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PrepSet Manager

The PrepSet Manager allows you to store, load, copy, delete, etc image preprocessor prepsets, making it easier to use them across and within projects. While some functions of the PrepSet Manager may be found on the prepset menu of the image preprocessor, the PrepSet Manager brings additional functions. The PrepSet Manager can be launched directly from the Shot menu as a floating non-modal window, via a shift-P key accelerator, or from within the Image Preprocessor as a modal window.

WARNING: Be careful when creating prepsets that affect only some subsystems. While such a prepset may be listed as active, the actual image preprocessor settings—those settings not set by the active prepset—will be dependent on what prior prepsets you’d activated. Keep some prepsets that configure all the subsystems, and a few prepsets with limited impact, eg just to color settings. Use naming and descriptions to identify them and avoid confusion.


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Camera selector. Dropdown. Selects the shot you’re viewing the prepsets for.

Initialized to the main Active Tracker Host, and updates whenever the tracker host is changed, but can be changed independently the rest of the time.

Preprocessor. Button. Click to open the Image Preprocessor to set or modify any of the actual preprocessor settings. In the image preprocessor, you’ll be modifying the current image preprocessor settings, whether they are connected to an (active) prepset or not. An error message will be shown if other inactive prepsets are selected, to avoid confusion over what prepset is being affected. Note that while the standard ‘P’ accelerator key can be used, it will not produce any error message and you might think you are magically editing a selected prepset, when in reality only the active prepset is and can be edited. In any case, the active prepset (the one being edited) will be shown in the prepset dropdown of the image preprocessor. This button is unavailable if the PrepSet Manager was opened from within the Image Preprocessor.

Main PrepSet View. List. Shows the prepsets of the selected shot. Selected prepsets are shown in blue; the active prepset, if any, is shown in red or pink (if it is

selected). The original source of the prepset is shown: prepsets originating from the preferences file are (preference); prepsets originating from an import from file operation are shown with (imported), and other scene-specific prepsets are not specially marked. Hovering over a prepset shows the description and affected subsystems. Clicking a prepset selects it, double-clicking activates it, control- clicking unselects it, and shift-dragging (slowly) selects multiple prepsets (or unselects, if control is also pushed).

New PrepSet. Button. Creates a new prepset on the selected shot and brings up the dialog to name it, give a description, and control which image preprocessor subsections are affected by activating the prepset.

Edit/Rename. Button. Brings up the prepset dialog again, so it can be renamed, the description changed, or the subsystems updated.

Activate. Button. Activate the selected prepset, moving its settings into the image preprocessor, where they begin affecting the images. If there’s no already active prepset, you’ll be asked if you want to overwrite the existing settings—if not, you can create a new prepset to save them. If you reactivate the active prepset, you’ll be asked if you want to save back the current settings to the prepset (the normal action), or if you want to discard the current settings and reload them from the prepset’s existing settings. (Or you can do nothing.)

Deactivate. Button. Deactivates the current prepset, so that it no longer is associated with the image preprocessor’s current settings.This function is intended mainly for situations where you’ve made changes in the image preprocessor that haven’t worked out, and you wish to discard them without affecting the prepset. If the current image preprocessor has any differences compared to the stored prepset settings, they will be lost. (Re-activate the prepset first to save them if desired.) Further changes to the image preprocessor won’t affect the prepset.

Reset. Button. Resets the image preprocessor settings, and any active prepset, back to the default settings.

Label as… Dropdown. Labels the selected prepsets as having the given originating source, ie the preferences, an imported file, or original to the scene. Note that this labeling is for convenience only, in conjunction with Saving PrepSets controls, and does not otherwise affect operation of SynthEyes.

Select All. Button. Selects all prepsets on this shot.

Deselect All. Button. Deselects all prepsets on this shot.

Invert. Button. All selected prepsets become deselected, and all deselected prepsets become selected.

Delete. Button. Deletes the selected prepsets. No new prepset becomes active; the current image preprocessor settings are unchanged.

Copy. Button. Copies the selected prepsets onto a special temporary local PrepSet Manager clipboard. Typically used to copy prepsets from one shot to another within a scene.

Paste. Button. Paste the prepsets from the PrepSet Manager clipboard into this shot.

They will all be given unique new names and selected.

Duplicate. Button. Duplicate the selected prepsets into this shot, giving them new names and selecting them. (The clipboard is not affected.)

Loading PrepSets Group

Reload from preferences. Button. Load the prepset preferences (stored in a special file) into this shot. Any prepsets in the shot with the same name as the preferences are updated to match the preferences. As long as Update (only) is off, if there’s no existing prepset with the same name, a new prepset is created in the shot. (Rename any prepsets that should not be affected first.) All affected prepsets are labelled as preferences.

Import from file. Button. Load the prepset preferences from your choice of .prp prepset file into this shot. Any prepsets in the shot with the same name as the preferences are updated to match the ones from the file. As long as Update (only) is off, if there’s no existing prepset with the same name, a new prepset is created in the shot. (Rename any prepsets that should not be affected first.) All affected prepsets are labelled as imported.

Update (only) all shots. Checkbox. When checked, Reload and Import operations will not create new, previously non-existent, prepsets: they will only update existing ones.

Saving PrepSets Group

Selected. Radio button. Selected prepsets will be exported or saved.

Scene. Radio button. Non-imported, non-preference, prepsets will be exported or saved.

Imported. Radio button. Imported prepsets will be exported or saved.

Preferences. Radio button. Prepsets loaded as preferences will be exported or saved.

All. Radio button. All prepsets in the shot will be exported or saved.

Export to file. Button. Export the type of prepsets determined by the radio buttons to a

.prp file that you designate.

Save as preferences. Button. Save the type of prepsets determined by the radio buttons as your preferences.

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