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Chris Vogel25
Chris Vogel25 Calculating status...
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Videos in interactive pdfs

Apr 10, 2012 10:26 AM

I'm having some problems with a video in an interactive pdf.

 

Immediately after placing the mp4 video, I fit the frame to content, as per the instructions in Real World InDesign CS5. But when I play it back,  I see a thin black rule on top and bottom of the video. I've put in several other videos to see if I have the same problem, and they all show the black lines.

 

Even  if I change  the size of the frame in InDesign to cover where black lines were in the pdf, the lines still show up when I play it back. I also see the black lines if use a current frame as the poster. However, the lines don't show up if I play the video within the InDesign preview.

 

Is there any way to get rid of these lines?

 

also, the controller does not disappear when I move my mouse away from the video, even though I was sure it was doing this a couple of days ago when I was trying an earlier version of the pdf.

 

I'm using InDesign 7.0.4, Mac OSX 10.6.8

 

Any suggestions would be welcome. Thanks

 

Chris

1560 Views   15 Replies   Latest reply: Chris Vogel25, Apr 10, 2012 7:07 PM
 
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  • Steve Werner
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    1. Steve Werner,
    Apr 10, 2012 11:16 AM   in reply to Chris Vogel25
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    Are you talking about the video preview in the Media panel? Or in the PDF? If in the PDF, how did you create it and what are you viewing it in?

     
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  • Chris Vogel25
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    2. Chris Vogel25,
    Apr 10, 2012 11:56 AM   in reply to Steve Werner
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    Steve,

     

    If I look at the video through the InDesign Preview panel, I do not see the lines. Sorry if I was unclear about that.

     

    I create the PDF by exporting an interactive PDF through InDesign and I view it in Acrobat Pro, which is where I see the lines (as well as if I make the video poster one of the video's frames).

     

    I forgot to mention in my first message that I do not see these black lines if I look at the videos through QuickTime Player.

     

    Thanks

     

    Chris

     
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  • Bob Levine
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    3. Bob Levine,
    Apr 10, 2012 12:28 PM   in reply to Chris Vogel25
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    Hi Chris,

     

    More questions than answers:

     

    Have yout tried a different video format? What version Acrobat Pro? Can you post that file somewhere for us to look at?

     

    BTW, the preview panel in InDesign is for SWF export. While some other formats are partially supported it's not a good indicator for anything but SWF.

     

    Bob

     
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  • Chris Vogel25
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    4. Chris Vogel25,
    Apr 10, 2012 1:13 PM   in reply to Bob Levine
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    Hello Bob,

     

    I've tried a mov file, which was even worse. It had even thicker black bars top and bottom, as well as reducing the horizontal scale by 889%. I looked up video on this forum, and I saw your recommendation to use mp4 files. Certainly can try other formats, but I'm a real novice at video.

     

    I'm using Acrobat Pro 9.4.3. I'd be happy to post the pdf file, but I don't know how to do that. I've made a pdf that only has the one page with the video, so it's just slightly over 2MB.

     

    Interesting about the preview panel, I certainly won't use that to test videos any more.

     

    Chris

     
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  • Bob Levine
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    5. Bob Levine,
    Apr 10, 2012 1:23 PM   in reply to Chris Vogel25
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    MP4 with .h264 encoding is what is needed for the iPad. For interactive PDFs you might be better off with FLV files.

     

     

     

    Bob

     
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  • Steve Werner
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    6. Steve Werner,
    Apr 10, 2012 1:50 PM   in reply to Chris Vogel25
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    Like Bob says, we need a sample to look at.

     
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  • Bob Levine
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    7. Bob Levine,
    Apr 10, 2012 2:57 PM   in reply to Chris Vogel25
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    MP4 with .h264 encoding is what is needed for the iPad. For interactive PDFs you might be better off with FLV files.

     

     

     

    Bob

     
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  • Chris Vogel25
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    8. Chris Vogel25,
    Apr 10, 2012 3:03 PM   in reply to Chris Vogel25
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    Thanks, Bob and Steve

     

    Please bare with me about lack of knowledge on video. I converted the mp4 file to FLV using the Adobe Media Encoder 5.0.1.0, which I imported into InDesign. At first, I was excited when I changed the poster to a frame in the InDesign media panel, and it didn't show the black lines. However, when I exported to interactive pdf, the black lines were still there.

     

    I'm sorry, but I don't know how to send a sample. I see buttons for adding images or video, but nothing for files???

     

    chris

     
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  • Steve Werner
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    9. Steve Werner,
    Apr 10, 2012 3:10 PM   in reply to Chris Vogel25
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    It's easy if you use a free service like www.dropbox.com. You get free space to store stuff. You can send a link to things which are in your space.

     
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  • Bob Levine
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    10. Bob Levine,
    Apr 10, 2012 3:24 PM   in reply to Chris Vogel25
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    If the file is small enough you can email it to me.

     

     

     

    I think you know the address.

     

     

     

    Bob

     
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  • Chris Vogel25
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    11. Chris Vogel25,
    Apr 10, 2012 3:47 PM   in reply to Bob Levine
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    Thanks, Steve and Bob

     

    Steve's suggestion is so obvious, but I don't (can't) have a dropbox account at work. However, I can post this url from the Gallery's large file transfer system.

     

    https://files.nga.gov/seos/1000/mpd/180420122867b8bff26994ea5bfd1afc35 cdfe71

     

     

    This is just one page of the pdf, which has the flv video.

     

    Chris

     
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  • Bob Levine
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    12. Bob Levine,
    Apr 10, 2012 4:00 PM   in reply to Chris Vogel25
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    Okay…I see what you mean.

     

     

     

    Can you post the FLV file?

     

     

     

    Bob

     
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  • Chris Vogel25
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    13. Chris Vogel25,
    Apr 10, 2012 4:05 PM   in reply to Bob Levine
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    of course:

     

    https://files.nga.gov/seos/1000/mpd/180420127085805df0e4f0a9bac66049fc fa7160

     

     

    Chris

     
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  • Bob Levine
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    14. Bob Levine,
    Apr 10, 2012 4:27 PM   in reply to Chris Vogel25
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    Weird….I notice at different zoom percentages sometimes I see lines on top, sometimes on the side. Seems to be less of an issue if you scale the video very slightly in ID before exporting.

     

     

     

    Bob

     
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  • Chris Vogel25
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    15. Chris Vogel25,
    Apr 10, 2012 7:07 PM   in reply to Bob Levine
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    Yes, indeed.

     

    I've tried several different enlargements; at 102, 105, 108 I get a much thinner rule at the top only, which is encouraging. But when I go to 112, I get very thin rules at top and bottom. And when I try 116 and 120 I get very thick rules on the sides (but the top and bottom look fine).

     

    Don't know what else to do??

     

    what about my other problem with the controller always staying there, even when I move my mouse away? Isn't the controller supposed to go away then?

     

    chris

     
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