Pinnacle Systems DS Nitris - 7.0.1 User Manual

™

Avid® DS Nitris

Getting Started Guide

Version 7.01

make manage move | media

™

Avid

®

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Copyright and Disclaimer

Product specifications are subject to change without notice and do not represent a commitment on the part
of Avid Technology, Inc. The software described in this document is furnished under a license agreement.
You can obtain a copy of that license by visiting Avid's Web site at www.avid.com. The terms of that license
are also available in the product in the same directory as the software. The software may not be reverse
assembled and may be used or copied only in accordance with the terms of the license agreement. It is
against the law to copy the software on any medium except as specifically allowed in the license
agreement.

No part of this document may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or
mechanical, including photocopying and recording, for any purpose without the express written permission
of Avid Technology, Inc.

Copyright © 2003 Avid Technology, Inc. and its licensors. All rights reserved. Printed in USA.

The Avid DS and Avid DS Nitris application uses JScript and Visual Basic Scripting Edition from Microsoft
Corporation.

Attn. Government User(s). Restricted Rights Legend

U.S. GOVERNMENT RESTRICTED RIGHTS. This Software and its documentation are “commercial
computer software” or “commercial computer software documentation.” In the event that such Software or
documentation is acquired by or on behalf of a unit or agency of the U.S. Government, all rights with
respect to this Software and documentation are subject to the terms of the License Agreement, pursuant to
FAR §12.212(a) and/or DFARS §227.7202-1(a), as applicable.

Trademarks

888 I/O, Adrenaline, AirPlay, AirSPACE, AirSPACE HD, AniMatte, AudioSuite, AudioVision, AutoSync, Avid,
Avid DNA, AVIDdrive, AVIDdrive Towers, AvidNet, AvidNetwork, AVIDstripe, Avid Mojo, Avid Unity,
Avid Xpress, AVoption, AVX, CamCutter, ChromaCurve, ChromaWheel, DAE, D-Fi, D-fx, Digidesign,
Digidesign Audio Engine, Digidesign Intelligent Noise Reduction, DigiDrive, Digital Nonlinear Accelerator,
DigiTranslator, DINR, D-Verb, Equinox, ExpertRender, FieldPak, Film Composer, FilmScribe, FluidMotion,
HIIP, HyperSPACE, HyperSPACE HDCAM, IllusionFX, Image Independence, Intraframe, iS9, iS18, iS23,
iS36, Lo-Fi, Magic Mask, make manage move | media, Marquee, Matador, Maxim, MCXpress,
Media Composer, MediaDock, MediaDock Shuttle, Media Fusion, Media Illusion, MediaLog, Media Reader,
Media Recorder, MEDIArray, MediaShare, Meridien, MetaSync, NaturalMatch, Nearchive, NetReview,
NewsCutter, Nitris, OMF, OMF Interchange, OMM, Open Media Framework, Open Media Management,
ProEncode, Pro Tools, QuietDrive, Recti-Fi, RetroLoop, rS9, rS18, Sci-Fi, Softimage, Sound Designer II,
SPACE, SPACEShift, Symphony, the Avid|DS logo, Trilligent, UnityRAID, Vari-Fi, Video Slave Driver,
VideoSPACE, Xdeck, and XSI are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Avid Technology, Inc. in
the United States and/or other countries.

All other trademarks contained herein are the property of their respective owners.

GOT FOOTAGE?

Editors — Filmmakers — Special Effects Artists — Game Developers — Animators — Educators —
Broadcasters — Content creators of every genre — Just finished an incredible project and want to
share it with the world?

Send us your reels and we may use your footage in our show reel or demo!*

For a copy of our release and Avid’s mailing address, go to www.avid.com/footage.

*Note: Avid cannot guarantee the use of materials submitted.

Avid DS Nitris Getting Started Guide • 0130-05573-01 • October 2003 • Rev B.

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Contents

Using This Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Who Should Use This Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Symbols and Conventions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Using the Mouse, Pen, and Keyboard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Customizing the Pen or Mouse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

If You Need Help . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Accessing the Online Documentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

If You Have Documentation Comments. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

How to Order Documentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Avid Educational Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Avid DS Customer Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

E-mail Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Web Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

FTP Support. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Mailing List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Chapter 1 Main Topics: Starting a Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

The Digital Post-Production Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Logging on to Your Workstation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Starting Avid DS Nitris . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Working with Project Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Creating a New Project. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Chapter 2 Main Topics: Capturing Material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Capturing Source Material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

The Avid Explorer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

Creating Bins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Configuring the External Device . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Capturing from Tape. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Capturing from File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

Changing Bin Views. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

Identifying File Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

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Logging and Capturing from File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Chapter 3 Main Topics: Conforming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Methods for Conforming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Conforming with AFE Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Creating AFE Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Importing AFE Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Re-creating the Sequence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

Chapter 4 Main Topics: Getting Ready to Edit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

Editing Layout . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

Previewing Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

Using J-K-L Keys for Three-Button Play. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

Using the Transport Controls for Previewing Clips. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

Marking In and Out-Points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

Creating Subclips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

Chapter 5 Main Topics: Creating a First Cut. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

The Timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

Navigating in the Timeline. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

Using the Scale Bar and Scroll Bar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

Selecting Objects on the Timeline. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

Marking In and Out-Points on the Timeline. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

Placing Clips on the Timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

Dragging and Dropping Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

Inserting Clips. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

Overwriting Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

Replacing Clips. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

Chapter 6 Main Topics: Refining the Edit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65

Rearranging Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

Removing Clips from the Timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

Copying Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

Trimming Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

Using Trim Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

Using Ripple Mode When Trimming Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

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Chapter 7 Main Topics: Working with Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

The Effects Library . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

Effect Bar Colors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

Applying Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76

Applying Effects to Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

Applying Effects to Tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78

Applying Effects to the Timeline Effect Track . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80

Applying Transition Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82

Creating Clips with Source Generator Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82

Applying Effects to the Effects Tree. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84

Applying Audio Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84

The Effects Layout . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87

Using the Viewers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90

Editing Effects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93

Selecting Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93

Adjusting Effect Properties. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94

Moving Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95

Copying Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95

Reordering Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97

Viewing Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98

Bypassing Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99

Trimming Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100

Adjusting Effect Lengths . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103

Loading Other Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103

Saving Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105

Replacing Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107

Deleting Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110

Animating Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112

Mix Parameter for Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114

Mixing Effects to the Input . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114

Mixing Effects to Color . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114

Chapter 8 Main Topics: Processing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117

Processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118

How Do I Process?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121

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Chapter 9 Main Topics: Adding Graphics and 2D Titles . . . . . . . . . . . . 123

Starting a Graphics Session . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124

The Graphics Combo View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125

The Graphics Layout. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126

Using the Graphics Object View (GOV) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129

Using the Graphics Property Tree . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129

Setting the Drawing Tool Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131

Displaying the Safe/Action Title Guides . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132

Defining Color . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133

Creating Graphics and Titles. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134

Changing the Properties of Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135

Finishing a Graphics Session . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136

Chapter 10 Main Topics: Compositing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139

Choosing a Compositing Method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140

Simple Track-based Compositing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140

Compositing with Layers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142

Chapter 11 Main Topics: Outputting a Sequence. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151

Outputting to Tape . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152

Outputting to File. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154

Appendix A Main Topics: Working on the Desktop. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157

Layouts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158

Accessing the Default Layouts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161

Accessing the Alternate Layouts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162

Creating a New Layout . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162

Copying Layouts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164

Saving Layouts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165

Editing Existing Layouts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165

Restoring Default Layouts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166

Importing a Layout . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167

Title Bar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167

Using the Menus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168

Undoing and Redoing Actions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169

8

Status Bar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 170

Using the Views . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171

View Switcher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172

Splitting Views . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174

Using the Toolbars . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176

Customizing Toolbars . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176

Creating and Deleting Toolbars . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179

Property Editors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180

Dialog Boxes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182

Entering Values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183

Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185

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10

Using This Guide

Congratulations on your purchase of an Avid DS Nitris system. You can
use your system to create broadcast-quality output incorporating every
possible production element from full-speed, high-resolution footage, to
multimedia artwork and animation, to computer-generated effects and
titling.

n

The documentation describes the features and hardware of all models.
Therefore, your system might not contain certain features and hardware
that are covered in the documentation.

Who Should Use This Guide

This guide is intended for users who are new to Avid DS Nitris. This guide
provides basic information on how to create a project from start to finish.
You’ll learn how to capture media, edit clips and sequences, add titles,
composite clips, add effects, and process the project for output.

Using This Guide

Symbols and Conventions

Avid DS Nitris documentation uses the following symbols and
conventions:

Symbol or Convention Meaning or Action

n

c

w

> This symbol indicates menu commands (and

t

Margin tips In the margin, you will find tips that help you perform

Italic font Italic font is used to emphasize certain words and to

A note provides important related information,
reminders, recommendations, and strong suggestions.

A caution means that a specific action you take could
cause harm to your computer or cause you to lose
data.

A warning describes an action that could cause you
physical harm. Follow the guidelines in this
document or on the unit itself when handling
electrical equipment.

subcommands) in the order you select them. For
example, File > Import means to open the File menu
and then select the Import command.

This symbol indicates a single-step procedure.
Multiple arrows in a list indicate that you perform
one of the actions listed.

tasks more easily and efficiently.

indicate variables.

12

Courier Bold font

Bold font Bold indicates a user interaction.

Courier Bold font identifies text that you type.

Using the Mouse, Pen, and Keyboard

In Avid DS Nitris, you can use a two-button mouse (with wheel) or a pen
and tablet. The left and right mouse buttons perform different operations.
Unless otherwise stated, use the left mouse button.

The mouse and pen operate slightly differently. All the procedures in this
guide are documented for the mouse. You can, however, easily use a pen or
the keyboard. The following table shows the terms relating to the mouse,
pen, and keyboard.

This Term Means This with a Mouse Means This with a Pen

Symbols and Conventions

Click Quickly click and release the

left mouse button. Always use
the left mouse button unless
otherwise stated.

Double-click Click the left mouse button

twice rapidly.

Right-click Quickly click and release the

right mouse button.

Drag Click and hold the left mouse

button or the wheel while you
move the mouse.

Alt+key,
Ctrl+key,
Shift+key,

etc.

Press and hold the first key while you press the second key. For
example, “Press Alt+F1” means to press and hold the Alt key
while you press the F1 key.

Tap the tablet once with the tip of
the pen, or touch the pen to the
tablet with enough pressure to
click.

Quickly tap the tablet twice in the
same screen pixel or press the F5
key to go from single to double­click.

Press the top portion of the switch
on the side of the pen or press the
F6 key to go from left to right­click.

Press the pen to the tablet while
moving the pen.

13

Using This Guide

Customizing the Pen or Mouse

By customizing the pen, you can adjust the click pressure, switch
functions, and other features. For information on customizing the pen,
refer to the documentation provided with your Avid DS system.

You can also customize the mouse. For example, you can select left­handed configuration or change the double-click speed. For information on
customizing the mouse, refer to the Windows online Help.

If You Need Help

If you are having trouble using Avid DS:

1. Retry the action, carefully following the instructions given for that task
in this guide. It is especially important to check each step of your
workflow.

2. Check for the latest information that might have become available
after the documentation was published in one of two locations:

- If release notes are available, they ship with your application.

- If ReadMe files are available, they are supplied in your Avid

application folder. ReadMe files are also available from Help.

3. Check the documentation that came with your Avid application or your
hardware for maintenance or hardware-related issues.

4. See “Avid DS Customer Support” on page 16.

5. For Technical Support, please call 800-800-AVID (800-800-2843).
For international enquiries and support services, contact your local
Avid Reseller. Support offerings may vary per location.

Accessing the Online Documentation

The online library contains all the Avid DS documentation in PDF format.
If it was installed on your workstation, you can access it from the Help
menu in Avid DS.

14

If You Need Help

n

You will need to install Adobe® Acrobat® Reader® to view the online
documentation.

To access the online library, do one of the following:

t In Avid DS, select Help > Online Library.
t Insert the Software CD or the Drivers CD into your CD-ROM drive,

and select Online Library from the main menu.

To install Adobe Acrobat Reader:

1. Insert the Drivers CD into your CD-ROM drive.

2. Select the required workstation and choose Utilities.

If You Have Documentation Comments

We’d appreciate any comments or suggestions you may have about the
Avid DS documentation.

Please e-mail your documentation comments to:

[e-mail]

Include the title of the document, its part number, and the specific section
you are commenting on in all correspondence.

How to Order Documentation

To order additional copies of this documentation from within the
United States, call Avid Sales at 800-949-AVID (800-949-2843). If you are
placing an order from outside the United States, contact your local
Avid representative.

Avid Educational Services

For information on courses/schedules, training centers, certifications,
courseware, and books, please visit www.avid.com/training or call
Avid Sales at 800-949-AVID (800-949-2843).

15

Using This Guide

Avid DS Customer Support

The following sections describe various Avid DS Customer Support
options.

E-mail Support

The e-mail address for Avid DS Customer Support is:
[e-mail].

You can use it for sending bug reports, usability questions, and avidds.cab
audit reports for system analysis. All e-mails are logged in the support
database and assigned a case number. Send one support request per e-mail.

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Web Support

FTP Support

It is mandatory that you include your SID number in the body of your
e-mail message for verification of your maintenance contract and case
logging, otherwise, response will be delayed.

The Avid DS Customer Support and Download sections at

http://www.softimage.com/avidds provide quick access to a wide range of

resources from the Avid DS teams and user community. Downloads,
including presets, drivers, and Quick Fix Engineering (QFE), provide the
latest solutions for use with your Avid DS system. Online documentation,
tutorials, and Knowledge Base articles ensure that you get the most out of
your work with Avid DS. It's like having a dedicated Avid DS Customer
Support engineer sitting at your desk!

For troubleshooting purposes, an FTP server is available for uploading
large files for Avid DS Customer Support personnel to examine. You can
upload a project's archive, media files, or other large piece of data. Simply
zip the files to upload and use a short name for easy retrieval, such as
archive.zip or Case274877.zip. You can use a Windows Command Prompt
or an FTP application to upload files to our server.

16

Avid DS Customer Support

Command Prompt Commands

Command Description

Site access ftp ftp.softimage.com [Enter]

Folder access cd incoming [Enter]

User name anonymous [Enter]

Password “your e-mail address” [Enter]

Transfer mode bin [Enter]

Upload command Put “path:\file name” [Enter]

Once the file upload is complete, send an e-mail to [e-mail]
to inform Avid DS Customer Support as there is no automatic notification
when a file is uploaded on the FTP server. Please provide the complete and
exact file name (case sensitive) to retrieve.

Mailing List

Although the Avid DS mailing list is frequently monitored by Avid
employees, it is not part of the official support channels. You are invited to
send your support requests to any of the above channels when required.

If you have an e-mail account, you can join the worldwide network of Avid
DS users exchanging ideas. The mailing list has proven to be quite useful
for users, with a constant stream of new subscribers.

To subscribe, send an e-mail to [e-mail] with the
following text in the body of your message: subscribe ds. You can get
further information on using the automated list server by e-mailing
[e-mail] with “help” as your message.

You can also go to http://www.avid.com/support/forums.html, which is
another great source of info on the Avid web site for Avid DS.

17

Using This Guide

18

Chapter 1

Starting a Project

This chapter introduces you to the Avid DS Nitris post-production process.
You will learn how to start Avid DS Nitris and create a new project.

Starting a Project

The Digital Post-Production Process

Since Avid DS Nitris is a digital, nonlinear, post-production environment,
you no longer have to mount, shuttle through, and cue tapes every time you
want to access parts of the footage.

Once you’ve converted the footage into a digital format and stored it on a
storage disk, Avid DS Nitris gives you complete, random access to the
media with instantaneous retrieval of clips and sequences. You also have
quick, nonlinear access to any part of your sequence, and the ability to
apply a wide variety of digital effects at any stage of your production.

Each post-production facility has its own way of doing things, and every
post-production job is unique. You can use different tools and techniques
to accomplish your jobs—import sequences “offlined” on other systems
and proceed with your finishing in Avid DS Nitris, or build a full editorial
from start to end directly in Avid DS Nitris, using full resolution,
uncompressed media!

20

After your job is complete, you can neatly package all of its media and
files, making space for your next job. If you need to, you can always
restore the job at any time.

In Avid DS Nitris, everything that you do to your clips is non-destructive,
and can be edited and reconstructed at any time. This is because of the way
Avid DS Nitris was designed; its integrated environment allow a seamless
workflow between editing, compositing, graphics design, and audio.

The following illustration shows you the complete Avid DS Nitris
production cycle, and how Avid DS Nitris adds flexibility and creative
independence to the post-production process.

2

“Offline” edit

Create a rough cut of key clips and
decide timing of cuts and
transitions.

If offlined externally, load AAF, AFE,
OMF files or EDLs, and digitize
material from file, tape, or audio.

The Digital Post-Production Process

Redigitize source
material in full,
uncompressed
resolution from
file or tape.

1

Capture material

Digitize source material at
low resolution directly from
file or tape.

7

Archive the project

- Archive project and/or media to tape.

- Project and media can be restored at
any time.

6

Output media

Output sequence to tape or
file, such as .avi.

3

Fine-tune edit

Fine-tune timing of cuts,
transitions, and other effects.

4

Apply effects

- Create composites.

- Add 2D and 3D effects.

- Mix and sweeten audio.

- Add titles and graphics.

- Perform dust/scratch
removal and color correction.

Continuous process

5

Process

Process all effects applied to
clips and create new media
files (source media remains
untouched).

21

Starting a Project

Logging on to Your Workstation

Before you start Avid DS Nitris, you must log on to your workstation with
your Windows user identification (ID) and password. This provides
security, as well as your personal preference settings.

Since many users can work on the same workstation at different times, the
Windows ID gives you a unique profile, so as not to conflict with the
settings of other users. When you run Avid DS Nitris, you are accessing an
environment that can be customized to your needs. If you set any personal
or project preferences while logged on, Avid DS Nitris saves them to your
user profile. The next time you log on to that workstation, it recalls your
previous settings.

To log on to your workstation:

1. When the Welcome to Windows dialog box is displayed, press
Ctrl+Alt+Delete.

2. In the Log On to Windows dialog box, enter your user name and
password.

3. Click OK.
Once you have logged on to Windows, you can access your

applications and files.

Starting Avid DS Nitris

To start Avid DS Nitris, do one of the following:

t Double-click the Avid DS Nitris v7.x icon on the Windows desktop.
t Select Start > Programs > Avid Products > Avid DS Nitris v7.x >

Avid DS Nitris v7.x.
The Open Project dialog box opens. You can now open an existing

project and sequence or create a new one.

22

To exit Avid DS Nitris, do one of the following:

t Select File > Exit.
t Click the X (close) button at the top-right corner of the title bar.
t Press Alt+F4.

When you exit Avid DS Nitris, any changes that you made to the
desktop layout or user preferences are saved with your user profile and
recalled the next time you log on to the workstation.

Working with Project Files

A project is the all encompassing structure for your work; it links and
tracks the master clips and sequences with their associated media, making
your file management tasks easier.

Projects contain
master clips,
sequences, and any
special presets and/or
scripts you create.

Working with Project Files

Sequence files
contain information
about your edit
decisions, composites,
and any effects you’ve
applied to your clips.

When working with several digitized video and audio files, it is important
to understand how Avid DS Nitris handles your data, so that you can work
efficiently.

Master clips are
representations of the
digitized media stored
on your disk array.

Master clips can be
shared between
sequences within the
same project.

23

Starting a Project

When you capture material, the media is stored on the disk array, and the
master files (known as master clips) representing this media are stored in
the project folder on your workstation’s local disk drive. You can see these
clips in the Avid Explorer. Master clips contain information about the
location and source timecodes of the corresponding media on the
disk array.

When you place clips on the timeline to build your sequence, they maintain
pointers to the source media on your storage disk. Any edits or effects that
you apply to the clips are noted in the sequence file. Clips, sequences, and
presets are all considered project files, which should be stored in the
project folder. That way, you can archive, restore, and/or purge all files
related to a project when required.

When you archive your project, a copy of the media is saved to tape or
external disk and the project files are saved in another location. With the
archived project files and associated media, you can reconstruct everything
in your project when necessary.

Creating a New Project

As soon as you start Avid DS Nitris, you are prompted to open or create a
project and sequence.

When you create a project, you define the format for all your sequences.
Once you set them, they’re applied to each sequence you create in the
current project. These preferences can later be changed for each sequence.

n

24

You can also change your video and audio quality settings during the
course of your work according to the amount of storage space that you
have. For example, if you want to conserve disk space, you can do your
rough cut on material captured at low resolution or in compressed form.
When your sequence is ready for finishing, you can redigitize a specific
clip, so that you can work at the quality at which you will be outputting.

3

Choose a
video format.

The frame
details are
usually set
automatically.

Creating a New Project

To create a new project:

Do one of the following:
t If the Open Project dialog box is open, click the New Project button.

The New Project dialog box displays for you to set your project
preferences.

t If you are in another project or sequence, select File > Open >

Project.

Type in your project name.

2

4

Set the
resolution, bit
depth, and
compression
for your video
media.

5

Set the
sample rate
and bit depth
for your audio
media.

Save project

7

preferences.

Click here for more

6

information on setting all
the preferences in this
dialog.

After saving your preferences, a new sequence is opened and the Editing
layout is displayed for you to start building your sequence.

25

Starting a Project

26

Chapter 2

Capturing Material

Capturing material is the process of creating media files from video or
audio source material. Avid DS Nitris can capture material from a variety
of different sources, such as videotape, audiotape, and file.

Capturing Material

Capturing Source Material

Source material is the original, unaltered material from videotapes or
digital recordings. This source material comes from a variety of sources,
such as video, audio, animated sequences, graphics, and still images. When
you capture material with Avid DS Nitris, you are digitally transferring
audio or video material from an external device to a disk array on
your workstation.

During capture, Avid DS Nitris creates media files, based on the
parameters you have set, such as in-points, out-points, and compression.
These media files are displayed as master clips in an Avid Explorer bin.
Master clips contain information such as the location of the media on your
disk array, the source data’s tape name, and original in and out timecodes.
With this information, you can recapture the material at any time. Master
clips also include information about the video format, resolution,
compression, audio format, and so on.

The Avid Explorer

28

The Avid Explorer lets you view and organize clips, sequences, and effects
within a hierarchy of folders. Avid Explorer folders are displayed as bins.
The master clips you capture and the sequences you create appear in bins.

To access the Avid Explorer:

t From the view switcher, click the Avid Explorer (Main) button.

Avid Explorer tools let you control the content
and arrangement of the Explorer window and bins.
They also let you perform tasks for bins and views.

Panels
display the
contents of
your system in
a tree
structure. A
panel can
display one of
three views:
My System,
Project, or
Shortcuts.

Capturing Source Material

Bins display clips, sequences and the contents of folders.

Bin views include large icons, list,

details, thumbnail, and script views.

View Switcher

Avid Explorer button.

Bins contain source clips and other objects for use in your sequence. The
Avid Explorer tools let you navigate through and manage the contents of
your bins.

The tools that appear on the top toolbar let you navigate to different bins
and change the display of information within the bin.

29

Capturing Material

Show/Hide Panel 1

Show/Hide Panel 2

Cascade

Capture Settings

Paste

Path

Tile

Creating Bins

Back

Forward

Up

Copy

Cut

Delete

Settings

Sifting

Locate

Bin

For more information, click the Help button.

Before you start capturing material, create subfolders (bins) in your project
folder to hold your master clips. You may want to create separate folders
for your video clips, audio clips, still images, and even one for your custom
presets. You’ll find that creating subfolders helps organize your project, so
that you can locate files quickly and easily.

HelpAddress Bar

30

To create a folder:

1. In the Project view, select your project folder.
The contents of the folder are displayed on the right in a bin.

2. Right-click and empty area fo the bin and select New > Folder.