[Brianlaz]

“Well what it is about your workflow that requires opening media before opening a timeline?”

I’m not sure I know exactly what you mean. I guess I could say I often open media before opening EVERY timeline.

Where this issue comes up most for me is when:

— I realize 1 clip from one timeline would be great in another. I know I can copy and paste the clip directly into the other timeline, but I might want a different part of the clip and it’s much easier (according to what I’m used to) to hit one key combo (shift F to match frame) and then peruse my timelines freely, not just the ones I have recently opened, while my chosen clip waits patiently in its viewer. I also think the timeline history arrows are very inefficient, even if all my timelines were in there. The point of the browser seems to be easy access to stuff like timelines–e.g. a smart collection with timelines with a certain word in them…love that–alphabetical order, etc. The arrows are cool to quickly jump to something I was just working on but certainly not as a replacement for the browser.

— I have a clip in the event browser, and I simply want to look at another timeline for ANY reason. Maybe I’m putting one clip into many timelines, I don’t know. Or I know there was a good place for that clip but I’m not sure which timeline.

I guess it just seems obvious–if you’re going to have two viewers–that one is dedicated to projects and one to clips.
Is there any benefit to it not working this way that I’m missing? Like I said in OP, I have been humbled many times to see that FCPX does something in a different and often smarter way, but on this I’m stumped. I understand there are workarounds, like copy and paste or the timeline arrows, but to me that’s a loss and I don’t know the gain.

Thanks
Brian

[Brianlaz]

“Correct- the Event viewer will switch to previewing a project frame if you open double click in the Event browser to another project timeline. It will retain focus on a clip if you use the Timeline history controls to toggle between recently opened projects instead however. The little arrows that appear in the center of the window just above the timeline itself.”

That’s what I was afraid of! I did notice I could use the timeline history arrows but obviously this is far from ideal. I have no idea why they did it like that, I can’t see any benefit. If I’m opening a timeline, it opens in the other viewer, why have it trump what’s in the event viewer? For this reason I don’t even bother having the event viewer open. There are many things I love about X but this imho is an example of a fumble that was not replaced by a cool “forget what you thought you know about NLE” way to do it.

Thanks for the help!
Brian

[Brianlaz]

[Noah Kadner] “There are two viewers in X. One will just show whatever’s under the play had currently the other can be fixed to clips in the Event browser- make sure you have both active.
“

Thanks for your response.
I know there are 2 viewers, but I don’t know what you mean by “can be fixed to clips in the event browser.”
Is there anything more that I can do than double-click on a clip in the browser to make it stay in the event viewer?
I double click on a clip, or match frame as I said before, and the clip appears in the event browser. But when I open a different project, that project now appears in the timeline and in both viewers, which is what I mean by my clip disappears from event viewer. I am unable to “fix” a clip to the viewer.
What am I missing?

Thanks again, you guys are always a big help.

[Brianlaz]

How would one go about finding your blog about FCPX on Creative Cow? I went to your profile, went to the blogs, searched for your name in the blog section…
thanks

[Brianlaz]

I’m just adding myself as a big plus one to this problem. I assumed favorites would act like sub-clips–you could have them in one place and look through them like they were clips. Can’t believe you have to keep the other unnecessary info in the view at all times, and they are always visually attached to the original clips.

[Brianlaz]

I know it’s an old post. But my two cents anyway.
For me the problem is, if I’m doing a three point edit into the timeline, I have to leave my playhead where i want it, rather than the ability to set an in point, and perhaps watch it again, or do something else…anything I want really, and know that my in point is where I left it. I even often unintentionally click somewhere and lose my carefully placed “in point.”
IMHO, this is not helpful, and with almost no upside.
There was actually a very quick way to achieve the so-called benefit of the auto in or outpoint in FCP 7, much faster than up or down arrow to beginning/end of clip, and that was to hit x, which puts in and out and beginning and ends of clip, then hit in or out, and it has the exact same effect, in the time it took to hit two keys, one after the other, which is super fast.

[Brianlaz]

Thank you for that!
Still not quite what I was looking for, which is to make an in point and out point anywhere and delete that slice of anything and eveything that occurs between those two points.
Not that big of a deal, and like I said, I’ll keep messing with X and invite that special moment, when how I think about editing changes, and the word “tracks” is but a distant memory….
One thing that’s cool…exporting in the background, woo hoo!

Brian

[Brianlaz]

Thanks for your thoughtful responses.
I will not take any more of your time with my very early impressions, except to say that I agree, using sync’d replaced clips would have been better for this example, but I use the in and outpoint feature quite often in other situations. One example is editing a live music show. I edit to a song, then depending how it’s looking, I might cut out a chunk, like a verse, so the music actually still flows. This is not something (from my perspective now) that can be prepared for, but like I said, I’m ready to be converted.
Anyway, there’s a whole FCPX debates section for that kind of talk.

Thanks again,
Brian

[Brianlaz]

Thank you for your response Jeff!
I have watched a number of tutorials and looked at what seemed to be relevant sections of the manual, and I don’t feel too bad now because it seems that only after watching every tutorial and reading the entire manual would I find that no, you cannot set an in and out point and delete in your timeline, and have it affect all “tracks” (is there another term in FCPX land for tracks? I have the original camera audio on one “blank”, and my zoom audio on another “blank”).
I can certainly empathize with frustration from legacy users because for both things I mentioned, the answers seem to be workarounds rather than another sensical way of achieving the operation.
IMHO, making specific, accurate decisions about your clips (especially in and out points) before you can see them in the edit seems truly bizarre, like telling a chef “put aside and measure out all the seasonings you will need for the night because you can’t make those adjustments once you’ve started cooking.” So many edits happen only after I (and/or a client) have seen the rough edit (tasted the stew).
I am a newbie and I will move forward with an open mind.
Thanks again.
PS I did not notice the bad English

[Brianlaz]

Hey thanks. It was weird. Your suggestion was good but I think it was something else, works now!