[Frank Laughlin]

Thanks, Neil! Great idea. Don’t know why I didn’t think of Terminal.

I couldn’t get the steps you list to work. No files were copied. In going through your steps, I’ve got two questions:

– what does the ‘-nv’ mean in your first command line entry ‘cp -nv’? I can’t find ‘n’ or ‘v’ as options for the ‘cp’ command.

– does there need to be a ‘*’ at the end of the source folder to tell it to copy all files?

Thanks!

– Frank Laughlin
Digitonium

[Frank Laughlin]

After a lot of experimentation, I’ve found the problem of missing frames can be solved by using a program instead of the Finder to copy the files to the FrameLink virtual volume. The previously mentioned program, DeltaWalker, does this but certainly doesn’t speed up the process. How slow is it? Copying 111GB from a raid to a new QT file on a raid takes just under an hour.

(I think the speed problem is because each DPX frame may be copied twice — once to the scratch disc on your startup drive, which is certainly not the fastest drive on anyones system, and again to the QT file that is being created. This double write, if that’s what’s happening, across two drives, one of which is s-l-o-w, is why these file copies take so incredibly long.)

But it works. All the DPX files get copied with no missing frames… BUT, unfortunately, FrameLink seems to create QT files with one black frame at the beginning.

When I open the QT file FrameLink creates from 14,400 DPX frames, the new QT file is 14,401 frames long, and the first frame is black. I’m working on a 1:54:00 feature film, and have broken the project down into 12 segments (because FrameLink can only make a QT file as big as the free space on your startup), and need to concatenate them together for the final product… which means I need to trim the first frame from each QT FrameLink creates or I will have 11 black frames added to the film.

I use the QT player to do this as follows: Open the file in QT player, move the playhead with the arrow keys to the second frame, press “i” to set the IN mark, go to the last frame and press “o” to set the OUT, then click on “TRIM TO SELECTION” under the Edit Menu. Save your file.

The very good news: The end product of all of this is perfect QT file. There are just a number of hurdles and detours along the way. 🙂

– Frank Laughlin
Digitonium

[Frank Laughlin]

I’ve found a file compare utility that more than does the job of comparing my source folder (the one with the DPX files) and the virtual volume (that will become the QT file) into which FrameLink failed to copy all the files. It’s DeltaWalker by Deltopia at deltopia.com. It takes about 14 minutes to compare my 14,400 file folders, but it’s a lot easier (and less error prone) than me searching through the QT movie looking for black frames.

Hope this helps as an interim fix.

– Frank Laughlin
Digitonium

[Frank Laughlin]

I’m using ‘funnel’ as a symbolic analogy.

– Open FrameLink.
– Set your settings; click ‘Create’
– Give your new QT movie a name, and choose the location; click ‘Create Movie’

A .mov file will be created on the volume you’ve chosen in step 3 above, and a Volume will be created on your desktop (it will look like another hard drive) with the same name as the .mov file. That new Volume is what I’m calling the ‘funnel’. You drop your DPX files on the Volume/funnel/icon on your desktop and that fills the .mov file that has been created on the drive you specified in step 3 with the media.

What I’m detailing is all on Mac, I have no idea how this works on a PC.

Hope that helps.

– Frank Laughlin
Digitonium

[Frank Laughlin]

Sorry. Don’t know what you mean by ‘My link does not mount’. Can you clarify?

– Frank Laughlin
Digitonium

[Frank Laughlin]

Amen!

– Frank Laughlin
Digitonium

[Frank Laughlin]

Hi Kristian. Thanks for the info! And the incredibly vital tool.

You’ve solved the mystery AND provided me with a feature request: Don’t use the startup disc for the scratch file. Let me choose the location for the scratch file as a preference, like choosing a scratch disc for Photoshop.

I’m guessing FrameLink was envisioned as a tool for commercial production, or special effects, where a very limited number of DPX files were being created or used as a source. But I’m doing restoration work on an entire film – repairing damage, dustbusting, and color correcting – which means I need to move 164,544 frames between QT and DPX. I had broken the film into 15 minute ‘reels’ (21,600 frames in each) and had no comparable problem going from QT to DPX (though I do have a suggestion there, too; see below), but have hit the wall coming back to QT because of this startup disc free space limitation.

Any chance you can make the temp storage FrameLink uses be an assignable preference really, really soon? 🙂

DPX used to be a rather rarified format reserved for a distinct end of the production business, but as great products like Blackmagic make 10-bit 444 or 2k very workable on the desktop, DPX is going to become very common and very needed, IMHO. The ease with which one can make the conversion (after we wipe out the copy speeds and filesize limitations) could make FrameLink THE pivotal tool in the process. Every person to whom I’ve introduced FrameLink acts like they’ve witnessed a miracle.

And, while I’m at it… 🙂

The other MAJOR feature request is to add the ability to choose a folder full of DPX from which to make the QT file. In the same ‘Create New Movie As…’ dialog box that allows me to choose the ‘Where’ location to create the new QT, should then allow me to chose the ‘From’ source folder that holds the DPX. It would be BLISS! 🙂

I’ve been a Blackmagic user from my first Decklink card, which I joyously purchased to dump my Avid (had many financial problems with Avid) many years ago. I just purchased a Multibridge Eclipse in December and am in the final stages of completing the restoration of a classic ’70s hit ‘Billy Jack’ (which will have it’s restored world premiere as part of the LA Film Festival June 21). Blackmagic has been pivotal in making this restoration happen at the highest quality levels.

– Frank Laughlin
Digitonium

[Frank Laughlin]

It’s kind of crazy that usage and information about this incredibly helpful tool is so sparse. Here’s what I’ve ‘discovered’ just by trying it.

DPX to QT:

1. Open FrameLink, a settings dialog box opens.

2. Specify the settings of your media (in the case of DPX to QT, the settings of your DPX files), and click ‘Create’. (I don’t know if you specify settings other than what your DPX files are if FrameLink would ‘convert’ to the new format or retain the original DPX format.)

3. FrameLink comes up with a second dialog box asking for a name for your QT file (that it will create) and a location. When done, click ‘Create Movie’ and it does just that, creating an empty QT movie.

4. A Volume will also mount on your system (with the name you entered) in addition to the empty QT movie that was created in the previous step on hard drive that you chose. Think of this Volume that was just created as a funnel into which you are going to pour your DPX files into the empty QT file that was also just created. Copy your DPX files to that newly mounted Volume (NOT the new, empty QT movie).

5. When the (very painful) file copy finishes (this can take for friggin EVER — this whole file-drag, finder-copy part of this process is very, very old school; like we’re back in the days of System 9), your QT file will have been ‘filled’ with converted DPX files and be ready to go. Just eject the Volume that FrameLink created and you’re good to go.

It’s unbelievably painless and useful and idiot-proof. As I said, I don’t know why the praises of this what-will-become indespensable tool aren’t sung louder and wider. This is a major step forward from the After Effects conversions I was doing. I have come across countless folks that have never heard of FrameLink, don’t know what it does, and wonder how I’ve created such perfect DPX from QT.

Could the tool use some serious help? YES!

1. It DESPERATELY needs to have an option that enables you to select a folder where all your DPX files are from which to make your QT file. It is crazy that you have to manually select tens of thousands of DPX files in the Finder and drag them to the destination. Even on my 3GHz Quad Mac-Pro this is almost undoably painful. The Finder takes forever to just ‘prepare to copy’ the files. Once the system is done ‘preparing to copy’ it then performs the actual copy at the slowest pace of any file copy you will ever do… like the files were being copied to an external USB drive that’s already almost full. I don’t know what overhead is going on, but you can actually count the DPX files being copies it’s so slow, even from raid to raid.

2. FrameLink creates a scratch file on your startup drive so you’re limited to the free space of your startup for the size of your QT file. This is a major fail. Who has a TB free on their startup? So you’ll have to arbitrarily break your project into perhaps very small segments in order to make this work (maybe it was only intended for folks making commercials).

However, even with these two major drawbacks, it is the most reliable, consistent, and mistake-proof way to convert QT to DPX and back again. Try it, you’ll (mostly) love it. Just let it run while you get lunch, dinner, or sleep. 🙂

– Frank Laughlin
Digitonium

[Frank Laughlin]

I’m having the same problem with Photoshop CS4. The plugins don’t install and I can’t find them on the install disc.

– Frank Laughlin
Digitonium

[Frank Laughlin]

I’ve never paid a ‘crew’ member anything other than the day of the shoot. I’m unaware of any production company getting terms on paying any crew. Very unusual.