Save location during DVD authoring process

[Davidk]

Hi,

In making movies I sometimes need to pause the DVD authoring process (Share, create DVD, with various clips in the timeline), and be able to pickup the procedure from the point of pause later. Not infrequently, after I've shut down the computer and restarted after a day or more. If I close the process, there's a message box displayed that says "saving project" but it doesn't say where nor give the opportunity for specifying a file name.

If the authoring process is re-started without computer or program shutdown and no intervening different work, the authoring process re-starts where it left off. But if there's a shutdown or diversion to other work, getting back the paused activity seems to be a lost cause: in the opening authoring panel there doesn't seem to be a 'get saved project' option available despite the various add video files/project files/other media buttons'

So, I set up a special test file with a unique name, made sure all the preference boxes pointed to the same working file space and did a sample run, closing the author process before getting to the burn stage. The save project file box appeared briefly. But . . . one cannot find the saved file in the locations specified by the preference boxes either in the main menu or the author panel preferences icon. And even if it was found, re-loading it seems to be a problem (see remark above)

This situation exists in VS11+ and also in VS14, so it seems to have existed for some time.

So, the questions:
1. under what name does the author panel save a partially completed work?
2. where does it save it?
3. how does one re-load a saved, partially authored work?

Thanks,

Davidk

[Ken Berry]

It has been one of the great mysteries of Video Studio, probably before I started back with VS7... No one here knows where that automatic save is in fact saved. It is probably a temporary file someplace, but none of us here know where, and Ulead and then Corel have never enlightened us.

What you have to do -- if you intend closing the program and/or rebooting -- is to manually go to File > Save to save to your existing project file, or if you want to save a new project file, then File > Save As. When you later reopen the program and that project, all of your changes up to and including what you did in the burning module, should be there.

[Davidk]

Thanks Ken.

Perhaps (if its not already there) the solution to this mystery could be added to the wishlist for VS15.

Davidk

[Trevor Andrew]

Hi

My own opinion

When we do Share Create Disc we are effectively opening the project in the burner module, here we create the menu.
When we close the burner module the details are transferred back to the main project, indicated by VS as Saving Project, maybe its the wording that’s incorrect. We then save the project by File - Save as.

All details are now retained within the project, opening the burner module at a later date will show the menu structure.

And yes the project within the burner module may be saved as (PRJ_CREATEDISC.VSPTEMP.vsp)
Rendering the project will be saved to the Convert and Burn folders.

[kaymann]

A hard drive wide file search of all files at the date/time of the interuption should reveal a fairly large file. It is the way I was able to save the latest Adobe Reader download file which self destructs after install. You should search for hidden files in the above search as it or the folder used may be hidden. Wish you the best in this endevour.

[39_Steps]

Hi

And yes the project within the burner module may be saved as (PRJ_CREATEDISC.VSPTEMP.vsp)
Rendering the project will be saved to the Convert and Burn folders.

Are the Convert and Burn folders created by VS X4 (14) or by the user? Or are these folders a carryover from a previous version of VS?

Thanks

[Trevor Andrew]

Hi

The folders are created by all versions of VS in there respective folder structure.
For X4 here…C:\Documents and Settings\User Name\My Documents\Corel VideoStudio Pro\14.0\DMF_TEMP
-----------------------------
There are two ways to complete the project, create a compliant video file first, then burn the disc, no further render.

Or burn the disc from the project, the project has to be rendered/converted to a compliant video file, this file being used to burn the disc, for a standard DVD that’s Mpeg2.
The files are saved to folders on your hard drive, there are a few folders used I think Cvted Title contains the video file.

These folders do not exist till you use the burner module to render /create the files. Once created the folders remain but the content may be deleted as they tend to contain temporary files.

The process to convert the project can be seen as Convert Title immediately after hitting the burn button.

[39_Steps]

Thanks-
History: Although I purchased and installed Ulead Visual Studio 11.5 three years ago, and Corel Visual Studio X4 a month ago, I have used neither for anything more than pasting a couple of sample scenes together in some format other than 1080i AVCHD. I am now stuck in paranoid mode like a deer in the headlights trying to figure out which new computer to buy for video editing. I am not necessarily limiting the decision to Visual Studio X4 minimum system requirements.

Having said that, as a result of this thread regarding Saving unnamed(?) Project files, I spent about an hour early this morning searching all over my underpowered computer for Corel related files in both hidden and unhidden folders. It seems that I have in a prior time successfully gotten rid of most of the "thumbs" created by that 'free' Corel Media explorer/browser that came bundled in PhotoImpact X3.

So thanks to all for the heads up on the Project file saving conventions.