Thank you for upgrading your NewTek VT[4] for your production and graphics projects. NewTek is pleased to provide you with the latest software for VT[4]. Version 4.6 enhances the integrated Production Suite with a combination of new features, fixes and several stability improvements. For new features and a complete list of fixes, refer to the addendum in your VT[4] documentation folder.
NewTek is very interested in hearing your impressions of VT[4] in general, and receiving feedback on version 4.6. Please send suggestions, feature requests and even a brief explanation of how you use VT[4] in real-world environments to vidfeatures@newtek.com. We love to hear from you, as many of the features VT[4] implemented are due to user feedback.
NewTek Europe has provided
an easier system for online
registration, and the
ability
to register over-the-phone with Customer Services.
If your VT[4] is already registered, installation
of this Service Pack will not affect that. If not,
you will need to register VT[4] to download the
VT[4] version 4.6 update.
Downloadable Update Installation
Instructions
VT[4] version 4.6 downloadable
update is an executable file (extension
.exe). You can download the appropriate file
to wherever
you choose on your hard drive. Once you have
downloaded this file, navigate to the folder
where you placed the file, and double-click on
the file to execute the installer. You can install this new version over any existing VT[4] , VT[4] SP1 or VT[4] version 4.5 installation.
IMPORTANT - PLEASE READ
Before installing VT[4] version 4.6, back up any personal content located in the VT[4] folder on your hard drive.
To download this update, you will need your VT[4] serial number. Once you have supplied this information, you will have access to VT[4] version 4.6.
There is a new Registration process that was implemented with VT[4]. If you have already registered VT[4], no further registration action is required. If not, you will need to register VT[4] to download the VT[4] version 4.6 update. NewTek Europe has provided an easier system for online registration, and the ability to register over-the-phone with Customer Services.
NewTek is pleased to incorporate the latest 3D feature-set for those customers using VT[4] with LightWave [8]. There have been more than 250 bug fixes since version 7.5, and numerous new features added:
Hardware support of OpenGL 2.0
New multi-shift tool with editable history
Photoshop-style texture blending modes
Improved dynamics
Easier integration of third-party file formats
78 new hotkey combinations, including Caps Lock+Letter, Alt+Letter, Shift+Alt+Letter, and Shift+Ctrl+Letter combinations
FXMonkey
FX Monkey has been added for easier creation of logos and motion graphics.
FX Monkey is accessed in Layout > Plugins > Additional > FXMonkey.
NewTek25 Codec
NewTek includes an optimized codec for compressed capture, NewTek25. This 25Mbps audio and video compressor/decompressor will capture video at 4:2:2 color space while also using fewer system resources than the standard Microsoft DV codec. New to version 4.6 is support for the YUY2 FourCC identifier. The benefit is easier recognition of this video from other Windows applications. Furthermore, this inclusion allows you to load the NewTek .avi directly into Windows Media Encoder.
Expanded multi-monitor support
VT[4] version 4.6 now offers the ability to span the workspace across several monitors, and VT-Vision monitors can be placed on the last monitor, even without the VT[4] desktop. This setting is changed in Preferences (shown above).
iVGA™ Client
The NewTek iVGA client, released in version 4.5 has been further improved, with an option for ‘underscan’ for video sources. When selected, this prevents iVGA from resizing the external display to fit within the action safe boundaries
VT-Edit Gamma Control
By popular demand, NewTek has added Gamma controls in VT-Edit. This provides the ability to modify the contrast of any selected clip, image or title in the project.
Audio Mixer Skins
Version 4.6 adds several new audio skins which fit more comfortably within the ‘rack mount’ paradigm used on the VT[4] desktop.
MXF Support
Version 4.6 now adds support for VT-Edit to read files based on the Material eXchange Format (MXF). MXF is a "wrapper" format that supports a number of different streams. Users must install the free Snell & Willcox MXF Desktop for download here (free registration on their site is required before downloading). Since this relies heavily on Snell & Wilcox’s MXF reader, NewTek does not provide support for this feature.
Version 4.6 Optimizations and Fixes
Version 4.6 Optimizations
Fixed the ‘cannot create path’ warning when clips folder is deleted (4.6c)
Reduced network broadcast traffic when using iVGA on a network that has a large number of individual domains or workgroups.
General CPU usage improvements across all modules. The largest impact will be in WinRTME and with VT-Visions. The total VT "idle" CPU usage has dropped about 2% on most machines.
NewTek Codec supports "YUY2" FourCC, allowing files written with it to be read directly into Windows Media Encoder.
All computer sources, including DV, can be selected on the DSK.
Audio Pass-thru now clamps to 0db
Update to RS8 firmware.
Improved proc-amp default settings for older VT cards.
Better multiple monitor support. The interface can now expand across all screens but the last one, but still have VT-Vision on the last monitor. This allows for configurations with more than 2 monitors to be used.
iVGA has added an "overscan" setting for video output.
Gamma control added in Control Tree for better management of clip color.
New Preference setting for managing disk bandwidth. This allows more video streams to be played and recorded on some disk and machine configurations.
Improvements to "filtering" of file types in file selectors.
Additional skins for some useful audio mixer sizes.
Improvement to PAL / NTSC performance. When you are now in PAL mode there is no way for NTSC to be displayed on output.
Major improvements to the handling of SDI, particularly when digital audio is also connected.
New VT core, 1A6
Title templates support lower resolution background images
DDRs
Added new keyboard shortcut (Shift + ‘ ) to toggle between List and Selection modes.
Improvements to the performance of "Cue" modes.
De-fielding of DDRs in pause mode when selected in the preferences. (Not selected by default.)
VT-Edit
Added .wmv edit support. If you rename a .WMV file as .AVI, it will now be read by VT-Edit. This is unsupported and some files might not work.
Added MXF playback support, so MXF files can be dropped into VT-Edit. For this to work, you need to install the "Snell and Wilcox MXF Desktop". You also need the correct "codecs" installed on the machine in order to play the file. This is unsupported and some files may not work.
Improved Scrubbing performance.
When inheriting a clip, if the destination clip does not have an alias, but the source does, then the alias is inherited.
In VT-Edit, clip borders now disappear when their width is animated to "0.00”
Audio levels are no longer "clamped" in the range -40 ... +10 in control tree. Rather you can manually enter audio volumes of any range.
Improved caching of temporary files, fixing audio clips that cut out halfway through
Better "rounding to frame boundaries" when working with transitions in the Storyboard.
Frame precision of DV compressed audio significantly improved.
Storyboard croutons now repaint properly when audio streams are disabled.
Storyboard croutons won’t lose their "previews" with certain undo operations.
General fixes
Fixed the audio positioning skin disabled states.
Fixed drivers when some rare combinations of program and preview rows where set.
Fixes to the utility croutons when you have complex combinations of different utilities on the timeline.
Significant improvements to Genlock performance.
Tally light follows the correct row at all times now.
On startup, VT will no longer show Y/C inputs in black & white
DVE names now display properly in the switcher upon startup.
Fixes to alpha output when "Alpha DSK" or "Alpha Main + Alpha DSK" are set, with DSK disabled.
DV output black levels corrected in rare cases.
Scroll-lock now works correctly in text boxes.
Alt+numeric keypad now works correctly in text boxes.
Single pixel borders display properly when VT-Vision is on the second monitor.
If codec incorrectly sets all alpha channels to 0 for all pixels and all frames, we now interpret this as 255. otherwise some clips become invisible.
Improvements in support for Unicode text.
VT-Visions won’t show "No Video Signal Present" message if no frames are seen.
Switcher patches perform properly across complex skin changes.
Fixed errors with some DVEs.
Many other minor fixes implemented
We hope you enjoy the many advanced features found
in VT[4].
IMPORTANT - PLEASE READ
Before installing VT[4] version 4.6, back up any personal content located in the VT[4] folder on your hard drive.
To download this update, you will need your VT[4] serial number. Once you have supplied this information, you will have access to VT[4] version 4.6.
There is a new Registration process that was implemented with VT[4]. If you have already registered VT[4], no further registration action is required. If not, you will need to register VT[4] to download the VT[4] version 4.6 update. NewTek Europe has provided an easier system for online registration, and the ability to register over-the-phone with Customer Services.
