davegee

Hi Peter, I have been analysing the various components and cannot see where the Black Slide project file fits into it all. Could you explain a little (or did I miss an earlier post?). DaveG

Thanks Peter - I knew that you would get there in the end! I have not tried it yet but will do sowith my Vista laptop asap. NOW, let's hope that Igor doesn't do anything silly with the Windowed Mode. There was a suggestion regarding Windowed Mode a while ago - can't remember too much about it but I remember being concerned! DaveG

Hi Peter, I don't want to spoil your Eureka moment BUT, I'm getting a flash back to the (Hidden) Taskbar between shows in XP - haven't tried it in Vista yet. When I downloaded the zip file there were no Gradblue and no Gradred EXE files. I created them in the same folder to continue. Have I missed something? If you are up to sharing this would it perhaps be possible to update your zip file to a working model and re-post? Thanks, DaveG

Hi Jeff, Sorry for the delay in replying - I have been walking my little legs off in Austria for two weeks. I went back to the beginning and read your original post again. The Disable Scaling would work if you resized to 1152x768 (3:2 aspect ratio) to suit the height of your projector (losing a little on each side as you suggested). However on your 1280x1024 monitor you would have a black "line" all around - you can't have it both ways. By the way, the correct settings would be Full-Screen and 4:3 (NOT 5:4) assuming that projection is the ultimate objective? DaveG

Agreed - it is confusing, as Barry points out, to have to enter information in the CUSTOMISE dialogue for AUTHOR when in MESSAGES you might have set it to MODE or RESOLUTION or ASPECT RATIO. DaveG

Agreed Barry - changes made in the MESSAGES dialogue should immediately show in the Customise dialogue. I wonder if this is the BUG? DaveG

Here's a nice use for the Start Up menu DaveG

It is VERY relevant Ian. I am surprised that it happened and it does prove that someone is watching! However, I made the point earlier that if an instantly recognisable voice or instrument(alist) is used then trouble could occur. I would also point out that Cat Stevens - Stephanos Demetre Georgiou - Yusuf Islam - is not the copyright police but could invoke their assistance. DaveG

You can debate the ethics of this forever - this has been going on since Barry were a lad. Can ANYONE HERE who has been chased down by the copyright police PLEASE step forward. Once again, if it worries you................... DaveG

A lot of people I know in the AV world will not shoot anything but Landscape and crop to the same aspect ratio as their camera for the reasons that you have found. DaveG

A Harry Potter cloak? How's the weather? DaveG

I agree with Barry - if it were in the centre of the screen with a white line all around and blank space top, bottom and sides it would be superb. I have shied away from mixing portrait and landscape in shows because of the difficulties it presents when having to use the white line. DaveG

Hi Xaver, I will be in Innsbruck soon - not too far away? I will look for you! Ken, I must admit that it was not easy to spot, until Xaver pointed it out. Bookmark it!! DaveG

Barry, I think I see what Xaver is saying. If you alter, for instance, "AUTHOR" in "MESSAGES" to BARRY BECKHAM it will change the Author title in the start up screen to Barry Beckham. The CONTENT of the box remains untouched - blank until you put something (in "Customise Start up window"). Also I think the changes only occur when the show is previewed. So if you put Barry Beckham in place of Author in Messages and write "is going to Australia" in the Customise etc Author box it will read (on preview): Barry Beckham - is going to Australia. DaveG

I totally agree with Peter and nothing should be done to compromise Bill's position. DaveG

Tony, Taking a PRACTICAL viewpoint, there are masses of cover CDs of music on cheap labels of INSTRUMENTAL background music which when used would be IMPOSSIBLE to identify. If you want to use an instantly identifiable artist (vocally or instrumentally) then you are giving yourself problems. Personally, I don't use/like vocals in AVs unless the MUSIC is the main part of the show and the images just help to tell the story. Classical pieces by obscure artists on cheap labels like NAXOS or music from some of Barry Beckhams CDs seem to be the best way forward. The copyright police are not worried about our little efforts - they have much bigger fish to catch. But if it worries you............. DaveG

Hi Peter, Your post above reminded me - you were going to update us on the results of your research into Menu Systems. Did I miss it? Best wishes, DaveG.

There are a couple of possibilities, Barry. One - Nobody uses it. Two - Because of One nobody has realised that there is a possible bug and has not reported it. UNTIL NOW. DaveG

bjc, Can I just add that, amongst other reasons for my beliefs about the 1920x1080 format, the increased definition available (through more pixels) to those who wish to use the 3:2 format of DSLRs is a deciding factor. On a 1400x1050 projector the best I could do is a 1400x933 image. On a 1920x1080 projector the best I could do is a 1620x1080 image. That's 34% more pixels, which in a single image competition, is a LOT of extra definiton. The figures for those wishing to enter a 16:9 image the figures are: 1400x788 for the 1400x1050 projector and.... .... not surprisingly 1920x1080 for the 1920x1080 projector. The difference in this case is a WHOPPING 88% more pixels/definition. At least two members of this forum already have a 1920x1080 projector and a third is "saving up" his/her pennies. DaveG

Limey, You are, of course, correct! I did a couple of tests this morning and found that the TV Safe Zone needs to be taken into account even with flat screen HD Tvs etc. I gave up on DVD a while ago when I became unhappy about the quality available from DVD when compared to connecting a suitably equipped laptop to my TV monitor via HDMI cable. I can now construct my PTE show at the same resolution as my TV screen (1366x768) and not have to worry about "Safe TV Zone". Putting a white line around a show proves this to be the case - it is always visible at the edges (no black bands at top, bottom or sides) and shows that nothing is being "discarded". I also looked at the MPEGs made for making DVDs and regardless of format, resolution etc they are always 720x576 - PAL. DaveG

I think that there might be another reason for that - if you are able to, try connecting your computer/laptop to your TV. D-Connector or preferably HDMI. You will see that if you set your PC to the same res as your TV there is NO TV safe area required. Read the TV manual though - if you use a D-Connector it limits you to (in my case) 1280x768 instead of the 1360x768 I can get with HDMI (26"). DaveG

Hi Ken, I thought you guys over there were the world leaders in this sort of thing? DaveG

Don't forget that when you create a DVD the PTE show is converted to PAL (or NTSC) and then interpolated back up to your TV screen resolution. In PAL terms that's something like 720x576 (someone will correct if wrong, I'm sure) so your 16:9 image will be downsized to 720 wide and then upsized to 1920 on playback. The best way to interface between a laptop and a HD TV is via a HDMI/DVI cable - using the D - connector will limit the width of the image. At least that's my experience with a Sony (HDMI Equipped) laptop and a Sony wide screen HD TV. Doing it this way your 1920x1080 will show full screen in stunning quality. See: http://www.picturestoexe.com/forums/index....38&hl=daveg DaveG

Royo, Please keep us updated with what you buy and specs of the monitor. I would be more concerned about the RESOLUTION of the monitor than its size in inches. Can I ask if you will be using the new computer with the projector? ....and what do you mean by "Aspect ratio 4:3 support 16:9 "? DaveG

Is it still required?? With the advent of flat screen (LCD) TVs, surely, nothing is now "hidden" by the tube surround. What you see is what you get (or something like that). DaveG