Rendering FCP w/ Qmaster?

I am using four 2.7dual G5 powerMacs and they work great together for compressing. Can I use this process for rendering sequences in FCP?

Just got back online. Thanks for returning my post.
Here are the specifics. We have four 2.7 G5s, all running FCP Studio, completely. Up until I started working there they were all running isolated from each other in separate editing suites. I thought that was shame so I have been networking them to share processing time. They are on a gigabit ethernet connection. I have them continually linked to the cluster controller so that the shared volume is accessible to all computers. They all have Qmaster and admin.
In system preferences I have services only on three nodes, with the "managed" box checked on each. I have a cluster controller, also running services, and all allow use of unmanaged services. Apple talk is active on all. I tried a test run today using compressor to make a 2-pass mpeg with audio and it cut my compression time by a factor of ten. (Literally, I compressed the same file last week and it took ten hours, today it took 90 min.) So I know the configuration is set up properly.
Here is what I don't know. I see no option for sending a render sequence file to Qmaster or compressor. In FCP you go to sequence, and then render selection, render all, or render only and then choose audio, video, or both. When I did that as usual, it just rendered as usual, using only the host computer. How can I make the cluster take the onus of the render command?
If there is any info left out tell me. Would very much appreciate the help.
Thanks,
\Matt
MacG5 2.7Dual Mac OS X (10.4.6) FCP Studio, DVC Pro Deck, AJA

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Soundtrack Pro not rendering FCP sent files

I have not been able to get STP to intergrate with FCP. I export with Audio file Project, do some processing, save in STP and when I get back in FCP it can't find the file. I get the error message that "Some Files went offline" when I try to reconnect it appears there were no render files made but can find no way to rectify this. Please help. Thanks.

When I send from FCP to STP it asks to "open a project file". The can be edited as a *.STAP file. When I save teh *.STAP file and got back to FCP - the audio in the FCP timeline has been updated with the changes.
This is what I understand to be the "nondestructive" way to handle it, since it is not altering the original audio file it is only changing the project file.
Still, this workflow isn't working. When going back to FCP after the audio is changed, STP crashes, or throws the FCP audio offline. When I try to re-connect the audio, FCP is looking for a " :render" file that does not exist.
To me, this means STP isn't properly rendering or saving the file.
I've not been able to upgrade my STP yet (still on 1.0), I wonder if this was fixed in later versions??

Using Qmaster with DVD Studio Pro OR Qmaster requires FCP on all machines?

Greetings everyone,
After a few days of tinkering I've finally managed to set up a managed cluster. However, I have a problem (surprise, surprise). When I submit a job to the cluster, Final Cut Pro suddenly opens up on all of the computers being used. I have Final Cut Studio 2 under an academic license, and all copies report that there is another copy running with the same serial number and that they must shut down. They render a few frames before suddenly quitting the job, regardless of whether I leave the message up or OK it away. I've done some reading from this thread which makes it sound like all systems must have a copy of FCP installed, or to use a slightly different method:
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=375923&tstart=195
It's a bit upsetting as I'd originally read that systems could aid in rendering with just QMaster installed, and that they didn't need FCP installed. Hence, having FCP open up was unexpected, and I get the feeling that uninstalling FCP from those systems wouldn't help me.
But let me explain what I do normally, and perhaps some of you can guide me.
My work has me converting hundreds of tapes to DVD. Without QMaster, I would import the videos in Final Cut Pro, set chapter markers and in and out points, and then export the video (with barely any processing - an export typically takes 4 minutes on a dual 800 Mhz G4). I'd then import it to DVD Studio Pro, handle the menus, and then do a build and format. That process would take ~2-3 hours per DVD, and that is the part that I'd like to optimize.
The setup is such that I have one dual G5 wired to our hard drives (all Firewire 800), and then four other systems that connect to the G5 to access the HDs through a gigabit network switch. This has worked quite nicely in that it allows systems that only have Firewire 400 to work at Firewire 800 speeds regardless.
I'd originally thought that DVD Studio Pro 4 would automatically be able to process jobs through Qmaster, but I couldn't find a setting for it and it didn't seem to do it on its own. Instead, I was planning to redo my work flow such that the encoding of the video (the most time-consuming part of DVD Studio Pro's build procedure) would be done in Final Cut Pro. Or more specifically, it would go through Compressor. However, as I mentioned above, attempting to work this way causes Final Cut Pro to open up on all nodes within the cluster. As they all have the same serial number, they become unhappy under such conditions. I can uninstall them from the systems as I only ever use one copy at a time anyway, but as I mentioned from the link above, it seems that rendering through FCP -> Compressor will require FCP to be installed on all participating systems.
Does anyone have any advice for what to do? Is there a way to get around having FCP activate on all participating systems, or is there a way to do it directly through DVD Studio Pro (ideally in a manner that wouldn't cause DVD Studio Pro to activate on all participating systems)?
Any advice is much appreciated. The distributed encoding is really the only reason why we upgraded to Final Cut Studio 2, so I'm going to feel rather foolish if this doesn't work out.

A QCluster network isn't designed to distribute Rendering from FCP, rather it's designed to distribute encoding tasks.
As mentioned in that thread you linked to, the best workflow I can think of in your situation is to export Quicktime reference movies from FCP, then bring those reference files into Compressor for distribution to the QCluster for the transcode to MPEG 2 for DVD. There is a wealth of good information in that thread.
In short, if you attempt to use a Cluster to export from FCP, then all of your nodes will need to have separate licenses of FCP. But if you use the reference movie method, FCP is not required for the encoding.
One question for clarification with your workflow, are you logging & capturing these clips then sending them directly to DVD? or are you editing them in a timeline prior to export to DVD?
If you're just using FCP as your Log & Capture tool, then you can skip the reference movie step and just grab the captured clips in your Capture Scratch folder and send those directly to Compressor.

Qmaster actually make a performance difference thats NOTICEABLE??

I have Apple Qmaster 2.3.1 installed on a Dual 2.7 Powermac and an i7 new intel based Macbook Pro. The FCP Suite is all installed on the PMac Tower, and Compressor doesnt allow you to use the same serial on a second computer in the network (the doc. doesnt state it MUST be on all machines, only the Qmaster).
I tried this setup with an ethernet cable as well as with Airport networking (computer-to-computer setup, no firewall turned on, internet access turned off for security)
According to the "getting started quickly" segment of the 'Apple Qmaster and Compressor 2' pdf that came with my FCP Suite, I have installed it correctly.
I can see and submit to the cluster that is originated on the Powermac, see the active service (Compressor cluster only allows one core of the Macbook Pro to be used according to documentation, and sadly only 3 kinds of render software can make use of all 4 but NOT ANY compressor or FCP rendering? LAME... or please correct me if Im wrong)
I did a transcode of resizing and change of codec and timed it using just This Computer first then through the cluster....
over a 22 min. encode in both settings, there was barely a difference of 5% between the trial encodings... is this thing actually working? is there a BETTER way to test the cluster to see if I actually would benefit keeping the laptop in cable length of the tower? (ie: is there a verifiably FAST encoding I could try to see ANY difference; .mov to .mpv or something?)
I then downloaded and tried to do a cluster using Pooch but that breaks shortly after submission with an app crash... so that cant even get any performance vector to compare with Qmaster....
Seriously... if a 5 to 10% increase in encoding speed is what Apple thinks is QUALITY performance, when using a virtual 6 chip system via Qmaster, I am underwhelmed... therefore Im thinking something must be wrong instead. Tested the cable with a high bandwidth video iChat and a few things, seems to have no prob with throughput, so cable doesnt look like the culprit.

Well on the i7 it also had its firewall turned off (hoping this opens all available ports by doing this), had the setup of the prefs pane of Qmaster set to 'services only' as per the client/cluster rules in the guidelines, had the Managed settings turned 'off', the Network choice under the Advanced tab set to All Interfaces and a working cable confirmed by doing a machineToMachine test of conductivity by making an iChat audio/video connection.
On the client machine (tower, serving the submission to the cluster) the setup was the same only with the prefpane set to Quickcluster with services, Services with Managed unchecked, Quickcluster option set to 'include unmanaged services from other computers', and the rest all identical settings.
I just heard a Pick Our Brains on DP Buzz podcast that said H.264 does not multithread, which maybe effecting things even if transcoding to a different size (RE: re-encoding perhaps after resizing?), so maybe I will try a QT file output using x264 codec which the author loosly is suggesting IS multithreading (dunno but will try)
Further more, I re-read the manual and on pg. 15 it is conflicting: "NOTE: the compressor 2... limited to computers that have either FCP Studio or DVDSP 4 installed". well, not possible without multi license release as it checks and warns you if you try installing the same software using the same license number... also is conflicting the message later on in the install instructions (below)
Later on the same page the restrictions are different...: "Each computer in the network will require Apple QMaster AND/OR Compressor 2...", then again muddled on pg 16 (installation) by saying "make sure the client software (meaning qmaster I think) is on atleast one computer" and further on down "software (either Compressor or Apple Qmaster"
SOOOOOO, what I gathered by the majority of the conflicting specs is that ONE machine should atleast have ALL the FCP and Qmaster installed on it, and the rest atleast have Qmaster installed... when it says either/or, I went with the 'or' boolean meaning I was allowed only to install Qmaster without the installer warning me about things.
(I am not doing Dolby D. Pro audio so I dont have to install FCP/DVDSP as a result thankfully...because I dont see buying another license just to test out improved cluster processing)
Wouldnt mind knowing if anyone found Pooch to be a better solution, and more flexible as it supposedly will work with a number of processes let alone with a QT codec for exporting a number of different formats... anyone try Pooch with their iMovie or FCP or DVDSP?

Rendering multiple Fileout nodes of different durations?

Hi there,
I have been trying to find a way of rendering multiple FileOut nodes of different durations. I have been able to render a few simultaneously (and sequentially) but am having the hindrance of unnecessary black frames being rendered to fill in the excess space which follows the clips of a shorter duration.
Is there a simple way to set individual clip lengths in the "time range" box or do I have to resort to Qmaster? I am confused since the FileOut node doesn't seem to recognise each clip individually and so all I'm able to do is set a global duration for all renders.
If Qmaster is the solution - does anyone know if I have to copy each clips tree and Fileout node into another Script since it seems only to schedule scripts rather than nodes/clips.
Thanks!

You might investigate command line rendering...
Patrick

Aliasing font/titles upon export from FCP and projecting with NTSC system

My opening credits are in geneva, size 25pt. I have a transparent background so I can super them into Final Cut Pro. In FCP some of them are over images, some are not (opening credits for example. They import fine, I've rendered FCP, exported it into mp4, then into a DVD program. Upon watching in a large room, the smaller fonts (especially) waver, have rainbows, and are not stable. I hear this is called aliasing? How to prevent? Should I put the titled over slug in FCP? Should I have 10% opacity on my background? Add a shadow? Recently I've tried grey font instead of white...no luck. On an NTSC monitor, I get the same thing. Thanks for help on this one. Jen Mac

You can try a few things.
Use the 3-way color corrector in FCP to bring the white levels under 90%.
If all your text is on the same horizontal plane make sure it's on an even number
Add a .25 blur to the graphics
use the de-interlace filter

Exporting fcp secquence to mpeg2 w/-compressor

Final cut studio with compressor 2, I have reinstaled and tried many ways to get my project exported. At this point compressor says " cannot connect to background process" and no where to go from there. Alternately I tried a quick time conversion to mpeg2 an when I submit that It unrenders my sequence and tells me the sequence must be rendered befor export witch when i go from there the secquence is rendered.

FCP HD 4.5 worked fine with Panther. After installing Tiger I tried export with quick time conversion to mpeg2, two-pass VBR (as usual) and I always get the message "The movie must be rendered before encoding".
Any suggestions will be appreciated..

Qmaster and Metnal Ray for Maya

I have set up Qmaster to render out for Maya but it only seems to render with the Maya Software Renderer. Can Qmaster distribute jobs for the Mental Ray renderer within Maya? I have MR satellite installed on the service nodes and am abel to batch render from Maya MR but can not from Qmaster.

I am aware of that as I use command line rendering from time to time. However, when I use the -r mr flag it does not seem to accept it. Also, when rendering from the command line the render will typically call on the scene file's render globals and use the renerer that is selected there. This does not seem to happen with Qmaster.
Also, when I try to usze the -rd flag to specify where to store the rendered images I get an error.
Any thoughts?

Qmaster: The only reason to keep my G4

I have been learning the programs of Final Cut Studio for about 4 months now. Until I upgraded to a Dual 2ghz G5 recently, I was using my good 'ole G4 867mhz. I am thinking of selling my G4 to get a new monitor. The only reason I can think of to keep it is to use it for rendering via the qmaster program. Would this even make sense or is it more hassle than it's really worth, given how much slower my G4 is? Thanks in advance for any thoughts on this.

We have eight dual G4s which we have configured into a QMaster cluster with G5 as the server. The G5 dual 2.5ghz is fast but you can definately see the additional rendering capabilities of the cluster as each node is tasked and begins it's rendering activities. I can't say that it is as fast as "real time" but I recently converted 114 MOV files to WMV using Compressor 2 and our Qmaster cluster. It took less than 2 hours to run the entire batch. The last time I did this it was an all night job.
Our G4s range in speed from 867ghz to 1.42 ghz speeds. I'm not sure what kind of impact that has but we have also set up a separate GBit ethernet subnet for this "render farm". It is fast enough right now to justify keeping our aging G4s before investing in a hardware rendering solution at a several thousand dollar cost.
Then again I don't need real time rendering either so a slower workflow is oke with us.
Joe

Why do we bother?

I've had it now. I spent hours fiddling the network and making sure all computer are on the same segment etc.
I took the trouble to read all the supplied docs on how to do multi-host distributed rendering: Setting up service nodes (Qmaster pref pane), setting up controller node (Qmaster pref pane), creating a cluster and adding services to the cluster. I learned a few things on the way, andfinally got to the point where I am about to add my (two) service hosts to the cluster.
Then it is, for some peculiar reason, not possible to drag them into the "Services" pane form the Service Browser. I click on their little lines, they turn blueish, and I drag my little mouse in a futile attempt to add these service nodes to my cluster. But no. NOthing happens. Except for the cute little useless blueish background color that each entry gets when highlighted with the mouse.
WHY? WHY? WHY?
I know this is complicated computing here. These are not trivial tasks we are venturing into. But Apple, in support of the creative businesses like they have always been, tries to make them so, and they FAIL. Methods described on your official docs FAIL. Something is missing here, and why won't you let us know?
I have spent far too many hours figuring out little secrets of Final Cut, Compressor and Qmaster. Most of my knowledge I thank myself, experienced individuals in these discussion forums, and other third-party sources for.
I want stuff that actually works, I can't use good intentions alone.
Best regards;
Eivind Sivertsen,
Atmel corp.
Message was edited by: edvinpedvin

OK guys, confession to make before ranting on...
Getting back home and cooling down, I came to think of one thing left to check: whether or not the same license is installed on the other station. I know it is stupid to rush into a rant, but now I'll check that out and I PRAY that this is the problem.
Still, being on a rant; I still think this supports my point: why on earth would an application capable of authorizing software instances in the same network, NOT mention it if there was a problem? This point is not mentioned in the written (.pdf) docs either, even though the procedures are written to the detail where opening the Qadministrator application is described as a process of double-clicking wth your computer mouse on the appropriate icon...
I know this is the case for many other posters, I have seen it posted many times over in the compressor forum. Jobs simply stop, crash, or fail producing an error msg stating that "Some file was missing" (the file lying right there on the desktop of course), or something with the same level of irrelevance. Software that has been in stable releases for this long shouldn't
behave like that. Apple's pro video apps has some of the worst error trapping I have ever seen, it's right there next to MS OutLook.
For potential license problems: It could even just open a "purchase through iTunes" dialog box, and my guess is the better part of those unhappy posters would (almost) happily pay for another license if that stood between them and getting their job done. At least the professionals.
I love my iPod Touch, and the way you can get online and purchase new contents for it is just amazing! So I can definitely see how Apple would rather focus on this smooth way of giving dollars worldwide the wings to fly back to Cupertino, CA. But we need some of that mass-market gadget smoothness into the pro apps, too! Logic 8 looks good, so now it's time to look at the FCP/Compressor/Qmaster/Shake line.
And believe me, the rant from my first post was only ONE of all the strange things I encountered, fiddling with Qadm etc. It was the point where I gave up, crouched into my fetal pose and fell over sobbing on the floor. Almost :}
Message was edited by: edvinpedvin

Codec: MPEG-2 Video, Linear PCM doesn't function in iMac 10.8.3

I have recently purchased an iMac OSX version 10.8.3 which has Quicktime v10.2. Today while working to edit some old digitized footage I opened up some files that were shot on a Sony FX1 shot in HDV 1080i60 and digitized through FCP (Final Cut Pro) which made them into MPEG-2 Video, Linear PCM, Timecode files files. On my older MacBook Pro 10.5.8 I can open them with Quicktime 7.6.9 and play the files without a problem (it also has FCP with Qmaster, etc). In my research I found I can open and view the files on my iMac, if I open them with VCL. Also note I can open them on the QT player in the iMac and hear the audio just no video.
Now I did read some responses that include converting the footage to H.264 or some other format, however I am dealing with over 500gb of footage so that's not really a viable issue. My assumption is that I am going to need to purchase some upgrade to QT to get this stuff to play or hopefully download a compatible software that will make this all go away with little trouble...
Does anyone know of the software that could solve this problem? Any personal experience out there for solving this?
Thanks in advance for your time and consideration.

I think the answer to this in no-not that I know of, unless it was installed as part of the stock purchase. However I am NOT getting a message from MPEG StreamClip to install it or anything for that matter. Instead when I drag and drop the file into MPEG StreamClip I get a white screen from which I can play audio, but no video.
The QT MPEG-2 Playback component is sold by Apple so I assume you would know if you had purchased and installed it. The lack of a message from the MPEG Streamclip app would tend to indicate that either the file you are trying to open does not contain MPEG-2 compressed data or that the data is not being read/loaded to the application. Since you indicate the file opens in apps like VLC, the QT Player, and MPEG Streamclip, can you post a copy of the "Media Information", "Inspector", and "Show Stream Info" windows. (Am assuming here that the MPEG-2/PCM data is not "muxed" within the MOV container which is a separate problem.)
I reviewed the article and downloaded QT7 on this version of iMac, which I gather that it was not there before. However the footage problem is not resolved. I did read where the article suggests I purchase QT7 Pro...is this the next step in the trouble shooting? Do I need to purchase this? It this what you are referring to as the component that need be purchased or is there another? And if no, do you know where can I find the Apple playback component?
a) If you upgrade an older operating system to Snow Leopard, Lion, or Mountain Lion and had QT 7 Pro installed on the older system, then the system installer should normally install a 32-/64-bit compatible version of QT 7 and apply the "pro" key automatically. Systems purchased with Snow Leopard, Lion, or Mountain Lion pre-installed do not have a QT 7 player installed.
b) It would be expected that QT 7 v7.6.6 would not play the file if MPEG Streamclip (which you previously tried) could not play the file. Both apps access the same embedded QT structure within the operating system and employ the same codec component configuration installed on your system.
c) It would be a waste of time and money to purchase a QT 7 "Pro" key if you cannot play the file using the standard player since the "Pro" key only adds editing features and not new playback components. Once playback is working you can consider your need for the "pro" features.
d) See http://store.apple.com/us/product/D2187Z/A/quicktime-mpeg-2-playback-component-f or-mac-os-x?fnode=62 You will note that this component is not required for/not used by QT X based apps but is still required for QT "classic" based apps such as QT 7/QT 7 Pro, GarageBand, MPEG Streamclip, etc. once you get it installed—which is another problem.
I do want to purchase and install...can I find this within this Apple site or are there other Apple supported sites I can find it?
See Apple Store link above. However, my personal recommendation at this point would be to hold off on this purchase until it is determined just what your current playback problem is. For instance, can you post a sample problem file for download in order to examine/test on my system?
I am not sure I understand how to answer this completely, however I trancoded/imported these files from tape through the capture feature in FCP5 and the files have been living and transfered from drive to drive over a series of 8 or so years. They have never NOT played on my MacBook Pro which was not actually the computer they were created from, but since they functioned here I didn't think twice about. However I don't think this is answering your question. It may be best to ask how do I learn about if they are orphaned or not, so I can properly answer?
Basically, a media file consists of a container in which data is placed. In some cases only certain foms of compressed data can be contained in a specific container type. In other cases, multiple or any form of compressed data can be contained. For instance, an MOV file container may hold any form of compressed data that was compatible with the codec component configuration for the system on which the file was created. Unfortunately, this does not mean the file will be compatible with other systems. Since you indicate the files were imported or captured by FCP5, their compression format would depend on both the tape device and/or "Easy Setup" software option used to store the original digitized data which thereafter may or may not have been re-rendered to another compression format during or after your project was completed as part of the "output" process. Since there seems to be some question as to the actual compression format of the data you are trying to access, the first thing you need to do is reconfirm this information. Here are the usual medods of doing this:
a) If files do not open in any media player, use the Finder "Info" window to see what it can tell you about the file. This information may be minimal.
b) If the file opens in a media player app, then use that app's "Media Info", "Inspector", "Stream", "Properties" or similar window to see what it can tell you.
c) You can also use a dedicated utility app like MidiaInfo (free) to examine the file characteristics. These apps usually provide the most information.
(NOTE: In the case of most of these apps, it is usually best to simply screen capture the information window and post it to the forum since most users fail to provide suplementary details about the file which may or may not become significant later.)
d) "Orphaned" files usually refer to "reference" files. Reference files do not contain all of the data needed for playback. Instead, they contain a resource pointer to another file that actually contains the needed playback data, as well as, playing instructions telling how the resource data is to be played. When a reference file is moved to a different drive, the resource data must also be moved. It it isn't, then the data will become "orphaned" when the reference file tries to locate and play it. Reference files are usually very small and are handy for the passing of data from one application to another—such as when sending data from FCP to DVDSP for burning or from iMovie to iDVD. If your files play in VLC then either they are unorphaned reference files or they are standalone files. So, once again if the files play in VLC but not in QT, then we need to look at the specific compression formats involved to determine just what the problem is.
THIS IS GREAT NEWS! This is an issue of great interest to me. I copied FCP6 from my MacBook Pro to my iMac, but the files did not function. I also attempted to install them from disk, but I received a message that the software is not supported. I was under the impression FCP 6 was not compatible with this iMac and Mountain Lion, then I had heard from a friend that they corrected that but I haven't seen any change on my system and I have update my software to current at this point. Do you have thoughts on this and/or how I can get my FCP 6 to function on my iMac? I would love to be able to make use of it.
In my case, I migrated the everything (including the FCP Suite installation) from my Leopard system to my new iMac while it was operating under Snow Leopard and updated the iMac to Lion and later to Mountain Lion. Based on what you say, it appears the FCP installer, like the QT MPEG-2 Playback Component installer package, is not compatible with Lion or Mountain Lion. This does not mean the apps are not compatible with these systems but it does likely mean you would have to use a third-party app like Pacifist to install the FCP software package. (Pacifist can also be used to install the QT MPEG-2 Playback component instead of the "helper" intaller utility provided in the MPEG Streamclip download mentioned above.) Have not really tested this method of installing FCP on Mac OS X v10.8.3, but it does seem logical that it would work since I can still use FCP still operated under Mountain Lion.

Down-conversión HDV-DV... is this right?

Ok. I just want to know if I did it right when down converting from HDV to DV, so that it can be broadcast.
1. When I finished my HDV 1080i60 sequence, I exported the clip in its original format.
2. Then imported that clip to a sequence with this settings: NTSC DV 3:2, NTSC-CCIR 601/DV, 16:9, field dominance set to "none".
I set the field dominance to none, because it was the only way for the clip to not look bad (pixels or lines).
3. It looks good. but I don´t know if it´s the right way to do it.
NOTE:
I already did it through compressor, importing the HDV clip to it and then exporting it with the SD definition for DV NTSC 16:9.... but the result was a clip quite pixelated.

I found the same issue when I recently edited with HDV 1440x1080p30. When I rendered FCP out to ProRes 422 HQ NTSC, then imported the ProRes clip through compressor, I got much cleaner video.
Larry

Interrupting Keynote 3 with Front Row

When I interrupt a slide with Front Row to play a song, I get the desktop back afterwards rather than the slide I interrupted. I have to manually click on the Keynote icon to get back to my slide. Is this the intended behavior? It would be really nice if the interrupted slide would come back up.

When I interrupt a slide with Front Row to play a
song, I get the desktop back afterwards rather than
the slide I interrupted. I have to manually click on
the Keynote icon to get back to my slide. Is this the
intended behavior? It would be really nice if the
interrupted slide would come back up.
This drove me mad until I discovered the trick. This assumes you're using the Apple Remote.
1) click through KN until the point you want to switch out to Front Row. (This can be any point, say build 27 on a slide with 43 builds. It can even be in the middle of an embedded QT movie - yes, even a 1920x1080 HDV assuming you've got the codec from FCP or QMaster).
2) this is the important bit. Click the ENTER button on the remote - in the centre of the click wheel - BEFORE you click the MENU button to call up Front Row. The freezes KN at exactly the moment you click.
3) Do whatever you want in Front Row
4) Return to KN using the MENU Button to get back up the Front Row hierarchy
5) Then click the ENTER button again to restart KN at exactly the point you left it. You do not get the Desktop back and you do not need to manually click the present slides button in KN.
This really blew 'em away at one of my recent gigs.
MacBookPro 17. G5 Dual 2Ghz. iMac G5 Mac OS X (10.4.7)

IMac vs the new Mac Pro for video editing in FCPX?

Hi.
I am currently using a macbook air for all my editing and rendering of videos in FCPX. The editing process is reasonably smooth when dealing with shorter clips, but when I tried to edit multicam clips, things started to slow down. Also, the rendering and compression processes are tedious. I am planning to edit and process a much larger number of videos in the next years to come, so I have decided to do a serious upgrade of my system.
For the moment, I am torn between a maxed out iMac 27", which would be the cheapest alternative, and the 6 core Mac Pro or 4 core Mac Pro.
When I look at benchmarks of the new Mac Pro's in Geekbench, the iMac is never very far away in terms of performance. Does tests like this tell anything about how well the Mac Pro will perform in FCP? Does the hardware in the Mac Pro have features which makes it superior to the iMac, in other ways than for example the "pure power" of the CPU and GPU?
Christopher.

FCP X 10.1, Motion 5.1 Updates w/Dual GPU Support (new Mac Pros) (from Thursday)
Apple released Final Cut Pro X 10.1 Thursday with support for Dual GPUs in the new Mac Pro and more.
Long list in the Final Cut Pro X 10.1 Release Notes that also links to info on How to back up important FCP X 10.0.x files before updating. (Today's Apple docs listing also has more related to Final Cut Pro X 10.1.)
Also out today are Compressor 4.1 and Motion 5.1. Full release notes below but here's a clip from the App store Motion 5.1 changes:
Optimized playback and rendering using dual GPUs in the new Mac Pro
FxPlug 3 with custom plug-in interfaces and dual-GPU support
Faster project loading, especially for complex projects
Share directly to YouTube at 4K resolution
Spanish language localization
Dual FirePro Dxxx Rendering FCP-X
http://www.barefeats.com/tube05.html
Intel Xeon processors are designed to run 24/7 and stay cool and under load.
Mac Pro so far hold up strongly for years, easy to add and upgrade RAM and processor, and maybe, hopefully, even the twin GPUs. Thunderbolt2 for all your projects and storage as well.
6 or 8-cores is going to walk away from iMac which is breathing hard and not designed for constant heat. Haswell was designed to conserve and reduce.

Digital Cinema Desktop Preview, keyboard layout and other bugs - Leopard

I just reinstalled my Mac Pro because I hoped it would fix some bugs... but no luck. Digital cinema desktop preview (dcdp) was working just fine until I installed the Aja Kona Lhe software, afterwards only dcdp for the main display was working, both dcdp and dcdp "full screen" have disappeared. The other things I was hoping 10.5.2 would fix are the problem FCP cannot remember the keyboard layout I use (azerty-belgium) - every time I start the program I have to choose the layout again - and the fact I cannot export using compressor straight from FCP using qmaster: Final cut pro generated an error! (this has never worked)
If you are having the same problems as I do, maybe we should compare hardware to see what we have in common that could be causing this problem. As I have found during my searches, some computers have similar problems, others don't, sometimes it also matters if you've upgraded from Tiger of did a clean install, where upgrading it seems (yes really!!) gives the least problems...
I really hope there will be a bugfix soon, because I'm sure I'm not the only one having these problems... or maybe I should just install Tiger and upgrade...???

I vote for going back to Tiger. That is known to be stable. Leopard and FCP is unpredictable at the moment.
Shane

Rendering FCP w/ Qmaster?

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