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Old 01-09-2008, 02:09 PM   #1
KimOhNo
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A Few Words

Hi there everybody,

accidentally i was looking into the Forum where i found this empty new one! So i thought i could give you some impressions on the way.

I for myself am working and playing World of Warcraft on a Mac. A year ago i desided to never lay my hands on a windows pc again. So i did - with all the consequences. Well - mac is really great, warcraft and all my creative Programms like After Effects or Photoshop works awesome, the workflow is much better then on a PC.

But I'm also doing Machinima ( to remind you http://www.mmorpgforum.net/showthread.php?t=2452 ), and here's the deal... No good Map and Model Viewer available for a Mac what a shame!

Everyone has his own style...but for me it's def. impossible to make an outstanding Machinima. So i did what i never wanted to do anymore...I installed Bootcamp du have Windows on my Mac...Installed nothing than drivers, WoW and of course fraps and Model/Map Viewer.

Thw Workflow now is not as good as on ONE system because always, when i want to capture new scenes i have to rebbot the system to switch to Windows and back to Mac but thats ok - if you have a scribble or drawn storyboard then you can easily capture alot of scenes in diverse angles and greenscreen characters for youre compositing.

Installing Bootcamp is really easy to handle - like youre Mac. Just follow the instructions, when you have to choose between "fat32" and "ntss" choose ntss because its way faster. Also you can copy data from youre Windows partition to youre Mac which makes the data-exchange very easy and you don't need an external HD.

For me it is a good compromise. I Love my Mac, but i also love Movie Making with World of Warcraft so i had no chance. I would recommend to all of you who don't get along with the Capture function inside of WoW on a Mac.

So i hope i could give you some impressions on how to use youre mac for great Machinima making

Don't miss my Project "Fallen" - it's gonna be famous, i know there not many Infos in the Thread, i'm stil searching for someone translating my german texts into good english ones. But they will come and the first Teaser might hit you hard so stay tuned!

Greetings from Germany

KimOhno
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Old 01-29-2008, 02:02 PM   #2
NecroKnight88
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I had the same problem when i wanted to try and make machinima on my mac. I am using Parallels which is much better in my opinion for quick switching between OS X and XP with no reboot.

My only problem is the chroma keying in Final Cut, No matter what i try when doing anything with motion i can't seem to get the green to hug the model enough. Any suggestions?
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Old 01-31-2008, 10:13 AM   #3
KimOhNo
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puh i dont like Final cut that much...i never keyed with it because i use After Effects for stuff like that - sorry!

Kepp in trying to blur or shrink the mask, this might help and set down the screenbalance depending on the shot
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Old 04-09-2008, 09:57 PM   #4
Xavius
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if u ask me mac is the evilest u can get in this galaxy!!!
after 2 days using mac i got pissed of and banished mac from my world...

Last edited by Xavius : 04-09-2008 at 09:57 PM. Reason: forgot 1 word
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Old 04-16-2008, 09:13 PM   #5
parl2001
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http://forums.worldofwarcraft.com/th...71474767&sid=1

http://www.wowwiki.com/Mac_Video_Recording_and_Editing

http://www.wowwiki.com/Mac

I've been having loads of trouble recording, editing and publishing with a Mac. All I know I've put into the above three links so not everyone has to make my mistakes again.
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Old 04-17-2008, 01:52 AM   #6
Macky
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I hate Mac
Maya runs worse on it
Photoshop runs worse on it
AE runs worse on it
The operating system is a pita (God aweful finder etc)
Generally the second you start pushing a Mac in a production environment it falls apart (lets not get started on doing particles in Maya with it .. zomg)

Essentially for the straight forward stuff they're fine (And I've been using em for years along side PC's) but the tough stuff, forget it....
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Old 04-21-2008, 03:24 PM   #7
parl2001
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World of Warcraft Video Recorder Options

This recorder is supported by Blizzard Entertainment, so assistance can be found at the World of Warcraft Macintosh Forums.
The recorder has many options which can be accessed from the Mac Options submenu of the Game Menu. These Options are as follows:
Record the User Interface: the video records with the interface shown.
Record the Cursor: records the position of the cursor. Requires the User Interface to be recorded as well.
Record Sound: adds an audio track to the video, playing game sounds such as casting and emote speech. (unconfirmed does not record in-game chat)
Show Recording Icon: shows a recording icon on the minimap when recording.
Compress at Log In: compresses recorded video only after logging in. For optimum encoding speed, it is suggested that the framerate of the game when run in the background be set to a low value (2) by typing “/console maxfpsbk 2” into chat.
Compress after Recording: after stopping the recording, the video will be compressed. You can not record a new video while the old video is compressing.
Resolution: The maximum resolution is set by the “Video” menu and the maximum raw video recording abilities of your Macintosh. For input into most video editing applications (such as iMovie), a 4:3 ratio is recommended, such as 640x480 (VGA). Large values will slow system and game performance.
Framerate: The maximum speed of in-game action captured by the recorder. Values higher than the in-game frame rate are effectively reduced to the in-game frame rate. Most video editing applications will want to use 29.97 (NTSC) or 23.98 (PAL). Large values will slow system and game performance.
Compression: reduces the size of the video file by removing redundant data and slight detail.
Motion JPEG: a very common codec used by consumer digital still cameras when recording video. Records individual frames therefore making extremely large files. Choose this codec for minimum loss of data when editing on a program that does not support Apple Intermediate files (such as an editor that runs on Windows or Linux).
H.264: a powerful compression codec suitable to create video suitable for sharing with others over the internet. Choose this codec for the typically smallest compressed video file.
Apple Intermediate: a faster codec suitable for editing. Creates large files, but compresses better than Motion JPEG. Choose this codec if editing of your video will be done on your Macintosh with a program that supports Quicktime.
MPEG-4: another powerful compression codec that makes files larger than H.264 but is directly supported in iMovie. Use this codec for fast iMovie additions (such as an audio track or some overlay text).
Quality: quality of compression. Set to a low value to decrease video compression time, set to a high value for a sharper final video.
Display iTunes remote feedback: records the on-screen information created by iTunes remote.
Display all iTunes track changes: records the on-screen track changes from iTunes.
[edit]Encoding Recommendation
Typical videos (since most Macintoshes come with a version of iLife/iMovie) should be at a resolution of [email protected] framerate, encoded with MPEG-4.
For entry-level HD encoding using a 2.8 GHz iMac with 4 GB RAM or a superior system, record at 1344x840 @23.97 framerate, and compress with H.264 for smaller files and virtually the same quality as MPEG-4. Set Quality to High.
[edit]External Audio Recording and Editing

Audio recording of sounds not made by the World of Warcraft game can be recorded by two programs: Soundflower (freeware) and Audio Hijack Pro (commercial). Audio editing can be done with the GPL-licensed program Audacity.
[edit]Macintosh Movie Editing

The following iMovie example was done in iMovie HD 6.0.3. Source video was MPEG-4, [email protected] fps.
[edit]iMovie

Start up iMovie and select “Create a New Project”.
In the next window, type in a project name and click the triangle next to “Video Format” (which is above the create button).
Select MPEG-4 in the Video Format pull-down menu and click create.
Drag your World of Warcraft video into the project window as well as your audio track.
At this point, play with the program until the video is satisfactory.
When finished, type the shortcut key to export the video: Shift+Command()+E.
Click the Quicktime button and select “Expert Settings” from the drop-down menu. Then click “Share”
Name your movie and choose “Movie to Quicktime Movie" in the Export drop-down menu and choose “Default Settings” in the Use drop-down menu.
[edit]Final Cut Pro (FCP) and Final Cut Express (FCE)

These programs are complex and are not included with most Apple Computers, so a 10 step tutorial is ommitted. FCP and FCE require specific qualities of files when importing.
Aralesh on Bloodhoof-US had this to say: "FinalCut (Express or Studio) won't open files with anything other then [sic] PCM (Uncompressed) or Apple Lossless audio. And make sure your frame rate is at 29.97. "
Unfortunately for the newbie to FCE, there's nothing that will let you know that your Sequence Settings is one of the most important variables in determining the final quality and resolution of your finished video. The following is from p202 of the FCE User's Manual:
Sequence preset Image dimensions Frame rate Codec
DV NTSC 720 x 480 29.97 fps DV/DVCPRO NTSC
DV PAL 720 x 576 25 fps DV PAL
HDV 1080i60 1440 x 1080 29.97 fps Apple Intermediate Codec
HDV 1080i50 1440 x 1080 25 fps Apple Intermediate Codec
HDV 720p30 1280 x 720 29.97 fps Apple Intermediate Codec - Recommended for producing entry-level HD video at a reasonable filesize, but keep in mind that you need to capture at this quality or above to take full advantage of it.
[edit]Direct Editing/Transcoding of Video

Many different programs allow transcoding video into different formats and splitting the audio and video into different files. These programs do not allow manual editing of frames.
MPEG Streamclip (freeware)
FFMpegX (freeware with GPL components)
Quicktime Player Pro (commercial)
Avidemux (GPL)
VideoLAN Client (GPLv2)
Transcoding can also be done using VLC, further info on Tombfury.com Forums
[edit]Multiplexing using Avidemux

This example takes an audio file and adds it to a video file such that the audio plays when the video plays.
Prerequisite: Xvid Quicktime Component (May also be beneficial to have Xiph Quicktime Component as well. They get installed to the same place: <Macintosh HD>/Library/Components)
Run Avidemux and open the video file that you recorded in WoW. Avidemux can open MPEG-4 and h.264 files, it can not open Motion JPEG or Apple Intermediate.
By the word Video on the project window, select “MPEG-4 ASP (Xvid4)” on the drop-down menu.
Click Audio -> Main Track on the menu bar, then from the “Audio Source:” drop-down menu choose “External MP3.”
Click Open next to “External file:” and choose an mp3 to play while watching the movie. Then click OK.
By the word Audio on the project window, select “Copy”
By the word Format on the project window, select “AVI”
Click File -> Save -> Save Video... on the menu bar, then choose where you would like to save the file. You need to add the .avi extension to the file name yourself.
Note: h.264 source video causes the last frame to wrap around to the first frame when re-encoding.
[edit]Editing for YouTube

YouTube supports uploading of multiple formats. YouTube will lower the resolution to approximately 320x240 and to an average bitrate of about 380 kbps.
[edit] Guide to getting your video into FCE/FCP using Quicktime Pro

WHY: The video that is compressed by the WoW client is not importable into Final Cut Pro and Final Cut Express, the two most commonly used video editing programs on Mac OS.
Advantage: Using Quicktime Pro over iMovie just to get audio AND video into FCE seems to be a relatively simple process.
1. record video/audio in wow and compress using wow
2. open up in QTP, hit Command-I to see a little more hidden info about your clip.
[2.5:] For HD Editing use Quicktime Pro to make initial cuts, it goes a lot faster than doing it all in FCE. You will run into problems with wanting to restore things you cut, but this can be worked around by saving the edited file under a new file name. With a little work and some caution I've found that I can be reasonably sure most of the time that I don't want a huge bloated file full of un-needed video in FCE. Much easier to do the initial editing in QTPro.
3. Command-E to export, decide where to save it. (Command is the funky weird Apple button, equivalent of the Windows button on PCs). Export: Movie to QuickTime Movie - unclear if this makes a difference for FCE.
4. Options button. Enable both Video and Audio.
Video Size: don't really know if this should be compressor native or current.
Deinterlace Source Video doesn't appear to be needed, I hardly understand the stuff on wikipedia that I found about it anyway.
Video Filter - no need to mess with this afaik.
Video Settings: H.264, frame rate 29.97 - needed by FCE afaik.
Key Frames Automatic (I actually understand that concept - but no clue how to make that knowledge work to my advantage).
Data Rate Automatic, optimized for download.
Compressor Quality High since visual quality is very marginally affected at the expense of a huge jump in file size (by ~3x).
Encoding Single-pass since it doesn't seem to make much difference if you set it to Multipass and takes much longer.
Sound settings: Format Apple Lossless (PCM may work too, but I just don't really know much about this, ok? ok.) Rate 44.100 since that's what came from WOW afaik. Render settings Faster - dunno if this affects audio much, but I'm not much into audio quality in pvp/pve videos, there'll be music to cover it anyways. Preview button seems to work ok if you're in doubt.
5. Leave unchecked the box 'Prepare for Internet Streaming' - I can't stand WoW videos on Youtube and like, the visual quality is just too bad. Anything I write about will be HD, or close to it.
6. hit OK.
7. hit SAVE.
8. now you'll get a little window pop-up that'll have a floating bar showing exporting progress. with luck your average 1min pvp clip of about 1min footage = `70-100mb filesize will now be compressed into roughly 50-60% of that.
9. Now you're ready to import this into FCE. You can either open FCE and then import, or right-click the file and choose 'Open With'.
10. This entire process, once you've messed with the QTP settings, doesn't take all that long, since the export settings are saved. Open file from wow, stop video playback, Command-E, Enter and DONE.
[edit] References

http://forums.worldofwarcraft.com/th...71474767&sid=1 WoW Movie Recording Thread, messy but full of info if you read through it all.
http://vimeo.com/help/hd has some Mac-specific guidelines for how to finalize HD video
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Old 08-01-2008, 05:59 PM   #8
ahato360
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eh

I am trying to make my first machinima on a mac, because thats the computer I have. I do have PC's in the house but, they don't belong to me.

I have Final Cut Pro, i did manage to get chroma key to work. But you have to render the video after like every edit.

Map Viewer is crap on Mac, its so laggy. Model Viewer is ok, i give it a C+. Some models appear as just straight lines. And there's no way for the model to do 2 actions at once (walk + talk). Kinda limited.

Machinima can be made on a mac, it's just that not very many programs are machinima friendly on a mac.
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Old 10-20-2008, 08:49 PM   #9
Demachic
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Actually is anyone able to try to update the code in the WoWmodelViwer mac? it's not compatible anymore for me with WoW since the update patch before WotLK and I can't even open it anymore.. =|
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Old 02-23-2009, 03:42 AM   #10
LunoX
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W8... KimOhNo... Die legände im TM-Freestyle genre?
Du spielst mmo's ? (vllt. auf wow?) .. hätte ich nie gedacht.. Oo
Ich fahr immer noch mit den ss3 carskins..

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mac is not my world sorry
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