MF 3.0 SE Lock up Bug/Solution w. Multi-trim Video Function

Gerald M. Payne · Post by **Gerald M. Payne** » Sun Mar 05, 2006 2:48 am

I've just spent two long nights uninstalling, re-installing, patching MF 3.0 SE several times as well as reconfiguring Windows, etc. to discover a very simple MovieFactory 3.0 SE BUG.

A little background, I've had MF 3.0 SE(with the 300P01 patch!) working quite well on my Win98SE system for over a year and have produced a lot of DVDs. I typically record at 4Mb/sec CBR w/ 224Kb/sec 48Khz Mpeg2 L2 Audio using a USB DXD Xpress. I often use the Multi-trim Video option to trim my captures. This typically works fine and I've made a LOT of DVDs to back this statement up.

However, the other night, after editing, I encountered a very strange error which left me quite clueless. When I got to the final stage of a DVD build and pressed the "OUTPUT" button MF 3.0 SE appeared to start, the button changed to "CANCEL" and the typical progress displays appeared and then NOTHING... Absolutely nothing! A bit of disk whirring and that was it, a total lockup, the "CANCEL" button would "press" but the program wouldn't cancel and had to be closed with the three fingered salute all Windows users know too well, CTRL-Alt-Delete.

After making so many disks with not too many problems (after getting MF to run correctly by patching it, etc. many moons ago) this was especially perplexing and I figured the simplest out was to remove MF 3.0 SE and re-install it. Well, I did this several times and was met with limited success at best. It seems the only way I could get MF 3.0SE to work was if I didn't use the Multi-trim Video option, so I'd narrowed the issue down a bit.

After much tire, CD, HD and very little DVD-spinning, violent solitary cursing, and generally related craziness I finally figured it out. (PHEW)

If you use the Multi-trim Video function you must NEVER SELECT THE VERY BEGINNING OF THE VIDEO CLIP AS PART OF THE FIRST EDITED SECTION OF THE CLIP! (I simply can't YELL that loud enough!) If I hit the F3 function key to select the beginning of the clip at 0:00:00.00 I was sunk when I later went to create the DVD -MF 3.0SE would simply lock up. If I didn't use the Multi-trim function and selected the whole clip it worked fine. Definitely a Multi-trim related bug. If I selected a point after the beginning of the clip, say 15 frames in, it worked fine!

Normally, I have a good deal of extra video prior to where I want to start extracting the first clip to keep from a video, but I happened to have started recording these with no lead-in. Funny how such a little bug can be such an enormous pain in the keester! Even funnier how ULEAD could miss such an obvious bug, but then I suppose they may have used similar video with appropriate lead-in when they tested and never noticed it since they weren't trying to start the cut at the very beginning of an Mpeg. DOH!

I hope this bug report and solution helps. I know they're a version or two past 3.0 SE but the problem may be present in later versions since it hasn't been corrected in the patch they provide for 3.0. By the way, this bug is proven as I can cause MF to fail at will by selecting the very beginning of the clip.

Good luck and thanks to all the other posters who help others here!

It may not be the greatest tip, and maybe it's been written before (I searched and didn't find it) but it is a real showstopper when it happens to you!

sjj1805 · Post by **sjj1805** » Sun Mar 05, 2006 3:15 am

Gerald
I haven't heard of this problem before but well done on solving it yourself and thank you for passing it onto the rest of the forum.

I am working a night shift at the moment but after I get home I shall have to check if this occurs with version 4. I will pass on the results.

Steve J

Gerald M. Payne · Post by **Gerald M. Payne** » Sun Mar 05, 2006 4:14 am

Thanks, Steve. I'm very interested to hear whether the problem exists in subsequent versions as I'd like to eventually upgrade. OTOH, if I can keep 3.0 SE running perhaps it's better to live with "The Devil I Know..."

I know it's "only" the "SE" or Standard Edition, but it really irks me to go through this much thrashing with something that was provided as an integral part of a solution for which I paid good money.(DVD Xpress)

I've had a good deal of ULead products over the years and I have to say that this isn't the first SE or bundled version that was a bit buggy.(EPIC UNDERSTATEMENT) The trouble is I've never been able to get past my suspicions and risk upgrading them. Maybe they need to rethink and charge a few bucks more for a bug-free version when bundling with hardware vendors. The hardware guys need the software, they'd have little choice but to go along. I'd much rather they limited features to prompt me to upgrade without shaking my confidence in them by providing software that seems buggy.

sjj1805 · Post by **sjj1805** » Sun Mar 05, 2006 7:39 am

I just did the test with DVD Movie Factory 4 Disc Creator (full)
Started a new project. imported an MPEG.
Multi Trim.
Selected the very start of the clip then selected a total of 3 sections of the video as clips.
Selected a random menu.
Burn to Hard Drive Folder.
Everything worked OK and it produced a DVD.

Regards
Steve J

Gerald M. Payne · Post by **Gerald M. Payne** » Sun Mar 05, 2006 10:11 am

Thanks, Steve. Nice to know it works in the full version of MF 4.0.