Media Going Offline?

I feel like somebody has already brought this up, but i can't seem to find anything about it. I have been working on a project for about three days and every time I begin work in the morning at least two or three clips have mysteriously gone offline. I can't figure out why or where they go, but it's getting to the point where it's pretty frustrating. Any ideas?

Clips going offline is either moved to a new location or a name is changed. Are you saying that clips in the Capture Scratch folder are disappearing?

Yeah, the files are disappearing from the capture scratch. This is so frustrating...i sat down this morining and six files are offline now...

What version of FCP is this? What version of the OS? QT? What computer? There was a bug in an earlier version with one of the OSs that did this.

Sorry, I should have said this earlier:

Mac OSX 10.4.9
FCP 5. 1.4
QT 7.1.5
MacBook Pro
1.5G RAM
External HD - Western Digital "My Book" 320G (160 available)

I haven't heard of this recurring in v5 or later. It may be a drive problem. I'd run Disk Warrior to start and then replace it before I do anything else.

You mean replace the external drive?

I'm also getting bad vibes from FCP...I'm trying to recapture the handful of offline clips and when I do a batch capture, FCP only gets parts of clips.

For example: the original clip is 1:30 long. It goes offline and I try to recapture it, but FCP only captures 1:00 of it. It seems like my in/out points have been changed.

Edit: I figured out one of my earlier problems, but everything above is still happening...

Any ideas?

dear friend,

i am also having the same problem. every morning i open the FCP project, a clip goes offline.
we reloaded the FCP (5.1.4), changed the capture scratch from the the external Lacie to the Main Hard Disk of the iMac, verified the hard disks in the disk utility application, nothing is working.

have you solved your problem ? if so what did you do ?

I've had it happen twice in the past 2 weeks or so. Two clips disappeared off my Sonnet 500P SATA enclosure. One was a 15 minute inteview chunk, and the other was a 2 minute or so hunk o'B-Roll. The disappeances were about two days apart, maybe 4.

It never happened before that I can recall, and I haven't updated anything in several months because I never seem to be "between projects". I'm running FCP 5.1.2 and OS 10.4.8. QuickTime hasn't been updated since the OS update, so it's whatever was current when 10.4.8 was released.

I recaptured and contiuned working with no issues after the second one, and it has not happened again in the past three or four days.

If it happens again, I'll run Disk Warrior and post again.

deb

Sure would love to nail this one. Dont see the common denominator yet.

Michael Horton
-------------------

I'm thinking along the same lines as Deb. Magically disappearing files suggest a bad disk directory to me. I'd run Disk Utilities and DiskWarrior. And backup everything on that drive.


www.derekmok.com

i have had the same problem. Mac OSX 10, FCP 5. All information is on the Scratch disk. It is mostly clips that I have imported from Motion or LiveType. I haven't moved or renamed the the footage and it has gone offline when I open FCP the next day. What is weird is that it doesn't seem to effect the footage really. I can edit and export an random offline footage without an issue.

There is an applecare doc for this problem of Motion files going offline in FCP projects

[docs.info.apple.com]

Michael Horton
-------------------

I had this problem years ago - I think it was on FCP4, could have been earlier - and the culprit seemed to be files that were opened in Livetype while FCP was open. If FCP was closed before the clip was opened in Livetype, no problem.

The files were not being moved - they were completely gone.

Are you sending files to Livetype or Motion?

Jude,
No, I am sending from Motion to FCP5 or from LiveType to FCP5. So far I have no issue going the other way.

Mike,
Thanks for the applecare doc. I will try it this afternoon.

But is it always files that have seen time in Motion or Livetype? What about files that haven't left FCP?

Yes, you right Jude, they have been in Motion of Livetype. It doesn't seem to affect file that haven't left FCP.

What I have noticed, especially in livetype is that I will have both Livetype and FCP open. After I import the file from LiveType to FCP I can toggle back and forth from the two applications no problem. However, If I close Livetype then reopen it I have reconnect the media. Motion is a little more of a pain. Sometime I don't even have to close motion for it to go offline.

I know you weren't asking me, Jude, but for those keeping score, both my disappearing clips were captured video files from tape.

deb

Aww bang goes that theory then. Cheers Deb.

Well, if it's going to happen to me again, it'll be in the next few days.

My deadline for picture lock is Sunday. I get the audio mix back on Tuesday and I have to deliver masters and DVDs by Wednesday morning...

If anything is going to crash and burn on me, it'll be...oh....about...NOW.

Still....sure beats workin' for a livin'!

;P

deb