PicturesToExe Deluxe 7.0.1 Beta

[fh1805]

Igor,

Consider this scenario:

Step 1:

I start a new project and add three slides. Because of Project Options settings they appear as follows (transition duration/slide duration):

A - 1.5/4.0

B - 1.5/4.0

C - 1.5/4.0

Step 2:

I change the transition time of C to be 3.0

Step 3:

On the Timeline each slide has 4 seconds duration and the first two have 1.5 transition and the last has 3.0 transition. This doesn't change if the "Keep full slide duration" is ticked or unticked.

Step 4:

With the "Keep...duration" unticked, I now use the Slide view to drag C to sit between A and B; the values are now:

A - 1.5/4.0

C - 3.0/4.0

B - 1.5/4.0

so far, this is all perfectly logical and rational behaviour.

Step 5:

I drag C back to be last slide and tick "Keep...duration". I now have:

A - 1.5/5.5

B - 1.5/7.0

C - 3.0/4.0

and in the Timeline, each slide has a duration (from start of itself to start of the next slide) of 4 seconds.

Step 6:

In the Slides view I now drag C (which we have just seen has a duration of 4.0 seconds and a transition of 3.0 seconds) to sit before B. We have seen that B, before this change, also has a duration of 4.0 (from its start to the start of the next slide) and a transition of 1.5.

What do we now see:

A - 1.5/5.5

C - 3.0/4.5

B - 1.5/7.0

Only the transitions have remained as they were. The slide durations have changed in a manner that, to me as a human being rather than a piece of computer logic, is utterly illogical.

N.B. In my mind these values are associated with the slide image and not with the slide relative position in the sequence. Your computer logic seems to apply some values to the actual image and others to its relative position in the sequence. What is happening may be "correct" in terms of how you have designed it to be. But it is far from "logical or rational behaviour" as the user is going to perceive it.

I really do believe that the need for this code behaviour needs to be given some very serious re-thinking. Is it really necessary to have the two ways of working? As far as I can see it is simply causing lots of mis-understanding and confusion in the minds of the users. Is this code solving any real problems for real users?

regards,

Peter

[jkb]

See also my reply under 'Changes in Slide Duration' page 8

The old sytem works, the new does not

Jill

[davegee]

Peter,

You MUST think of each slide as having THREE elements - not two.

And the last element of any slide is also the first element of the next slide.

DG

[jkb]

If you want the increase of the slide three duration to have no effect on slide two then you have to alter the duration of slide two to 7.5 seconds.

It's a different way of thinking.

DG

Dave, the whole point of altering the slide effect duration is to give a longer (or shorter) transition. The overall time of the slide is not altered.

When timing slides to music the start & end of each slide is crucial.

The transition time is set to give the best effect on screen & to flow with the music.

Amending the transition (effect) duration should NOT alter the actual physical position of a slide on the Timeline.

Jill

[fh1805]

Dave,

If that is the case then both the Slide and Timeline views need new designs. The Slides view should show the transition as a separate item between each slide. Then, when doing drag and drop, the user can decide whether to take one, both or none of the transitions with the slide. And this means that APLman's suggestion of three, totally independent timing values is the way to go. The Timeline should therefore have additional flags added to denote the beginning and end of each transition as well as the current one for the slide (which should be moved to the end of the inbound transition.

regards,

Peter

[davegee]

Peter,

I got as far as your step 6 and I immediately saw that what you were going to do was impossible and would give overlapping transitions.

Because I can pre-visualise in V7.0.1.

My other observation which I have made a number of times is that I don't understand this switching back and forth between systems to prove a point - start with either 6.5 timings or 701 timings and continue until the project is finished.

In the real world no one will want to switch! Even in a teaching/demonstration scenario it is not necessary.

I'll say it again - this is probably the FIFTH time.

I'm not endorsing V7.0.1.

But when I see people arguing because they do not seem to understand the implications of what they are doing i.e don't seem to understand how v7.0.1 works I feel the need to explain.

From where I'm sitting neither yourself nor Jill (?) are Video users and would probably never use V7.0.1 timings - like me you would probably stick with V6.5 timings - so why is it such a big deal?

Please don't answer that - I've lost it.

DG

[fh1805]

Dave,

You are right on one point: I will almost certainly not be using video and so will leave the box unticked all the time - and thus get no problems. But I'm not just thinking about how this affects me as a user of PTE, I'm looking to the wider audience. As a moderator, and one who answers lots of questions on this forum, I'm dreading having to try and explain what we see happening to new users. Just think how much time and energy you, me, Jill and others have expended on this subject, trying to understand what we see happening and then trying to explain it to one. Now multiply that by several dozen new users during the life of v7.0 and you might just begin to understand what my concerns are.

regards,

Peter