Final Cut Server is able to see files and folders that are available to a system through a variety of means. This could be an Xsan or a folder on an Xsan, an nfs mount from another host, a folder through FTP, etc. Basically, if you can see some data through the Finder reliably then you can go ahead and add it to Final Cut Server. Speeds of clients to access the data then depend on the ability of the clients to access that data either in place or through the Final Cut Server application. Each top level folder that you will be accessing through Final Cut Server can be…
-
-
Final Cut Server: Atom and FCS
Atom, an alternative to RSS, is used extensively in Final Cut Server. Atom allows one to, for example show a list of assets and parse the information in a manner that makes sense to a browser to read. Atom also makes internationalization easier for developers. For more information on Atom see it’s wikipedia entry at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atom_(standard) In the px PostgreSQL database for Final Cut Server, you’ll notice the pxatommap, which is used by Final Cut Server to parse the nearly 2,000 fields of data used by Final Cut Server into information easily readable by clients using Atom, similar to how the widget that I recently posted on this site uses RSS…
-
Final Cut Server: PostgreSQL and FCS
The database that stores the configuration information and assets that you are using with Final Cut Server is built in PostgreSQL. The name of the PostgreSQL database is px. The implementation of PostgreSQL that runs on Mac OS X for Final Cut Server uses port 5433 by default, although only through the localhost. There are two sets of PostgreSQL binaries on a Final Cut Server. The first is in the /Library/Application Support/Final Cut Server/Final Cut Server.bundle/Contents/PostgreSQL/bin directory. However, the tools here do not function. Use the PostgreSQL binary files to manage the database located in the /System/Library/CoreServices/RemoteManagement/rmdb.bundle/bin directory. The actual database information is stored in /var/db/FinalCutServer. Given the above…
-
Final Cut Server: Using Amazon S3 for Archival
Final Cut Server allows you to archive the primary representation (or the original file) for assets that are cataloged. When you do so, the proxy clips (low resolution versions) of your assets still live on the Final Cut Server. However, the primary representation, once moved to your archive device can then be archived off to another form of media. There are a variety of strategies to manage archived media. The one I will describe here is using the Amazon S3 storage service at a cost of approximately $.12 to $.15 per gigabyte. As a conduit to and from Amazon S3 we will use the Jungle Disk application, which uses the…
-
Encoding.com
The cloud just got even more useful for every day video environments. Encoding.com offers a SaaS cloud solution that will encode videos on a cluster for you, so you don’t have to have a render farm if you haven’t grown into that, or if you just don’t want to support it. you can use the web portal to upload files and they will be encoded on the fly. Also, download API documentation to integrate Final Cut Server, Podcast Producer and other solutions with their the XML encoding API.
-
Final Cut Server: Migrating FileMaker Metadata
So my buddy Nick Stokes had a project recently where he was migrating metadata out of a FileMaker database and into Final Cut Server. Here’s what he had to say about the steps: Step 1. The FileMaker DB has all the metadata for all the assets. Step 2. Create a mirror of the metadata in Final Cut Server, leaving the data empty. Step 3. Upload all of the assets into Final Cut Server. Step 4. Outputted a Write XML of every asset out of Final Cut Server. Step 5. Build a php script to parse those WriteXML files and merge them with a CSV dump from the Filemaker DB based…
-
Final Cut Server: iMovie Integration
Final Cut Server isn’t built for working with iMovie and iMovie isn’t built for working with Final Cut Server. Therefore, when you’re using the two of them together it is important to keep a few things in mind. Using Final Cut Server Assets with iMovie First, when importing media into iMovie from Final Cut Server then it will need to be in either dv, mpeg-2 or mpeg-4 formats. Next, if you’re importing 1080i media then by default it will be converted into 960×540, a significant change from working with uncompressed media. Additionally, when you import media into iMovie, the default setting is to copy the media into the iMovie…
-
Final Cut Server: Prepare Media For Disconnected Use
Using Final Cut Server it is possible to still use assets that are stored on the server even when the workstation is offline (not on the same network as the Final Cut Server). This allows users to work on projects using assets from Final Cut Server over a VPN, on an airplane or from a hotel room. When you control-click on an asset you can select the Prepare for Disconnected Use to cache the primary representation. At this point if you browse to the ~/Documents/Final Cut Server/Media Aliases you can drag the file into a Final Cut Pro project and edit away.
-
Final Cut Server: Viewing Job Status
When Final Cut Server is converting a file from one format to another, importing files, etc. a job is added to the queue. To view the status of these jobs, click on the menu button and click on Search All Jobs. You will see the last jobs run, which can be a lot of jobs in some instances. Now click on the disclosure triangle next to the magnifying glass and you will see a list of search parameters. You can then switch Status to Equals and enter FAIL in the status box as seen here. If you click on the search button you will only see failed jobs. You…
-
Final Cut Server: Video Tutorials
These have been up for awhile but I found myself pointing them out to someone earlier today and so thought I’d post a link: http://www.apple.com/finalcutserver/tutorials/