Version 3

(the version number will be changed if suggestions are added at the bottom)

A list of suggestions I have for MEP, based on MEP 11 Plus. MEP 14 suggestions commence here):

General

• On the EDIT screen, move the Storyboard/Timeline/Overview buttons to above the timeline (from the left hand end to back to where they were in previous versions!) to increase screen space/height for timeline.

• Make the program create the DVD Image in a folder called VIDEO_TS.

• Cannot compress timelines vertically to show more than 8 tracks. MEP 10 was better. I suggest that the current height be shrinkable to 60% of current to allow more timelines to be displayed.

• During the installation, provide an option to NOT install music manager, photo manager and photoclinic. I'm sure many users don't use these programs and all they do is clutter up the computer.

• StoryMaker: still no “apply” button for use after changing a still image length. You have to hit Close, but an apply button would be better to prevent the window closing.

• Please Please Please change (or create a user option) the interface colour. The light grey makes viewing the whole display difficult. The timeline is not as clear and sharp.

• Make all "folder open" dialogs remember the folder used or be "sticky". For example, if I open the "Background Image" box to select my own background, the program doesn't "remember" what folder I have got the image from, so if I try to re-insert the image (for example after I have edited it), MEP always takes me back to the "backgrounds" folder, not the folder my image was in.

This also applies to the Export function: MEP always tries to export to the last folder I exported to, not that shown in "Exports" in Program settings.

• Add a timed DV capture option, like the "DV to MPEG" function has. This would be very useful when capturing from a DV converter like the Cameo Convert, ADVC-100 or when using a Digital Video camera for Analogue>Digital passthrough.

• TV Cropping reduces the video but not titles. Make the cropping function also apply to titles (or in the Title Editor, add a cropping option) similar to the Margins in a word processor.

• Include a function to lock the chapter markers to the object below. Currently if you cut out a bit of movie using T, U or K, the chapter marker/s stay in the same position relative to the timeline, but the video has moved underneath, so the chapter markers are now not in the correct video position.

• Add extra Timeline keyboard Zoom of 5 seconds.

• Add Group/Ungroup to Right Click Context Menu options in time line mode.

• "Audio Video Offset": box should be named Audio offset (on the menu as well), so we know which way the plus and minus signs work. Currently, it’s hard to work out whether the audio or the video offsets in the direction selected (it appears to actually be video offset). It is more intuitive to move the audio to match the video, hence my suggestion it be called audio offset. The arrows will have to be re-adjusted to match the required movement. Edit: the arrows work in the correct sense if "Video" is removed from this box:

• Should be an option tick box in System Settings to “make all folders the same”. This would make it easy for us to nominate one folder once, and have it auto-fill into the other folder options.

• Fine adjust of End marker: there is currently no way of using the keyboard to adjust the End Marker, unlike the Start marker, which can be adjusted with the Left/Right arrows. Fine adjustment of the End marker would help enormously with accurately setting up a “range” for export to DV or MPEG, or cutting out pieces such as adverts. How about Alt-arrows for the End marker?

• On the Video Editor screen File menu, put the disc project menu items in the primary list under “file” so we don’t have to expand the "load/Save Disc Project option" each time we want to load a project. Make it like the File Menu on the CD/DVD Editor, where each Disc Project option is immediately visible under File.

• Add an opacity control to the DVD Editor Background Image feature so that the background can be easily faded/whitened to make the DVD menu text/buttons easier to read.

• Burn CD screen: add another text box option so that we can have a free-floating text box not associated with the project name or the movie name. Often I like to put in another piece of text but cannot currently do so; I have to insert it into the background image with a graphics editor. This is cumbersome.

Interface

• On the Burn CD screen, Spelling error; should be "background"

• On the Edit screen the "Directory" button should be named "folder":

Suggestions Added 7Aug07:

• The File>"Movie Settings" option should be "Project Settings", as these settings apply to all movies in a project.

• Further to the "Path Settings" suggestion above ("make all folders the same"), I find that I regularly work on multiple projects concurrently. Changing the path setting for each project as is quite cumbersome and time-consuming. I suggest that the first path setting ie "projects" have a dropdown list showing recent projects similar to "Last Opened Movies" or the Recent Documents list at the bottom of the file menu in Microsoft word. This would allow quick selection of the desired project folder. The rest of the path settings would then be set by clicking on the suggested new "make all folders the same" button:

Suggestions added 23Sept07

• Change to the audio offset suggestion: all that needs to be done is the word "video" needs to be removed from the dialog box. The arrows work in the correct sense for Audio offset.
• Slight change to the Path Settings dialog box above: I've added the words "as the projects folder" to the new button at the bottom.
• Translate this dialog box:

Suggestions Added 22Nov07

• Bring back the Timed DV > MPEG capture, or am I missing something?! I did suggest above to add a timed DV capture like the timed MPEG capture, but that appears to have disappeared with MEP 11+. It was a great feature of MEP 10+ and I'm upset it has gone.

Added 22Feb08

• Force titles to obey the Intelligent mouse mode. Currently, if a title is on the timeline as shown:

When the title is dragged right, it merges with the next object. In other words, it doesn't group with the objects on the right so the whole timeline can be dragged right. It would be better if it became grouped when in Intelligent mouse mode, like other objects do.

Further, if a length of a title is increased or decreased (for example with the "length" in the title editor), objects to the right are not moved to fit. The title either transitions through the object on the right or if the title length is reduced, a gap is created.

• Display unique colours for grouped objects. Currently, you can only see which objects are grouped when you click on one of the group. It would be nice to have a different background colour for grouped and ungrouped objects to aid with analysing the timeline when editing. It is annoying when you go to move and object only to find when you click on it that it is or is not grouped.

Added 27 Feb 08:

• Keyframe animator: change the response directions when fine-tuning the Effect Strength. Currently, the Up arrow key makes the Y effect move down, and the Left arrow key makes the X effect move to the right. Swapping the repsonse around so that the Up arrow made the Y effect go up would be more intuitive.

Added 1Mar08:

• This box is displayed if "Chapter Menu Only" is selected when the project has more than one movie.

I suggest that the word "film" be changed to "movie" to match the rest of the program.

MEP 14 Plus Suggestions

Added 11Mar08

• On Burn screen, when the user deselects menu "numbering", the program should automatically remove the number boxes. Currently, the only way to use the templates with number boxes is to physically edit the images to erase the boxes.
• DVD Menus: add 4, 5 and 6 menu options that stack vertically like this:

 

• On Burn screen for PC add a "Make New Folder" button like a lot of other Windows Programs: also spelling of "destination"

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