Topics

1

Video Splitter / Frame-accurate editing of WMV-clips

« on: October 23, 2009, 02:15:23 PM »

Dear Dmitry,

In April I asked when it will be possible to edit WMV-files with frame accuracy (which is currently implemented only for MPEG-2). You then answered that you hoped it would be done within the next 3 months (release in July/August).

How are things going? It seems that the updates for the last 4 months have mostly been fixes. Do you have a new estimate for WMV frame-accurate editing?

Best regards,
-- Kim Walden

2

Video Splitter / Frame-accurate editing for WMV-files

« on: April 15, 2009, 05:33:47 PM »

Hello Dmitry!
I have used the Womble MPEG Video Wizard DVD to edit VOB-files and mpg-files with frame accuracy and perfect what-you-see-is-what-you-get-preview for several years, and find it very productive. It can join any number of selected segments from one or several mpeg-files and produce a result very fast with no quality loss.

However, it does not work well with AVI- and WMV-files, since it reencodes the result, which lowers the quality substantially and also takes a looong time to complete.

Therefore, I have spent the last couple of days looking for a corresponding tool to use with WMV-files. Much to my surprise, the only tool I have found that can cut any number of segments from an WMV-file and produce a lossless result (and do it fast, which is only possible if you do not need to reencode) is the SolveigMM Video Splitter, which I am currently evaluating.

I have a few questions:

• You have said in a recent post that frame-accurate editing is planned to be included also for WMV-files. Is there a planned date for such a version of the splitter?
  
• I don't know exactly how this is obtained, but I imagine that you would need to change the first GOP in every segment that begins with a delta-frame, so that this frame is replaced by a new I-frame constructed by finding the nearest I-frame to the left and then apply all the delta-frames up to and including the segment start. That would of course mean some more processing, but only a low percentage of the whole job. Therefore, a decrease in speed would only be noticeable if you have zillions of very short segments, each beginning on a delta-frame, which is probably not very common.
  
• If I buy the current version, will I be able to upgrade for free, once the WMV frame-accurate editing becomes available?
  
• One thing I really miss (which the Womble program has) is a second preview window, where you can play back the result of the join of all your included segments at any time, so you can see and listen to the result before you do the actual trimming. If you are re-cutting a film scene you need to be able to see the resulting transitions from each segment to the next without having to go through the whole trimming process over and over until it looks right. Have you thought about such a feature?
  

Best regards,
Kim