alrobin

Hi, Bob, Glad you found some appropriate music - it's always fun "trying on" different pieces to see what works. As you know, the music is a major part of any show. I use mp3 files exclusively. It is important to keep the size down, not only for distributing the show to others, but also to achieve the maximum smoothness of operation. People have had problems with WMA files, and WAV files don't always work when showing a PTE show directly from a CD. To distribute the images evenly, you either have to "do the math" and adjust the image durations and transition times accordingly (if creating a non-synched show), or add them to the timeline using the "New transition" button. Or, if you are familiar with spreadsheets and have Excel 97 or 2000, you can try adjusting the times using my "PTE-Adjustor" model (available for free on Beechbrook). It gets a little technical, but with a bit of practice, is not really that difficult to use. I'm in the process of re-designing it to make it easier to distribute slides between different lengths of music, but don't look for it before Christmas!

Hi, Squeaky, Welcome to the Forum! Don't think anyone mentioned it - but to place two images side-by-side, you can add them in the Object Editor, or combine them in Photoshop or other image editor. The latter is the preferred method as it gives you more control over the placement of the images.

Hi, Bob, Welcome to the Forum! I hate to tell you this, but I'm afraid that there is no sure way to control the synchronization of your images with the music other than using the sync timeline. This means that (using the timeline in project options) the only way to stop the music before the applause would be to edit it in a sound editor such as audacity. However, if the mp3 file is not too large (less than 1 Mb), and if you cannot figure out how to do it in Audacity, if you send it to me (to alrobin@alrobinson.com) I will remove the offending applause for you, (and save it for myself at the end of one of my shows! ) After editing, you could try to sync the show again using only the individual slide timing as you are now, as it should be easier to control the timing with the music files the correct size.

Michel, Wonderful photography, as usual! Thanks for sharing.

Hi, Shelley, Welcome to the Forum! Which tutorial are you referring to? In my tutorial, "PTE-101", I cover custom synch briefly in the "Timeline" section. Available for free on Beechbrook.

Hmmm - lossless cropping. Is this not an oxymoron??

Marion, It's better to set up your music selections first, and then set up the slide durations, by entering times, either on the "Customize slide ..." menu, or on the timeline in "Project options". If you want to replace a particular song which was added under "Music" on the "Project options", just delete it and then add a new selection. Hope this helps.

Hi, Wedford, I hope to have a revision out this fall if I can tear myself away from making shows with this fantastic new improved PTE!

Just one minor detail - you probably just didn't mention it. The downloaded file is a zipped file, and so you also have to unzip it and save the contained files in the same folder as you are already using. You will be asked if you want to replace them as all 7 already exist. Then run "Setup" (one of the files which you just replaced) and choose the options you want (e.g. icon on the desktop, etc.) Works for me!

Don't forget to run "Setup" after you replace the 7 files with the ones included in the zipped file.

We could put the photos into a pte show, along with a bunch more created out of these using PS, and sell it to Disney as a proposed storyboard for "Blair Witch II"!

Hi, Dan, Welcome to the Forum! You are right, there have been a lot of requests for new timeline features such as the one you mentioned. By the way, when I make a double post (and it is easier to do than some people realize), I edit one out, and put in a reference to the other, to prevent some posting replies to one thread and other people to the other. Good luck with PTE!

Hi, Wedford, You asked: One way to accomplish this would be to create separate shows for each song, and "splice" them together using the "run application after last slide" feature in Project Options / Advanced. It is also possible to set up the timing for each song by fiddling with the parameters in my "Adjustor" model. Igor has promised to look into advanced timeline features in a future version of PTE, and I suspect this is one feature he will address as it has been requested on numerous occasions. I don't understand the second question. When using "permit control ...", the show is always in sync, even when one uses the controls.

John, Welcome to the Forum! Please tell us a little more about your music files (type, how many used in your show, synch or non-synch mode, applied in "Project Options" or "Customize slide" or via the "Sound" line on the main screen, etc.) and if you are synching, a little about the size of image files, how close togther, etc. Watch also for overlapping transitions. Mp3 files created in my copy of Cool Edit work fine in PTE.

Marianne, I second the motion! This would be a very handy feature, especially now that we have the light-table. One could select any number of images, and then have a button that would open up the "customize slide" menu, and allow one to globally set the parameters desired. Carrying this a bit further, in addition to the light-table, I would like to see a "spreadsheet table" where each image would be listed, along with all the parameters for each, allowing one to change any parameter(s) by simply typing in a new value. These features would be simple to design, and would be extremely useful.

Igor, Congratulations to you and your team for an excellent job! The rate of improvements to PTE seems to be exponential. I hope that the rewards for you are equally good. You deserve the weekend off! Maybe even the rest of the summer! I hope you have a favourite place to go and celebrate! I wish I could be there to buy you a beer (or two)! By the way, I just finished a new show - but I burned the cd with beta #14 just before I read that v. 4.30 was out! I'll have to cut another one, just to be able to say it is "official". Thanks for everything you've done for us over the past few months!

Got you, Igor. It makes sense to wait... but please do put it on a list for next time! Good luck! Harold Igor, I have experienced the opposite problem - when I am working on a show and break away to modify a wave file, then import it into PTE, when I re-open the timeline, the new music plays, but the old wave-form shows still, even if I close the waveform and re-open it. The only way to install the new waveform is to save and close the slide show and then re-open it. It would be nice if PTE remembered the waveform one was using, but if a new music is added, clears out the old waveform and assembles the new one. Something to keep in mind for the next version.

FishHunter, Welcome to the forum! Does it help to resize the images to say 150 kb in size? How long are the transitions you are trying? Is the show running from a cd? Are the images very close together? (i.e. next image starting right on the heels of the preceding one?)

Mike, Tell us more. How large was the first image file? Are there any objects on the first slide? Is any music added to the first slide? Did you try to save the show again on another cd? Have you tried the same cd on a non-Win98 pc other than the one on which it was produced?.

Igor, I've just applied the new beta to the slide show I'm working on, and so far everything works fine. Looks like a go! I sure love the new light-table!

Leif, I guess the answer to that is whether or not it is a difficult glitch for Igor to fix. Being the perfectionist that he is, I suspect he will look into it.

David, I'm glad you posted your answer too, as it covers the ground from the point of view of a musician - some musical ability is perhaps the most important ingredient in successfully composing music. Your questions and advice are very appropriate. However, since Andrew says he has some experience with synthesizers, I assumed that he has "broken the ice" with MIDI enough to know something of the difficulties and since he says he used to play the recorder, I also assumed that he has some basic knowledge of music and music notation, so my reply concentrated mainly on the technical hardware and software considerations. Your reply prompts me to confirm the advice you gave in that, even though I feel I have a fairly good knowledge of music theory, I am finding it extremely difficult in coming up with "original" (copyright-free), "non-hokey" (professional sounding) musical compositions, suitable for AV backgrounds. Together, we should be able to help Andrew at least get started in this exciting activity. The rest will be up to him.

Hi, Andrew, You're setting out on a fantastic voyage of discovery! There are so many variables, options, solutions, capabilities, etc., that the learning curve never ends - the trip just keeps on getting better and more fantastic! Especially today, now that the technology has already advanced so far. But of course, as the technology improves, we always expect more and more from our toys. I have been dabbling in MIDI for around 20 years, and still feel that I have barely cut the surface. Part of the reason for this is that it is so time-consuming that I never took the time to really dig into it and become more proficient at it than I am. I could make several suggestions (bear in mind these are just suggestions based on my particular experiences, and each one playing around with MIDI probably has a different viewpoint and set of experiences). 1. Since the learning curve is so steep, I would suggest taking a course in digital music production or recording - our own community college offers several really good courses. I finally got around to taking one last winter and found it very helpful. Apart from that, there are numerous good texts around to help you get started. You will probably find, as I did, that the equipment instruction booklets and software manuals are more confusing than they are helpful. If you plan to distribute your music with slide-shows, read up on "mastering" philosophy and techniques to find out how to "fine-tune" your productions. 2. Don't skimp on purchasing second-rate software and equipment - you will be fascinated at first with all that the technology can do, but if it is not giving you top-quality performance, as your requirements become more sophisticated, you will quickly become dissatisfied with it. IMO, this equipment would include, in order of significance with respect to quality, the following: - sound card. You may even want to do as I just did and purchase a good quality external USB-2 or firewire sound card. Make sure your sound card has a "line" input and output. - amplifier/speakers/headphones - software - go for one of the classical MIDI sequencers such as Cakewalk or Cubase. Sound recording/editing software is also important, and I would recommend either Cool-Edit, Audacity or Cubase in order to provide for user-friendly organization of all the different tracks you will find you need to create, edit, rearrange, and mix together. If you do not already have Cool-Edit, you will need to go for the more professional (and expensive) Audacity (or Cubase - even more expensive). This software is just as important in sound production as Photoshop or Photo-Paint are in image editing. With some sequencers you will need other software for specific sounds and effects, while other software, such as Cubase, comes equipped with a pretty good repertoire of sound capabilities, and you can even download other free effects and sounds, such as drum-kits, etc. It is not an easy software to learn to use, however. On the MIDI side of things, it's not enough just to be able to play different instruments. Dynamics and variety are very important. The notes will sound "tinny" if you are not able to "play" with them and add expression to them, where required, such as pitch and volume changes, vibrato, echo, and other special effects. This is similar to using various - sound module - this is less important now than it was a few years ago, as with the better-quality sound cards and modern software, the MIDI sounds are much better than they were. I can now create better sounds through my Cubase software and pc sound card than I can with my external MIDI sound module. And there is no limit to the number of special software packages you can purchase in order to produce specific sounds (e.g. grand pianos, synthesizers, etc.) or create "new-age" style music. - mixer - this can come in very handy in helping you control the input signal levels to your sound card, and also in routing and monitoring different sound sources (mic, CD, tape, radio, TV, etc) to your sound card for recording purposes. - last but not least, a fast modern pc. Some sound people prefer "mac's", but if you are using PTE you will already be in the "pc" world. However, some of the modern sound software will not run (at least not satisfactorily) on a pc with less than Win XP, a fast P4 processor, and 512 Mb of RAM. 3. Brush up on your basic music theory, especially if you want to create some of your own compositions. 4. Purchase a good MIDI keyboard - this doesn't have to be expensive, but it will assist you in entering some of the music (unless you know you do not already have, and are absolutely not prepared to acquire, some basic keyboard skills.) I have almost no skills with the piano, but I still find the electronic keyboard useful. You don't have to have one with a built-in sequencer (your pc and MIDI software will be able to provide that), but just one with keys which will allow you to enter the notes to your pc. It should have "velocity" and "aftertouch" capabilities, though, and a "pitch-bend" wheel will be useful, too. 5. Even though it is very compact, and also compatible with PTE, don't expect to be satisfied with straight MIDI files for slide shows, as it will sound differently on different sound cards. You will have much better results if you first create the MIDI selections, and then record them as digital ".wav" or ".mp3" files for use in PTE. For this, you will need to be able to play the MIDI files and record through your sound recording/editing software simultaneously, something that most good sound cards and software are able to do. 6. Listen to other music and download other people's midi creations to get ideas - as you probably already know, there are all kinds of excellent MIDI web sites on the net. That's about all I can think of "off the top of my head" - will add to the list if I think of anything else. Hope this doesn't intimidate you, but instead inspires you to dig into sound production on your own and continually search for ways to perfect your productions. Also, hope I haven't bored you with a whole lot of things you already know! Please feel free to contact me with any specific questions you have, and I will do my best to answer them. Good luck! Will look forward to your first big production!

I notice a small "blip" too at the end of the final transition back to the desktop.

Bob, Click on "Information / Uninstall".