Finding scrub and saving single frame

tellme wrote on 8/7/2014, 6:56 PM

IMy OS is Windows 7 64-bit home edition. I'm using version 11 of Magix Movie Maker Edit Pro MX Premium downloadable version, which is several years old, and both the help files and PDF manual point to nonexistent places.

I want to be able to scrub a video clip (advance a frame at a time), and then save that frame as a PNG or maybe a BMP. I haven't gotten to the part of saving the frame yet as I can't find how to scrub. Here's what the manual and help file say:

Scrubbing can be activated via the menu beside the speaker button on the upper edge of the arrangement window.

The problem is I cannot find the arrangement window. A search of help and the manual are singularly lacking in clues where to find it. Going to the support site and trying to find an appropriate forum. Another 20 minutes of poking around the site brought me the opportunity to spend $12.95 US to ask my question.

The advisory at the top of this window as I was typing said there were "79 similar questions." I actually viewed the first dozen of them, and they were quite irrelivant.

I'm feeling pretty frustrated now and I am reminded why I haven't used this program much or upgraded it.

Comments

cpc000cpc wrote on 8/7/2014, 8:49 PM

tellme,

The arrangement window is the bottom section of the main screen where you arrange (!) your clips, images, audio tracks, titles etc.

The scrub menu shown below is for selecting how any audio will be played as you quickly move through your project.

If you are wanting to save individual frames as still images I'd think you wouldn't need to worry about scrubbing and simply navigate through your clip by dragging the playback cursor or use the left and right cursor keys to move frame by frame.

Saving a frame as an image is under 'File' >> "Export movie' -- you can do JPG or BMP but not PNG.

Regards,

Carl

tellme wrote on 8/7/2014, 9:12 PM

tellme,

The arrangement window is the bottom section of the main screen where you arrange (!) your clips, images, audio tracks, titles etc.

The scrub menu shown below is for selecting how any audio will be played as you quickly move through your project.

If you are wanting to save individual frames as still images I'd think you wouldn't need to worry about scrubbing and simply navigate through your clip by dragging the playback cursor or use the left and right cursor keys to move frame by frame.

Saving a frame as an image is under 'File' >> "Export movie' -- you can do JPG or BMP but not PNG.

Regards,

Carl

Thanks for the quick response, Carl.,

First of all, the manual says this:

Scrubbing (1 frame): Scrubbing is active and samples are only 1 (video) frame in length. The speed is 25 fps, i.e. 1/25 second. This mode is suitable for positioning the playback marker exactly.

I find it hard to navigate frame by frame with the scroll bar and am delighted to learn I can do it with the arrow keys.

Just as a matter of fact, the picture you supplied looks like the one in the manual and the help file. However, here's what I have (note no speaker icon)

Note the dissimilarities. I find the unclear and ambiguous documentation, as well as the dissimilarities between the documentation and the program as I experience it, to be quite frustrating at times.

johnebaker wrote on 8/8/2014, 11:46 AM

To step through the timeline 1 frame at a time use the Left / Right arrow keys on the keyboard.

You can also move in 5 frame jumps (forward and backwards) by holding down the Ctrl key and pressing the Left / Right arrow keyss.

This is the scrubbing control

Try this and you will find that it allows you to move forward and backwards along the timeline and hear the audio - useful for locating a particular sound glitch etc.

HTH

John

Scenestealer wrote on 8/8/2014, 7:54 PM

Hi Tellme

the reason you can not see your speaker icon is because you arranger window is partly hidden under your mediapool window. Go to the top menu and select "Window > Window arrangement>Reset window arrangement". The 3 windows that make up the workspace are all individually sizeable and moveable and can be moved by dragging so you must have accidently dragged or resized one of them.

BTW the scrubbing wheel or jogwheel John mentioned will only play audio if audio scrubbing is selected via the Speaker icon dropdown as in Carls screen shot.

tellme wrote on 8/15/2014, 2:51 AM

I appreciate everyone's help. Of course, I recognize that you are all users, like me, and volunteer.

The problem for me is poor documentation and poor UI (user interface). I finally realized that the "media pool" is actually a panel, and it covered up the scrub menu on the timeline because (A) the borders around the media panel are nearly invisible, and (B) for some ungodly reason, the background color of all panels is the same dreadful black as the underlying program itself. Clarity is extremely important in documentation as well as UI design. I'm in my middle 70s, and when the colors of the panels and background are the same, and there are no visible borders, it makes it doubly hard on us seniors.

Having said that, I'm pleased that several suggested using the arrow keys to go from frame to frame. I'm sure that MEP is very powerful in the hands of those who know how to use it, but Magix puts many barriers in the way of the reasonably intelligent beginner in this prosumer product.

So although I decline to push the "thanks" button because Magix makes it so bloody hard to get answers, I give thanks to the forum members who did their best to help me.

Regards,
Alan