Workaround Solution: I added a video clip from another project (a 1080p camera video clip) to the Project Assets of my test and original project. After Saving, Closing and Opening the project, the 'offline' audio effects all became 'online' again. Read below for a play-by-play of my troubleshooting steps: The next morning (and we're now in Play by Play Troubleshooting mode) The source video I've been using came from a Zoom cloud recording. It's a 720p .mp4 file. A test I did a few minutes before starting today's log indicates that may be key, but I don't see why (yet?). I started another new project (Offline Effect Test 2), but this time with different footage from a video camera, 1080p. I added the audio effect, closed and re-opened Elements. The effect was still present in the timeline. It had not 'gone offline'. I added the video from my Zoom meeting to that new project, and tagged it to the end of the timeline. Then I added the audio effect to that clip. Close, re-open... the effect is still there! On the 'bad' video clip. Now we're getting into 'workaround' territory, at least. I start a third new project (Offline Effect Test 3). First, I just bring in my Zoom meeting footage, and apply the audio effect. Close (Save), Open, Effect Offline. I bring that 1080p camera footage into this project.. add it to the end of the timeline add the audio effect so far, the audio effect on the Zoom clip is still offline Close (Save), Open.... drumroll.... The effect is still there on both clips! definately in workaround territory. I re-run this test as Offline Effect Test 4. Same result - the effect has not gone offline. Curious, I delete the 1080 footage from the timeline and the Project Assets. Close (Save), Open, and the effect is still there. Risking all, I make a few edits, just to manipulate the timeline some. Close, Open, Weirdness: I edited the footage into three clips. The effect is offline on two of the clips and online (present) on the third clip. I add back a 1080 clip. I do not add an audio effect to that clip Close, Open, and the effect is present on all three Zoom clips. I delete the 1080 clip from the timeline and Project Assets box again. Close, Open, still there in the Zoom media, all three edits. Add another edit (1080 media still out of the project). Close, Open, effect is present in clips 1, 2 and 4, but missing from 3. Next, added a 1080 clip to the Project Assets, but not the timeline. Close, Open... effect is present in all edited clips!!! I think we have a workaround. Holding breath, opening original project... I had made a few dozen edits to the original, single Zoom 720 media file. Some still had offline effects, and some still had online effects. Most had no effect, but I don't really remember the quick screwing around that I had done while still in WTF mode. So I deleted the offline and online effects in all but the first few edits (tediously, clip by clip). I left the (offline) effects in the first few clips to see what happened when I added a 1080p clip to the project. Close, Open, and all the offline effects I had left in the first few edits came back to life. To review: Audio effects clips went 'offline' when I closed and re-opened a project with footage saved and downloaded from the Zoom cloud. Other Elements projects, including one with a different Zoom cloud video clip, continue to work properly. Adding a 'good' clip to the project (a 1080p clip from a video camera) fixed whatever was glitching in the program. After adding that 1080 clip to the Project Assets - and not necessarily to the timeline... ... then closing and re-opening the project... ... restored all the 'offline' audio effects. So, back to work. Finally.
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