Nationalsolo

Hi Yes that links the tracks OK (same as clips but vertically...should have remembered...needs SHIFT too) I'll need to play with gaps a bit to see how synched tracks behave when gaps are closed. Thanks Nat

Hi Oh dear! Getting complicated... " I think I understand your explanation. I followed exactly your steps. But when I try to execute step 8 and drop Sequence 1 to the timeline of Sequence 2 I get the message "You cannot add a sequence to itself." I can't understand what you are doing here...At step 8 Sequence 2 in the bin is a dummy clip (see step 6)...you haven't created a second sequence yet...It's empty. It has the clapperboard icon. At this point only Sequence 1 is a clip and that can be added to the timeline so I am not certain what you mean when you write "....timeline of Sequence 2" At step 8 the timeline is empty. It was emptied when Sequence 1 was created. You should be able to add Sequence 1 to the empty timeline (Step 8) either by drag and drop or by using the menu option which should not be grayed out. As soon as it is added to the timeline the clapperboard icon of Sequence 2 changes to a thumbnail of the current timeline. (Which in this case appears the same) This may be what is confusing you. But Sequence 2 is still only a dummy clip at this point and can't be used . In short... VP always starts with an empty clip in the sequence bin (Sequence 1) with a clapperboard icon. It then copies the contents of the timeline to this file as the timeline is developed but doesn't create a clip. Only when you create a Sequence does Sequence 1 become a clip. When you create a sequence the timeline is emptied and a new empty sequence file (Sequence 2) is placed in the bin. When you create a second sequence the timeline is emptied and a new sequence file (Sequence 3) is placed in the bin etc, All the sequences apart from the last one are clips that can be added/inserted/re-added to the timeline. Nat

HI Hi Borate Gaps in tracks are a bit of a nightmare. I tend to delete them individually. As you correctly point out all the tracks must have a gap for the Close Gap in Sequence option to be available.........but it must be the same gap. i.e. created in all the clips together. If the clips all have gaps but they are in different places only the top option is active. I am pretty sure my suggestion higher up will work so as to keep a synched overlay track in place when a main track gap is closed. I'll have another look..might be wrong.........Can you remind me how to link two or more tracks together as that might offer an easy solution? .......but then, perhaps not. Nat

Hi I think you may not be doing it correctly as you can add any sequence to another sequence etc. So to understand how it all works....Do this.... Open VP and add three video clips to the Video clip bin. Check the Sequence bin........You will find a file called Sequence 1 with clapperboard icon....This is an empty dummy file Drag and drop clip 1 and clip 2 from the Video clip bin to the timeline. Check the Sequence bin again....You will now find the file called Sequence 1 but with the timeline thumbnail..This is still a dummy file It is NOT a series of clips (or a single clip) per se. It is just a copy of the timeline clips and can't be used. Now click "Sequence" on the top toolbar, followed by "New Sequence" This action clears the timeline and makes the file Sequence 1 into a proper sequence. It is now single clip created from the timeline. Check the Sequence bin again. You will find Sequence 1 which looks the same as before but which is now a proper sequence. You will also see Sequence 2 which is new empty dummy sequence. Because Sequence 1 is now a proper clip you can add it back to the timeline So.... Drag and drop Sequence 1 to the timeline. You will see Clip1 and Clip 2 now combined on the timeline. Check the sequence bin again. You will see Sequence 2 has updated with the timeline thumbnail..but it will still be a dummy Try to add Sequence 2 to the timeline......You can't as the prompts aren't there...for the moment it's a dummy file Try to drag and drop Sequence 2 to the timeline......You can't ...you get the message "Can't add a sequence to itself" This is because it is a dummy file.....(Although it apparently contains clip1 and clip2) Drag and drop Sequence 1 to the timeline. YOU CAN!! It's a proper clip..You have added Sequence 1 to Sequence 1 so you have Clip1-Clip2-Clip1-Clip2) Carry on.......Create another sequence This will now be Sequence 2 (Clip1-Clip2-Clip1-Clip2) A new file Sequence 3 will appear and will be another dummy. Add Sequence 2 to the timeline..You can add (insert if you like) another Sequence 1 or another Sequence 2 or Clip3 etc. In fact you can embed (nest) sequences within sequences pretty well as deep as you like.....although rendering them may be a very long process. If you are getting the message "Can't add a sequence to itself" you are trying to add a dummy sequence to the timeline Hope when you run through this it clarifies things Nat

Hi At the start there is always Sequence 1 in the bin. (Its a dummy) Now...Assemble your clips on the timeline. Sequence 1 will reflect the timeline by showing a thumbnail but will not be a sequence. It will still be a dummy. Now click "Sequence" followed by "Add" (or "New sequence"). This will clear the timeline and VP will properly tranfer it to Sequence 1 and then create another dummy sequence (Sequence 2). NOTE: At this instant Sequence 2 will be empty since the timeline is cleared and so it will simply display a clapperboard icon. You can now if you wish, drag Sequence 1 (which simply behaves like new clip) down onto the empty timeline where you can edit/add to it etc. The dummy Sequence 2 will still be a dummy but as at the start will show a thumbnail of the timeline.......Both the items in the sequence bin will therefore appear the same. REMEMER...The last sequence in the bin is a dummy. If you try to add this to the timeline it won't go and you will get the message "You cannot add a sequence to itself" Think of it as actually being empty although in practice VP keeps it up to date with the timeline contents in case you actually want to use it hence the message context...it's simply a stored copy and cannot be used. To make this a bit clearer and to show it IS a copy, add a new and different clip to the start of the timeline...The last sequence in the bin (the "dummy" ) will show the new clip as the thumbnail. .....although it's not yet a new sequence.....an unusable copy. In the above scenario Sequence 1 is a real sequence (a new clip in effect combining all the clips on the previous timeline). As such you can add it to the new timeline as many times as you wish just like any clip and even create another new sequence.This will become a Real Sequence 2 whilst Sequence 3 will become a new "dummy" and so on.... In this way you can "nest" sequences. Nat

Hi If you have a gap in the timeline from whatever reason...,,clip deletion or placing a clip at the cursor etc. All you need for is to do is to zoom to enlarge the gap so you can right click it easily without the cursor getting in the way and then choosing "Close gap in the Track" from the menu. This will delete the gap and reassemble the track. If you feel this isn't working correctly switch into Storyboard mode. Any gaps in the main track will show up as empty "slides" with an arrow depicting the gap and its duration. (you can now see even very small gaps). Right click the blank "slides" and select "Close Gap" Note :This only works on the main track. If you have several tracks and want to keep an upper track in position relative to the main track and you want to close a gap in the main track without losing the upper track's position. Use "Close gap in Sequence" instead of "Close gap in Track" This will close the gap in the main track and shift that track as well as the overlay tracks along. The actual position of the gap relative to the overlay track may be important here so you may have to give it a try and see. If you have a gap that is too small to fit the new clip just use Sequence Preview and use the II< control to shift the cursor line to the clip edge at the start of the gap. Now select the new clip in the clip bin and use the down arrow to the right of the Place tab to select "Place on sequence at the Cursor" The clip will now be inserted in the gap and the clip/s to right will be shoved along. The gap will also remain after the new clip so remove it now as outlined above. (Probably with "Close Gap in Sequence" if there are overlays.) Nat

Hi Check the CPU % usage in the task manager. Is it running at 100% when VP is working? Also do you clear the cache after every editing session? If you do, then VP has to recache your files from your project file data and although it may load them and give the appearence that it is ready for you to edit ,it may still be generating thumbnails and organising the clips and edits in the background, particularly for a project with lots of clips, effects, edits and tracks. Trying to change things or play the project while this is happening will be subject to stops and starts and building preview messages. If you only have one project, load it and then clear the cache of unused files. You only need to do this once . That project will load much more quickly when you next come to edit. Obviously if you clear the cache before you start a session you delete, in effect all the project data which then has to be regenerated. Nat

Hi Once you have placed a clip on the timeline and then decide to select it there and review it Clip Preview (it would normally display in Sequence preview) you can only View it. As a consequence the Place button is no longer available. The button now says "View." Selecting the same clip (or another clip) in the Clip Bin will automatically display it in Clip Preview in a similar way as above even though it is on the timeline.) As you have reselected it, VP considers it as new clip selection and displays it in the Clip Preview window where you can edit it, consequently the Place button is now displayed. In short....If you want to edit clips in the Clip Preview screen and then place them on the timeline you must select them from the Clip Bin. Nat

Hi You are on the right lines by trimming a clip in the Clip preview window with the IN/OUT markers. As you have discovered the markers remain in their selected position on the clip preview screen. If you want to edit the same clip again you just re select it from the clip bin and move the markers to their new positions. The clip you already edited will not alter. If you select a new clip from the bin the markers automatically move to ends of the clip. There are other ways of editing a clip..have you tried adding the whole clip to the time line and then playing it to the point you want to start at (or sliding the cursor line to this point) and then Split the clip. Move along to the end of you selection and Split the clip again. Now select the the bits not required, right click and delete them. This weill inevitably leave gaps so right Click any gaps and select "Close the gap in the Track" This is just like editing classic cine film. You can also do this in Storyboard mode and you will see the bits you create by spltting as thumbnails as well as any empty gaps you have after you delete any bits. You can select and close the gap in exactly the same way. The principle is exactly the same. EDIT....... Forgot to mention that you can also load the clip directly to the timeline, select it and then grab and drag the ends in to make it shorter or, if you go too far you can drag them out again to make it longer. If you are in Clip Preview you can see the section you are trimming when you release the clip end. This will work for ANY clip in a group of clips already on the timeline. As you hover the mouse over the end of the clip a square bracket will appear showing you have actually grabbed it. With this method the gaps close automatically. Nat

Hi You added to a really old thread. probably would have been better to start a new one... Anyway... " well I actually figured out the fade in part even though I couldn't find the symbol " The First clip on the timeline has a Fade-in option.. . The ones that follow don't unless you have a gap between the clips. Deleting the gap or dragging clips together will eliminate the fade-in box (they will attract each other if close enough as you have found.) Once in contact the Fade transition can be used or the Transparency effect can be used if the effect is to be used on only one of the clips. Tiny gaps left between clips may be almost invisible but if you scroll in with the mouse wheel or use the zoom you will often be able to see them. A tiny gap can be difficult to select however but if you go into storyboard mode the gap, no matter how small will always be revealed as it will appear as a complete thumbnail with the duration marked on it. It's easy to grab and close in this format. Nat

Hi If you are using 16:9 video (720p or 1080 etc.) Click Tools/Options and under the Display tab click the down arrow next to the right of the Preset box. Select 512 x 288 (16:9) and see if that speeds things up. (Ought to) My PC .... Vista Windows Vista Édition Familiale Premium 32-bit SP2 Intel Core 2 Duo E4500 @ 2.20GHz 2.00 Go RAM Single-Channel DDR2 @ 266MHz (4-4-4-12) NVIDIA GeForce GT 730 (Gigabyte) 2047MB .....nearly always shows a Preview buffering warning if the preview is greater than 1074 x 576 and if set any higher there is a huge delay while the thumbnails in the bin and the timeline are regenerated and playing a sequence is a non starter. At 640 x 360 it runs fine. Nat

Hi Place your clip/image (logo?) on the timeline. Any track will do but remember upper tracks will obscure lower tracks. At the left end of the track on the timeline is a box marked FX. Left click it. The effects window will open. The first tab at the top of this window is a green plus sign. Click it.This opens a window containing the effects . Select Scale as shown above and the control window for this effect will display and a scale rectangle will appear in the clip preview pane Adjust the handles on this rectangle or the slider values in the control area to change the clip/image scale. Using the red cursor line and setting keyframes will allow you animate the effect. Do these steps work?? If effects are missing from the display area they may not have loaded during initialisation. reinstalling VP may rectify this Nat

Hi The fade in the template will always be proportional to the length of the clip. i.e. using a template that is set to produce a fade of 1 second on a 4 second clip will produce a fade of 2 seconds if used on a 8 second clip. I don't think you can change that property. However a template can be quickly added and as it's WYSIWYG it's a simple job to just adjust the shoulders of the graph by dragging the template points right or left a little as required to give the duration you require.. Nat

Hi again Here is a mockup of what I think you may be after... Main Track image is your "Space" image (Actually M42 in Orion) The overlay image is a .gif image with a transparent background and "open" eyes. I have used the Zoom effect to set the "Space" image large enough to scroll with the AR restrained to 16:9 and the rectangle set at the extreme left of the image. The red cursor line in the effects window is set at the start of the clip (left end) The 12th. tab (small green cross with lines) on the effects window is then clicked to set the 1st keyframe....... Next, the red line cursor in the effects window is slid to the end of the clip. (Right end) The zoom frame is then moved to the right side of the image keeping it at the same height and a second keyframe is set......... (reversing the positions of the zoom frame will scroll the clip in the oposite direction) The zoom rectange will automatically show full frame behind the overlay face and will be seen through the "eyes" as well as they are transparent. On playing the clip the "Space image" in the background will slowly (depending on the duration of the clip) move from right to left behind the overlay face.'''' (Note what I said about the position of the zoom rectangle for each keyframe) Here's the the type of effect seen for this at the start-mid point and end of the clip. In this case the duration of the images was 10 seconds, The amount of zoom and the duration of the images will alter the speed of the effect. Hope this helps and is something like what you are after. Nat

Hi Have you inadvertantly clicked the Enabled Track Solo for Track 1 at the left end of the track? .....it will show a single "pawn" instead of group. This will disable and darken the overlay track as you describe. If so simply reclick it. Have you disabled the output on Track 2? The "Eye" icon at the left will be red. If so reclick it. There was a similar post with same/similar problem just recently.......but cant find it. Edit Might be here... Nat

Hi In general, simple movement is created with the Position effect and employing keyframes as explained in Borate's link. However simply moving your background space image means that it will leave a blank area from where is moves from. If you will excuse the pun..it must have "space" to move. In effect the image must be bigger than the frame. I think the best way to allow for movement in this way is to use the Zoom effect, keeping the AR the same and reducing the area enough to give a reasonable effect for the duration of the clip. A simple horizontal movement would be acheived by making the start height of the zoom area the same as the end height and creating a keyframe at each position. If you are not sure how to do this come back on the forum for more details. Nat

Hi If you click the FX tab for a clip and then use the Transparency effect to create your fade. (Any effect in fact) You will end end up with several keyframes that represent the effect in action for the duration of the clip. If you now select the fourth tab of the effects window - the one with the diskette icon you will be able to save your effect as a Chain Template. and give it your own name. Now whenever you want to use that particular effect for a clip you open the effects with FX click the green cross to add an effect and you should find your new creation under Templates at the bottom. Nat

Hi again There was a similar problem here... At least after a complete uninstall and re-install things improved. I included all the steps to clean out the registry. Might be worth a try as I mentioned above. Scroll down the post to see my reply re the registry Nat

Hi We made a similar reply here..... Nat

Hi Played with this......Loaded a ,png image with transparent background and placed it on timeline. Exported this a .apng video. No crash here and the resulting videoclip loaded back OK to VP with the transparent background intact. (Wouldn't play in windows though) Nat

Hi "How do you reload the project" Every now and again as you edit your work it's a good idea to save it, particularly if you have made a lot of important changes. This can be done by selecting "Save" or "Save as" from the File menu. "Save" overwrites any previous save so earlier work is in effect lost, whilst "Save as" allows you use a different name and so keeps the previous save. These options do NOT save your constituent files. They create a .vpj project file which only contains the instructions regarding your project; clip names and their locations on your PC etc. as well as all the data regarding your editing. There are no actual clips saved. Double clicking the saved .vpj file will reload your project. You can also load a .vpj file directly from the "Open Project" option in the VP File tab as well as from the opening splash screen. If you have moved or deleted any of the clips that make up your project VP will not find them and you will be warned regarding this. If you wish to save ALL the data for your project then save your work using "Save Portable Project as" This makes copies of all the clips as well as creating a .vpj file.and puts everything into a new folder. Each time this option is used a new individually dated and numbered folder is created. Nat

Hi Assuming you have VP reinstalled and open...., Can you manually drag and drop an image from a folder directly to the clip bin area? If so can you drag and drop the image from the clip bin to the timeline? If so will it play? Nat

Hi It's the top bar of prompts. Click Tools/Options/Disc ..........See the choices under Cache. Nat

Hi OK. leave the registry contents alone if you are not sure, but report the Bug as requested. "abnormal exception" would cover a bucket load of things I suspect. It would be intersting to know what the rest of the file path was that is partially shown in the Error load window. Could be that THAT file is corrupted. Do any files (e.g. images or other clips) load to VP or is it just this particular one? Try locating the file on your E drive and then dragging it directly into the clip bin and see what happens. Nat

Hi You are basically correct. Certainly with one audio track it can be made to appear quite wide although you have to click the plus sign as pointed out by Borate and also move the preview window up using the 5 horizontal dots.... Adding a second audio track and clicking the + does however, enlarge the track but you lack the ability to drag it down like the thumbnail track for enlargement. Consequently it leaves as you point out a lower space for additional tracks that is not usable in this repect. If you drag the thumbnail track up it simply shows more of the space. This as large as you can get the tracks per se... It's not a bug, just a design feature that could be ameliorated. It has been mentioned in the past. All the same if you want to look at your audio track in more detail you can select it and use Clip Preview. I think it is still on the cards this may be altered in a later version. Nat