AdminTim Kurkoski
(After Effects Product Owner, Adobe DVA)
My feedback
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50 votesAdminTim Kurkoski
(After Effects Product Owner, Adobe DVA)
supported this idea
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1 vote
I do not recommend using an external drive of any sort for the disk cache directory. There are two complications that an external drive (USB, network, or other can cause):
- Disconnecting the drive could cause the error message that you are experiencing.
- Speed of external drives is generally slower than internal drives. The intent of the disk cache is to be a high-speed backup for the RAM cache, so slower drives negate the intent of the disk cache.I do recommend an internal SSD for the disk cache. If you are using a laptop and don't have the ability to install a second drive, use the laptop's internal drive (which is hopefully an SSD) for the disk cache, and limit the disk cache size in the After Effects preferences to prevent it from overfilling the internal drive.
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96 votes
> Didn't they just release this in the latest version? I'm surprised this feature hasn't been flagged as "We actually did this one!"
The April 2019 release of After Effects (version 16.1) does include the new customizable expressions editor. We closed a different request for that functionality:
https://adobe-video.uservoice.com/forums/911311-after-effects/suggestions/33837631-improve-the-expressions-panel-with-basic-scriptingWe consider this request to be different. The functionality that was added in After Effects 16.1 allows customizing the editor interface. This request, as I understand it, is for a console UI in which you can run expression code and evaluate it to test the output.
That said: part of the new expression editor includes in-line error messages, which can be especially helpful when combined with the JavaScript throw statement. Using throw will always produce an error, so you can force a check on a given value (ex., throw thisLayer.name will show an error containing the layer's name).
@Joe Clay, is the above helpful towards your request? Would you change your request above based on this new functionality, or do you still want a separate console for expressions?
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1 vote
Jan, in After Effects, "view" refers to the viewer panel, or if the viewer is set to multiple 3D views (top, left, right, etc.), one of those 3D views.
I don't agree that the existing Center in View command should be changed.
A different solution is needed to solve your problem, I think. Maybe a new command, "Center in Zoomed View"?
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52 votes
For anyone who is experiencing this problem, please comment here with your OS and hardware configuration. Include the GPU and driver version. Thanks.
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18 votesAdminTim Kurkoski
(After Effects Product Owner, Adobe DVA)
supported this idea
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1 vote
Interesting idea, Warren.
Can you expand why this would be helpful? I understand the basic visibility part, I want to understand the workflow better. What does this allow you to do that you couldn't do before, or how does it make working in After Effects faster for you?
Also: would you expect to be able to snap to these keyframe indicators, by holding the Shift key while dragging the CTI or other keyframes, as you can with markers and visible keyfrrames?
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3 votes
Thank you for filing this bug report.
We need more information in order to investigate:
- Does the problem persist after you restart After Effects?
- Does the problem occur only in this project, or in any project?
- What version of After Effects are you using? (ex., After Effects 16.0.1, from the About After Effects dialog box.)
- What OS and version are you using? (ex., Windows 10 or macOS 10.14.3)Thanks for the additional detail. Knowing the problem isn't persistent, that restarting After Effects clears it at least temporarily, is helpful. But what we really need to understand what condition After Effects is getting into that causes the problem.
Just prior to the problem occurring, what actions do you take in After Effects? What have you changed, clicked on, or asked After Effects to do before it starts misbehaving? In order for us to investigate this problem, we need to be able to replicate it, which means understanding what you're doing that puts After Effects into this state.
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3 votesAdminTim Kurkoski
(After Effects Product Owner, Adobe DVA)
supported this idea
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11 votes
After Effects has similar functionality as requested, the output file naming templates:
https://helpx.adobe.com/after-effects/using/basics-rendering-exporting.html#specify_filenames_and_locations_for_rendered_outputWould it be sufficient to port this functionality from After Effects to AME, or is there additional or different functionality that you're looking for?
AdminTim Kurkoski
(After Effects Product Owner, Adobe DVA)
supported this idea
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32 votes
Thank you for filing this request.
Have you used the output name and location templates in After Effects? These can automate where the render queue exports to, including locations relative to the project file.
More information here:
https://helpx.adobe.com/after-effects/using/basics-rendering-exporting.html#specify_filenames_and_locations_for_rendered_output@Nick R. - Sorry, no, there's not currently a built-in method to force new projects or the Save As command to default to a particular folder. (You could rig something up with scripting, but there's nothing in the UI.) That would be a great, separate request. Please file it here at this UserVoice site!
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6 votes
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10 votes
Thanks for posting your idea.
I agree that double-tap keyboard shortcuts are easy and useful. There are, however, some challenges:
1. They're not discoverable. When you're new to an application and trying to learn how it works, keyboard shortcuts are actually one of the best ways to hide application functionality. The functionality, at the very least, needs to be discoverable via a different method and keyboard shortcuts should only be a time-saving method. However, that still leaves them farther up the learning curve. Personally, I'd prefer to design an application that is discoverable and intuitive.
2. They're difficult to implement in code. Not impossible, just difficult. The double-tap (or triple-tap, as you suggest) require specific code to capture the timing of the keyboard input. This is different from single keyboard presses where existing, OS-provided event listeners can be used; much simpler. Additional code is required if the double-tap shortcut is going to be customizable separate from the equivalent single-press keys: the customization code needs to be able to capture that difference.
I'm not saying that we couldn't ever do this in After Effects, and I look forward to seeing who else will vote on or comment on this idea. I'm just pointing out some of the challenges that we face as application developers. What seems easy and logical on the surface is not always simple when you start digging into the details of implementing that idea in code.
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303 votes
Thanks all for the great feedback so far.
As this discussion has progressed both here and on Twitter, I'm wondering if this request needs to be split into two parts. While I appreciate the universal approach of "Alt/Option + drag = duplicate", it sounds like there's a wider variety of behaviors desired here. So we'd need two different stories:
1. Alt/Option + drag = duplicate for layers, Project window items, shapes, effects, and other objects where it makes sense.
2. A larger story around better behaviors for duplicating or copy/pasting keyframes that covers the issues people have raised here regarding multi-layer cases, selection boxes, and modified paste behaviors like time-reverse.Your thoughts?
We were recently evaluating part of this request, to duplicate keyframes by holding the Alt/Option key and dragging. This is something we'd love to add to After Effects. But we've run into a couple of issues.
As mentioned in the video, Alt/Option + dragging keyframes is currently occupied by the time-stretch keyframes behavior. The video suggests changing that behavior to use the Control/Command key + dragging, however that begins to get fuzzy because Control/Command + _clicking_ on a keyframe changes its interpolation to Continuous Bezier; there's a lot of opportunity here for accidental clicks.
A related problem is muscle memory. Any time we change a mouse or keyboard input behavior, we get negative reactions from our user community. The video tends to dismiss the need for time-stretching keyframes, but I both disagree with that, and want to emphasize that changing muscle memory is very disruptive.
Another complication is that Alt/Option + dragging on a layer's in/out points will time-stretch the layer. (This was added in recently, in After Effects 16.0, but we used time-stretching keyframes as the model for which keyboard shortcut to use.) If we change the meaning of Alt/Option + dragging keyframes, we may need to align other behavior as well, breaking more muscle memory.
Regardless, we agree that the existing convention of Alt/Option + drag to copy is a desirable feature for After Effects (for both keyframes and other types of objects, but one thing at a time). We discussed what other keyboard modifiers the time-stretch keyframe behavior could be moved to, but we could not find an obvious answer because After Effects is already heavily loaded with modifier key + mouse click/drag behaviors. Even something as simple as adding the Shift key would interfere with snapping behaviors.
Given those complications, how would you suggest the behaviors of clicking and dragging keyframes in After Effects be adapted?
- What modifier key + click/drag combos would you like to see?
- How do you feel about disrupting muscle memory, for both yourself and other artists?
- Do you feel a preference or UI option would be needed to allow users to enable/disable the new behaviors and return to prior muscle memory?We will continue discussing this internally. Your opinions will help shape the conversation.
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3 votes
Thank you for filing this bug report.
We need more information in order to investigate:
- What format is the footage that you are working with?
- What version of After Effects are you using? The version number can be found in the About After Effects dialog (ex., After Effects 16.0.1).
- What OS and version are you using? (ex., Windows 10 or macOS 10.13.6)Thanks for the additional information, Nina.
The More Options button in the Interpret Footage dialog should not be active for HEVC footage. It is a bug that you can click on it, but nothing is expected to happen. The More Options button is only active for footage types that have additional decoding settings, like raw video (RED R3D, ARRI raw, Sony raw, Canon raw, CR2/NEF/DNG still camera raw, etc.).
I don't have a clear explanation for why your videos were being decoded as green. My best guess is related to the fact that After Effects can use Intel Quick Sync Video features to accelerate decoding of H.264 footage on Windows, and H.264 and HEVC on macOS. (This option can be disabled in Preferences > Import > Enable hardware accelerated decoding.) You said that you are on Windows and that your footage is HEVC, which is not yet accelerated, but because the decoder libraries for both H.264 and HEVC are closely coupled, the fact that your Intel GPU was disabled may have caused some sort of downstream failure in the software HEVC decoder.
Regardless, it appears that you've solved the problem, and I'm glad to hear that. If you continue to experience issues, I recommend you contact my co-workers at Adobe Customer Care to assist you with troubleshooting the problem. You can open a case with them via call or chat at this link: https://helpx.adobe.com/contact.html
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165 votes
> Agreed, some time ago there was a new feature that said AE can play some video formats directly, without caching - that is bull.
It is not bull. But your description is not accurate, and the functionality is limited.
When you start a preview in After Effects, assuming the Cache Before Playback option is not enabled, After Effects will pre-cache video footage (video footage formats only: MOV, MXF, etc.; still image formats aren't included) into it's RAM cache as fast as it possibly can, prior to playback. Basically, this means that as playback moves forward, After Effects will copy frames from the footage into the RAM cache for playback as fast as it can; you can see the green cache marks fill up in the timeline ahead of the CTI. This differs from other cases where After Effects will load the RAM cache one frame at a time as they are rendered, instead of pre-caching the frames without additional rendering, as happens in this case. (That said, After Effects always tries to load frames into the RAM cache as fast as possible. If the comp can be rendered faster-than-real-time, you'll see the green cache marks advance ahead of the CTI, so there's nothing terribly special about this behavior.)
The major limitation here is that there must be no rendering involved. Only unaffected footage in a comp qualifies for this optimization. Any rendering (transforms, effects, blending modes, color management, etc.) will force the frames into the usual process of rendering before pushing them into the RAM cache.
The other limitation here is that After Effects can't decode some footage formats quickly. Decoding and debayering 8K raw R3D frames, for example, isn't likely to decode quickly enough to take advantage of this optimization. (Although enabling GPU acceleration in the project settings can help a lot with this.)
Overall, this is a small optimization, but it is helpful in certain cases and helps streamline the overall rendering pipeline.
In regards to the overall concept of disk playback vs. RAM playback, I agree that it would be a useful improvement for After Effects.
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7 votes
Some of this data (but only some) is available when you use the Collect Files command. You can specify in the options dialog to only generate a report, if you just want to collect that data.
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2 votes
Thank you for filing this report.
When exporting via the Render Queue, there is an option in the Render Settings dialog which determines whether or not motion blur will be rendered. By default, the Motion Blur control defaults to On For Checked Layers, which will render motion blur for any layer on which the layer’s motion blur switch is enabled, regardless of the state of the comp’s “master” motion blur switch.
Are you changing this setting in the Render Settings? Does its behavior otherwise align with your experience of which layers do or don’t render motion blur when exported via the Render Queue?
Glad to know that the problem is limited to the single project.
If you'd like us to look at it, post a link to your files here, or if you prefer not to post publicly you can send it to aebugs@adobe.com. (If you send to that address: A) Do not send .zip files, they will be blocked; renaming to .thisisazipfile is OK. B) Post a comment here when you have sent the email. I need to manually check that inbox.)
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3 votes
Thank you for filing this bug report.
We need more information about the conditions you experience the problem.
- What OS and version are you using? i.e., Windows 10 or macOS 10.14
- What graphics card is installed? What driver version?
- Does the this problem only happen in your existing projects, or does it occur if you create a new comp and a new solid, and apply only the Transform effect?
Update 26 Nov 2018:
Could you share a project with us that exhibits the problem? I think we need to inspect the specific conditions of the comp that you’re using. We’re not able to reproduce the problem with a simple comp + solid.Post a link to your files here, or if you prefer not to post publicly you can send it to aebugs@adobe.com. (If you send to that address: A) Do not send .zip files, they will be blocked;…
Could you share a project with us that exhibits the problem? I think we need to inspect the specific conditions of the comp that you're using. We're not able to reproduce the problem with a simple comp + solid.
Post a link to your files here, or if you prefer not to post publicly you can send it to aebugs@adobe.com. (If you send to that address: A) Do not send .zip files, they will be blocked; renaming to .thisisazipfile is OK. B) Post a comment here when you have sent the email. I need to manually check that inbox.)
What are the dimensions of the solid and comp that you are testing?
If you reduce the size of the layer, does the GPU request for the Transform effect succeed?
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3 votes
Thank you for filing this bug report.
Update 14 Nov 2018 – I received the files, thank you.
After playing with the project for a little bit, I see how the Write-on effect is not behaving correctly. But I’m not able to deduce what the cause of the problem is. I’m not able to reproduce the problem from scratch, and if I make modifications to your project, it starts to render correctly.
My best guess is that the keyframe data of the Write-on effect in your project became corrupted somehow. It’s relatively easy to fix, although a bit tedious:
1. On each keyframe, modify the property value. (I made small adjustments, like rounding fractional X or Y values up to the nearest integer, or increasing the brush size by 1. Any change to the keyframe’s value should work here.)
2. Edit > Purge > All Memory & Disk Cache.If…
I don't think attachments are allowed in comments, only in the original request. Can you post to Dropbox or another file share service and post the link here?
If you prefer not to post the files publicly you can send it to aebugs@adobe.com.
If you send to that address: A) Do not send .zip files, they will be blocked; renaming to .thisisazipfile is OK. B) Post a comment here when you have sent the email. I need to manually check that inbox.
Rather than "unexpected", I think the problem here is that After Effects is using sorting rules that aren't obvious. There ARE rules, they just don't conform to your expectations. ;)
I'd like to add to this suggestion (which is good, and I did vote for it) that perhaps instead of just changing the universal sorting rules to be different, that After Effects gives you some sort of control over the sorting rules.
For example, you could choose whether or not that hyphen on the end of "04-" causes a different sorting order. The option could be called something like "names that end in numerals sort separately" or something like that. And then we can argue over whether it should be enabled by default. :P
Regardless, hopefully that clarifies that the sorting rules that After Effects uses were intentional and put there for a reason a long time ago, so if we're going to reassess those rules we should do so in a way that doesn't look archaic in another 20 years, and maybe also gives you some flexibility.
(As you think about this, I encourage you to look at how other apps with sorted lists do this. macOS Finder, Windows Explorer, Premiere Pro, Final Cut Pro X, etc. etc. What do you like about those solutions? What would you like to bring to After Effects?)