Pinnacle Systems NewsCutter - 2.0 Getting Started Guide

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Avid® NewsCutter

Getting Started Guide

Release 2.0

tools for storytellers®

Avid NewsCutter Getting Started Guide • Part 0130-04672-01 Rev. A • November 2000

Chapter 1 Introduction

About NewsCutter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

NewsCutter Hardware. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Starting Your System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Starting NewsCutter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Electronic Licensing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

How to Proceed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Using Help. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Opening and Closing the Help System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Understanding the Topic Window. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Getting Help for Windows and Dialog Boxes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Getting Help for Screen Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Keeping Help Available. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Restoring Help from the Taskbar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Using Alt+Tab to Restore Help . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Finding Information Within the Help . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Using the Contents List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Using the Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Using the Search Feature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Using the Glossary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Creating a Favorites List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Using the Browse Buttons. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Printing Help Topics. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Using Online Documentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Chapter 2 About NewsCutter

Basic Editing Steps. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

Understanding the Pieces. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Organizing Your Work with Projects and Bins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

How Media Is Stored. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

The Attic Folder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Chapter 3 Starting Your Project

Starting NewsCutter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

Creating a User . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

Creating a Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Opening an Existing Project. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Understanding the Project Window. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Working with Bins. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Creating a Bin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

About Bin Views. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Text View. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Frame View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

Script View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Creating a Quick Transition Bin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

About Trash . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

Customizing Your Work Environment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

Mapping Keys and Buttons. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

Setting Up Workspaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

Chapter 4 Recording

Selecting Settings for Recording. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

The Record Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

The Audio Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

The Video Input Tool. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

Recording Preparations Check List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

Recording to the Timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

Recording and Logging at the Same Time. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

Recording On-the-Fly. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

Recording from an IN Point to an OUT Point. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65

Batch Recording . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

Rerecording a Sequence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

Chapter 5 Getting Ready to Edit

Using the Command Palette. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

Using the Tool Palette . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

Mapping Buttons to the Tool Palette. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

Mapping Menu Commands to the Tool Palette . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

Using the Keyboard Palette . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76

Mapping Buttons to the Keyboard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76

Mapping Menu Commands to the Keyboard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

Using W orkspaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78

Modifying Workspaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79

Controlling Playback. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80

Using Position Bars and Position Indicators. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80

Using Buttons. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81

The Play Button . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82

Step Buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83

Using Keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83

J-K-L Keys (Three-Button Play) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83

Home, End, and Arrow Keys. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

Using the Mouse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

Stepping with the Mouse. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

Shuttling with the Mouse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86

Marking IN and OUT Points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87

Creating Subclips. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87

Chapter 6 Creating a First Cut

Viewing Your Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90

Navigating in the Timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94

Using the Position Indicator. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94

Using the A and S keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95

Displaying More or Less Detail. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95

Using the Scroll Bar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96

Using the Track Selector Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96

Selecting Tracks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98

Patching Tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99

Monitoring Tracks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100

Making the First Edit. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101

Using Digital Audio Scrub . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101

Splicing-in Versus Overwriting Audio and Video. . . . . . . . . . 102

Splicing-in or Overwriting an Audio Clip. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103

Splicing or Overwriting Video into a Sequence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103

Marking Clips for Storyboarding. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105

Using the Go to IN and Go to OUT Buttons. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107

Moving to the Head or Tail of a Shot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107

Undoing an Edit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108

Redoing an Edit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108

Splicing a Shot into the Middle of a Sequence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109

Chapter 7 Refining the Edit

Editing in Segment Mode. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110

Guidelines for Editing in Segment Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111

Identifying Segment Mode Buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111

Rearranging Footage with Extract/Splice-in Mode. . . . . . . . . . 111

Removing Footage with Extract/Splice-in Mode . . . . . . . . . . . 112

Removing Footage with Lift/Overwrite Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112

Overwriting Shots into a Sequence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113

Rearranging Shots. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114

Overwriting with the Three-Point Edit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114

Removing Footage with Lift . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115

Basic Trim Procedures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116

Trim Using Top and Tail Buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116

Entering Trim Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117

Selecting Between Trim Sides . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119

Sync Locking Tracks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120

Performing a Basic Trim. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121

Dual-Roller Trimming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122

Single-Roller Trimming. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123

Exiting Trim Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124

Audio Editing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125

Adjusting Audio Level. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125

Adjusting Audio Pan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126

Chapter 8 Adding Effects

Effects Editing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129

Creating Motion Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130

Creating Freeze Frame Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130

Creating Variable Speed and Strobe Motion Effects. . . . . . . . 131

Displaying the Effect Palette . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131

Effect Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132

Transition Effects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132

Segment Effects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133

Applying Effects to a Sequence. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133

Working in Effect Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134

Adding Transition Effects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135

Adding Fade In . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135

Dissolving Between Shots. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136

Insufficient Footage for a Dissolve . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137

Creating Audio Dissolves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138

Adding a Fade Within the Sequence. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138

Creating a Quick Transition. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139

Adding Keyframes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140

Adding a Picture-in-Picture Effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140

Repositioning the Image . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143

Adjusting a Parameter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144

Dissolving the Picture-in-Picture On and Off. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145

Rendering an Effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147

Chapter 9 Creating Titles

Working with Titles. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149

Understanding the Title Tool Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150

Adding Text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151

Formatting Text in the Title Tool. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152

Selecting Objects in the Title Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153

Choosing Colors and Setting Transparency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154

Selecting a Color. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155

Creating a New Title . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156

Working with Title Templates. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157

Creating a Title Template. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157

Using a Title Template . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158

Editing a Title Template . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158

Removing a Title Template . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159

Repositioning Text and Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159

Applying a Color . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160

Applying a Shadow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160

Saving a Title. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161

Editing the Title into the Sequence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162

Editing an Existing Title . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163

Chapter 10 Output

Preparing for Output. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164

Preparing Tapes for Frame-Accurate Recording. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165

Previewing a Digital Cut . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166

Recording a Digital Cut to Tape . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168

Enabling VTR Play Emulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171

Chapter 11 Using the NRCS Tool

Opening the NRCS Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174

Understanding the NRCS Tool Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177

Opening a Story . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180

Editing a Story . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181

Formatting Text. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182

Removing the Text Format . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182

Adding a Production Cue. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183

Calculating the Read Time of a Story . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184

Adding the Story to a Sequence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185

Saving Changes to a Story . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186

Disconnecting from the Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187

Index

Figures

Figure 1-1 NewsCutter Hardware Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Figure 2-1 Project Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Figure 2-2 Bin Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Figure 3-1 Project Window — Bin View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Figure 3-2 Project Window — Settings View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

Figure 3-3 Project Window — Info View. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Figure 3-4 Bin Window — Text View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

Figure 3-5 Bin Window — Frame View. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Figure 3-6 Bin Window — Script View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

Figure 4-1 Record Tool. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

Figure 4-2 Audio Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

Figure 4-3 Video Input Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

Figure 5-1 Command Palette — Move Tab. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70

Figure 5-2 Command Palette — Play Tab. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

Figure 5-3 Command Palette — Edit Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

Figure 5-4 Command Palette — Trim Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

Figure 5-5 Command Palette — FX Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72

Figure 5-6 Command Palette — Other Tab. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72

Figure 5-7 Command Palette — More Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72

Figure 5-8 Default Tool Palette . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

Figure 5-9 NewsCutter Default Keyboard Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . 76

Figure 5-10 Record Monitor Position Bar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80

Figure 5-11 Source Monitor Position Bar. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81

Figure 5-12 Position Indicator in Timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81

Figure 6-1 Source Monitor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91

Figure 6-2 Record Monitor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92

Figure 6-3 Pop-up Monitor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93

Figure 6-4 Timeline Window. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94

Figure 6-5 Timeline Track Selector Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97

Figure 7-1 Trim Mode Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119

Figure 8-1 Effect Palette . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132

Figure 8-2 Effect Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134

Figure 8-3 Picture-in-Picture Effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142

Figure 8-4 Picture-in-Picture Effect with Softness . . . . . . . . . . . . 145

Figure 9-1 Title Tool Window. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151

Figure 9-2 Title Tool Color Picker. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155

Figure 11-1 NRCS Settings Dialog Box — NRCS Tab . . . . . . . . . . 174

Figure 11-2 NRCS Settings Dialog Box — iNEWS Tab . . . . . . . . . 175

Figure 11-3 NRCS Tool — Login Dialog Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176

Figure 11-4 NRCS Tool Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178

Figure 11-5 NRCS Tool — Directory Panel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180

Figure 11-6 NRCS Tool — Production Cue. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183

Figure 11-7 NRCS Tool — Read Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185

Tables

Table 2-1 Common Project Icons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Table 11-1 NRCS Tool Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178

Table 11-2 Formatting Toolbar Buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181

CHAPTER 1

Introduction

This chapter provides an overview of the NewsCutter system and the editing process. Understanding how the system organizes tapes, clips, sequences, and other media objects helps you to edit projects more effectively. This chapter contains the following sections:

• About NewsCutter

• NewsCutter Hardware

• Starting Your System

• Starting NewsCutter

• Using Help

• Using Online Documentation

About NewsCutter

NewsCutter is a nonlinear editing workstation specifically designed for editing news stories. It offers flexibility and speed to create compelling, up-to-the-minute news stories. You can edit a story several different ways and choose the best one, or you can quickly create different versions of a lead story for three different broadcasts.

NewsCutter allows you to quickly add transition effects, motion effects, and 2D digital video effects (DVEs) for added impact, with just

a few keystrokes — even after a story is laid out.

With a linear system, you must lay down the first shot, make sure it ends at the right point, cue the second shot, make sure it starts at the right point, and then make the edit. Y ou build the sequence by making sure each transition is correct before moving to the next edit.

NewsCutter lets you assemble a sequence in any order — you do not need to edit the first shot first and the last shot last. The system’s strength is that it lets you make changes without reassembling all the edits after the change. You can update breaking stories quickly and easily, save them, and then try different versions.

The system maintains frame-accurate links between each alteration of the objects you work with and the original media files. This allows you to experiment with every edit you make through multiple generations. When you play back your work, the system immediately accesses and plays the appropriate portions of the recorded video and audio.

You can start by editing a rough version of the entire sequence. You can see how long it runs and where it drags, adjust individual edits and transitions, replace or remove shots, and tighten or extend scenes.

Because the audio and video are stored on disk, they can be manipulated and used over and over again without duplication or degradation.

NewsCutter Hardware

The following hardware components make up NewsCutter, as shown in Figure 1-1.

Video deck

Your components might differ slightly, depending on the options you purchased.

• A PC running the Windows NT

™

•Meridien

audio and video interface

operating system

• The User Interface (UI) and Playback monitors; recommended resolution 1024 x 768 with True Color or greater

• Keyboard and mouse

•Speakers

• Audio amplifier if you do not have powered speakers

• Decks or video source to input and output your work

™

• MediaDock

and MediaDrive enclosures for storing your

recorded audio and video

UI monitor

Playback monitor

Amplifier

VLX

V-LAN® VLXi®

PULL DOWN

44.1 kHz

AUDIO SYNC

kHz

POWER

VIDEO SYNC

Meridien

I/O box

Speaker

SCSI IDSCSI ID

Slots

Act

Keyboard

Speaker

Wide Dualbus Fans Pwr 2Pwr 2

Pwr 1Pwr 1

Mouse

Figure 1-1 NewsCutter Hardware Components

NewsCutter PC

MediaDock

Starting Your System

Begin your edit session by turning on the components of your NewsCutter system. If any part of your system fails to turn on, make sure its electrical cord is plugged snugly into an appropriate electrical outlet or power strip. For information on setting up your system, see the Avid NewsCutter Setup Guide.

If you fail to follow the proper sequence for starting up your system, you could damage your computer and storage drives and NewsCutter might not work properly.

Always turn on the devices as follows:

1. MediaDrives: Turn on storage drives before starting the

computer. Allow 10 to 15 seconds for the drives to spin up-to-speed before starting your computer.

2. Other peripheral hardware: Turn on all other peripheral units

except the computer. This includes:

• Monitors and speakers

• Tape decks or video source

• Meridien I/O box

3. The computer: Turn on your computer according to your

manufacturer’s instructions. The desktop appears.

To avoid damage, do not disconnect drives while your computer is on.

4. Loading the application: Locate the Avid NewsCutter Release Notes.

Read all the information in the release notes thoroughly then follow the software installation instructions.

Starting NewsCutter

To start the NewsCutter application:

t Click the Start button, point to Programs, point to Avid, and click

NewsCutter.

Electronic Licensing

To accept your NewsCutter product license:

1. Read the License Agreement, and then click Accept or Decline at the bottom of the screen.

If you click Decline, the application will not start.

The agreement appears the first several times you start the application. After you have started NewsCutter several times, a new button appears at the bottom of the screen.

2. If you do not want to see the license agreement again, click Accept

and Don’t Show Again. A dialog box appears.

3. Enter the name of your organization in the dialog box, and click OK.

The Open Project dialog box appears; from here, you create a new user and a new project, as described in “Creating a User” on

page 36.

How to Proceed

The following are a few tips for taking full advantage of the NewsCutter documentation and other resources:

• Begin learning about basic procedures by using the default settings. As your confidence increases, begin to explore additional procedures and settings.

• Instead of using the standard menus to find the command you need in a window, try using shortcut menus. Using the right mouse button, click in a window to access a shortcut menu that shows the most frequently used commands for that window.

• Keep the Av id NewsCutter Quick Reference available during editing sessions.

• Make a habit of reading Avid’s newsletters, mailings, and other trade publications.

• Make use of additional training resources provided by Avid whenever possible, such as classes and instructional videotapes.

• Check the Avid Web site education area for a list of available courses.

Using Help

You can get help and background information for tasks, windows, dialog boxes, and screen objects through your Avid Help system. Your Help system is HTML-based and operates in a Web browser. You need Version 4.5 or later of Microsoft

sections describe the Help system:

• Opening and Closing the Help System

• Understanding the Topic Window

• Getting Help for Windows and Dialog Boxes

• Getting Help for Screen Objects

Internet Explorer. The following

• Keeping Help Available

• Finding Information Within the Help

• Creating a Favorites List

• Using the Browse Buttons

• Printing Help Topics

Opening and Closing the Help System

To open the Help system:

1. Choose Avid NewsCutter Help from the Help menu. The Help system appears in the default browser for your system.

2. Click the Using Help, Contents, Index, Search, Favorites, and Glossary buttons to access the information you need.

To close the Help system, do one of the following:

t Click the Close button in the browser. t Choose Exit from the browser File menu. t Navigate to another Web site.

The Help system closes.

Understanding the Topic Window

Help topics open in the right browser frame. A topic is a single page of the Help system.

The heading at the top of the topic window indicates the chapter in which the topic appears. For example, this topic, “Understanding the Topic Window,” is in the Using Help chapter. The browse buttons are also at the top of the topic. For more information, see “Using the

Browse Buttons” on page 26.

Some topics include a link to additional information about a procedure. The procedure Saving Bins Automatically, for example, includes a link to About Saving Bins Automatically. About links are always at the top of the topic.

Some topics include graphics of buttons used in the procedure explained in the topic. These are for illustration only; they do not function if you click them.

At the bottom of each topic are links to related topics, which are listed under the heading See Also.

You might also see icons and information for Notes, Cautions, and Warnings that provide important details about the topic.

Getting Help for Windows and Dialog Boxes

The Help system provides you with context-sensitive Help for windows and dialog boxes, such as tools and settings.

To get Help for windows and dialog boxes:

1. Make sure the Avid application is active.

2. Position the mouse pointer anywhere in the window or dialog box for which you want help.

3. Press the F1 key on the keyboard.

If there is no information about a window or dialog box, a Navigation Canceled message appears in the browser. Use the Search and Index buttons in the Help to look for similar functions.

Getting Help for Screen Objects

You can use What’s This? Help to find out about buttons and other screen objects.

To get help for screen objects:

1. Using the right mouse button, click the screen object (for example, a button).

A pop-up menu appears.

2. Choose What’s This? from the pop-up menu. A browser window opens that explains how to use the item. Many

windows include a link (marked by underlined text) to more information.

Keeping Help Available

When you access a Help topic and then return to the Avid application, the Help browser disappears behind the Avid system.

To keep Help available, you can use one of the methods in the following topics:

• Restoring Help from the Taskbar

• Using Alt+Tab to Restore Help

Restoring Help from the Taskbar

You can restore the Help from the taskbar at the bottom of the screen. All active applications are represented by buttons on the taskbar.

To restore Help:

t Click the browser button on the taskbar.

The Help reappears.

Using Alt+Tab to Restore Help

To use Alt+Tab to restore Help:

1. Press and hold the Alt key.

2. Press and release the Tab key, but keep holding the Alt key. A window appears containing icons and names for all the

applications currently open on your system. A box surrounds the active application.

3. Continue to hold down the Alt key and press and release the Tab key until the box surrounds the Help Browser icon, then release both keys.

Finding Information Within the Help

Your browser application opens and displays Help from the Help menu. The left frame of the Help browser includes a Contents list and buttons for several other methods of finding information.

See the following topics:

• Using the Contents List

• Using the Index

• Using the Search Feature

• Using the Glossary

Using the Contents List

The Contents button provides a list of topics covering the entire Help system.

To view the Contents list, do one of the following:

t From the Help menu, choose Avid NewsCutter Help, and then

t From a Help topic, click the Contents button.

To display a topic:

t Click the topic title in the Contents list.

click the Contents button.

Using the Index

The Contents displays only the top-level topics. Many entries link to subtopics with related information or procedures.

The Index button provides an alphabetized list of entries, like the index of a printed book.

To find topics by using the Index button:

1. Choose Avid NewsCutter Help from the Help menu and click the Index button, or click the Index button from within a Help topic.

2. From the alphabet at the top, select the letter that begins the topic you want to find (for example, click A to jump to index entries listed under audio).

3. Scroll through the topics beginning with that letter until you find the topic you want.

4. Click the number to the right of the index entry. The number indicates how many topics that index entry has associated with it.

The topic opens in the right frame of the browser.

Using the Search Feature

The Search button lets you search the entire Help system for words or phrases and then lists topics that include those words or phrases.

To search for topics by using the Search button:

1. From the Help menu, choose Avid NewsCutter Help and click the Search button, or click the Search button from within a topic.

2. In the text box, type the word or phrase that you want to find. You

can type up to three words, not including invalid words like “the” or misspellings.

3. Press Enter or click the Search button. A list shows topics that contain the word or words for which you

searched.

Using the Glossary

Do not type quotation marks or asterisks in the text box.

4. Click a topic in the list. The topic opens in the right frame of the browser.

Remember that Help includes a comprehensive index. If Search does not produce useful results for a particular search, you can often find the specific information you need quickly by using the index.

The glossary defines and explains many industry terms. Some entries might not apply to your particular system.

To use the glossary:

1. Click the Glossary button.

2. In the left frame of the browser, click the letter that begins the term or concept for which you are searching.

3. Scroll through the section to find your term.

4. Click links to see related information.

To search through the glossary (Netsca p e Navigator only):

1. Follow steps 1 and 2 in the previous procedure.

2. Click in the Glossary to make it active.

3. Choose Find in Frame from the Edit menu.

4. Type the word you want to find in the text box and click the Find Next button.

Creating a Favorites List

The Favorites button allows you to keep a list of topics you want to go to frequently.

To add a favorite topic to your list:

1. Click the Favorites button.

2. Click the Add Current button. The topic name appears in the list with a check box next to it.

To access a favorite topic:

1. Click the Favorites button.

2. Click the topic you want to visit. The topic opens in the right browser frame.

To delete a favorite topic from your list:

1. Select the topic in the list by selecting the check box.

2. Click the Delete button. The topic is removed from the list.

Using the Browse Buttons

Each Help topic contains browse buttons to help you navigate forward and backward through related topics. Your browser also includes a Back button and a Forward button.

To move forward or backward through related topics:

t Click one of the Browse buttons.

To retrace your steps backward or forward through topics you visited:

t Use the browser Back or Forward buttons.

Printing Help Topics

You can print a Help topic if you need to refer to it during a complicated procedure or for reference later.

To print a Help topic:

1. Open or click the topic to make it active.

2. Choose Print from the browser File menu, or click the Print button in the browser toolbar.

3. Select the print options.

4. Click OK.

You can print a topic by clicking the right mouse button and choosing Print from the pop-up menu.

Using Online Documentation

The online version of the books are PDF files. You can view them with the Adobe CD-ROM. The Avid NewsCutter Online Publications CD-ROM includes:

• Avid New sCutter Setup Guide

• Avid NewsCutter Getting Started Guide (this book)

• Avid NewsCutter User’s Guide

• Avid NewsCutter Effects Guide

• Avid NewsCutter Help

• Avid Products Collaboration Guide

Avid gives you permission to print up to three complete copies of each book.

Acrobat® Reader, which you can install from the

CHAPTER 2

About NewsCutter

This chapter explains the basic concepts and terminology with which you need to be familiar to edit video with NewsCutter. This chapter contains the following sections:

• Basic Editing Steps

• Understanding the Pieces

• Organizing Your Work with Projects and Bins

• How Media Is Stored

• The Attic Folder

Basic Editing Steps

Creating a sequence can be as simple as stringing several shots together without sound for a voice-over, or it can be as complex as editing a series of shots together with sound bites, narration, music with dissolves, audio crossfades, and motion effects.

You create a sequence from raw footage in three simple stages:

1. Record the source video from tape or external feed onto an external drive. You can also record your raw footage while editing the story. This process is called Record to Timeline, as described in

“Recording to the Timeline” on page 61.

2. Edit the sequence and fine-tune it by using various NewsCutter features and effects.

Use basic editing procedures to create a series of straight cuts. NewsCutter offers both film-style splice and video insert edits. Then trim the transitions between shots to create overlap cuts or to move transitions forward or backward in the sequence.

Add effects, such as dissolves, wipes, or digital video effects (DVEs). Edit multiple tracks of audio. Create or import graphic images and key them over video. Add titles and credits. Use other advanced features to create a complex sequence.

3. Output or play back your material. NewsCutter allows you to view your sequence, broadcast directly

to air, and, if necessary, record a finished copy to tape without returning to your source video.

Understanding the Pieces

Use Table 2-1 to identify the icons that you will be working with and to help you work more effectively.

Table 2-1 Common Project Icons

Icon Name Description

Project The job that results in one or more sequences; the Project window

Avid Project

Sequence An edited composition that includes audio and video clips and

Bin The window in which you organize the material to be edited; bins

Source clip The smallest media object that references your source footage.

Master clip An object that references the compr essed media.

Media file Stored, compressed digital data representing the original video

organizes all the clips, sequences, effects, bins, and media file pointers for a program or series of programs.

rendered effects.

reside in a project, and you can have multiple bins in a project.

and audio.

Source/ Record mode

Timeline The graphical representation of every edit made to a sequence,

Segment mode Editing controls for moving, deleting, marking, and editing

Trim mode Controls for fine-tuning edits and transitions with various trim

Effect mode Controls in the Timeline and the Ef fect Editor to apply, render , and

Two modes you switch between: the Source monitor displays source clips; the Record monitor displays the assembled sequence.

including effects and titles.

segments in the Timeline.

procedures.

edit effects into the sequence.

Table 2-1 Common Project Icons (Continued)

Icon Name Description

IN and OUT points

Subclip Part of a master clip; a subclip references the master clip.

Motion effect A file in the bin that references effect media files generated when

Group clip A file in the bin that combines two or more clips based on marks

Title A clip that references a title that you created.

Digital cut A copy struck directly from disk to tape.

Starting and ending points of an edit.

you create motion effects.

or tracking information synchronization points.

Organizing Your Work with Projects and Bins

All work on NewsCutter is stored in a project in NTSC or PAL video format.

A project contains all the work for a single job. You can organize projects to suit your needs. A project could contain a specific show,

one reporter’s work, or an ongoing series.

For example, you begin working on a sequence about a house fire and you might create a project called Firefighters. The name of the project appears in the Project window (see Figure 2-1).

Project name

Figure 2-1 Project Window

Then, within the Firefighters project, you can create multiple bins; for example, you could keep all your raw footage in one bin, a short sequence in another bin, and a more in-depth sequence in another bin. Use bins to store and organize master clips, subclips, sequences, and other media objects in a way that works best for your workflow. The bin contains information about each clip, such as name, start timecode, and end timecode (see Figure 2-2).

Bin name

Figure 2-2 Bin Window

Y ou can customize Bin views to suit your needs, such as sho wing more or less information about each media file. Y ou can also sort clips by the information in any field, choosing to view only clips that meet specific criteria, such as a certain interview subject. You can view bins in Frame view, Text view, or Script view. For more information about bin views, see “About Bin Vi ews” on page43.

How Media Is Stored

When you record media, NewsCutter creates two types of files: media files and master clips. Media files contain the recorded media. Master

clips contain information about the source material and the location of the media files on disk.

NewsCutter creates a media file for each track of video and audio. If you record a section of video with two tracks of audio, NewsCutter creates three separate media files.

The system creates one master clip for each shot captured, regardless of the number of tracks in the shot. Wh en y o u edit the recorded material, you access the media files through the master clip. You do not edit the media files directly.

When you create dissolves or motion effects, or when you import graphic or animation files, NewsCutter creates additional media files.

Media files require substantial storage space on your media drives. Master clips are stored on your internal drive and require very little storage space.

MediaDrives hold approximately 4 to 5 minutes of video per gigabyte. Therefore, an 18-GB MediaDrive holds approximately 90 minutes of video.

The Attic Folder

NewsCutter saves copies of your current project and its bins at r egular intervals and whenever you save or close a project or bin. These auto-save files are stored in the Attic folder in the NewsCutter application folder. If at any time you lose work due to a power outage or system error, open the Attic folder and look for a project or bin of the same name with the file name extension .bak.xx, where xx is the version number. For example, the first backup file for the bin Rough Cut would be named Rough Cut.bak.1.avb. Later versions would be named Rough Cut.bak.2.avb, Rough Cut.bak.3.avb, and so on.

CHAPTER 3

Starting Your Project

This chapter gets you started with NewsCutter and presents the concept of projects and how you use them to organize your work. It contains the following sections:

• Starting NewsCutter

• Creating a User

• Creating a Project

• Opening an Existing Project

• Understanding the Project Window

• Working with Bins

• Creating a Quick Transition Bin

• About Trash

• Customizing Your Work Environment

Starting NewsCutter

To start the NewsCutter application:

t Click the Start button, point to Programs, point to Avid, and click

NewsCutter.

To start the application from your desktop, create a shortcut and place it in a convenient location. For more information on creating a shortcut, see your Windows NT documentation.

Creating a User

Before you can start working in NewsCutter , you need to create a user. Once you have started NewsCutter, the Open Project dialog box appears and you can create new users.

To create a new user:

1. Click New User in the Open Project dialog box. The New User dialog box appears.

2. Type the name of the user you want to create and click OK. The user name appears in the Avid Users list in the Open Project

dialog box. You can create as many users as you need.

When you create a new user, NewsCutter creates a folder for the user and two files within the folder: a user profile file and a user settings file. The folder is stored in the Avid Users folder on your internal

drive. If you want to delete a user, you must delete that person’s folder. The default location for the Avid User folder is:

C:\Programs\Avid\NewsCutter\Avid Users

Creating a Project

When you start NewsCutter, the Open Project dialog box appears and from there you can open and create projects. It does not matter whether you create your project or your users first; they can be done in either order.

The first time you start a project you will be asked to select the Video Format (NTSC or PAL). After you have created a project, the New Project window will use the Video Format selection that was previously selected as your default project format.

To create a new project:

1. Click New Project in the Open Project dialog box. The New Project dialog box appears.

If you need to change the video format and the Format pop-up menu does not appear in the New Project dialog box, click the New Pr oject button while you press and hold the Alt key. Then the Format pop-up menu appears.

2. Type the name of the project you want to create.

3. Select NTSC or PAL from the Format pop-up menu.

4. Click OK. The Project name appears in the Avid Projects list.

5. Click OK to open the Project window.

When you create a new project, NewsCutter creates a folder for the project and two files within the folder: a project file and a project settings file. The folder is stored in the Avid Projects folder on your internal drive. If you want to delete a project, you must delete its folder. The default location for the Avid Projects folder is:

C:\Programs\Avid\NewsCutter\Avid Projects

Opening an Existing Project

Every time you start NewsCutter, the Open Project dialog box appears; from there you open your existing project.

To open your existing project:

1. Click the name of the project you want to open in the Avid Projects list.

2. Click a user name in the Avid Users list.

3. Click OK. The Project window opens.

Understanding the Project Window

All your clips, sequences, bins, and subclips in NewsCutter are organized into projects. Once you create your project and open it, you will see the Project window.

Within the Project window, there are three buttons for displaying information. They include:

• Bins — Displays all the bins associated with this project; this is the default view as shown in Figure 3-1. The Bins display option is described more fully in “Working with Bins” on page 41.

When you first create a project, there will not be any bins in it. You have to create the bins you need.

Figure 3-1 Project Window — Bin View

• Settings — Displays all the settings available for NewsCutter; the Settings scroll list and the Fast menu let you change the settings view to see specific types of settings, for example, Title Styles. To view the Settings scroll list, click the Settings button. For more information, see “Settings” in the Help index or the

Avid NewsCutter User’s Guide.

Settings scroll list

Settings Fast Menu button

Figure 3-2 Project Window — Settings View

• Info — Provides access to system information; use the Fast menu at the bottom of the Project window to display the Profile, Memory, or Hardware Info. To view the Info list, click the Info button.

- Profile — Displays the video format of the project, either

NTSC or PAL

- Memory — Displays the computer ’ s memory usage

- Hardware — Displays the operating system version and disk

usage

For more information on the Info display, see “Information Display Menu” in the Help index or the Avid NewsCutter User’s

Guide.

Settings Fast menu

Figure 3-3 Project Window — Info View

Working with Bins

Within a project, a bin is a way of organizing clips, subclips, and sequences. The concept of a bin comes from the world of film. Editors would store reels of film in bins. Logically, bins are still where you store material for a project.

The names of the bins belonging to a project are displayed in the Project window, as shown in Figure 3-1. The contents of a bin are displayed in the Bin window. Only one Bin window is displayed; to bring a different Bin window to the front, double-click the Bin icon in the Project window.

Creating a Bin

Open Bin icon

If you want to keep the current Bin window and Project window attached,

select Enable ‘Sticky’ Bins in the Bin Settings dialog box. When you select this option, NewsCutter remembers the position of the bins in the workspace.

Once you have created your project, you can create as many bins as you need to organize your work.

To create a bin:

1. With the Project window open, click the New Bin button. A new bin with the project name is created in the Project window.

2. Type the name you want for the bin in the text field.

New Bin button

Closed Bin icon

Bin Name text field

3. Double-click the Bin icon, next to the bin name, to open the bin or to bring it to the front of the Bin window.

About Bin Views

There are three views for working with clips in a bin: Text view, Frame view, and Script view. You will probably use each of these views as you work with NewsCutter.

Text View

In the examples shown in the next three sections, footage has already been recorded and that is why it appears in the bins. When you first start NewsCutter , you will not see anything in your bins until you begin r ecording footage. For more information, see Chapter 4.

In Text view, clips are displayed in a text format using columns and rows, with icons representing the various objects. You can customize the view by adding, hiding, or rearranging column headings.

To save the view:

t Choose Save As from the Bin View pop-up menu.

To choose column headings:

t Choose Headings from the Bin Fast menu (or from the Bin menu

on the main NewsCutter menu bar).

Bin name

Column headings

Object icons

Bin Fast Menu button Frame View button

Script View button

Frame View

To enter Text view:

t Click the Text View button (labeled T) in the lower left corner of

the Bin window. (See Figure 3-4.)

Bin View pop-up menuText View button

Figure 3-4 Bin Window — Text View

In Frame view, each clip is represented by a single picture frame, with the name of the clip. You can step through the footage forward and backward in each frame, enlarge or reduce the frame, and rearrange frames in any order within the bin.

Bin name

Frame of media object

Object icons

Script View

To enter Frame view:

t Click the Frame View button (labeled F) in the lower left corner of

the Bin window. (See Figure 3-5.)

Frame View button

Figure 3-5 Bin Window — Frame View

In Script view, the system combines the features of Text view with Frame view and adds space for typing notes or script. The frames are displayed vertically on the left side of your screen with a text box to the right of each clip. Clip data is displayed above the text box.

To enter Script view:

t Click the Script View button (labeled S) in the lower left corner of

the Bin window. (See Figure 3-6.)

Bin name

Frame of media object

Text box

Object icons

To add text:

t Click in the text box and begin typing.

Script View button

Figure 3-6 Bin Window — Script View

Creating a Quick Transition Bin

NewsCutter contains a feature called Quick Transition, which allows you to save the parameters of an effect so that you can add the same effect many times in a sequence.

Y ou save the parameters in a bin named Quick Transition. NewsCutter then provides access to the effects stored in the Quick Transition bin through the Quick Transition dialog box.

If you want to use a Quick Transition in multiple projects, you must copy the bin to each project.

To create the Quick Transition bin and enable this feature:

1. With the Project window open, click the New Bin button. A new bin with the project name is created in the Project window.

2. Type Quick Transition in the text field.

About Trash

You must name the bin Quick Transition. Otherwise, NewsCutter will not recognize it as a Quick Transition bin.

For more information on how to create Quick Transition, see

“Creating a Quick Transition” on page 139.

NewsCutter stores deleted bins in the Trash. The Trash icon is located in the Project window and appears only when you delete a bin. You can use the Trash to retrieve bins you deleted in error, or you can empty the Trash to create more storage space on your internal drive.

Clips, subclips, and effects that are in a bin appear in the T rash after you delete the bin. However, if you select a clip, subclip, or effect directly and press the Delete key, the item does not appear in the Trash.

Fast Menu button

To empty the contents of the Trash:

Trash icon

Once you empty the contents of the Trash, bins will not appear in the Trash or on the drive.

1. Click the Trash icon to display its contents.

2. Click the Fast Menu button in the Bin window.

3. Choose Empty Trash.

Customizing Your Work Environment

NewsCutter lets you customize your work environment so you can work more quickly and more efficiently. You can map buttons to the Tool palette and the keyboard, and you can save an arrangement of windows in your NewsCutter workspace.

Mapping Keys and Buttons

NewsCutter lets you map buttons from the Command palette and menu commands from the NewsCutter main menu to the Tool palette and keys on your keyboard. You can also remap buttons to other buttons. When you start NewsCutter, there are several assigned buttons in the Tool palette; the other blank spaces are available for mapping the buttons you use most frequently. Y ou can also map menu commands that you use frequently to the Tool palette.

If you are more comfortable working with the keyboard, you might want to map buttons to the keyboard where they are most accessible for you to reach. For instructions on mapping buttons from the Command palette, see “Mapping Buttons to the Tool Palette” on

page 74. For instructions on mapping buttons from the Command

palette to the keyboard, see “Mapping Buttons to the Keyboard” on

page 76.

The ability to map buttons, keys, and menu commands lets you tailor NewsCutter tools to your working style, making you more ef ficient. In addition, you can move these User settings between projects and systems, ensuring that you can set up your work environment quickly and easily. For information on moving User settings between projects and systems, see the Help or the Avid NewsCutter User’s Guide.

Setting Up Workspaces

A workspace is the arrangement and size of tool windows displayed on your NewsCutter system. For example, during recording, you might want to have the Record tool and Video Input tool display in specific locations. During effects editing, you might want to have the Effect Palette and Effect Editor appear in a particular location and size. NewsCutter comes with four workspaces set up for the basic functions: recording, editing, effects editing, and audio editing. You can use these workspaces as is, or you can modify them.

Customizing your workspace lets you be prepared when you want to start working on a particular NewsCutter functional area, such as recording or effects editing.

For instructions on using and modifying the default workspaces, see

“Using Workspaces” on page 78.

CHAPTER 4

Recording

This chapter describes recording, the process of converting your analog video and audio to a digital format. This chapter includes the following sections:

• Selecting Settings for Recording

• The Record Tool

• The Audio Tool

• The Video Input Tool

• Recording Preparations Check List

• Recording to the Timeline

• Recording and Logging at the Same Time

• Batch Recording

• Rerecording a Sequence

Selecting Settings for Recording

A number of settings have a direct bearing on the recording process. Before recording, review the following options for General Settings, Deck Settings, and Record Settings.

• Drive Filtering Based on Resolution causes the system to dim all

drives for which speed capabilities are unknown or untested. This setting is selected by default in the General Settings dialog box.

NewsCutter does not prevent you from using non-Avid drives, but their reliability cannot be ensured.

• Deck Preferences contains various options, including

drop-frame/non-drop-frame prefer ence for NTSC decks, assemble edit for digital cut, stop key pauses deck, shuttle holds speed, and deck control.

• Deck Configuration Settings allow you to establish deck control

parameters for a single deck or for multiple decks. You can manually configure the deck or use the Auto-configure option. You can also add channels.

• Record Settings include options for recording and batch

recording, and editing. These options select the general parameters for capturing the source material, tape naming, and special conditions such as recording across timecode breaks.

For more information on Record settings, see the Help or the Avid

NewsCutter User’s Guide.

The Record Tool

The Record tool provides controls for recording your footage.

To open the Record tool:

t Choose Record Tool from the Tools menu.

Record button Enable Timecode button

Channel Selection buttons Video Input

pop-up menu

Message bar Name text box

Comment text box Bin pop-up

menu Single/Dual

Drives button Target Drive

pop-up menu Deck controls

Deck Selection pop-up menu

Preroll selection

Record indicator

Trash button

Tape name

Record/ Log Mode button

Toggle Source

button

Video Input Tool

Audio Tool buttonbutton

Splice-in button

Overwrite button

Audio Input pop-up menu

Resolution pop-up menu

Drive Time Available displa

Logging controls

Figure 4-1 Record Tool

The Record tool has the following components:

• Audio Input pop-up menu displays the menu of audio source

options.

• Audio Tool button opens the Audio tool. See “The Audio T ool”

on page 56.

• Bin pop-up menu lets you choose a target bin as the destination

for the master clips created when you record on-the-fly. You can also choose a target bin containing the logged clips you will use to batch record your media.

• Channel S election butt ons let you choose which audio tracks you

want to record from the source tape, whether you want to record video, and whether you want to record timecode. If you click and hold a Video Track button or Audio Track button, a pop-up menu appears where you can select another track to which to patch.

• Comment (Cmnt) text box lets you add comments about the clip.

• Custom Preroll option and pop-up menu allow you to select how

many seconds the tape rolls before the recording starts. This option overrides the global preroll setting in the Deck Settings dialog box.

• Deck controls operate the deck.

• Deck Selection pop-up menu lets you choose the deck you want

to play from or you can choose a satellite feed. It also lets you check and reset the serial port connection to decks.

• Drive Time Available display appears after you select a drive or

drives for the recorded media.

• Enable Timecode button lets you record the TC (timecode) track

from the source tape when selected. If you deselect the TC button, the system will record with time-of-day timecode.

• Logging controls allow you to mark IN and OUT points in your

footage before you begin recording.

• Message bar displays information on the current status of the tool.

• Name text box lets you add a name for the clip you are recording.

• Overwrite button lets you record footage directly from tape into a

sequence loaded in the Timeline in one step. When you use Overwrite, it replaces what was on the track to which you are recording with the material you just recorded.

• Record button begins the recording process.

• Record indicator flashes on and off while you are recording.

• Record/Log Mode button lets you switch between Record mode

and Log mode.

• Resolution pop-up menu contains a list of the available

resolutions.

• Single/Dual Drives button lets you choose a single or striped

media drive volume for recording the audio and video.

• Splice-in button lets you record footage directly from tape into a

sequence loaded in the Timeline in one step. When you use Splice-in, everything else in the sequence is pushed forward to make room for the new clip.

• Tape name shows the name of the source tape. If no tape is

selected, NewsCutter automatically assigns the tape a name or prompts you for a name if you selected that option in the Record Settings dialog box.

• Target Drive pop-up menu lets you choose the target drive

volumes.

• Toggle Source button lets you switch between sources. You

choose Satellite Feed mode with this button.

• Trash button stops the recording proc ess and deletes the r ecor ded

media.

• Video Input pop-up menu allows you to choose Composite,

Component, S-Video, or Serial Digital.

• Video Input Tool button opens the V ideo Input tool. See “The

Video Input Tool” on page 58.

The Audio Tool

The Audio tool controls parameters for incoming audio.

To open the Audio tool:

t Choose Audio Tool from the Tools menu. t Click the Audio Tool button in the Record tool.

To display the full screen of the Audio tool (as shown in Figure 4-2):

t Click the Output, Input, and Setup buttons.

Input button In/Out Toggle button

Reset Peak button Track indicator

Output

Setup buttonbutton

Peak Hold pop-up menu

Setup display

Digital VU scale

Meters

Analog VU scale

Input display

Figure 4-2 Audio Tool

Channel Selector

pop-up menus

Output display

The Audio tool has the following components:

• Analog VU scale to the right of the meters displays a fixed range

of values that you can conform to the headroom parameters of your source audio.

• Channel Selector pop-up menus let you map tracks in the

sequence to output channels.

• Digital VU scal e to the left of the meters displays a fixed range of

values from 0 to –90 decibels (dB), according to common digital peak meter standards.

• In/Out Toggle button switches the meter displays for each

channel between input levels from a source device and output levels to the speakers and record devices. The letter I indicates Input, and O indicates Output.

• Input button opens the Input display.

• Input display shows a panel that contains a single slider control

for raising or lowering global audio input.

• Meters dynamically track audio levels for each channel as follows:

- Meters show green below the target reference level (the

default reference level is –20 dB on the digital scale).

- Meters show yellow for the normal headroom range, above

the reference level to approximately –3 dB.

- Meters show red for peaks approaching overload, between

–3 dB and 0 (zero) dB.

- Thin green lines at the bottom indicate signals below the

display range.

• Output button opens the Output display.

• Output display shows a panel that contains contr ols for raising or

lowering global audio output.

• Peak Hold pop-up menu allows you to choose options for

customizing the meter displays and for setting and playing back the internal calibration tone.

• Reset Peak button resets the current maximum peak

measurements. It also stops the playback of the internal calibration tone.

• Setup button opens the Setup display.

• Setup display shows a panel that contains information and

controls for adjusting various audio hardware parameters.

• Track indicator displays the audio track number.

The Video Input Tool

The Video Input tool controls parameters for incoming video.

To open the Video Input tool:

t Choose Video Input Tool from the Tools menu. t Click the Video Input Tool button in the Record tool.

Input pop-up menu

Slider

Consumer Source button

Internal Waveform Monitor button

Vectorscope Monitor button

Internal Waveform monitor

Vectorscope monitor

Settings pop-up

100% Bars button

Preset buttons

Figure 4-3 Video Input Tool

To expand the Video Input Tool window to include the internal Waveform monitor:

t Click the Internal Waveform Monitor button.

To expand the Video Input Tool window to include the internal Vectorscope monitor:

t Click the Vectorscope Monitor button.

The Video Input tool has the following components:

• 100% Bars button switches the 100% bars for calibration on and

off.

• Consumer Src button sets the system to use a consumer grade

video deck (such as a home VCR).

• Input pop-up menu lets you choose Composite, Component, or

S-Video or Serial Digital video input source.

• Internal Waveform monitor lets you adjust luminance values.

• Internal Waveform Monitor button opens the internal Waveform

monitor.

• Preset buttons are highlighted when the factory preset levels are

displayed. When you click a lit Preset button, it turns gray and the slider returns to the most recent manual level setting.

• Settings pop-up menu lets you save the Site settings for an

individual tape each time you calibrate bars.

• Sliders let you change the value for each setting.

• Vectorscope monitor lets you adjust hue and saturation.

• Vectorscope Monitor button opens the Vectorscope monitor.

Recording Preparations Check List

1. Check your hardware configurations: power switches, cable connections, and remote switch on the source deck for deck control (for hardware configurations, see the Avid NewsCutter Setup Guide).

2. In the Settings scroll list, make sure you have the optio ns you want selected in the General, Deck Preferences, Deck Configuration, and Record Settings dialog boxes.

Check the settings for Handle Length in the Record Settings dialog box. A handle is extra media on either side of your IN and OUT points that ensures you have enough extra footage to perform trims. The default setting is 2 seconds on each side. Keep the default, or increase the handle length if you think you will need extra footage.

Select “Ask for name when a new tape is seen” in the Record Settings dialog box if you want NewsCutter to prompt you for a tape name. Otherwise, NewsCutter automatically names the tape in sequential order.

3. Label each of your external disk drives with a meaningful name.

For information on naming drives, see “Naming Drives” in the Help index or the Avid NewsCutter User’s Guide.

4. Insert a tape into the deck and set up the Record tool for track selection, target bin, target drives, source tape, and source deck.

5. Use the Audio Input tool to set the audio input levels.

6. Use the Video Input tool to set the video input levels; save your video settings for future use.

Recording to the Timeline

You can record footage directly from tape into a sequence loaded in the Timeline in one step, without organizing and reviewing clips, marking edit points, or performing edits.

Before you begin recording, see the “Recording Preparations Check

List” on page 60.

Make sure Audio Input in the Record tool is set to Microphone or Microphone with Power, depending on the type of microphone you are using.

To record to the Timeline:

1. Load a sequence into the Record monitor by selecting New Sequence from the Clip menu or by double-clicking an existing sequence icon in a bin.

2. Mark an IN point in the sequence or move the position indicator to the location where you want the edit to take place.

3. Mark the source material that you want to record by using the Record tool logging controls.

4. (Option) You can mark an OUT point based on the following:

Splice-in

Overwrite

• If you are recording to the middle of a sequence in the

Timeline, mark both IN and OUT points for frame accuracy.

• If you are recording at the end of a sequence, you can mark

just an IN point and then mark the OUT point later on-the-fly.

5. Click the Splice-in button or the Overwrite button in the Record tool to choose the type of edit.

Splice-in will move everything in the sequence down to make room for the new clip. Overwrite replaces what is there, keeping the same length of the sequence.

6. Click the Record button to begin recording.

7. If you did not mark the OUT point in advance, click the Record button again when the footage reaches the frame where you want to stop recording.

If you already marked an OUT point, recording will stop automatically.

When recording ends, the clip appears in place in the sequence, and a master clip appears in the bin.

Recording and Logging at the Same Time

When you record without entering log information in a bin ahead of time, the system creates clips and associated media files while you record. Recording in this manner involves manually cueing source footage with an Avid-controlled deck, using the deck controls in the Record tool.

Ways to record and log at the same time include:

• Recording On-the-F ly

• Recording from an IN Point to an OUT Point

Recording On-the-Fly

Recording on-the-fly is easier than setting marks, but it is more imprecise. It involves using the deck controls in the lower left corner of the Record tool to cue, play, and stop the source footage manually while recording.

Use the recording on-the-fly method in any of the following circumstances:

• If you are eager to begin editing immediately and no adequate logs exist for importing into the system or setting marks

• If you are recording from a sour ce deck that cannot be controlled by the Record tool or a V-LAN VLXi unit (through NewsCutter)

• If your source tape does not have timecode

• If you ar e recording fr om a digital source such as a compact disc or DAT player

• If you ar e recor ding fr om a live sour ce, such as a studio feed, or an in-house router

In some circumstances, the recorded material might exceed the logical file size allowed by NewsCutter. For example, the maximum size of a media file cannot exceed 2 gigabytes (GB). T o make sur e that recor ding does not stop if a file exceeds the limit, select “Record video to multiple files” in the Record Settings dialog box. Then if a file does exceed the limit, it will be split across multiple files and recording will continue.

Before you begin recording, see the “Recording Preparations Check

List” on page 60.

There is a slight delay of several frames after you manually select a spot both to start and to stop recording. Therefore, use this method when you do not need precise beginning and end points in your clip.

To record on-the-fly:

1. Select the video and audio tracks to which you want to record in the Record tool.

2. Make sure the Record/Log Mode button in the Record tool is set to REC.

3. Use the deck controls in the bottom left corner of the Record tool to locate the position on the tape where you want to start recording.

4. Play the deck and when it gets up-to-speed, click the Record button.

Make sure you have cleared any previous marks so that the deck does not begin cueing to the previous location.

5. While the system is recording, you can type a clip name in the Name text box.

Press the Tab key after typing a clip name to enter comments about the clip in the Comments text box.

6. Click the Pause button at any time to pause play. You can also abort the record procedur e by clicking the Trash button in the Record tool. The clip will be discarded.

7. To stop recording, click the Record button, or press the Esc key on the keyboard.

The system creates a new clip in the bin.

Recording from an IN Point to an OUT Point

Recording from an IN point to an OUT point lets you specify the exac t timecode location to begin and end recording. You can also specify only an IN point or an OUT point, and enter the other mark on-the-fly.

Use this method in the following circumstances:

• If logs exist in written or printout form but not in the proper format for quick import into the system

• If the IN and OUT points are rough and need to be double-checked for accuracy

• If you ar e familiar enough with the sour ce material to estimate the timecode for the IN point, the OUT point, or both, quickly and accurately

Before you begin recording, see the “Recording Preparations Check

List” on page 60.

To record by specifying an IN point and an OUT point:

1. Cue the tape to the start of the clip you want to record and mark an IN point.

2. Cue the tape and mark the OUT point now, or set the OUT point on-the-fly while you are recording.

3. Click the Record button in the Record tool. The Record tool automatically rewinds the tape to the preroll

point before the IN point of the clip, and the tape begins to play. The Record button changes to bright red, the indicator next to the Record button flashes, and the Message bar displays the message that recording has begun.

4. While the system is recording, you can type a clip name or enter comments about the clip.

Recording stops, and the system creates a new clip in the bin when

the tape reaches the clip’s OUT point or when you click the Recor d button again.

Batch Recording

Once you have imported a log or have manually logged a group of clips to a bin, you can automate the record process by using the batch-recording capabilities of NewsCutter.

If your media was analog (not digital) when it was recorded, you will need to reset the color bars in the Video Input tool before you batch record. For more information and procedures, see “Adjusting color bars” in the Help index or the Avid NewsCutter User’s Guide.

You can also use the batch record process to rerecord existing clips.

Before you batch record, make sure the source tapes have timecode.

Before you begin recording, see the “Recording Preparations Check

List” on page 60.

To batch record clips:

1. Open the bin that stores the logged clips.

2. Select the clips to batch record.

3. Choose Batch Record from the Bin menu.

4. Select options in the Batch Record dialog box:

• If the bin contains some clips that are already recorded and

you do not want to rerecord those clips, select the option “Record only those items for which media is currently unavailable.”

• If your selections include a sequence for batch recording, the

dialog box prompts you for handle length information.

5. Click OK. If you have not loaded a tape, the system prompts you to insert

the first tape.

6. Insert the tape into the tape deck, and click Mounted. A message box appears.

7. Click OK to confirm the tape and deck entries and to begin the recording process.

The system records each clip from the tape, in start timecode order.

Rerecording a Sequence

Rerecording is the process of capturing previously recorded source footage based on existing clips and sequences. Rerecording uses the batch record process and does not require extra logging time because the clip information for such things as source tracks and timecodes already exists in the bin.

There are several situations in which you might want to rerecord:

• You can quickly rerecord selected clips if you make an error while recording the first time.

• You can rerecord clips if you accidentally delete media files.

• You can rerecord a sequence after you transfer it to another system.

Rerecording requires your original source footage. Do not delete the media files if the source footage is no longer available, unless you will not need the material again.

Before you begin recording, see the “Recording Preparations Check

List” on page 60.

To streamline the rerecording process, select “Ask for name when a new tape is seen” in the Record Settings dialog box during the original recording.

To rerecord a sequence or clips:

1. Choose Record Tool from the T ools menu.

2. Open or activate the bin that contains the sequence or clips.

3. Select the sequences or clips you want to rerecord.

4. Choose Batch Record from the Bin menu. The Batch Record dialog box appears.

5. To preserve clips that already have existing media, select “Record

only those items for which media is currently unavailable.”

6. Click the Handle Length text box (sequences only), and type the number of additional frames you want to record at the heads and tails of the new master clips.

7. Click OK. The system prompts you to insert the first tape.

8. Insert the tape into the tape deck if you have not already done so.

9. Click Mounted to indicate to the system that the correct tape is loaded and ready for recording.

A message box appears.

10. Click OK to confirm the tape and deck entries. The system records each clip from the tape, in start timecode

order. If another source tape is needed, the system prompts you for the tape.

You can stop the batch record process at any time by clicking the Trash button in the Record tool.

CHAPTER 5

Getting Ready to Edit

This chapter describes the tools available to you for editing. It also describes methods for navigating within your clips or sequences and ways of marking your footage for inclusion in a sequence. It includes the following topics:

• Using the Command Palette

• Using the Tool Palette

• Using the Keyboard Palette

• Using Workspaces

• Modifying Workspaces

• Controlling Playback

• Marking IN and OUT Points

• Creating Subclips

Using the Command Palette

The Command palette, accessible from the Tools menu, provides a central location for all editing, playback, and navigational buttons. These buttons allow you to perform a wide range of commands with a single click. The Button to Button Reassignment option allows you to

map buttons to the Tool palette or to reconfigure the keyboard by using the Keyboard palette. The Menu to Button Reassignment option allows you to map menu commands to various buttons and keys.

You can use the buttons directly from the Command palette without mapping them by selecting the Active Palette option at the bottom of the Command palette.

The Command palette groups buttons by function. Tabs are displayed for each function, and the buttons that perform those functions are displayed within each tab. The functions are Move, Play, Edit, Trim, FX, Other, and More.

You should familiarize yourself with the buttons in the Command palette. The more familiar you are, the faster you can edit. Once you know which buttons or menu commands you use most often, you can map them to the Tool palette.

All available buttons are displayed in the Command palette. If you cannot find a particular button, open the Command palette from the Tools menu and search for it there. For procedures on mapping buttons to the T ool palette, se e “Mapping Buttons to the Tool Palette”

on page 74. For procedures on mapping buttons to the keyboard, see “Mapping Buttons to the Keyboard” on page76.

Figure 5-1 Command Palette — Move Tab

Figure 5-2 Command Palette — Play Tab

Figure 5-3 Command Palette — Edit Tab

Figure 5-4 Command Palette — Trim Tab

Figure 5-5 Command Palette — FX Tab

Figure 5-6 Command Palette — Other Tab

Figure 5-7 Command Palette — More Tab

Using the Tool Palette

The Tool palette is located in the Timeline. You can also view the Tool palette by clicking the Fast Menu button under the Source monitor.

The default Tool palette, shown in the Figure 5-8, provides buttons for editing and navigating. It has blank buttons where you can map the buttons or menu commands you use most frequently. The default T oo l palette displays the buttons without names.

Figure 5-8 Default Tool Palette

To turn on the display of button names:

1. Click the Settings button in the Project window. The Settings scroll list appears.

2. Double-click Interface.

The Interface-Current Settings dialog box appears.

3. Select Show Labels in Tool Palette.

You can enable ToolTips here as well to help you become familiar with the NewsCutter interface. ToolTips shows the name of each tool on the interface a s you move the mouse pointer over it.

4. Click OK.

5. (Option) Resize the Tool palette.

Mapping Buttons to the Tool Palette

You can map frequently used functions to the Tool palette for easy access.

To map a button from the Command palette to the Tool palette:

1. Make sure the Source monitor is active; if it isn’t, click the Source/Record Toggle button to activate it.

When the Source monitor is active, it displays “NewsCutter Source” in the title bar.

2. Open the Timeline by choosing Timeline from the Tools menu.

3. Choose Command Palette from the Tools menu.

4. Click Button to Button Reassignment at the bottom of the Command palette if it’s not already selected.

5. Find the button you want to remap, click the button, and drag it to the Tool palette, placing it where you want it.

You can place the button over an existing button, in which case you can’t access the original button, or you can place it over one of the blank buttons.

To remove the button you mapped:

t Drag another button over it. t Drag the blank button over it.

The blank button can be found in the Other tab of the Command palette.

Mapping Menu Commands to the Tool Palette

You can map frequently used functions to the Tool palette for easy access.

To map a menu command to the Tool palette:

1. Open the Timeline by choosing Timeline from the Tools menu.

2. Choose Command Palette from the Tools menu.

3. Click Menu to Button Reassignment at the bottom of the

Command palette if it’s not already selected.

4. Click the button on the Tool palette where you want the menu command to appear.

5. Find the menu command you want to map and click it. The menu command appears in the Tool palette. You can place the menu command over an existing button, in

which case you can’t access the original button, or you can place it over one of the blank buttons.

To remove the menu command you mapped:

t Drag another menu command or button over it. t Drag the blank button over it.

The blank button can be found in the Other tab of the Command palette.

Using the Keyboard Palette

The keyboard has many editing and navigational buttons. For faster editing, you can use the keyboard rather than the mouse. Figure5-9 shows the default keyboard configuration.

Step buttons

Play button

Stop button

Figure 5-9 NewsCutter Default Keyboard Settings

Play/Step/Shuttle buttons

Mapping Buttons to the Keyboard

You can map buttons to the keyboard from the Command palette to help you work more quickly. You can map only to the light-colored keys shown in Figure 5-9; the dark-colored keys are reserved for system functions such as Shift, Ctrl, and Alt.

To map a button from the Command palette to the keyboard:

1. Choose Command Palette from the Tools menu.

2. Click Button to Button Reassignment at the bottom of the

Command palette if it’s not already selected.

3. Activate the Project window, and click the Settings button. The Settings scroll list appears.

4. Double-click Keyboard. The Keyboard palette appears.

5. Find the button you want to remap, click the button, and drag it to the keyboard, placing it on any of the light-colored keys.

You can place the button over an existing key, in which case you

can’t access the original key, or you can place it over one of the blank keys.

To remove the button you mapped:

t Drag another button over it. t Drag the blank button over it.

The blank button can be found in the Other tab of the Command palette.

Mapping Menu Commands to the Keyboard

You can map menu commands that you use frequently to the keyboard from the Command palette. You can map only to the light-colored keys shown in Figure 5-9; the dark-colored keys are reserved for system functions such as Shift, Ctrl, and Alt.

To map a menu command from the Command palette to the keyboard:

1. Choose Command Palette from the Tools menu.

2. Click Menu to Button Reassignment at the bottom of the Command palette if it’s not already selected.

3. Activate the Project window, and click the Settings button. The Settings scroll list appears.

4. Double-click Keyboard. The Keyboard palette appears.

5. Click the key where you want the menu command to appear.

6. Find the menu command you want to remap and click it. The menu command appears on the keyboard diagram. You can place the menu command over an existing key, in which

case you can’t access the original key, or you can place it over one of the blank keys.

To remove the menu command you mapped:

t Drag another menu command or button over it. t Drag the blank button over it.

The blank button can be found in the Other tab of the Command palette.

Using Workspaces

Workspaces let you have the tools you need to perform a specific function, such as recording, available to you with the press of a key. NewsCutter comes with four workspaces set up for the basic functions of recording, editing, adding effects, and adding audio. These default workspaces are already mapped to the keyboard as follows:

Workspace Function Key

1 record F9

2 edit F10

3 effx (effects) F11

4 audio F12

You can use these workspaces as is, or you can modify them.

To use a workspace:

t Press the function key on the keyboard for the workspace you

want.

Modifying Workspaces

You can modify the default workspaces to adapt them to your style of working.

To take advantage of the workspace shortcut buttons, you must remember that NewsCutter sorts the workspaces alphabetically. Therefore, the workspace button assignments might change if you add workspaces. To keep a designated order, name the workspaces with a number preceding the first letter (for example, 5 digital cut).

To modify an existing workspace:

1. Press the function key on the keyboard for the workspace you want to modify, for example, F9 for recording.

2. Make any changes — resize or reposition any windows.

3. Click the Settings button in the Project window. The Settings scroll list appears.

4. Double-click the workspace you want to modify. The Save Workspace dialog box appears.

5. Click OK. The Workspace setting is modified.

When you change workspaces, you see the arrangement you set when you left the workspace. If you close a window before you leave a workspace, the next time you open the workspace, the window will be closed. For bins, you must

select Enable ‘Sticky’ Bins in the Bin Settings dialog box to save the position of the bins in your workspace. To access the Bin Settings dialog box, double-click Bin in the Project window’s Settings scroll list.

You can also create four additional workspaces. For information on

creating workspaces, see “Workspace” in the Help index or the Avid

NewsCutter User’s Guide.

Controlling Playback

There are several ways to play, view, and cue clips:

• Instantly access frames or move through footage by using the position indicator within the position bar under the Source or the Record monitor.

• Play, step (jog), or shuttle through footage by using buttons.

• Play, step, or shuttle by using keyboard equivalents.

• Step or shuttle by using the mouse.

Using Position Bars and Position Indicators

You can quickly access frames within a clip loaded into a monitor or move through the footage by using the position indicators that appear in the position bars under the Source or the Record monitor, and in the Timeline when you are viewing a sequence.

Record monitor position bar

Position indicator

• You can move the position indicator within the position bar under the Source or the Record monitor by clicking anywhere in the position bar or by dragging the position indicator to the left or right. The speed with which you drag the position indicator determines the speed at which you move through the footage.

Figure 5-10 Record Monitor Position Bar

Source monitor

position bar

Position indicator

Figure 5-11 Source Monitor Position Bar

• In the Timeline, the position indicator shows your position within the sequence. It is always in the same position as the position indicator in the Record monitor’s position bar and works in the same way: you can click anywhere in the Timeline to relocate the position indicator, or you can drag the position indicator through footage at varying speeds.

Position indicator in Timeline

Using Buttons

Figure 5-12 Position Indicator in Timeline

• You can go directly to the beginning or end of a clip or sequence by clicking at the far left or far right of the clip or sequence.

You can use the buttons that appear under the Source and Record monitors to play and step through your footage. You can also use the keyboard to manipulate footage.

Buttons can be remapped from the Command palette to the Tool palette. See “Mapping Buttons to the Tool Palette” on page 74.

The Play Button

The Play button is a toggle button. With a clip loaded in a monitor, the Play button plays your footage at a normal speed. When a clip is playing, the arrow on the button is lit. Clicking the Play button while your clip is playing stops play. The space bar also stops play.

In the Record monitor, you can play only video and audio tracks that are currently monitored in the Track Selector panel.

Track Selector panel

Video Track Monitor button with Monitor icon

Audio Track Monitor button with Speaker icon

To play a clip:

1. Load a clip into the Source monitor or a sequence into the Record monitor by double-clicking a clip or sequence icon in a bin.

2. For sequences in the Record monitor, click the Video Track Monitor or the Audio Track Monitor button in the Track Selector panel.

3. Go to the start of the clip or sequence:

t Click at the start of the position bar under the monitor. t Press the Home key.

4. Click the Play button under the chosen monitor.

To stop playback:

t Press the space bar. t Click the Play button again.

Step Buttons

Using Keys

You can also use the Step Forward and Step Backward buttons under the monitors to play the clip backward or forward in one-frame increments.

You can advance 10 frames forward or 10 frames backward by using the 10-step keys on the keyboard.

To step through footage:

1. Load a clip into the Source monitor or a sequence into the Record monitor.

2. Press the appropriate key to step 1 or 10 frames forward or backward.

You can use the keys on the keyboard to quickly move through the media in the Source and Record monitors. Commands can be remapped from the Command palette to the keyboard. See “Map ping

Buttons to the Keyboard” on page 76.

J-K-L Keys (Three-Button Play)

The J-K-L keys on the keyboard allow you to play, step, and shuttle through footage at varying speeds. This feature, also referred to as three-button or variable-speed play, allows you to use three fingers to manipulate the speed of playback for greater control.

To shuttle through the footage by using the J-K-L keys on the keyboard:

1. Do one of the following: t Load a clip into the Source monitor or a sequence into the

Record monitor.

t Select a clip in a bin in Frame view to play through the clip in

the bin.

2. Use the following keys to shuttle at varying speeds:

Press To

L Move forward through the footage at normal speed. Press once

to increase the forward speed two times, twice to increase it three times, three times to increase it five times, and four times to increase it eight times the normal speed.

J Move backward at the same shuttle speed increments.

J+K Move forward slowly.

K+J Move backward slowly.

To pause the shuttling:

t Press the K key.

To stop shuttling:

t Press the space bar.

Home, End, and Arrow Keys

Mouse Jog button

To move through footage when a clip is loaded in a monitor:

Press To

Home key Move to the beginning of a clip or sequence.

End key Move to the end of a clip or sequence.

Left Arrow key

Right Arrow key

Using the Mouse

You can also use the mouse for one-handed control of playback. You can either step or shuttle by using the mouse.

Stepping with the Mouse

To step by using the mouse:

1. Load a clip into the Source monitor or a sequence into the Record

2. Activate the buttons in the Command palette:

Move the footage one frame backward.

Move the footage one frame forward.

monitor.

a. Select Active Palette at the bottom of the Command palette. b. Click the Mouse Jog button in the Play tab of the Command

palette.

You can map the Mouse Jog button to a button in the Tool palette (see “Using

the Tool Palette” on page 73).

3. Move the mouse to the right to step forward or to the left to step

Mouse Shuttle button

backward.

To quit stepping with the mouse:

t Press the space bar. t Double-click the mouse button.

Shuttling with the Mouse

To shuttle by using the mouse:

1. Load a clip into the Source monitor or a sequence into the Record monitor.

2. Activate the buttons in the Command palette: a. Select Active Palette at the bottom of the palette. b. Click the Mouse Shuttle button in the Play tab of the

Command palette.

You can map the Mouse Shuttle bu tt on t o a button in the Tool palette (see

“Using the Tool Palette” on page 73).

3. Move the mouse to the right to increase the shuttle speed or to the left to decrease the shuttle speed.

To stop shuttling with the mouse:

t Press the space bar. t Double-click the mouse button.

You can also use the keyboard in conjunction with the mouse to

control shuttling. For example, if you’re shuttling with the mouse and you press the L key, the playback speeds up to the next normal play rate (60, 90, 150, 240 fps for NTSC; and 50, 75, 125, 200 fps for PAL). You can continue to change the shuttle speed and direction with the mouse.

Marking IN and OUT Points

You can mark IN and OUT points for your clips in advance, which provides several advantages:

• You can quickly build a sequence by splicing the marked clips into place one after another.

• You can use the process of rough-cut or storyboard editing, which allows you to instantly splice several prepared clips into a sequence.

• You can play back and mark clips in the bin before loading a single clip, saving several steps.

Even if your marks are not accurate now, you can trim the edit points and fine-tune the sequence later without reediting the material.

Creating Subclips

When you mark footage with IN and OUT points, you can save the entire clip along with the new marks, or you can create subclips to break up longer master clips into smaller segments of selected footage.

Subclips do not directly reference the original media. Subclips remain linked to the master clips from which they are created, and the master clips in turn reference the recor ded media files located on your storage drives. As a result, none of the original footage is lost.

You can create subclips directly from the marked section of material in the monitors by using one of the following methods:

• Alt key: Pr ess and hold the Alt key, and then drag the picture from the monitor to the bin in which you want to store the subclip.

• Make Subclip button: Click the Make Subclip button located in the Edit tab of the Command palette to create the subclip and place it in the active bin by default. If you press the Alt key while you click the Make Subclip button, a dialog box allows you to choose the destination bin for the subclip.

A new subclip shown in Text view

You can also create subclips while recording as described in “Subclips, creating on-the-fly” in the Help index or the Avid NewsCutter User’s

Guide.

The new subclip will be listed in the bin, preceded by a subclip icon and identified with a numbered .Sub extension, as shown in the following illustration.

For more information on trimming, see “Trim Edits” in the Help index or Avid NewsCutter User’s Guide.

CHAPTER 6

Creating a First Cut

This chapter describes how you begin to put your story together. It includes the following topics:

• Viewing Your Clips

• Navigating in the Timeline

• Using the Track Selector Panel

• Making the First Edit

• Splicing or Overwriting Video into a Sequence

• Marking Clips for Storyboarding

• Using the Go to IN and Go to OUT Buttons

• Moving to the Head or Tail of a Shot

• Undoing an Edit

• Redoing an Edit

• Splicing a Shot into the Middle of a Sequence

Viewing Your Clips

You can work with clips and sequences in several different ways, depending upon your needs and preferences. Each method has its own uses and advantages, as follows.

• Viewing in bins: Frame view shows you pictorial images of the clips in your bins; Text view shows you the clips listed by name; Script view shows you pictorial images and provides a space for you to add text. For more information on displaying clips in bins, see “Working with Bins” on page 41.

• Viewing in the Timeline: Use the Timeline to view individual tracks for either a sequence or a source clip. You can drag a clip or group of clips into the Timeline to create a sequence.

• Viewing in full-screen: You can use a second, full-screen monitor to view your footage in a larger screen format.

• Viewing in the Source monitor: You can load clips and sequences into the Source monitor (see Figure 6-1) to view and mark shots for use in a sequence that you build in the Record monitor. Load a clip into the Source monitor by double-clicking its icon in the bin. Click on the Monitor pop-up menu to view the history clips and sequences you have loaded. Clear the menu or monitor contents by choosing the appropriate command from this menu.

Monitor pop-up menu

Clip icon

Source/Record Toggle button

Figure 6-1 Source Monitor

• Viewing in the Record monitor: You can load a sequence into the Record monitor (see Figure 6-2) to view, mark, or modify an existing sequence. You cannot load a clip into the Record monitor. You load a sequence into the Record monitor by double-clicking its icon in the bin. Click on the Monitor pop-up menu to view the history clips and sequences you have loaded. Clear the menu or monitor contents by choosing the appropriate command from this menu.

Monitor pop-up menu

Sequence icon

Source/Record Toggle button

Figure 6-2 Record Monitor

• Viewing in pop-up monitors: You can load clips into pop-up monitors (see Figure 6-3) to view and mark one or several clips simultaneously in smaller, movable windows. (Enable a pop-up monitor by pressing the Alt key whi le double-clicking the cl ip you want to open.) You can have multiple pop-up monitors open at one time.

Figure 6-3 Pop-up Monitor

Navigating in the Timeline

The Timeline window (see Figure 6-4) provides various controls for quickly moving through a sequence and adjusting your view of details displayed in the tracks while editing. You can make changes in the Timeline format by using the Timeline Fast menu or by double-clicking Timeline in the Settings scroll list in the Project window.

Position indicator

Track Selector panel

Timeline Fast Menu button

Extract/Splice-in button

(Segment mode)

Lift/Overwrite button (Segment mode)

Scale bar

Timeline track

Scroll bar

Figure 6-4 Timeline Window

Using the Position Indicator

The position indicator, the vertical blue line in the Timeline, marks your place in the sequence. It also determines how some of your commands are interpreted. For example, when you perform an edit, the system takes the location of the position indicator as the IN point if

you haven’t marked an IN point. The position indicator can also be used as an OUT point if you haven’t marked an OUT point.

When you move the position indicator in the Timeline, the smaller

position indicator within the Record monitor’s position bar also moves.

Using the A and S keys

The Go to Previous Edit and Go to Next Edit buttons in the Command palette allow you to quickly move forward and backward thr ough the Timeline. When you click the Go to Pr evious Edit button (A key on the default keyboard), the position indicator moves to the previous transition point in the sequence, ignoring tracks that are not active. When you click the Go to Next Edit button (S key on the default keyboard), the position indicator moves to the next transition point in the sequence and is also based on the track selection.

Displaying More or Less Detail

The scale bar stretches and contracts the Timeline area centered around the position indicator, allowing you to either zoom in to focus on a specific area of your sequence or zoom out to see your whole sequence. This is especially useful when you have a lengthy sequence with many edits.

Scale bar

Scale box

The Timeline always expands or contracts proportionally on both sides of the position indicator.

To see more detail:

t Click the scale box and drag it to the right.

As the Timeline expands, a second “shadow” position indicator

As the Timeline expands, a shadow position indicator appears.

appears next to the position indicator, showing the end of a single frame, and the two continue to move apart as you expand the Timeline.

The position indicator and its shadow mark the beginning and end of each frame. The solid line is the mark or edit point. Y ou can click either the line or the shadow to move exactly one frame forward or backward.

In addition, if the Timeline is maximized for full-screen viewing, the Timeline will split in half (or thirds) as it wraps through the sequence for you to see all the clips.

To contract an expanded Timeline to see less detail but more of the sequence:

t Click the scale box and drag it to the left.

Using the Scroll Bar

The scroll bar functions like any standard scroll bar. Click the arrows or drag the scroll box to scroll left or right.

Scroll bar

Scroll box

Using the Track Selector Panel

The Track Selector panel (see Figure 6-5) provides numerous controls for working effectively with multiple tracks. With this one resource, you can select, delete, monitor, enlarge, reduce, lock, patch, and move any video or audio track.

The Track Selector panel also provides a quick display of track information. You can see which tracks (on the source or the record side) are available, active, patched, monitored, or locked. The configuration shown in Figure 6-5 is just one example. The Track Selector panel might look very different, depending on the nature of the source material or the work under way in the sequence.

Source Track Monitor buttons Source Track buttons

Sync Lock and Lock buttons Record Track buttons

Record Track Monitor buttons

Timecode button

Figure 6-5 Timeline Track Selector Panel

The source side (left side) of the panel displays only those tracks available for the clip currently loaded and displayed in the Source monitor. For instance, a clip that has audio digitized for track A1 only does not display an A2 track in the Track Selector panel.

The record side of the panel displays only those tracks curr ently in use for the sequence. However, if you edit source material with a track selected that does not yet exist on the record side (A3 or V2, in the previous example), by default the track appears on the record side after the edit takes place.

A clip (or sequence) needs to be loaded in the Source and Record monitors to display both track panels.

Selecting Tracks

You can select tracks on either the record side or the source side as follows:

• You can edit selected tracks on the source side directly into the sequence, assuming you have selected parallel tracks on the record side.

• You cannot edit deselected tracks on the source side into the sequence, regardless of record track selections.

• You cannot edit deselected tracks on the record side, regardless of source track selections.

There are four methods for selecting tracks:

• Click any deactivated Track Selector button to select it. Click any activated Track Selector button to deselect it.

• Lasso the Track Selector buttons by dragging the pointer to the right and down, making sure to select multiple Track Selector buttons at once. Make sure the lasso box appears with the pointer.

• With the Timeline window active, choose Select All Tracks from the Edit menu or press Ctrl+A to select all tracks on the record side.

• With the Timeline window active, use the keys on the keyboard corresponding to each track to select and deselect tracks. To see the default Keyboard settings, double-click Keyboard in the Settings scroll list of the Project window.

For example, you might select the source and record tracks for V1, A1, and A2 to edit video and audio from the source clip into the sequence. Select only V1 source and record tracks to edit video without sound. Or, select only A1 and A2 to edit the sound without the video.

Patching Tracks

Selected tracks change color, becoming lighter.

When working with multiple tracks, you occasionally encounter a circumstance where you must edit source audio or video onto a track other than the parallel track displayed in the Track Selector panel. To edit the source material onto another record track above or below it, you must patch the source track to the targeted record track.

You can perform only one patch per edit, but there is no limit to the number of times you can patch from the same source track. Audio can patch only to audio, and video only to video.

To perform a patch:

t Drag from a source track (audio or video) to the targeted record

track (a white arrow appears during the patch).

The selected source track moves beside the record track to which it is patched as soon as you release the mouse. The patched track remains highlighted in preparation for your edit. You can proceed to select any other tracks required for the edit.

To undo a patch:

1. Click directly in the Record monitor.

2. Manually repatch to the previous track.

When you are patching from one video track to another, the Monitor icon moves to the track to which you patch. Be sure to return the icon to the topmost track when necessary to play back and output all video tracks.

Monitoring Tracks

You determine the monitoring of tracks by clicking the monitor column of either the source-side or record-side tracks to activate or deactivate the Monitor icons.

Video Track Monitor button with Monitor icon

Audio Track Monitor button with black Speaker icon

The track monitor determines what you see and hear during playback. You can turn track monitors off at any time to monitor only audio or only video during editing. When there are multiple tracks, all tracks under the monitored track are active during playback.

Audio Track Monitor button with hollow Speaker icon

When you edit with multiple tracks, you can activate the monitor on a lower track to monitor only that track. This is especially useful when you have multiple layers of video effects and need to see one track without the additional layers.

If you reposition the Monitor icon, be sure to return it to the topmost track to view, render, or record all the tracks together. Unmonitored tracks are not included in playback.

100

Pinnacle Systems NewsCutter - 2.0 Getting Started Guide

Specifications and Main Features

Frequently Asked Questions

User Manual

Contents

Figures

Tables

Introduction

About NewsCutter

NewsCutter Hardware

Starting Your System

Starting NewsCutter

Electronic Licensing

How to Proceed

Using Help

Opening and Closing the Help System

Understanding the Topic Window

Getting Help for Windows and Dialog Boxes

Getting Help for Screen Objects

Keeping Help Available

Restoring Help from the Taskbar

Using Alt+Tab to Restore Help

Finding Information Within the Help

Using the Contents List

Using the Index

Using the Search Feature

Using the Glossary

Creating a Favorites List

Using the Browse Buttons

Printing Help Topics

Using Online Documentation

About NewsCutter

Basic Editing Steps

Understanding the Pieces

Organizing Your Work with Projects and Bins

How Media Is Stored

The Attic Folder

Starting Your Project

Starting NewsCutter

Creating a User

Creating a Project

Opening an Existing Project

Understanding the Project Window

Working with Bins

Creating a Bin

About Bin Views

Text View

Frame View

Script View

Creating a Quick Transition Bin

About Trash

Customizing Your Work Environment

Mapping Keys and Buttons

Setting Up Workspaces

Recording

Selecting Settings for Recording

The Record Tool

The Audio Tool

The Video Input Tool

Recording Preparations Check List

Recording to the Timeline

Recording and Logging at the Same Time

Recording On-the-Fly

Recording from an IN Point to an OUT Point

Batch Recording

Rerecording a Sequence

Getting Ready to Edit

Using the Command Palette

Using the Tool Palette

Mapping Buttons to the Tool Palette

Mapping Menu Commands to the Tool Palette

Using the Keyboard Palette

Mapping Buttons to the Keyboard

Mapping Menu Commands to the Keyboard

Using Workspaces

Modifying Workspaces

Controlling Playback

Using Position Bars and Position Indicators

Using Buttons

The Play Button