Preparing for Editing

Once the files are opened in the Media Files list in the Collections window, they are available for editing. To edit these files they must be added to the timeline.

Adding Media Files to the Timeline

To start editing your media files and give them Effects and Transitions, they must be added to the timeline. To add media files to the timeline

1. Select one or more media files from the Media Files list in the Collections Window.
2. Select the Video and Audio track in the timeline. A thin line appears around the selected track. Video Tracks and Audio Tracks are independently selected.
3. Go to Edit > Add to Timeline or use the F2 shortcut key to add the selected file to the selected tracks in the timeline.

Media files can also be added to the timeline in many other ways

1. Right click the selected files and then select Add to Timeline from the context menu.
2. Right click the selected files and go to Add to Track. A list of all possible combinations of tracks to which the media files can be added will be presented. Select the desired combination. For example selecting Video 1 and Audio 2 from the Add to Track sub menu, the video streams of the selected media files will be added to Video 1 and the audio streams of the selected media files will be added to Audio 2. This option works irrespective of the selected tracks in the timeline. Therefore even if Video 2 and Audio 1 tracks in the timeline are selected, the Video 1 and Audio 2 combination will add the selected media files to Video 1 and Audio 2 only and not to Video 2 and Audio 1.
3. Drag the selected media file to the timeline. This will add the streams of the media file to the selected video and audio track in the timeline.

If the "Fit to timeline when adding sources" option is selected in the General tab of the Options window (Tools > Options), the timeline is automatically zoomed out to accommodate the entire length of the added source(s). Clear the option from the Options window if this behavior is not desired.

Zooming the Timeline

In case the "Fit to timeline when adding sources" is not selected, the media file that you drag into the timeline may be of a very long duration. The complete file will not be visible to you. If you wish to see the complete file, you may zoom out of the timeline using the Tools > Zoom out Timeline Scale menu option. Continue zooming in or out of the timeline view until you arrive at a view that is comfortable for your editing purposes. Most users prefer to zoom out only to see an overview of their media in the timeline and work in a zoomed in view at all other times.

Previewing the Timeline

Now that the sources are added to the timeline, they can be previewed. Just click the Play button in the Preview window and watch the preview of your timeline. The position of the seek slider in the timeline and the seek bar in the Preview is also changed to reflect the position that is being currently previewed. The seek slider can be moved by dragging it from its handle. When the seek slider is moved, the preview also changes to reflect the current slider position. The same can be done with the seek bar in the Preview window. As you continue editing your files in the timeline, applying Effects and Transitions to them, you will have to preview your timeline frequently.