An EXCELLENT idea for work flow

DJPadre wrote on 1/25/2006, 8:19 PM

how fast is your mouse wheel?
it takes 2 seconds to zoom in and out.... no, literally 2 seconds at the most..

no offense to you or anyone here really, but its come to the point where users are expecting the NLE to do almost everything for them.

Im waiting for the post that says "i want to know where the "make it look good" button is"

if youre having isues with tracks and compositions, one suggestion is to create your compositions in segments as seperate projects, then import each veg file as a nested project into your main project.

this would save you having a bazzillion tracks and getting lost..

FrigidNDEditing wrote on 1/25/2006, 9:05 PM

the fact of the matter is that it's easier - if you had the opportunity to work in a software that was:

A) easier
or
B) harder

what would you work on?

No offense to you either - but it's just that if I can save time, and make my work less difficult - then hey - why not.

I'd be the first to say - Let's have a make it look good button too. Because editing is not about how I spent 400 hours working on this thing look at it. It's about - this looks good/works or it doesn't, and however you got there (as long as it's legal) you got there. they don't care one way or the other.

Logan5 wrote on 1/25/2006, 9:37 PM

My previous NLE system gave you a visual that you could see at a glance all your tracks.
No matter how far zoomed in you are you can see what is ahead, & above at all times. Just at a glance.
Very handy when you have a long project or a lot of tracks to work on. Its like an “editing radar” of sorts.

Take a look at this screen shot – its small, but you should get the idea.
http://www.digitalproducer.com/images/ibcstxgf.jpg

If you look at the screen shot top right you’ll see it. The box denotes the area you are currently viewing. So if you zoom out the box will expand to view you are at. If you click in that box, you can navigate your view any where in the project.

To click in “project overview window” is a great way to instantly jump to a certain time and/or track(s).

I miss it that.

rmack350 wrote on 1/25/2006, 9:50 PM

That Navigator box also appears in Media100 and was probably there since 1993. Almost the same box. I wonder if anyone is holding a patent or copyright on it?

That window is nice and worth having if you've got a spot to put it. It probably wouldn't be too informative if you had a bazillion tracks but you can still get an overall view of the project.

Another way to do this, and unobtrusively, would be some lack of color on the track header. Make it look "disabled" or some sort of washed out grey when the track is empty.

There's absolutely nothing wrong with a subtle and well conceived bit of feedback.

Rob Mack

PeterWright wrote on 1/25/2006, 10:06 PM

In a similar vein, I've previously requested in vain a box which pops up before Ripple is applied, either auto or manual, warning you thus:
"There are locked events which may be affected by this Ripple - do you want to proceed?"

FrigidNDEditing wrote on 1/25/2006, 10:14 PM

"Another way to do this, and unobtrusively, would be some lack of color on the track header. Make it look "disabled" or some sort of washed out grey when the track is empty."

Exactly the kind of thing I was thinking.

Hope this gets seen - I'd be happy to see it in a 6.0d or 7.0 - whichever comes first.

Dave

johnmeyer wrote on 1/25/2006, 10:15 PM

For those that didn't see my "solution" in the other thread, here's the link to it:

Script to Handle Smart Track Delete

FrigidNDEditing wrote on 1/25/2006, 10:43 PM

BTW - that was a great addition to scripts John - I'm just hoping for a tighter integration with the UI in the future.

Dave

Logan5 wrote on 1/25/2006, 10:53 PM

Rob Mack you wrote that Media100 had that kind of Navigator box in 1993 –
That’s interesting, 93 was the year that same UI idea was introduced to the first version of my NLE system.

DJPadre wrote on 1/26/2006, 1:17 AM

i dont see how zooming in and out isnt easy... and 2 seconds wont break your workflow...

i just think its funny that people feel that this is a needed element..

I do agree about the ripple edit.. maybe change the shape of the cursor or something the way in which the edit, selection, envelope edit and zoom edit tools change shape... but as ripple editing uses the same edit tool as standard edit, maybe add a little tail to the pointer or something... At least it wont have a pop up..

one thing Vegas is famous for is teh lack of pop ups...
i personally would like to keep it that way...

SimonW wrote on 1/26/2006, 3:04 AM

Zooming out doesn't show you tracks below, so that isn't a solution.

Grazie wrote on 1/26/2006, 4:24 AM

Already have:

1/- Mouse wheel = IN/Out ZOOM horiz

2/- Mouse wheel AND CTRL = Move Tracks UP and DOWN

3/- Expand/Decrease Track heights CTRL+Shift UP/DOWN arrow

IDEAS:

* Now as I have to lift my attention from mouse wheel to UP/DOWN arrow on KB for track height expand, how about the side button on the Mouse somehow being configured to force the UP/DOWN arrow option whereby the WHEEL does the UP/DOWN . .now THAT I could really do with!

* How about 2 SYNCH instances of Vegas where both are synced. We could then have a very tiny Vegas over-view and apart from what we are speaking of here, this would be real neat for a whole host of other options!

Synched-Instances!

ITMT I'd like the Track height being manipulated from the mouse.

I kinda like the mouse being used to VIEW the overall plan of attack/battlefield/CANVAS that is Vegas ..

"The Canvas that " - kool marketing line . ..

Grazie

FuTz wrote on 1/26/2006, 4:56 AM

Wow guys...
To sum it up, I'd really like this type of overview of the TL too. Maybe add it as a seperate dockable window, along with Transitions / Media Gen / Explorer / etc. ?
I agree with the lack of pop-ups in Vegas: dooon't ! I simply HATE those too. The pointer idea for Ripple Edit function is much much better option IMO (good one!)
One of the guys on the forum assigned Ripple function to one of the side buttons of his mouse, which I did too so you easily go on and off as you wish but if the arrow pointer had, say, a red dot or shadow when Ripple is engaged, that would be the icing on the cake...
Grazie: I agree too. What if we had this second instance of Vegas appear in the same dockable window we were just talking about concerning overview of TL too? That would be nice; just clicking directly on the second instance in this window would bring us exactly where we just clicked on the second instance'TL.

I so much use Vegas on a very "basic" way even after these years that you guys always surprise me with your reflexions / ideas !

Grazie wrote on 1/26/2006, 5:13 AM

"Maybe add it as a seperate dockable window, along with Transitions / Media Gen / Explorer / etc. ?" . . oh yes . . . .

"What if we had this second instance of Vegas appear in the same dockable window we were just talking about concerning overview of TL too? That would be nice; just clicking directly on the second instance . . just clicked on the second instance'TL." Most EXCELLENT idea! FuTz me-lad!

" . . you guys always surprise me with your reflexions / ideas ! . " I just love Vegas. It keeps on "stepping up to the plate" for me. Is that the correct Americanism?

Grazie

JJKizak wrote on 1/26/2006, 5:18 AM

I still like the verbal warning idea. Set it up like the Windows sound match-ups. Then you can record your own hilarious warnings.Match them up, maybe even baudy ones.

JJK

mark-woollard wrote on 1/26/2006, 6:09 AM

Isn't the best compromise to create a user preference to either have or not have a requester ask if you really want to delete a track that contains one or more events?

It seems to me everyone would be happy.

Bob Greaves wrote on 1/26/2006, 6:11 AM

Sometimes I have a special effect going on in a track of a lengthy project and the length of the event is so small that double clicking on the time line reveals such a thin line that it would be easy to not notice the single event.

An indicator in the track header would be helpful. An icon that indicated empty and another icon to indicate otherwise. Perhaps clicking on the icon could produce a list of what events are on the track.

vicmilt wrote on 1/26/2006, 6:16 AM

vis a vis - "zoom in / zoom out" concept to see empty tracks -

I do this all the time - - - but a 3 second title on a one hour show is invisible when zoomed all the way out - and I have had exactly that situation for "track-motioned" titles that zoom up, etc.

Track coloring would be nice.

Former user wrote on 1/26/2006, 6:16 AM

Newtek's 3D application, Lightwave, allows users to select their own "alert level" by choosing: beginner, intermediate, or expert. Beginner will stop you with a pop-up dialog that requests that you click OK or Cancel to continue with the current request that might be destructive or can't be undone. Intermediate displays a highlighted prompt informing you the same thing, but doesn't require a click to continue. And expert doesn't alert the user at all.

This is kinda like those dialog boxes that have the "don't display this prompt in the future" check box which will set a flag in the application to discontinue prompting either from now on, or just during this session.

Jim

TomE wrote on 1/26/2006, 7:12 AM

Grazie:"* How about 2 SYNCH instances of Vegas where both are synced. We could then have a very tiny Vegas over-view and apart from what we are speaking of here, this would be real neat for a whole host of other options!"

Yeah, Like the navigator in Illustrator and photoshop. It would be cool to have a timeline navigator just like the adobe navigator that lets you zoom to the timeline where you want and then out again.

-TomE

dand9959 wrote on 1/26/2006, 7:22 AM

Something as simple as, say, a thin green border around the track header, or a small green triangle in the upper left or right corner to indicate that the track is not empty would be very easy to notice and (I would think) quite a simple programming task. (The semi-greyed out idea isn't bad, but could be confusing coupled with the active/non-active shading.)

We're not talking a "Make It Look Good" magic button here. Just a simple little UI tweak with a pretty big bang for the buck.

Grazie wrote on 1/26/2006, 7:30 AM

" . . adobe navigator that lets you zoom to the timeline where you want and then out again " . .yeah . .Like a "snapshot" of the timeline tracks: ZOOM in to with a great degree of accuracy - good for Vic! - and then lassoo or select THAT area for working on, and BINGO! There you have it!

That WOULD be real sexy and keeping the attention to the job in hand - MAKING MOVIES! But making movies with an extraordinary option to keeping it real and urgent and flowing.

Grazie

Jeff_Smith wrote on 1/26/2006, 7:35 AM

Cadence magazine (AutoCAD) had columns on how to speed up productivity, they would show how one less mouse click (via scripts or whatever) could save hours of time over the course of a year.

Former user wrote on 1/26/2006, 7:43 AM

IF you look under HELP, there are many zoom options.

Doubleclick on the MAGNIFYING glass on the lower right of the track panel shows as many tracks as possible by shrinking height and width.

Dave T2

An EXCELLENT idea for work flow - Sony

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