print to tape limitation

weasel_ferret wrote on 6/10/2003, 1:55 AM
You guys are going to think I'm a crackpot for posting so much to this forum, but I love Vegas and I want it to succeed! However, it never will with stupid stuff like this:

I can't type in a start point for Print to Tape. The capability to preroll, cue and record is there, why can't I specify a record start timecode? I have to manually cue the deck, then the Print to Tape reads the current time and uses that. Not much fun if you're printing to a camera.

ARGH

Comments

Grazie wrote on 6/10/2003, 2:55 AM
Hiyah -WF!

"I can't type in a start point for Print to Tape. " - Well, erm yes you can . . .

PTT> > Cue Device> >[ see current location area? ] Double click on/over "Current Location"> > Type in the Timecode you want> > Camera searches for this point - Camera is now CUED to the point you wish! - Or do you mean something else? "I have to manually cue the deck, . . " tells me you have a further option now - yes?

Hope this helps,

Best regards

Grazie
Grazie wrote on 6/10/2003, 3:01 AM
. . . or hit Ctrl+G. You get a "Go to timecode . ." menu right in the middle of the screen!

Neat K/S eh?

Grazie
NeilPorter wrote on 6/10/2003, 7:41 AM
It may be a deficiency with your camera. After spending much frustrating time on the same problem as you, I was lucky to coincidentally meet someone who had the same camera as mine (believe it or not, 2 people at the same time and place - Spot's Sydney, Australia, V 4.0 demo night). Vegas can only automatically control some cameras to only operate from the beginning of the tape. To Print to Tape from somewhere else, you have to manually set the tape to your chosen start position.

The next bit I could NEVER have worked out unless I had met these 2 guys. You set the camera (our particular Panasonic NV-DS38A) to VCR mode and then, using ONLY the remote control, press Play and Record simultanelously. Of course, the manual doesn't even come close to mentioning anything like this.

What about your camera? Is it the problem?

Regards,
Neil Porter
weasel_ferret wrote on 6/10/2003, 5:12 PM
HUH? I don't see "Cue Device" anywhere in the Print to Tape dialog.

I go to: Tools > Print Video to DV Tape

And I get a dialog/wizard that leads me through some steps, like colorbar duration etc. Then I get to:

Device Setup > Use Device Control > Device Timecode

There is a timecode field that merely reads out the current location. I can't enter data into the field.
Grazie wrote on 6/10/2003, 5:42 PM
WF - I've asked you to respond on your post further up - on your Bug issue - yeah?

But hey I'm nere now. So let's recap.

Before i do that, you have describe a procedure I'm not aware of within the Print To Tape dialogue. Hmmm...

When you are in PTT and click on Cue Device - did you try hitting Ctrl+G? - With regard to, "There is a timecode field that merely reads out the current location. " this is exactly where i can enter the information to send to my cammy to seek the TC. I really can't im agine at the moment what you are doing to not get there. Sometimes this INternet stuff is amazing - but sometimes it is really a bind - yeah?

Oh - on a second and then a third reading of your last post - try clicking on the Capture function. When you bring this up you should be presented with "Capture"; "Advance Capture" and finally "Print To Tape". Click on PTT and, having your cammy connected, you can use the "Cue Device" - but firstly you need to "pick" up a file you wish to PTT of course. Now try Cntrl+G!

Grazie
Chienworks wrote on 6/10/2003, 5:57 PM
It looks like weasel ferret is printing to tape from Vegas' timeline instead of from VidCap. If this is the case, then select the range of the timeline you want to print by dragging the mouse across it, then in the Tools / Print Video to DV tape dialog box check the Render loop region only box. This will let you specify any portion of the video.
Grazie wrote on 6/10/2003, 6:05 PM
Kelly - I concur,

Grazie
beerandchips wrote on 6/10/2003, 9:22 PM
What he is referring to is the box that has checked "start recording to the dv device at the specifide device location". Then there is a box. But, you can't type anything in it. WHY? This should work. Plus, on my computer the timecode in the box that is supposed to be the current location on tape isn't even correct. It is always off by ten hours or so. Having said that it does insert on tape correctly (but after manually cueing tape first). It would be nice though as weasel said to be able to specify the location in the box provided without manually cueing.
weasel_ferret wrote on 6/12/2003, 5:42 AM
Finally we get to the bottom of this, after I've been chastized and insulted for bringing up a genuine problem.

I need to Print to Tape from the Vegas timeline, and I need to do an assemble edit at a specific timecode point on the tape. This is something that professionals do every single day. I cannot do that from Vegas. Evidently I must use the Video Capture application to do this. That's a little non-intuitive, wouldn't you say? Use the Capture app in order to record OUT?

Again, printing to tape from the main interface is easy and reliable except for this one oversight... but it's a major one. As I said before, full device control is obviously implemented, but there is a design limitation in the Print to Tape dialog.

Now, are there any more flames anyone wants to hurl at me?
PeterWright wrote on 6/12/2003, 5:58 AM
I stand, or sit to be corrected, but I've read that the problem with totally accurate insert editing is to do with the DV format rather than Vegas.

But, unless you're doing newsroom stuff, it really is easy to start from the beginning again. Even if it takes an extra hour, there's plenty to be getting on with ...
BillyBoy wrote on 6/12/2003, 6:49 AM
"That's a little non-intuitive, wouldn't you say? Use the Capture app in order to record OUT?"

How long did it take you figure out you click on start to end Windows? Did you send off a angry note to Billy Gates, or did you simply LEARN how to do it?

Did you even bother to read Playing back and recording to a camcorder?

Like with any software some terms may have slightly different meaning to what you're use to.

The number of clips you selected and the total length of all clips together is displayed in the Items to Print and Print length fields under the Preview window.

Click the Cue Device button. When in Cue Device mode, the Transport toolbar will control your camera or DV deck so you can locate the point on the tape where you want to start recording. Once you have located the appropriate place on your video tape, click the Cue Device button again to release Cue Device mode.

Click the Record to Device button . Video Capture displays a message asking if you are sure you want to proceed, since recording to the tape will overwrite any existing video on the tape.

Click Yes to continue. Video Capture will start recording to your DV device. Once the clips have been printed to the tape, Video Capture displays a message indicating that the print to tape has been completed.

Click OK.

Different cameras and DV decks may require a slightly different procedure; please consult your device's documentation for more information. In a worst-case scenario where Video Capture is unable to automatically record a file to tape, but you can preview a file on your device, you may have to press the Record button on your device to begin the recording procedure and then click the Play button to play back the file.



SonyDennis wrote on 6/15/2003, 12:02 AM
> there is a design limitation in the Print to Tape dialog

Actually, no, it's a design limitation of DV devices. They cannot do insert edits reliably in a frame-accurate manner. So, instead of letting you type in a value and then complain that we're off by a frame or two, we just indicate the position we see that the device is in as a reference-only readout. Sorry. It's a limitation of DV devics (at least in combination with the MSDV driver).

///d@
wobblyboy wrote on 6/15/2003, 1:45 AM
Sometimes it seems that Vegas performs functions in such a stright forward and easy manner that it's hard to figure out how to do something. When you are use to and looking for a complicated way to do something, the simple and easy is not always so obivous. Just keep asking, and you will know and appriciate. Glad to have you in Vegas Land. Wobbly Boy
wcoxe1 wrote on 6/15/2003, 2:42 PM
Thank you, Dennis, again!