 3 Updates to see at which point the problem occurs. I have contacted Nero on this matter and, although now apparently resolved, it will be interesting to see their comments. Eric

Hi I think I have solved the problem. I have been downloading updates via the Nero StartSmart facility which has been taking me direct to the update pages. I have just uninstalled all the Nero products and reinstalled them but the problem still occurred. I have just visited the Nero website and after browsing, found a patch which resolves problems with NVE3 and MPEG2 files. I installed this and now it seems to be working, albeit with a slightly different interface than with Version 2. I am completely ignorant when it comes to Video formats so don't know what the relationship between the PTE avi files and MPEG2 files but this patch seems to have solved the problem. I am surprised that the patch hasn't been incorporated into the NVE3 update or specifically mentioned on the updates page for NVE3. Eric

Sorry, I should have mentioned that I purchased the full Nero 6 Suite including all the Plug-ins as an upgrade from Nero 5.5 some time ago. In fact, I have been using Nero for over four years now in its various versions. I have had no problems at all in converting my PTE avi files to DVD in the past, but haven't used it since updating to Nero 6 Reloaded earlier this year, until yesterday. I was only burning a small (8 minute) PTE file to preview. I also tried to burn the same file as an SVCD with the same result. As soon as I uninstalled NVE 3 and replaced it with the last Version of NVE 2 it worked fine. According to the Nero website, the Nero 6 Reloaded are free and continuous updates to the Nero 6 Suite, so I cannot understand why the latest Version of Vision Express fails to work. Eric

Hi I have until recently been using Nero 6 NeroVisionExpress Version 2 to convert the video (avi) files produced by PTE to transcode and burn DVDs/SVCDs. I recently updated Nero 6 to the latest version, including Version 3 of NeroVisionExpress, and now find that Nero will not make DVDs from PTE any more. Almost immediately it starts the transcoding process I get an error mesage. Reinstalling Version 2 cures the problem. Does anyone have Nero 6 VisionExpress Version 3 and been able to use it successfully with PTE avi files? Help or comments would be appreciated. Eric

PS No criticism meant BTW

Hi You are a bit late with this one! http://www.picturestoexe.com/forums//index...t=ST&f=4&t=2115

Hi I, and many of my colleagues, would appreciate the facility to rename the images in the slide list. We generally use no software that enables easy viewing, sorting and renaming. We almost always make copies of the images to be used in PTE shows and place them first of all in a project folder. It would be great if these could be sorted on the "light box" and then permanently renamed/renumbered. I also would like to see the customize synchronisation box larger and deeper, with the wave form wider. Nevertheless, my brief use of Beta#2 gives no problems and the new facilities so far are brilliant. Well done! Eric

Hi Heather I take it you have the full Nero 6 Version which includes Nero Vision Express and the necessary DVD plug-in (Nero tells you with an info pop-up). I use Nero, and making DVDs is very simple, although at present I am only burning to a DVD-RW to check the show until I have sufficient sequences to fill a DVD. I have made several SVCDs also. I use PTE to create the avi file, which I save to my desktop (it being only temporary). I then open Nero Vision Express, click on more and set up the default video options and then click Make DVD>DVD-Video. The next screen opens and either drag the avi file onto the left hand pane (or one at a time if more than one avi file) or click on Add Video Files to get the usual open file window, select the avi file and click open. The avi file if then "loaded" into this pane. Click next and a new window opens allowing you to make the title page with various backgrounds, styles of chapters, set titles and rename chapters. Click next and another new window opens where you may preview your DVD Click next and the last window appears allowing you to set the burning parameters, click burn and Nero Vision Express will then transcode the avi data and then burn a DVD. The procedure is much the same to make VCDs. SVCDs and Mini DVDs. The time it takes will depend on the speed of your processor but I have found PTE/Nero a very straightforward procedure producing extremely nice quality DVDs - very watchable on my 28inch Widescreen (16:9) TV. This is a quick tutorial I know, but it is so simple I didn't even need to refer to any instructions to do it. You can also go back and forward between the stages if they need adjustment to settings, choices etc. Best of luck Eric

Hi Andrew I must agree with one of the responses to your comments about PTE; that it is simple, inexpensive and does the job many, many photographers like myself require. I am a lifelong amateur photographer and have always belonged to a camera club where I have enjoyed many slide shows using two or more projectors and taped sound. Such shows are now being produced using PTE and video projectors/laptops. I never got into slide sequences before; I just didn't have the time nor inclination to master the process. Since discovering PTE, however, I and many like me, are producing very watchable shows without the need for expensive, complicated, time consuming software. It is the only piece of software I have ever bought that I have been able to use with only five minutes tuition! I also love the fact that without any extra work, my PTE slide show can also be turned into a DVD/SVCD to be enjoyed on a TV with exceptional quality with software I already have to do the encoding/burning. I am sure there are many users of this remarkable software who would not wish to see it become over complicated and correspondingly expensive. As has been said, if it doesn't satisfy the requirements there are many other software packages that might fill the bill. Long may it live - remember the old adage KISS! Eric

Hi Ron Did the search and found it - thanks. Eric

Hi Thanks for answering that one Ron - guess that wouldn't be relevant to me as I only use either the fade or the instant change for my current projects. Eric

Hi Gérard Actually, I already do this for the last slide, to get the fade out and also it gives time for the music to fade out before the show disappears off the screen. Because the first slide fades in, I don't use a blank at the beginning. Eric

For David (mainly) I had a look at a sequence I set up based on my example posted earlier and found that when the feature "synchronise slide show to music duration" is enabled the fade out/in time is preserved but the display time is altered to fit. I also noticed, as you mention, that slide 1 is different, in that it only fades in, there being no previous slide to fade out with; equally the last slide does not fade out. It does seem, from this small test, that the fade precedes the display of each slide and therefore the "show time" should indeed be the sum of the fade plus the duration multiplied by the number of slides, unless of course some or all of the slides are given separate "customisation". Eric

Hi David Thanks for the tip - I will set up a small temporary sequence and have a look at it in the custom synchronisation as you suggest. Because I am mainly preparing family history shows to fill a DVD, I am using the facility "synchronise the slideshow to music duration" to enable the production of an .avi file from which I encode the DVD. I thought using this facility would overide all settings and space the images to display/fade evenly throughout the sequence. I'll have a play around with the custom synch anyway to see how the normal slideshow fits into the display/fade settings. Eric

Hi Thanks for the responses. When I make a PTE show (.exe file for PC viewing/digital projection) I usually set up all the slides with my timings for duration and transition, time it using the preview facility with a stopwatch and then edit music to fit. I then adjust any slight discrepancies between the music and the slides by altering the m/secs of duration. It's a little time consuming but works OK. It would be much easier though if there was a formula for calculating this. I prefer to retain the transition time and slightly adjust the duration so as to keep the fades consistent. What I cannot find out is exactly how the transitions relate to the durations. If, for example, I have ten slides and set a four second duration and a two second fade for each, in theory the show would last 1 minute. But, does each transition cover the fade in and the fade out of each slide - ie in my example would the first slide have a 1 sec fade in, a fully exposed duration of the four seconds set and then a 1 sec fade out to the next slide? Also, at what point does slide two start to fade in from slide one? I think that knowledge of how the transitions and durations relate to the show time would make life so much easier. I am into making DVDs of my slide shows (family history) and to do this use the synchronise to music facility, but would still like to be a bit more scientific in my approach to planning the sequences. Eric

Hi Can enyone enlighten me regarding the following: 1. In "Effects", what is the significance of the "Thickness of smoothing line" and is it relevant to all transition effects? 2. When calculating the length of a show for a suitable length of music, is the total show time likely to be the total number of slides multiplied by the sum of the slide duration and the slide transition times? (For shows that have a single duration/transition time for every slide). 3. If the box "synchronise slide show to music duration" is checked, and there is some disparity between the total show time and the music duration, will both the slide duration time and the slide transition time be affected or only one of these? If only one, which one? Eric