After my first couple of weeks on Vegas...

erikd wrote on 7/23/2008, 10:59 AM
I am really starting to get that "loving feeling" with this product. Flexible would be the word that comes to mind as there seems to be a way to do most anything if you try to figure out. Having said that I do have a few little things that are bugging me at this point and I'm sure there is a perfectly rational solution to each of these. So, in no particular order....

1) On the timeline, with Video track 1 on the left showing it is selected and I having verified the focus is set for the timeline, why is is that I can't just hit "s" and split the track where the cursor is if I want to? Why do I have to click on an event specifically before I can split the track? Clicking on the event seems imprecise to me compared to pausing playback at the precise point I want to split the track plus I like to minimize usage of the mouse as much as possible so I'm thinking if the focus is correct, and the track selection is correct why not let me split where the cursor is if I want to?

2) With the focus on the timeline is there a simple keyboard shortcut to simply highlight Video track 1 or track 2 if i desire? I've noticed that if I click on a specific track number on the far left then the up/down arrows will toggle through the different tracks but I haven't found a keyboard command for that.

3.) The next concept deals with quickly moving down a long timeline (in my case several hours long) using keyboard commands. I thought I read in the manual where you can you use pgup/pgdwn to quickly hop through grid markers but the largest setting on grid markers is 1 minute so that doesn't help too much. Of course, I can simple hold down the pg/dwn button and eventually I will get there but what I'm looking for ideally is a way scroll one complete screen (at whatever zoom I'm currently set at) per click of a keyboard button.

Oops, I have more but I've got a semi-emergency to attend to so I'll have to finish this later. Thanks for paying attention.

Erik



Comments

rs170a wrote on 7/23/2008, 11:28 AM
1) If you don't select a specific event, Vegas will split the entire timeline.
It's a bit of a PITA but that's the way Vegas works.

2) Holding down the Ctrl key allows you to select a specific event without changing the cursor position.

3) Place markers at various points (1/2 hr. mark, 1 hr. mark, etc.) and then use the Ctrl+left/right arrow to go forwards/backwards one marker at a time.
Use the Shift+number keys (not the numeric keypad) to go to a specific maker number.
Double-clicking the Horizontal scroll bar at the bottom of the timeline will automatically zoom out to show the entire timeline.

I'm sure there are other solutions to your questions but those are a few that came to mind right away.

Mike
JackW wrote on 7/23/2008, 5:58 PM
"Clicking on the event seems imprecise to me compared to pausing playback at the precise point I want to split the track plus I like to minimize usage of the mouse as much as possible so I'm thinking if the focus is correct, and the track selection is correct why not let me split where the cursor is if I want to?"

* * * * * * *

Pause playback at the precise point you want the split to occur; highlight the track by holding down the Control key and clicking anywhere on the track. Release the Control key and hit "S" This will create a split precisely where the cursor is located. No other track will be affected.

Jack
autopilot wrote on 7/23/2008, 8:06 PM
Erik, I'm not sure if you know this, but you can use J K L as Shuttle keys. Just keep a finger on K to pause your playback.
erikd wrote on 7/23/2008, 10:07 PM
Mike,

1) Ok. But is there a keyboard command to move from timeline focus to focus on video/audio track selection on the far left? So far, it seems a mouse click is the only way I can move from focus on the timeline to selecting a specific track on the left. Once there, I can use a keyboard command to get back to timeline focus. For example, why not allow me to just hit the number keys 1-9 for selecting the first 9 tracks and after that use a mouse click?

2) I didn't know about holding down the Ctl key. That helps considerably.

3) The markers work pretty well. I notice that I don't have to use shift to navigate between them. I can just hit the number 2 and it goes to marker 2 on the timeline. I would actually prefer the number 2 immediately highlight track 2 on the timeline and use the shift commands for marker navigation. I also think a scroll down the timeline one complete page at current zoom setting command would be nice for future versions.

Double-clicking the the horizontal scroll bar for complete zoom out is quick and easy enough. Is there a keyboard command for that? Is there a keyboard command for just the opposite, a complete zoom in to the cursor point?

I love the way you can be editing away in Vegas even while the timeline is playing in another section! I can see where this thing is really built for speed so don't think I'm down on the product. I just hope that there are many versions to come as I have a way of picking software that EOL's right after I buy it.

Erik
erikd wrote on 7/23/2008, 10:18 PM
J,K,L I use constantly. I just learned about the option to keep holding down the K button and then use J and L for a scrub forwards and backwards. This is pretty nice but the only problem is that the scrub control is not as nice as what had with Discreet Edit 6.5, may that wonderful software rest in peace.

If you hold down K and then press L, the cursor begins moving forward at the +.25 rate which for my editing purposes is fairly useless. The second click on L bumps it up to +.50 which is where I want to be. I wonder if there is a way to set the program so that while holding down the K button I can rock back and forth between
-.50 and +.50 by hitting the J and L buttons. Currently I'm moving along at +.50 and then I hit J hoping to go in reverse to cue to a specific sound I just heard however all that happens is that I continue moving forward at a decrease from +.50 to +.25. Do I sound like I am being too picky?
Grazie wrote on 7/24/2008, 12:58 AM
Get yerself a Contour Shuttle ! Best "Scrubber" in Town!! You want a fast Scrubber? CSP. You want a Scrubber with assignable Buttons? CSP.

Scrubber in my left holster and me rodent in my right! Keyboard? What's a keyboard? - Good for this stuff! - Yes I do use my KB in Vegas . .. but not a lot.

Grazie
Laurence wrote on 7/24/2008, 5:53 AM
Another suggestion if you want to get the most out of Vegas: gets some good scripts. Ultimate-S and Excalibur are my two favorites (even if they are a little redundant). One of these multi-purpose scripts pretty much doubles the ease of use of Vegas.
baysidebas wrote on 7/24/2008, 5:59 AM
Is there a keyboard command for just the opposite, a complete zoom in to the cursor point?

Ed Troxel, creator of Excalibur, wrote this script, which zooms in on the timeline to the desired "magnification":

/**
* This script will set the zoom level.
*
* Written By: Edward Troxel
* Modified: 11-28-2007
**/

using System;
using Sony.Vegas;

public class EntryPoint
{
Vegas myVegas;

public void FromVegas(Vegas vegas)
{
Timecode zoomSize = new Timecode("00:00:45:00");
myVegas = vegas;

myVegas.Transport.SelectionLength = zoomSize;
myVegas.Transport.ZoomSelection();
myVegas.Transport.SelectionLength = new Timecode(0);
}
}

just specify in the zoomSize = new Timecode("00:00:45:00") just how much of the timeline you want displayed. In this example it's set at 45 seconds. Simple, to the point and saves me tons of time while editing. And there's no reason why you can't set up several at different zoom levels.
erikd wrote on 7/24/2008, 9:50 PM
Grazie, I'm always looking for an excuse to buy a cool lookin toy to add to the suite! The reviews across the board are positive so mine is on the way from B&H. It will be interesting to see if I can get to the point where my keyboard is basically for typing text.

Erik
erikd wrote on 7/24/2008, 9:55 PM
Laurence,

I have downloaded and installed both UltimateS and Excalibur. Slowly, I try different things with them from time to time but it will probably take me awhile to get even close to their full functionality. My manual time is easily a couple of hours of each day and increasing as I add new tools. I'm in the darkest hours of the dreaded "curve" these days.
erikd wrote on 7/24/2008, 9:58 PM
Bayside,

I see these type of scripts posted everywhere and haven't gotten to that part of the manual yet. Just guessing, but do you paste the text into notepad and then save it as a .js or .cs extension?? Just a wild guess based on what I've absorbed so far. I would really like to know how to paste and use these text scripts though because there have been several that I want to use like the zoom in.

Erik

blink3times wrote on 7/25/2008, 4:02 AM
"Get yerself a Contour Shuttle ! "

I echo Grazie's words. You can pretty much control everything with one hand. Another alternative is a programmable mouse. For the longest time I used a mouse and programmed J,K,L...S, Zoom and a few other things right into the mouse. You free up the other hand for drinking coffee.
baysidebas wrote on 7/25/2008, 5:46 AM
Yes, that's exactly how to handle them. A text file with the .cs extension [in this case] placed in your Script Menu folder will do it. You then do a Tools/Scripting/Rescan Script Menu Folder to make it appear on the scripts list.
erikd wrote on 7/25/2008, 6:07 AM
Being 46 years old and 25 years into this business I had to move to a joystick ergo mouse many years ago as the flat desk mouse kills me in about 5 minutes. I've tried all the so called ergo mice but if it is the type that you rest your hand on I can't use it. I hope that the contour shuttle doesn't cause a similar problem but I'm gonna give it a try because I really need it. Even if it is only for scrub audio editing it will be worth it. I can type on a keyboard for 8 hours with no problem.
erikd wrote on 7/25/2008, 6:09 AM
Did it, and works perfect. Pretty exciting how easy it is to change your worflow without having to wait from an update from corporate. Now to learn the difference between a .cs and a .js file.
erikd wrote on 7/25/2008, 6:19 AM
Sorry for all the posts! I just now realized that when I hit reply on this site, it does not reply to a specific post but in general.

I do have a few more things that are a botherin me just a tad.

1) I have my preferences set to open last job automatically but when I open Vegas it always goes to "untitled" first and then when I open from there the veg file I want it asks me if I want to make changes to "untitled" before I go. Huhh?? I didn't make any changes and I certainly don't want to open untitled each time first. So if my last job was "hey yall, wachis" and I close it down correctly and then reopen Vegas, shouldn't it open "hey yall, wachis" immediately?

2) Is it possible to do a keyword search of "edit details"? I'm thinking this is maybe for how I can search for and find a specific clip on the timeline.

3) This is a cut and paste question. It is easy to paste immediately after the back end of an edited section on the timeline just by cozing up to the cursor at the correct point. But how do I paste a clip to precisely butt up against the beginning of an already edited portion of the timeline. I need this feature a lot I'm noticing and in my old system it was ctrl>shift>v.

Thanks for the lifeline guys. How far back do most of you go on this forum? Are many of you Vegas users for say 5 years or more?
Former user wrote on 7/25/2008, 6:26 AM
3) The paste will happen where you position the cursor.

1) Yes it should, but I don't have that setting enabled so I can't swear it works.

2) AFAIK there is no search function, but you can click on the column headings and sort.

Dave T2
Grazie wrote on 7/25/2008, 6:33 AM
Now that you know ALL about scripts ( joking!! - I don't . . ) There is a great lil Extension by Gilles aka Rosebud that is a GoTo extension. works like a charm. He developed it 'cos we didn't have one!

Grazie
Grazie wrote on 7/25/2008, 6:35 AM
There is also Search Media Bins in Project Media that uses Boolian word searche parameters ..

Grazie
Kim Nance wrote on 7/25/2008, 7:44 PM
Hi Erik

Do you have Enable Snapping turned on? Makes life a whole lot easier. Can't think of a way to paste backwards without using a script, but who knows - I keep finding new ways to do stuff all the time. John Rofrano, Ed Troxel, and John Meyer are all a good source of useful scripts. If you haven't already tried it, I suggest you look at the newsletters in www.jetdv.com

Regards
Kim Nance (former edit*or)
Armadillo Post
erikd wrote on 7/26/2008, 11:21 AM
Hello Kim and Grazie,

Kim, I thought I remembered your name from the old *edit list. How are you, but better yet how are you doing with your switch to Vegas? I'm getting there but gosh, *edit was a heck of a system it seems. Vegas will do many things *edit wouldn't but surprisingly there is a pretty good list of things it could do that Vegas can't. The paste backwards edit is one I use quite a bit. Say you have a little pre-edited section on another timeline and you want to paste it into your master timeline. You want the outpoint of the pre-edited part to end in front of another edited point on your master timeline. Currently, I only see opening up space on the timeline to make sure there is enough room for the clip, pasting and them moving it over to the right until it butts us against the clip I want it too. Kinda clumsy.

Grazie, the "go to" script is very cool. I like this!! So much in fact I can't believe it isn't already part of the Vegas package. Very functional!

Erik

baysidebas wrote on 7/26/2008, 1:11 PM
Erik, maybe I'm missing something here, but wouldn't paste insert with auto ripple on do exactly that?
erikd wrote on 7/27/2008, 11:12 AM
Bay, I don't think so. Imagine you have a small section of a soundbite that you want to paste immediately in front of an existing edited soundbite. In other words the new small section is back timed into the pre-existing edited section. If I turn on paste insert, auto ripple, it works fine if you don't mind moving everything on your entire timeline down but what if you're squeezing in a couple of words and you don't want everything else to move down? Or I may have figured out a nice back-timed music clip that I want to lay in using the outpoint as the key part of the edit so that the ending of the music is correct. I hope this makes some sense as this is certainly something that would be better explained visually.

Erik
baysidebas wrote on 7/27/2008, 4:02 PM
It's this part that's confusing me: "I only see opening up space on the timeline to make sure there is enough room for the clip," If you "open up space" something's gotta move. Of course, with the snapping function of VegasPro, dragging a clip on the timeline by its tail and butting it to another clip's head is in no way a chore, even when the sync point is on a different track.

Are you on Vegas 8? you didn't say.