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Hmm, thanks for reports. Trouble is I'm back on PD9 still (and not doing enough editing to justify purchase of PD11). I'll have a think about it. At least some of it still works!
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It should work with version 11 unless Cyberlink have changed the basics of how the interface works and the built in keyboard shortcuts - and as changes of that kind might upset the longer-time users, they probably won't.
PDSpeed is a tiny program that needs no installation as such, so if you already have PDR11 installed, just try PDSpeed and see if it works as originally described (on a test project). If it doesn't I'd be interested to know - and you could simply delete the .exe file to put everything back as it was.
Greetings to all as I pass through, and happy editing in 2013!
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See the "PDSpeed" thread, sticky at the top of the forum - this little utility more or less does away with the Clip/Movie problems.
(I know not everyone sees Clip/Movie as a problem, but some clearly do).
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Hi Nina,
It's the document attached - if you were able to do it and repost it here, that would be very helpful.
The document is the help file for the German keyboard layout of "PDSpeed".
Cheers, Peter
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I'm glad this is still proving useful. It's totally "public domain" so I don't mind what use is made of it - even by Cyberlink!
I've had a P.M. request for a help file in German - I'm not able to help with that (last time I was in Germany was about 50 years ago and my German has not improved since then!) - I don't know whether anyone else might be able to do a translation and post it here?
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When I was an Adobe beta tester you weren't supposed ever to say that you were or had been.
Oops, I just broke the rule.
I guess that doesn't apply with Cyberlink.
It's been some months since I did any video editing with any program (due to various circumstances unrelated to video), so I'm not really much help to people at present.
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The short answer is that obviously the default should be user-selectable.
My personal preference would be a cross transition, but only if it is correctly implemented.
Currently the choice offered is between a buggy cross transition, or a correct overlap transition that moves clips. Not a good choice. Don't let's allow the choice offered to conceal the actual problem.
Now for the longer answer - sorry to ignore the request in the original post, but it's essential that the full picture is taken into account.
First - in a properly edited video there need be no difference between the outcome of a cross transition and an overlap transition. The difference is not in the end result, but in the means used to arrive there. It's all in the trimming style you prefer.
Unfortunately there is a fatal flaw in the PD9 cross overlap programming, such that there is always a difference in its cross and overlap transitions. This is a serious problem at the heart of the program.
Overlap transitions in PD9 are true transitions where all the motion seen in the clips involved continues throughout the transition. If the edit involves two clips of a man walking along a road, throughout the transition you see him continue to walk.
Cross transitions in PD9 are not true transitions, but are implemented using frozen frames, so that in the same example of two clips showing a man walking along a road, at the point where the transition begins you see a man standing frozen in mid-pace fading in, as the image of a moving man in the first clip fades out. At the middle of the transition you see the the image of the fading out man suddenly freeze in mid-pace, while the fading in man suddenly unfreezes and is seen walking along.
Such a transition should never be seen in other than beginners' videos as it is normally symptomatic of the editor not understanding how to construct a proper cross transition (use of untrimmed clips, see following). Of course if there is little or no movement in the shot (or it's a still) or the transition is very short the fault may not be evident, but otherwise it's likely to be obvious and jarring.
A properly functioning cross transition works like this. Assume that the total transition length is two seconds. The two clips are first each trimmed by the user by at least one second (half the length of the transition) at the point where they are to join. Then they are butted together and the transition is dragged across the join. Internally, the program then extends the length of the first clip by one second to the right (using the frames following the end of the trimmed clip) and extends the length of the second clip by one second to the left (using the frames preceding the beginning of the trimmed clip). The result would visually be the same as an overlap transition (using clips not trimmed for the transition), except that the clips remain where you've placed them, not moved to accomplish the necessary overlapping frames.
A properly functioning cross transition also has to take into account what must happen if the user does not understand how to work with a cross transition, and who uses untrimmed or insufficiently trimmed clips. In that case, there may be insufficient frames available after the end of the outgoing clip, or before the beginning of the incoming clip, to extend the clips as described in the preceding paragraph to form the necessary overlap. So, there is no option other than for the program internally to repeat the last available frame in the outgoing clip, and/or the first available frame in the incoming clip, enough time to provide material for the transition. This leads to frozen motion of course - it's a "freeze frame".
Unfortunately in PD9 the developers have seen fit to assume that the user will always be ignorant of how to construct a cross transition, and the transition is therefore always created by repeating the last yrimmed frame of the outgoing clip, and the first trimmed frame of the incoming clip, each for half the length of the transition, leading to the unacceptable frozen motion described earlier.
SO - right now, if they provided the obvious user preference for default cross or overlap transitions, they might have to label the options thus -
Cross Transition default - this will cause frozen frames during transitions
Overlap Transition default - this will move the clips on the timeline by the length of the transition.
If however they implemented true, usable cross transitions, then the options might then be labelled (notionally)
Cross Transition default - this requires you to trim your clips to provide enough material for the transition to be created
Overlap Transition default - this will move the clips on the timeline but you don't have to trim the clips first.
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Nice review.
I do wish they would specify which version of each program they are making comparisons with, though, as the constant release of new versions by everyone makes any comparison almost worthless without a version number given. (For instance, in another product review there of a current product from someone else they criticise PD in comparison, but they are obviously thinking of an earlier PD version).
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My only reservation about posting source code is that it reveals poor coding practices!
It's created simply using AutoHotKey - no amateur coder should be without it! - and the source is as follows -
But I think that any detailed discussion of how it is coded would be best kept to private messages.
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PDSpeed for German keyboard layout is attached.
Please use the download in the first post, unless you want the version suitable for German keyboards.
I'm sorry but the help file is still in English!
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Just a minor problem. I've tried PC speed, and although it works, AVG insists that it is malware and keeps trying to put it in the virus vault.
The PCs here all have AVG up to date and running (paid version) and just to be sure, I specifically ran an individual AVG check on the zip file before posting it. Why AVG doesn't like it at your end is a mystery!
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That should be very easy - I'll try and get that done in the next 24 hours and add it to this thread.
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problem is, the user community is veryt diverse and probably the last thing they need is more options!!!
My view is that the category of user who might be described as coming from other programs, might find some aspects of PowerDirector to be not quite what they are used to - in particular the clip/movie thing - and providing the means to work around that and to provide some "standard" NLE features like i and o and jkl (admittedly jkl doesn't work quite the way it does elsewhere but it's a start) is arguably more of a help than a hindrance.
But in any event, it's very easy to try, and very easy to delete if not suitable to the individual!
Down the track it would be good if Cyberlink were able to expose more of the program's functions to keyboard shortcut operation, and provide the means to customise them and string together macros, as in some other programs.
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Well, each to his own, and I'm fairly keyboard-oriented rather than mouse-oriented - but how many times in a typical editing session (ok, no such thing!) do you have to click to change to movie mode - then press the spacebar, or click on the play button? Using PDSpeed, you just press the spacebar and it plays the movie. Half the keystrokes/mouse clicks, every time you do it. Nothing to remember.
Likewise, to trim from the cursor position to the beginning of the clip, using the keyboard you have to do
page up
ctrl/t
ctrl/left arrow
delete
page down
for a predictable result. Using PDSpeed, you just type "d". Seems easier to me!
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I've not got any real ideas - sounds weird.
Can you create a new project, use the same clips as the real project but don't bother editing them, produce that and see what happens?
Or use some other clips from a different source, to see whether the problem is to do with the editing, or with the source files, or whatever.
In other words, can you make the program produce properly with anything, anyhow, or is it broken whatever you try?
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Do you get an error message?
Is there something at the point where it stops, like an edit or effect, that maybe is causing a problem?
Can you produce it in a different format and convert to mov format in another program?
How big (in megabytes) is the file that is created?
Is there enough space on your drive?
Just some initial thoughts...
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I have now posted the little program for enabling movie mode always to be used when you press the spacebar in a new thread at http://forum.cyberlink.com/forum/posts/list/14452.page - hopefully this will help anyone who prefers this way of working.
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PDSpeed is a very small free program which adds extra keyboard shortcuts in PowerDirector 9, to speed up the playback and editing process.
It offers the following enhancements to PD9:-
- It does away with the need to choose between "Clip" and "Movie" playback on the timeline. Spacebar always plays in movie mode, Alt/spacebar always plays in clip mode.
- It provides single-key rollback for 5 seconds from current cursor position and play. Handy for reviewing edits you've just made, or rechecking what you've just seen without having to use separate actions to stop, go back, and play.
- Using the n and p keys, it goes to the next or previous edit and replays from 5 seconds before. Again, handy for reviewing each edit of a nearly-finished project.
- Single keystrokes allow you to trim from the cursor to the start of the clip, or from the cursor to the end of the clip, or to mark a start and end point in the middle of the clip and instantly delete the marked portion. Trimming is assigned to the i and o keys, and also to the [ and ] keys, so you can use whichever you are familiar with. The s and d keys are used to split and delete the middle part of a clip.
- j k l keys are assigned to frame rewind, movie play, and frame forward. These can be used when trimming clips using the adjacent i and o keys - you hardly have to move a finger!
- z x c keys are similarly assigned to rewind, play and forward for use with the adjacent s and d keys when cutting out the middle of a clip, for convenience of location.
- The shortcuts can be used on the fly during playback, and work in the timeline or the storyboard view.
The program is very small and doesn't need installation. You just run it from wherever you choose to keep it. It has no effect on the PD9 installation and you can use PD9 with it or without it. It does nothing if PD9 is not running. It simply intercepts keystrokes and passes commands to the program if it is running.
The attached zip file contains a pdf help fle - essential reading - and the small .exe file.
It is provided as is with no warranty, but the only forseeable risk in using it is that you might misuse it and delete part of a clip without intending to, or something like that. Undo is your friend if that happens! I recommend trying it out on a test project first, and the help file suggests how you might do that.
It has been tested only with PD9, not earlier versions, and only in XP and Windows 7.
Any comments should be made in this thread.
Please note that this has nothing to do with Cyberlink and the functions I have described above only work when PDSpeed is running - they are not part of PD9.
Cheers!
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During beta testing I wrote a tiny utility which fixes this problem and provides a few additional keyboard shortcuts to speed up the editing process. Personally I can't use PD9 without this add-on.
However, the finally released version of the program changed a couple of things which means that I need to modify the add-on utility a little before releasing it for general consumption.
I'm hoping to do that in the next couple of days and I'll probably post it in a new thread here.
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Cross transitions do not work as they should (they are not proper motion transitions and produce still video either side of the mid point). So it's good that the overlap transitions, which work correctly, are the default. However, choice would appear to have been the most comprehensive solution, in the absence of a fix for the cross transition type.
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