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Videoon 6/6/2014
Zipping files for longterm storage
>> but one insinuation that zip utilities also make mistakes All software has bugs. Probably some zip utilities too. Problem is, zip doesn't know video. It can't gradually reduce the quality of video under any circumstance. No matter how buggy or error-ridden a zip utility cannot degrade video quality. A bad zip utility that messes up your file in the compress/un-compress phase would totally and utterly destroy the video. The video would not have lower quality as such, it would be an un-watchable mess and it would only play in VLC because you can play almost anything in VLC. It would not resemble your original files though. Not because zip is too smart, but because zip is too dumb. It doesn't know anything about video. I find it odd that you are continuing this deusx, you are simply completely and utterly wrong here. Move on.
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Videoon 6/6/2014
Zipping files for longterm storage
>> always "see" everything therefore it can make mistakes Here is the problem with your observation deusx - the zip algorithm doesn't know how to compress video at a reduced quality. That requires knowledge of video, and the zip algorithm doesn't have such knowledge. If the data going in to a zip file is different than what comes out, with video that would show up as a video file that the decoder was unable to decode, or able to decode but with significant errors, skipped frames, botched images etc. The zip algorithm simply doesn't have the ability, anywhere, to reduce the quality of your video. Either it comes out pristine, and identical to the way it went in, or it comes out as a mess you have to throw away. It is impossible that it can come out at reduced quality. Also, after all these years we can be reasonably confident that zip utilities do nothing wrong except under special circumstance. It is one of the most broadly tested utilities out there, probably the most tested, and bugs are extremely rare. Example: All your downloaded installers use zip. If there is a single bit wrong in that installer, nothing will work. The entire thing will blow up and not do diddly squat. Millions of installers are run every single day. Windows, when installed from scratch, is in a zip structure. A single bit wrong in the majority of files (.exe and .dll particularly) and Windows would not install. Also, as I said, if you, magically, were able to get a bit wrong in a video stream when zipped/unzipped, it would not show up as gradually lower quality of that video it would show up as errors in the video stream, and the video decoder would either give an error, crash or show really bad frames with hick-ups, bad frrames etc. Your observations can not be correct, it simply isn't possible, Your zip utility doesn't have the ability to degrade video quality, that would require knowledge of video in the zip utility, knowledge it doesn't have. Gradual degradation of video quality requires intimate knowledge of video. Zip knows about files and statistics, but knows nothing about video.
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Videoon 6/4/2014
Ignore another member
>> I don't believe the world is flat, it is sort of wavy, otherwise you would >> not get the Himalayas..... Fun fact, considering the height of the Himalayas, and the size of the earth, if you shrunk the earth down to the size of a brand new, never used billiard ball, the earth would be significantly smoother.
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Videoon 6/2/2014
Zipping files for longterm storage
@deusx >> the unzipped files looked less sharp than the originals Probably what is known as confirmation bias. You were expecting the files to be of lower quality, so that is what you saw. Utterly normal. Still not true. The files, after 1 million zip/unzip would be bit for bit identical. You can zip/unzip .exe files (programs). You can even set up your disk so that all files are always compressed using zip algorithms. If a single bit in the executable part of an executable file (it can also have resources, which are less problematic often) is changed the file will simply not run properly. Zip files are only altered in the zip/unzip process if there is something wrong with the zip utility you use. Otherwise they always compress 100% lossless.
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Videoon 6/2/2014
Zipping files for longterm storage
@deusx >> I zipped and unzipped some files 3-4 times and they definitely did not look as good as the originals. Used 7Zip and its default settings Sorry, you are wrong. What goes into a zip file comes back out, bit for bit identical. Unless something went wrong that is. >> First of all these guys are trying to sell us a product, secondly they aren't nearly as smart as they think they are and could be delusional too. Sorry, you are wrong. Entirely, totally wrong. Zip is 100% lossless no matter what you think. >> Likewise, if it's all lossless with .zip files why so many compression options? Because different things compress better/worse depending on your algorithm. Text compresses very well with some, binary with others. No matter what, the data that comes back out of the zip file is, bit for bit, identical to what went in.
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Videoon 5/30/2014
Googlephiles
In a forum setting, if you aren't 100% certain of the answer to John Cline >> a question, it is probably best to just not say anything, In a forum setting, if you are 100% certain of the answer to a question, the best course of action would probably still be to say nothing. An art I am still struggling to master :-)
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Videoon 5/30/2014
Is New Blue Titler Pro 3 worth it?
>> I can't make a Lower Third with ... a Chicken Tikka Masala My three year old made a beautiful, abstract static one with a Chicken Tikka Masala the other day, it worked great when I pre-viewed it on my monitor, but when I rendered it for online viewing it never showed up up on anybody else's PC. Still works on mine though. I blame Microsoft Windows 8.
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Videoon 5/30/2014
Not a happy Premier user
>> Extortionware I don't get this. Honestly, I don't. I pay less for Adobe software now than I did in the past. Not only that, but I have access to far more of it than I ever did. More software for a lower price. Seems good to me. If the licensing cost of Adobe makes it hard to run your business, you have far more pressing problems than those you get from Adobe. As I've said before, as software matures, the amount of new features you can add is reduced significantly. Most people have not needed (feature wise) to upgrade their word processing software since Word for Windows 2.0. For decades we have been updating software for the new features, what happens when we don't need the new features. Then your vendor can only survive with new sales, which no software vendor can in the long run, or they can move to a subscription model. That is one out of two, and no other alternatives. So, then the question comes to you: Do you want your vendor to survive or do you not care? SCS has stopped developing a number of their product lines. DVD Architect is dead and will (most likely) not be resurrected, the Acid Pro product line is dead and will certainly not be resurrected. Both product lines have existing customers asking for new features (better Blu-Ray for DVDA and a general update for Acid Pro, particularly a 64 bit version). Not going to happen. A subscription model might have brought in enough revenue to keep those products alive, a standard licensing model didn't. If your livelihood is dependent on a vendor, the two of you are more or less in a symbiotic relationship. Neither wins when the other dies. If SCS goes down you might run a business that now has to start planning on re-training 20 staff. That's a significant cost to any business. The Adobe subscription cost is not even significant to an individual. Any business suffering under the Adobe licensing cost is on life support anyway.
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Videoon 5/25/2014
Not a happy Premier user
@Spectrails >> that hasn't affected owned software before Just for the record, unless you are a software developer, you have never owned software before. Ever. Also, in the majority of cases, if you use commercial software, the owner of the software has reserved the right for him to revoke your license of his software for any reason at any time. If he ever does, you are no longer legally allowed to run that software. Just for the record.
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Videoon 4/25/2014
"Created by Sony Vegas Pro 13" on video, annoying
>> About as absurd as expecting a rock solid initial release I expect a solid release, I do not expect to do paid work with trial software, that's a silly request.
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Videoon 4/22/2014
Let's face it V13 is just a point upgrade.
>> As for Adobe ( or any other company ) dying tomorrow. How exactly would >> this affect anybody other than people working for them. If SCS dies tomorrow you will never ever get another update from them. If there is a bug in SCS software that you rely on for your livelihood, that's not good for you. If there is a new format that changes the name of the game you will never get support for that and you'll have to re-train on new software. That costs money, far more money than the license cost of any software you use. If you are a company, multiply these costs by the number of employees. That could end up being $millions in lost opportunity cost and training. I thought that would be kinda obvious, but perhaps it's just me. >> It could be $500 a month in a couple of years Yes, and pigs might fly some time too, but that's speculation born out of a paranoia I can not relate to. I am quite confident, particularly given the success of the program, it is not going to be $500 a month in a couple of years. Adobe has a significantly larger customer base than Autodesk or IBM Tivoli for example. I used to sell software that had an entry price of $250K for a small site license and it went up to double digit millions for many companies. The software was it self significantly less complex than Photoshop is today, but that's not what decides prices. With a customer base the size of Adobe, there is no need for such prices unless people stop using that kind of software or a competitor with a significantly better offering comes along.
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Videoon 4/21/2014
Let's face it V13 is just a point upgrade.
>> Paying a monthly subscription for occasional use, is not realistic Yes it is. You can pay month by month, so if you only use it two months out of the year, you pay for the two months you use. Easy.
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Videoon 4/21/2014
Let's face it V13 is just a point upgrade.
Sorry for replying to my own post, but the topic is somewhat interesting... Assume a software company has reached a point where the vast majority of users are not going to upgrade to later versions (who needs Word post 97?). This means that the latest version is, at some point, have a revenue stream very close to zero, meaning the development of said software is going to have to stop and the developers laid off, eventually, the company shut down. Would it even be *legal* for the vendor to sell said version for a one-time software fee? If it is a publicly traded company, probably not. If it is clear that a one-time software fee will sink the company, which is getting more and more likely for more and more companies, it would be against the law for them to sell said software for a one-time fee unless they can also argue that they are pursuing alternate revenues streams. A publicly traded company is actually *required* to attempt to make money for their share holders. If it is obvious they can not with their revenue model, they have to change it. By law. We are leasing software, we do not own it when we purchase a license. We have no rights to that software other than the usage as described in the end-user license agreement. Many of those have revoke clauses that, even though we do not read them, we have agreed to. I prefer the vendors of product I require to make a living stay alive. For many, many vendors these days, that means a subscription model. As I said, I'd be surprised if we do not see one from SCS, perhaps as soon as the next release. Also, and quite seriously, if $50 a month is a significant portion of your business expenses, you're doing it wrong.
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Videoon 4/21/2014
Let's face it V13 is just a point upgrade.
@deusx >> The truth is that once you stop paying you do not own the software You never did. You lease software according to a contract, and most of these already had revoke clauses in them already. The idea that you own software when you purchase it is a huge misunderstanding. >> nor do you own your own files because they can only be opened with >> this same software You do own the original files and you do own the end product, both, but you do not have a perpetual right to go from one to the other using someones software. This is correct. >> Then just die. I am fine with that. None of us really need any of the >> new features That might have been some of th dumbest thing I've read today. So you are OK that the vendor supplying critical software for your business goes under? Really? Honestly, that's just not smart. >> All I need is to be able to use the last version I pay for That request seems quite reasonable, but it would be problematic for Adobe. I could imagine a situation where you, for some fee, get to use the latest and not get updates. In the end though, it would mean the death of Adobe.
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Videoon 4/21/2014
Is Sony stopping the 'Pro' software division?
@Spectralis >> it should be sent to the glue factory Acid was sent to the glue factory a long time ago. It hasn't had a version update since some time in the Middle Ages (software time) and the last bug fix was released somewhere around the turn of the 19th century software time (four years ago). When software has had no releases at all for four years, that means that there are no developers working on it any more. They have all been re-assigned to do something else. Putting developers back on the software (even if you could find some of the old guys) would basically require what amounts to a full re-training on the software, which would be cost prohibitive. Acid is dead, had been for quite a while, and I think the fact that they are still selling it (which carries an implication that it is in fact *not* dead) is tantamount to fraud. IMnsHO.
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Videoon 4/21/2014
NO SHOW EVENT LENGHT!!!!
@Kit >> Nice list. The same could be said of acid Even though SCS will not admit to it, Acid is dead and no longer being maintained. The fact that it is still being sold is tantamount to fraud.
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Videoon 4/21/2014
Let's face it V13 is just a point upgrade.
I really do not understand the antagonism towards the subscription model that Adobe is going for. It is quite reasonable, Adobe has shown for now that they continuously update (bug fixes etc) the software in the subscription, and it is very, very reasonably priced. Did I say that twice? I spend more at Starbucks each month than I do at Adobe. Quite a bit more. Is coffee more worth than the tools I get from an Adobe subscription? I use Lightroom, Photoshop, Premiere and AE. That package alone, for features, blows anything else out of the water. SCS isn't in the same league, not even in the same sports. Sure, Vegas is a *much* better NLE to work in, but SCS has had problems that seem troubling to me, and it doesn't look like 13 is a significant step away from the SCS of 11 and 12. I am an old ULead customer, and I am very weary of what appears to be trouble keeping boats afloat. Yes, it is a little troubling that if I want to stop using Adobe software, I will have to plan it a bit better than if I could access the suite forever, but if I plan "weaning off" Adobe carefully it should be fine (converting the projects that I need should be doable). I also know that if I forget to convert a project to whatever new format I need, I can always re-enable my Adobe subscription for that project alone at a monthly cost that is still less than my hourly rate. The main reason I am OK with the subscription model though is quite different. I know why Adobe has to do this, and I know that if they do not, I will be in trouble. The subscription model is a huge benefit to me, outside of what I think is a low cost for access to a lot of very good software. Face it, not only for Adobe, but for more and more software, they are basically "feature complete". Why is it that we do not upgrade each version any more? Because there is no need to. For the majority of what some people Vegas 9 is fine. No need for 10, 11, 12 or 13. So, why upgrade? No need to. The problem with that is that SCS does not have a cost base that is tied to the number of licenses they sell. Software development, particularly with the newer delivery methods is basically fixed cost, variable revenue. That is a fantastic combination when sales are growing, it is a bullet to the forehead when they are flat or going down. The reality for companies like Adobe and SCS is that you either start getting paid regularly by your customer for licensing your software or you die. Up until recently they could do that by adding features. Most of the existing customer base would upgrade. Not so any more. So, the Adobe model is good for you. It keeps the vendor alive and fixing bugs. The older model spells death for the ones who can not make their existing (and most important) customer base upgrade to each new version. Expect to see the Adobe model becoming the norm, I would expect also for SCS at some point in the future, unless they are dead before that.
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Videoon 4/18/2014
VP13 - Not off to a good "start" (pun intended)
Working fine here, as long as I turn off all acceleration stuff. SCS still can't do nVidia.
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Videoon 4/17/2014
VP 13 Render performance
Honestly, better wait for an update, or ten. GPU Acceleration doesn't work with newer nVidia stuff (don't know about the older stuff). No problems using Premiere Pro, but Vegas 13 doesn't work. That is, the encoding works fine it seems, pre view on the other hand, not at all. My video, when using GPU, is stuttering, stopping, flickering, all kinds of stuff. I guess SCS stil hasn't hired a test team and a test manager. It's like Ulead all over. Lots of new "features", but old broken stuff never fixed.
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Videoon 4/8/2014
Sony Officially Announces 4K A7s Camera
@farss >> it also needs a brick battery bigger and heavier than the A7s Yeah, but the A7S on its own "only" does 1080P. For 4K you need an external recorder and, at the moment, a mains connection or a big heavy battery, so that's kinda moot. Also, with the GH4 doing 4:2:2 10 bit out but the A7S "only" doing 8 bit... I guess it will come down to iso, noise etc. To me this looks like a camera that is just shy of being a player. It'll be interesting to see the real-world results.
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Videoon 4/8/2014
Import Premiere CC Project into Vegas 12
http://www.sonycreativesoftware.com/forums/ShowMessage.asp?ForumID=4&MessageID=883478
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Videoon 4/8/2014
Help w info please? New system build
I use Lightroom to organize my assets in general. It is therefore almost permanently open. I use After Effects for some stuff and Premiere Pro for video editing. Just checking what I am currently working on, just opening those, my memory usage is 7.5G. The setup is (for the record) rock solid. I could not do this and have a functional computer with less than 16G of memory. SSDs are also amazingly helpful.
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Videoon 4/8/2014
Help w info please? New system build
@videoITguy >> I would not choose to build a 64bit OS platform for mainly supporting 32bit apps I am going to completely disagree with videoITguy here. Going 32 bit in this day and age is absurd. As someone else said, forget about 8G of memory, get 16 or more. You'll never regret having lots of memory. The vast majority of 32 bit apps run fine on Win64 (I have not run any that do not) and individually they will have full 32bit memory access, but as a group of apps, they will play in the 64 bit space, so each of them will run a lot better. Why have your apps compete for 4G of memory when they can each have 4G on a 32G machine? Max 4G of memory in 2014? You must be joking. One of the many web pages I currently have open in Chrome consumes more than 100MBs alone. In fact, I have nine tabs in Chrome at the moment that consume more than 50M of memory. There is no such thing as too much money or too much memory (or love). Just make sure that your peripherals, graphics cards etc have 64 bit drivers, the vast majority of new stuff does.
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Videoon 4/8/2014
Sony Officially Announces 4K A7s Camera
Couple of things stand out - it's 1080P only without external recorder - it's only 8 bit Sony may be a little worried about competing with their own pro camcorder stuff.
Terje
Offline, Member since 7/7/2007