JEB

Hi, I have a slide in which I have two video clips side by side. I would like one to start playing several seconds after the other has started and for both to be playing simultaneously thereafter. How can I achieve this? I suppose I am looking for the equivalent of "offset" as with music clips. Is this possible or am I waisting my time looking for a solution? John P.S. - I have placed this in the general PTE area as it is not video output. I hope this is o.k.

Hi Maureen, Thanks for that dose of Sienna, next to Venice probably my favourite city in the world and long overdue another visit. I have to add my agreement to those expressed by others regarding the quality of the images – the lighting and focus is superb. I too wondered about whether you used a tripod and am now encouraged to play a bit more with ISO settings as I never have a tripod on these visits and probably wouldn't be allowed to use one in any event. I thought the music was just a bit sad for the occasion but would probably not have commented had the subject no tbeen brought to my attention by others. I liked your candid shots of people as they depicted for me the authentic feel of Sienna. This is not a criticism but perhaps something to consider. I am not a believer that AV's must have narration but I do think that on this occasion it could be worth trying. Knowing Sienna quite well it was interesting for me to identify where you were and from where you had taken the shot but for others a little bit of narrative may be appreciated. Thanks again for that injection of sun and Italian atmosphere from a damp and dull Edinburgh. Regards John

Hi Barry, I can't add to what has been said by others. Equally I can't let this moment pass without recording my admiration for your skill and artistry, which in my view matches the quality of this marvelous product. Thank you Barry, Igor and the PTE team for pushing the boundaries and making me, for one, realize how much I still have to learn. Regards John

Hi Barry, I totally agree regarding aspect ratio. I always use 16:9 which lines up with my camera, monitor and TV, its the number of pixels I need to get my head round. Given the New iPad's screen ratio of 2048x1536 should I start building my shows at 2048x1152 or stick with my present 1920x1080 (not allowing for Zoom of course). John

Thanks Peter, I thought there must be something taking place but could not get anything on a search. I'll have a look later tonight - I don't want to spoil the rest of my day! Cheers John

Hi, I am considering purchasing an iPad which will drag me in "kicking and screaming" into the video scene, somewhere that fills me with a degree of terror! I note that the "New iPad" has a high resolution screen 2048x1536. Two related questions - If creating PTE shows for display on the iPad would it be advisable to build them to the above resolution? How will older PTE shows produced at lower resolutions display? Thanks in advance. John

Hi, I'm not able to contribute any technical advice on this topic but have one stupid question and one plea. Stupid Question Will this also apply to any Windows 8 user using a service such as Dropbox? Plea Whatever the solution PLEASE, PLEASE keep it simple! Good hunting! Regards John

Hi, Does anybody other than myself find itinfuriating that when in O&A having selected the Text box one hasto then manually select the input panel before commencing typing?Would it not be much more intuitive if the cursor moved thereautomatically? Hope you're listening Igor! I immediately feel better having got that off my chest - till the next time! Regards all, John

Good morning, Thank you all very much for your very helpful advice. I managed to get the number of copies I required for last night produced. I stuck with the copy master disc method and changed from a Sony DVD to Maxell which worked very smoothly. A colleague also helped out with his PC and between us we got all the copies we required for the evening. Sussed out Nero. I will be away from my desk for a week but on my return I plan to suss out the Sony disc issue (I suspect it was a one off isolated fault I encountered). I also plan to explore the ISO method on my return. Is there any advantage of one method over the other? In the meantime thank you all once again. Regards John

Hi Folks, Partial success, I downloaded a trial of Nero, made a short PTE sequence, used the PTE Video Builder and burned a DVD. I then made a copy using Nero and both worked on my TV DVD player. I then made a DVD of a 22 minute PTE sequence, checked it on my TV / DVD where it worked. However it failed to copy with Nero, indicating a fault in reading the master DVD. I will try again using a different manufacturers DVD. I have used this method rather than the ISO method as nowhere could I find in the Video Builder any reference to ISO - please advise a novice who is becoming quite frustrated with this whole process!!!! John

Thanks All, I felt sure there must be a simple way of doing it. My task for today though its such a nice day here I also want to get out and take some pictures I need for a new project I have in mind. Decisions, decisions .... it was never like this when I was earning my living!!! I wish!!! Regards John

Hi Folks, I am looking for some BASIC advice regarding converting PTE shows for use on TV. I have been doing this from time to time for my own use using the "DVD-Video Disc" option under the"Publish" key. I have been asked to produce multiple copies of a sequence on DVD which lasts for about 20 minutes and takes at least that length of time to convert to DVD using the PTE process, so the thought of making 15 to 20 copies fills me with utter dread. Is there a quicker way? I have no idea what AVI and MP4 are nor if either of those are what I am producing when I make a DVD as described above. I have shied away from DVD up till now,mainly because, judging by the debate that takes place on the forum, it appears to be filled with issues and problems that I would rather avoid. It now seems I have to bite the bullet! Please keep your suggestions as simple as possible!!! Slowly, slowly catchy monkey!! Regards John

Hi, Just so that we are totally clear. As I said I produced this test on my PC and transferred it to the MAC. I did NOT use Parallels to produce it - I have yet to load PTE to the MAC (Parallels). My experience with Parallels so far has been limited due to initial lack of confidence with its stability. I am, now that I am getting to grips with the MAC, keen to explore the Parallels options more seriously hence my interest in your endeavours. If I can get it to work smoothly then I would gladly ditch the PC. The PC configuration is :- Packard Bell DESKTOP Windows 7 64 3.2GHz i5 4GB RAM The MAC configuration is :- MacBook Pro OS X 10.7.3 2.53 GHz i5 8GB DDR3 Hope this helps. John PS - I'm not technical so what I have to say may sound naive. I am led to believe that under Parallels there is limited access to the graphics memory of the MacBook (motherboard and separate card). If this is the case then viewing a PC PTE sequence could be compromised. It may be acceptable for sequence construction but may may not be so for viewing a PC PTE sequence. Presumably a MAC PTE sequence will have access to the full graphics capability of the MAC. Perhaps you can confirm your understanding of this. Leading on from this I wonder whether using Bootcamp one has access to the full graphics?

HI, i made a small test sequence on my desktop PC and saved it in a Zip folder, transferred it via a stick to my Macbook Pro and it works when opened. You may wish to try. John TEST FOR MAC FROM PC DESKTOP.zip

I have similar set up to you. Macbook Pro with Parallels so interested in this as I am about to start using it for creation of sequences. I downloaded your show a few minutes ago and it runs on the MAC but with NO SOUND. John

Thanks Peter, I think I have a better understanding now. I can see that the image displayed in the slide holder is always the top image in the stack, which makes sense. And that the image file name in the slide holder is the nominated main image (again this makes sense). The confusion, if you don't understand this, arises when the top image in the stack is larger than and above the main image. The slide holder suggests a conflict. Thanks again, John

Peter, Yes I agree that if an image is changed in the way you describe all is well. However if while in O&A you delete the main, or even only, image and replace it with another using the insert image icon in O&A the slide name does not change. I find myself doing this quite frequently so it becomes a pain and eventually confusing if returning to an edit at some later date. As far as I can tell there is no easy way of identifying the main image in a slide that has multiple images other than cross checking with the slide list. Or am I wrong again? John PS Using PTE 7.0 something?

Ha, Ha, My Daddy's bigger than your Daddy. Ha, ha.

Hi, I'm sure that this must have been discussed before and an explanation given but I can't recall the outcome. Perhaps somebody can enlighten me? You will be aware that when you add an object (image) to a slide container the name of that object is allocated to the slide container alongside the number of the slide container. However, if in the process of building a sequence you change the original object for an alternative, the slide container retains the original name. Why does it not take on the name of its replacement? Furthermore if you wish to access the replacement image directly into an external editor the original object is opened. Most annoying! But I'm sure there is a logical explanation that completely eludes me. Any explanation would be appreciated. Regards John

Hi, I go along with Barry when he says the following - though with some reservations on the PP option (though I do use PTE quite frequently in preferance to PP).

Peter, This cat's on its last life - due to brain damage caused by information overflow!!! John

Hi, Thanks for that Peter. I was aware of the button (but only available when initially creating the Mask & Container). I was totally ignorant of the fact that using the "shift" key enabled the resizing of one side of an object independently from the other. Just for the sake of accuracy - I referred in my post to the resizing of the Mask Container, in fact it is the Mask (Rectangle or whatever} I need to resize and that thanks to Lin I am now able to achieve. Reghards John

Thank you Lin, I must confess I didn't know that by using the shift key you could change one side independant of the other. I live and learn. Trouble is I forget as much as I learn these days!! Regards, John

Hi, It is likely that the followingsuggestion may have been made before or there may even be a method ofachieving this that I have not found. I only raise this now as I amworking on a project using many masks and believe that if implementedit could make my work flow much simpler. Could it be arranged that once a maskcontainer is created and an image inserted the dimensions of thecontainer can be changed. I don't mean proportionately but (in thecase of an oblong) the aspect ratio. A way of getting back to wherethe original container was specified is what I'm looking for. As Isee it the only way of achieving this is to delete the container andstart again. If there is a way of doing this that Ihave not found I would be delighted to know about it. Regards John

Ken, Sorry to have to say this but I think I said something in my first post on this thread about "burying ones head in the sand". I think you have just demonstrated what I was getting at.. Thank you. John