mhwarner

Thanks for the explanation, Dom. I understand perfectly now about the size needed for the total 16:9 viewing screen. I'm also happy to hear about selecting page colors, textures, etc. Please look at your private messages to see another idea I have sent you. Mary

First off, Dom, it is great to have you back here! I have enjoyed (and purchased) some of your free and low cost new or updated styles so thanks for your efforts. I'm enjoying your progress on the new book animation. I do have one comment on the size/layout of the book, at least the interior. I (and I assume many others) typically are working with 3:2 ratio pictures from digital cameras. It would be nice to have page sizes that would accommodate a full-size landscape oriented picture on one page. For instance, I would love a book that allows me to drop in a 3:2 picture that fills an entire page. Obviously, if I wanted a full-page spread, I might need to do some cropping. Or if I wanted to add a portrait-oriented photo there would obviously be borders on the sides. It would also be nice to have the ability to change the page backgrounds to white or black or something else altogether. Perhaps these ideas are all part of your plan when you get the book style finalized, but if not, I hope you will consider them. Thanks!

Hi Rosemary, Go to PTE AV's menu option "Settings". Then choose "Preferences" in the dropdown. In the dialog window that opens, the last item in the left-hand menu bar is "Templates". When you select that item, the last item in the right-hand section is "Folder for Custom Slide Styles and Transitions". You can change the location specified if you want to store them somewhere else. On my Windows 10 computer, the default folder is c:\Users\XXXYOURNAME\Documents\PicturesToExe\Styles and Transitions (which can be accessed more easily from Windows Explorer by clicking on the "Documents" library item). However, if these are .ptestyles files that you have downloaded from here or elsewhere, I believe you will have to Import them first in PTE's "Styles and Themes" window under the "Tools" section. Change your default location preference first before doing the import. If I am misunderstanding your question, please provide more details. Mary

Yes, Igor, it definitely should. But it didn't. Sorry.

Installing the latest update via the automatic update changed many of my preferences (like double-clicking a slide in the slide list to open O&A editor, clicking the X in the upper right corner to return to the main window). I had to search through the settings menu to find all the changes to set things back to the way I like them. First time it's happened. Can't remember if I've just always downloaded the new .exe and installed myself or if I ever used the auto update from within PTE before without problems. In any case, an unexpected annoyance!

Hi Paul, You can also open your slide in the O&A editor and on the "Properties" tab in the bottom "Common" section under "Fit mode" select "Cover" without the need for zooming your slide. If by chance all of the slides in your project are 4:3 and you want them all to fit 16:9, you can go to your "Project Options" under the "Default" tab and tick the "Cover" box and apply it to all slides in your project. Here's a simple style that will cover a 16:9 screen with any size aspect ratio file (4:3 or 3:2 or whatever) and then apply the sepia filter. If you don't like the exact placement of any of the individual slides, you can still modify them in the O&A editor with either "Image Crop" on the Properties tab or Pan or Framing on the Animation tab. You have lots of options. Mary Sepia Cover.ptestyle

Gary, Wondering if the issue is not a function of the particular TV. Most TVs have something that resembles a "Format" setting where it can be changed from "Normal" to "Stretch" to "Fill" or whatever. Typically this comes into play if you are watching a non-HD TV show which will display as a 4:3 square in the middle of the screen. You can change the format to fill the screen in a number of ways. Stretch makes people look sort of fat. Fill (if I remember correctly), cuts off the tops and bottoms of the display. Can't remember what the other options are or do. I have run into this in my RV because I have an HD-TV but only a "standard" satellite dish. If I watch programs from my over-the-air antenna, which are typically broadcast in HD, I don't need any adjustments but if I watch a program via my DIRECTV box, I have to fiddle with the format of the TV to see programs in the most pleasing manner for me. Same thing happens with standard DVDs. Perhaps you could have someone load your show and fiddle with the "Format" settings to see if they have any effect. Just a thought.

Happy New Year to you, Igor, and your great looking -- and extremely talented team! Thanks for the latest version and for all the hard work put in to make the final release product something you can be proud of and something we can use that is pretty much without bugs and functions as advertised. This is so different from many other software program updates released to the public long before they are really ready for general distribution. And to all of my fellow forum members, Happy New Year to you too! I look forward to everyone's continued participation here and the sharing of so much information and the many valuable styles, templates and tutorials. 2019 was not the best year for me and I know it was difficult for several others here. I hope that 2020 will be a better year for all of us.

Very nice! Thank you for sharing!

Lovely show and very relaxing to watch! You have a such a great eye for composition. Loved the various reflections, especially the one with ice at the edges in the late afternoon light. Thank you again for sharing!

What a lovely collection of images! I was really moved by the exquisite lightening in some of them. And of course, the scenery is spectacular. You have put it all together with your usual attention to the details, fades and movement of the images. Would love to hear a bit more about the actual locations. I am never disappointed when I download your shows and they are always "Keepers". Hope you and yours are doing well.

Nicely done! I really liked the opening you have created. These are some of my favorite places as well. Living in the US Southwest provides us so many photographic opportunities.

Gary, Thanks for the Route Generator link. I too like to add maps to my videos and have created some with PowerDirector or in PTE with Photoshop layers and masks -- a bit of a pain. I always put a map on the back of the photobooks I create. FYI, there is another app that you might find interesting: Geo Photo for creating maps if your camera has GPS or you take snaps with a phone to store locations. Mary

Nicely done, Gary! And it appears that your efforts with this show in Beta 10 have been instrumental in helping Igor and his team in solving quite a few issues with this new version. We are adventuresome too, but some of those roads would have put my heart in my mouth. Loved the hairy cows and I especially liked the steam train segment. Your map was wonderfully done. Mind sharing exactly how you did it? Looks like another trip of a lifetime for you two (and it seems like you've got quite a few under your belt now). I am envious! Thanks so much for sharing!

Gary, The Vimeo link worked fine for me. The Facebook one did also but the Vimeo version looks a bit sharper and clearer.

OT Judy, How fortunate you were to have met him in person! I followed his articles and columns religiously and marveled at his abilities and photographic talents. His death was such a tremendous loss to all photographers.

Thanks for this one, as well as all of the other templates you share, Dave. Take a look at this transition and see if you think it's worth duplicating in PTE. I have tried a couple of times, but never got very far with it. http://www.masterslider.com/template/box-slider-template/ You might find some other interesting transition ideas here as well. http://www.masterslider.com/templates/ I have been using the Wordpress version of the slider on the blog I am creating.

Stunning photography, Maureen, as usual! Your selection of images and the fades between those images is really well done. And the music selection is perfect. Really enjoyable presentation! One of these days I hope to have time to create more of my own slideshows. I just hope they can be half as good as yours!

Fantastic as always! Your choice of music for these shows is impeccable. More inspiration for my upcoming trip! Bookings have been made!

Nicely done! We visited the mines 2 years ago and I especially liked the colorfully lit gnomes. After we had climbed down the initial 800 steps -- which gave my husband some difficulty -- the guide said "Oh, I should have told you we have an elevator." Duh! Anyway thanks for the memory.

Incredible scenery, magnificient photography and a well put-together show! Another keeper! As always, thanks so much for sharing with us. One of these days, when I finish putting together photo books of my recent travels, I hope to get around to doing some slideshows. In the meantime, you can catch my photos at https://www.instagram.com/mhwarnerphoto/

Mark, I just wanted to say how much I enjoyed your latest show. Very well done and even more amazing considering the fact that it was done only with an iPhone camera. We visited Auschwitz 2 years ago and I think your show conveys the feelings I had during my visit. The black and white is particularly effective. Thanks for sharing this. Also, I should mention that while I downloaded it quite a while back, I just recently had the time to view your Iceland show. Another very well done show. Thoroughly enjoyed it! Made me want to hop on a plane and visit!

Well done, as usual! Loved the lambs and the boat filled with daffodils. And I especially liked the final image on the credits. Thanks for sharing.

Hi Igor, Sorry not to respond sooner. I was busy taking pictures at the Grand Canyon and had no internet connection. I uninstalled PTE 9 and then reinstalled the latest version 9.01. I did not experience the same issue. The demo show loaded and played properly immediately upon first open, so whatever the problem was, it seems to be resolved. Thanks for being so responsive!

It does seem to work Ok from "Help\Welcome screen". It has always worked in previous beta versions when I first loaded the program after installation. Not sure why it didn't this time. Thanks for the quick reply.