Summer Snow

[LumenLux]

I've just posted Summer Snow on Beechbrook. This is a kind of "experience beauty" sequence. I hope you can enjoy.

Your comments, as always, are encouraged.

[d67]

Numerous excellent photos accompagnied by a good choosen music

I had problems with about 7 or 8 of your slide transitions. They stutter 2 or 3 times before the slideshow resumes. Time left between these slides effects under 500ms ?

Just a very little remark concerning your introdution with a bright yellow slide. I found it a little long.

A very good walk through this piece of nature.

Thank you much for sharing !

[Ken Cox]

Patrick

smooth on my system - no jerkiness

Robert good stuff:)

ken

[stonemason]

Hi Lumenlux I very much enjoyed your pictures, however for me the slideshow was spoiled somewhat by the pixeling dissolve. I would have prefered a fade effect, but that is very much a personal preference. Also the cursor stayed on screen. The idividual pictures I enjoyed very much, excellent photography.

regards

Geoff

[LumenLux]

Hmmm - there seems to be a problem(s) - not sure why.

I'm wondering if this show makes heavy demands on the system. Possibly, those who have commented could tell me the relevant power specs of your PC's? I'm especially puzzled by what Patrick experienced. But now geoff has me curious too. I wonder if I, being weary-eyed and short on sleep, uploaded the wrong final file? I will verify if that could be the case.

Assuming that the correct version was uploaded and being run by all of us, let see if we can figure this out.

The hesitation/catchup experienced by Patrick, as well as the too-long yellow, don't seem to be explained when I examine the custom sync timeline nor when I look at the .pte text file. The effects durations and intervals are set individually for slides 1, 2, and 3. Slides 4 -38 are all evenly spaced and equal transitions.

According to what I read in the .pte: Slide #1: Time=8 TimeMS=467 Slide #2 Time=6 TimeMS=100 Slide #3 time=5 Time MS =133. Slides # 4-38 as I read on the time line, intervals are all 3 seconds 100 ms. The shortest spacing, between slides #1 and #2 is still >1 second.

After Patrick's observation, I ran the show on a slower pc, with several apps open. There I notice the transitions are not so smooth and my "precision" sync of sound and photo is off! On my authoring pc, the sound sync is "perfect" on a couple of "keystone" slides where I can easily observe. Is the high-density mosaic effect (which I use except first 2 and last 1 slide) a real heavy demand on processor or graphics card? Could that be, that Patrick also had an extra long yellow screen for same reason as the jerky, repeating, problem? Geoff is the "pixeling disolve" not very smooth on your playback? I liked the effect on my "authoring" pc, but I see now it is not so pleasant on my slower machine.

So, anyone that can shed further light - please do.

[Ken Cox]

"Is the high-density mosaic effect (which I use except first 2 and last 1 slide) a real heavy demand on processor or graphics card? Could that be,"

Robert -- ithought you were trying to simulate snow and i thought you were being quite creative with the effect

as i said before there was no hiccups on my system and i was 25% of my bandwidth at the same time as the show was running

ken

some of my specs

Windows XP Home Edition Service Pack 2 (build 2600)

Processor a Main Circuit Board b

2.80 gigahertz Intel Pentium 4

16 kilobyte primary memory cache

1024 kilobyte secondary memory cache Board: ASUSTeK Computer Inc. P4P800-E Rev 1.xx

Bus Clock: 200 megahertz

BIOS: American Megatrends Inc. 1002.002 02/25/2004

Intel® 82801EB Ultra ATA Storage Controllers

Primary IDE Channel [Controller]

Secondary IDE Channel [Controller] ALL-IN-WONDER 9000 [Display adapter]

ALL-IN-WONDER 9000 - Secondary [Display adapter]

ps i just emailed you a snow picture in case you forgot what it looks like

[d67]

The hesitation/catchup experienced by Patrick, as well as the too-long yellow, don't seem to be explained when I examine the custom sync timeline nor when I look at the .pte text file.

Hello Lumenlux

here my spec.

- AMD Athlon 1.01 GHZ

- SDRAM 512 MB

- NVIDIA GEFORCE 2MMX, 32MB Video memory

- Windows XP Pro

Just a few examples :

- at the very beginning as the slide with bright red leaves appears with dark green silver trees in background

- 1 slide before the one with a few flowers in foreground (a little blurred) and valley and mountain with bright sky in background

- slide with zoom on red/violet flowers

- slide with red flower in full frame (2 slides after appears the mountain with a tooth shape)

....

I am not sure if the jerky behavior makes the slideshow jump over a slide so that I miss some of them !

Hope this will be of some help

[ronwil]

No problems with the presentation on my equipment but I go along with Geoff as regards the mosaic effect and the mouse arrow.

I liked the introductory panel over which the viewer has control, so as to give sufficient time to read. This is where it was necessary to have the mouse arrow available but it could have been set to "Hide mouse after (say) 2 seconds".

The actual images and the choice of music are excellent and soothing but the mosaic effect I thought brought a harshness to the presentation.

My equipment Pentium 4, 1.4GHz, 1024Mb RAM

Ron [uK]

[nickles]

LumenLux:

Oh! The wonders of Utah. Excellent photography...slideshow composition...and music accompaniment. I really liked the dissolve effect you chose for your transitions.

The show was like fall mixed with spring. Unbelievable flower coloring mixed with the fall colors.

One day before long I plan to get to your splendid Utah with my camera.

I ran your show on a couple of laptops and a 1.5g desktop with no hiccups.

Thanks for sharing,

ken

[LumenLux]

Thanks for your interest everyone. I think it is useful.

As for the visable cursor, that is my mistake. I had checked "Hide cursor at startup" thinking that would avoid it. But the other field, "Auto hide mouse cursor after:" then referenced the default "3" seconds. Thus the cursor will be hidden anytime it is left for 3 or more seconds. But it is awakened of course by any mouse movement. Properly, to have no cursor available during the show, I should have selected the field to say "Hide mouse cursor during show." I think though, Ron, what you suggested is what I actually had. It is my understanding that the settings mentioned above, are irrelevant to the Startup screen. No matter what settings are for the actual sequence, the use of the Startup screen will allow the cursor for that screen only. All much simpler than writing this. (I should have posted captured screens.)

Ken, you are correct that one reason for using the mosaic effect was symbolic to snowing. I also felt the granular transitions fit well with some of the texture of some scenes - such as the "old" snow that had weathered the summer. But I am aware that it is a matter of personal appeal and I like to hear everyone's opinion. I think from the posted comments we have two "nay" and two "aye." And as stated earlier, I like it less when viewed on my pc with lower graphic capability. Also, my faster PC has LCD monitor which may handle it better than my CRT on the older pc.

Patrick, your experience of non-smooth slide/sound behavior, is the one that is least understood my me. Could you possiby run the show on another computer or two to see how the results may vary?

[d67]

Patrick, your experience of non-smooth slide/sound behavior, is the one that is least understood my me. Could you possiby run the show on another computer or two to see how the results may vary?

I will try to do it today.... some french computers seem to strike

[stonemason]

Lumenlux your show played fine on my computer which is

Athlon 2.5ghz cpu

1gb ram

GeforceFX 5600 128mb graphics

It was just the transision style you used which wasn't to my taste, but as I said this is very much a personal choice.

Regards

Geoff

[d67]

Hello Lumenlux

Here a rapid test on 2 PC

*******************************

system = Win X Professionnal

Processor = x86 Family 6 Model 8 Stepping 10 GenuineIntel ~997 Mhz

RAM 255,55 Mo

Video card = Silicon Motion Lynx3DM with 4 Mo memory

Only a resident virus software in background

No jerky slides, all are read but the mosaic effect completes in sucessive waves (rapidly so that it is visible but impairs only a little bit smoothness)

*******************************

System = Windows 98

GenuineIntel x86 Family 6 Model 8 Stepping 6

RAM = 128 Mo

video card = no indication found

Only a resident virus software in background

No jerky slides, all are read and this time the mosaic effect completes very smoothly !

*******************************

After these results I will give, this evening, your slideshow a new trial on my poor lonesome PC

[d67]

I tried again your slideshow on my home PC.

I shut down all backgroud software running even the virus guard

This time I found no stuttering but the mosaic effects remain uneven (not smooth)

As I had to look attentively at your slideshow for each trial, I remarked the slide below : superb nature but an ... unesthetic position of the walker ..... sorry, no importance !

[LumenLux]

Thanks Patrick, I'll pass that on to the subject hiker.

[d67]

I'll pass that on to the subject hiker.

... Oh no !!! Don't be cruel !

[alrobin]

Patrick,

I clicked on the thumbnail to hopefully view an enlargement of the "unesthetic" hiker, and instead of a larger image received a commercial for "Imageshack"?? Qu'est que c'est?

[cici]

Hi Robert,

Because of big problems n with my new ADSL wireless connection. I could download only this morning your show and I was very happy. Weather is cloudy and raining this morning, but your show was just ray of sunshine.

Very beautiful pictures and music fits well. I enjoyed too the transition effect.

And your mountain’s pictures remember me old times when living in Italy, I used to have very long walks along the Alps or Dolomites.

Thank You very much for this very relaxing moment

P.S: had no problemsn with my P4 XP home 2800 GHz 512 Mo Ram

[LumenLux]

Thank you Sam. It pleases me especially when someone enjoys some part of what I enjoyed. Your reference to Italy and the Dolomites is interesting. There are numerous mountain scenes in Utah that certainly seem European to me. I think I could put a portfolio together that would fool 95% of the residents of my own city.

On the other hand, we met a man on the mountain that day, who being retired had taken it upon himself to be caretaker of the sign-in book (log) up on the summit. He was comming down as we were going up. He makes the same hike typically five days a week! Although it was late in the season, he was intending to complete his 400th roundtrip by the end of 2005. He seemed to be very fit (surprise!)