Hello!

[Igor]

Dear friends!

I'm back and glad to start work on a new version!

Now I'm busy with reading and processing your suggestions in the two large topics.

Our main plans for the next v4.20 are following:

+ New effects;

+ Full control in synchronized mode;

+ And ideas which you'd like to see.

We've spent last week to improve MP3/OGG and especially MIDI playback on old PCs (Pentium 150 - 400 Mhz).

Also I think that Fade in/out transition effect will works much more smoother.

[Guest Techman1]

Igor,

Glad you're back! A new version already, it seems like it was only yesterday we were testing the latest version (it may have been for some ).

Is there a chance that any video output via AVI might be in this version?

Anyway, I love your program and look forward to further enhancements that you have planned.

Fred

[boxig]

Hi Igor, we know you wont stop till we have version 5000

Here is again my request and one suggestion:

Let us the ability to embbed the files which we use now in "Run external file" so we'll have also "Run embedded file".

Since PTE becomes more and more complicated, I want to give one personal suggestion: Every time when you add a feature make a brake and write a detailed Help about this feature, and if needed, a Demo too. This way any new user will have a full complete help file and not be lost. The main disadvantage of many good programs is the help file. PTE is great program but users judge programs according their ability to understand how to use it. I know this is the boring part, but it is the most important, even more than adding new feature.

Finally I must say the PTE is great program...uuups... I said that already.

Granot

[think(box)]

Welcome back Igor!

The obvious benefit to improvement in music and fade performance is improvement in the most universal shows, made for the largest majority of systems in the world.

The not so obvious benefit is that highly performance demanding slideshows can also work that much better, or can use more fancy effects, or can use traditional effects designs but on ever higher resolution original images before machine or graphics overload.

You have once again pushed the state of the art in slideshow software performance for the benefit of all.

Thanks Igor

[Guest guru]

Let us the ability to embed the files which we use now in "Run external file" so we'll have also "Run embedded file".

An excellent idea, Granot! ...even if I'm a little afraid it's not so easy to actualize.

[JRR]

Igor:

Since you asked.....

Some alternative to OBJECTS that won't with changes with screen resolution changes.

I thought they wouldn't move in windowed mode, but they still do

thx

Glad you are still so keen

[boxig]

Hi Guido, glad you still here.

This should be not so difficult to make since we can embed sound files and images so why not exe ? This can make the use of many utilities very simple. An example is my new "Fonts Installer" version which is now so easy to use and much better. Before we had to make a button to run the utility but now with "Run external application" on slides the utility just run hidden and install the fonts.

Granot

[ADB]

Hello Igor

And welcome back!!

Three wishes not already mentioned:-

1. When you are completing an involved slide show you spend a lot of time going backwards and forwards between the customizable sync window and the main window to change the order of slides etc. The customizable sync window is such an important part of PTE shouldn't it be on the main window always available? You could then quickly change the order of the slides without having to leave the sync window.

2. A "PUSH" transition that gradually pushes one slide off the screen while another one enters. This would let us show panoramas. All we would have to do is chop the panorama up and run the slides one after the other.

3. Can we have Thumbnails of the images and be able to drag and drop these to change the order? This would save having to do this part in an external application like Thumbsplus. Really the main screen should have a "slide table" showing thumbnails of the images and the "customizable sync" window and that's it! Everything else you call up ocassionally when you need it and could be done by menus or right clicking.

Oh and could we have all this by the weekend?

I have just finished my Southern Autumn slide show (will post as soon as it gets the OK from Nicky - away in UK at the moment), I really enjoyed programming it using PTE. The recent changes made to customizable sync made it so easy to achieve perfect timings and this is a real credit to Wnsoft. I have seen nothing else out there in the PC Slide show world that does it as well as PTE. Thanx

Andrew

[Guest guru]

Dear Igor, I think Andrew's post expresses two important wishes of many PTE users:

1. To be able to add more "movement" in PTE presentations: pan (and zoom), and moving objects (like in Powerpoint).

2. To have a better user's interface. PTE is more and more full of new functions and features, but many of them are now hidden or not so easy to find for a beginner or an occasional user.

In my opinion this problem will have to be someday considered and solved, even if I know this would be a hard job.

[jimlarkey]

Welcome back

Starfish has already started a wish list:

http://www.picturestoexe.com/forums//index...t=ST&f=2&t=1073

Cheers

[Alan Lyons]

Hi Igor,

Welcome back from your 'alleged' holiday

I agree with Andrew about the thumnails, most traditional A/V workers would like to have a "light box' for their shows. but we dont want the interface to get too busy so maybe you coulld replace the slide list with a thumb viewer. I like the idea of having the timeline at the bottom of the screen, this would save a lot of window swapping,

Take it easy,

Alan

[HaroldB]

I just want to point out that one advantage of having the timeline in a window is that you can cancel out of it.

It's not such a big deal, but this ability HAS saved me some time occasionally when I mess things up and want to start again.

On a completely different topic, could we have auto-backup? Currently, if you don't save in PTE and the PC crashes, you lose all your work. Could we have PTE create a backup file somewhere once every user-specified minutes that we could recover from if the machine crashes?

Harold

[JRR]

Harold:

Auto-back-up is OK except if it defaults to the "project" name, then it can be worse than losing all the current work if your PTE file is named something else and the auto-back up clobbers your other version under the same project name.

As mentioned before, it would be nice if PTE lost the PROJECT name concept.

[HaroldB]

Jim,

I absolutely agree that the auto-backup should NOT be the name of the current project.

The fact that in this day and age, Excel still does things that way is IMO, retarded, and an example of what happens when you have a monopoly.

Harold

[Igor]

AVI

Our programmer is helping me in creating of AVI video-output module.

It will included when it's done. And I think it will be realized as a plug-in (to keep the main code of PTE small and compact).

Let us the ability to embbed the files which we use now in "Run external file" so we'll have also "Run embedded file".

I'll try!

Help system

Yes, we're already working on it!

Some alternative to OBJECTS that won't with changes with screen resolution changes.

Good theme about proportional resizing of all elements of the slide! I think about it a half-year. I'd like to discuss this question a little bit later in a new topic.

To ADB

1. Yes, I wanted to make it already in v4.1, but still have no idea how to add such button to the main window of PTE elegantly.

2. Push effect (and probably Zoom) is scheduled for this new v4.20. But I'm afraid there will be a little pause between effects in your case of panorama, at least 50-100 ms. (to prepare next slide).

3. I think in the future next versions.

I'll think about Animations for objects - I also really like this idea.

About interface.

I'm continue think about this every time. I want to find more fine solution. And of course, we will discuss variants together!

Auto backup.

How many new interesting ideas! Thanks I will try this idea (of course, as a special separate .pte file).

(also I hope that PTE v4.12 works stably anyway)

Thank you!

[LumenLux]

That is quite a list Igor. You guys are doing great for us. As for the zoom feature - Have you or anyone ever seen a zoom in presentation of a still picture (slide?) I know in video editing, the zoom inand out is very popular. If you are able to do the zoom, would you be able to have it go either way?

[JRR]

LumenLux

Adobe Première has a zoom in and out for still images.

But I am not exactly sure that is what you meant.

[paul alford]

Igor, I will add my 2 cents.

1. Any way to work on the Objects moving when showing in different screen rez ?

2. I personally am not a biggie on a million transitions since I usually only use the fade myself. I think too many transitions is distracting for a nice slideshow.

3. I love the zoom and pano effects already said.

4. How about the ability to control music for 1 show (like a menu show) that I can stop or pause to run another PTE show (with its own music) then back to the menu show with its music again. Cant do it now without playing 2 songs at once.

5. Maybe another shape or 2 for the object buttons.

6. An icon maker for the EXEs.

7. Maybe this one should have been #1 - encryption. The option to turn off the alt-print screen is nice, but folks can still capture the screen in other ways. Is there any other way to defeat this with some kind of encryption ?

Keep in mind we will all be very satisfied with whatever you come up with. We always are. I have been pushing other pro photogaphers here in SC to use PTE for years now. Many have bought and are now using it for a proofing tool (thus the need for encryption). Thanks again for the program and all the hard work you do with it Igor.

Paul