tom95521

Windows patch released July 9, 2019. It never seems to end. I'm glad my desktop PC is an AMD Ryzen. https://portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/advisory/CVE-2019-1125 https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2019/08/silent-windows-update-patched-side-channel-that-leaked-data-from-intel-cpus/ Tom

Time to check for a Nvidia update. https://www.forbes.com/sites/daveywinder/2019/08/03/nvidia-issues-windows-10-warning-update-geforce-nvs-quadro-and-tesla-drivers-now/ Tom

Currently we can zoom the timeline with ctrl+mouse scroll wheel or ctrl+F11/F12. It would be convenient to have a double arrow button that auto scales the timeline to fit the duration of the slideshow. Also if the slideshow is longer than about 10:30 it reaches a timeline scale limit and requires scrolling. Videos are sometimes longer than 10:30 and a lower resolution timeline would allow us to see complete slideshow without scrolling. The -/+ slider also might assist novice editors who want to change the timeline scale without knowing about ctrl mouse/keyboard options. Thanks, Tom

Another option is to trim the video into multiple video segments during import using the video converter. Depending on how much you remove the .exe file size could be smaller. Tom

Hi wideangle, I purchased Affinity Publisher at the discounted price. I am hoping they will continue to develop new software products as an alternative to Adobe. I like Adobe (and Apple) but I find it hard to justify spending more money than competing Windows software and hardware. That being said I might get a Mac mini later this year if the price is right. Tom

Having dual monitors in Windows is great but a slideshow defaults to the primary monitor (display 1). Sometimes you want it to run the slideshow on the other monitor or run 2 different slideshows simultaneously. You could create a shortcut or cmd/batch file with command line option but that takes time. I found it's much easier to use the Windows + Shift + left arrow/right arrow keys to switch the running slideshow to the other monitor. List of commands that save time. I knew some of them but not all. https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/12445/windows-keyboard-shortcuts List of PTE command line switches https://www.picturestoexe.com/forums/topic/20331-list-of-command-line-parameters/ Thanks, Tom

Probably has been a request before now. When you want to adjust the audio levels on a video you have to either use a separate application to extract/demultiplex the audio from the video file or you have to drag a second copy of the video into the timeline audio track or add the video in the audio project options. Perhaps this video to audio import step could be automated by right clicking on the video and have a menu option to extract or detach audio. This option might only work if the slide contains only one video object. Most MP4 videos use AAC which is better than MP3 but we can only play AAC inside of MP4 instead of as a separate AAC file maybe due to licensing? Just trying to make life easier on new PTE users. Correction. It will import AAC files with the extension M4A. Thanks, Tom

Watching videos like this really makes me wish I had a drone. Thanks, Tom

I think PTE could manage to play a large number of video copies but it would require a different blending mode (additive?) to make it look realistic. Right now the layers do not blend properly. That's why I have set the 2 top layers to very low opacity values so they do not wash out the background video too much. It's a fun experiment. Thanks, Tom

It might be possible to simulate long exposure (motion trail) if you make enough copies of video and start time offset closer together. I have only experimented with 3 layers of video. Thanks, Tom

Hi Lin, I'll PM you a link to the video. I think they use a different method based on combining a number of still photos and fading opacity compared to PTE video delayed start time. Adobe After Effects has the ability to do this too. Thanks, Tom

Trying to create something in PTE that was created with another product. Kind of like motion blur but different. 3 copies of video top layer 12% opacity - 1 second start time offset middle layer 25% opacity - 0.5 second start time offset bottom layer 100% opacity - 0 second start time offset I don't think the blending mode is perfect but you can still see the multiple exposure effect. Spacing is controlled by time offset. The videos should be shot with a tripod so the focus is sharp for the background (ocean is out of focus). Videos from https://www.pexels.com/videos/ Thanks, Tom

Lin, Jean-Cyprien, Very nice demos of the effect. Tthe ability to clone objects and inherit their properties is very powerful. You could make some interesting flowers from petals made of rotated images. I also sometimes added opacity to make the image fade away. Thanks, Tom

When you select a single slide it displays the duration and file size in status bar below the bottom left toolbar. It would be helpful when more than one slide is selected to sum up the total time and file size instead of no information. Thanks, Tom

Igor, Thank you for working on this important feature. It will be a noticeable improvement when publishing to video. Thanks again, Tom

Hi Igor, I can't speak for others but 4K blu-ray output is not something I would use in PTE. Streaming video is much more convenient if you have high speed internet ( >= 5 Mbps) or a modern HDTV or other video device with USB MP4 input. I would like to use AV1 output and AVIF input in future versions of PTE when it becomes popular. Thanks, Tom

Samsung and Oppo are no longer selling Blu-Ray players (in the US at least). Even movie theaters have declining ticket sales due to faster home streaming and larger HDTVs. Also most (if not all) new HDTVs can stream MP4 from USB input. https://www.engadget.com/2019/02/16/samsung-exits-blu-ray-players-in-us/ https://www.engadget.com/2018/04/03/oppo-uhd-blu-ray/ Tom

Hi, Welcome to the forum. That monitor looks great. Curved panel, 21:9 aspect ratio, usb-c connector. So many monitor options available now. Thanks, Tom

Igor, Thanks for the information. Still doing research. Some of the BenQ monitors look interesting and are flicker free. Tom

I think you are right. There are 4K 10 bit monitors, but without video HDR support. I like this AOC monitor. If I buy a monitor now I will try to by one that will be compatible for at least 3 years in the future. It is not true 10 bit because it is 8 bit with temporal dithering. https://www.amazon.com/AOC-Q3277FQE-32-Inch-2560x1440-Mountable/dp/B01N8ZIWM3/ In the future if AV1 becomes the common video format then maybe AVIF will also become popular. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AV1#AV1_Image_File_Format_(AVIF) I realize there are other licensed formats like HEVC/HEIC/HEIF that require additional software installed at least on Windows 10. Thanks, Tom

Is 10 bit HDR something I should consider in my next monitor? Thanks, Tom

I will definitely buy a faster computer monitor next time. There are so many options now. 4K, refresh rate, response time, HDR, Freesync/G-Sync, IPS, ... Thanks, Tom

I have always used a 60 Hz LCD monitor with PTE. If the GPU and the monitor are capable of higher refresh rates or variable refresh rate (g-sync or freesync) will PTE operate at other than 60 Hz refresh rates? Is there a noticeable difference in pans, zooms, or transitions? Thanks, Tom

Hi Lin, I have never experimented with VisiSketch Pro. Video mask sounds interesting. Thanks, Tom

Hi Lin, Very nice. I think I might have enough patience to create a spray painted version, without so many keyframes. Thanks, Tom