Problems Importing Canon XF Files

Question

I am running Premiere Pro CC (v 7.2.1) under Windows 7. I import footage created on a Canon XF300 and XF100, among other cameras. Prior to v7.2.1, I would import XF by clip name, each clip containing one or more 2 GB files. The files would load separately, with a length of about 5 minutes. When placed in a sequence, the files would be loaded sequentially, but remain separate. They would play across the boundaries without jumping or losing sync. While not convenient when editing, I completed many projects in this manner. The time code of each file was displayed as recorded, head-to-tail with the previous file.
With 7.2.1, the same video is automatically merged when imported into the project. Each file assumes the same content as the entire clip. However the time code has the same starting value as the last file in the clip, whether I import directly from Windows Explorer (ctl-I) or use the media browser. This appears to be what version 7 intended to do, and I can work with it.
Whatever the merits of this "improvement," it is not documented well. It took me a day and a half searching the web and experimenting before I could proceed. Thank heavens for the holidays and extended deadlines.
My problem is, projects completed under previous versions and updates did not automatically merge the clips, but when I open them in the latest PPro, it attempts to "correct" this deficiency and merge the files. Consequently, I cannot revisit earlier files without starting from scratch. I have CS6, but only files created in that or earlier versions can be opened.
How do I best proceed to open recent projects without messing them up? When will the product manual (PDF) be updated from the October 2013 version? What ever happened to the concept, "backward compatibility"?

Answer 1

Here is what I found out...
If you use Media Browser to import files directly from the Canon XF card, and select the Canon XF option in the menue, only a single file appears in the list, with the name of the first segment in the clip directory. If you import that file, it has the contents of the sum of all segments, but with the starting time code of the last segment.
If you copy the clip directories from the card to your hard drive, Media Browser sees all of the individual segments and does not offer the Canon XF import option, only the File Directory option. If you import the clip, all of the segments appear in the project window, but each segment is identical to the first, and contains the sum of all clips and the starting time code of the last segment.
If you remove the CIF files from the clip directory on the hard drive, PPro 7.2.1 imports each segment without merging their contents. Each segment contains about 5 minutes of footage (50 MHz video), and the starting time code of each segment is consecutive. This is same the way PPro 7.1 and previous versions would import Canon XF files from the hard drive, even if the CIF files were present. If you open an earlier project with 7.2.1, these files will be automatically merged, destroying the integrity of your sequences and edits.
In conclusion, if you want to use the full power of 7.2.1 to merge the segments within a clip, from a copy of the clip on your hard drive, import only the first segment of each clip.
If you wish to use 7.2.1 on projects created with 7.1 or earlier, remove the CIF files from the clip first, and the project will be opened with the same individual segments as before. (This does not change the behavior under v6 or V7.1, since these versions ignored CIF files on the hard drive.) You must be careful to use shift-select-all to move all following segments together. Alternately, you can nest the segmented sequence inside another sequence, which will allow you to edit the sequence as a single file.
PPro 6 and 7 apparently imported Canon XF files correctly ONLY from the original card, which has certain directory names and structure, and ONLY if you used Media Browser with the Canon XF import option. If you do this, PPro writes additional information (XMP and PEK) files on the card, which may render it unreadible on the camera. In any case, it's best to preserve the original intact and work from a hard drive copy.