• Global community
    • Language:
      • Deutsch
      • English
      • Español
      • Français
      • Português
  • 日本語コミュニティ
    Dedicated community for Japanese speakers
  • 한국 커뮤니티
    Dedicated community for Korean speakers
Exit
Locked
1

Got a Problem? How to Get Started

LEGEND ,
Jul 08, 2009 Jul 08, 2009

Copy link to clipboard

Copied

Getting started on fixing your problem:

Working with video editing on an NLE (Non Linear Editor) program can tax the most robust computers. Depending on many factors, this can be a daunting task, at best. Many of the components of one’s computer can be stressed, more than with almost any other operation, that it will ever perform.

Getting help on the forum can seem almost as daunting, as the first thing that a poster is likely to encounter is a list of questions, before any answers. This is the natural flow, because people are trying to help remotely. They cannot come to your office and sit behind you to determine your computer system’s capabilities, and observe just what you are doing, when and how you are doing it. Do not be put off by these questions, as they are very necessary and will very likely give the respondents some clues on where to look for your problem.

Problems can normally be broken down into these categories:

1.) System

2.) Assets (the Audio, Video and still images)

3.) Project (how it is setup and with which Preset)

4.) Workflow (what you are doing, and how you are doing it)

If you prepare a checklist, before you post your problem, it will save everyone a great deal of time, and will likely yield your answer much more quickly. The more detail that you furnish, the fewer questions will remain, that have to be asked. Remember, you have to be the "eyes" for the others on the forum, if they are expected to help you. They could be thousands of mile away, in other time zones, and will not know about your system, your Assets, your Project or your workflow, until you tell them. Help them get started quickly, by telling them in your first post. Do your "homework," so they do not have to ask questions for the first five responses, and can start giving you answers much more quickly.

System:

Be very specific about your computer. Just saying that "I have a Dell" doesn’t tell them much of anything. List your CPU type and speed, i.e. Core2 Quad Q6700 2.3GHz. Same for your RAM, i.e. 4GB of DDS. Also, list your Video Card, type, connection and driver number and date. Same for your Audio System. Note: most of this data can be found in Control Panel>System>Hardware>Device Manager. Pointing people to a URL on your computer company’s Web site isn’t a bad idea, but giving the exact details of your system is far, far better. It is likely that that Web site will have the general configuration, and who knows if that is exactly what you bought. List it for them, so they do not have to go and guess, and write down the specs. of your system.

One of the most important aspects of your system will be the I/O sub-system. What is that, you might ask? Well, it’s your HDD’s (Hard Disk Drives). The important info is how many physical HDD’s do you have. List their size, their speed, their connection, the amount of free, defragmented space and how they are allocated. This would look something like this: "3x 200GB SATA II. Drive C:\ OS, programs and Windows Virtual Memory with 185GB free, D:\ media with 120GB free, E:\ Project files, output and Scratch Disks with 150GB free." If you have any drive partitioned (not a good thing nowadays), let everyone know and give details. If you have a RAID, give full details on how it is managed, the type and how it is used in your system. [As an aside, most RAID’s should not really be considered for a system drive, unless one has built in redundancy in the RAID, i.e. 3, or more, physical disks. Remember, this info can be critical. If you have CD/DVD burners, list them and their connections. If you have external HDD’s, list them with the same details as for your internal HDD’s.

Next, tell about your Windows Virtual Memory (Page File). How large is it, where is it located on your system and how is it managed, i.e. dynamically by Windows, or static? Again, this can be critical. For info, you will need to go to Control Panel>System>Advanced>Performance and look. In the Settings>Advanced, you should see things like Process Scheduling, Memory Usage and Virtual Memory. This is where you will find the answers. Note: depending on which OS one has, the exact location and syntax may differ.

While we’re on the OS, list the exact OS that you have, i.e. Vista Ultimate 64-bit SP-2 with all updates and hot-fixes.

What version of the NLE are you using and has it been updated, i.e. PE3.0.2.

Finally, list any other programs, that might be in use, while you are editing, such as MSN Messaging, etc. These can be critical, even though you are basically editing video.

Assets:

Give full details on your Assets. Just saying "a bunch of .AVI’s" tells people nothing. Be very specific with the details. See this ARTICLE on what info to give, and how to obtain it. Same for your Audio and for your still images. Size in pixels, file type, etc., are very important for the stills, and file type. Sample-rate and sample size are important for the Audio.

Project:

How is your Project setup? Which Preset did you use? What is the Duration of your Timeline. This gives someone the "lay of the land," so to speak and is very important. Note: your Project Preset should match your Video Assets. You can always Export/Share to some other frame size, or format, but your Project should match your Video Assets.

Workflow:

How have you arranged your Assets on the Timeline allows someone to "see" your Project in their mind. Information such as one 00;10;00;00 AVI (remember, you will have furnished complete details on those AVI’s, or MPEG’s when you listed your Assets above) on Video Track 1 (VT1) with its Audio on Audio Track 1 (AT1). One AVI used as a PiP (Picture in Picture) on VT2 with its Audio on AT2. One MP3 soundtrack for the full Duration on Soundtrack and my Narration on the Narration Track. List any Transitions, or Effects used. If you have Titles, list them. If you have any Keyframing used, list where and what they control.

List exactly what you are doing and to which Asset you are doing it, when your problem occurs. If you are doing something like Export/Share, list the full settings (Presets) used, and be sure to mention any other tasks being performed by your computer, while you are doing the Export/Share.

If you have already done some trouble shooting, list what you have done and the complete results. Were there any error messages? If so, give the full description. To say, "I had error messages," tells people nothing. What exactly did they say?

This information will help people get right to your problem and will get you up and running much more quickly.

As an aside, think about the title of your post. Saying "Problem" is not good enough. Instead, something like "PE7 Fails on Share to MPEG-2" would be better. First, you are trying to let everyone know something about your Problem, so they will see it, and be interested in helping you. If you are having an Audio issue, mention "Audio" in the title, so the right people will find your post. Not everyone knows everything about all aspects of Video. You want the right people to see your post and to be working with you, to fix your problem. Also, later on, it is good to have a title that will be easily found by others, who may have the same exact problem. If you get an answer that works, please post back that success, so others, finding your post, will know what worked, and what did not. Note: do not put your entire post into the title. That is just tough to read and understand. Use a few words, but make them the right words.

Other useful links:

Get Help Quickly

FAQ's

System Crashes

PE Help

Forum Etiquette

Help others to better help you.

Hunt

TOPICS
Tips and tricks

Views

49.4K

Translate

Translate

Report

Report
Community guidelines
Be kind and respectful, give credit to the original source of content, and search for duplicates before posting. Learn more
community guidelines
LEGEND ,
Jul 08, 2009 Jul 08, 2009

Copy link to clipboard

Copied

Another useful link:

Thanks to John T. Smith for reminding me of this Trouble Shooting Guide from the PrPro Wiki. While it is directed at Premiere Pro, most will apply directly to PE, as well.

The Premiere Pro Wiki is also a great resource for tutorials and FAQ's. Most apply directly to PrPro (and often by version), but in general, many apply to PE also.

Hunt

Votes

Translate

Translate

Report

Report
Community guidelines
Be kind and respectful, give credit to the original source of content, and search for duplicates before posting. Learn more
community guidelines
LEGEND ,
Aug 22, 2009 Aug 22, 2009

Copy link to clipboard

Copied

Giving the version number, i.e. [PrE 4] at the beginning, will go a long way to identifying some potential problems. Remember, many fora and many sub-fora cover different versions of the same general programs. If you start your title with this info, it will help others to help you faster. Different versions of the same program will often have different answers to the same question. If one knows that you have PrE 7, their answer might well differ, from what they'd have given you, if you had PrE 4. Please consider your version number. Also, in the Premiere fora, there are sub-fora for ALL Premiere Pro versions, and then a sub-forum for Premiere (all versions before the introduction and title "Pro). Please be clear on what version you have, and are asking about.

Also, a title, such as "[PrE 4] Trouble with Imported Audio," is far better than "Help!!!!!." Give a few useful details in the title, but do keep it brief. The new fora will let you put in many lines in the title. Do not do that. Keep it simple, but help others know what your problem is. Outline the details of your problem in the body text of the post.

Hunt

Votes

Translate

Translate

Report

Report
Community guidelines
Be kind and respectful, give credit to the original source of content, and search for duplicates before posting. Learn more
community guidelines
LEGEND ,
Dec 17, 2009 Dec 17, 2009

Copy link to clipboard

Copied

Here is another ARTICLE on furnishing the necessary info to get you help most quickly.

These tips can be VERY helpful:

5. Go to Start/Run, type in DXDIAG, enter and save all information to a TXT file. Include a link to that file in your post.

6. Go to Start/Run, type in MSINFO32 (or similar for 64 bit OS), enter and save the results as a .NFO file. Include a link to that file in your post.

7. Download Process Explorer , and either post a screen shot or a link to the results.

The more info that you can provide, the easier it will be to help you.

Good luck,

Hunt

Votes

Translate

Translate

Report

Report
Community guidelines
Be kind and respectful, give credit to the original source of content, and search for duplicates before posting. Learn more
community guidelines
LEGEND ,
Mar 30, 2010 Mar 30, 2010

Copy link to clipboard

Copied

I also want to point out that these are NOT "state secrets." When people are trying to troubleshoot your issue remotely, the more info that you can provide, the better they can help you. We cannot look over your shoulder and see what keystrokes you are entering, or where your mouse is clicking.

Please help us to help you - remotely,

Hunt

Votes

Translate

Translate

Report

Report
Community guidelines
Be kind and respectful, give credit to the original source of content, and search for duplicates before posting. Learn more
community guidelines
LEGEND ,
Apr 03, 2010 Apr 03, 2010

Copy link to clipboard

Copied

For finding out more about your system, and its state, this ARTICLE will give you tips on some tools to use. Utilities, like Process Explorer and SpeedFan will give you a lot of useful info to share with the forum members, who are trying to help you get things sorted out.

Good luck,

Hunt

Votes

Translate

Translate

Report

Report
Community guidelines
Be kind and respectful, give credit to the original source of content, and search for duplicates before posting. Learn more
community guidelines
New Here ,
Jun 28, 2010 Jun 28, 2010

Copy link to clipboard

Copied

Hi Bill, Thanks for the link.  Are You still On?  I didn't see anything quite like or near my current burning issue.  Good info. though.  This is not rocket science.  Is it worth paying $30.00 more for my 96% device error target not suitable for use?  Can They fix me for good menu dvd's 10 hour in  Duel layer?  I've tryied avi & mpeg conversions & loss quite a bit of good quaility video by copying it.  What I would like is a patch for direct vob one time import to burn disc = no conversion.  Is this possible?  Have you heard this can work for 10 all single llayer import to a DL dvd burn?  Thanks A Bunch, Ben!

Votes

Translate

Translate

Report

Report
Community guidelines
Be kind and respectful, give credit to the original source of content, and search for duplicates before posting. Learn more
community guidelines
LEGEND ,
Jun 28, 2010 Jun 28, 2010

Copy link to clipboard

Copied

Benl,

I would suggest that you post to the main forum, as most people will likely not see you here. You'll get a lot more "eyes," out there, and a lot more help.

Also, the more info that you can provide about your Project, your Assets, and probably your system, the easier it will be for others to offer suggestions that should help.

Good luck,

Hunt

Votes

Translate

Translate

Report

Report
Community guidelines
Be kind and respectful, give credit to the original source of content, and search for duplicates before posting. Learn more
community guidelines
Guest
Oct 19, 2010 Oct 19, 2010

Copy link to clipboard

Copied

Hi Bill, Ho

w or more like where do I post a question.  I can go to a forum page wher

e there are questions but there is no place to ost a question.

If you could clear up this I would greatly appreciate it.  I've been looking for 2 hours.

Thank you!

Cindy

Votes

Translate

Translate

Report

Report
Community guidelines
Be kind and respectful, give credit to the original source of content, and search for duplicates before posting. Learn more
community guidelines
Community Expert ,
Oct 20, 2010 Oct 20, 2010

Copy link to clipboard

Copied

Have you tried clicking the Start a Discussion button under Actions, to the right of the forum?

Votes

Translate

Translate

Report

Report
Community guidelines
Be kind and respectful, give credit to the original source of content, and search for duplicates before posting. Learn more
community guidelines
LEGEND ,
Oct 20, 2010 Oct 20, 2010

Copy link to clipboard

Copied

Cindy,

Steve has pointed you to the correct place to initiate a thread. As there are several Premiere sub-fora, just make sure that when you get the drop-down for the forum, that you are in the correct one. If you are initiating the thread from the correct sub-forum, that should be shown by default, but if you arrived there from elsewhere in the Adobe fora, just choose the correct one.

Do choose a title that hits the "high-points" of your post, so others can locate it later on, and be sure to supply all necessary info.

Good luck,

Hunt

Votes

Translate

Translate

Report

Report
Community guidelines
Be kind and respectful, give credit to the original source of content, and search for duplicates before posting. Learn more
community guidelines
LEGEND ,
Feb 12, 2011 Feb 12, 2011

Copy link to clipboard

Copied

To see an example of how to ask a question, and also what info is useful, if not critical, see Tracy's post in the PrE Forum. Tracy gave almost all possible details, and there are then few instances of 40 Questions.

Hunt

Votes

Translate

Translate

Report

Report
Community guidelines
Be kind and respectful, give credit to the original source of content, and search for duplicates before posting. Learn more
community guidelines
LEGEND ,
Mar 07, 2011 Mar 07, 2011

Copy link to clipboard

Copied

For more discussion on the I/O sub-system, see this ARTICLE.

Good luck,

Hunt

Votes

Translate

Translate

Report

Report
Community guidelines
Be kind and respectful, give credit to the original source of content, and search for duplicates before posting. Learn more
community guidelines
LEGEND ,
May 19, 2011 May 19, 2011

Copy link to clipboard

Copied

As an addendum, if you are doing a Capture, please list the make/model of the camera, any specs. on the footage that it produces, how you have connected the camera to the computer, and exactly what program, or function you are using to ingest the footage. As with all of the above requests, the more details that you provide, the better.

Hunt

Votes

Translate

Translate

Report

Report
Community guidelines
Be kind and respectful, give credit to the original source of content, and search for duplicates before posting. Learn more
community guidelines
LEGEND ,
Jun 23, 2012 Jun 23, 2012

Copy link to clipboard

Copied

To see an example of how to compose a good post, asking for assistance, look at this ARTICLE.

Hope that helps,

Hunt

Votes

Translate

Translate

Report

Report
Community guidelines
Be kind and respectful, give credit to the original source of content, and search for duplicates before posting. Learn more
community guidelines
LEGEND ,
Aug 27, 2012 Aug 27, 2012

Copy link to clipboard

Copied

Todd Kopriva, Adobe engineer for Premiere Pro, has posted a good FAQ Entry on the PrPro Forum, on what information is needed to quickly and efficiently address a problem. See it here: http://forums.adobe.com/thread/961741?tstart=0

Please note that some of the questions posed in Todd's FAQ Article are specific to Premiere Pro (CS 5 and later), like MPE/CUDA, and such. If one has PrE, they will not have MPE/CUDA, but many of those questions apply to either flavor of Premiere.

Hunt

Votes

Translate

Translate

Report

Report
Community guidelines
Be kind and respectful, give credit to the original source of content, and search for duplicates before posting. Learn more
community guidelines
LEGEND ,
Jul 01, 2013 Jul 01, 2013

Copy link to clipboard

Copied

LATEST

As part of getting help, is providing information that will help others, and as System Info is such a big part of that, Mylenium has published a list of tools to help in the process, for both a PC and a Mac: http://myleniumerrors.com/working-with-your-operating-systems-tools/

If you need to gather System Info, those tools could be invaluable.

Hunt

Votes

Translate

Translate

Report

Report
Community guidelines
Be kind and respectful, give credit to the original source of content, and search for duplicates before posting. Learn more
community guidelines