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When can we expect Final Cut Studio 4?

The only feature that would sell me on upgrading to FCS4 would be changing the handling of multiclips.

The multiclip sequence approach of creating several multiclips and overlapping them in V1 and V2 is a little messy IMO as you have to faff around at the in points and outpoints to avoid blank patches at the overlaps since the individual angles don't normally stop and start at the same time.

A better approach would be to have a super multiclip object that contains all of the sequential clips for the given angles rather than lots of multiclips each with one clip per angle overlapped on a timeline.

Other than that, I'm happy with it as it is now anyway.
 
Denarius said:
A better approach would be to have a super multiclip object that contains all of the sequential clips for the given angles rather than lots of multiclips each with one clip per angle overlapped on a timeline.
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If you need complex multiclip editing with different start and stop points, Plural Eyes may be able to help you out. Cool to have it in FCP, though.
 
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Are we getting close?

It may be that we're closing in on the release of FCS4. Philip Hodgetts hinted in his podcast that he had read about comments made from people who work with Apple marketing when they're getting ready to release new software [camera guys, etc.] that they were making trips to Apple HQ for filming.

Philip is, I think the most well reasoned commentator on what's going on with Apple's pro apps, and FCS in particular right now, so I'd encourage anyone who wants to kill some time and read some good postulation to visit his blog:

http://www.philiphodgetts.com/category/apple/apple-pro-apps/

I posted a comment in his most recent article about apple rewritting FCS in Cocoa that capsulized my thoughts on the launch of FCS4:

----------------

I’m not sure why, but I have it in my mind that if we’re going to see a release for FCS4 this “Spring”, it will happen before or around NAB, which is just over 6 weeks away.

That puts us pretty close, and it gets me wondering how they will handle the release of this kind of software in the age when they’re no longer attending trade shows. FCS3 sort of “snuck” out the door, just popping up on their website one day. Will they do the same thing again, and if not what are the alternatives?

This is shaping up to be a VERY busy spring for Apple, with the iPad2 sure to be released before April, updated MacBooks and MacBookPros rumoured to be dropping soon, and less sure indications of iMac and MacPro updates in the next few months. Along with that there’s also the iOS5 preview that usually happens at the end of March or April. And all this before WWDC in June- which will be all about iPhone and iOS5 lion, and Lion developer betas.

Whew!

So again, the question begs where does FCP fit in? Pro Software like this doesn’t fit bundled into any other product launches or announcements, unless it’s a MacPro. And they haven’t gotten stage time in an Apple event in years.

Does FCP4 rate a small unveiling to concerned media and live-streamed event? Offhand I’d say no, but if the infrastructure is there, it’s a great way to generate buzz to as big an audience as wants to hear it.
 
11thIndian said:
Philip is, I think the most well reasoned commentator on what's going on with Apple's pro apps, and FCS in particular right now, so I'd encourage anyone who wants to kill some time and read some good postulation to visit his blog:

http://www.philiphodgetts.com/category/apple/apple-pro-apps/
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I think he's made some pretty wide-of-the-mark calls in the past, but that shouldn't have much to do with this.

If it's ready, it'd probably be a good idea to announce/release it just before NAB. Apple will probably just showcase it on their website, as they did with FCS3.
 
KeithPratt said:
I think he's made some pretty wide-of-the-mark calls in the past, but that shouldn't have much to do with this.

If it's ready, it'd probably be a good idea to announce/release it just before NAB. Apple will probably just showcase it on their website, as they did with FCS3.
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These days, I find anyone who's not screaming about Apple abandoning pro apps to be a refreshing change of pace.

AVID has already done their pre-NAB NAB announcement. It's funny to think amongst all the other Apple announcements we might expect in the next couple months, that FCS could be out there in less than six weeks.
 
11thIndian said:
These days, I find anyone who's not screaming about Apple abandoning pro apps to be a refreshing change of pace.
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The concern springs from
  • the fact that FCP hasn't received much of an upgrade since 2007 with FCP 6. Version 7 was seen by many as not a compelling reason for an upgrade. Motion got a boost though
  • Apple's big growth area is iOS
  • Steve has said (in 1996) the PC wars are over and Microsoft won. We're not sure if he still operates under that premise.
  • Steve has a habit of ditching non-performing areas, even if a lot of people think Apple should keep them
  • Adobe has really kicked it up a notch with CS5 - not just in performance and features but in integration with their other imaging products. After Effects has always been there, but Premiere was once a bit neglected and is now revivified.
While I'm not shouting "the sky is falling" and I won't be changing anything here any time soon, there's a new generation of kids every few years and Apple needs to get their attention. We assumed they already knew that, and many of us are puzzled as to why they aren't doing anything to address it.

I know (just from reading the same things everyone else does) why they haven't done much with FCS. There's a lot of stuff to be done to the OS, to QT and to graphics drivers as well as to FCS to make it leap ahead again. Steve doesn't like to release things half-done and not all of these are ready yet. It will be done when it's done. We just want it to be done now :D
 
martinX said:
I know (just from reading the same things everyone else does) why they haven't done much with FCS. There's a lot of stuff to be done to the OS, to QT and to graphics drivers as well as to FCS to make it leap ahead again. Steve doesn't like to release things half-done and not all of these are ready yet. It will be done when it's done. We just want it to be done now :D
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I hear you. The iOS thing doesn't bother me at all. Some people are sick of hearing about iOS, but the reality is that the number of iOS customers Apple has in proportion to the FCS users means that OF COURSE you're going to hear about iOS more of the time. It speaks to more Apple users, and more devices use iOS [iPhone, iPad, AppleTV, iPod Touch]- so it's no mystery to me that pro apps get mentioned in about 1 out of 500 stories on Apple sites. That's just the raw math.

But what has become clear over the last 10 years is that Apple sells cheap software to sell premium hardware. If Apple were to just walk away from pro apps like FCS and Logic, they would [either in the short or longer term] be walking away from a HUGE amount of the high end design and media market. A market that buys the most expensive machines and turns them over more frequently than consumers.

You're right, FCS has been on the unfortunately end of circumstances which have hampered it's growth. The studio's deep integration of Quicktime have held it back from multi-format editing and the move to 64bit. If there is a release in the next 6 weeks, Philips's suppositions are that there will STILL be issues that won't be able to be resolved until Lion comes out later in the year. Most pros will hopefully understand [or Apple will inform them] WHY this is the case, and that it won't be another 2 years for those features to be integrated into the studio.

My personal guess is that those core enhancements will have to wait for Lion, but that they will be a free point update available in the fall. But the release this Spring will be most of the eye candy anyways, so it should keep people satisfied until then.
 
One of their sources described a complete redesign of the user interface as well as low level architectural changes. Overall the changes are described as "dramatic and ambitious".
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I'm still just getting used to it...
 
4 weeks time. Or at NAB. I think. Larry Jordan and some anonymous pals have seen the new one and (IIRC) Larry referred to it as "nearly finished" which I take to mean as "just squashing a few show stopping bugs prior to GM".

But they're just rumours. Like the kind you find on certain disreputable sites. :rolleyes:
 
I'm not sure Larry gave any indication of how close it was to being finished, unless it was somewhere other than his blog, which is here:

http://www.larryjordan.biz/goodies/blog.html

Apple's only word on the matter has been "Spring". But the above poster is right, either just before, during, or after NAB [which starts April 8th] would make sense. Apple could announce just before, in hopes of stealing any buzz associated with AVID's recent announcement.

If you're keen for some informed but speculative reading/listening to pass the time until some more solid info comes our way, I'd recommend this article from Philip Hodgetts

http://www.philiphodgetts.com/2011/02/a-new-64-bit-final-cut-pro/

and this followup podcast where they discuss and expand on the ideas above:

http://www.theterenceandphilipshow.com/2011/03/episode-21-talking-about-the-new-final-cut-pro/
 
I know this is a stupid comment but CAN WE PLEASE GET SPELL CHECK IN THE TEXT TOOL???? Normally I do all my low3rds in AE but for roughs I use the text tool and would LOVE if they finally implemented something that has been included with every text editor for 10+ years. :mad:

It's the little things sometimes. :D
 
gameface said:
I know this is a stupid comment but CAN WE PLEASE GET SPELL CHECK IN THE TEXT TOOL???? Normally I do all my low3rds in AE but for roughs I use the text tool and would LOVE if they finally implemented something that has been included with every text editor for 10+ years. :mad:

It's the little things sometimes. :D
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This was brought up many times during my classes in the past.
Would it not slow down the text engine within FCP?
I def would not want that too happen in AE.
 
mBox said:
This was brought up many times during my classes in the past.
Would it not slow down the text engine within FCP?
I def would not want that too happen in AE.
Click to expand...

Does spell check slow you down in Word or Text Edit or any of the like? I don't see this as an issue at all in either application. As long as render time isn't effected (don't see why it should) I would prefer having it.
 
gameface said:
Does spell check slow you down in Word or Text Edit or any of the like? I don't see this as an issue at all in either application. As long as render time isn't effected (don't see why it should) I would prefer having it.
Click to expand...
That I dont know but I can tell you that if you load 2000 Fonts in Font Manager, any app will be slow :)
 
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