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Chapter 1: Getting Started

This chapter shows you how to begin using RealMedia Editor. You will learn what equipment and software you need to edit a clip, and how to start the product and navigate along a clip. Also included is a tour of the main window where you will do all of your work.

System Requirements

Make sure your computer is installed with the requirements listed below before you begin using the product.

Windows® Requirements

RealMedia Editor is currently available for the following operating systems:

In addition, you need the following hardware to run RealMedia Editor:

Hardware Requirements
Requirement Minimum Recommended
CPU Pentium® 120 Pentium 166 with MMX
RAM 32 MB 64 MB
Hard Disk space (software) 30 MB
Hard Disk space (data) 30 MB 100 MB
Color Display 16-bit (High Color) set to 800 x 600 resolution or greater
Sound Card 16-bit sound card or better, and speakers or headphones

Macintosh® Requirements

RealMedia Editor is currently available for Macintosh OS 8.5 or later. In addition, you need the following hardware to run RealMedia Editor:

Hardware Requirements
Requirement Minimum Recommended
RAM 32 MB 64 MB
Hard Disk space (software) 10 MB
Hard Disk space (data) 30 MB 100 MB
Color Display Thousands of colors (16-bit) set to 800 x 600 or greater resolution

Overview of the Main Window

RealMedia Editor is installed automatically when you install RealProducer, either the Windows or Macintosh version. Click on File>Edit RealMedia File from the RealProducer main window to begin.

Once you have started the product, the main window opens for you. Below is a brief tour of the main window, introducing each element to you.

The RealMedia Editor main window-Windows version

Main Menu-the menu items at the top of the window allow you to access different functions of this program

Clip Viewer-a video window that shows the video portion of the clip

Timeline-a graphical representation of the input file. You can move the slider to any keyframe or edit point. The current time position is also shown here.

Clip Info Area-this area allows you to quickly change the title, author, copyright, keywords, and description of a clip.

Opening a RealMedia File

The first step in editing a RealMedia clip is to open it with the RealMedia Editor. Once you have opened the clip, you can play it, navigate through it, and edit it.

To open a clip:

  1. In the main window, choose File>Open RealMedia File.

    The Open RealMedia File dialog opens.

  2. Navigate to the directory where the RealMedia file (a file with a .rm extension) is located and select it.

    Note
    Currently, only RealMedia files with a maximum file size of 2 GB can be edited with this product.

  3. Click Open.

    The file opens in the RealMedia Editor main window. If it is a RealVideo clip, the first frame appears in the viewer.

    Tip
    You can also drag a .rm file into the RealMedia Editor main window to open that clip instantly.

Navigating Along a Clip

RealMedia Editor gives you different methods for you to navigate along a clip so that you can find the points at which you want to edit the clip. You can use the slider on the timeline, use the Play and Stop buttons, use edit points, or use keyframes. Use one or a combination of methods to reach the point in your clip you want to edit.

Using the Timeline

The timeline is the easiest way to navigate along your clip. The red line shown in the timeline marks the current position in the clip. To move the line, either drag it with your mouse, or click with the mouse button at a point in the timeline.

When the line is at the new position, the Clip Viewer shows the current video frame.

Using Buttons

Using the navigation buttons is another way to navigate. Click the Play button to start the clip. And click Stop when you reach the desired point in the clip.

Using Keyframes

Keyframes are video frames that are encoded pixel-for-pixel into RealMedia. A RealMedia clip consists of a number of keyframes with the other in-between frames based on the information from the keyframes. Video clips must have at least one keyframe.

Click the >> button to go to the next keyframe in the clip, and click the << to go to the previous keyframe in the clip. Navigating with keyframes allows you to quickly jump to a main section of a clip.

Using Edit Points

Edit points are simply other possible points at which you can edit a clip. These points are designated by the smallest block of audio data that a clip can be split up into. There are no edit points in a video-only clip, so you can edit the clip at any point.

Click the > button to go to the next edit point in the clip, and click the < button to go to the previous edit point in the clip.


Copyright © 1999 RealNetworks
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This file last updated on 03/23/00 at 17:03:34.
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