Just kidding about the second part.


The new build of MPressionist.X Pro is now available. HD will follow, no specific timetable, but soon. The build number (2.0.5) is synchronized with MegaPEG.X for the bundle users.

First off, there is a whole new Aqua-friendly look to the product. If it seems like the previous incarnations look like an app with one leg still in the Classic world, well, that's what it was.

In redesigning the UI, special efforts were made to make sure the product was ergonomic for PAL 720x576. Sometime this summer I realized that there was an unintended bias forming toward NTSC, so I put an end to that. If you have a PowerBook17 and are working with PAL video, you will see that there is now just room to fit the whole MPressionist window above the dock.

Also in this version is the ability to decode sequences which include changes in frame size, rate etc, including CIF, Half-D1, Full-D1 and (HD) formats. It is quite interesting to try and visually evaluate the difference between Half-D1 and Full-D1 at a regular viewing distance. I couldn't tell them apart, but I could see a slight difference between CIF 352x240 and 720x480. But it was only because I was looking for it. Under normal watching conditions I doubt anyone would care.

If there are wild changes in the frame rate at sequence_header breaks, the bitrate statistics are going to be off. The graph will still approximate the trend, but the actual numbers will be wrong. I mean, I looked at those feature films with 2:3 pulldown breaks for 2 years not realizing they had timing 'issues'.

Another new feature is the ability to take .m2v files which are only a portion of a VOB (say one segment) and open it and analyze it. If you need to RIP a full DVD, follow the instructions in the user's guide and you will get one nice long 4GB .m2v file to work with.