[Bob Woodhead]

Sure does look like they “borrowed” from the Spider’s design… Anyway, couldn’t consider it w/o seeing the seat. Also look like they use alot of wrench assembly, vs Spider’s design.

Though I’ve seen several posts complaining of problems with Flextrack, I think it appears that you need to be prepared for the location…. if it’s uneven, go rent some standard track & shims and be done with it. If it’s smooth, whip out the Flex & have fun with it.

[Bob Woodhead]

Thanks Steve…. yeah, I talked with the guy from Hollywood Mech (Spider manufacturer) and he said that user comment was due to improper usage… they should have been using the levelling kit in that situation.

I am still concerned a small bit about how well it works on uneven surfaces, even with the level kit… have you used it in those conditions?

[Bob Woodhead]

Lol… these days I turn to the forums so often, I didn’t even think of calling the MANUFACTURER on this one! I’ll post what comes of it.

[Bob Woodhead]

Agreed that I don’t think you’ll find much call for this, as a specific service. Disagree that P2 will be “dying” anytime soon, in fact, with the increasing capacity & decreasing cost, I think it’ll continue to do well for some time. But that increasing capacity means fewer times where field offloads need to be done. On top of that, I’d have an AC handle that duty. Or someone else who I can count on to fill in as gaffer, audio, etc.

“Constituo, ergo sum”

Bob Woodhead / Atlanta
http://www.CoolNewMedia.net
Quantel-Avid-FCP-3D-Crayola
Panasonic HPX500

[Bob Woodhead]

Actually, I usually throw away renders, depending on the complexity. Usually the source files & AFX/Motion/Shake files are fine, just need some render time. QT ref files go away, since they tend to be temporary files anyway.
But really, once CapScratch & MXFs are deleted, the rest rarely take up more than a DVD or so.
So, yes, I’d reload those folders off the archive DVD(s) onto edit RAID.

You can delete CapScratch files, since tape-based media can be-redigitized, and MXFs are stored on their “camera master” drives. So all that’s left is that which is stored in those respective folders.

If I were taking in something like VHS, or other non-timecode based media, THOSE I’d save somehow (if the project warranted that level of archival).

This workflow is assuming that you’re archiving your “camera master” drives. Hence the ease with which I can say “toss” the working MXF files.

Hope that made my workflow clear as mud.

[Bob Woodhead]

Are they all reference files from Raylight?

Nope;

QT refs = “output” QT ref files from FCP, etc, for input to Compressor, etc
Raylight QTs = these are the Raylights (they get archived with the project)
Reference = files from client that I might need to refer to (eg, brand guidelines)

[Bob Woodhead]

“I guess I could always keep the QT reference files on the working drive – just in another folder besides the raw files. ”

Exactly what I do. Here’s my “template folder” structure that gets copied on every new project startup:

3D
AFX
Art
Audio
client review
Consolidated Project
Do Not Archive
DVD
encodes
FCP project
Motion
MXFs
QT refs
Raylight QTs
Reference
renders
SFX
Stills
Stock
TEMP
Text

Then I use DiskTracker to database the archives when theings go offline.

[Bob Woodhead]

For (1), yeah, just do one folder at a time. The QT ref file creation is so fast, it won’t add any time to the workflow (last batch I did was 65 clips, took maybe 3 seconds).

For (2), same here, I was at first, like “but I don’t NEED all those (empty) audio tracks!” Just wasted space. But, compared to the video it was nothing, and since my archive workflow holds all the clip data (A+V) anyway, it wasn’t worth spending time figuring a way around it. (Since I don’t save my “working” MXF files – only the “camera master” files.)

One tip I think the guys at Raylight should stress more is that’s it’s a good idea to save the QT Ref files along with your project archives. That way if you need to re-load the project, you don’t need to run Raylight again, and perhaps change settings from the 1st time, thus mucking up what would otherwise be a smooth, painless, media relink.

The one thing I REALLY WANT is an easy way to edit the SD card metadata file when shooting. If I used a cell phone that took SD cards, that’d be an option, but my iPhone won’t.

[Bob Woodhead]

Just in case, a review: RAID 1 = “mirrored drives”, so 1 drive can fail & you still have all data on 2nd drive. Data is written to both drives @ same time, but only read from one. So, you lose 50% of total space, but have 100% backup in case of drive failure. RAID 0 = “striped, no parity”, so you have 100% space & read/write to both drives at same time, so speed is maximum. BUT, if 1 fails, lose ALL DATA.

You’ll have to decide what safety/cost tradeoff you’re comfortable with. I’d say use your 1TB drive as RAID 0 for best performance. For data you have elsewhere, or can be easily re-created (video off tape, audio off discs, renders of any sort, etc), there’s no need to worry. Project files, created art or any other type files should be kept backed up, on a DAILY basis, to another drive. Those files shouldn’t take up a massive amount of space compared to your video files, so it shouldn’t be an issue.

So now you’ve got your camera files to deal with. You really should have 2 copies at all times. 1 set on 200GB, 1 set on 1TB while working a project. Project is done, copy all project files from 1TB onto one or two “bare” external SATA drives. Cheapest way is to use:
https://www.newertech.com/products/products_univ_adptr.php
Only $25! 2 drives of course gives you much more safety.
Then erase 200 & 1TB, go shoot some more.

[Bob Woodhead]

You know, I’ve just never even considered the P2 cards as reels… guess it’s my complete video background – not a frame of movie film to be found. 😉
With Raylight (a *MUST* for FCP users), your clip management is to a large degree controlled by your metadata clip naming, so in my workflow there’s a single folder with ALL the QT reference files (dozens, hundreds, thousands, whatever), BUT, when it comes into FCP, all the clips are named logically. EG; BRoll equipment Take xx, BRoll People Take xx, OnCam Interview Take xx,….
Raylight will also create subfolders based on metadata Program Name, which I use as “Project” Name, since the Clip Name handles organization so nicely.
Now if **ONLY** you could display UserClipName in the VF/LCD…. helloooooooo Panny!!!!