does anyone...

set a separate scratch disk for each project they create? does this sound like a good idea? reason I ask is, we have two fcp systems in an avid house. as a result me and a couple of other editors are tasked with keeping these systems running without much help, training or outside input. i use one scratch disk on my box set to my first media drive. i import files from an evs onto the other media drive and my mac hd holds my project files but no actual media. the other fcp system is set up quite differently. they set a new scratch disk for each new project they start. their reasoning is that they can then just drag that scratch disk into the trash when that project is over and voila everything is gone, render files, thumbnail images, etc...

the only reason I bring this up is that their system is crashing constantly and can't seem to play HD video properly. they seem to think it's an OS level problem. they tried upgrading to Leopard, everything went really crazy, so they downgraded back to Tiger. they're running FCP 6.0.1 on an 8core MacPro with 8G of ram. i'm using FCP 6.0.3 on a 4core MacPro with 4G of ram. my system has had very few problems but also i rarely edit HD and I haven't done a lot of up/downgrading of my OS.

Thoughts? consider this an open thread...

Well, there are really two questions there. One is about scratch folders; the other is about your system. We don't really do "open threads" here, customarily, so I'll deal with those.

I have a system that works for me, but somebody else might think it's crazy. Right before I archive a job, I set my scratch folder to a folder inside the job folder, delete my render files and re-render everything. Then I copy the whole job folder off to archive media. That way I can restore it and get right back into it without having to do a long re-render, if it comes to that.

But for day-to-day work, I keep my scratch folder set to a single folder on my framestore.

As for why your system is crashing, that sounds conspicuously like a hardware problem to me. A few years back I ran into a system that just bombed all the time, Final Cut "unexpectedly quitting" so frequently that the "unexpected" part started to seem pretty silly. In that case, it was bad RAM. The engineer replaced all the RAM in the system, and it never crashed again. Well, I mean, until the next time it crashed, but that's just life. Computers crash sometimes.

My system is FCP 6.0.4 on 10.5.4, with Quicktime 7.5.5. Same as theirs, except it's an 8-proc with 16 GB. That's a recent upgrade, though; I ran this system with 8 GB for months without a problem. So it's definitely not an obvious configuration issue.

i set a new scratch volume for EVERY project. and it works great. the only problem is you have to make a strict habit of doing that every time you open a project - because FCP doesnt remember scratch settings relative to each project...

Whoa, you guys are fast! Ok, I just wanted to know if anyone else used multiple scratch disks with any sucess or if this was a no-no right out of the gate. Jeff, in essence, you do what Wayne does but at the end of a project, when you're ready to archive. Is that it? When you say "job folder" I'm assuming you mean the project's folder inside your scratch folder.

Quote

I'm assuming you mean the project's folder inside your scratch folder.

No, I have a job folder for each show I work on, inside a folder on my framestore called unimaginatively "Shows." Everything related to a show goes in there except capture and render files, until the show's done and I'm ready to archive it. Then I move all the capture files, and re-render as described above.

I do this specifically to avoid the pitfall Wayne described, because I'm not disciplined enough to reset the scratch folder every time I open a different project file. I'd like to have the kind of workflow where I work on one show until it's done, but I don't get to live in that world.

the cool thing that FCP DOES do is that inside your scratch folder (if you work as most do with one single large scratch folder) it creates subfolders named relative to your project.

for example lets say you have three FCP projects named ALEX, CARL, and SAM. inside each of the scratch folders, fcp auto creates folders named ALEX, CARL, and SAM. this kinda makes my approach overkill. but i move station to station on a pretty frequent basis and i find it worth the extra effort to simply be able to move one single folder on demand, rather than having to manually copy the named folders from my scratch volume...

I use separate disks if I can, but if I can't, I make separate folders on the scratch disk for each project, and in there are the CAPTURE, RENDER,etc files...and stills and music used in that show. This way, when done, I can easily find what I need to get rid of.


www.shanerosseditor.com

Listen to THE EDIT BAY Podcast on iTunes
[itunes.apple.com]

Quote

does anyone set a separate scratch disk for each project they create?

...no. Same bat time - same bat array.

When life gives you dilemmas...make dilemmanade.

I usually use one scratch location (a dedicated HD) and let FCP make all the folders based on my Project names.

But changing the scratch location should not cause the problems you're talking about. A few years ago I had to change the scratch all the time for multiple programs on different drives, and there was never a problem.

You should check the FAQ! Lots of great stuff in there! The AJA system test lets you check if the drive is up to scratch, especially if you're working with HD.

[www.lafcpug.org]

Where you set the scratch disk isn't a problem if the drive and interface is fast enough. Make sure that you guys are on the same version of QT if you're transferring files between the stations.

Where you set the scratch disk is only an issue when it comes to file management- how easily can you find and locate files.

Otherwise, if the system is constantly crashing, run a check in console and see if you can find a reason for it in there.



www.strypesinpost.com

Our engineer ran some tests on the tower and got a "panic error." Best I can tell he meant a kernel panic. It's in his hands now that he's aware of it. Anyone else had this problem?

Yup...

In my own personal experience, Kernal Panics are hardware related. Example: I had a Digital Voodoo card go bad on me (looooong time ago ) and every time I booted, the multi-lingual wall of death. I pulled the card - no more death.

Try this: pull any PCIe cards / peripherals off and reboot. Add one peripheral...reboot...and so on.

Worked for me...

When life gives you dilemmas...make dilemmanade.

Kernel Panics can be software also. There's an issue with hard crashes when you send a lot of data over a wifi airport link, for instance, that can cause a hard crash. Nasty.

Graeme

[the only reason I bring this up is that their system is crashing constantly and can't seem to play HD video properly.]

I think I read this thread carefully but nowhere do you mention what kind of hard drive you're sending your HD to. Multistream HD is not going to work well on a LaCie FireWire 8-00- drive. Are they using the internal SATA bays? What's the storage system?

Jeff H. wrote -
[Right before I archive a job, I set my scratch folder to a folder inside the job folder]

Everytime I do that, I nest an additional Capture Scratch, Render, Audio Render folder kit inside. Not a good idea. In the Scratch Disks panel, choose only the volume name. This is now noted in the FCP 6.x manual.

I will choose several scratch disks and sometimes set one for renders (they're media too!) and one for captures. Works well, spreads the load.

- Loren
Today's FCP keytip:

Apply your default audio transition instantly
with Command-Option - T !

Final Cut Studio 2 KeyGuide? Power Pack.
Now available at KeyGuide Central.
www.neotrondesign.com