I'm also having a problem with auto-preview. It works fine in SVP v11. But SVP v9 stopped previewing altogether. With Auto-Preview enabled, when I select a graphic in the Explorer view, the preview window changes dimension but the image in the preview window is still from the timeline, not the explorer.
If I try to preview a video file, again the preview window changes dimension and I still see the image from the timeline, but I can hear the audio from the selected Explorer video.
Also, preview from Media Manager behaves the same way. Seems like something got Whacked.
I think in the period between VP9 and VP11 the behavior of autopreview changed a few times. It might be playing in the preview window or in the trimmer window. If you hear audio but don't see a picture then it's playing in another window.
I don't have any ideas on pressing the spacebar to autopreview. My setup either does it when I don't want it or doesn't when I do.
Tom, that was it. The Trimmer window was not displayed because it was in a tab alongside the Mixer. When I selected it, I found the "Show Video Monitor" button had somehow gotten depressed.