When you launch the Avid software, the first thing you’ll see is the Select Project window, where you can pick both the user and the project you’re going to work with. Avid assumes you’re going to be working with the user settings of the person whose computer you’re using. Click in the pull-down menu and choose Create User Profile to create settings for an additional editor. The Avid software advantage is that you don’t have to create all your user settings at the operating system level. You can create them right within the software itself.

If you had an existing project, it would appear in the menu on the lower left. Since it’s the first time you’ve launched the software, you’ll need to create a new project – and decide where to save it. Click Private if you’re the only one using the computer and/or working on the project. The system will store the project in your personal user documents folder and only you will be able to read and write to it. Click the Shared button if you’re sharing the computer with others and it will be saved in the shared users’ folder for everyone to open and work in.

To assign a name and format to a shared project, start by clicking on the Shared button and then the New Projects button to open up the New Project window; you can also decide whether or not to track film information here. In Avid, you always need to name your project before you start using it. This eliminates all the problems with digitizing media into an untitled project, and it’s also the only time you’ll get to name your project and pick a format. In this case, call the project "Tempest" and choose a format from the pull-down menu at the right. It’s also a good time to make sure you have all the proper settings selected.

Does your project originate on film? There’s a Matchback option that lets you track all the film info for that project. Click the button and, from the menu on the right, select a film format. If your project also ends on film, the Avid can track all that without using an external program. In this example, though, we’re creating a project at 720p/59.94. Turn off the Matchback option, then click OK. The project now appears in the menu on the left, under the Shared button. You need to click on it, and not the Private button, to open it. You also need to make sure the project is highlighted and has the appropriate user settings selected. Click OK to launch the project.

Media Composer and Media Composer Adrenaline, which typically have a two-monitor editing system, are a bit different from Avid Xpress Pro. When you first launch a project in Xpress Pro, the typical layout of windows can be seen in a single editing monitor, called the Composer, where you’ll find a timeline and the project window. You can, however, mimic a dual-monitor setup inside Xpress Pro by going to the Tools Menu and scrolling down to select Source/Record Editing. Your two editing monitors are now split, with the Source Monitor on the left and the Record Monitor on the right. The timeline is still underneath and the project is to the left. The name of the project, followed by the name of the current user, appears in the project window’s title bar. The tabs you see across the top don’t represent separate projects (you can only have one project open at a time) but separate aspects of the current project. The view you’ll probably use most often is the first tab, labeled Bins; it’s selected by default. The second tab, Settings, contains all the settings for the Avid software. Scroll up or down through this list to find a setting you want, then double-click on it to open it. If you need to conserve screen space, enable Super Bin, at the bottom.

At the top of the settings window, locate the pull-down menu that lists the users accessible on the system. If another editor is going to work on this same project, you’ll need to click in here to switch to the User Profile of another editor or create a new one. In this case, create one for "David" and click OK. Now David can edit the Tempest project.

If you want to go back to your settings, just click in that window again and choose your name from the list- it will be switched back. I love the fact that the Avid software keeps user settings separate and distinct and yet very easily accessible. You will never have to log out of the project, quit out of the application or log out of the operating system to switch users.

Take a look again at the Users Tab to see that it lists all the people with user settings that have already been created. The third tab in the project window, the horizontal pink rectangle, is for the Effects. All the Avid effects are listed by category in the left-hand column. When you click on each category of effects, the corresponding effects will show up over in the right-hand column. The fourth tab, Format, is an area where you can go to verify the format of the current project; the last tab is called Info.

Click on the first button, called Hardware, to bring up the hardware tool. On the first tab of the hardware tool, labeled Drives, you’ll see a list of all the drives currently connected to the Avid system. This gives you a current snapshot of how much space you have left.

Another handy feature is the Console, located under the Tools Menu at the top. That’s where you’ll find a text-based window where info is stored throughout the course of the day, based on certain actions you’ve taken. Scroll back up through this window toward the top, which brings you closer to where you were when you first turned on the system. That’s where you’ll see both the dongle ID and the system ID; if you’re calling in for technical support, you’ll need both these numbers ready for reference. If, for some reason, you can’t quite reach the dongle or read the number off of it, it’s nice to be able to come to the Console and scroll to the top to find them. When finished, all you have to do is close the Console by clicking the close box– it’s the red dot in the left corner on the Mac and the right corner on the PC.

Laura H. Congleton
Consultant/Trainer

Laura H. Congleton has been working as an assistant picture editor, consultant and trainer for more than 14 years. She is a member of IATSE, Local 700, the Motion Picture Editors Guild and has worked on a number of projects, including documentaries, feature films, TV series and commercials. Her credits are posted on the Internet Movie Database (www.imdb.com). Laura served for several years as an elected member of the Editors Guild Board of Directors and has trained fellow editors and assistants in the use of both Avid and Final Cut Pro software. She is currently designing the online series "Avid for Final Cut Pro Users" for Avid Technology.

Laura Says Keep in Mind…
Avid editing software has been used for more than 20 years on a variety of projects, from feature films to TV series, music videos to commercials, network news to Internet content. Avid NLEs, including Xpress Pro and Media Composer, also have another terrific advantage: they work on both Windows-based PC computers and Macintosh computers. Once an editor learns one Avid product on either platform, it’s very easy to pick up and use a different Avid product – a huge benefit to anyone working in the quickly changing world of post production."

Laura H. Congleton
laura@avidmaven.com