Barry Beckham

That is the magazine I have written tutorials for in the past and I don't think they have a mag on line. I don't even think they have a cover CD. The editor is Will Cheung I believe and I do have an email address for him if you want it Igor.

I agree with Patrick, I can see where you idea came from, but it's not working at this speed.

I do all my tutorial recordings off the top of my head with nothing ever written down. The recordings always sound calm and natural. On the odd occasion when I have written a script, I sound like I am reading that script and the difference is immediately noticable. Even the pros on TV can't shake off the fact they are reading an autocue. So, the best natural recordings you will make are those that come straight off the top of your head, but I agree in some circumstances that is easier said than done. Best to learn the facts you want to impart and then do it in your own style rather than reading it. If possible

Conflow Thank you

When a DIAP made of still digital images, (with PZR effect if desired), and audio contains a section of video it becomes a different medium, in effect a movie with still images. This is then a different area in the AV spectrum and the two should not be mixed. Where have I heard this before, isn't the word BAN usually in there somewhere I think we have an exiting future when we can mix video and stills where the quality of the two remains the same.

OK, but is the H4 suitable for our needs and would most of us be happy with the performance and why would the base be amplified to a degree it breaks down. I don't really understand why that would be done if it is detrimental to the quality

I appreciate your motives for the post Conflow, but am I the only one who doesn't anderstand the numbers and techno speak of this article. Surely anyone who understood all that stuff you would not be in need of the review. I am in need of the review or would appreciate one, but the nature of it doesn't add anything to my knowledge, because I don't understand it. I don't have the patients to research what all the technical numbers mean to an actual recording. Am I unique here or am I Mr average who is voicing what many others think. I would love to see a reveiew of this piece of kit from someone who could speak in a language I understand. Maybe including some examples too.

With regard to your image clarity, PTE5 will try to expand your images to match the screen they are being played on. This can present them bigger than you intended and affect quality. You can prevent PTE doing this, but there are are a few if's and but's attached. It is to do with image size and resolution. I have something on my web site at the link below that may explain it better. http://www.beckhamdigital.co.uk/audiovisua...e%20%20size.htm With regard your other problems I think we may need some more information. What operating system are you using and was the show that wouldn't end/escape made originally with PTE4? Not sure why you are stuck with just one transition, why not go into the project options and hit the set defaults button. Then try again.

Guy For what its worth I agree. I know that the Dom's original example is very good quality, but the streaming video example of the same show isn't very good. Like you I would find that unacceptable and would not like to put my slide shows up for streaming untill the quality improves. Your streaming videos are much better quality and I assume you made them with PSG. I abandonded PSG some time ago, when it became impossible to create good quality animations when output to an exe file. (what PTE does with ease) However, PSG does seem to have the edge with streaming video, if in fact it was PSG that you used in your examples. PTE seems to be moving more in the direction of streaming videos now and the quality will need to improve. I am sure it will.

Toobig Once you have set the transition globally for all images, you can still change individual images when you need to. In fact setting a global setting is a good place to start. Set a transition that you expect to use the most in your sequence and just change the odd ones that require change.

Go to Project Options > Effects tab. You will see 2 small boxes upper right, click the one on the right and all the ticks will be removed from the transitions. Now you can select one transition only that will be applied to all images. You can also set the transition time from the bottom of the window. 5000ms would be 5 seconds

JF Glad you are now back on track with your slide show. You would think that the question what size images do I need to create for my slide show would be easy to answer. In fact it can get quite complicated to answer it and there are many tutorials on this site aimed at helping. I have tried to answer this question on my own site too. http://www.beckhamdigital.co.uk/audiovisua...e%20%20size.htm

JF At 330 meg I would guess your images are a lot bigger then they need to be. It is almost certain to be your problem and all you need to do is reduce the size of the images your using in your show. If you can tell us what image editing software your using we may be able to give you pointers on how to reduce image size.

Yeah, your right. Sometimes I think we get too many options and choice. Went to buy some ham yesterday and there must have been 12 variaties, I just wanted ham. By the time I had read all the differences I had forgotton why I went into the supermarket.

Ken OK, found the setting, I didn't read the explanation careful enough Many thanks

Ken I recently tried to contact Robertg privately to make my peace with him after I clearly upset him and I found I couldn't do that. This morning I clicked on your avatar and I get the opportunity to send you a personal message, but when I click to create it I get the attached message. Any ideas? I use Vista business.

Ken Has the ability for forum members to contact another member directly been shut off?

Paul When I complete a slide show I always put it on my desktop and every morning while I am having my coffee and toast I watch the show. I often watch it at other times in the day too. I find that if after 5 days I am still happy to watch it without changes, then I will accept it as finished. Sometimes like you I create a derivitive and if you do the same with those, the strongest usually works itself to the top. I think you might be right to take some of the colour from this subject, it definately adds something rather than losing it. Australia? We are in the last few weeks of our house sale, which has been a nightmare given the housing market and barring any disasters, we should be in Australia around the 20th October. The completion date for the house sale is being set for 17th October. So I am sitting around a little bored at the moment with little to do, but I suspect it will start to get hectic any day now. I am fresh out of ideas for AV at the moment, I suppose because my thoughts are on the move and resettlement in Australia.

Paul We visited Beamish back in April after being a fan of the other living museums, Black Country and Blists Hill. We had fine rain and bitter cold and never found the variety of image you managed to capture. These living museums do make great photographic subjects and are perfect for AV. I didn't think your show was too long, just about right really and the choice of music style is one I considered myself. I listened to some brass band music, but didn't have enough variety to choose from. What I did have was all up beat and it didn't seem to fit somehow. I know what you mean about watching the show a lot of times and then thinking it needs a change. If your thinking that, then you ought to explore some variations or you will never be entirely happy with it. I thought your show ended a little too ubruptly with the final blank slide only being fully on screen for the briefest times. Then the screen flashed and I was whisked back to Explorer from where I launched your show. Its a very minor point, but try adding 2-4 seconds of silence at the end of your music track. That allows the fade down to the last blank slide to be held in silence for a couple seconds, which seems to make a lot of difference. Great show, but what music can I use for my Beamish images, you beat me to it.

Peggy The code that Xaver refers to would have been sent to you on an email when you first purchased PicturesToExe 4. If you have managed to retain all your emails over those years then you may still have it and the cose may not be lost. You are going to need that original product key code to be able to firstly intall PTE4 on your new computer. PTE4 will need to be installed first with your old product key, before you can updrade to PTE5, so finding your key is quite important. If you don't have it, you could make a request of PTE to see if they have records going back that far, but I would not hold a lot of hope if it has been some years. Your easiest way may be to re-purchase a fully up to date copy and product key. That is not what you wanted to hear perhaps, but it is worth every penny.

Arendsoog It is always difficult to help solve a problem like yours from a distance as we almost always need more information. From what you say it does appear that you may have made a mistake somewhere along the way and your slide show is still using high resolution images. The fact that it is still 140 megabyte is evidence of that. Have another look at the folder of images being used for your show. Look at them via windows explorer and the images should be something like 200-300kb in size. Make sure the folder you are looking at is the actual one which PTE is using for the images. I made a daft mistake once with two folders of images where I thought I was saving images to the right folder when I wasn't. It baffled the hell out of until the penny dropped and then I had to smile at how easy it is to get tied up in a knot.

Lin Well that makes the world of difference !

John That's good news, I expected those types of holidays to be priced at the once in a lifetime level, but what a place to visit. Nothing else like it on earth I expect. Gary AV in the context we produce it here is designed as a whole piece of work. The whole point of it is to take the individual images and put them together to make something with much more impact than the images on their own would individually create. During the 4-5 minute experience we try to make our show flow smoothly and capture a mood if possible. We try to capture our audience too if we can, so they have no thought of stopping the show or hitting the escape key. Now that takes lots of dedication and effort, yet despite all that we don't always succeed, but that's life, you win some and you lose some. We rarely get rewarded for effort in any photographic project, just the end result. Controlling a show is great when its right to do so, but in the context we produce them here it is not. People on this forum, being enthusiasts, will understand that all the author asks is that you sit down for 5 minutes and just watch their show. I don't want you to stop my show or study the individual images, I want you to watch what I have presented to you. Otherwise all I have worked to produce is destroyed. Look at slide shows that do work well and capture the audience and think about what it is that is doing that. It's not an individual image, it's the whole thing. Being extreme for a minute, it's like presenting you with my prints along with a pair of scissors to adjust the composition.

I have always assumed that the improvements are in the engine room much like many PTE ones are. I guess that any time a vague threat to the security of the system becomes apparent, the MS boffins fix it. I personaly don't expect to go for a MS upgrade and notice a physical speed increase. I am happy that they are keeping me up to date and secure. The trouble with this type of debate is that most people don't have the first clue about the writing of software and quite rightly so. That is why we buy it ready written.

Peter I don't disagree at all and you have described my experiences which are identical to yours. I too have never had a major problem that hasn't been caused by a sudden hardware failure. Never had a virus and never had any problems with Microsoft and don't know anyone personally who has. Yet, if I was the nervous type I could be frightened to death by the hyisteria that is created around MS in general. A more balanced view would have far more respect and clout.