Autodesk

Cleaner XL 1.5.2

April 2007

Thank you for choosing Autodesk Cleaner™ 1.5.2 for PC users, the worldwide standard for professional video encoding. Cleaner 1.5.2 contains many fixes that are documented in this Read Me.

This Read Me includes important information including system requirements, fixes, known bugs, workflow tips, and support information, so please spends a few minutes reading it before using Cleaner 1.5.2. As well, be sure to read the Autodesk Cleaner XL 1.5 User's Guide.

 

·         Fixed Bugs

·         System Requirements

·         Installation information

·         Application Changes

·         Workflow Tips

·         Supported File Formats

·         Release Information

·         Support

 

Revision History

April, 2007 – Cleaner XL 1.5.2

n  Fixes and minor improvements to a number of codecs

August, 2006 – Cleaner XL 1.5.1

n  Updated for Backburner 2007

n  Soft import of audio at 24 bits is now supported

n  Changes to Backburner / Cleaner job versions

September, 2005 – Cleaner XL 1.5

n New file format/codec support, including:

n DPX, Cineon™, SGI®, and OpenEXR import

n On2 Flix® Flash® export (FLV and SWF – note that only Flash 7 output is supported with the Flix Exporter)

n DivX® export

n Updated Kinoma® 3 Exporter including support for expanded set of handheld formats

n Command Line Tool (including command line scripting for Cleaner XL and Backburner, as well as LUT support)

n Integration with Backburner 3.0

n Support for Wiretap™ functionality (for reading media from Stone® filesystems; for more information see the Autodesk® Inferno®, Autodesk® Flame®, Autodesk® Flint®, Autodesk® Fire®, Autodesk® Smoke®, Autodesk® Backdraft® Conform, or Autodesk® Combustion® software product documentation)

 

 

 

 

Fixed Bugs

n  You can now rename PSP movies with the Kinoma exporter.

n  You can now encode a video-only clip with a Kinoma Sony PSP profile.

n  You can now import an image sequence with audio.

n  H.264 multi-pass options are now available.

n  The limit data rate field now works properly with the H.264 codec.

n  You can now encode audio-only QuickTime files.

n  You can now send a Cleaner job to an ftp site from Smoke or Flame.

n  You can now encode an image file within a DV AVI sequence exported from Adobe Premiere.

n  The Temporal and Spatial Quality Slider is now available with all codecs.

n  The H.264 Quality sliders now work even if Limit Data Rate is enabled.

n  The correct version of Backburner 2007 is included with Cleaner XL.

 

 

Minimum System Requirements

n Pentium® 3 or 4, 800 Mhz or higher

n Microsoft® Windows® XP (Professional, Home Edition) or Windows 2000 with SP4

n Internet Explorer 6.0

n QuickTime 6.5

n Windows Media® 9/10 (included)

n DirectX® 8.1 or greater (included)

n 256 MB RAM

n 200 MB available hard disk space

n 1024 x 768 16-bit display

n Version 1.0 and 1.1 of .NET framework (installer included); newer versions can exist on the same machine

Note: In general, system performance parameters such as processor type, quantity, cache size, disk drive type and size, and graphics card type and settings will affect overall system performance when using Cleaner XL. Faster multiple CPUs will increase encoding performance. Adequate RAM, disk performance and storage capacity should be considered for media type, size and workflow demands. In general, hardware that is faster with higher capacity is usually better.

 

 

Installing Cleaner XL 1.5.2 and Autodesk Backburner 2007

Make sure that you have installed all the necessary media players/codecs for Cleaner XL. Installing Real® software is optional. For a complete list of supported formats, see “Supported File Formats” below.

Note: QuickTime should be installed at least at the Recommended level or image sequence read and write may not function properly.

Cleaner XL 1.5.2 installation includes the installation of Backburner 2007.

Note: You do not have to manually install Windows Media 9 or .NET (which Cleaner XL requires): they are installed automatically.

To install Cleaner XL 1.5.2 and Backburner 2007:

1.  Download the Cleaner XL 1.5.2 updater from the Autodesk website.

2.  Click Run.

The install Cleaner XL screen is displayed.

You are guided through the installation of Cleaner XL 1.5.2, Backburner 2007, and if necessary Windows Media 9 and .NET 1.1.

Important: If the installer determines that you do not have .NET installed, you will be prompted whether or not you want to install it. You must choose to install .NET as it is required to run Cleaner XL.

Note the following about the installation:

·      Cleaner XL 1.5.2 is installed by default to the Program Files\Autodesk folder.

·      Backburner 2007 is installed to the Program Files\Autodesk folder. If you have a previous version of Backburner 3 installed, it is upgraded. Versions of Backburner prior to version 3.0 are not uninstalled. They remain available from Program Files\discreet.

3.  Activate Cleaner XL by choosing Start | All Programs | Autodesk | Cleaner XL 1.5. In the activation dialog, enter the serial number and activation key available from the Cleaner XL box. For more information about activation, see your Read This First Card available from the Cleaner XL box, and see the “Before Installing Cleaner XL” in the Introduction chapter of the Cleaner XL User’s Guide.

 

 

Application Changes

The following application changes are current as of Cleaner XL 1.5.2, but not yet included in the Cleaner XL 1.5 User’s Guide:

Encoder Setting Editor - New Resize Source Option

You can now control whether Cleaner XL resizes the source clip by selecting the Resize Source box in the Encoder Setting Editor. This box appears for all video encoding formats that rely on an external encoder.

If you choose to not resize a clip, the Dimensions width and height box are disabled, and the source clip is passed to the encoder with its original dimensions.

We recommend that you avoid setting different dimensions in Cleaner XL than in the external encoder as your image would be scaled twice resulting in a loss of quality.

The following are some tips on whether or not you want to resize the source clip with the dimension settings:

·      Leave Resize Source de-selected if you want to send the source clip with its original dimensions to the external encoder. You can then use the external encoder's own settings to resize the source to the desired output resolution.

·      For Kinoma Media, de-select Resize Source if you wish to preserve the source proportions. The resulting clip will be scaled to fit the size specified in the encoder box.

·      If you want to resize your source clip, select the Resize Source and enter width and height dimensions. This will resize the source clip before it is passed to the encoder. You can then select the "Current" (MPEG-4 or 3G) or "Same as Source" (Flix FLV or SWF) setting in the encoder so that Cleaner XL's dimension settings are used.

Improved Deinterlacing Algorithm

There has been an improved deinterlacing algorithm introduced with Cleaner XL 1.5.

The older algorithm occasionally introduced noise into high-contrast areas of the image, and this has been eliminated. The effectiveness of adaptive deinterlacing is content-dependent. It is worthwhile therefore to thoroughly test your content.

Submitting a Cleaner XL Job to Backburner from the Command Line

The Cleaner XL Backburner job submitter has been renamed CleanerXLJob.exe. The usage stays the same:

CleanerXLJob [options] [Cleaner XL options]

For instance, the script in "Example of Submitting a Cleaner XL Job to Backburner from the Command Line" of the "Command Line Tools" chapter of the user's guide, should now read:

"CleanerXLJob" -job VideoCut01 -manager CleanerEncodingMachine -inputProfile "\\CleanerEncodingMachine\Profiles\Non-Square NTSC 16x9 Progressive.ipt" -outputProfile "\\CleanerEncodingMachine\Profiles\Divx Home Theatre.opt" -sourceFile "\\CleanerEncodingMachine\IncomingMedia\Valentina Gonzalez Video.avi"

DivX Codec Version

When accessing the DivX Codec Properties dialog box, you will be prompted that a new version of DivX is available. A DivX Pro license for version 5.2.1 is included with Cleaner XL 1.5 and is currently the only version supported. This is the version of DivX installed with Cleaner XL.

You can turn off this prompt by clearing the Always check for new versions check box. If you choose, you can update the DivX version by following the on-screen instructions. However, new DivX components are installed separately and Cleaner XL will continue to encode to DivX using version 5.2.1 of the codec.

 

Workflow Tips

All Autodesk products that can use Cleaner XL for network rendering are compatible with Cleaner XL version 1.5.2.

You can install Cleaner XL 1.5.2 on computers where Cleaner XL 1.1 is installed to take advantage of the new formats/codecs available with this version.

Important: You can run both versions of Cleaner XL from the same computer. This can be useful, for example, if you are relying on scripts written for Cleaner XL 1.1. See “Running multiple versions of Cleaner XL on the same computer” below. However, if you do not have a specific need to continue using Cleaner XL 1.1, it is recommended that you uninstall the older version before installing Cleaner XL 1.5.2 to ensure that the updated version of Cleaner XL is used to encode jobs.

 

Note: Uninstalling Cleaner XL 1.1 does not remove default or custom output profiles from their respective folders. You may still use your profiles but you need to copy them over from the discreet folder to the Autodesk one. See below for folder structure changes.

Note the following about the upgrade from Cleaner XL 1.1 to Cleaner XL 1.5.2:

·      Autodesk Cleaner XL now resides on the Windows workstation in the following folder:

Program Files\Autodesk\Cleaner XL 1.5.2

·      Default output profiles now reside in the following folder on the Windows workstation where Cleaner XL is installed:

Program Files\Autodesk\Cleaner XL 1.5.2\OutputProfile

Autodesk Editing and Effects users should transfer over new default output profiles available for newly supported file formats/codecs (such as Flix Flash and DivX) to the /usr/discreet/CleanerProfile/OutputProfile directory on their IRIX® or Linux® workstation.

Custom output profiles that you create now reside in the following folder on the Windows workstation where Cleaner XL is installed:

Documents and Settings\<user name>\Application Data\Autodesk\Cleaner XL\OutputProfile

The following are the Autodesk products that can use Cleaner XL 1.5.2 for network rendering: Autodesk Inferno 2007, Autodesk Flame 2007, Autodesk Flint 2007, Autodesk Fire 2007, Autodesk Smoke 2007, Autodesk Backdraft Conform 2007, or Autodesk Combustion 4.

Backburner / Cleaner Job Versions

The Backburner / Cleaner job versions have been changed to identify whether the job was sent from one of the “current” versions of Autodesk Effects and Editing products (Autodesk Inferno 2007, Autodesk Flame 2007, Autodesk Flint 2007, Autodesk Fire 2007, Autodesk Smoke 2007, Autodesk Backdraft Conform 2007, or Autodesk Combustion 4) or from “previous” and earlier versions of Autodesk Effects and Editing products (Discreet® Inferno® 6.5, Discreet® Flame® 9.5, Discreet® Flint® 9.5, Discreet® Fire® 7.0, Discreet® Smoke® 7.0, Autodesk Backdraft Conform 7.0, or Autodesk Combustion 4).

A job from a “previous” version is a "cleaner transcoder plug-in" type, version 3.0.0. A job from a “current” version is a "Cleaner XL Transcoder Plug-in" type, version 3.1.0.

This version information is visible in Backburner Monitor. It is also visible at startup when the plug-ins are loaded in the server and manager.

As a result, Cleaner XL 1.1 can only receive jobs from “previous” versions of Autodesk Effects and Editing products, whereas Cleaner XL 1.5 can receive jobs from all (“current” and “previous”) versions of Autodesk Effects and Editing products.

Running multiple versions of Cleaner XL on the same computer

You can install Cleaner XL 1.5.2 without uninstalling Cleaner XL 1.1.

Backburner verifies which Cleaner XL version to relay jobs to on the Windows workstation by checking a value in the registry. You have to edit this value if you intend to switch between Cleaner XL 1.1 and Cleaner XL 1.5.2 to encode jobs.

To choose a Cleaner XL version for encoding:

1.  From the Windows desktop, choose Start | Run.

2.  In the Run dialog box, type regedit in the Open drop-down field, and then click OK.

3.  In the Registry, navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\discreet\backburner.

If there are multiple versions of Backburner installed, the versions will be listed in folders, for example 2.0, 3.0.

4.  Click the folder for the earliest version, for example 2.0.

Note: You are editing values for the earliest version of Backburner in the Registry since Backburner reads these values from the earliest version onwards, ignoring subsequent values. So this ensures that the first value for Cleaner XL that it finds is what it uses. If you installed Cleaner XL 1.1 on a clean machine, you will only have a folder for Backburner 2007, so enter this folder by clicking it.

5.  Do one of the following:

·      If there is already a value called “cleaner XL,” then right-click its name, then select Modify in the context menu.

·      If there is not already a value called “cleaner XL”, then right-click in the value pane then in the context menu that appears, select New | String Value. You can then name the new string value “cleaner XL”, then right-click it and select Modify in the context menu.

6.  In the Value data field, type or edit the value so it reads like one of the following, depending on which version of Cleaner XL you want to use:

·      C:\Program Files\Autodesk\Cleaner XL 1.5.2

·      C:\Program Files\discreet\cleaner XL

7.  Click OK.

Backburner will relay jobs to the Cleaner XL version on the path you specified for the value “cleaner XL”. Remember that if you add this value to the 2007 folder, and there is a path value for “cleaner XL” in an earlier version’s folder, then the earlier version’s value is used.

To verify which Cleaner XL version that Backburner will use to encode jobs:

You can verify which version of Cleaner XL Backburner from the Backburner Monitor.

1.  In the Backburner Monitor, choose Help | About Queue Monitor.

2.  Scroll down to “Cleaner Plugin Path” and check its value.

 

 

 

Supported File Formats

The following is an updated list of files supported by Cleaner XL 1.5.2:

Video Read

Video Write

DV

DV

QuickTime

QuickTime

Video for Windows

Video for Windows

Windows Media

Windows Media

MPEG-1

MPEG-1

MPEG-2

MPEG-2

MPEG-4

MPEG-4

 

Flash Video (FLV) – version 7

 

ShockWave (SWF) – version 7

 

RealSystem

 

Audio Read

Audio Write

AIFF

AIFF

AU

AU

DV

DV

MP3

MP3

QuickTime

QuickTime

WAV

WAV

M4A (Unprotected)

RealSystem

 

Windows Media

 

AAC

 

Handheld Write

Kinoma (Kinoma movie: PDB, MPEG-4 simple profile, MOV with MPEG4 codec)

3GP

 

Still Image/Sequence Read

Still Image/Sequence Write

BMP

BMP

GIF

JPEG/JFIF

JPEG/JFIF

MacPaint

Photoshop®

Photoshop

PICTs

PICTs

PNG

PNG

Silicon Graphics Image File

Silicon Graphics Image File

Targa® Image File (TGA)

Targa Image File (TGA)

TIFF

TIFF

QuickTime Image File (QTIF)

QuickTime Image File (QTIF)

DPX

 

CIN

 

OpenEXR

 

 

 

Release Information

Localized Versions

n When using Japanese full-width input methods, you cannot enter numbers in QuickTime exporters or enter text in the Register Today fields. Half-width methods perform properly.

n It is suggested that you refrain from using characters other than basic ASCII in an FTP path. For example, avoid characters containing an accent or umlaut. If you must use them, consult with your network administrator or provider.

n Creation date metadata in QuickTime files will cause an error when encoding on localized systems. Delete creation date metadata.

n The large system fonts option is not supported in Cleaner XL.

n When Cleaner XL is launched for the first time or re-installed, the registration screen appears. Enter your serial number and activation key and press the Register Today button. For more about registration, see your Read This First card.

All Versions

n When encoding DivX files, using the MPEG Layer 3 audio format causes an error. Workaround: Use another audio format.

n When encoding 3G files with the 3GPP2 file format, using the QCELP audio format causes an error. Workaround: Use the AAC audio format.

n When encoding streaming QuickTime files at low bit rates (around 256k), there may be some loss of audio frames at the end of the output clip.

n  Do not use the # sign in Real Media path names.

n  Do not attempt to play more than one MPEG file at the same time.

n If you are having problems with HD uncompressed AVI source, set your NLE to interleave audio and video as frequently as possible and export again.

n When using an output containing AAC audio, dragging the parametric equalizer frequency band marker up or down can give an error in the monitor. To avoid errors, uncheck the auto update box in the monitor until the filter is adjusted, then turn back on for a preview.

n When encoding to QuickTime or Multiplexed MPEG-2, a multi-file source with a video file of shorter duration than the audio file will truncate the output audio to the video length.

n If QuickTime playback or preview is slow or unresponsive; change the QuickTime control panel Video settings to the Safe Mode.

n Encoding using the QuickTime Picture format does not work.

n The QuickTime MPEG-4 video codec no longer has options available when using QuickTime 6.1, 6.3, or 6.5.

n When encoding a task that uses QuickTime source or QuickTime Movie output, opening a modal dialog (i.e. an open file dialog or save file dialog) will cause the queue to temporarily stop processing until the dialog is dismissed. Opening menus will also pause processing.

n You may not be able to share jobs between machines with different installations of QuickTime Exporter.

n Opening multiple RealPlayer® applications is not recommended.

n When using the Real variable bit rate mode, you must set the peak bit rate to a higher value than the bit rate.

n It is possible to make paths that contain more than 256 characters by nesting folders. Windows will not allow paths greater than 256 characters and you can experience error, freeze, or spontaneous exits if this limit is exceeded.

n MPEG playback from the checkered flag can be affected if you have MPEG-1 or 2 decoder software or hardware installed on your Cleaner XL machine.

n You cannot encode AVI or WAV files when using the freeware LAME MP3 audio codec.

n If you experience problems encoding long (more than one hour) movies, increase your physical RAM and/or set your computer’s Virtual Memory allocation higher by choosing System Properties > Advanced > Performance Settings > Advanced > Virtual Memory Change > System managed size (WinXP) or set the custom size higher (Win2000).

n Do not use the QDesignMusic Mono option.

n When playing back a file to the end in the Monitor window, occasionally the still preview does not update. This happens more frequently with WMV files. Because of this behavior, using the functions in the A/B Flip and Split Screen tab may be inconsistent. Workaround: Drag the playhead in the source timeline to update the still preview.

n Cleaner XL will not encode if the Output Profile contains a destination with a UNC path at 3 levels or below the root directory (for instance \\CleanerEncodingSource\CleanerXL\SourceJobs).

n When outputting using non-QuickTime based encoders, there is no way to specify to keep the source dimensions. Cleaner XL always will resize the clip to the dimensions you enter. This can cause problems if you want to encode a series of sources with different resolutions or aspect ratios, using the same encoder settings, but that retain some source parameters such as resolution. Workaround: Create separate jobs for each clip.

n The deinterlacing method you choose is applied job-wide. Workaround: Create a separate job for each source that requires a different deinterlacing method, and a separate job for each output profile that requires a different deinterlacing method.

n The progress bar in the Job Queue does not always accurately reflect processing time left. It reflects the number of tasks remaining, regardless if some tasks will take much longer than others.

n Fades applied from the Filter settings can appear anywhere in the clip when monitoring it in the Preview pane. However, fades are correctly applied to the in and out points of the output clip.

n The Source Pane does not display the image, or return an error message, when monitoring image sequences composed of Cineon files, or sources originating on Autodesk Editing or Effects applications.

n The Source Crop Editor does not preserve independent crop aspect ratio settings when switching between jobs. The same crop aspect ratio (4:3 or 16:9) is used for all open jobs.

n Crop size, offset, and aspect ratio are displayed as a tool tip as you are drawing the crop in the source monitor.

n Do not choose Abort in the Job Queue window while the Output Preview is being generated.

n With the Windows XP display theme, Cleaner XL’s windows may freeze so that you are unable to move them or resize them. Workaround: Do one of the following to regain control of the frozen window: Click another window, resize the window by dragging its side, or switch the display theme to Windows Classic.

n  If you exit Cleaner XL while a job is processing, when you re-launch, you will see a dialog asking if you want to continue processing. If you choose Yes, the Job Queue is placed in the run state and the job continues processing. If you choose No, the Job Queue is placed in the stop state. You can then press Run to continue processing or press Abort to process the next job in the queue.

Support

For support information, please visit support.autodesk.com.

Overseas Customers: Technical Support is available through your Autodesk Reseller. To find a reseller near you consult the Autodesk reseller look-up database at www.autodesk.com.

Autodesk, Backburner, Backdraft, Cleaner, Combustion, Discreet, Fire, Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke, Stone, and Wiretap are registered trademarks or trademarks of Autodesk, Inc. / Autodesk Canada Co. in the USA and/or other countries. All other brand names, product names, or trademarks belong to their respective holders. © 2007, Autodesk, Inc. All rights reserved.