Making the Transition to Version 10

As we all know, there are advantages and disadvantages to any software upgrade, particularly when it is accompanied by hardware changes. Here at JAG, we upgraded from Avid Version 7.1 to 10.1. For those of you who are making a similar change, I’d like to offer some tips you might find useful.

The two most important new boxes are the expansion chassis and the breakout box (“BOB”). The chassis enables the system to accommodate more cards. The breakout box is the way you get audio and video into and out of the G4.

If the system starts having problems or is freezing, and a simple restart doesn’t help, reset everything by shutting down your computer, and powering down the external hardware for about 30 seconds. Then power up all the external devices and finally restart the Mac.

Another difference is that most peripheral devices, including the printer, zip drive, floppy drive and dongle, are attached to the computer via USB connections. The G4 has only two USB ports. To add more, you’ll use a hub. Older devices that require a serial connection have to be attached via a serial-to-USB adapter or with a card in the expansion chassis.

Figure 1. Use the Batch Import dialog box to import Version 7 audio files. You do not have to select each file individually. When you convert media for a group of clips in the same folder, they are automatically matched to clipnames.

If you have a problem with a device connected via USB, reset the connection by simply pulling out and re-inserting the device’s USB plug (USB devices are “hot-swappable”). If this doesn’t work, restart your system with the device unplugged, then plug it back in once the system is running.

We use two decks and choose between them with an A/B switch. We initially used a Keyspan serial-to-USB adapter, but conflicts often arose. We’ve now switched to a serial port card (still with the A/B switch) and have had no further problems.

One of the most common complaints about Version 10 has been the size of text and icons, especially on the source/record monitor. The program requires a resolution of at least 1024x768 for the right side, and in early 10.x releases, fonts were small enough to strain editors’ eyes. This has been improved a bit in 10.5. Buttons are now adjustable for size, color, shape and groupings, but some people still wish for bigger fonts. The resolution of the left monitor is more adjustable, but depending on your system, you may need a new cable or a new video card to make it look the way you want. If you choose a non-standard resolution, you’ll get a warning when you start the system, which you can ignore.

You can use Version 7 projects and bins in a Version 10 system, but video media is incompatible and has to be redigitized. Settings also have to be recreated. You can import audio media, which means that music or sound effects that were used on an old machine can be converted and linked to imported sequences.

This takes some planning. You’ll need to export your audio via OMF before getting rid of your old machine. Highlight the clips and select Export under the File menu. Save as Standard/AIFC/Audio Only/OMFI 1 (or 2). Be sure to check the “With Media” box.

The system can now convert audio media from one sample rate to another. Highlight the clips or sequences that need to be changed and select Change Sample Rate from the Clip menu. You can also do the conversion while importing. This can be a great timesaver, but be aware that sample rate conversion can reduce sound quality. Version 10 also allows you to mix and match sample rates in the same sequence via preview-quality, on-the-fly conversions, but we have not used this option (select “Always Convert Sample Rate When Playing” in the Audio Project settings).

For those of you who use the audio soloing key, it too has been enhanced. You can now solo multiple tracks, and you can solo video, as well. Command-click on a speaker icon in the timeline to play that track alone (the speaker turns green). Command-click on another track to play it together with a previously soloed track. Use the same technique for video tracks to isolate parts of an effect or superimposition. A single click on a soloed track returns it to normal.

It is now possible to drag and drop all sorts of things directly from the desktop to a bin without using the Import menu. Use this technique to quickly bring in sound effects or music from a CD, or to load ALE files from a floppy.

Locators have been changed in several ways. If you double-click on a locator in the Timeline or Source/Record windows, the locator window will open. This is now split into an upper pane that displays locators and information, and a lower pane where you add comments. Your cursor appears in the lower panel, and you can begin typing. When you are finished, click on the locator in the upper pane. Clicking elsewhere can sometimes cause your comment to disappear. You can now create multi-line comments: just hit enter to go to a new line. Locator comments can now be displayed in the EDL, and if you created a multi-line comment, that’s what you’ll get in the list. Be aware that once a locator is highlighted, no matter where you click next, the timeline will jump to that locator. This can be confusing, but we’ve found it useful, as well. When we make changes, we mark them with a locator and then navigate from change to change using the locator window. Another new feature allows you to choose which locator colors you want displayed in the timeline. Select the Show Locators sub-menu in the Timeline pop-up.

Clips can now be color-coded in the timeline. This can be a tremendous help in finding material in a complex sequence. Select a clip in a bin (the bin must be in text mode). Then choose Set Clip Color from the Edit menu and pick a color. Finally, choose Clip Color from the Timeline pop-up. If you select “Source,” every time you use the clip you colored in the bin, it will be shown in the color of your choice. Or you can choose “Offline,” which will cause all offline clips to appear in red. It’s now possible to easily verify that all your media files are on line before you output, something many assistants have needed for years.