m.objects
X-2022 (Build 2565)
This
is an automatic translation of the corresponding german document that
can be found
here:
https://www.mobjects.com/user/download/Liesmich%202565.htm
Notice
As you
are used to from numerous previous updates of the m.objects software,
this edition can also load all existing m.objects presentations for
further editing and playback. However, m.objects X-2022 brings with
it a number of significant simplifications and new possibilities. In
order to be able to use them effectively, reading at least the first
paragraphs is recommended. It should already be mentioned in advance
that innovations in the editor can be switched individually either
globally via the program settings or by holding down the Shift or Alt
keys while working.
All innovations are equally available in
operation under macOS as well as under Windows.
Innovations
in X-2022 (compared to v9.5)
Intelligent insertion
of media (all configuration levels)
m.objects automatically
creates space when inserting new media and, if necessary,
automatically moves the following content to adjacent tracks. To do
this, the objects to be inserted only need to be dragged onto the
picture change at the desired insertion point. (function
switchable)
Significant advantages of the timeline editor from
m.objects, namely its clarity and flexibility, sometimes involved
more complex operation, especially when inserting images and video
clips later. A new function for intelligently inserting individual or
multiple media content greatly simplifies the work of creating space
and rearranging that frequently occurs during production. It doesn't
matter whether content is dragged from the lightbox or Explorer into
the timeline, or whether content from the clipboard (copy+paste) or
self-created macros are used. Handling is very simple: If a new
medium or several are dragged exactly to the transition between two
existing curves, the editor signals with the display of a
corresponding frame that the insertion is possible at this point.
When you release the mouse button, the space you need is created
where you want it, and the new content is inserted where you want it.
Fade-in and fade-out times are automatically adapted to the existing
sequence, and if a changed track assignment of the following media is
necessary, as many as necessary are rearranged.
Depending on
the position of the "Selection in all components" switch on
the far right in the toolbar, necessary shifts are made in all
components (e.g. sound, comments, time ruler, etc.).
Inserting
before the first or appending after the last image of an existing
sequence can also be done in the same way by placing it on its first
fade-in or last fade-out. Adding individual new images in this way
also makes it unnecessary to manually synchronize the fade-in and
fade-out.
This function can be deactivated completely in the
program settings or on a case-by-case basis by pressing the Shift
key.
Track assignment of newly added media (all expansion
stages)
It is no longer necessary to mute tracks to keep them
free while new image sequences are being inserted. (function
switchable)
A simplified assignment of media newly imported
into the timeline now ensures an alternating distribution on 2
tracks. In insert mode (see above) these are always the last two
tracks used for a picture change, otherwise two adjacent tracks,
taking into account any muting.
This feature can be toggled
entirely in the program settings or on a case-by-case basis by
pressing the Alt key.
Intelligent deletion of media (all
expansion stages)
m.objects automatically
closes gaps that arise when deleting media and, if necessary,
automatically moves subsequent content to adjacent tracks. (function
switchable)
Similar to the function for inserting new content,
m.objects now also has a smart solution for deleting individual or
several consecutive media from existing sequences. Whether a gap is
automatically closed after deletion and the following objects are
used depends on the context: Deleting a title placed over an image
sequence or a video does not lead to an unwanted shortening, nor does
removing an image curve for which neither left a direct connection to
other curves was still recognizable on the right.
Here, too,
the rearranging of the following curves and an adjustment of the
fade-in and fade-out times (if it makes sense) are carried out
automatically.
This function can be deactivated completely in
the program settings or on a case-by-case basis by pressing the Shift
key.
Stabilization of videos
(from m.objects live)
Shaky video clips or excerpts from them
can now be stabilized directly from the m.objects timeline. The
assistant of the same name, which can also be called up via Alt+9, is
used for this.
A powerful function for stabilizing shaky video
clips is now available directly from the m.objects timeline. It is
realized via a new assistant, which can also be applied to a
selection of several video clips. Due to the high computing effort
for this process, it cannot take place in real time. The original
video remains untouched, and the stabilized result is saved to a
user-selectable folder. By default, this is the "stabilized"
folder within the "Video" subdirectory of the current
production.
A big advantage of using it directly from
m.objects is the fact that the selected video clips are trimmed to
the section actually used on the timeline in the same run without
loss. On the one hand, this means that the process does not take
unnecessarily long, and on the other hand, the zoom that is
absolutely necessary for stabilization is reduced to the extent that
corresponds to the unwanted camera movements within this
section.
The smoothing of the movements can be set in the form
of a time window between 0.2 and 10 seconds. In this way it is
possible to either achieve a very smooth movement or to filter out
only very fast wobbles, e.g. not to destroy the character of a fast
action sequence. In addition, a rotation of the content can be
allowed to compensate for accidental tilting of the camera. If a
dynamic zoom is also allowed, the necessary zoom is slowly reduced in
areas where the recording is less blurred.
If the
"Automatically determine export settings for each clip"
option is selected, the result of the stabilization is encoded and
written with parameters such as (codec, bitrate, etc.) taken from the
source video. If the option is deactivated, the form known from the
H.264/H.265 video export appears, which allows certain changes such
as container type, compression and bit rate, and all selected video
clips are written with these settings. Influencing the resolution,
aspect ratio and frame rate does not make sense here, so these input
fields are deactivated.
Note: Compensating for fast camera
movements in recordings from cameras with rolling shutters (reading
the sensor line by line) can lead to geometric distortions depending
on the motif, exposure time and readout interval. Although these are
already present in the original video, they become more or less
noticeable in the stabilized version in the form of a "waving"
of image parts. This effect can be remedied by taking a picture with
a shorter shutter time (e.g. also a higher frame rate) or, of course,
taking a picture with a camera with a global shutter.
Real-time
post-processing (from m.objects live)
An adjustment of
brightness distribution, color display and display sharpness of the
entire presentation can now be made at any time and is immediately
active. The corresponding tab can be found in the canvas
settings.
The outdated form of post-processing found in the
canvas settings of previous versions not only missed some settings,
it also only referred to still images and required a certain amount
of time for the necessary recalculation of the textures after each
setting change.
This function has now been replaced by a much
more powerful real-time post-processing that offers all the settings
known from the "Image/Video Processing" dynamic object and
captures all content equally. On the one hand, it offers a superior
opportunity for sharpening and for creatively creating the desired
look of the entire presentation, including the use of creative LUTs
(look-up tables). On the other hand, it is ideal for correcting
display errors on display devices with inadequately adjusted color
reproduction or for preventing the depths from "dripping away"
during the presentation under unfavorable ambient light conditions
(gamma).
New and improved editing functions (all expansion stages)
A cut of video clips and possibly connected audio material at the locator position - including all necessary adjustments and groupings - is available by pressing Ctrl+K.
The editing of video and audio material has been greatly simplified and expanded to include the option of sharing still images. Incidentally, the names of the corresponding entries in the context menu have been changed from "Split Sample" and "Split Video" to "Cut Audio" and "Cut Video".
Basically, when cutting media, all dynamic objects used in the cut object, such as image fields, zoom and image/video processing, are automatically created in the newly created section.
A new feature is the "Cut media at locator" function, which can be used universally to cut all content at the current position of the locator. This can be accessed via the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+K or via the context menu. If a specific selection of media was previously made at the locator position, then all of these media - which can be video clips, audio clips or photos and text - will be cut. Without first making a selection, video clips are cut at the locator position, and if audio grouped with it exists, that too. This automatically creates groupings that can of course be broken down to create L-Cuts (trailing sound) or J-Cuts (leading sound).
If you also hold down the Shift key while calling the "Cut media at locator" function, all media will be cut at the locator position, which can be used to precisely cut out sections from an entire production. The position of the "Selection in all components" switch on the far right of the toolbar decides whether the function takes place within all components or only in the active component.
Timing adjustment assistant with expert mode (all expansion stages)
The temporal scaling of image sequences can be done in expert mode without influencing the following objects and differentiated for fade-in and fade-out times.
Normally, the “timing compression/stretching or unifying” assistant ensures that subsequent areas of production are automatically adapted to the changed timing according to the specifications.
In special cases, it can make sense to carry out scaling without shifting subsequent areas. If the "Expert mode" option of the assistant is activated, the adaptation of follow-up objects can be switched off. In this mode, you can even switch off the combined treatment of the selected images as an image sequence, so that each object retains its starting position and is modified separately. A targeted influencing of only the fade-in or fade-out time can then also be preselected.
Quick selection of objects of the same type (all expansion stages)
Objects of a certain type (e.g. zoom, image/video processing) can be selected for editing by holding down the Alt key.
For all types of selection of an area on the timeline, i.e. for the lasso function as well as for the functions for selecting all objects, the objects lying on the left or the right, the selection can now be restricted to a certain object type by holding down the Alt key. Either the timeline object last clicked on or the last tool selected in the tool window determines the type to be selected. For example, to remove or move all dynamic shadow objects in an area, you can first click on the "Shadow/Glow" tool and then hold down the Alt key and drag out the desired area with the mouse.
Configurable treatment of deleted media (all expansion stages)
In the new "Timeline editor and pool" tab, it is now possible to set separately for the media types still image, video, text and audio clip whether objects deleted from the timeline should be returned to the lightbox or remain in the audio pool.
Image compositing mode for imported objects can be set in advance (all expansion stages)
In the properties of the "*Standard" macro, which is responsible for the properties of newly added visual media, it is now possible to preselect separately for images and video clips whether overlapping or additive image compositing should be used. Of course, as usual, this mode can also be switched over at any time after the insertion for individual or multiple images at the same time.
The basic insertion of images in overlapping mode is only advisable in exceptional cases, since the handling of crossfades can be made more difficult in this way, especially when the assignment of the tracks has changed. Inserting video clips in additive mode (the default here is overlapping) can simplify working with transitions at the cut positions.
New status display during video import (all expansion stages)
The first import of video files is now carried out in two stages: First, the status of the analysis of the new videos is signaled, and only after its completion is the content placed with a mouse click. This avoids a placement being made while the analysis is still taking place and without precise information about the effective playing time of the video clips.
Can be used on macOS and Windows
While the use of m.objects previously always required the presence of a Windows operating system, it can now alternatively be started directly under macOS (64-bit environment). All systems from macOS 10.13 (High Sierra) up to 12.4 (Monterey), which is current at the time of publication, are suitable. Both Intel and M1 processors (Apple Silicon) can be used. State-of-the-art software technology and a high degree of optimization of the entire render module from m.objects ensure that animations run smoothly even on less powerful systems. However, it must be remembered that the demands on the graphics card and processor naturally increase with high complexity, numerous graphic effects running simultaneously, and with increasing resolution and frame rates of video material.
The software license is always activated under macOS and optionally under Windows using an activation code. The licensee can activate and use a license on two independent systems. Alternatively, a USB dongle can still be used under Windows.
Productions are 100% compatible on both platforms, so existing projects can be transferred between the two platforms. m.objects is always downward compatible, i.e. all productions that were saved with the same or an older version can be loaded with a specific version of m.objects without exception. It is therefore advisable to work with the same program version on the systems used (e.g. production computer and playback notebook).
m.objects X also offers extensive support for drag & drop under macOS, so that the integration of media into productions usually takes place directly from the Finder or other program windows. However, if it should ever be necessary to handle files directly from m.objects, the first thing to do is: The drive identifier "M:" hides all the storage locations that you know from your Mac. This will be adjusted in the course of the further development of m.objects in favor of the usual naming of the mass memory.
More improvements
Over 120 other improvements, optimizations and bug fixes have been incorporated to further improve performance, stability and the user experience when working with m.objects. For the following updates (after Build 2561) you will find detailed information on this below in the "Improvements and bug fixes" section.
Innovations in v9.5 (compared to v9.0)
User Interface: Title editor
The m.objects title editor has been improved in three main ways:
Specifying a defined font size, which is always controlled via the image field in the timeline, is now possible directly in the title editor. The specification is given as a percentage of the total height of the presentation. This also ensures compliance with a uniform size for single or multi-line text elements, with m.objects taking care of the creation or setting of the image field. Using MultiEdit (selection of several text elements at the same time), changes can be applied to numerous titles at the same time.
In addition to the previously available alignment options left, center and right, there is now a new option justify. These modes only relate to the alignment of the lines of multi-line text elements to each other. In order to be able to position text absolutely left- or right-aligned on the screen more easily than before, these modes have been supplemented by left-aligned (in the image field) and right-aligned (in the image field). In these modes, m.objects automatically takes over the creation of corresponding zoom objects on the timeline if required.
It is now possible to vary formatting within a single text element. This applies to the typeface (bold, italic) as well as the color and even the font used. A text entered simply as before receives the standard formatting preselected in the form. To change the format, select any part of the written text and change the font, style or color. This change is now only applied to the selected part. Changing one of these parameters again without selected text only changes the characters that have not previously received any special formatting. If the entire text is selected and a change is made, all previously changed settings of this type (e.g. color) are reset.
User Interface: Tool window
The tool window as one of the central elements during processing has become more flexible in terms of display and more powerful in use. It can now be switched via its context menu between the vertical tree structure introduced with m.objects v9.0 and a classic list display, whereby the list display can be laid out in multiple columns with variable column widths. A horizontal layout of the window can also be used as an option.
By defining favorites, the most frequently used tools can now be put ahead of all others. If generally available tools such as zoom or queue are defined as favorites, this automatically applies to all shows, while the favorite status of individual tools such as macros or audio media is saved in relation to the current show.
In addition to the *Standard macro, another named *Text element is now always available for editing image tracks. This can be used as an alternative to the Insert Text Element command from the context menu of the image tracks to insert titles.
User Interface: Visibility of controls
For all window elements that can be docked in the user interface (light box, time window, speaker preview, audio master level and others), it can now be set via the respective context menu whether they should only be visible during editing, during playback or always. This enables automatic switching of the desktop. For example, the lightbox and tool windows, which are usually not needed during playback, can automatically make room for the speaker preview when playback starts. The canvas and the comment window are not affected by this, since the visibility and, if applicable, the position are controlled here using other, proven mechanisms. See also the new features regarding “Live Lecture” below.
User Interface: Load/Save window layout
All settings regarding the visibility, arrangement and configuration of elements of the m.objects desktop can now be saved and loaded when required using the corresponding commands in the File menu. This makes it possible to change all window settings between production and lecture mode or for working on a large multi-monitor system or on a notebook in a matter of seconds. This function can also be used to easily transfer a work environment that is precisely tailored to your own requirements to other productions.
User Interface: Video preview data
The creation of preview data for video files is important for convenient and frame-accurate video editing in m.objects. However, since this sometimes takes some time depending on the encoding, resolution and playing time of the clip, the generation now takes place automatically in the background while you can continue working on the production. Initially, only the first frame is displayed as a preview image for newly integrated video clips. Once the preview data has been generated, the display is updated automatically.
In addition, the process of creation itself has been significantly accelerated. In particular, it now also benefits - like the playback - from any hardware support for video processing by the graphics card, so that there is no longer a high CPU load and the associated fan noise on suitable hardware.
User Interface: Wizards
All important assistants from the corresponding submenu under Edit or the context menu can now alternatively be accessed by pressing a key (Ctrl F1 and others). You can see the valid keyboard shortcuts, like all permanently assigned key shortcuts, directly on the right-hand edge of the corresponding menu.
In particular, the Compress/extend or unify timing wizard has been revised to make input and confirmation as simple as possible. It also remembers the last mode used and the associated values, as far as it makes sense.
Live lecture: speaker preview (from m.objects live)
In the presenter preview, instead of displaying the preview image (proxy) at the current locator position, the complete current live image of the screen can now also be displayed. As a result, a presentation facing the audience can be carried out more comfortably. Since this function requires additional graphics performance, you should ensure before the public presentation that your hardware also offers sufficient performance for a smooth process when the live image is also displayed in full-screen mode (extended desktop).
In addition, various combinations of live and/or preview images can now be selected for display via the context menu.
Since it makes no sense to display every object placed on the timeline, especially with regard to the following image, you can now suppress the display in the speaker preview by clicking on the small square at the top left within the preview on the timeline. If several light curves are completely selected at the same time, the switchover takes place simultaneously for all media contained. In addition, the automatic selection of the next image to be displayed by m.objects has been improved.
Live lecture: comments / prompter (from m.objects live)
The creation of prompter texts (called comments in m.objects) is now greatly simplified. After a mouse click in the open comment window, a comment can be entered immediately, because m.objects automatically creates a comment track if required and places a corresponding object on it at the locator position.
Automatic scaling, which can be activated via the context menu, ensures that the entire text entered is always optimally legible, regardless of the size of the comment window. Alternatively, a fixed scaling can also be specified manually.
Live lecture: Status display (from m.objects live)
If m.objects encounters a wait mark during playback, this is made clear by the flashing of the time window. As a result, this state is clearly recognizable even at a certain distance from the display.
Likewise, the total level window (status window of the sound component) makes the current status of a live volume reduction, the so-called ducking, clear through a changed color scheme.
In contrast to older versions, m.objects v9.5 now also records the current signal from asynchronous audio passages in the total level displayed.
Live lecture: Set state (from m.objects live)
If there are certain positions within the presentation where a volume reduction that may have occurred live should always be deactivated, you can now switch off ducking programmatically with a single mark.
The same applies to the lecture time, which you can now reset at desired positions using a single mark. This can be useful between an admission trailer and the beginning of the actual lecture or between individual parts of a lecture.
Live lecture: EXE file (from m.objects live)
EXE files (export to directory) can now also play back asynchronous sound as usual from the timeline. The ducking function for temporarily lowering the volume performed live is also now supported. This means that presentation files can be used even more universally and are an alternative to using your own computer for many presentation scenarios.
General: Optimizations
Basically, the following applies to the update to v9.5: Due to numerous internal optimizations, the requirements for the computer hardware are sometimes even lower compared to previous versions. This applies in particular to more effective storage management when using particularly high-resolution images and UHD videos that are arranged on numerous image tracks.
General: Documentation
The complete documentation is now also updated in English. This can also be called directly in the Help menu after switching the interface to English, French, Italian or Dutch.
Minor improvements, optimizations and bug fixes can be found below in the text.
Innovations in v9.0 (compared to v8.1)
User Interface: Timeline
Not only the design of the proven m.objects desktop has been slightly changed, but also its functionality. First of all, it is noticeable that the color of the so-called light curves, i.e. the fade-in/fade-out curves of the visual media used, such as images, texts and videos, are displayed differently. Depending on the mode of image mixing, these now appear in a dark yellowish (additive), greenish (overlapping) or gray (masking) tone, which shows at a glance how a montage or crossfade is structured. The color coding is therefore based on the color representation of the left end of the bar below the light curve, which has been known for many previous versions.
The display of video clips on the timeline can now be set so that only the first and last frame of each visible section within the light curve is displayed. In this mode, of course, delay-free display of the frame at the exact position of the mouse pointer is available by pressing the Shift key (capital letters). The display mode is switched using the Settings / Program settings form.
User Interface: tool window
The tool window has been modernized and now offers a much clearer hierarchical representation of the available tools. Macros, dynamic tools and media files are now in separate branches within a tree structure, which can also be expanded and collapsed individually. Also included in the tool window are transitions and sound effects that were previously only accessible via forms or context menus. Like many other tools, these can now be dragged into the show editor with the mouse button pressed.
For all tools that can be dragged into the timeline, the tool symbol is now carried along with the mouse pointer.
Video export: format H.265 (HEVC)
The export in an MP4 format (MP4, MOV or MKV container) can now optionally also be carried out according to the modern H.265 standard (also called HEVC). In this context, the corresponding form was revised. An expanded list of useful settings (presets) is now shown at the top, the compression parameters are offered below the general settings.
The manual selection of a profile and the compression efficiency is no longer necessary in favor of an automatic selection by the video generator that conforms to the respective compression standard.
Video export: hardware acceleration
For the export in an MP4 format (MP4, MOV or MKV container, compression to H.264 or H.265/HEVC), a hardware acceleration that may be available can now be activated, which speeds up the process by a factor of 4 to 10 depending on the export parameters can accelerate. Depending on the available hardware, different modes for modern NVidia, AMD or Intel graphics systems or the classic, CPU-based process can be selected. To use the hardware acceleration of a corresponding graphics chip, it may be advisable to install an up-to-date graphics driver.
If the video export process does not start correctly despite the latest graphics driver or stops prematurely, an unavailable hardware acceleration was selected. Then try again with a different setting. The modes labeled "CPU..." work on all PCs.
Video export: Export selection
Similar to audio passages, simply selected parts of the visual arrangement can now also be exported. To do this, a selection of objects is made - e.g. with a mouse button or using the lasso function - and then Export video (only selection) is called up via the context menu of one of the selected objects. This form of export is always in a modern MP4 format, the settings for which can be made in the following step.
Among other things, this function can be used very well to create a new and less performance-demanding video file from particularly complex and/or performance-critical parts of a production (complex animations, time-lapse, extremely high-resolution video material) and then to replace the corresponding area with it.
m.objects suggests storing such exports in a subdirectory called exported within the video directory of the current project. However, you can deviate from this default by selecting a different target.
Screenshot function
An image of the current screen content can now be saved directly as an image in a selectable resolution using the print key on the keyboard. In this way, attractive montages can also be provided in resolutions that go beyond the set resolution of the screen, provided the content used has a sufficient resolution. This makes it very easy to generate images of striking content for flyers and posters, homepages, video uploads and similar purposes.
Frame accurate and lossless video trimming
Often only small excerpts from video clips are selected in presentations, while the total playing time is far greater. Since m.objects always works non-destructively, the stored files retain a correspondingly large file volume. Using a new assistant, it is now possible to shorten (trim) selected videos or all videos to the extent actually used within the production, which of course can drastically reduce the data volume of the source material used in many cases. Since m.objects does this work without recompression, the process is very fast and without any quality loss.
Optionally, the video clips used up to that point can be automatically and frame-accurately replaced by their shortened versions. Within the assistant, you can also define how much reserve should be retained at the beginning and end of the respective excerpts, so that later small changes can be made on the timeline without any problems.
m.objects creates the trimmed videos in a subdirectory called trimmed within the video directory of the current project. In order to obtain an overall streamlined project directory after trimming, an export can then be carried out via the media file manager.
White balance (from m.objects live)
Matching the color temperature of image and video material from cameras with different settings now requires just a few mouse clicks. To do this, drag the Image/Video Processing tool from the tool window to the desired medium, and then use the eyedropper below White balance to select a point on the canvas that should have been neutral in color (e.g. gray or white) if the color display was correct. Immediately after clicking, it will too, with all other colors corrected accordingly. It is advisable to define a neutral point that is not too dark for this purpose, in order to enable a more precise correction.
Of course, instead of the pipette, the classic color selector can also be used to define the neutral point. It is in the nature of things that strongly saturated color tones are unsuitable for white balancing. For targeted effects, however, such can also be used sensibly.
Since this function can also be used dynamically, it is even suitable for compensating for a white balance that is unintentionally adjusted by the camera during a video recording.
Color grading with LUTs
The idea behind color grading using so-called lookup tables (LUTs) is mainly known from the working environment of creative filmmakers. In short, it is the application of complex color and tonal operations that create, for example, a certain image look and thus the desired atmosphere. These complex operators are defined in the form of LUTs, which are available as files. In addition to LUTs that are available for a fee, a large number of suitable free files are available on the Internet, which can now also be used directly within m.objects. LUTs are assigned to the respective medium (or numerous ones selected at the same time) in the m.objects timeline. This is even possible within m.objects basic. Starting with m.objects live, the effect of such a LUT can be continuously and even dynamically controlled using the image/video processing tool.
Forward/backward frame
by frame seeking in videoclips
While working with the
timeline, the arrow keys (cursor keys <- and ->) now have the
following changed effect: If the locator is outside of a video clip,
it moves by 20ms (i.e. 1/50 second) in the corresponding direction.
Within videos, on the other hand, the locator is moved exactly one
video frame forward or backward, which means more or less time
depending on the frame rate of the video.
With the Ctrl (or Ctrl) key pressed at the same time, the current selection is moved to the next or previous object on the same track, as before.
Tracking changes in speed
When working with static or dynamic speed changes ("Speed" tool in the area of a sound or video file), the playing time of the respective medium changes accordingly, i.e. both when changing T-values and when moving, duplicating or deleting corresponding objects or when pasting from the clipboard. In particular, if parallel or subsequent processes are already defined, such operations usually require more or less extensive manual adjustments to the timing.
After such a change has been made, the program now asks whether the corresponding tracking of the timing of all affected objects should be carried out automatically. Optionally, the selected behavior can be retained for the entire session, i.e. as long as this show is open in the program.
ASCII export of prompter comments
When using the prompter feature, it is now possible to export selected or all comments to a text file. This can be useful for creating a script and processing it in other programs or printing it.
The function for exporting comments is located in the context menu of the comment component.
Image rating optionally hidden
In the form for the image evaluation mode, it can now be selected whether the evaluation of the individual jurors during the evaluation run is to be displayed openly on the screen as before or to be carried out hidden. In the case of a hidden display, the corresponding symbols displayed for each juror only reveal whether the evaluation has already taken place, in that the previously gray question mark symbol is colored green.
Stereoscopy: export formats
In addition to the WMV and AVI formats, stereoscopic presentations (3D shows) can now also be exported in the more modern MP4 formats (H.264 and H.265/HEVC) and as a single image sequence (BMP, TIFF, PNG, JPEG, JPEG2000).
Improvements and bug fixes:
compared to build 2564:
- The decision whether to automatically close the gap that appears on the timeline after deleting media has been optimized so that this function takes effect in more use cases.
- When automatically closing gaps on the timeline after deleting media, any grouped follow-up objects in other components are now included if the corresponding prompt was answered with "Yes".
- If a selection of objects belonging to a visual medium is to be deleted, which would lead to an invalid light curve, all associated objects are now automatically included in the selection after a corresponding notification.
- When selecting speed dynamic objects that belong to a medium, objects that are in previous media are no longer incorrectly selected.
- macOS: The freeing of canvas graphic resources upon termination has been reworked for M1-based computers.
compared to build 2563:
- The screen communication scheduler has been revised to prevent the screen module from being automatically restarted during ongoing playback under high system load.
compared to build 2562:
- Fixed processing commands from the context menu related to the current mouse position (cut audio/image/video, insert breakpoint, select objects in current track).
- Fixed applying keywords when dragging and dropping visual media from the lightbox to the timeline in case the current project already contains numerous keywords.
- Fixed automatic selection of related timestamps (range mark, export range) when attempting to delete one of them.
- Fixed a bug that could cause video stabilization to fail if the show or source video was placed in certain directory structures.
- A correction regarding the trailing of affected tone envelopes when automatically closing gaps in image sequences has been made.
- When inserting new media via the m.objects internal file selection, it is now prevented that the timeline objects are stored compressed if the mouse click for positioning occurs before the preview is displayed.
compared to build 2561:
- Keyboard shortcuts for assistants (Alt+number key) now work in all program configuration levels.
- When specifying a relative path for the mixdown directory, a misleading message is no longer displayed after exiting the program settings form.
- MP3 can now also be selected directly as the target file format for mixing sound files (selection or entire production).
- The quick preview window now also shows the relevant object properties within the envelope display of sound objects when the [Shift] preview key is pressed.
- Within video objects, the current frame number and the exact stream time are now displayed in the quick preview window, taking into account any dynamic speed changes.
Full version / update of existing program version
macOS only: For the first installation, the installation package must be downloaded and unzipped once according to the instructions on the homepage (www.mobjects.com/downloadcenter). The application can then be started immediately. Subsequent updates can be made via the menu item "Help -> Check for update".
Windows only: New program versions of m.objects can generally be installed most easily over the existing program version, i.e. without uninstalling it first. You can simply select the "Complete" installation type and confirm all forms in the installation wizard with "Next". This ensures that all global settings of the program are retained.
All m.objects users who have purchased a new license, an update or an upgrade from May 2021 can use m.objects X-2022 Build 2562 free of charge. It is therefore sufficient if 05/2022 or a later date is displayed as the expiry date for free updates in the "Settings/Activation" dialog.
For owners of licenses whose purchase or last paid update took place before May 2021, the update to m.objects X-2022 may be subject to a fee. You can operate m.objects X-2022 in demo mode and use it to test the new functions. If you do not want to carry out an update at first, you only need to install the previous program version (only Windows), a previous deinstallation of m.objects X-2022 is not necessary.
You activate the m.objects service for a further 12 months with a chargeable update. Please ask us or your AV dealer for prices for updates. The update of all additional modules that may be used is already included in the update price for the main program.
Files saved with m.objects X-2022 cannot be read by previous program versions. A corresponding message therefore appears automatically on the screen prior to overwriting. The older show files will only be updated if you confirm this query with “OK”. It is advisable to simply save existing productions in the same project directory under a new file name if you want to open the original version later with an older program version.
System equipment tips
If you are not familiar with the technical terms in the following part: The computer specialist from whom you bought your computer or are planning to buy your next one can find important information about the required hardware here.
Operating System
macOS:
In order to be able to use the full functionality, m.objects requires at least macOS 10.13 (High Sierra). At the time of publication, all releases up to macOS 11.4 (Big Sur) have been successfully tested.
Windows:
At least Windows 7 makes sense for using m.objects. However, some optimizations - notably hardware-assisted decoding of video - benefit significantly from Windows 10, which is therefore recommended. The use of a 64-bit operating system is required in order to be able to fully use the performance of m.objects.
Notebook vs Desktop
Notebooks with the appropriate equipment are just as suitable for demonstrations with m.objects as desktop PCs. Due to their compactness, they are of course particularly suitable for mobile use. A digital projector can deliver the full-screen presentation on the external monitor output, while the m.objects interface and additional help from m.objects are shown on the device display for an overview.
Processor
The performance of the main processor (CPU) is largely uncritical due to the use of highly optimized algorithms within m.objects. A current CPU is usually only very slightly loaded during the playback of high-resolution images and stereo sound.
macOS:
In the present version, the decoding of video material benefits greatly from the performance of the CPU, while all color conversions (YUV -> RGB) and color grading are carried out on the graphics chip. Automatic distribution of the computing load to the available computing cores ensures optimal use of the CPU performance. For the use of 4K video and/or particularly high frame rates, the use of a correspondingly fast processor such as an Intel i7 / i9 of the newer generation or M1 (Apple Silicon) or its successors (M1-X, M2, ...) is required. sensible.
Windows:
Either the processing power for decoding video is provided by the main processor, or a modern graphics processor takes on most of the load. Which component is involved can be set globally within m.objects or individually for each video. If powerful graphics hardware (see below) is available and the video formats mentioned above are used, a particularly fast CPU is not required for perfectly smooth playback of demanding 4K video material.
However, if the graphics card is older, less powerful, or if other video formats are to be processed in high resolution (e.g. Apple ProRes), a powerful CPU should be used. Processors with 4 or more cores such as a suitable Intel Core i5, i7 or i9 or correspondingly powerful XEON models are particularly suitable. Systems with AMD processors (e.g. AMD Ryzen) or other compatible chips can also be used without restrictions, provided they have the required performance. On systems with multiple processor cores, m.objects makes intensive use of the option of processing tasks in parallel (multi-threading).
Graphics Chip
The suitability of the graphics card is even more important than the CPU performance in most presentation applications. It is essential that the graphics chip delivers a constant refresh rate, especially for the playback of animations. Pure image crossfades are less critical in this regard.
The following graphics units, for example, are well suited for the smooth flow of high-resolution digital projection or screen display:
- AMD: Radeon HD models with a 100 digit with at least the number 6, better 7, are sufficient for numerous applications, e.g. 77x0, 78x0 or the newer graphics chips of the Radeon R7, R9 type.
The newer types RX 4xx/5xx/Vega are currently particularly recommended.
- NVidia (Apple Mac only up to model year 2015): For numerous applications, GeForce models with a three-digit model number and a 10th digit 4 or higher are sufficient, e.g. GT74x, GTX 76x, etc.
Windows: The newer models of the type GTX 1050Ti / 1060 / 1070 / 1080 / 16x0 are currently particularly recommended. All these models are capable of decoding 4K video. Models with higher performance, such as the RTX 2060 / 2070 / 2080, are of course also very well suited.
- Intel: Systems with Intel i3/5/7/9 and Iris Pro 5200 or the newer HD or UHD 5x0 / 6x0 already provide sufficient performance for many arrangements, so that an extra graphics chip is usually not required here. With the more powerful Intel Iris 5x0 or 6x0, which can be found on some processors from production year 2016, even complex arrangements with numerous image tracks can be played back smoothly in full HD resolution. However, these graphics systems are only suitable to a limited extent for output resolutions greater than Full HD. Newer Intel CPUs with integrated Intel Iris Xe graphics offer even more performance, but they don't achieve the performance of a current dedicated graphics unit for gaming applications either. Older systems with chipset-integrated graphics (e.g. Intel GM945) are only suitable for less demanding presentations.
- Apple M1: The graphics unit installed on the M1 SoC even achieves or sometimes even surpasses the performance of some mid-range gaming graphics cards. This is remarkable in view of the fact that it is a CPU-integrated graphics solution that consumes little power. In practice, this performance arrives at the output device, so that M1-based systems - even those with "only" 7 GPU cores - can be described as very well suited for most applications. SoCs of the type M1 Pro or M1 Max work significantly faster and can also be used without hesitation for the output on UHD devices.
At https://www.videocardbenchmark.net/high_end_gpus.html you will find a performance comparison of the graphics chips available on the market and suitable for m.objects. The effective graphics performance of an overall system depends on many parameters, so choosing a suitable combination of CPU and graphics chip is not the only decisive factor. However, as a rough guideline, a G3D mark of at least 1800 makes sense for Full HD presentations under Windows 10, and a G3D mark of at least 6000 for processing 4K video and 4K output. We recommend it for new purchases naturally a certain reserve for future developments. For 4K output, please also read the explanation of the connections below.
When purchasing hardware, also pay attention to the video memory of the card, this is permanently installed on the graphics hardware and cannot be retrofitted separately. Fast memory technology like GDDR5 or even GDDR6 brings performance advantages. You should also aim for 512 MB of video RAM or more for simple presentations. Projects with numerous image tracks benefit from considerably more video RAM. When it comes to intensive work with 4K video, 2GB of graphics memory is considered the minimum.
In principle, several video outputs of a graphics card can be operated in different resolutions when operating with m.objects. This means that a modern notebook with an internal display resolution of 1,920 x 1,080 pixels, for example, can still optimally use an externally connected Ultra HD television with a resolution of 3,840 x 2,160.
For the output of resolutions above 2,560 x 1,600 pixels (e.g. UHD: 3,840 x 2,160, 4K or higher), the device should have an HDMI 2.0 or Displayport (Thunderbolt) 1.2 or newer connection, otherwise the frame rate will not be high enough (frames/s, fps) can be transmitted for smooth playback of animations. Lower resolutions can also be output via standard HDMI, DVI or display ports of older versions without loss of quality.
We wish you a lot of fun with m.objects X-2022!
Your m.objects team