Blog

Links:

• http://prolost.com/blog/2009/12/3/you-didnt-believe-me.html
  • Blog-Article by Stu Maschwitsz (of Magic Bullet, Rebel’s Guide etc.), 20 Nov 2011
  • “Pimp Your After Effects”

I bought a discount copy of Adobe CS5.5 Production Premium, because (after much discussion with others) its feature-set seems to match my typical and forseeable production requirements more than those of other NLEs, including my current mainstay, Sony Vegas 9 (which I am still trying to wean myself off, but when any proper job comes along, I tend to fall back on the familiar and trusted, for low risk including avoidance of learning-delay).

Being (so far) a one-man-band who is traditional Windows user, I purchased the Windows version.  But, confirming what I had heard, it does seem that most media people I have met use Macs.  So should I have purchased the Mac version?  Are the versions exactly the same or have they different functionalities?  Is there an option for the license to cover installing the same product on both Windows and Mac OS provided only one of them is run at a time? (e.g. when on the same physical machine).  Ideally at zero or negligible cost of course.  For example Avid Media Composer does have this flexibility.  While the uncertainty remains, I will not open the box (in case it turns out that I need to exchange it).

Here is what I have learnt so far (mainly from web-searching, unverified information):

Differences between the OS-Specific variants:

• It appears that for CS5.5 Production Premium (at least), the Windows variant has slightly greater functionality.
• However it remains to be seen what will be the case for CS6, when it becomes available.

Some options are:

• Volume licensing.
  • Intended not only for businesses but also for individuals.  If the “volume”is for two licenses, they can be for each of the OS’s.
• Crossgrade.
  • But as far as I can tell it’s intended only for one-off (or infrequent) crossgrades, requiring “destruction of the software” on the old machine each time.  Shame it isn’t simply happy with repeatable deactivation/reactivation on each machine / OS.

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Tutorials & Articles:

• http://library.creativecow.net/
  • Various (filterable) about After Effects and others:
• Camera-Mapping (false perspective animation of stills)
  • http://library.creativecow.net/devis_andrew/AE-Camera-Mapping/1
    • “Airport runway and buildings against mountains and sky”.
    • Ponderous & precise.
• After Effects Basics
  • http://library.creativecow.net/tutorials/adobeaftereffectsbasics
    • Various, some actually entitled “After Effects Basics” (a series)
    • e.g. http://library.creativecow.net/devis_andrew/AE-Basics-1-Workspaces/1

Avid After Effects EMP is an Avid-supplied plugin for Adobe After Effects allowing that application to use a DNA family video output box such as Mojo or Nitris to provide External Monitor Preview (EMP) on a monitor.  Helpful in order to make use of that Avid box for the Adobe After Effects application, both for convenience and consistency.  Unfortunately it does notwork with the more recent DX family, such as the Mojo DX box.

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