Bug 358780

Summary: 15.13 git master: "expand clip" gives no user feedback for errors or during time-consuming expansion
Product: [Applications] kdenlive Reporter: Wegwerf <wegwerf-1-2-3>
Component: User InterfaceAssignee: Jean-Baptiste Mardelle <jb>
Status: RESOLVED FIXED    
Severity: normal CC: wegwerf-1-2-3
Priority: NOR    
Version: unspecified   
Target Milestone: ---   
Platform: Compiled Sources   
OS: Linux   
Latest Commit: Version Fixed In:

Description Wegwerf 2016-01-30 16:38:14 UTC
The "expand clip" functionality is simply great, it adds so much value to Kdenlive. However, my impression is that it needs some polish in order to avoid the false impression that it doesn't work at all. In particular, I miss these two these two aspects:

1. error feedback when expand clip is unable to expand a clip -- currently, there is no error feedback at all and this left me often wondering what went wrong.

2. (in) progress feedback while MLT crunches on more demanding clips -- currently, there is no feedback at all, so the user doesn't know whether Kdenlive is still working. Especially as there is no error feedback either, Kdenlive leaves users in the dark as to what is happening.

For instance, often Kdenlive is unable to expand a clip -- one cause for expansion not working may be that the required tracks are already occupied by clips at the range covered by the expanding clip. However, as there is no feedback the user has no way to understand what to do when expansion fails.

I only found out by trial and error that library playlist clips usually expand correctly when I put them to the end of the project timeline, a region where there is enough space also track-wise to expand.

In addition, Kdenlive doesn't report back when there are not enough tracks to expand a clip. Of course, it would be great if Kdenlive then could ask back to add enough tracks and after confirmation then do the necessary changes and expansion.

Reproducible: Always
Comment 1 Wegwerf 2016-07-28 16:40:56 UTC
I've just noticed that Kdenlive now shows a warning message below the project bin when there are not enough tracks for import. Sweet, thank you very much for adding this in, Jean-Baptiste/Vincent! So I can close this report finally.