Unlabelled Alpha channel message!

Hi All,
As I was trying to import some files for use in my project in AE, and I got the message as seen in my attached file here. I didn't know what it meant and so didn't know what to do, but eventually ,though I saw the files that I was trying to import in my project area.
What does this message mean, and what should be my next action when I see it.
Thanks. Hope you can help.
ugoharris.

Hi,
Thanks again for your tip. I'm also enclosing the image here. Actually, the book I was using is Adobe After Effects 6.5 magic by James Rankin by James Rankin and Anna Ullrich. See Pg. 79, but start reading from Pg 78.
Actually, I'm using AE cs3 for my projects.
Hope you're clarified.
Thanks.
Ugoharris
Date: Sun, 22 Nov 2009 23:23:53 -0700
From: [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: Unlabelled Alpha channel message!
Again, please use the camera icon when attaching images so they show up immediately. To answer your question: Usually you can just ignore the message. It merely means that AE detects a 4th channel in an image file which has no name or type specified. AE always assumes the 4th channel to be an Alpha channel, however that must not necessarily be true. E.g. RPF/ RLA/ IFF/ OpenEXR images from 3D programs may contain a different info on the 4th channel because they can have multiple custom channels and, depending on teh program used to generate the files, this order can be arbitrary. Likewise, some programs tag the channels correctly, others don't. Generally nothing to go too crazy about, though. Most 3D artists know what channels they generate and if there are only 4 chanenls, AE's assumptions about the Alpha channel are normally correct.
Mylenium
>

Similar Messages

Can no longer import QT files with alpha channel

I have been using these client supplied QT with alpha channel files just fine for weeks, then all of a sudden, after a crash the other day, I was unable to open sequences with these files and exoprt them, the exporter would just freeze. the clips played in the timeline, but VERY sluggish.
On the reccomendation of a few posts around here, I removed the clips from the project, and now I cannot import them back in, I get a "the importer reported a generic error" message. I am able to open in QT pro and export to a new file that will import to PPro, but I lose the alpha channel.
As always, I'm up against a deadline and any help would be greatly appreciated.
I have installed QT 7.07, no help.
I'm on a windows 7 machine running CS master collection 5.0, Quad core AMD with 8 gig RAM.
These files worked fine just days ago!!!!
BTW, I just switched over to Premiere a few months ago and to honest I can't understand how anyone would stick with this buggy software, as a professional I've never used anything this bad before.

Welcome to the forum.
Try these. Attempt to re-import after each one:
Clean the media cache database via Edit | Preferences | Media
If step 2 doesn't work, then find all the .qtindex, .mpgindex, .cfa and .pek files associated with the media that's supposed to be in your project and delete them. Then clean the media cache database again.
Launch Pr and while it's launching, hold down the Alt + Shift keys until the Welcome screen appears. Alt resets your preferences and Shift resets the plug-in cache.
To address the other issues you say you've been having with Pr, you should start a different thread (or threads). Coming from other editors, there may be a difference in the way Pr does things that produce unexpected results that may be seen as bugs. More serious issues, such as crashes, can often be caused by 3rd-party hardware like AJA, Matrox or BlackMagic and the associated drivers. Outdated or incorrect drivers for audio and video cards can also cause problems. I recommend that you start troubleshooting those areas first.
Other issues may have workarounds. If you have serious, reproducible problems that have no workaround, then please file bug reports here:
Adobe - Feature Request/Bug Report Form
-Jeff

InDesign CS5 will not import Alpha Channels from images saved in Photoshop CS6

Just searched through the forums to find this thread in the (now-Read Only) Photoshop CS6 Beta forum:
http://forums.adobe.com/message/4310886
Which is exactly the same issue I'm having. I just cropped about a 1000 images with alphas originally created in PS5 and resaved using PS6.
My client still uses CS5 and the images won't recognize the alpha channels in inDesign5.
I see in this thread that it said a fix for older versions of inDesign was being worked on, this was back in April.
Any news on these fixes? (before I open PS5 and resave all these files)

Hi Peter,
The images in question all use alpha channels to mask out the image backgrounds (usually white) in InDesign layouts.
I opened the images in PS6 to crop out excess background (to get file size down) and saved the new files.
When I go to import the images one by one into InDesign 5 (via Cmd-D, Import options ticked) the Alpha Channel pull down menu is greyed out and I'm unable to select the Alpha Channel.
If I open the image in PS5 and resave, I'm then able to access the Alpha channels in ID5... but that's a lot of images to go back through to fix.
I also tried opening the layout in ID6 (where the alpha channels do work) and saving down to the idml format. When opening up in ID5 the alpha channel is no longer recognized and the background of the image that was masked out is now visible.
Cheers,
Alan

Alpha channel and imaging lingo

I have a 32 bit image with an alpha channel. When placed on
the stage only
the black anti-aliased text shows and no background shows
(using the copy
ink)
I'm scrolling this image with imaging lingo where I take a
sliding portion
of the original image in one direction or the other. When I
do this the
background of the portion on the stage is white instead of
transparent.
I'm creating an image and assign a portion of the text image
to it. I tried
pImage.useAlpha = TRUE but I get an error saying the property
can't be set
which is rediculous I know. pImage is definitely an image, I
checked it
with the debugger.
useAlpha might not be the correct solution but it brought up
a second
question. First, how can I maintain the alpha channel with
imaging Lingo
and second why do I get the error telling me that the
useAlpha property
can't be set?
Craig
Craig Wollman
Lingo Specialist
Word of Mouth Productions
212-928-9581
www.wordofmouthpros.com

Thanks. You're right, I did need to create the image in 32
bits but
otherwise I only needed to set useAlpha to TRUE and the alpha
was maintained
perfectly without any other changes.
Craig Wollman
Lingo Specialist
Word of Mouth Productions
212-928-9581
www.wordofmouthpros.com
"Lukewig" <[email protected]> wrote in
message
news:ek0ibj$c9k$[email protected]..
> Hi Craig,
>
> If "pImage.useAlpha = TRUE" gives a 'cannot set this
property" error, then
> pImage.depth is less than 32. Change your code to
something like this to
> confirm:
>
> if pImage.depth < 32 then put "oops, no alpha to use"
> else pImage.useAlpha = TRUE
>
> As how to "maintain the alpha channel with imaging
Lingo", I gotta scratch
> my
> head each time (its kind of counter-intuitive). Basic
rule of thumb is
> turn off
> alphas for copypixel operations, extract your alphas and
copypixel them
> separately, and then reset the alpha of the final
composite image (of
> course,
> the details depend on whether your are wanting to
combine your alphas or
> not).
>
> -- Luke
>
>

Sudden problem with importing tiff files with alpha channel (CS5)

OK this is driving me nuts. For years I have been importing image files that have an alpha channel into FCP as.tiff files. I use Photoshop files only when I want to use the layers as they are too cumbersome otherwise). I have recent upgraded Photoshop, etc. to CS5 and now FCP won't import them anymore. I get a message saying: "File error: 1 file(s) recognized, 0 access denied, 1 unknown"
I am not doing anything different and tiff files created in just the same way in an earlier version of Photoshop import and work just fine. Is this a CS5 bug? Does anyone know of a work around. I want to keep using tiff files as they seem to work best for me with alpha channel work (and I don't see why I need to reinvent the wheel).
Thanks
A

I've had a similar issue recently. Same TIFF files downloaded from the same server, different FCP project, new error. I either see"File error: 1 file(s) recognized, 0 access denied, 1 unknown" or I get the even stranger, "Unrecognized file type."
I can open them in PS and save them again as TIF, same results. I know these are not CMYK files but even if resave the TIF as RGB, I get the same results, they are not recognized by FCP.
But if I open them in PS and save them as PNG with alpha, they improt fine.
I have no idea what's going on.
bogiesan
Message was edited by: David Bogie Chq-1

Alpha Channel Not Showing On Video Clips

I have imported several video clips that I know have Alpha Channels, but when I import them into the timeline/sequence, the ALPHA Channel is appearing as a black background. What am I doing wrong or what setting should I check??

There was a known issue that I noticed over a year ago that was discussed in this thread:
http://forums.adobe.com/message/4831495#4831495
AFAIK it was never solved, but I haven't updated to the latest version of Premiere because of all of the bugs (cough cough)
Gerry

Alpha Channel Video Preloader

We are creating a project that includes a number of alpha channel videos of the course narrator and other characters. Playback works well however, before each video plays, there is a brief "loading" message and then the video pops onto the screen and plays.
I understand the need for the pre-loader, however, I am hoping there is a way to add a "poster frame" to avoid the jarring impact of a person suddenly appearing over a realistic background. A little too much like a magic trick.
We would like to try a poster frame similar to the commonly used "Flash Media Playback" player provided by adobe for flash video on websites found here http://www.adobe.com/products/flashmediaplayback/index.html
Flash media playback allow the use of a jpg file that loads immediately before the video buffers.
Alternatively, are there any other "tricks" to make it appear that the video is present on the screen before it begins to play?
Appreciate any ideas on this.
Thanks
Jeff

Probably because you're not actually encoding "nothing" when creating transparency. An alpha channel is an additional 8-bit grayscale channel, and it probably can't or isn't compressed as much as the RGB channels, or else the transparency would not be clean. The only way to decrease the file size is to lower the total bitrate, which will subsequently have an impact on the quality of the "visible" video.

Aperture, photoshop layers and Alpha channels - notes

In examining Aperture 2.0 to see if I could use it instead of Adobe bridge in my workflow (which makes intense use of Photoshop) I found that Aperture (and, apparently, OS X) cannot properly display a preview for a .psd file with either layers or an alpha channel. In some cases, the preview image is simply an error message, in others the alpha channel is displayed as black. These problems make Aperture a non-starter for me.
Searching this forum for information, solutions, and/or workarounds, I found some references, but nothing of high value. (Sorry, posters.) Started my own investigation, and discovered some things that might lead to a reasonable workaround. My notes are here:
http://homepage.mac.com/bbarlow641/webinfonotebook/
too long, I think, to put into a forum post. Sorry to link out to somewhere else, but if you're interested, it's worth a click. (Or the linked page may not have "high value" either. But it helped me to think through the problem.)
Ben

bbarlow641 wrote:
Saving the file as a layered TIFF file would preserve the layers - that might be a good idea since Aperture doesn't recognize psb files. But any "saving as" step - as a psb or as a TIFF - creates a second (large) file, so I don't think it's an ideal solution.
I don't know if that helps in your workflow, but the way I handle this is:
• import the raw file into Aperture
• open in external editor (i.e. PhotoShop; external editor format: tiff)
• edit in PhotoShop
• when saving I am asked if I want to save it as layered tiff (provided the preferences are set accordingly: File Handling / Ask before saving layered tiff files);
• here two things are to be considered:
_ the file extension used by PS is "tif", so it has to be changed to "tiff"
_ on my MacBook Pro the Save As-dialog opens showing the correct file location (i.e., the correct subfolder inside the Aperture library), on my Mac Pro the initial location is somewhere else (remembered from the last saving procedure); I have to work around this by first command-clicking in the image window's title bar to open the edited file's location in the Finder, so that I can then drag it onto the Save As-dialog. This is actually slightly annoying, but I did not find out the reason so far.
• Aperture automatically refreshes the saved file.
This way I end up with just this one extra file. The whole procedure would be a bit simpler using referenced files instead of storing them in the library.
My settings in PS do have the "Maximize Compatibility" option set (in the notebooked example, it's set to "ask", normally it's set to "always"). I'm using CS2. Maybe this setting works in CS3 to create the composite? I've heard several people here say that same thing, but it definitely doesn't do it for me...
For me this works, and as far as I remember also worked in CS2; do you see a difference in file size between files saved both ways? How does Preview.app display the file saved with "Maximize Compatibility"?
Since my first post, I've been trying to figure out how to add a PS action that would run an Applescript to tell GraphicConverter to open and close a file, creating a preview. But it seems that while an Applescript can trigger a Postscript action, the reverse (having a Postscript action trigger an Applescript) is not possible.
Might something like a hot folder with an automator scripts attached to it be a possible workaround?
Message was edited by: Bernhard Barkow

How to Validate Transparent Alpha Channel in .mov File?

I'm trying to create transparent flv files to embed in Abobe Captivate.
I shot and keyed some test greenscreen (yes, I have the checkerboard in the canvas) and have tried exporting it a number of ways (rendered/unrendered, recompressed all frames/not, etc, etc) and converted it to flv a number of ways (change mov to flv, encoding software), but when I embed it and play it back I have a black background.
How can I validate that my .mov file contains the alpha channel and it's transparent?
Second, when the .mov is correct, will changing .mov to .flv keep the transparent alpha channel or do I need us encoding software with a codec that supports transparent alpha, e.g., On2 V6?
I'm pulling my hair out here...

Hi - To validate your exported (Animation codec, Millions of Colors+ ?) Qt movie has the alpha quickly, re-import the exported movie back into FCP and load it to the viewer with the viewer set to display checkerboard as a background.
Can't help with the rest.
MtD
Message was edited by: Meg The Dog to fix what I was trying to say

Why can't I see the Finder thumbnails for .mov files with alpha channels?

Ever since I upgraded to Mavericks I haven't been able to see the thumbnail for or preview using spacebar any .MOV clips that contain alpha channels in Finder. PSDs and PNGs with alpha channels are fine, and I can still see their thumbnails and previews, it's just .MOV clips with alpha. Here are a couple screenshots:
Most of these clips are using a PNG codec, but I converted on to the Animation codec and tested it in After Effects to make sure it kept the alpha channel and it did, but the same thumbnail error persists.
Any idea why this might be or how to fix it?
27" iMac late 2012
1TB Fusion
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680MX 2048 MB
16GB RAM
OS X Mavericks
Thanks.

ok, have copied the photos again from the memory card and hey presto, it all works fine. So in summary...for RW2 files from GF1 camera, I have no thumbnail images, couldn't view in Preview, and neither Quickview nor Coverview were working. Ran the bit of code provided at "https://discussions.apple.com/message/18369759#18369759" (thanks to Snoop Dogg) and then recopied the photos onto my Mac (only required for photos copied since upgrading to Lion, everything from before the upgrade is fine anyway).
Hope others find this helpful.

Photoshop not presenting alpha channel as expected (like I'm seeing GIMP does)

Greetings,
I have a need to edit the channels independently (the values in my image mean things numerically rather than just what it looks like visually - so I need to edit the grayscale values in each of the R - G - B - and A channels seperately).
I've searched through google and other forum posts and others bring up the concept of not understanding alpha versus transparency - but I have yet to see an explanation that fully explains what I'm experiencing.
The closest was http://forums.adobe.com/message/2563436#2563436 But while I saw the exact same symptoms being described, the specific question was never really answered.
Hopefully, a concrete example with pictures will be able to communicate the issue and solicit a useful explanation and/or solution.
While, I'm specifically working with an RGBA image, below is a screenshot of a PNG that demonstrates the exact same behavior or symptom. The screenshot below represents the PNG inside GIMP and PS CS4. BTW, if you'd like to see or play with the image yourself, you can grab the same image at http://www.libpng.org/pub/png/img_png/imgcomp-440x330.png
GIMP, interestingly enough loads the PNG as expected - I see the transparency of the image treated as a true alpha channel.
In PS CS4 however, the transparency seems to be somehow embedded in the Red - Green - and Blue channels; but NO seperate alpha channel.
I can create the alpha channel through Select - Load Selection - Layer 0 Transparency - and pasting that into a newly created alpha channel - but the color channels still have the transparency mixture symptom - rather than showing the JUST the color component of that channel. (Note the channel differences of the GIMP's Red Channel versus PS's Red Channel - Said in another way, the yellow ball in the upper left of the image should have a red value of 255, so the Red Channels grayscale upper left ball should be white like it is in GIMP, rather than Gray as it is in PS).
I never thought I'd experience GIMP being superior to Photoshop - so hopefully somebody can shed light on what is going on - what configuration I may have myself in - or a process to get the channels seperated out in the manner I wish to work with them. Furthermore, maybe somebody can educate the Photoshop community what the difference between transparency and alpha[transparency] is. I haven't found quite the right explanation that makes the light go off in my head yet. As best as I have gleened "Alpha", which can be applied to any kind of channel, typically is in reference to transparency - and is applied as a document-whole transparency (as opposed to transparencies applied at a layer level - such as a layer mask).

I think I've finally determined that modern Photoshops have gone in a different direction that I feel "Alpha" should be done.
(good or bad).
Here are the steps and/or details of how I arrived at that conclusion.
If nothing else this has been very educational on how Photoshop treats alpha.
- Import your alpha'd PNG with SuperPNG format (see above on how to make sure you use the SuperPNG plugin to load the .png).
- In the SuperPNG dialog select "Alpha appears as seperate channel"
- Create a layer from the Background and Delete the original Background
(since the Background is locked and we can't edit the Background - we want to add a layer mask based on the alpha)
- Ctrl-Left Select the "Alpha 1" channel - Ctrl-C - and hit the "Add Layer Mask" button (square with the circle at the bottom of the LAYERS rollout)
- For this demo and clarity, I went ahead and deleted the alpha "Alpha 1" that came in through the SuperPNG plugin
So now I have the Layers like I kindof expected the main document to just come in as (kindof though - it is presented in a Layer Mask rather than Alpha Channel).
What is interesting - which you'll see if you toggle the layer mask on and off
(shift-click the mask thumbnail in the layer)
Note how the thumbnails in the channel views render differently during the toggle.
When the mask is off you see the individual color channels like I expect - black where there is an absence of that color.
However when you enable the layer mask - the individual color channels show in semi-transparent/checkerboard.
So this is exactly how the color channels are presented when loading in a .png (WITHOUT the SuperPNG plugin) or an .rgba
..you get the semitransparent views of the color channels - BUT the difference is - you have no way to directly see or edit the Alpha channel.
nor are the color channels represented as completely opaque versions.
What is really interesting - it is there though - if you Ctrl-Left Select the layer, Ctrl-C, and "Add Channel Mask" - you'll get the Alpha mask.
HOWEVER, the big issue is that you can't toggle or edit the Color-Channels like the Layer counterpart above;
they are ALWAYS the semitransparent/checkboard version; AND now we basically are double applying transparency
(due to the still embedded alpha/transparency AND the newly create "Alpha 1" channel)
I think this a bug (or a poor reimplementation of modern Photoshop releases; I believe older Photoshops used to break out Alpha in the "arguably correct" way - and in fact the way GIMP currently does).
Or maybe there are other explanations - like abstracting some of this complexity away from less advance users, etc?
So the SuperPNG plugin was useful in experimenting, understanding, and demonstrating what is going on.
However, if I'm trying to read in .rgba directly, I don't think I have a way of making the "Alpha appear as a seperate channel" as I think any image with "alpha" component should.
(png, tiff, rgba, etc).

8 and 16 bits in grayscale alpha channel

Hello.
When I have an image in 8 bits per channel, its grayscale alpha channel is in 8 bits (256 levels).
But when I have an image in 16 bits per channel, is its grayscale alpha channel in 16 bits (32.768 levels)? They are a lot to make a selection...

Why do alpha channels in 16 bits exist if they are not real?
They are real, you can copy and paste them into a Layer Mask for example instead of loading them.
http://forums.adobe.com/message/4597174#4597174

How do i create an alpha channel to place into edge animate?

HowHow do i create an alpha channel compatible with edge animate?

I don't use Edge, but since it is a web tool it stands to reason it would use standard web techniques, meaning it would rely on built-in transparency functions of formats like PNG and GIF, which you can easily produce by using Save for Web after creating normal transparency on a layer in Photoshop. No extra Alpha channel or otehr extra steps required. Perhaps Edge even has some stuff that does the conversion on the fly by allowing you to open a native PSD like in Dreamweaver, but beyond that I don't see what else it could/ would do - all the features it can provide are limited by standard specifications for HTML, CSS and JavaScript. There is simply no way to do something sensible with a TIFF in a browser, if you get my meaning .
Mylenium

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How can I see the alpha channel of my file in the channel tab?
Thanks!

OK, something must be wrong... but I don't find it!
That's my whole code (resumed). I ommit some code (saving file code (not used) or main function, where I only call te "DoSomething" functions. You can see that I use layers. The DoReadContinue function is only used to show the preview.
In the DoReadStart function I set the parameters for the layers (and the preview), and I fill the "data" and "layerName" params in the DoReadLayerContinue function. I hope you can understand the code!
const int32 IMAGE_DEPTH = 32;
SPBasicSuite * sSPBasic = NULL;
SPPluginRef gPluginRef = NULL;
FormatRecord * gFormatRecord = NULL;
intptr_t * gMxiInfoHandle = NULL;
MXIInfo* gMxiInfo = NULL;
int16 * gResult = NULL;
#define gCountResources gFormatRecord->resourceProcs->countProc
#define gGetResources   gFormatRecord->resourceProcs->getProc
#define gAddResource    gFormatRecord->resourceProcs->addProc
CmaxwellMXI* cMax;
static void DoReadPrepare (void){
    gFormatRecord->maxData = 0;
static void DoReadStart(void){
    char header[2];
    ReadScriptParamsOnRead (); // override params here
if (*gResult != noErr) return;
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    *gResult = SetFPos (gFormatRecord->dataFork, fsFromStart, 0);
    if (*gResult != noErr) return;
    ReadSome (sizeof( header ) * 2, &header);
    if (*gResult != noErr) return;
// Check the magic number for avoid no-mxi files
    int headerID = CheckIdentifier (header);
    if( headerID != HEADER_MXI ) *gResult = formatCannotRead;
if (*gResult != noErr) return;
// The file is OK. Let's continue to obtain the data of the image.
cMax = new CmaxwellMXI( 0 );
strlen((char*)gFormatRecord->fileSpec->name);
gMxiInfo->filename = _strdup((char *)gFormatRecord->fileSpec->name + 1);
bool res = cMax->getMXIIInfo(
                (const char*)gMxiInfo->filename,
                gMxiInfo->width, gMxiInfo->height,
                gMxiInfo->burn, gMxiInfo->monitorGamma, gMxiInfo->iso,
                gMxiInfo->shutter, gMxiInfo->fStop, gMxiInfo->intensity,
                gMxiInfo->scattering,
                gMxiInfo->nMultilightChannels, gMxiInfo->lightNamesList,
                gMxiInfo->availableBuffersMask,
                gMxiInfo->widthPreview, gMxiInfo->heightPreview,
                gMxiInfo->bufferPreview);
if(!res) return;
// Check the available extra buffers
int count = 0;
if( gMxiInfo->availableBuffersMask & CmaxwellMXI::ALPHA_BUFFER ){
    // We will use that string to obtain later the desired extra buffer.
    gMxiInfo->extraBuffersList[count] = "ALPHA";
    gMxiInfo->hasAlpha = true;
    count++;
else{
    gMxiInfo->hasAlpha = false;
gMxiInfo->nExtraBuffers = count;
switch( IMAGE_DEPTH ){
case 8:
      gMxiInfo->mode = plugInModeRGBColor;
      break;
case 16:
      gMxiInfo->mode = plugInModeRGB48;
      break;
case 32:
      gMxiInfo->mode = plugInModeRGB48; //96 gives me an error
      break;
// SET UP THE DOCUMENT BASIC PARAMETERS.
VPoint imageSize;
if( gFormatRecord->openForPreview ){
    // Preview always RGB8.
    imageSize.v = gMxiInfo->heightPreview;
    imageSize.h = gMxiInfo->widthPreview;
    gFormatRecord->depth = 8;
    gFormatRecord->imageMode = plugInModeRGBColor;
    gFormatRecord->planes = 3;
    gFormatRecord->loPlane = 0;
    gFormatRecord->hiPlane = 2;
    gFormatRecord->colBytes = 3;
    gFormatRecord->rowBytes = imageSize.h * gFormatRecord->planes;
    gFormatRecord->planeBytes = 1;
else{
    // Configure the layers. All RGBA32.
    imageSize.v = gMxiInfo->height;
    imageSize.h = gMxiInfo->width;
    gFormatRecord->depth = IMAGE_DEPTH;
    gFormatRecord->imageMode = gMxiInfo->mode;
    gFormatRecord->layerData =
        2 + gMxiInfo->nMultilightChannels + gMxiInfo->nExtraBuffers;
    gFormatRecord->planes = 4; // RGBA.
    gFormatRecord->loPlane = 0;
    gFormatRecord->hiPlane = 3;
    gFormatRecord->planeBytes = IMAGE_DEPTH >> 3;
    gFormatRecord->rowBytes = imageSize.h * gFormatRecord->planes * ( IMAGE_DEPTH >> 3 );
    gFormatRecord->colBytes = gFormatRecord->planes * ( IMAGE_DEPTH >> 3 );
    gFormatRecord->transparencyPlane = 3;
    gFormatRecord->transparencyMatting = 1;
    gFormatRecord->blendMode = PIBlendLinearDodge;
    gFormatRecord->isVisible = true;
SetFormatImageSize(imageSize);
gFormatRecord->imageHRes = FixRatio(72, 1);
gFormatRecord->imageVRes = FixRatio(72, 1);
VRect theRect;
theRect.left = 0;
theRect.right = imageSize.h;
theRect.top = 0;
theRect.bottom = imageSize.v;
SetFormatTheRect(theRect);
// No resources for now.
if (sPSHandle->New != NULL) gFormatRecord->imageRsrcData = sPSHandle->New(0);
gFormatRecord->imageRsrcSize = 0;
    return;
/// Called for prewiew only.
static void DoReadContinue (void){
    // Dispose of the image resource data if it exists.
    DisposeImageResources ();
if( gFormatRecord->openForPreview ){
    VPoint imageSize = GetFormatImageSize();
    gFormatRecord->data = gMxiInfo->bufferPreview;
      if (*gResult == noErr) *gResult = gFormatRecord->advanceState();
    if( gFormatRecord->data != NULL ){
      delete[] (Crgb8*)gMxiInfo->bufferPreview;
      gMxiInfo->bufferPreview = NULL;
      gFormatRecord->data = NULL;
// De momento nos olvidamos de los icc profiles [TODO]
    //DoReadICCProfile ();
static void DoReadFinish (void)
    // Dispose of the image resource data if it exists.
    DisposeImageResources ();
    WriteScriptParamsOnRead (); // should be different for read/write
// write a history comment
    AddComment ();
// Clean some memory.
if( gMxiInfo->lightNamesList != NULL ){
    for( unsigned int i = 0; i < gMxiInfo->nMultilightChannels; i++){
      if( gMxiInfo->lightNamesList[i] != NULL ){
        delete[] gMxiInfo->lightNamesList[i];
        gMxiInfo->lightNamesList[i] = NULL;
    delete[] gMxiInfo->lightNamesList;
    gMxiInfo->lightNamesList = NULL;
if( gMxiInfo->bufferPreview != NULL ){
    delete[] gMxiInfo->bufferPreview;
    gMxiInfo->bufferPreview = NULL;
if( gMxiInfo->filename != NULL ){
    delete[] gMxiInfo->filename;
    gMxiInfo->filename = NULL;
if( cMax != NULL ){
    delete cMax;
    cMax = NULL;
static void DoReadLayerStart(void){
// empty
static void DoReadLayerContinue (void){
int32 done;
    int32 total;
VPoint imageSize = GetFormatImageSize();
// Set the progress bar data
done = gFormatRecord->layerData + 1;
total = gMxiInfo->nMultilightChannels + gMxiInfo->nExtraBuffers + 2;
// Dispose of the image resource data if it exists.
DisposeImageResources ();
uint32 bufferSize = imageSize.v * gFormatRecord->rowBytes;
int nPixels = gMxiInfo->width * gMxiInfo->height;
char* lightName = NULL;
// SET THE BLACK BACKGROUND
if( gFormatRecord->layerData == 0 ){
    gFormatRecord->data = (void*)new byte[bufferSize];
    for( int i = 0; i < nPixels; i++ ){
      ((float*)gFormatRecord->data)[ i * 4 ]     =
      ((float*)gFormatRecord->data)[ i * 4 + 1 ] =
      ((float*)gFormatRecord->data)[ i * 4 + 2 ] = 0.0;
      ((float*)gFormatRecord->data)[ i * 4 + 3 ] = 1.0;
    // Set the layer name.
    gFormatRecord->layerName = new uint16[64];
    gFormatRecord->layerName[0] = 'B';
    gFormatRecord->layerName[1] = 'a';
    gFormatRecord->layerName[2] = 'c';
    gFormatRecord->layerName[3] = 'k';
    gFormatRecord->layerName[4] = 'g';
    gFormatRecord->layerName[5] = 'r';
    gFormatRecord->layerName[6] = 'o';
    gFormatRecord->layerName[7] = 'u';
    gFormatRecord->layerName[8] = 'n';
    gFormatRecord->layerName[9] = 'd';
    gFormatRecord->layerName[10] = '\0';
// LOAD THE LIGHT LAYERS
else if( gFormatRecord->layerData < gMxiInfo->nMultilightChannels + 1 ){
    void* lightBuffer = NULL;
    void* alphaBuffer = NULL;
    byte foob;
    dword food;
    // Get the light buffer.
    bool res = cMax->getLightBuffer(
                           (char*)gMxiInfo->filename,
                           gFormatRecord->layerData - 1, IMAGE_DEPTH,
                           lightBuffer,
                           gMxiInfo->width, gMxiInfo->height, lightName);
    if(!res){
      *gResult = readErr;
      return;
    if( gMxiInfo->hasAlpha ){
      // Get the alpha buffer.
      res = cMax->getExtraBuffer(
                            (char*)gMxiInfo->filename,
                            "ALPHA", IMAGE_DEPTH, alphaBuffer,
                            food, food, foob);
      if(!res){
        *gResult = readErr;
        return;
    else{
      alphaBuffer = (void*)new float[ gMxiInfo->width * gMxiInfo->height * 3 ];
      for( int i = 0; i < nPixels; i++ ){
        // Only need to set the red channel.
        ((float*)alphaBuffer)[ i * 3 ] = 1.0;
    // Put them together.
    gFormatRecord->data = (void*)new byte[bufferSize];
    for( int i = 0; i < nPixels; i++ ){
      ((float*)gFormatRecord->data)[ i * 4 ]     = ((float*)lightBuffer)[ i * 3 ];
      ((float*)gFormatRecord->data)[ i * 4 + 1 ] = ((float*)lightBuffer)[ i * 3 + 1 ];
      ((float*)gFormatRecord->data)[ i * 4 + 2 ] = ((float*)lightBuffer)[ i * 3 + 2 ];
      ((float*)gFormatRecord->data)[ i * 4 + 3 ] = ((float*)alphaBuffer)[ i * 3 ];
    delete[] (float*)lightBuffer;
    delete[] (float*)alphaBuffer;
    // Set the layer name.
//LOAD THE EXTRA CHANNELS
if( ... ){
//READ THE RENDER BUFFER
if( ... ){
// User can abort.
if (gFormatRecord->abortProc()){
      *gResult = userCanceledErr;
      return;
// Commit the layer.
if (*gResult == noErr) *gResult = gFormatRecord->advanceState();
// Update the progress bar.
(*gFormatRecord->progressProc)( done, total );
// Free memory.
if( gFormatRecord->data != NULL ){
    delete[] (float*)gFormatRecord->data;
    gFormatRecord->data = NULL;
if( lightName != NULL ){
    delete[] lightName;
    lightName = NULL;
static void DoReadLayerFinish (void)
// Nothing to do.
And that's the image that I obtain loading a 8 layer image:
The layers have transparency (when I set "transparencyPlane" to -1, or 0, or 1, or 2, or 3, or 4....., I got the same result!). The blending mode is still "normal". I had set it to "linear dodge" The "isVisible" param works OK.
Alpha 1 is still black.
Is possible that I need to set something in the .r file? I had to add "FormatLayerSupport { doesSupportFormatLayers }," to manage layers, for instance.

Is apple going to address the lack of alpha channel support in Keynote 6

Any updates of when Apple will address the lack of Alpha channel support for Keynote 6?

Thanks for the prompt reply, Gary. I am specifically talking about quicktime animations (.mov files) with clear backgrounds. When they play back in Keynote, the backgrounds are black.

Unlabelled Alpha channel message!

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