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Range-based keywording: unique to FCP X?
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I knew that subclips in Avid were searchable but I thought it was limited to that particular subclip’s name. Can a user add keywords to subclips in Avid?
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[Keith Carunida] “I knew that subclips in Avid were searchable but I thought it was limited to that particular subclip’s name. Can a user add keywords to subclips in Avid?”
Yes. You can assign unique metadata to every subclip, such as the “comments” column, or make up your own column, and it is all searchable.
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All columns are searchable on master clips, subclips, etc. I also use ScriptSync as a form of span-based searches by having a description on a page then drop the clip(s) on the script. One can use manual sync reference for non dialog pieces. If there is dialog, then it can be synced automatically via phonetic indexing. Then all scripts become searchable as well.
What I like about “subclips” in general is the graphical overview of takes in a bin where a picture is a thousand words. A simple glance will often work…
Michael
Michael Phillips
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[Keith Carunida] “I knew that subclips in Avid were searchable but I thought it was limited to that particular subclip’s name. Can a user add keywords to subclips in Avid?”
Sorry for the double post, but in the interest of information — here is a screenshot of my giving subclips several unique keywords, and then searching them. I have entered information into some of the ‘standard’ columns that Avid creates, and also created my own:
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No apologies – thanks for the info!
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X does things a bit more “visually”
Here’s a pair of screen shots of the Event Browser in action. In the first shot, the selection is the entire event library – giving me scrolling clip access to the 170 scenes in this project. In the second, I’ve just clicked on “Entertainment”as a keyword collection (upper left display) – which brings up every instance of every range where I’ve attached Entertainment as a keyword. Across all events.
It’s instant. Visual. and useful since I can further “sub range” anything I like and add or remove new keywords right from here as the spirit moves me.
The point of X is largely that the database is constantly “live” and key wording by clip, OR by range, using individual or multiple keywords over any and all range selections is pretty dynamic.
As someone who finds visual info often superior to plain text at least in editing contexts. (I’ve got a lot of scenes with firetrucks – which is the one I want?) I like the way X does this a lot.
FWIW.
“Before speaking out ask yourself whether your words are true, whether they are respectful and whether they are needed in our civil discussions.”-Justice O’Connor
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This also looks great Bill. It’s actually strikingly similar how it all works (fyi, I can make Avid’s method visual too I just didn’t enable video images for my screenshot).
Just curious: if someone else has the same clip on their computers, can you transfer your keywords over ot them, thus giving them the same collections of that clip as you’ve got?
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[Daniel Frome] “Perhaps you’re thinking of another NLE?
“Yep sorry : )
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[Daniel Frome] “Just curious: if someone else has the same clip on their computers, can you transfer your keywords over ot them, thus giving them the same collections of that clip as you’ve got?”
Not yet.
Remember this is just a dumb little $299 app. Not a decades old construct after 100s of revs and improvements!
Also, on a more serious note, I honestly think that like with most of Apple’s development, they think first in terms of “personal empowerment” then leverage that into group situations.
Look at the iPad. It was born as a personal device. Version 1 had little infrastructure beyond the “one user, one brain” mode. Now, because it’s flooding into corporate America, Apple is doing a LOT with third party developers and enabling pathways to allow corporate customers to manage the device on a more centralized basis. Deployment of apps, remote wipe (to secure corporate content) and similar features are being added rapidly. But the individual empowerment foundations have made a device so simple to approach that it’s reduced training to virtually nothing.
I’m noted this before but I work with large companies that have simply “given” iPads to their entire sales force well in advance of when the company actually plans to use them – simply to let their employees teach themselves how to use the device and avoid all training costs and hassles.
The point is that Apple’s habit and history of success is to build for the individual user first – to build an app that will work for one operator extremely well – and THEN to leverage it out into the wider world.
There’s a lot of new plumbing in X. And lots of potential export and import hooks like the Share Menu and the Event Browser that are ripe for collaborative workflows. But right now, it’s a personal editor at heart.
Time will tell how and if it expands.
FWIW.
“Before speaking out ask yourself whether your words are true, whether they are respectful and whether they are needed in our civil discussions.”-Justice O’Connor
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[Bill Davis] “Not yet. “
Exactly. And why apple does what apple does befuddles common sense.
Anyway, we also need a way to export keywords into an index file. For example, one of my clients for whom I make dance how-tos and performance DVDs has a quite a few FW800 drives. If I’m looking for a particular piece of footage, I want X to tell me its own Drive_A then I can plug it in and get the footage. This text based export index file (that doesn’t exist) needs to also include other data.
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