MAC COMPATIBLE file compression FREEware

Does anyone know of any freeware for compressing video files (for either iPod storage, or of course burning to DVD-R)? My local Apple IT guy told me that "Stuffit" has long been the sort of bona fide software program used for file compression. However, there is a price tag on it.
I have a very reliable ripping program (Mac the Ripper) in order to back up my purchased DVDs onto my hard drive, but I would like to be able to compress the files so that I can store them in my iPod and take them with me, etc.
Thanks!

I would like to be able to compress the files so that I can store them in my iPod and take them with me, etc.
Do you simply want to compress them to store on the iPod or do you want to view them on the iPod also?
If you want to simply compress a file, select it in Mac OS X, right click (or option click) File -> Make archive.
If you want to view it on the iPod
Get Media Fork.

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Are tiff files exported from PC, Mac compatible?

I need to submit photos from my PC OS via Lightroom that are LZW compressed and Mac compatible. Photoshop Elements has a setting for Mac compatible files but Lightroom 2.3 does not. Does anyone know if Lightroom exported tiff's from a PC are Mac compatible?

PC v Mac compatibility is a throwback to when the both computers used differents CPUs, and dependent on the hardware reading words left-to-right or right-to-left. Adobe TIF readers have never been CPU dependent because they were appropriately savvy of the TIF header and its CPU indicator.

Downloading then converting FLAC files to Mac compatible formats

Hi all...
I've been downloading music from archive.org and I always go for the mp3 files for one simple reason: I just don't know how to deal with the FLAC files. I've read dozens of posts here and still don't get it... so I live with the compressed mp3's. When I do try to access the FLAC's they appear in my Safari browser window through the Quicktime plug in. But how do I get them to my hard drive.... and then convert to one of the Mac compatible formats. The latter part seems pretty straightforward with the proper converter. But I can't seem to get my hands on the FLAC's themselves.
So.... 2 questions: getting the FLAC's on board and .... a user friendly converter.
Thanks!

What kind of file is it really?
It's a FLAC file. FLAC is its own format just like mp3 or AAC. I don't know the details of what is going on with iTunes. Fluke is making iTunes do something it wasn't designed to do so it isn't too surprising that iTunes may not be able to identify the files correctly. Likewise, when you tried to open a FLAC file in a browser window that browser application contains a list of applications to try to use to open files of various formats, but that doesn't mean it will always work. I could tell my browser to open Excel spreadsheet files in iTunes, but that doesn't mean iTunes will be able to do that. Since FLAC is an audio format the browser probably is set to toss all audio files at Quicktime in the hopes it can open them. I don't know if FLAC plugins exist for browsers. I use VLC to play individual FLAC files, or COG if I have a bunch (both free). You ccould set up your browser to fire up VLC if you download a FLAC file.

Mac writes files as compressed to ntfs external drive

I bought an external hard drive and formatted it to ntfs. Whenever I copy files from the Mac to the external ntfs drive it automatically converts it to a compressed ntfs file. This is very frustrating because my media player only plays uncompressed files, so I can't play my files on it. Is there anyway to *prevent* my mac from automatically compressing the files when they are copied to a ntfs drive?

NTFS files can have a "compressed" attribute to them. It saves space at the expense of processing power. If I were in windows, I can check a box that makes the file compressed or not. I don't think I was using a utility to do this, I read here (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ntfs#Mac_OS_X) that "Native NTFS write support has been discovered in Mac OS X 10.6 and later, but is not activated by default, although hacks do exist to enable the functionality". If I've been able to copy to the drive doesn't that mean I'm writing to it? In any case, the files I copied to my NTFS drive were all compressed. I read somewhere else that if you copy a file from OS X to a compressed folder on NTFS, then it will automatically compress the file as it is copied into that folder.

Hey All, what is the best file compression app to compress large video file on my Mac Book Pro?

Hey All, do you recommend compressor 4 or what is the best file compression app to compress large video file on my Mac Book Pro?

X,
Thanks for checking in. The anwser to your questions are below.
Where is the material coming from?
These are MP4 files from my Canon vixia HFR40
What software are you using to edit the material?
I am using iMOVIE 9.0.9
What do you want to do with the files after compression? I want to email I need to have the file be smaller than 100MB to send.
I am an actor and I video tape my auditions and send them to my agent so I need Highest Quality HD files that have small file sizes, no more than 100MB. The scenes are like 1-5 Mins long in most cases. Thanks for your help.

Uncheck "Create PDF Compatible File" and "Use Compression" as my default save preference?

We have discovered that unchecking the "Create PDF compatible file" generates much smaller .ai files when saved. Since we do not need them to be PDF compatible we want to save them this way every time. But right now every time we go to save a file the box comes up pre-checked! We have to uncheck it every time! Surely there is a preference setting somewhere that we can change so that the default is for these boxes to come up unchecked?
I have looked under preferences and do not see it.
Thanks
The Print Craftsman.

Which version of Illustrator are you using?
Usually those settings could be changed by modifying the AIPrefs file.

If I have to format an external hard drive to make it Mac compatible, will it delete all the content in the external hard drive?

If I have to format an external hard drive to make it Mac compatible, will it delete all the content in the external hard drive?

As others have said, the answer to your question is a big YES. Formatting a drive will delete everything!
To keep your data, yet reformat the drive for optimal Mac compatibility, you will need to:
1) copy your files to a different hard drive (I would recommend two different locations if you value your data)
2) repartition/format the external drive
3) then copy the files back to the external.
You haven't given details but if you need the external to ONLY be compatible with the Mac (and no longer care if if can be read by Windows), then you will want to partition the drive using the GUID partition scheme, and format as the (HFS+) "Mac OS Extended (Journaled)" filesystem. You can do so using the built-in "Disk Utility" application on your Mac (in the Applications/Utilities directory). Here are instructions:
http://support.apple.com/kb/ph5845
If you need the drive to be compatible with both Mac and Windows computers then please post that so someone can recommend a solution for your specific needs.

Bought a media streamer, don't think its mac compatible

Hello,
not sure where to drop this post, but I'm gonna give it a shot over here
yesterday I bought a mediastreamer, nothing fancy, just something which I hoped did the trick.
It's this one:
http://www.grabngocollection.com/site/desktopdefault.aspx?tabindex=1&tabid=232&c id=30&gid=3020&pid=CM3H
ofcourse you could say, theres nothing on the box wich says it's mac compatible, ok you're right.
But the weird thing is, the macintoch finds the cm3H and shows the icon on the screen, but the map is read only. So I can't drop files there. While I plugged it on my old windows laptop it did work. So what I'm wondering is if there is a way where I could like, adjust the map myself so he can read and write? Please if anyone knows how, keep in mind, that I'm not a big computer wizzard
Thanks in advance!

Damnit, looks like its not working for a full 100% .
The HD is now read and write, and yes I can drop files there, but when plugged into the television, it also shows the maps, but not the files.
Was too good to be true
Thanks anyway!
Tom

Making PC and Mac compatible CD

I have 8 Captivate 3 lessons that I want to put on a CD. The
CD needs to run on both Mac and PC. At the end of each lesson I
have a link to go to the next lesson.
I have been able to get a version working with .exe files,
but don't know how to get that to function on a Mac. (Captivate 3
doesn't seem to have an option to make a Mac executable file)
When I try making .swf and .html versions, the link at the
end of each movie, that is supposed to advance users to the next
lesson, won't work.
Any help would be appreciated. I'm at the end of my rope on
this.

You can make the Mac/PC compatible CDs with Toast, do a
Google search for creating a Hybrid CD with Toast.
As far as moving from one SWF file to another, and using a
single file to launch your multiple swf files. Consider using Jesse
Warden's Captivate Player. here:
http://code.google.com/p/captivateplayer/
Captivate Player can be used as a container for multiple
captivate swf files, has a slick xml based menu and can be
published from flash as .exe win or an swf.
Also consider this link for autorun for mac
http://www.actionscript.org/forums/archive/index.php3/t-10928.html
Cheers, Hope that helps.
TM

Mac-compatible plug-in for feathered-wipe video transitions?

Does anyone know of a Mac-compatible alternative for SpiceMaster for creating feathered wipe video transitions? I've just been handed off a job (let's just say the company who started it is "no longer in the picture") and all they used feathered wipe via the SpiceMaster plug-in about 100-150 times (in a 15 minute video — sigh). Anyways, I can't change the visual direction of the project, I just have to clean up the mess. We're Mac-only and the SpiceMaster plug-in isn't available on the Mac.
While one option is to use a liner wipe Video Effect (which allows for the feather), because of the amount of transitions in this job, that's not only a major pain in the arse in itself, but having to move clips in alternating tracks and overlap the footage, etc. becomes a huge headache when they decide to change the edit (as, all of a sudden, the alternating of the clips to different tracks goes all out of wack).
Anyway, I'm hoping someone could suggest a Video Transition plug-in that would allow me to do feathered wipes. It'd mean the difference between a quick replacing of the SpiceMaster transition with whatever plug-in I could use vs. a nightmare of a project using the linear wipe Video Effect.
Any suggestions would be most appreciated!!!
Kristin.

Thanks for the reply. I've tried using the gradient wipe, but was unsuccessful in attaining the desired effect. Here's a quick screencap to show what I'm seeing:
The problem is, this results in a very narrow wipe. I mean, it's no longer a fine line between image1 and image2, there is some feather, but I really need to feather it out. The gradient I created is the same dimensions as the sequence I'm working in, and is a gradient from 100% black on the left side to pure white on the right, with a nice gradient in between. But, when I use this, it's almost like the source gradient is squished in (on the width) resulting in a very narrow feathered wipe.
Below is an example of the rendered video as it was when using SpiceMaster to create the feathered wipe. The first image is the image directly before the wipe starts, the second image the image directly after the end of the wipe, and the third image is a capture mid-wipe. As you can see, there is a very wide feather during the transition as opposed to what is seen in the screen capture above.
Am I doing something wrong when creating my custom gradient? It seems like, since my source file is a nice, wide gradient, it should result in a wide feather, but for some reason it seems to squish down into a narrow feather?
Any suggestions?
Regards,
Kristin.

Mac executable file won't run on Mac

I am trying to get a mac executable file to run on a mac. It has been authored in Captivate 5.0 PC version.
I have tried to run it on a Mac book, about 5 years old and nothing opens at all and same on an old G4. I have had no other opportunity to test it on another mac.
The the html/flash version plays ok in safari, but not .app or PDF. All files designed to run on PC run ok.
I am a complete novice on mac's, but assume that opening the .app file like an .exe file on PC will launch the program.
The package I have made is about 96 mb as a .app file and is about 80 odd slides long and also contains an number of flv files.
I have been looking very hard to see if anyone else is has experienced the same or similar problem and have found nothing useful.
I would assume it has nothing to do with flash player as everything that the program needs should be self contained in the executable.
Thanks

The G4 is running OS 10.2.3.
I created a test Mac projector in Director then tested it on the same Mac and the .classic and .osx files ran ok.
Do you think it is an issue with Captivate .app files not being compatible with early version of OS?, or something more fundamental with the .app files and the OS.
I guess there is no realistic way to convert the Captivate .app file directory to a .osx file?, as there may well be occasions when the package will be used on older Mac OS systems.
I will try and get it tested on a later OS System.
Many Thanks

Reformatting my Lacie from NTFS (PC) to Mac compatible

Hi there,
We recently had both a PC (ugh) and a Mac, and since we understood a PC is completely unreliable due to viruses and its evil overheating problem, we thought it would be best to purchase an external HD for the PC to save our files fully knowing that one day the thing would die.
Which leads us to where we are now... At the time, in order for our dumb PC to utilize our Lacie, we had to reformat it as NTFS, but now that our PC has thankfully died, we need to connect the Lacie to our iBook.
Well, I know Macs can read NTFS, but it cannot write. Am I correct in thinking I will need to reformat the Lacie back to something Mac compatible? I know out of the box, Lacies are made for Mac, but what was it originally? FAT 32?
Also, I am aware that reformatting will delete all of our files currently on the HD. So, here is my dumb question... theoretically, can I simply drag copies of all of our files off of the Lacie onto my iBook, reformat the Lacie back to FAT 32 and then drag the files back on the HD?
I know that last question seems silly, but I really do not want to lose any of our files in the process.
Thanks, Gillian
1.33 GHz PowerPC G4 iBook Mac OS X (10.4.7)

You're welcome.
Do you think it was okay that I chose journaled over just Mac OS Extended?
Yes, that's OK. The following link explains journaling and the benefits of it.
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=107249
John

File Compression Problem

Hello all,
I'm having a strange file compression problem with CS5 on our new Mac Pro. We purchased the Mac Pro to scan and process images, but the JPEGs and GIFs we create from this computer are much larger than they should be when closed (e.g. images that should be compressed to 6KB are reading as 60KB, and the file size is often smaller when opened than closed). Furthermore, anytime we use these image files in other programs (e.g. Filemaker Pro) the inflated file size will carry over. What's even more puzzling is that the same files that are reading as 60KB on our Mac Pro will read correctly as 6KB from a PC. Similarly, if we embed these images -- that were created on the Mac Pro -- into Filemaker from a PC, the image file size is correct. We cannot use the compressed files we create on our Mac Pro because the inflated file size will be passed on to whatever application we use on the Mac Pro (except for Photoshop).
We have been processing images for years on a PC and haven't had any troubles with this. We were thinking for a while that the problem was with the Mac operating system, but after many calls with expert Apple advisers it seems like Photoshop for Mac has to be the issue. We have already tried reformatting and re-indexing the hard drive, and at this point there is nothing else that can be done from Apple's end. The last expert I spoke with at Apple said that it sounds like the way Photoshop for Mac compresses files and how Mac reads file sizes is very different from the way Photoshop for PC compresses files and how Windows reads file sizes. If he was correct, and there is no work-around, we'll have no other choice and will have to return our Mac.
Has anyone else experienced this before? The experts at Apple were thoroughly confused by the problem and so are we.
Thanks,
Jenny

This has nothing to do with compression.
Macintosh saves more metadata, and more previews than Windows - that's one part.
Macintosh shows the size of the file on disk, including wasted space due to the disk block size - that's another part. (look at the byte count, not the size in K or MB).
When you upload the files to a server, or use them in most programs, that extra metadata is lost and the file sizes should be identical.
I can't believe that your advisors spent any time on such a trivial issue...

Mac compatible Digital voice recorder

I'm looking to buy a Mac compatible Digital voice recorder for interviews (I'm a journalist). Needs are one that is easy and basic, where I don't need to download any software if possible. I'm going to be doing lengthy interviews and need something that can stand up to travel & length of time (about 2-3 hrs per interview). Thanks for an input. Apple store couldn't help.... thanks!

For a high quality portable audio recorder, I've been very happy with the Olympus LS-10, but it is more expensive that the ordinary voice recorder, on the order of $250USD. If you want quality, this has it. I am disappointed at the sound quality of the voice recorders I have tried. It's stereo, about the size of a pack of cigarettes (if anybody remembers that). The built-in microphones are not perfect for music (reduced bass and boosted highs), but are excellent for voice. The device records about 10 hours continuously on 2 AA batteries. It has tiny speakers and earphone jack, and an iPod-easy menu system. It requires no software to transfer files. You connect the USB cable to the Mac, and the recorder shows up on the desktop for you to move whatever files you wish. You can record in WAV, MP3 or WMA formats at several bit depths and sample rates to balance quality with file size.
There are many competing products (Sony, Tascam, Marantz, others) that have some similar characteristics, but I have no experience with them - except some Zoom products I tried were poor.

Best File Compression Software

What is the best file compression software on Mac OSX in terms of both user-friendliness and performance?

Stuffit Deluxe's native .sitx archives make the smallest files. You can even set the compression rate. Smaller will take more time, but of course, saves more space. It's all I and my client's use. It even compresses .jpg images quite a bit, whereas .zip does almost nothing to them.
There are drawbacks to all formats, though. Zip and Stuffit both do a lousy job on video files. RAR will usually cut the size down by at least half. But the only way to create RAR files on the Mac is through the Terminal. It astounds me that no one has come up with an OS X native application for this. Or that Stuffit hasn't added it to their choices. Stuffit can open RAR files, so they obviously know how the compression scheme works. Why not add the option to create them?
As far as someone opening the Stuffit files you create? All a person needs to do is download the free Expander if they don't own Stuffit Deluxe or Standard.

MAC COMPATIBLE file compression FREEware

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