Why Isn’t My Computer Using My External Microphone!?

Whether you are using an external microphone for communicating through programs like Skype, G-Chat, or a video game, or you are wanting to record some audio into a program like Audacity or GarageBand, you probably want your external microphone and computer to get along. If they don’t, here are some basic troubleshooting techniques that might keep you sane.

1)    Make sure your computer has recognized your microphone

Mac                                                                

a)     Click on “system preference” located in the apple menu at the top-left corner of your screen

b)    Click on “sound” in the “hardware” menu

c)     Make sure that your external microphone appears in the “Input” list

d)    Make sure that your external microphone is selected in that list.

***If you do not see your external microphone, try unplugging and re-connecting all of the wires associated with your microphone****

            PC

a) Open the start menu, Select Devices and Printers

b) If you do not see your microphone in the Devices Menu or in the Unspecified Menu, try unplugging your external microphone from the computer, making sure that wire is plugged firmly into the external microphone and re-plugging it

2)    Make sure that the program you are using is accommodating your external microphone

This is done by going to the preferences for your specific program (this varies from program to program) and making sure that your external microphone is selected as the audio output option.

For example, in Skype: Open the Audio Settings of Skype by going to the Skype preferences menu under tools > options > audio settings

Most external microphones can be plugged directly into your USB port or headphone. Some require interface boxes (this is more common among higher-end studio recording microphones. If this were the case, your microphone would not plug anywhere into your computer. You would probably know if this were the case).

These steps work most of the time. If they do not, you can also try re-booting your computer or reflecting on whether your external microphone is functional and whether your computer is capable of recognizing external microphones.

As always, don't hesitate to come into the MEWS consultant help hours if you are still having difficulties and we can aid you in person!

Adobe Premiere Pro CS6 Video Transitions!

Are you cringing because the switch between two of your clips are just so rocky?  Never fear, transitions are here!!!

Here's how you use them:

1. Go into "Effects" in the project pane (bottom left hand box) and open "Video Transitions" folder.

2. Open the folder with the name of desired transition type.

3. Drag desired transition and fit it in the line between the clips requiring a transition
                                                          -OR-
    Select all the clips you want to have this transition between by using shift or clicking/dragging with  
    the mouse and going to "sequence" in the bar at the top of the page.  Select "Apply Default
    Transitions to Selection".

NOTE: The transition with the yellow bordered square to the left of the title is the default transition.  You can set the default transition by right clicking the desired transition and selecting "Set Selected as Default Transition".

4. To adjust the duration/speed of the transition use the gray squares on either side of the gray bar at the bottom of the timeline and drag left or right to visually enlarge the project material.  Use the long gray bar to scroll until you find the transition.  Click the transition and drag right to extend it/slow it down and drag left to shorten it/speed it up.

5. You can also control how much of each clip is seen at the start and end of a transition by clicking the transition and dragging the little pentagons on the bars under Square A and B that appear in the source monitor.

6. You can control whether the transition is primarily in the first or second clip by double clicking the transition and hitting +1 or +5 to move it more toward the second clip and -1 or -5 to move it more toward the first one.  Use the middle button with the black and white rectangle to set it back to its default position.

Hope this helps!  Remember, if you need help, our consultants will be happy to help you!

Adobe Premiere CS6: Features to Get Excited About!

Daunted at the thought of learning a new video editing software? Never fear! 

Premiere CS6 looks just like Final Cut Pro. In fact, the core editing commands are almost completely the same! 

Here is a complete list of the Premiere key commands.

And here is a list of just a few cool features that are new in Premiere:

• You can bring projects from Final Cut or iMovie into Premiere, including transitions and layers!
• Premiere supports every footage format, and enables you to mix and match different types on your timeline!
• It even lets you export in any format!
• There is no limit to the amount of effects you can put on a clip! (in FCP there was - it's called auto-nesting) 
• J-K-L TRIMMING !!!
• Your footage bins are much more organized with thumbnails of each file. You can drag your mouse over these thumbnails to scrub through each clip! 
• You can even mark In & Out points on your thumbnails, allowing you to make rough cuts faster!
• The audio mixing feature allows you to have a great amount of control over your sound, in ways that FCP or iMovie never did. It shows you the peaks and valleys of your audio clips, and lets you isolate and edit different clips at once. 
• Premiere's appearance is completely customizable! (from Preferences, you can change the color of any part of the interface.)

Mounting Network Drives - Mac OSX

·  Be sure that "Finder" is appearing on the top left of your screen
(Click anywhere on the desktop background.) 

·  Click the Go menu at the top of your screen and choose connect to server

·  Type into the Server Address field one of the following addresses,
substituting your MHC username where stated:

Personal Web Site/Space	smb://www/yourusername
Departmental Web Space	smb://www/web
Course Website Space	smb://www/web/courses/yourusername
All Course Website Spaces	smb://www/web/courses
Departmental File Storage	smb://ambr/depts
Personal File Storage	smb://mhc/yourusername
Mac Software for Distribution	macdist

·  You may click the plus sign at the right of the address field to add them to the favorites list on your own computer

·  Click the connect button, or double-click the server within your favorites list to connect

·  Provide your MHC username and password in the next window

·  Shortly afterwards an icon will appear on your desktop and a window should appear showing the files that live on that server

Please contact helpdesk@mtholyoke.edu or call X-2600 if you experience and problems or have questions.

Adapted from Mount Holyoke College Help Desk instructions:
https://www.mtholyoke.edu/lits/tech/mount_network_drive_macosx

Uploading Videos to Youtube

How to Upload your Movie to Youtube

Through iMovie

1. Find "share" on the tool bar at the top of the screen and select "YouTube"

2.  Click "add" by the account bar and write your Mount Holyoke email address and password in the designated spaces.  If you do not wish to use your Mount Holyoke account, you may create a new account on YouTube.

     3.  Select the category of the video (education, entertainment, etc.)

     4.  Add a title, description, and tags in the designated spaces.  Tags are keywords that may be used    to find your video and should each be separated by a comma.

     5.  Select the size you wish to publish your video in.  The dots indicate which devices the video will be compatible with at the selected size.  Note that smaller sizes take less time to export, but result in reduced quality.  

     6.  After clicking "next", you will be asked to verify that you aren't using copyrighted material.         

     7.  Select "publish"

     8.  Once your video is finished uploading, you will be provided with a link to view the video with.  

Through Youtube

1. Click the upload button located at the right of the search bar on the youtube homepage.

 2.    Use the indicated rectangle in the middle of the screen to upload your video by dragging your exported movie file into it or by clicking it and selecting your file from the computer.

     3.    As your video uploads, add a title, description, and tags  in the indicated spaces and select a   video thumbnail.

• Tags are keywords people can use to find your video 
• Video thumbnails represent how your video will appear when people search for your project

4.   You may also adjust privacy settings and select how the video will be categorized (education, entertainment, etc.) using the bars located at the right.  

5.   Click on "advanced settings" to adjust commentary and distribution settings.  

The process of uploading and encoding a video on YouTube takes time. Be sure to plan for this. 

Once YouTube verifies that your video has been uploaded:

6.   Test your video using the link provided at the top of the page.