Yesterday we released Editmote 1.0.1, which brings several new features to our iOS app for remotely controlling nonlinear editing applications.

We're now offering support for Adobe After Effects for Mac and Final Cut Pro X when using the default keyboard layouts.

Another much-requested feature is the ability to connect directly to an IP address from the Actions menu. This is useful in negotiating some corporate networks. There are extra options in the preference pane too, including listening on a particular IP address and port and disabling Bonjour broadcasts.

To install the latest version, download it from the iTunes App Store. You'll also need to download and install the latest version of the Editmote Preference Pane.

If you use the built-in Software Update to install the latest preference pane, please note that you'll need to open the preference pane in System Preferences once to launch the latest version.

For more details on Editmote, please see our introductory video.

I have heard several people on Twitter say that they are thinking of switching to Adobe Premiere or Avid Media Composer after the release of Final Cut Pro X.

As we announced earlier this year, we will be releasing a new version of FCS Maintenance Pack soon called Pro Maintenance Tools. This will support Final Cut Studio, Final Cut Pro X, Avid Media Composer and Adobe Premiere Pro for Mac, so whatever decision you make we've got you covered.

And if you're an existing FCS Maintenance Pack customer who purchased the software on or after 1st February 2011, you will be eligible for a free upgrade to Pro Maintenance Tools upon release.

Are there features you like in Final Cut Pro X but wish they were in Final Cut Pro 7 or Adobe Premiere Pro? We've got you covered there too with Pro Media Tools.

Pro Media Tools adds support for Quick Bins (Apple calls these Clip Collections in FCPX) and you can see a complete overview of the media, effects and markers in Project Overview (Timeline Index in FCPX). Project Overview is more advanced than FCPX's Timeline Index because it allows batch modification of the data, printing, import and export to marker and Avid locator lists and more. A 15-day trial is available here.

We're interested to hear from anyone with requests for other Final Cut Pro X features they'd like to see ported to earlier versions or other NLEs.

I've already mentioned The Good, The Bad and The Ugly of Final Cut Pro X but when it comes to developer features, there's a lot more to like.

Chris Kenny has been doing some delving and discovered that there are references to Python and AppleScript in the Final Cut Pro X app. This would be a big step up from the current method of sending commands via Apple Events.

There are also references to XML import and Final Cut Pro XML import, which implies that they will be two different formats. This makes sense, as the structure of FCPX projects has changed significantly (no more bins and no concept of tracks for instance) and there is a greater focus on metadata.

Neither of these are publicly accessible right now but they show that Apple has at least experimented with these functions and it is likely that they will be enabled in a future release. There has been speculation that import of FCP7 projects or XML may never come as the project formats are too different, but I think it's likely that we will at least see an FCPX-specific exchange format at some point in the future.

Final Cut Pro X now uses the Motion engine to render effects, which means that plugin output is now consistent between Final Cut Pro and Motion - something that was not the case in previous versions. Developers need to wrap their Motion plugins as Final Cut Effects in order for them to show up in Final Cut Pro X.

Other notable changes include more control over plugin user interfaces, support for multi-threading, keyframing, undo and bezier paths. These have been requested for a long time so it's great that they're now here. Thanks to Darrin Cardani and Paul Schneider at Apple for listening to the needs of developers.

Final Cut Pro X and Motion 5 require plugins to be compiled as 64-bit so most users' plugins won't be compatible. This is only a temporary problem until plugin developers catch up and the benefits of a 64-bit environment and FxPlug 2.0 will make it worthwhile. (There are, of course, some bugs in the implementation as would be expected in a 1.0 release.)

Just before Final Cut Pro X was unveiled at NAB earlier this year, I wrote a post about my Top 5 Developer Requests for the Next Final Cut Pro.

Storing settings in preference lists was number one and, as expected, this was implemented. While the reasons for wanting it so badly (mainly for programmatically changing scratch disk locations) are less important in Final Cut Pro X, we can still do a lot of things with it.

Making the Final Cut Pro project format more open was second on the list. This one is a little more complex because on the one hand, it's in SQLite format which makes it readable by the sqlite3 Terminal command but on the other, Core Data assumes that no-one other than the owning application will ever touch those files and so it's very easy to corrupt it if you're not careful. Also, while the SQLite format offers some predictability, Apple are free to structure the database any way they see fit and change it without notice in future versions. I've written a basic filename parser but I'm going to wait for official documentation or an API before doing anything more substantial.

Third, fourth and fifth on the list were requests for more API control. This is not in the initial release of Final Cut Pro X and remains to be seen if it will be in future versions.

Of course, I wrote this on the assumption that FCPX wouldn't remove any developer features that were in the previous version. While the developer features are sparse in the current version, the future looks bright, especially as it appears that Apple is expecting third-party developers to fill in many of the gaps in FCPX's feature set.

This list will document the bugs in Final Cut Pro X as they become apparent.

1. Projects not saving

This one is scary. There are several reports of people losing work due to FCPX's autosave function (which is the only way to save) not working.

https://discussions.apple.com/message/15469208
https://discussions.apple.com/message/15460282

2. Clips going offline

When you add media from another drive and choose not to copy the files to your Final Cut Events folder, FCPX adds symbolic links to the Final Cut Events folder that point back to these files.

Some people have been reporting that they relaunched FCPX to find all of their media offline. When they looked in the Final Cut Events folder, FCPX had either deleted the symbolic links or failed to save them in the first place.

You can reconnect them by going to File > Import > Files but this causes another bug to surface: the files will always be copied to your Final Cut Events folder even if you deselect the option to do so.

3. Undo disabled

Some people are reporting that Undo is disabled for them. What makes this an especially big problem is that FCPX saves automatically and so any mistakes they make are immortalized forever if they can't undo them.

https://discussions.apple.com/message/15467240
https://discussions.apple.com/thread/3136611

4. Projects disappearing

There are reports of projects disappearing from the project library.

https://discussions.apple.com/message/15497434

5. Crashing when importing from iMovie

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/3136040

6. Crashing when typing accented characters

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/3136124

7. Various issues with DV-based media

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/3133840
https://discussions.apple.com/thread/3133760
https://discussions.apple.com/thread/3134562

If you experience problems with media, I would recommend updating to OS X 10.6.8 which "Fixes an issue when importing certain media files into Final Cut Pro." I don't yet know if it solves these particular issues though.

8. Systems with two graphics card exporting QT movies with green artifacts

Apple recommends only running FCPX on machines with one graphics card.

http://support.apple.com/kb/TS3842

9. Templates, generators and titles appearing blue

This can be caused by templates from previous versions of Motion residing in the ~/Library/Application Support/Motion folder. To get around this, move the templates from this folder. More info here.

10. Video in the preview monitor is missing the green channel

https://discussions.apple.com/message/15582977#15582977

11. Drives don't appear in the list

This can happen if certain folders exist on the drive. The poster in this forum thread says folders called "private" and possibly "backup" can cause this issue:
https://discussions.apple.com/message/15794411#15794411

I'd be interested to hear if anyone finds any other folders that can cause the drive to disappear in FCPX.

More bugs will be listed as they surface.

Update: There are more bugs listed in the comments of this post, on LAFCPUG and at FCPX Quirks.

Last week we released Pro Media Tools 1.0.2, a significant update to our suite of tools for processing and managing media in Final Cut Studio, Avid Media Composer and Adobe Premiere Pro.

The focus of this version was Auto Transfer and lots of new features have been added.

New verification window

Auto Transfer now checks the file sizes before running the full verification check, allowing it to spot errors very quickly without needing to run a time-consuming verification.

Info panel

More Actions

Add timecode from THM files in QT Edit

To add timecode from a THM file, go to the Quick Tasks pane and select Create Timecode Track from THM file. Click Perform Task and navigate to the location of the THM file on your memory card. A new timecode track will be added with the information from the THM file.

This is a small overview of the changes in Pro Media Tools 1.0.2. The full changelog is available here. A 15-day trial of Pro Media Tools is available here.

Last week we released FCS Maintenance Pack Network Admin 1.0.8, a maintenance update for our tool to remotely troubleshoot Final Cut Studio over a network.

The biggest change in this version is support for entering a manual IP address and port. This is essential for negotiating some corporate networks.

Just follow these steps to set it up:

1. Open up the FCS Maintenance Pack Network Client preference pane.

2. Select a specific network interface to listen on and tick the option to specify a custom port and to disable Bonjour broadcasts.

3. Once the client restarts, the current IP and port will be listed on the left-hand side.

4. Launch Network Admin, click the + button in the bottom left and select Add Manual IP.

5. Enter the IP address, port and a descriptive name and click Connect.

6. The service will appear in the left-hand Services pane.

Unlike Bonjour services, manual ones will always appear in the list even if the destination computer is offline.

A 15-day trial of Network Admin is available here.

We're pleased to announce our newest product - Editmote, an iPhone and iPod Touch remote control for Final Cut Pro, Avid Media Composer, Adobe Premiere Pro and QuickTime Player.

The app is available on the iOS App Store and requires the Editmote Preference Pane to be installed on your Mac.

After installing the preference pane, simply flick the switch to the On position to make the computer name appear in the Editmote services list. You need to be connected via wi-fi on your iPhone and be on the same network as your editing machine for this to work correctly.

Once you are connected, launch a supported application and you'll be able to control the playhead, add markers, set in and out points and adjust the volume remotely. A full list of buttons is available in the user manual.

We've also prepared an introductory video to help you get everything set up.

Editmote is an essential tool for editors and producers during a screening. To discover more about Editmote, follow our Twitter and Facebook pages. For more post production tools for Mac and iOS devices, see our products page.

Update: Want a free copy of Editmote? We've teamed up with FCP.co to give away copies to two lucky winners. More details here.

With Final Cut Pro X on the horizon, it seems like a good time to talk about the future of FCS Maintenance Pack.

FCS Maintenance Pack has solved countless Final Cut Studio problems and is used around the world by freelancers, production companies, post houses, broadcasters and studios. It is in use at most of the major broadcasters in the USA.

We're now going one step further by announcing Avid Media Composer and Adobe Premiere Pro support and renaming the suite to Pro Maintenance Tools. We also intend to support Final Cut Pro X.

As well as support for new NLEs, Pro Maintenance Tools will be 64-bit and compatible with Lion. A full list of features will be provided upon release.

We're planning to release it approximately two weeks after the release of Final Cut Pro X. It's difficult to be more precise due to the lack of a firm release date for FCPX from Apple.

This will be a paid upgrade for existing users, although people who purchased the software from February 1st 2011 onwards will be eligible for a free upgrade. Upgrade pricing will be announced closer to the release.

We will be entering beta for Pro Maintenance Tools in just over a week and are looking for testers who can submit crash and error logs to help us build up our Crash Analyzer database for these new applications.

We're looking for people who use the Mac versions of Avid Media Composer or Adobe Premiere Pro on a daily basis and are prepared to give detailed feedback. Testers will receive a free copy of the suite when it is released. (Due to non-participation problems in the past, we only give out free copies to people who actually send us bug reports and feedback.)

If you meet the requirements and would like to participate in the beta, please contact us to request addition, including a little bit about yourself, your system and your workflow. Please note that places are extremely limited so try to apply as soon as possible.

Yesterday we released Cut Notes 1.0.3 which incorporates many of the feature requests and suggestions we have received from users. Cut Notes is an iPad app for quickly taking timecode notes during a screening.

We noticed that we had been receiving requests for features that were already in the app, so there is now a Quick Start tutorial when you first launch it to highlight the major features. There is also a link to the user manual in the Actions menu.

We've also made it much easier to change the timecode settings. Just click the little "i" button next to the timecode display and you can quickly modify the frame rate, starting timecode and various other settings. These can also be modified in the Projects menu as in previous versions of the app.

The biggest new feature is support for feet and frames instead of timecode, making Cut Notes much more useful in feature film environments.

Just press the "i" button, switch Feet + Frames to On and select your film type. Note that choosing this will limit your output options to formats that are capable of supporting feet + frames. You will not be able to export FCP markers or Avid locators from feet + frames projects.

There is also a new output option: Edimarker lists allow you to import notes into Pro Tools via the third-party application Edimarker.

Cut Notes for iPad is available for $7.99 on the iOS App Store. We recommend Project Overview in the Pro Media Tools bundle for managing markers exported from the app and bringing them into Final Cut Studio and Adobe Premiere Pro.

Earlier this week we released Pro Media Tools 1.0.1, which offers new features and bug fixes for our suite of utilities to process and manage media in Final Cut Studio and Avid Media Composer.

The biggest new feature is support for Adobe Premiere CS5 for Mac. Premiere users have feature parity with Final Cut Studio users and can use the tools in the suite by exporting their projects to Final Cut Pro XML.

We've also improved the email settings dialog in Render Watcher to help those who had difficulty setting it up in version 1.0. There are now presets for common email providers, you can specify custom ports and there is now a button to check the settings by sending yourself a test email.

Edit Detector had several changes too. The sensitivity slider now behaves more predictably (this fixes an issue where it would not detect changes for movies with subtle edits, regardless of how high you raised it), thumbnails can now be switched off for improved performance when detecting changes, and edit points can now be added manually by pressing the N key.

We've also created a video overview of the tools in the suite:

The full list of changes is here:

• Support for Adobe Premiere CS5 for Mac
• Auto Transfer - Fixed an issue where multiple copies of the application could be launched in Auto Mode
• Auto Transfer - Fixed an issue where progress bars may not start at zero
• Batch Renamer - Speed and memory usage improvements when dragging in a folder with a large number of files inside
• Batch Renamer - Fixed an issue where Add Suffix would place the text at the beginning instead of the end
• Batch Renamer no longer adds an underscore separator character when adding a prefix or suffix. To regain this functionality, type the underscore in the prefix or suffix text itself.
• Batch Renamer - Fixed a crash when removing frame numbers
• Edit Detector - Left and right arrow keys now step through the movie
• Edit Detector - Thumbnails can now be switched off for improved performance
• Edit Detector - The sensitivity slider now behaves more predictably
• Edit Detector - Added a button to manually insert an edit point (shortcut key N)
• Quick Bins - Added a Send to FCP button on the toolbar
• Quick Bins - Fixed an issue where it would try to send data to FCP when trying to save a standalone XML file
• Render Watcher - Added a button in the preferences dialog to test email configuration
• Render Watcher - Presets for common email providers
• Render Watcher - Support for specifying custom email ports
• Render Watcher - Fixed an issue where email passwords would not save correctly
• General bug fixes, tweaks and improvements

Pro Media Tools is available for an introductory price of $99 and there is a 15-day trial available here. It will run on Mac OS X 10.5 and 10.6 on both Intel and PowerPC computers.

If you want to find out more about Pro Media Tools, check out screenshots and the user manual.