fh1805

Mike, I've never experienced this in the north-east of the UK but if I did, I know what my reaction would likely be: "If your electricity supply is so inadequately protected that you need to impose that rule on me, there is no way I am going to put any of my equipment at risk by plugging it into your supply. Show me your certificate that guarantees your supply will not deliver any surges that will damage my equipment." regards, Peter

Ed/Dave/Brian, Firstly let me apologise to Ed for getting him into his "hole". When I wrote the Audacity User Guide, I never gave a thought to the possibility that settings which were working OK for me on my Vista system, would not work for a user on an XP system (Live and learn!). I'll try within the next few days to issue a revised version of the User Guide that makes this point clear. I may not achieve this as I'm going to be having some alterations done at home which will mean being off the Internet and without access to the computing suite for a five-day period. Secondly, I'll now join in the discussion about MP3 bit levels. I have always used 128bit for my MP3 files because I was told that it was equivalent to CD quality. I have carried out a comparative test: playing back through Audacity the WAV and MP3 versions of the same music track and using the Mute/Solo buttons to switch between them. To my ears (damaged only by my advancing years and not by exposure to industrial noise or excessively loud music) I can just make out the difference - but it is only a very slight difference. The MP3 is lacking in a little "brightness" and sounds a touch "muddy" - or as Brian explained in a more technical way, the high-frequencies dont go as high. (If Ron West reads this, he could add his knowledge and experience from his hospital radio broadcasting activities). Once again, sorry for getting you into the mess, Ed. regards, Peter P.S. I've also used Audacity to test my ability to hear high-frequencies. I generated one second pure tone tracks at 10KHz, 12KHz, 14KHz, 16KHz, 18KHz and 20KHz. I could hear everything up to and including the 14KHz tone quite distinctly. I could hear something at 16KHz but it sounded like a lower frequency harmonic. I heard nothing at 18 or 20KHz. The only thing left to do is check the frequency range of my speakers. Did they give up before my ears gave out? Later in the spring I'll carry out my annual "high-frequency hearing" test. In the UK we have a tiny songbird called a Goldcrest, which has a very high-frequency song. If I can still hear the Goldcrest then I know my ears are in good working order.

Hi Lynn, The trial version of PTE that you have downloaded is the deluxe version. The trial version is fully functional, nothing left out or turned off, except that: - you are limited to 10 images in each sequence - if you burn a DVD-Video, it will have a scrolling text across the bottom to the effect that "This DVD was produced using a trial version of PTE" Your purchase options are: - Standard version - covering the PTE base code - (which removes the 10 image limit on a sequence but keeps the scrolling text on any DVD-Video) - Deluxe version - covering the Video-Builder code - (which removes the 10 image limit and the scrolling text) - Standard version now and upgrade to Deluxe later The Standard version is a "licence for life" and all future upgrades to PTE base code are free. There is no automatic ship of new versions; you have to visit the WnSoft site and download them. The Deluxe licence is, as I understand it, for a two year period with upgrades to Video-Builder free during that two year period. When you buy the product, WnSoft will send you either one or two keys: one key if you have bought the Standard version and two keys if you have bought the deluxe version. The first key is for the PTE base code and the second key is for the Video-Builder code. Hope that helps clarify the situation for you. regards, Peter

Yes, I'm still following this thread. I'll pick this point up over the weekend sometime. regards, Peter

Ed/Dave, Audacity supports 5 different WAV encodings. You can see them all, and pick one, by doing Edit...Preferences...File Formats...Uncompressed Export Format (drop down list). regards, Peter

Igor, If you want to set up some dummy files of various sizes and various names, together with the copy/delete/rename scripts; I'll be happy to run tests for you on my system. regards, Peter

Igor, I still get the alert from Norton Anti-Virus about the "Suspicious: MH690.A" I also hit another problem with a failed "DeleteFile". I will send you the details off-forum in an e-mail since the problems may be unique to my system. We can add a post to this thread later summarising the problem and the solution. regards, Peter

Brian, It's nice to know that even the "experts" can get caught out. It makes us "mere mortals" feel just that little bit less idiotic! regards Peter

Hi Ed, Have you ever used these particular WAV files in a sequence before? It is possible that you have come up against a problem associated with DRM (Digital Rights management) protection. Last year I experienced an instance where a track ripped from a recently purchased CD showed up in PTE as being only a fraction of a second in length. At the time it happened to me I reported it here on the forum and our resident technology expert, Brian (Conflow) suggested that it was probably as a result of DRM. As a result of my experiences I added Exact Audio Copy software to my portfolio as this seems to produce good rips when Windows Media Player doesn't. regards, Peter

Eric, If by "nasty little red beast" you mean the icon in the attachment below then you found IrfanView. When I downloaded IrfanView, many months ago now, all I did was Googled to find the website. Cannot remember what it was called now. regards, Peter

Dave, Are you stating that Elements 7 includes a full implementation of "Actions"? regards, Peter

Hi Eric, Elements doesn't allow you to do what you want because it doesn't support automated actions; other than those provided via File...Process Multiple Files. You could try IrfanView (a piece of freeware). This does appear to allow batch conversion to grayscale: but I've never tried this feature. I use IrfanView to do batch resizing - because it allows me to do landscape and portrait orientations in a single pass. I also use it to do batch renaming. I was put on to it by Lin Evans here on this forum. regards, Peter

Igor, I am in total agreement with Xaver on this subject. The current system of registering PTE and its keys is a system designed and built by computer technicians for use by computer literate individuals. What is required is a system designed to be operated by people who have no computer technical knowledge. The registry keys should be installed as part of the product install. If you need to control whether certain functions are active or not; if you need to control how many images are allowed in a sequence; if you need to know whether to show a scrolling text or not - find some other way of doing it that is simple and straightforward for the end user. The registration process is long overdue a major overhaul to make it very much simpler. regards, Peter

Dave, Now change the main image using the "Change Image File" icon at the top of the main PTE Window and observe the lack of change to the Object name in the O&A window. PTE's behaviour when replacing an existing image with a different one can be summed up thus: When the change is done using the O&A Properties tab: - the Object Name associated with this image will be updated only if the Object Name is the same as the image name When the change is done to a main image using the "Change Image File" icon in the main PTE window: - the Object Name associated with this image will never be updated This difference in behaviour can only be a source of confusion to the new user of PTE. To my mind, this whole situation could be avoided by allowing the user to have control over the "naming conventions" used for Object Names; and for the user to have control over whether or not Object Names get updated when the image is changed. If the user had these powers then PTE would be working the way each individual user wanted it to. At present, the user has to accept the way of working that PTE imposes on them. The computer should be our slave: we should never be slaves of the computer! regards, Peter

The default AVI created by PTE is only a temporary file for use in the next phase of Video-Builder. This form of the AVI cannot be saved and then used in another DVD Burn product such as Nero or Roxio. I'm afraid I don't do any DVD burning but I think you need to take an option in Video-Builder to create a custom file. regards, Peter

Hi Tammy, This FAQ answers your question: http://www.picturestoexe.com/forums/index....ost&p=56798 regards, Peter

Jeff, Tony and Xaver, I now confirm that I get the same result. There is a definite bug here somewhere. Over to Igor and his wizards to investigate and resolve. regards, Peter

Steve, I think you might be talking about a different "text" to that being discussed in this thread. It is my understanding that this thread is talking about "text" that is visible in the displayed or projected slide image. My understanding of the "text" that you are talking about is that it is meta-data that is associated with the image but not usually, if ever, forming part of the displayed image. If I am correct in my understandings, you might be better off moving your post to form the start point of a new topic under "Ideas and suggestions" rather than introducing, what might prove to be, a confusing aspect into this debate. If I have totally mis-understood everything, then I apologise to one and all. regards Peter

Larry, I'm with you all the way on that sentiment! regards, Peter

Dave, Xaver beat me to it! regards, Peter

The current implementation of Auto-Save was introduced quickly by Igor as a result of Lin Evans and myself both encountering a PTE crash (caused by an "out of resources" condition) during our editing of some complex animated sequences. The "Auto Save" event, as currently implemented, frees up that resource and so eliminates the PTE crash. Larry, I agree with you 100% that the user should do saves at regular intervals. In my particular case, it was the first day spent working on this particular project and I was editing an image that had on it several hundred objects and each object was involved in an animation event. In my mind, at the time, I intended to complete the work on that image and then Save As before moving on to the next image. That image was, to me, the logical point at which to do the next Save As. PTE and Windows didn't give me the chance to get there. Moreover, the Windows "recovery" routines took it upon themselves to delete my original project file - so I lost ALL my work on that project and had to start over. There is a place in PTE for the current Auto-Save feature - but I don't like it over-writing the current project file. In my opinion, there is definitely a place for an improved Auto-Save feature. Neither of them should be seen as replacing good "Save As" discipline through the life of a project. But there will always be the possibility of something unexpected and unpredicted happening - and that is what a feature-rich Auto-Save could protect us against. regards, Peter

I have voiced my thoughts about Auto-Save on the forum elsewhere in the past. For me, a good Auto-Save design would allow me to choose: - whether to turn it on or turn it off (it would be optional, as it is now) - the format of the saved file name (with a default of Project Name-&Sysdate-&Systime) - the folder in which the saved files were placed (with a default of a PTE system folder) - the frequency with which the saves take place (as can be set now) - what happens to the saved files when I exit PTE (default = keep none; but options to keep last used or keep all) The "Auto-Save" function, when turned on, would also result in the following activity at PTE start-up: - check whether any "Auto Saved" files exist in my last-used "Auto-Save" folder - if none, then start up exactly as now (in my case that would result in opening the last used project) - if "auto-save" files do exist, then ask me if I want to use one of them - if I say No, offer me the choice of opening my last used project or of opening a new PTE project or of opening some other project file - if I say Yes, open the one that I select and then compel me to do a File Save As before I can make any changes to that file For me, the Auto-Save feature should never, under any circumstance, over-write the existing project file unless I give it explicit authority to do so. I should always have the option to abandon the entire edit session and revert to my original form of the project. Moreover, the Auto-Save feature should never leave me editting an "Auto-Saved" file. It should always force me to rename (via File Save As) to a proper PTE project name. regards, Peter

Hi Jeff, I think you have a minor "typo" in your pdf file. At step three you state: "...Using Audacity, increase the length of the original audio file. Save this file as “Audio 02.mp3”. With the PTE project open as after Step 2 (i.e. with no audio file attached), attach the new audio file “Audio 01.mp3”..." I think that last file name should be "Audio 02.mp3", shouldn't it? What you were doing isn't what I was doing, so I need to retest. But if I get the same result as you, then I would agree that it does point to a definite bug in PTE. regards, Peter

Hi Jeff, After your step 6 I did not OK out of the Project Options window, I just left it at the Music tab. I used Audacity to lengthen the music item by 3 seconds (from 30s to 33s). Audacity and/or Vista would not let me save over the top of the existing file. I got a pop-up warning box advising that the file was in use by another task. Obviously that other task was PTE. So, I then switched to PTE and OK'd the Project Options. The waveform line in the Timeline display now disappeared. I then switched back to Audacity and now was able to Export an mp3 file and save it over the top of the original one. Once again I switched back to PTE and now I added the mp3 file via the Project Options...Music tab. The new length (33 seconds) was displayed in the Music tab. I OK'd out of Project Options and the Timeline showed the correct length of the music track (by the position of the "End of music" line) but did not update the waveform display (even though the space where the waveform had been was still present in the Timeline view, it remained blank). Clicking on the "blue squiggle" button in the Timeline window removed the waveform area from the Timeline view and clicking on it again, showed the waveform of the 33 second long track. To my way of thinking, my system is behaving correctly by not letting me save over the top of an already open file. The only quibble I could possibly have is that, having given PTE the new sound file, and PTE having recognised its length and having recognised that the Timeline display includes an area for the waveform, it (PTE) should then have rebuilt the waveform display in the available space. I have to say that, over-writing a sound-file with a modified form is not my normal working practice. I version number my sound files. regards, Peter

Stu, I understand what you are saying; but the default name giving to an image object when added via the Slide List, Timeline or O&A window is its file name stripped of the file extension. This leads me and others to assume that the Object name for an image will always be the image file name stripped of the extension - because this is our observed behaviour of PTE. I can accept there may be times when some people do not want PTE to work this way - but some do. I would have thought it wouldn't be a difficult task to provide a Project Options switch that allows us to control PTE and not have to work in the manner that PTE wants to force upon us. I don't want to force upon other people a change in the way PTE behaves, I just want to be able to control it so that, for me it behaves as I want it to and for you it behaves as you want it to. Just another "tick box" in Project Options, that's all that is needed (plus the code to support both ways of working, of course!) regards, Peter