Still need help REF: Post of Oct 19 Mplay32 poor performance

[Earl Fisher]

For a while I was getting response with my problems, but
the thread seems to have stopped. Hope someone can pick
up on this again... plus I have some new and hopefully
revealing observations.

The basic problem (see referenced thread in subject line
for more details) is that video playback inside PP via
the old mci media player (Insert | movies and sounds |
from file) is very poor from CD compared to the same file
viewed on the same CD in the new Windows Media Player,
which plays the video just fine (both outside PP and
inside as an object). I have tested this on 3 different
computers, have used a variety of CD brands and
qualities, have used different codecs all set with
undemanding parameters-- 15 fps, 400 X 300 screen size,
and 200 data rate. In all cases the results are basically
the same... poor, choppy, jerky, bad lip sync playback
inside PP presentation, while looking fine in the Windows
Media Player.

Here is the first of my new observations: I've noticed
that no matter what screen resolution I set any of my
computers to, the PP presentation (and the video files
within the presentation) display at exactly the same
size. Normally, a larger screen resolution makes objects
appear smaller, right? Not so. Conversely, the same
videos do change size as I change the resolution on my
computers and view them in the Windows Media Player.
This leads me to believe that PP is modifying,or
controlling the display separate from the natural display
size. Generally speaking, this modification is to make
the video images larger than they display in the Windows
Media Player (with the same screen resolution).

I know that typically when I play a video in WMP or in
the QuickTime or RealMedia player and it stutters or
jerks, I can drag the screen smaller and it improves the
performance. I assume that if PP is "dragging" the screen
larger than it would be degrading performance.

Could this be the source of my problems? If so, how to I
prevent this from happening?


My other observation: It appears that PP loads as much
of the presentation as it can into memory. I've
discovered this by popping out the CD while using the
presentation and seeing that the presentation keeps going
for some time. If I'm in the middle of a video playback
and I pop out the CD, the video continues as well. Given
that, is it possible that my problems are related to how
PP handles memory?

Please help.

Thank you

 

[TAJ Simmons]

Earl,

A few things spring to mind reading your post.

Reading data from a CD is always going to be slower that reading from a hard
drive.

When powerpoint displays a slideshow is shows it at your current desktop
resolution (unless you tell it otherwise....what version of powerpoint are
you using. Are you using the viewer instead...if so are you using the trusty
old viewer or the new viewer?). This is one of the great things about
powerpoint.

When powerpoint is showing a slideshow it does try to buffer as much as it
can to aid smooth playback. But as you've noticed...it can also cause
problems as powerpoint is trying to do too many things at once. i.e. play a
movie at the same time as getting the next slides ready. With this in mind
you can design around this. e.g. make the next slide (or event) after your
video...really really simple.

Give powerpoint less to do.....Make sure everything is optimized
- pixel count correct for screen display? (no overkill)
- sound at an acceptable quality without being overkill (e.g. mono instead
of stereo)
- video optimized (quality vs speed)
- Turn off virus checkers and other background things during playback.

Something I've never proved.....on writing CD-R....long ago there used to be
an option called

CD-ROM-XA mode 2 format (or something similar).....in the help files of the
cd-writing software it said that the XA format was better for multimedia
stuff.. I can't find the info at the moment. My original thinking was that
the mode2 would be better when it came to reading back the info.

A quick link http://club.cdfreaks.com/showthread/t-60611.html

On a windows system there is a setting for reading ahead from CD-ROM drives.
See control panel>system>Performance>file system>cd-rom.

There is a setting for cache size.....and optimize pattern. Try tweaking
them!

Cheers
TAJ Simmons
microsoft powerpoint mvp

awesome - powerpoint backgrounds,
free sample templates, tutorials, hints and tips etc
http://www.powerpointbackgrounds.com

 

[Guest]

I apprciate your reply...


Yes, I realize that CD is slower than HDD but I am trying
to distrubute this promotional presentation on CD and do
not expect that anyone will want to copy the 550 meg
presentation to their hard drive. So I have to make it
work the best posslble from the CD.

You say that

snip_____
When powerpoint displays a slideshow is shows it at your
current desktop

resolution (unless you tell it otherwise....what version of powerpoint are
you using. Are you using the viewer instead...if so are you using the trusty
old viewer or the new viewer?).

__________

However, this is not the case. Regardless of computer,
regardless of desktop resolution, the presentation always
displays at the same size-- never larger or smaller. How
would I have told PP to display differently than as you
described? Are there settings that tell it to always
display at a certain size regardless of desktop
resolution?

I'm using PP 97 and the old viewer.

I appreciate your suggestions for optimizing my system,
but my concern is how others will see the presentation
when I send them a CD. I have no control over their
systems and cannot expect that they will want to tweak
their systems to optimize the playback.

Again, it is clear that my video files are being managed
by PP in some way at the detriment of the playback
quality. I would be plenty satisfied if they played back
as well inside PP as they do outside in Windows Media
Player-- and that's with all things being equal,
including compression, video card, CD player parameteres,
etc. All such settings and configurations are acceptable
when viewed outside of PP. It's just inside PP that I am
having troubles.

I notice that you are a PowerPoint mvp. I have had
several other mvp's try to help as well, but no one seems
to have a solution. On the other hand, no one has
said, "Yeah, that's just the way it works," or suggested
that what I'm experiencing is normal. I'm led to believe
that none of you experience a difference in playback
between the Windows Media Player and the old mci player
inside of PP. If this is true, then I'm doing something
wrong with PowerPoint. But none of the suggestions are
addressing my problem. I'm just so frustrated as all of
the suggested solutions focus on codecs and system
configurations-- not PowerPoint. Maybe I'm wrong, and if
so, I hope someone can point out the flaw in my logic...
how can the external issues apply (codecs, video card, cd
configuration, system and OS settings, etc.) when my
problems are consistent regardless of the computer it is
viewed on and my existing system configurations produce a
very acceptable playback in the Windows Media Player--
outside of PP.

Is there a Microsoft tech support department that I can
speak with who might be able to provide some guidence on
this issue from a very technical perspective?

Or are there other mvp's who may have other strengths and
perspectives that you can pass this on to?

Thank you for your help. I'm getting quite dismayed as
I've invested untold hours creating this presentation and
now am afraid I can't send it out.

 

[TAJ Simmons]

Earl,

However, this is not the case. Regardless of computer,
regardless of desktop resolution, the presentation always
displays at the same size-- never larger or smaller. How
would I have told PP to display differently than as you
described? Are there settings that tell it to always
display at a certain size regardless of desktop
resolution?

It's true that powerpoint displays your presentation at the current desktop
resolution. However in powerpoint 2002/XP you can select what resolution
playback should be in (along with a load of other options). That's why I
asked what you were using to show the presentation).

You are using the trusty old viewer This will always play back at the
current desktop resolution. You have no control over this. You have no
control over what resolution your customers have set.

I notice that you are a PowerPoint mvp. I have had
several other mvp's try to help as well, but no one seems
to have a solution.

Apart from the people at microsoft, the mvps and the other regulars to this
newsgroup probably know more about powerpoint then a lot of people. We've
come across most problems and tried various workarounds. If anyone comes up
with a new suggestion we're all ears.

On the other hand, no one has
said, "Yeah, that's just the way it works," or suggested
that what I'm experiencing is normal.

IMHO "Yeah, that's just the way it works" with video playback from CD-ROM.

Is there a Microsoft tech support department that I can
speak with who might be able to provide some guidence on
this issue from a very technical perspective?

Contact Microsoft - Support, Sales, Replacement Media, etc.
http://www.rdpslides.com/pptfaq/FAQ00461.htm

Or are there other mvp's who may have other strengths and
perspectives that you can pass this on to?

They all frequent this newsgroup.

I'm sorry that I could not be more helpful to you.

Cheers
TAJ Simmons

 

[Austin Myers]

Earl,

Lets see if I can help or at least get you pointed in the right direction.

First things first. As you know, PPT uses the MCI media player for video
playback. As it is an older player it depends upon your handing it video
that meets the standard. Mpeg-1 should always be 352 x 240 pixels in
resolution at 29.97 frames a second. The video stream should be 1150 kbits
per second and the audio stream 224 kbits per second. These are the "white
book" standards for Mpeg-1 and is what the MCI player expects to receive.

(You said, "I have used different codecs all set with undemanding
parameters-- 15 fps, 400 X 300 screen size, and 200 data rate.") A video
editor that allows this and still calls it an Mpeg-1 should be tossed out!)

The other consideration is color depth. Many video editing packages simply
assume the same color depth your monitor is currently running. Do yourself
a favor and set your editing package to render the video at 16-bit color
depth. If it can't be done than set your monitor to 16-bit while working
with the video and it *should* inherit the settings.

As you've probably guessed by all of this, the chances are you are creating
a non-standard mpeg-1 file and the MCI player is having a tough time dealing
with it. While it *may* play it will most certainly do so with poor
results. (You may have seen them.) Grab yourself a copy of the White Book
standard and build your video files to match it and I'll bet most of your
problems disappear.

Oh, and as to why it shows up worse from the CD ROM. The White Book
standard describes how an Mpeg-1 file should be written to CD so that it can
read it in a progessive manner. Change the format (size, color, data rate,
etc.) and it no longer can. It must constantly "look" for the next piece of
the file. On a hard disk this isn't a big issue because it's fast enough to
do it. However a CD-ROM doesn't have the speed to required to look up the
next bit of data and read it fast enough for smooth playback.

 

[Echo S]

In addition to the advice given by the others, one thing sticks in my mind
here -- 550MB is a *huge* file to play from a CD. If I were a PPT/MCI/CD
player, I'd probably stutter, too! <g>

Is the presentation itself 550MB, or is the video 550MB? Is there any way
you can break this up a bit so PPT's not trying to load that whole thing at
the same time it's playing it?

What about using something like Sorensen Squeeze to create Flash files of
those MPEGs? I can't guarantee that would help, but it seems it would
certainly be worth a shot.

 

[TAJ Simmons]

Echo - I missed the 550mb bit.

Earl is the .ppt file 550mb?
Or is the .ppt and all the video clips 550mb?

If it's just the .ppt file....what's in it to make it soo big?

TAJ

 

[Guest]

I greatly appreciate your time spent on trying to address
my problem in such detail I am still left with several
questions. I hope you will be able respond again. Thanks.


Based on your following spcs, am I to assume that the mci
player is intended to ONLY read an AVI file compressed in
the MPEG1 CODEC? It is a CODEC, isn't it? I only have
MPEG4 CODEDS on my editing system (NT 4.0), but they
always produce rendering errors in After Effects. Are you
saying that I must get the MPEG 1 CODEC onto my system
and recompress all the video files? If so, that's OK,
but my concern is that if I don't have the MPEG1 CODEC on
my system will others who I want to distribute this to
via CD have it on theirs? And if they don't, I assume
they won't be able to decode the files.

Maybe Mpeg 1 is not a CODEC, but rather a general
category for all encoded avi files? Is that my
confusion?

Even so, you give very specific encoding parameters. That
leads me to question why do I have so many rendering
options as to frame rate, screen size, and data rate if
all video is supposed to be prepared with only the very
specific specifications you suggested? Plus, everything
that I've ever read says that the object is to get the
file size down, and going to 15 fps is a very acceptable
compromise to do so for web or CD distribution. Also,
most of my production is in a 4 X 3 standard video ratio
or 720 X 480. 352 X 240 is not comprable to either. Is
this an old standard? Is the mci player so inflexible
that it can't comforably handle a file with only 15 fps
and a 3 X 4 ratio? I assume that the new Windows Media
Player does not have these limitations as it plays back
my files beautifully (encoded as I have described).


And if Mpeg 1 IS a CODEC, and you say I'm only supposed
to use Mpeg 1, what are those other CODECS doing on my
computer? When am I supposed to use them?

For clarification, I've never referred to my video files
as being Mpeg1 files or made any reference to using mpeg
1. This may be about my confusion over whether mpeg1 is
a CODEC of not. I would appreciate it if you would please
provide clarification as to whether Mpeg1 is a CODEC or
just a general category that all compressed avi files
fall into. And if the latter, are you saying that
regardless of the CODEC I choose to use, the settings
your mentioned earlier should be selected?


Finally, do you have any thoughts as to why my PP
presentation plays back at exactly the same screen size
regardless of the desktop resolution? (and regardless of
what computer I view the presentation on.) Higher
resolution, smaller image-- right? Not so, in my case
it's always the same size. Specifically, it enlarges the
image from the size seen in Windows Media Player for
example (same file). Is it possible that this enlarging
of my video could be causing some of my playback
studders?

I'm quite confused. Please help. Thank you.

-----Original Message-----
Earl,

Lets see if I can help or at least get you pointed in the right direction.

First things first. As you know, PPT uses the MCI media player for video
playback. As it is an older player it depends upon your handing it video
that meets the standard.

Mpeg-1 should always be 352 x 240 pixels in

resolution at 29.97 frames a second. The video stream should be 1150 kbits
per second and the audio stream 224 kbits per second. These are the "white
book" standards for Mpeg-1 and is what the MCI player

expects to receive.

 

[EFisher]

Echo,

Thank you for your thoughts.

Most of the file size is from the videos... I have 21 of
them. The ppt file itself is 127 meg.

I will look into breaking the presentation up. My
concern is that I want my transitions to be seamless, and
my assumption is that when linking to another PPt
presentation it will look like I'm loading a new file
(big interruption!) Is there a way to break up the
presentation where I won't have a big pause as the new
file is being loaded?

Can you tell me where I get Sorenson Squeeze? Does it
translate video files to Flash? And can I insert a Flash
presentation into PPt without launching some sort of a
player or browser? My video files are mostly integrated
design-wise into the background and viewing them in a
player would totally kill the experience.

Hope you will respond. Thank you.


Earl

-----Original Message-----
In addition to the advice given by the others, one thing sticks in my mind
here -- 550MB is a *huge* file to play from a CD. If I were a PPT/MCI/CD
player, I'd probably stutter, too! <g>

Is the presentation itself 550MB, or is the video 550MB? Is there any way
you can break this up a bit so PPT's not trying to load that whole thing at
the same time it's playing it?

What about using something like Sorensen Squeeze to create Flash files of
those MPEGs? I can't guarantee that would help, but it seems it would
certainly be worth a shot.

--
Echo [MS PPT MVP]

I apprciate your reply...


Yes, I realize that CD is slower than HDD but I am trying
to distrubute this promotional presentation on CD and do
not expect that anyone will want to copy the 550 meg
presentation to their hard drive. So I have to make it
work the best posslble from the CD.

You say that

snip_____
When powerpoint displays a slideshow is shows it at your
current desktop version
of powerpoint are are
you using the trusty
__________

However, this is not the case. Regardless of computer,
regardless of desktop resolution, the presentation always
displays at the same size-- never larger or smaller. How
would I have told PP to display differently than as you
described? Are there settings that tell it to always
display at a certain size regardless of desktop
resolution?

I'm using PP 97 and the old viewer.

I appreciate your suggestions for optimizing my system,
but my concern is how others will see the presentation
when I send them a CD. I have no control over their
systems and cannot expect that they will want to tweak
their systems to optimize the playback.

Again, it is clear that my video files are being managed
by PP in some way at the detriment of the playback
quality. I would be plenty satisfied if they played back
as well inside PP as they do outside in Windows Media
Player-- and that's with all things being equal,
including compression, video card, CD player parameteres,
etc. All such settings and configurations are acceptable
when viewed outside of PP. It's just inside PP that I am
having troubles.

I notice that you are a PowerPoint mvp. I have had
several other mvp's try to help as well, but no one seems
to have a solution. On the other hand, no one has
said, "Yeah, that's just the way it works," or suggested
that what I'm experiencing is normal. I'm led to believe
that none of you experience a difference in playback
between the Windows Media Player and the old mci player
inside of PP. If this is true, then I'm doing something
wrong with PowerPoint. But none of the suggestions are
addressing my problem. I'm just so frustrated as all of
the suggested solutions focus on codecs and system
configurations-- not PowerPoint. Maybe I'm wrong, and if
so, I hope someone can point out the flaw in my logic...
how can the external issues apply (codecs, video card, cd
configuration, system and OS settings, etc.) when my
problems are consistent regardless of the computer it is
viewed on and my existing system configurations produce a
very acceptable playback in the Windows Media Player--
outside of PP.

Is there a Microsoft tech support department that I can
speak with who might be able to provide some guidence on
this issue from a very technical perspective?

Or are there other mvp's who may have other strengths and
perspectives that you can pass this on to?

Thank you for your help. I'm getting quite dismayed as
I've invested untold hours creating this presentation and
now am afraid I can't send it out.


that
reading from a hard your
current desktop version
of powerpoint are are
you using the trusty great
things about ready.
With this in mind (or
event) after your overkill
(e.g. mono instead R....long
ago there used to be original
thinking was that ahead
from CD-ROM drives.

.

 

[Guest]

Taj,

Thank you again for responding.

I'm not sure what I am saying wrong or unclearly that is
misleading you regarding the screen resolution issue. If
I am understanding you correctly, you have not understood
that my presentation display is performing totally
contrary to what you say should happen. Let me try
again, as I sense that this may be a major contributor to
my problem.

My presentation is NOT displaying as you say it should...
my presentation DOES NOT display at the current desktop
resolution. My presentation ALWAYS displays at the SAME
size-- it always looks the same-- regardless of the
desktop resolution and regardless of the computer I'm
viewing it on. You say this is possible in PPt 2002, but
I'm using PPt 97!

In other words, the presentation takes up the same screen
space when viewing it in 1280 by 1084 as it does when
viewing it in 800 by 600 desktop resolution. At 800 by
600 you would expect the PP presentation to appear much
larger than is does when viewed at 1280 by 1084. NOT
SO! The only thing that gets larger at the lower
resolution is the mouse pointer icon.

Comparitively, when changing resolution, the Windows
Media Player does change size and the maximum size of the
video it is displaying (same video as in PP presentation)
also changes based on diffeent desktop resolutions. At
the higher resolutions (which is what all my computers
are set at), the size of the video screen inside of PP is
ALWAYS LARGER than the same video's maximum size in the
Windows Media Player screen. That means PP is
stretching / enlarging / modifying the video playback
display.

I hope you understand that what I am experiencing is NOT
as you say it should happen. This leaves me with a few
questions.

1. What am I doing to cause my presentation (created in
Ppt 97) to display at a constant size (a feature you say
is only available in PPt 2002)?

2. Given that PPt is stretching my video from the native
desktop size it should be seen in, could this cause poor
playback performnce?

3. If so, what can I do to prevent PPt from "stretching"
my video to a larger size and degrading playback?


I hope you will perceive my appreciation of your help,
even though I am so frustrated. Thank you. I hope you
will respond again.

Earl

 

[Austin Myers]

Let's try and take them one at a time.

Mpeg-1 is a "standard" created by the Motion Picture Expert Group. Without
getting buried in techno speak, it was the standard established for
television/computer use and it roughly equaled the quality of a VHS
recording for television.

It is possible to create Mpeg-1 (or simply mpeg) files that don't meet the
standard. In fact many applications allow you to do this. It's normally
not an issue because the newer Media Players (Windows Media player, QT
player, Real, etc.) have been built in a manner that allows it.
Unfortunately the MCI is not a new player. It first came out in Windows 3.x
and has remained much the same to allow for backward compatibility for
applications that depend on it. (PowerPoint is one of them.)

The codec is the software that compresses and de-compresses the video file.
Think of it as a screw driver. It's simply the tool used to assemble or
disassemble it. But like a screw driver there are many different types. If
I assemble it with a Phillips screw driver you must have a Phillips screw
driver to disassemble it. That really doesn't change what it is, say a
desk. It's still a desk and it still fits the standard definition of a
desk. The same is true of video files. I can assemble a Mpeg-1 video file
with a Phillips screw driver, but you must have a Phillips screw driver to
view the video. Does that make sense?

An Mpeg file IS an AVI. AVI stands for Audio Video Interleave. All it
means is that the video and the audio are all contained in the same file.
The information is interleaved together in a single file. (As opposed to a
seperate sound track.) In fact you could call just about any newer video
file format an AVI and be technically correct. Think of it like this.
There were (are) many ways to make an AVI file, the Motion Pictures Expert
Group said ok, but we want to write a specification for one type of AVI that
everyone can use interchangeably. Using the screw driver analogy again, we
could all make different Phillips screw drivers, but there is a
specification for a number 2 Phillips head screw and screw driver. The same
thing applies to an Mpeg-1 file.

The problem you are seeing is that when a video file that has the *.mpg
extention is handed to the MCI player it expects the file to follow the
standard established. It's like me handing you a number 2 Phillips screw
driver. You expect it to fit a number 2 head screw. But if it's mis-labled
as a number 2 but is really a number 3 screw driver it won't work very well.
You *may* get the screw in or out, but it's not pretty to do or watch. (If
you've ever used the wrong Phillips head screw driver you know what I mean.)

If you build your video files to meet the mpeg standard (color, resolution,
data stream rate, etc.) it will play on just about any Windows machine out
there. (Windows has a number 2 Phillips screw driver in it.)

Now, if you want to create a smaller file you can certainly do so. But it
is NOT an Mpeg-1 file, it's a non-standard wanna-be an mpeg that may or may
not work well. If that is your goal, then use a standard *.avi file format.
If you choose this option create the video file as an avi and use the
Cinepak or Indio 4.x codec. (they are both included in a standard Windows
install) However, this doesn't always insure a small file. In fact it may
be bigger than the same file as a standard Mpeg. Why you ask? Because they
are old codecs that don't compress the data nearly as well as does the Mpeg
standard.

*****

Screen resolution of PPT. Until PPT XP (2002) users had no choice, if you
are showing the presentation in presenters mode it ALWAYS fills the screen
regardless of resolution. That is by design and yes it resizes everything
"on the fly" to accomplish this. That way it looks pretty much the same
regardless of the playback/show machine's resolution settings. In PPT 2002
and 2003 you can define the playback resolution regardless of current screen
settings. This is a HUGE help for those that use beamers with a fixed
resolution. This should not cause you any reason for concern as PPT does
all of this automatically.


As I said in the last post. If you build your mpeg videos to meet the White
Book Standard, it should do away with the vast majority of the problems you
are seeing. That includes how it is burned to, and read from the CD-ROM.

Austin Myers
MS PowerPoint MVP Team

 

[Echo S]

Hi, Earl.

Sorenson Squeeze will compress your video to SWF (Flash) files. These
are much smaller than conventional video files.
http://www.sorenson.com/application_custom/en/store/catalog.php#mxwf

You'd have to use a control to add them to PPT. There are instructions
at http://www.flashgeek.com which will explain how. It's actually quite
easy. You may also need to use Shyam's Flashback addin to rewind the SWF
files within PPT. http://www.mvps.org/skp

The recipients would need to have a Flash player on their computers, but
it seems most do already have that. Because the SWF files are added via
a control, the presentation wouldn't launch the player separately -- the
SWFs play on the slides themselves, just as an inserted video would.

I just tossed the SWF idea out, as it seems there are a number of
problems with the video in your presentation, and it seems to me that
the file size is probably one of the biggest ones. (pun not intended.
<g>) I'm just guessing that if you can get the file size down, it may
run better for you, and SWF files are quite small compared to most video
files.

As for leaving the videos "as is" and linking seamlessly, you can try
TAJ's tutorial, but with the size of your videos, I don't know how
seamless this will turn out to be. It usually works well, but...
http://www.powerpointbackgrounds.com/powerpointtutorials.htm You want
the "linking" tutorial.

--
Echo [MS PPT MVP]
http://www.echosvoice.com

Echo,

Thank you for your thoughts.

Most of the file size is from the videos... I have 21 of
them. The ppt file itself is 127 meg.

I will look into breaking the presentation up. My
concern is that I want my transitions to be seamless, and
my assumption is that when linking to another PPt
presentation it will look like I'm loading a new file
(big interruption!) Is there a way to break up the
presentation where I won't have a big pause as the new
file is being loaded?

Can you tell me where I get Sorenson Squeeze? Does it
translate video files to Flash? And can I insert a Flash
presentation into PPt without launching some sort of a
player or browser? My video files are mostly integrated
design-wise into the background and viewing them in a
player would totally kill the experience.

Hope you will respond. Thank you.

Earl

-----Original Message-----
In addition to the advice given by the others, one thing sticks in my mind
here -- 550MB is a *huge* file to play from a CD. If I were a PPT/MCI/CD
player, I'd probably stutter, too! <g>

Is the presentation itself 550MB, or is the video 550MB? Is there any way
you can break this up a bit so PPT's not trying to load that whole thing at
the same time it's playing it?

What about using something like Sorensen Squeeze to create Flash files of
those MPEGs? I can't guarantee that would help, but it seems it would
certainly be worth a shot.

--
Echo [MS PPT MVP]

I apprciate your reply...


Yes, I realize that CD is slower than HDD but I am trying
to distrubute this promotional presentation on CD and do
not expect that anyone will want to copy the 550 meg
presentation to their hard drive. So I have to make it
work the best posslble from the CD.

You say that

snip_____
When powerpoint displays a slideshow is shows it at your
current desktop
resolution (unless you tell it otherwise....what version
of powerpoint are
you using. Are you using the viewer instead...if so are
you using the trusty
old viewer or the new viewer?).
__________

However, this is not the case. Regardless of computer,
regardless of desktop resolution, the presentation always
displays at the same size-- never larger or smaller. How
would I have told PP to display differently than as you
described? Are there settings that tell it to always
display at a certain size regardless of desktop
resolution?

I'm using PP 97 and the old viewer.

I appreciate your suggestions for optimizing my system,
but my concern is how others will see the presentation
when I send them a CD. I have no control over their
systems and cannot expect that they will want to tweak
their systems to optimize the playback.

Again, it is clear that my video files are being managed
by PP in some way at the detriment of the playback
quality. I would be plenty satisfied if they played back
as well inside PP as they do outside in Windows Media
Player-- and that's with all things being equal,
including compression, video card, CD player parameteres,
etc. All such settings and configurations are acceptable
when viewed outside of PP. It's just inside PP that I am
having troubles.

I notice that you are a PowerPoint mvp. I have had
several other mvp's try to help as well, but no one seems
to have a solution. On the other hand, no one has
said, "Yeah, that's just the way it works," or suggested
that what I'm experiencing is normal. I'm led to believe
that none of you experience a difference in playback
between the Windows Media Player and the old mci player
inside of PP. If this is true, then I'm doing something
wrong with PowerPoint. But none of the suggestions are
addressing my problem. I'm just so frustrated as all of
the suggested solutions focus on codecs and system
configurations-- not PowerPoint. Maybe I'm wrong, and if
so, I hope someone can point out the flaw in my logic...
how can the external issues apply (codecs, video card, cd
configuration, system and OS settings, etc.) when my
problems are consistent regardless of the computer it is
viewed on and my existing system configurations produce a
very acceptable playback in the Windows Media Player--
outside of PP.

Is there a Microsoft tech support department that I can
speak with who might be able to provide some guidence on
this issue from a very technical perspective?

Or are there other mvp's who may have other strengths and
perspectives that you can pass this on to?

Thank you for your help. I'm getting quite dismayed as
I've invested untold hours creating this presentation and
now am afraid I can't send it out.



-----Original Message-----
Earl,

A few things spring to mind reading your post.

Reading data from a CD is always going to be slower that
reading from a hard
drive.

When powerpoint displays a slideshow is shows it at your
current desktop
resolution (unless you tell it otherwise....what version
of powerpoint are
you using. Are you using the viewer instead...if so are
you using the trusty
old viewer or the new viewer?). This is one of the great
things about
powerpoint.

When powerpoint is showing a slideshow it does try to
buffer as much as it
can to aid smooth playback. But as you've noticed...it
can also cause
problems as powerpoint is trying to do too many things
at once. i.e. play a
movie at the same time as getting the next slides ready.
With this in mind
you can design around this. e.g. make the next slide (or
event) after your
video...really really simple.

Give powerpoint less to do.....Make sure everything is
optimized
- pixel count correct for screen display? (no overkill)
- sound at an acceptable quality without being overkill
(e.g. mono instead
of stereo)
- video optimized (quality vs speed)
- Turn off virus checkers and other background things
during playback.

Something I've never proved.....on writing CD- R....long
ago there used to be
an option called

CD-ROM-XA mode 2 format (or something similar).....in
the help files of the
cd-writing software it said that the XA format was
better for multimedia
stuff.. I can't find the info at the moment. My original
thinking was that
the mode2 would be better when it came to reading back
the info.

A quick link http://club.cdfreaks.com/showthread/t-
60611.html

On a windows system there is a setting for reading ahead
from CD-ROM drives.
See control panel>system>Performance>file system>cd- rom.

There is a setting for cache size.....and optimize
pattern. Try tweaking
them!

Cheers
TAJ Simmons
microsoft powerpoint mvp

awesome - powerpoint backgrounds,
free sample templates, tutorials, hints and tips etc
http://www.powerpointbackgrounds.com









For a while I was getting response with my problems,
but
the thread seems to have stopped. Hope someone can pick
up on this again... plus I have some new and hopefully
revealing observations.

The basic problem (see referenced thread in subject
line
for more details) is that video playback inside PP via
the old mci media player (Insert | movies and sounds |
from file) is very poor from CD compared to the same
file
viewed on the same CD in the new Windows Media Player,
which plays the video just fine (both outside PP and
inside as an object). I have tested this on 3
different
computers, have used a variety of CD brands and
qualities, have used different codecs all set with
undemanding parameters-- 15 fps, 400 X 300 screen size,
and 200 data rate. In all cases the results are
basically
the same... poor, choppy, jerky, bad lip sync playback
inside PP presentation, while looking fine in the
Windows
Media Player.

Here is the first of my new observations: I've noticed
that no matter what screen resolution I set any of my
computers to, the PP presentation (and the video files
within the presentation) display at exactly the same
size. Normally, a larger screen resolution makes
objects
appear smaller, right? Not so. Conversely, the same
videos do change size as I change the resolution on my
computers and view them in the Windows Media Player.
This leads me to believe that PP is modifying,or
controlling the display separate from the natural
display
size. Generally speaking, this modification is to make
the video images larger than they display in the
Windows
Media Player (with the same screen resolution).

I know that typically when I play a video in WMP or in
the QuickTime or RealMedia player and it stutters or
jerks, I can drag the screen smaller and it improves
the
performance. I assume that if PP is "dragging" the
screen
larger than it would be degrading performance.

Could this be the source of my problems? If so, how
to I
prevent this from happening?


My other observation: It appears that PP loads as much
of the presentation as it can into memory. I've
discovered this by popping out the CD while using the
presentation and seeing that the presentation keeps
going
for some time. If I'm in the middle of a video
playback
and I pop out the CD, the video continues as well.
Given
that, is it possible that my problems are related to
how
PP handles memory?

Please help.

Thank you




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