I'm fortunate to have both FCP 7 and Production Premium CS6 on my system.
Just yesterday I was going to use Compressor to encode a very short Blu-Ray to then be authored in Encore. (There has been a workflow for this ever since CS4)
As fate would have it, Compressor started giving me the infamous, "I can't do any kind of work because I've lost my mind..." error message. Actually the error message was, "Qmaster file agent not found." First time I've seen that excuse not to work.
After spending 20 minutes trying to suss out the issue and running through the usual methods for troubleshooting - including using Digital Rebellions' Compressor Repair - I finally gave up and fired up Adobe Media Encoder and "got 'r done". What a relief. Remember those old Apple ads for Macintosh, "It just works." ? That's what can be said for AME.
In another post I did a comparison between Adobe Media Encoder and Compressor and the results were fanatasic, both in speed benefits and quality.
So why even bother with Compressor at this point? Eh, force of habit and I simply wanted to compare H.264 encodes for BR and see what the differences were. But since Compressor decided to take a nap, that just wasn't possible!
Adobe offers AME as a download on it's website however, it's not clear if you can use it *without* Premiere Pro also being installed or not. It's worth trying if you can't get Compressor to play nice.
Reviews for Professional Editors, Producers, Camera Operators and anyone involved in the commercial filmmaking community. Often you'll find some stuff not related to filmmaking... but fun anyway.
Jul 23, 2012
Bias Inc gone!
If you're a user of Bias Peak, Peak Pro, Deck or any other audio-editing software created by Bias Inc, you're out of luck with future support: The company has ceased operations.
And what's worse is that nobody picked up their product lines, not Avid, Apple, Microsoft... nobody. The entire Bias product line is just dead.
If you've already purchased the software fear not, it will keep working presumably forever or, until you upgrade your system to the point that the software is no longer compatible, but if you've only gotten a trial version there's no real way to make it a full version now. Not unless you're willing to hack into it with some code-monkey wrangling that I'm sure people on the internet are offering.
I don't know the circumstances surrounding the companies demise but they never were that great when it came to customer support and some of their products really needed a serious re-vamp, such as Deck, which went virtually unchanged for years.
So what are your options for products similar to the now defunct Bias offerings? To be honest I'm not sure myself. Adobe has a few audio editing offerings, as does Avid and a few others, but an exact replacement for Peak or Deck? I just don't know.
I've been using Peak for years, ever since version 4 and don't have plans to replace it with anything since it does it's job quite well, but at some point I'll have to invest in something that has support!
FYI to the community.
And what's worse is that nobody picked up their product lines, not Avid, Apple, Microsoft... nobody. The entire Bias product line is just dead.
If you've already purchased the software fear not, it will keep working presumably forever or, until you upgrade your system to the point that the software is no longer compatible, but if you've only gotten a trial version there's no real way to make it a full version now. Not unless you're willing to hack into it with some code-monkey wrangling that I'm sure people on the internet are offering.
I don't know the circumstances surrounding the companies demise but they never were that great when it came to customer support and some of their products really needed a serious re-vamp, such as Deck, which went virtually unchanged for years.
So what are your options for products similar to the now defunct Bias offerings? To be honest I'm not sure myself. Adobe has a few audio editing offerings, as does Avid and a few others, but an exact replacement for Peak or Deck? I just don't know.
I've been using Peak for years, ever since version 4 and don't have plans to replace it with anything since it does it's job quite well, but at some point I'll have to invest in something that has support!
FYI to the community.
Jul 1, 2012
VirtualPilot3D: A repackaged flight-sim scam - again!
Not long ago I published an article about "Pro Flight Simulator", and that it is a full-on scam to swindle you out of your hard-earned cash (see post for details).
Now it appears the same people who created PFS have re-named their high-gloss, flight simulator scam into "Virtual Pilot 3D" with a new website. Apparently there's big profit in scamming flight-sim enthusiasts into purchasing what you can actually get for FREE, otherwise there wouldn't be this refresh of an old scam.
If I had the time and money I'd make it a point to legally go after these f****rs and shut them down. No, it's not like they're cheating the elderly out of their healthcare funds or abusing little children, but the blatant and rampant attempt to sell their re-packaged crap is offensive, nonetheless.
If you believe their hype, they make it appear that you'd be purchasing the "Mercedes Benz" of flight-sim software, but in fact all you'd end up with is a Mecury Merkur, with all the warts and failures.
For those unfamiliar with the original Pro Flight Simulator scam: It's a retail packaging of FREE software called, "Flight Gear", which has been around for years and is open-source. The only difference between FG and PFS - and now VirtualPilot3D - is that they compiled all this free data into a self-installing routine, rather than you having to manually bind and install the Flight Gear data yourself.
And for this "favor" of creating an installer, you can throw out the window as little as $67 dollars on "special" or, if your money is just burning a hole in your wallet you can give them as much as $120 - and more! All for a product that is and has been 100% free!
By contrast, the GOLD version of Microsoft Flight Simulator X (FSX) which includes the Acceleration Pack is now avaialble for direct download for less than $30. And you can still purchase the DVD set for less than $19 at some retailers.
And as far as I'm concerned, FSX is still the undisputed king of flight-simulation software. And yes, that's includind comparing it to the recently released Aerofly FS, Microsoft Flight, and X-Plane 10. And for those who wish to debate that assessment, save it for another thread; this topic is about helping people from throwing away their money.
If you're into or curious about flight-sim software, don't get hooked by the ultra-glossy campaign for either Pro Flight Simulator or, VirtualPilot3D. They're both scams, both software packages are actually available for free AND, they don't compare to what FSX has to offer. Not even close.
Now it appears the same people who created PFS have re-named their high-gloss, flight simulator scam into "Virtual Pilot 3D" with a new website. Apparently there's big profit in scamming flight-sim enthusiasts into purchasing what you can actually get for FREE, otherwise there wouldn't be this refresh of an old scam.
If I had the time and money I'd make it a point to legally go after these f****rs and shut them down. No, it's not like they're cheating the elderly out of their healthcare funds or abusing little children, but the blatant and rampant attempt to sell their re-packaged crap is offensive, nonetheless.
If you believe their hype, they make it appear that you'd be purchasing the "Mercedes Benz" of flight-sim software, but in fact all you'd end up with is a Mecury Merkur, with all the warts and failures.
For those unfamiliar with the original Pro Flight Simulator scam: It's a retail packaging of FREE software called, "Flight Gear", which has been around for years and is open-source. The only difference between FG and PFS - and now VirtualPilot3D - is that they compiled all this free data into a self-installing routine, rather than you having to manually bind and install the Flight Gear data yourself.
And for this "favor" of creating an installer, you can throw out the window as little as $67 dollars on "special" or, if your money is just burning a hole in your wallet you can give them as much as $120 - and more! All for a product that is and has been 100% free!
By contrast, the GOLD version of Microsoft Flight Simulator X (FSX) which includes the Acceleration Pack is now avaialble for direct download for less than $30. And you can still purchase the DVD set for less than $19 at some retailers.
And as far as I'm concerned, FSX is still the undisputed king of flight-simulation software. And yes, that's includind comparing it to the recently released Aerofly FS, Microsoft Flight, and X-Plane 10. And for those who wish to debate that assessment, save it for another thread; this topic is about helping people from throwing away their money.
If you're into or curious about flight-sim software, don't get hooked by the ultra-glossy campaign for either Pro Flight Simulator or, VirtualPilot3D. They're both scams, both software packages are actually available for free AND, they don't compare to what FSX has to offer. Not even close.
Jun 11, 2012
As close to Top Gun as it gets. Again.
That's yours truly grinning like a 12-year old with a new toy.
I sure wish you could manually control exposure on the iPhone like a 'Droid. Eh, whatya gonna do...
(Here's a link to a video shot a few years ago of us starting up this old bird: http://youtu.be/vdDoKosn-88)
Anyway, we were out there again yesterday with another engine run-up, no flying unfortunately, not even a fast-taxi down the runway to fire up the afterburner. But it was fun hearing the howl of that old J-79 engine and sitting the cockpit dreaming that one day we'll get this thing airborne again.
Here's the view forward from the front seat:
That's a P2 Neptune being used for fire-bombing sitting in front of us and. You can see the long pitot tube with a tennis-ball on the end of it pointing at the red air compressor.
If cars were built was robustly as this 1960's fighter the only things that would wear out would be tires, brakes and rubber parts. This thing is a tank with wings.
Mar 5, 2012
Microsoft Flight: Review
Many of you know that one of my passions is for flight, and one of my hobbies is playing Microsoft Flight Simulator X or, "FSX" as flight-simmers refer to it.
Back during the '08 recession (which we're still not out the woods from yet) Microsoft announced that the ACES Studio which created FS9 and FSX was being shut down. Then a year later word came that another division of ACES was being revitalized and a new version of FSX was in the works. Suffice it to say everyone in the flight-sim community was abuzz and waiting to see what MS would offer us.
As of February 29th the wait is over and we now have "Microsoft Flight" as the supposed FSX replacement. I can sum up the review of this new sim with one word: Crap.
What MS has done to the venerable FSX platform is nothing short of despicable. This new "Flight" simulation should have the word "simulation" stripped from it's genre, as this is much more game-like than a simulation. So what's wrong with Microsoft Flight? Here's a simple breakdown list of some of the most obvious problems:
1. All that is available to fly around in is the Hawaiian Islands - and to get full access to all the areas and features you have to pay $60 bucks! You can buy a "gold" copy of FSX (which now comes with the Acceleration pack built-in) for less than $30 dollars and you get THE ENTIRE PLANET!
2. Only 2 aircraft readily available; a few others you have to purchase. FSX planes are NOT compatible with this sim and there's no method to install third-party add-ons - yet.
3. No tower view!! Huh?
4. You're forced to start off with "lessons" on how to fly one plane; to gain access to other planes/areas to have to pass more "lessons".
5. Aircraft graphics seem to be OK, but terrain is just fair, even on high settings. Add-on packs for FSX blow Flight away by a far margin.
I could go on with pages of rants about why this new sim really isn't a sim anymore, and die-hard FSX fans - and even student pilots will be severely disappointed in this new release from MS.
The king of the hill has been and still is FSX. I seriously doubt MS will take notice of all the poor reviews MS Flight is getting and retool this game back into the King of Flight Simulation that it's been for decades, but for now if you're into FSX then stick with it.
On another related note: Ikarus has created a new flight-sim of it's own, based around it's years of experience with radio-control PC-based trainers (they use the radio transmitter hooked up to your PC to control a virtual RC model). It's called, Aerofly FS and while it's just been released in the EU it's not available in the USA just yet. But, the graphics capabilities of this sim would easily outpace both FSX and MS Flight, so that's worth watching for.
Back during the '08 recession (which we're still not out the woods from yet) Microsoft announced that the ACES Studio which created FS9 and FSX was being shut down. Then a year later word came that another division of ACES was being revitalized and a new version of FSX was in the works. Suffice it to say everyone in the flight-sim community was abuzz and waiting to see what MS would offer us.
As of February 29th the wait is over and we now have "Microsoft Flight" as the supposed FSX replacement. I can sum up the review of this new sim with one word: Crap.
What MS has done to the venerable FSX platform is nothing short of despicable. This new "Flight" simulation should have the word "simulation" stripped from it's genre, as this is much more game-like than a simulation. So what's wrong with Microsoft Flight? Here's a simple breakdown list of some of the most obvious problems:
1. All that is available to fly around in is the Hawaiian Islands - and to get full access to all the areas and features you have to pay $60 bucks! You can buy a "gold" copy of FSX (which now comes with the Acceleration pack built-in) for less than $30 dollars and you get THE ENTIRE PLANET!
2. Only 2 aircraft readily available; a few others you have to purchase. FSX planes are NOT compatible with this sim and there's no method to install third-party add-ons - yet.
3. No tower view!! Huh?
4. You're forced to start off with "lessons" on how to fly one plane; to gain access to other planes/areas to have to pass more "lessons".
5. Aircraft graphics seem to be OK, but terrain is just fair, even on high settings. Add-on packs for FSX blow Flight away by a far margin.
I could go on with pages of rants about why this new sim really isn't a sim anymore, and die-hard FSX fans - and even student pilots will be severely disappointed in this new release from MS.
The king of the hill has been and still is FSX. I seriously doubt MS will take notice of all the poor reviews MS Flight is getting and retool this game back into the King of Flight Simulation that it's been for decades, but for now if you're into FSX then stick with it.
On another related note: Ikarus has created a new flight-sim of it's own, based around it's years of experience with radio-control PC-based trainers (they use the radio transmitter hooked up to your PC to control a virtual RC model). It's called, Aerofly FS and while it's just been released in the EU it's not available in the USA just yet. But, the graphics capabilities of this sim would easily outpace both FSX and MS Flight, so that's worth watching for.
Dec 30, 2011
HVX200 Color Test - Again!
This was a camera test I created to show just how gorgeous the little Panasonic could look if you dug deep into camera settings to make it more "film like".
Obviously this camera has been succeeded by the HVX200A and HPX170 and of course the newer crop of AVCHD-based cameras such as the AF100 and F3 however, it still amazes me how good this "older" camera still makes images - and it's newer brother the HPX170 is even better.
And personally, I still prefer the P2 cams 422 color space and global shutter to any flavor of 4.2.0 AVCHD and it's associated rolling-shutter issues.
So while the HVX200 is old tech now, it's always good to know that any professional camera can be tweaked to create almost any "look", if you know what you're doing.
Enjoy this blast from the past:
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