PicturesToExe v5.00 beta #4

[ADB]

About quality of image/resizing for DVD video output.

Try to disable "Smart anti-flicker filter" and set "Progressive video" mode. It will give original picture of video without postfilters.

We use bilinear downsampling for images, but Bicubic is not possible - it works extremaly slowely (in 10-20 times). The only alternate way you described - using of Photoshop.

But it's suitable for static slides with Fade effects only and when you choose "Progressive video" mode.

As I tested, sharp images on dynamic slides with Pan/Zoom effects look bad on old TV (50 or 60 Hz) displays. Some kind of flickering occurs.

Here's an example of a frame of video (progressive no filters) the top image is from an image firstly resized to a width of 720 pixels the bottom image was 3504 pixels wide and resized by PTE

The top image is smoother and looks good on a TV, the bottom image while apparantly sharper has actually broken up a bit, look particularly at the corners of the caravans where a wavy effect is apparant.

The bottom image almost suffers from a similar effect seen in oversharpened images. If this was panning the bottom image looks even worse with flickering.

[Igor]

Andrew,

Please send me original of this photo to int_support@ [removethistext] wnsoft.com

Also let me know please:

1) Do you opened and played AVI file or converted to MPEG2?

2) What media player you used?

3) And how you did these screenshots?

[ADB]

Andrew,

Please send me original of this photo to int_support@ [removethistext] wnsoft.com

Also let me know please:

1) Do you opened and played AVI file or converted to MPEG2?

2) What media player you used?

3) And how you did these screenshots?

Hi Igor

I'm currently at work so I will send the original file tonight when I get home but answers to your other questions:-

1) There' was no conversion to MPEG2 just straight to AVI using custom settings 720x576 PAL 25 fps Progressive

2) Viewed using Windows Media Player and Classic Media Player (Great utility by the way) with exact same results.

3) Screen dumps were taken using Classic Media Player. Note: this program lets you actually capture an image and save it to a file but the results appeared the same as just doing a screen print via Windows Media

Player.

Hope this helps.

Note: I have never had a problem with video output as I usually resize my images initially to fit the intended resolution of screen size I would be using - this also reduces the size of the presentation (exe presentations). I only noticed this video compression problem when using full size images without prior resizing.

[Igor]

Andrew,

You're right about this problem. Unfortunately Bilinear resizing gives such artefacts when image reducing in several times. Bicubic gives much better results, but Bicubic works in 10-20 times slower and can't be used at all here.

I see another good solution for this problem. And I hope we'll realize it in the next betas (already in v5.00).

p.s. yes, Media Player Classic is a wonderful player I use it, too!

[alrobin]

Igor,

Did you see my note regarding the missing end keypoints when reducing slide durations in Project Options or Customize Slide? (See post #63 in this thread).

To repeat the problem, when I change the slide duration from 15 sec to 4 seconds I find that the end keypoints for all of the "O/A" objects are missing. However, the "pzr" effects are still functional.

I thought that if slide duration or transition times are reduced, the keypoint times would be adjusted if necessary in proportion to the new times (i.e. if they no longer fit).

[Igor]

Al,

Sorry that I still didn't reply, but I'm thinking about this problem since winter and I hope to discuss with you this problem tomorrow. I'll prepare couple possible solutions with illustrations.

[potwnc]

potwnc,

I didn't understood problem with bitrate. Probably you choosed some another AVI video codec?

If I use our preset "HD-1080" and press Create button I receive virtual AVI file, which can be imported for example to Ulead DMF 5 and then burned as HD-DVD or Blue-Ray disc.

About 16:9 DVD. Currently we create letterbox 16:9 (with black strips). Because I'm not sure that 3d party programs will recognize correctly compressed size 720x480 16:9 format of frame.

p.s. last builds of Media Player Classic incorrectly shows proportions of our AVI file. But file is OK. Please try to open it in Microsoft Media Player.

Igor,

After more testing and research I've discovered the following:

1) Bitrate simply does not apply to the temporary .avi file output from PTE when using the PTEV codec because it is not a real AVI file. Selecting other codecs the bitrate can be chosen.

2) PTE beta 4 outputs 720x540 when I select "DVD-Video disc" (NTSC), but no longer chops the frame when I create the project from scratch using beta 4 (my previous testing was with a project created originally using beta 3 and then the video was chopped). Instead it does create the letterbox 16:9 output as you said. My 3rd party program is Sony Vegas and it can't handle the 720x540 temporary AVI file (PTEV codec) to produce true 720x480 16:9 output. The only way I can get it to produce a true 720x480 NTSC 16:9 screen aspect ratio (1:1 pixel aspect ratio) MPEG2 file is by producing the temporary AVI file with "Create custom AVI video file" and 720x405. Maybe in this case the user should be able to select the output screen and pixel aspect ratio because different 3rd party programs will be able to handle different output sizes?

3) When I create AVI files at full 1920x1080 (using both "HD- 1080", "Progessive Video" and "Create custom AVI video file" 1920x1080, "Progessive Video"), the output video is interlaced instead of progressive - as reported by Sony Vegas. I've tried this with PTEV and many other codecs. I'm sure this is not a bug in Sony Vegas. Can you take a look at this?

Thanks,

Ray

[ADB]

Andrew,

You're right about this problem. Unfortunately Bilinear resizing gives such artefacts when image reducing in several times. Bicubic gives much better results, but Bicubic works in 10-20 times slower and can't be used at all here.

I see another good solution for this problem. And I hope we'll realize it in the next betas (already in v5.00).

p.s. yes, Media Player Classic is a wonderful player I use it, too!

Igor, I don't know if this is your solution but couldn't you make PTE resize the images using a high quality resizing algorithm before you render the video? That way you are only resizing each image once and the video compressor isn't resizing at all?

The only problem I see is where you have images that are zooming as these may well need to be at their original resolution unless for zooms only you use a slower high quality compression codec?

[Igor]

Ray,

1) Yes

2) I'll rework this moment.

3) I just checked up. For HD-1080 or custom 1920x1080 if you choose Progressive, it's absolutely Progressive video. You can easily check this moment, add fast moving of image to black screen and set Interlaced - you see interlaced lines on image.

Andrew,

It's very difficult to calculate right sizes, because of hierarchical system of objects and animation.

But as I wrote we found another solution which will give almost same result.

[ltdedorc]

Here's an example of a frame of video (progressive no filters) the top image is from an image firstly resized to a width of 720 pixels the bottom image was 3504 pixels wide and resized by PTE

The top image is smoother and looks good on a TV, the bottom image while apparantly sharper has actually broken up a bit, look particularly at the corners of the caravans where a wavy effect is apparant.

The bottom image almost suffers from a similar effect seen in oversharpened images. If this was panning the bottom image looks even worse with flickering.

Andrew,

Thx for the tip. I have been building a show with basically 920 x 690 images with a few 3264 x 2448 images to pan at 400zoom. I burned it as a DVD - Video Disk (1) with Smart Antiflicker Filter selected & at Auto (Interlaced Video), and the pan result was very poor, flicker & distortions at the edges going horizontal but not vertical panning.

I then ran the test agin but this time as a DVD - Video Disk (2) and as a Custom (3) with Smart Antiflicker Filter not selected and at Progressive Video. Viewed on TV, both were better than my 1st try.

I captured the same frame from all three and it was evident that 2 & 3 were better and between the two, 3, or Custom was slightly better and showed a little more detail.

Thx again...Harvey

[bfreas]

I've got a couple of issues and was wondering if anyone else is having the same.

Some pictures I'm using that are taken in portrait orientation look fine on the light table in PTE but when I render an exe or video they are laying on thier side. Not all portrait oriented shots do this, just some of them. The ones that are correct have been altered and resaved in Photoshop, the ones that aren't are straight from the camera (EOS-10D). Again, they ALL look correct on the light table!

When I'm rendering videos I'm getting a faint line that is along the top and/or right edge of the show. If it's a portrait oriented shot it creates a white broken line along the top edge to the right of the picture. If it's a landscape shot, it's on the right edge of the picture (see attached screenshot).

[Igor]

bfreas,

Interesting problem!

1) What exact size in pixels of these images?

2) As I've understood it is static image and no transition effects at that moment?

3) Did you render AVI for DVD-Video and choosed PAL/NTSC?

4) If it possible please send this project and photos to me - Save As your project with another name, leave only these one-two slides, remove music and call "Create backup in ZIP" (Main menu | File). My email address is int_support@ [nospam] wnsoft.com (remove [nospam] and empty space, please)

[davidlshepp]

IS ogg audio recognition not implemented in 5.00 beta 4 yet?

If I have a show with an ogg soundtrack and preview it from within beta 4 or run it as an exe created with beta 4 the show hangs up before the first image. The show runs properly if the soundtrack is an mp3 file.

[Igor]

OGG/WMA temporarily are not supported by current beta version.

Please wait for the nearest beta releases.

[bfreas]

1)Pictures are 3072x2048 (original resolution)

2)I used fade between pics, but artifacts are there all the time

3)I actually used 720x480 (custom) as TMPGEnc was having trouble with the DVD-Video/NTSC setting

4) On it's way....

Also, here's the two frame video encoded as Divx with no sound (attached)

Hmmm....doesn't look like I can attach the avi, only 408kb. Here's a link to it.

bfreas,

Interesting problem!

1) What exact size in pixels of these images?

2) As I've understood it is static image and no transition effects at that moment?

3) Did you render AVI for DVD-Video and choosed PAL/NTSC?

4) If it possible please send this project and photos to me - Save As your project with another name, leave only these one-two slides, remove music and call "Create backup in ZIP" (Main menu | File). My email address is int_support@ [nospam] wnsoft.com (remove [nospam] and empty space, please)

[Igor]

Thank you for send me project files!

But I still can't reproduce this problem.

1) Do you see these artefacts (line on picture)

on AVI file if open it in Media Player?

2) If problem still exists please try to set another AVI resolution, e.g.

1024x768, will the problem visible here?

3) Try with previous PicturesToExe v4.48 will same problem occur?

4) Please also let me know:

- What video card you have?

- Screen resolution.

- Version of Windows.

[seraphsf]

Ken,

Thanks for that, I've just tried it with sandard MP3 files, it still does not play.

Can anyone confirm that they are able to attach MP3 files to individual slides in V5. beta 4?

Then, if it's something my end, I'll probe a bit deeper.

John

I'm experiencing the same issue with v5 Beta 4 that John mentioned. Is this function disabled in beta 4 or is there a configuration we can set to get this to work? I tested it on v4.48 and this functionality worked as expected.

Thanks.

seraphsf

[Lin Evans]

I'm experiencing the same issue with v5 Beta 4 that John mentioned. Is this function disabled in beta 4 or is there a configuration we can set to get this to work? I tested it on v4.48 and this functionality worked as expected.

Thanks.

seraphsf

That function has not yet been enabled. You can have background music for the entire show, but not yet for individual slides.

Lin

[Big Kev]

Hi Igor,

I may have missed it but has anyone reported about a thin blue line which appears at the top of the screen and vibrates when a transition is taking place?

John (Big Kev)

[Igor]

John,

I didn't hear about this problem, please tell me in more details.

1) Where exactly it appears, if possible make screenshot (by PrintScr key and then paste in graphical editor)

2) Slides with Pan/Zoom effects or not?

3) What particular transition effects used or it happens with any effect (Fade, Circle, Curling of page)

Do you see this problem in my PteShow demo: http://www.wnsoft.com/apr/show/PteShow.zip

[bfreas]

Hi Big Kev

I'm still getting lines when making video (doesn't show in exe). After playing around with this more, I can see that the line is coming from another picture that the black background isn't covering up completely and is on the very edge of the frame. It appears to be the second picture in my show. I'm not sure how PTE renders it's video but it almost appears that it's overlaying the show (background and picture) on top of this picture underneath and it's missing covering it up by a few pixels on the top and left. The picture underneath doesn't appear to change as the lines remain constant throughout the show.

To answer your questions in you email Igor:

1) Does this problem occur if choose default preset - "DVD-Video" ?

Yes

2) What version of ATI drivers currently you have installed?

Please download latest drivers from ATI web site www.ati.com

I'm using the latest driver....in fact I just installed this card (ATI Radeon X800 XL) last week and downloaded the driver from ati.com.

Big Kev, are you using a slide in your show (maybe the second slide) that is blue along the edge where you're getting the line?

[Igor]

1) Please try with another smaller images, for example, 1024x768

2) Create special slide without image - add Rectangle object. Will you see same problem?

(All other settings/parameters without changes.)

[Big Kev]

John,

I didn't hear about this problem, please tell me in more details.

1) Where exactly it appears, if possible make screenshot (by PrintScr key and then paste in graphical editor)

2) Slides with Pan/Zoom effects or not?

3) What particular transition effects used or it happens with any effect (Fade, Circle, Curling of page)

Do you see this problem in my PteShow demo: http://www.wnsoft.com/apr/show/PteShow.zip

Hi Igor,

Thanks for the reply.

It is difficult to see the line on a screen shot but it only appears at the top of the screen and is only visible when the images do not fill the picture area.

The images that come from my camera without resizing are 3008 x 2000 and the blue line appears in the black area about 1mm down from the top of the screen.

The line is there all the time and flickers when any transition takes place.

I tried using the same pictures in v4.48 and the line is not there.

It does not show up on your Pte show as the images fill the screen.

Does any of that make sense?

John

[thedom]

Hi Igor,

Thanks a lot for this new beta.

Unfortunately, I noticed a (minor) bug in the previous beta which is still in the beta #4.

If you rotate an object with an angle less than -1° ( -0,5° by example), when you come back on the slide, the rotation of the object is +0,5°.

There is no problem with rotation < or equal to -1°.

I quickly read the previous post and I understand that you plan to release at least to more betas.

Could you please tell me in which beta you plan to include the following features :

- add text

- run external application

I really need them to finish my first show.

An other question :

for the final release, in the timeline window, do you plan to add objects in the vizualisation window (which should be bigger to be efficient) .

SOrry Igor, I come back from vaccation and still am a pain.

[jevans]

I know that sound synchronisation is not yet implemented in Beta#4. However I have made a show with commentary and adjusted the commentary timing to line up with the relevant slides. In the timeline, you can see the slides lagging behind the commentary by about 2 secs.

When I run the show on my computer at home, the sound/slide synchronisation is perfect. However when I run the same show on another desktop computer, the sound and slides gradually fall out of synchronisation as the show continues. Hope this is just a feature of the beta#4 not being fully developed at the moment.

Jeff