Sony Vegas 6 Manual

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CHP. 1INTRODUCTION
CHAPTER17
Introduction
We l c o m e
Vegas® software from Sony Media Software is an innovative and advanced multitrack media-editing system. 
Vegas software was designed to create an efficient audio/video production environment without sacrificing 
the quality and processing power that you expect from Sony Media Software. Whether it’s the standard and 
familiar Microsoft® Windows® navigation commands or the clean and uncluttered interface, you’ll find 
Vegas software to be a tool that will be mastered in minutes. Beneath the unique and customizable interface, 
you’ll find a product that is both powerful and flexible. 
System requirements
In order to use Vegas software, your computer must satisfy the following minimum specifications:
 Microsoft® Windows® 2000, XP Professional, or XP Home (Windows SP2 required for HDV)
 800 MHz processor (2.8 GHz recommended for HDV)
 200 MB hard-disk space for program installation
 600 MB hard-disk space for optional Sony Sound Series Loops & Samples™ reference library installation 
(applicable only to the full version of Vegas software)
 256 MB RAM (512 MB RAM recommended for HDV)
 OHCI compatible i.LINK® connector*/IEEE-1394DV card (for DV capture and print-to-tape) 
 Microsoft Windows-compatible sound card
 CD-ROM drive (for installation from a CD only) 
 Supported CD-Recordable drive (for CD burning only) 
 Microsoft DirectX® 9.0c or later (included on CD-ROM)
 Microsoft .NET Framework 1.1 SP1 (required only for the full version of Vegas software and Vegas Movie 
Studio Platinum; included on CD-ROM)
 Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.1 or later (included on CD-ROM)
Please note: Some features may require product registration.
*i.LINK is a registered trademark of Sony Electronics, used only to designate that a product contains an 
IEEE 1394 connector. All products with an IEEE 1394 connector may not communicate with each other. 
Technical support
The Web site at http://mediasoftware.sonypicutres.com/support/default.asp has technical support, reference 
information, program updates, tips and tricks, user forums, and a knowledge base.
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INTRODUCTIONCHP. 1
Installing Vegas software
1.Insert the CD-ROM. The setup screen appears (if CD-ROM AutoPlay is enabled).
If CD-ROM AutoPlay is not enabled, click the  button and choose Run. In the Run window that 
appears, type the CD-ROM drive’s letter and add 
:\setup.exe. Click OK to start the installation.
2.Click Install. The installation process begins.
3.Follow the screen prompts and enter the necessary information when required. 
4.At the last screen prompt, click  to conclude the installation.
Note: Windows Installer is used for all versions of 
Windows. Windows Installer is installed and then you are 
asked to restart your system.
Using this manual
This manual is provided to assist users of Vegas, Vegas Movie Studio™, and Vegas Movie Studio Platinum 
software applications. For this reason, product features are identified throughout the manual using the 
following icons:
Note: Unless otherwise noted, the pictures you’ll see of the 
Vegas application throughout this manual are taken from the 
full version of Vegas software. If you are using other versions 
of Vegas software, your windows and dialogs may appear 
slightly different.
Features exclusive to the full version of 
Vegas
Features exclusive to Vegas Movie Studio
Features exclusive to Vegas Movie Studio 
Platinum 
						

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Using online help
You can access two varieties of help:
 Online help
 What’sThis? help (also referred to as context-sensitive help)
Online help
To access online help, choose Contents and Index from the Help menu or press . 
Note: To view online help, Internet Explorer 5.1 or later 
must be installed on your system. Internet Explorer 5.1 is 
included on the Vegas software CD-ROM for your 
convenience.
The online help window has four tabs that you can use to find the information that you need.
The Contents tab provides a list of available help topics. Double-click a closed book () to open the pages 
and then click a topic page (
).
The Index tab provides a complete listing of the help topics available. Scroll through the list of available 
topics or type a word in the 
Type in the keyword to find box to quickly locate topics related to that word. Select 
the topic and click 
.
The Search tab allows you to enter a keyword and display all of the topics in the online help that contain the 
keyword you have entered. Type a keyword in the 
Type in the word(s) to search for box and click . 
Select the topic from the list and click 
.
The Favorites tab allows you to keep topics that you revisit often in a separate folder. To add a topic to your 
favorites, click 
 on the Favorites tab.
F1
TabsToolbar
Information
pane 
						

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INTRODUCTIONCHP. 1
What’sThis? help
What’sThis? help allows you to view pop-up descriptions of menus, buttons, and dialog boxes.
1.Click the What’s This Help button () in the toolbar or the question mark () in the upper-right corner of 
a dialog box. Alternately, you can choose 
Whats This? from the Help menu or press . The cursor 
changes to a question mark icon (
).
2.Click an item in the program’s interface. A pop-up description of the item appears.
Help on the Web
Additional help and information is available on the Sony Media Software Web site. From the Help menu, 
choose 
Sony on the Web to view a listing of Web pages pertaining to Vegas software and Sony Media 
Software.
Show Me How tutorials
This feature is available only in Vegas Movie Studio and Vegas Movie Studio Platinum software.
You can learn more about many of the features in Vegas Movie Studio and Vegas Movie Studio Platinum by 
using the interactive Show Me How tutorials installed with the software.
By default, Show Me How tutorials display upon startup of the application. However, you can access them at 
any time from the 
Help menu by choosing Show Me How.
Tip: To disable automatic display of the Show Me How 
tutorials, clear the 
Show at Startup check box at the bottom of 
the tutorial window.
Shift+F1 
						

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21
Overview
Vegas software is designed to be an easy-to-use program with many tools that provide power and flexibility 
when creating and working with multimedia files. Many operations, menu items, and shortcut keys are 
consistent with other popular Microsoft Windows software applications. 
The following sections provide a graphical tour of the Vegas workspace.
Main window
This is the window that appears when the software is opened. The work area is subdivided into three primary 
areas: the track list, the track view (or timeline), and the window docking area.You can resize the track list, 
track view, and window docking area by dragging the dividers between them.
 
Toolbar
The toolbar allows you to quickly access the most commonly used functions and features. From the Options 
menu, choose 
Customize Toolbar to specify which buttons are displayed.
Create new projectEnable automatic crossfades
Open existing projectEnable automatic ripple editing
Save projectLock envelopes to events
Open project propertiesIgnore event grouping
Cut selected events or time rangeNormal edit tool
Copy selected events or time rangeEnvelope edit tool
Paste items from clipboard into 
projectSelection edit tool
UndoZoom edit tool
RedoWhat’s This? help
Enable snapping to grid lines
Menu bar
Track view
Transport bar
Status bar
(timeline)
Scrub control
Window
docking
area Track list Time displayToolbar
Ruler Marker bar 
						

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INTRODUCTIONCHP. 1
Time display
The Time Display window reflects the cursor’s position on the timeline, MTC input, MTC output, or MIDI 
clock output time. You can customize time display settings, including what time the window displays and 
colors are used in the display. For more information, see Using the Time Display window on page 331.
You can move the Time Display window from its docked position above the track list to float on the 
workspace or dock in the window docking area.
 
Ruler
The ruler is the timeline for your project. You may specify how the ruler measures time: seconds, measures 
and beats, frames, etc. For more information, see Changing the ruler format on page 329.
Marker bar
The marker bar is the area where you can place, name, and position markers and regions along the project’s 
timeline. These informational tags can serve as cues or reminders highlighting important events in your 
project. For more information, see Adding project markers and regions on page 115.
Command bar
The command bar displays when you add a command to your project. Commands add metadata to media 
files to create effects such as closed captioning. For more information, see Adding project markers and regions on 
page 115.
Docked position Floating window Docked in window docking area 
						

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CD layout bar
The CD layout bar displays tracks and indices in an audio CD layout project for disc-at-once (DAO) CD 
burning. For more information, see Burning CDs on page 351.
Track list
This area identifies the track order in your project and contains controls used to determine track 
compositing and mixing. For more information, see Using the track list on page 64.
Timeline
All arranging and editing is done in the timeline or track view. This area contains all of a project’s events. 
For more information, see Using the track view on page 62.
Transport bar controls
The transport bar contains the playback and cursor positioning buttons frequently used while working on 
and previewing your project.
Record into trackPause project playback
Loop playbackStop playback
Play from beginning of projectMove cursor to start of project
Play project from cursor position Move cursor to end of project
Track number Track minimize
Video tracks
Audio track Parent/child
compositing
control and maximize
Selected track 
						

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INTRODUCTIONCHP. 1
Status bar
The status bar is located at the bottom of the main program window and displays 
information about roughly how much space is left on your computer to record audio 
(Record Time). During the rendering processes, the left side of the status bar also 
contains information about the progress of the render.
The Video Preview window also has its own status bar that displays project specific information. For more 
information, see Understanding the Video Preview window on page 287.
Scrub control
The scrub control is used to play your project forward or 
backward for editing purposes. You may adjust playback speed 
by setting the speed control marker located beneath the scrub 
control. For more information, see Scrubbing on page 68.
Window docking area and floating window docks
This area allows you to keep frequently used windows available but out of the way while you are working 
with a project. Windows can be docked next to each other, subdividing the docking area, or they can be 
docked in a stack in the window docking area or in a separate floating docking window. When stacked, each 
window has a tab at the bottom with its name on it. Click the window’s tab to bring it to the top.
 To dock a window, drag it to the docking area.
 Drag the handle on the left side of a docked window to remove a window from the docking area and float 
it.
 To prevent a window from docking when you drag it, hold the  key.
 To expand a docked window so it fills the docking area, click the Maximize button (). Click again to 
restore the window to its previous size.
 To remove a window from the docking area or a floating dock, click the Close button ().
Set playback speedDrag either forward or
backward for playback
Drag the handle away from the
docking area to float the window. Close window
Expand window
Ctrl 
						

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Explorer window - Alt+1
The Explorer window is similar to the Microsoft Windows Explorer. Use the Explorer window to select 
media files to drag to the project timeline or add to the Project Media window. You can also use the Explorer 
to perform common file management tasks such as creating folders, renaming files and folders, deleting files 
and folders. Use the 
Start Preview () and Auto Preview () buttons to preview files before adding them to 
the project.
Trimmer window - Alt+2
The Trimmer window is a good place to edit any media file. When a media file is placed in the Trimmer 
window, you can place portions of the file on separate tracks by dragging and dropping. For more information, 
see Using the Trimmer window on page 132.
 
Mixer window - Alt+3
The Mixer window gives you access to your project’s audio properties, bus assignments, output levels, and 
plug-in chains. For more information, see Using the Mixer window on page 181.
Select drive Preview selected
media files before
placing them
in the project.
or folderSelect media to place 
in the project by dragging
or double-clicking.
Add media to the Project Media
window by right-clicking a file and
choosing Add to Project Media
list from the shortcut menu. 
						

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INTRODUCTIONCHP. 1
Video Preview window - Alt+4
This window displays a project’s video during project editing and playback. For more information, see 
Previewing and Analyzing Video on page 287.
Project Media- Alt +5
The Project Media window helps you organize the media files you’re using in a project. The information 
about these files is displayed in a highly flexible database that can be instantly sorted. You can also use the 
Project Media window to apply effects and plug-ins to media files and set the specific properties of these files. 
For more information, see Using the Project Media window on page 47.
 
Video appears during
project playback or as
the cursor is moved 
during editing.Right-click to 
change Video
Preview settings