Software Integration

davhud

davhud

Active member
Just got off another multi-cam shoot with P2 where I had to introduce a new crew of very experienced people to the world of P2.

One thing I'd really like is for Panasonic or somebody to streamline the software side of P2.

Right now I use P2 genie to off load cards, p2 cms (ugh) to view cards, check, capture etc and P2 format station to format cards when the cameras have to roll continuously.

That seems to be 2 programs too many. Any thoughts? Am I missing something.

Winxp workflow btw.

PS don't break the button that ejects your P2 cards on the computer. It gets ugly fast. I know.
 
With P2 genie I can show somebody how to use it in about 2 minutes. P2 cms seems like it was designed by someone for whom English was at least a third language at best.

I've worked with obtuse software interfaces. Maya anyone? But CMS is right up there.

Create a database why? I just want to transfer. Explorer works just fine and everybody understands copy. delete etc. Why reinvent the wheel. Are jobs that scarce in Nippon that they have a bunch of gosen samas sitting around writing bad translations of kanji interfaces.

I'd write the characters for gosen sama but I've forgotten how to get Kanji in vista.

Excuse me while I ingest a Margarita. Viva Zapata! Viva Cinqo de Mayo! Le revolution is no hay terminado!

Oh thats right P2CMS doesn't work in vista. Darn!
 
Hey Jan... my #1 request (way above everything else).... could you ask the software guys if it'd be possible to view metadata "user clipname" on the EVF/LCD? We've really gone over to the "metadata is great" camp, but it is a royal PIA to constantly switch back to MCR mode to remember which take # we're on (that's like 6 button pushes). Come to think of it, just being able to see current take # would be enough. (Like how about "T17" in the EVF). I bet I switch over to MCR 20+ times a day just to confirm take#.

As to P2CMS... once I got used to it, I've grown to really appreciate the way it colors already copied clips yellow. It's a really simple, fast visual indicator that all is good.
The copy is done with confirm, so that's important. It would certainly be nice if a card format utility was built into P2CMS, though. This may be going too far, but for metadata editing, it's great to have a utility that will search & replace text across MULTIPLE text files (eg, metadata files on the SD card). I use a Mac app called MassReplaceIt. That way I can edit the 1 to maybe 100 metadata files with the info needed for that day's shoot. Just set the search & replace parameters in the app, point it to the files you want modded & bingo, done.

Since I'm thinking about metadata, does anyone know where a complete metadata file is posted? Know I saw one somewhere, but didn't grab it. I'm talking about the entire metadata listing (like GPS coords, etc). I use a greatly truncated version that's applicable to Raylight, but it'd be nice to have a complete version for reference.

Please Jan, tell the software gurus I'm begging to see Take # in the EVF!
 
I think everything happens in due time and that will eventually happen but I don't know that it is able to be addressed on the older cameras. The 2000 and the 3000 allow for this, the P2 Gear does as well. I am trying to remember if we saw it in the HPX170, Barry if you remember, please jog my vacation soaked brain.

Why don't you create a Metadata file for yourself and then use that as your template?

Best,

Jan
 
davhud said:
Create a database why?
Click to expand...


A Database actually would archive the metadata that you may have taken the time to log into the P2 files and will allow you to search by the key words at a point in time in the future when you are looking for one clip out of that 1TB Drive.

A database is indeed useful.

Best,

Jan
 
Jan_Crittenden said:
Why don't you create a Metadata file for yourself and then use that as your template?
Click to expand...

Well, yeah, I do! In fact, I store old versions of metadata files for clients right there on the SD card (but in another directory not viewed by the 500). Anyway, found the rest of the user-definable fields on pg 109 of the manual.

I guess I've gotten so used to driver updates that I don't consider a digital product "locked off" (software-wise) until it's officially not supported. That's why I was throwing in my .02 cents for a firmware rev that could make many of us more productive (Take# in EVF).
 
I guess that is the problem that many folks think that because the camera works on software athat any part can be updated. This is not true because the chage would have to be rippled through to so many other places it would become cost prohibitive to make all of the changes in all of the lines of code that it would require.

It isn't a driver update required here, it would be more like a mother board upgrade and then some.

Best,

Jan
 
I understand how useful a searchable database can be just don't make me do it if I don't want to.

Don't make me search to find a file, just let me open up a browser with thumbs and let me look. Also let me easily look into a specific folder on a drive not just the whole drive.

Users are dumb. I know I are one. Anything thats not intuitive is bad UI programing. Especially at hour 16 day 4 of a multicam shoot. Much rather have it easier then not when I'm back in the nice air-conditioned suite. Which is why I use P2 genie. Very simple, very elegant interface perfect for fumble fingered location folks.
 
P2 Viewer lets you browse by thumbnails; you don't have to use P2CMS for that.

P2CMS doesn't require you to make a database or anything like that to copy. You put in the card, select the icons and say "export", and then tell it what drive or folder to export to. It's not obvious, but it's also not hard, you just have to understand enough of the menu options to see what you're supposed to do.
 
Jan_Crittenden said:
I am trying to remember if we saw it in the HPX170, Barry if you remember, please jog my vacation soaked brain.
Click to expand...
I know I wanted that, but I don't think I saw it in there.

What there was, however, which was very cool, was that you don't have to select a clip and go into menu/property/clip property, etc; now when you have a thumbnail highlighted you can just push the "data display" button and it immediately displays all the clip info. That was quite cool. It would minimize the number of button pushes you have to do.
 
Well, here's to hoping that someday we'll see longer product lifecycles, where user feedback (beta & enduser) can be integrated into future rev's or upgrades.

Of course, I'm not holding my breath.... but it sure would be nice.

Thanks Jan & Barry.

PS - for anyone reading this that DOESN'T own a P2 camera - I **love** them! This is just griping about the one you love.
 
My version of P2cms forces me to make a database or else it closes without starting.

I didn't say it was hard I just said it's just not very user friendly.
I can't really see some of the options on the main screen because there always covered up by some other part of the interface. Not sure why maybe the software only displays correctly at one resolution.
Maybe my copy on the production laptop is corrupt I'll uninstall it and try again.

EditingFX sorry man I think we're going the other way. 2 years is a long time now in the video biz. So you'll take what you get and say may I have another in 2 years
Sir! The only thing that won't be disposable is the glass in the lens.
 
Admittedly I scratched my head the first time I opened P2CMS. But after I poked around a bit I found out how to select the card as source and the destination folder. No database creation necessary, only optional. I found the Japanglish at the end to be kind of charming, frankly.
Cheers!:beer:
 
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