Overloading PTE

[JRR]

In another post I mentioned that I was doing a one minute show with about 250 images. (bees flying around flowers set to Mozart's Flight of the Bumblee)

Turns out I needed 387 images in 68 seconds !!!!

It ran OK using the small preview in the TIMELINE

BUT when I ran it in the normal preview it would not stop !!! I had set it to close after the last slide, but it was all wound up and didn't want to stop

ESC did not work (it usually won't in mid transition) so I had to use CNTRL-ALT-DEL to get it WHOA !!!

Guess I can't do it, but then I was asking an awful lot.

Is it a problem with transition time, or duration time ?

Thx

[Ernst]

I ran into the same aspect. I think it´s both that sum up to the total for that particular slide. It happened to me with images of 1024x768, and even a fast processor and video card that even so, couldn´t handle it.

BTW. Flight of the bumblebee by Rimsky-Korsakov?

Regards

Ernst

[JRR]

Oops, you're right Ernst

Rimsky-Korsakov !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Guess I better go back to music class

[cici]

Hi JRR,

387 pictures in 68 seconds it means a little bit more than 5 pictures per second.

For my animations I work with 5 pictures per second and I’ve no problems. But my images are 524 x 434 pixels only..

Maybe you are working with larger images; in this case , you can try with smaller sizes.

I hope you succeed in your work . Do you intend to upload to the Cottage? I’d like to see it.

[Lloegyr]

Today, saturday I was working on a presentation and I could not get out by ESC, it too was 1024 * 768.

Also I have found not to have the video card set to 32 bit. it creates havoc.

Mike

Mersea Island

[Guest guru]

Jim, what happens if you set "When show ends keep last slide in show on screen?

[JRR]

Guido:

Tried it with leave image on screen. It had no effect, but it was a good try.

I did do a test with a 30 second sound file this AM and smaller images as cici suggested (thanks Sam )

That seemed to work fine.

OK back to PhotoShop to change sizes and do some fine tuning to the images.....

[Guest guru]

Jim, Ernst, Sam, Mike,

Don't forget PTE was born and is designed essentially to creare slideshows, that means shows of slides, not animations or movies. It allows also very fast slides changes, but we cannot demand it is able to do what Premiere or other movie editors can do.

About these subject I posted an email to Igor, who replied:

1) (about Jim's problem when he says all is running well in time-line preview, but not full screen) "PTE has optimization if picture should be fit into a small part of screen (in 2-4 times faster [than in full screen mode])".

2) in general: "of course, synchronization is not intended for such fast (1/6 of second) transitions".

But he added also (we know Igor, and I think we'll never thank him enough):

"But in the next version I'll try to check and maybe it will possible to improve some moment".

[JRR]

Igor, Guido et al

Thanks for all your help.

I do realize that I am pushing PTE (and my computer ?) to the edge by trying to get so many images to fly by.

PTE sure gives me what I normally want, and so much more for "nomal' type shows and "normal" fine tunings

Igor: I am likely the only person who would want to do such a show, so please do not spend much time trying to improve PTE in this area. I think I have seen several more popular requests for further changes to already great software that should have priority.

While I did get a test version to work with smaller images (pixel-wise) yesterday, I realize now the images were VERY small (byte-wise) so I will spend some time and see what I can make it do.

Thanks again

Thank you all

[Truelight]

I can describe what PTE needs to head off these problems in two words --

Error checking

When the user creates (or tries to create) what will be an impossible scenario (i.e. transition duration is longer than slide duration) wouldn't it be nice if PTE would display a warning message indicating that this is likely to cause a problem?

I'm also still waiting for the program to display the calculated slide duration when the user selects Automatic Synchronization. The program says that all slides will display for the same time and the show will be fit to the music duration. PTE has to calculate this for it to work. Why not display it??!!

At the risk of incurring wrath, I will mention a program that does this (plus has the nicest user interface I've seen yet) - ProShow Gold. PTE still excels in a few areas, but could learn a lot from the way PSG does things.

[JRR]

Truelight:

I think you will find PTE does do some of what you want.

If you do an auto synch, then click on TIMED POINTS above the TIMELINE (I think it is called - I am not at my own computer now) you will be provided with the auto timing and you can then customize it if you want. (I discovered this the other day)

Alrobin's ADJUSTOR utility will also help out here as well.

(BTW ProShow Gold - not that I use it as I prefer the nice features of PTE that they are missing - did not keep up with my bees show, it was about 10-15 images behind)

[Truelight]

Jim...

Your method might be a way to figure this out, (though it sure could be simpler). Here was a test I ran:

- Picked 10 slides (a nice round number to work with)

- Picked a music cut that was 4:50 (or 290 seconds)

- Selected Automatic Synchronization

- Clicked the Timed Points Button and then Add Arranged points

(I also turned off transitions - Quick/No Transition in the effects so as to not add any transition time)

Now... one would expect the transition points to come each 29 seconds (290 / 10 = 29)

Clicking on the timeline transition point, I see the first point is at 29 sec. 36 ms (not bad..)

The second is at 58 sec 73 ms. Out at the 10th slide the transition point is at 4 min. 21 sec. 328 ms

This is about what one would expect, (aside from the additional milliseconds). I'm curious... if I'm not using any transitions (cuts only) why aren't the marks -right on- ? (at 29, 58, 1:27, .... etc?) Why is PTE throwing in a couple extra milliseconds?

It all seems to work, so I'm not complaining, but just curious.

The short answer to my previous question is --

- To figure out how long each slide will display when doing an auto-sync to music:

-- Add your slides to the show

-- Add your music to the show

-- Check the Synchronize Music to Music Duration box under the Main Tab

-- Click the Customize Synchronization button

-- In the timeline window, Click the Timed Points Button, then Add Arranged Points button

-- See where the FIRST transition will take place (it will say - "to 2")

-- Click on that point to highlight it and read the time in the window

Since in an auto-synced show all slide durations will be the same, what is displayed --should-- be the slide duration for all slides.

I still like the PSG interface better though... (sigh...)

[JRR]

A number of people wanted to know if I would put the "animation" show on Beechbrook Cottage, they seemed confident that I would get it to work, I was not !!!

Well I did finally, with the helpful advice of fellow forum users. Thanks !

I ended up going with 275 images in 59 seconds. (I started at about 400 images)

The first working version was 49 individual images repeated randomly in small groupings for a total of 275 images. Each of the small groupings contained images carefully cropped to have the central flower in the same position. While that worked, I found the backgrounds jittering around slightly a little disconcerting.

So the second version uses 4-5 backgrounds with up to 26 different images constructed by cloning bumble bees from other pictures shot at the same time. I ended up with 149 images that were again repeated randomly, but this time in larger groupings.

Trying to make the bees blend well into the background was not the easiest, so don't look too hard. It is not a work of art, more a work of exhaustion. Just enjoy the show.

It is a fun piece that I will use an introduction to another AV show currently in production: "Beekeeping". That one is 75% done but I can't finish it until we lose our snow and the flowers start blooming and I can fill in a few missing shots.

Look for "The Flight of the Bumble Bee" on Beechbrook Cottage.

[Ken Cox]

Jim real glad they finally let you across the border to get to the Bill's Cottage -- your show was worth the delay -- pretty slick

ken

[HaroldB]

Jim,

Good work!!! It must have taken you AGES!

Harold