Well, the solution makes sense. I suppose, if I get 2.5s on each clip of "non-trimmed" content, I could trim an extra 2.5s from the source before laying it in the timeline.

However, this is really not what I expected. I usually lay the clips end to end and drop the transition on the cut, or if I want the same transition for all the clips, I select all then drop on one and it makes the transitions for all. I expected it to do what I told it to do, really, 2.5s on each clip, so a 5s dissolve using the trimmed clips on the timeline, NOT "diving into" the un-trimmed portion. I mean, I trimmed it because I didn't want specific parts of the source in the project, and it threw them in because I changed the default transition period from 1 to 5s? Still seems rather odd to me :-
I'll play around with it, thanks for your suggestion! I just thought I was missing something or that it may be a bug.

It may be this setting -

Options > Preferences > Editing > Alignment

The choices are:
Centred on Cut
Before Cut
After Cut

This is where you tell vegas how to apply automatic transitions - it sounds like you want "After Cut"


Try setting each choice before adding clips to the timeline and see the difference.

I have it "centered on cut". 2.5s on each "side" is from the "unwanted" material from the source (i.e. that which I trimmed out). If I set it to "After the cut", and I'll try this, won't it just then take 5s of "unwanted" footage into the next clip?

I never had this problem until I set my default trans to 5s.

I'll play with it, thanks for the suggestion. I'll let u know if it works, but I am doubtful since this really appears to be a bug (but, I'm still learning alot of stuff, so maybe not) :-\

Use the Gap Wizard in Excalibur to create your dissolves. It will overlap the clips for you by the specified amount instead of extending them.

It seems like one of the things you may be overlooking is that in order to have a transition, both clips have to play simultaneously. Consider if you had footage like this:

111222222222222333 which you trimmed to 222222222222, and
444555555555555666 which you trimmed to 555555555555.

You describe putting them on the timeline butted together as:
222222222222555555555555
and then having Vegas autotransition. When you do that, Vegas has to have something of the second clip to show while the transition starts before the first clip ends, and something of the first clip to show before the transition ends after the second clip starts. All it can find before the second clip is the "444" part you've trimmed off, and all it can find after the first clip is the "333" part that you also trimmed off.

You have to slide the second clip to the left so that it overlaps the first clip, then have the transition play during that overlap. This means that you have to have enough extra footage at the end of the first clip and at the beginning of the second clip to last the duration of the transition. If you have something that needs to be seen outside of the transition and there isn't enough to overlap the full 5 seconds then you'll have to use a shorter transition or get very creative in how you set up the transition. For example, you could have the first clip end in a still and then overlap the still with the beginning of the second clip.

The important thing to remember is that during the transition you need time from both clips overlapped and playing simultaneously.