TouchBar & FCPX…. Fail

[Tero Ahlfors]

At least you can run Doom on it: https://www.slashgear.com/doom-runs-on-everything-including-macbook-pro-touch-bar-21464763/

[Gregor Queck]

Thomas Grove Carter:
https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/thomas-grove-carter/one-professionals-look-at_b_12894856.html

“I was very skeptical about the addition of the Touch Bar. It looked like the result of an incestuous fling between a keyboard and an iPad mini (with Retina display). But I also felt skeptical about insert tech you use all the time now originally too. Once you begin to use it, you’ll see. Your cold heart will soften.

The first revelation for me was the potential of sliders. Gradual, precise and fast inputs.

For years we’ve had single mouse inputs on a graphical user interface. Over time we’ve added more buttons and scroll wheels, trackpads with gestures. The Touch Bar takes this step further by allowing multiple inputs at the same time and combines well with the trackpad. The more I’ve used it the more I’ve replaced certain keyboard shortcuts. Why would I use dual-hand/multi-finger shortcuts if the button was there in front of me? And it’s contextual. It changes depending on what I’m doing. I’m editing picture; it shows me relevant trimming shortcuts. I’m editing titles; it shows me font, formatting and colour options. All without the need to open other menus. It works, it’s faster and it’s more productive. I believe it’s only a starting point, as developers learn how we all use this thing, it’s going to get better and better. But even the short time that I’ve been using it with Final Cut Pro 10.3, I can already feel it becoming part of my everyday editing process.”

. . .

[Bob Woodhead]

[Gregor Queck] ” Why would I use dual-hand/multi-finger shortcuts if the button was there in front of me?”

Umm… because keyboard shortcuts are FASTER? I find it really hard to believe that a direct keyboard shortcut, not needing any mouse/move/click first, is going to be slower than taking fingers off keys, moving to the TouchBar, and touching there. When you use a shortcut keystroke, the “button” is always right under your fingers!

[Gregor Queck] ” I’m editing picture; it shows me relevant trimming shortcuts”

If you don’t know all the trim shortcuts, you ain’t an editor, you’re a something+editor.

[Gregor Queck] “I’m editing titles; it shows me font, formatting and colour options. “

OK, good point – I didn’t think to go into some Inspector options, there could be some great value in there. For sure, I’d love a long touch slider to change values, rather than trying to get fine increments out of a value field with a mouse.

[Gregor Queck] ” I believe it’s only a starting point, as developers learn how we all use this thing, it’s going to get better and better. “

This, I hope happens quickly.

[Bob Woodhead]

Sorry, Gregor, I didn’t mean to put Carter’s words in your mouth. I forgot the quote was appending your name, not his.

Kicking myself for not thinking about going into the Inspector & seeing what can be done with the Bar.

But overall moot, as we’re updating our 2012 MBPs to the new one anyway.

[Brett Sherman]

[Bob Woodhead] ” you ain’t an editor, you’re a something+editor.”

There’s something wrong with that?

————————–
Brett Sherman
One Man Band (If it\’s video related I\’ll do it!)
I work for an institution that probably does not want to be associated with my babblings here.

[Bob Woodhead]

[Brett Sherman] “[Bob Woodhead] ” you ain’t an editor, you’re a something+editor.”

There’s something wrong with that?”

Not at all. Point was that anyone calling themselves a pro editor shouldn’t need an icon instead of CMD-B

[Bill Davis]

Following in the noble footsteps of all the AVID editors who played with FCP 1.0 a little – and immediately pronounced it a fail.

And more recently those who played with X a little and similarly pronounced it a fail.

Good to know that consistency across decades is being preserved.

Just be patient , and I’m sure these snap judgements about the the TouchBar will end up being every bit as predictive as someone seeing a keyboard for the first time – and being utterly unable to express themselves through it.

; )

Creator of XinTwo – https://www.xintwo.com
The shortest path to FCP X mastery.

[Bob Woodhead]

AT THIS POINT, it is a fail. (mostly? like I said above, I didn’t think to see how it interacts with the Inspector – mea culpa).

Macbook PRO. Final Cut PRO. And the TouchBar is not customizable for a PRO. When working in the main X interface, all you get are a few shortcuts to the tools that we use most. We all know those shortcuts. (Yes, you also get the nifty timeline scrub tool.)

I would fully expect AT SOME POINT that X will get the same “customize TouchBar” menu option that Safari has. But as of now, it doesn’t, so I’m gonna call fail.

When X was 10.0.0 is was a FAIL. When it was 10.0.6 it was workable. Now it’s starting to shine brightly.

Don’t apologize & accept something that’s wrong. Insist that it be better. And perhaps it will.

[Paul Golden]

The “fail” was Apple calling it FCPX as opposed to something else like New Edit 1.0. Then everyone would have cut it some slack and realized it was beta software and been really excited about the future.

[Bill Davis]

[Bob Woodhead] “When X was 10.0.0 is was a FAIL. “

Keep believing that Don.

Some of us looked at FCP X 1.0 and saw …

Magnetic editing
An internal DAM
Range-based keywording
Modern digital file sharing
Robust Proxy workflows
and a dozen other re-imaginings of where NLEs might be headed.

ALL of that was in FCP X 1.0 on day one. A new approach brimming with new possibilities.

Scores of other editors couldn’t see beyond what was missing – and stopped looking.

My daily life as an editor is MUCH easier today because I didn’t.

That’s all.

Creator of XinTwo – https://www.xintwo.com
The shortest path to FCP X mastery.