Styles-many errors and removes files from File List

[goddi]

Greetings,

When I apply 'Lin's Border Style for 16:9 Aspect Size.ptestyle' (see attached), I get some strange results. When I am in the Slide Styles window, with Lin's style chosen, it shows the image or the video (which ever is selected) in the Slide Styles' preview window. However, once it is selected, I get several errors, see attached. Not only that, but the files in the File List disappear. I have to close the PTE program to get back to normal. If I try to apply the Style to a video, even though it plays in the Slilde Style preview window, the video turns green in the Slides/Timeline views.

This does not only happen with Lin's style. When I apply my border style to a video, the video shows green in the Slides/Timeline views (but not if used on an image). Also, the length of the video takes on the default time of the images, not the duration of the video. Is there a way for the Style to automatically take the duration of the videoZ?

What can be going on???

Gary

Lin's Border Style For 16_9 Aspect Size.ptestyle

[Lin Evans]

Hi Gary,

Probably the reason for the problem you are having is that there is a totally different process in PTE between adding an image and adding a video. You can't create a slidestyle which allows either, it has to be created for a video if you are going to add a video. When you right click in the Objects window to get your menu, you have choices of adding an image, button, rectangle, text or hyperlink, frame, video or mask. When you click on one of these choices PTE goes to that section of code and the code is quite different for adding a video and adding an image. You will certainly get all types of errors if you attempt to use a style designed for still images to add video.

Bests regards,

Lin

Later - I stand corrected on this - I just reworked my border styles and they DO work with video so my assumption is not correct, at least not for this particular type style....

[goddi]

1 hour ago, Lin Evans said:

Hi Gary,

Probably the reason for the problem you are having is that there is a totally different process in PTE between adding an image and adding a video. You can't create a slidestyle which allows either, it has to be created for a video if you are going to add a video. When you right click in the Objects window to get your menu, you have choices of adding an image, button, rectangle, text or hyperlink, frame, video or mask. When you click on one of these choices PTE goes to that section of code and the code is quite different for adding a video and adding an image. You will certainly get all types of errors if you attempt to use a style designed for still images to add video.

Bests regards,

Lin

Lin,

I just posted a reply in the other Styles Forum, but I will post it here too:

"I just fiddled with my Style a bit more. I found how to insert a video into my Style. First, I can apply my Style (image with a blurred background) to any image. Then I just change the file shown in O&A's 'Picture' to my video clip. Then all three images get changed and the blurred background is a blurred video and plays well. I just have to set the new duration corresponding to the length of the video. Pretty cool....

But it was very strange that your Style, when I applied it to an main image at 95%, it would clear out the File List...very strange."

Gary

[Lin Evans]

Hi Gary,

If you just use a video then create the style it will work fine but you have to change the file anyway unless you always want the same video playing. I have no idea why any style would clear the file list - that is strange. It doesn't do that in either my Win XP or Win 8.1 system.

Best regards,

Lin

[goddi]

Lin, I've got Win10. Maybe that's the difference? It does it every time if I apply your Style to an 95% image.

It is easy to apply my Style to an image and just change the main image to a video. The other two images change automatically to the video clip with this one change. And the blurred background video clip plays at the same time as the main video clip. Looks neat.

Gary

[Lin Evans]

Hi Gary,

Could you explain what you mean by a "95%" image?  The style(s) are designed for either a 16:9 or a 3:2 aspect ratio image. It doesn't matter the size of the image as long as the aspect ratio is correct. I'm unclear on what you mean by a 95% image? 95% of what?

Do you mean you set the zoom to 95% in Objects and Animations then go back to the slide view and apply the style? That really should not make any difference, but my style allows you to leave the zoom in Objects and Animations at 100%, apply the style then use the Master Control Frame to change the zoom to 95% or any other value. If the program crashes when you apply the style to an image you have previously zoomed to 95% it must be a Win 10 issue of some type. It doesn't do that with my Win XP or Win 8.1. I don't have any system with Win 10 so can't test it. Perhaps someone else can test it with Win 10 and see if they have the same result...

Best regards,

Lin

[goddi]

6 hours ago, Lin Evans said:

Hi Gary,

Could you explain what you mean by a "95%" image?  The style(s) are designed for either a 16:9 or a 3:2 aspect ratio image. It doesn't matter the size of the image as long as the aspect ratio is correct. I'm unclear on what you mean by a 95% image? 95% of what?

Do you mean you set the zoom to 95% in Objects and Animations then go back to the slide view and apply the style? That really should not make any difference, but my style allows you to leave the zoom in Objects and Animations at 100%, apply the style then use the Master Control Frame to change the zoom to 95% or any other value. If the program crashes when you apply the style to an image you have previously zoomed to 95% it must be a Win 10 issue of some type. It doesn't do that with my Win XP or Win 8.1. I don't have any system with Win 10 so can't test it. Perhaps someone else can test it with Win 10 and see if they have the same result...

Best regards,

Lin

Greetings Lin,

My '95% image' is from 'Defaults/Apply to all Slides'.

I tried our Style again. I applied it to an image with no changes made to it. Just a dragged down image from the File List. I still get those error messages and the files in the File List disappear. Really strange. And the result is not what is expected. I get some black borders within the blurred background image. See attached.

Maybe a Win10 problem?

Gary

[goddi]

Lin, I made a video of what happens when I apply your Style to an image. It shows the results, with the files disappearing from the File List and the subsequent error messages. I see my image is 1.5 so that might be causing the black side borders.

Gary

Video_4-21-2017_7-28-11_AM.mp4

[goddi]

Lin...I just tried using different Style, using Masks, that also creates a 95% Border. I get the  same problems. The  files in the File List disappear and the same error messages at the end. Really strange results....

Gary

[goddi]

Lin...I see that I was using the 16:9 version instead of the 3:2 version of your Style, that caused the black side bars. BUT...it still produces the disappearing of the files in the File List and the error messages....

Gary

[Lin Evans]

HI Gary,

We'll have to wait until Igor gets back - he has a Windows 10 system and he can check it. He will probably want to be able to read the exception error unless it also happens on his system so it might be a good idea to screen capture those error messages - they passed too quickly for me to read.

Best regards,

Lin

[goddi]

2 minutes ago, Lin Evans said:

HI Gary,

We'll have to wait until Igor gets back - he has a Windows 10 system and he can check it. He will probably want to be able to read the exception error unless it also happens on his system so it might be a good idea to screen capture those error messages - they passed too quickly for me to read.

Best regards,

Lin

Lin...Those error messages are captured in my initial posting and in the video. Strange no one else has indicated they have similar results. You should be able to pause the video to see them, but they are also in the initial posting.

Gary

[davegee]

I have no desire to get involved in this conversation but feel that I need to comment.

Firstly there are no error messages when the Style is applied on my W10 Laptop. That doesn't surprise me because I have had Error messages which others have not - or have not bothered to post about them.

Secondly, Lin's Style has some excessive "bloat" contained in the package which is making the Style around 2MB. I have removed the "bloat" (the Style still works without errors) and the size is now 50Kb.

I have seen this "bloat" a couple of times - once in one of my Styles and once in a BB Style. I don't know for sure how it occurs but I am willing to offer a suggestion that might help to eradicate it. Igor knows about it but has perhaps forgotten because I was (and still am) unable to reproduce the symptoms that cause it. When he returns I will mention it again.

When making a Style you should (OBVIOUSLY) not try to make a new Style from an applied Style. It can be done but the possibility for errors increases. Save the Project from which you make the original Style and always go back to it to improve or edit your Style.

DG

[Lin Evans]

Hi Dave,

I was wondering why the excessive size myself. I'm not certain either why it happens. The styles haven't been modified since they were created but I'm going to experiment. It may be relative to the size of the original PNG border files which don't need to be as large as they were created for something as simple as a border. I'll experiment with that aspect and see if it is relative.

Best regards,

Lin 

[davegee]

The excessive size is due to two JPEGs which are not used in the Style. They were possibly originally non-main images which were included at some stage and not overwritten or deleted during a subsequent save. The other one like that which I saw (not mine ) was much bigger.

As I said I have removed them and the Style works OK without them.

I can only suggest that you start again from SCRATCH. That way your Style SHOULD be "bloat" free.

DG

[Lin Evans]

Interestingly, I have created the same styles from scratch multiple times and still end up with 1.88 mb...  To create, I use a single jpg 6000x4000 in one case and 1920x1080 in the other. I can't imagine where extra jpg's might be coming from. 

Best regards,

Lin

[davegee]

Post again and I will tell you what is in there.

DG

 

[davegee]

P.S. You are starting in a completely new project from scratch aren't you??

DG

[Lin Evans]

Yep, a totally new project each time - just made a video of the entire process...Uploading the video to youtube now - will embed shortly  Maybe if you tell me the names of the extra jpgs you're finding I can figure out what's happening?

 

 

test sixteen to 9.ptestyle

[davegee]

OK, the problem has nothing to do with your construction.

The Images which are embedded in the Style were not used. They are:

AutumnLake

Starfieldbackground

I'm stumped - I can only suggest a complete uninstall/reinstall or that it might be a WXP problem. Probably neither.

However - it has not happened to me recently so I don't think that we can say with any certainty that it is a PTE Bug. If one person gets it and another does not then you have to start looking for differences between those two people's systems - or their workflow.

Here it is sans "bloat": test sixteen to 9.ptestyle

Let me know if it still works your end - I deleted the original and reloaded the "light" version and it still works OK this end.

DG

P.S. Are ALL of your Styles "Bloated"??  Most are not, but at least one important one is.. see your PM...

Yes, the "de-bloated" style works fine, has one strange anomaly though - when it's applied the "mini-viewer" shows complete red.. see below:  Everything in main image is fine however....  LATER - Red now gone and I can't make it happen again .. This is nuts!!!  LOL - It works perfectly now...

[Lin Evans]

Hi Dave,

Strange - once before I remember seeing those two files where I didn't expect them. It must be something really strange... I'll try an uninstall, reinstall of my PTE 9 and see it that helps. No, all the styles are not bloated but I found several which were. I'm checking with my hex editor now to see and have found several which are but most are not. Unfortunately I can't deconstruct with my hex editor so can't safely remove the bloat. Really strange to find the same two files in other places where they should not be...

L

[wideangle]

21 hours ago, Lin Evans said:

You will certainly get all types of errors if you attempt to use a style designed for still images to add video.

Hi Lin

This comes as a bit of a surprise comment.
How can you tell whether a slide style chosen from the dozens on offer is designed just for still images, or videos or both?

Should PTE not block an incorrect application by saying you need a still image not a video, or vice versa, rather than creating all types of errors, as you suggest?

Regards

wideangle

[Lin Evans]

 

Later - I stand corrected... It does work, at least for the border style - can't say for certain about other types.....

The style description comment and/or the style name should indicate whether for video or for still images. I can't speak for the development team, but if you attempt to apply a still image style to a video you "should" immediately get an error message. Styles use the same menu as used when the style was created. The user can't find a video when they choose 
"add image" and they can't find a still image when they choose "add video."  So if the style is trying to find the wrong type of image it's not going to work. 

Best regards,

Lin

[davegee]

Styles should work with any Main Object be it JPEG or Video Clip.

I have tried a Video Clip with all of the Basic Styles and they work OK with just one small problem.

If you drag a Video Clip into the Slide List the Slide Duration is set to equal the Video Clip Duration.

Applying a Style to the Video Clip overwrites the Video Clip Duration with the Style Duration.

This can be easily addressed at the application stage by setting "Full Duration = Video Clip Duration" (Manually).

I think that this is possibly an oversight by Igor and should be easily fixed (or not). A Style works on the Main Image and as such (apparently) does not differentiate between Image and Video Clip.

There has been a discussion on the topic of Styles overwriting Slide Durations and this is one case where I would agree that there needs to be a differentiation. or a tick box to ignore Style Duration.

DG

 

[Tonton Bruno]

I tried with the styles I created personnaly and even the more complex ones work fine with video clips.

When the same image is used several times in a single slide, you have to modify manualy each instance to declare it at a Single video clip. There is no other problem.