The Top 10 Frustrating Things About Windows Movie Maker 2012

I think everyone has experienced their fair share of difficulties with Windows Movie Maker 2012. It’s fair to say that the application is basic in nature and that Microsoft didn’t intend that Windows Movie Maker would be a high-end video editing package.

My personal experience with Microsoft support was that Windows Movie Maker was intended to encourage me to purchase a separate video editing package if I was going to be doing video editing on a regular basis; and that’s what I did. But I still use Windows Movie Maker from time to time for very simple video editing projects.

I continue to try to assist other Windows Movie Maker 2012 users, through the support forums, and if you spent any time in the support forums, you’ll see a recurring trend of stupid problems with Windows Movie Maker.

Lack Of Standard Lack of standard Supported File Formats

One of the most ironic things about Windows Movie Maker 2012 [and its predecessor] is that it’s supposed to have support for specific audio and video file format the that the application is supposed to build support natively. Unfortunately, the application doesn’t support does audio and video file formats unless the proper codecs are installed.

Windows Movie Maker supports the video formats as long as the video codecs are install, but Windows Movie Maker doesn’t come with those required video codecs; they leave that up to the users to collect on their own— knowing that Windows Movie Maker will not function properly without them.

The support form technicians commonly recommend that users go and try to use. ‘Microsoft fix it’ application; I have never seen [or heard of] one person in the support forum use this application and it resolve the problem—it’s utterly useless.

The solution is to load the proper codecs

As a suggestion, you can download the most common CODECS yourself— and installing them is very easy…

Here’s some standard codec packs; FREE. REPUTABLE, and updated regularly.

Link:
     http://www.free-codecs.com/download/k_lite_codec_pack.htm
     http://www.windows7codecs.com/
 

 

Errors On Meeting Minimum Specifications

I continue to be impressed by this reoccurring problem with Windows Movie Maker not meeting minimum specifications.

User after user come to the support forums and report problems with Windows Movie Maker not meeting the minimum specifications to run the application, and most of the time the users were already running the application just fine; it’s just out of the blue that the application decides that there’s a problem.

Obviously, if you’re using Windows Movie Maker for the first time, there’s. Possibility that this could be your problem genuinely;. If you’re using an older system or older video hardware.. But if you were using Windows Movie Maker the day before just fine, just like the last six months, and then all of a sudden the application doesn’t want to work and reports this error— you obviously know it’s wrong.

This particular error has been blamed on equipment just about every time by the technicians in the support forums, but resolutions for this have been presented in all shapes and forms; including creating a new user profile [saying that the current user profile was damaged].

 

Video Preview Performance

Another frustrating point for Windows Movie Maker 2012 users is the issue of video preview. Users continue to report issues with video preview not working and that the application becomes unstable or nonresponsive.

When the application becomes unresponsive, this is mainly because Windows Movie Maker 2012 has either crashed on trying to understand the video file that you’re trying to work with, or it’s in the process, in the background trying to render preview video. Unfortunately, the application doesn’t run through the video at an efficient pace.

On the base grounds of simply opening. Video file, an application that’s free, like VLC player, has much better success dealing with multiple video formats.

The best way to avoid overworking Windows Movie Maker is to work with native video formats that are familiar to Microsoft, such as WMV. Unfortunately, the WMV file format is not very efficient, it takes up more hard drive space, and it’s not. Standard video format is currently used on video recorders; like MP4.

As a suggestion for video converters,I have used all three of these video converters and think are are very good; and easy to use. They all have the video conversion options you’d be searching for and handle plenty of common formats— and they’re all free. Be sure to watch for the installation options [opt out] on just what you want.

Link:
     http://www.videoconverterfactory.com/free-video-converter/
     http://videoconverter.hamstersoft.com/
     http://www.freemake.com/free_video_converter/

 

 

 

No Storyboard View

One of the stupidest moves that Microsoft has made with Windows Movie Maker 2012, even further back to 2011, was that they were moved the traditional storyboard that just about everyone uses for video editing.

What Windows Movie Maker has now is technically storyboard, but it’s very limited and based on information. Received, and seen, this is what Microsoft wanted you to see.

As. Mentioned before, as Microsoft explained it to me, Windows Movie Maker is an application that is there to encourage me to purchase better software with greater ability. Windows Movie Maker’s only starter package with basic functions.

Fortunately, for users who really enjoyed the previous layout and functionality of Windows Movie Maker, before it was ‘live’ anything, you can still download Windows Movie Maker 2.6.

Link:
http://members.shaw.ca/wmm6/wmm6.html

 

No Auto Save; Auto-recovery

Another major complaints about Windows Movie Maker 2012 and its predecessor was that the application doesn’t have an auto recovery. The application doesn’t incrementally say the progress of your video editing. This essentially means that after working for hours on composing. New video, if Windows Movie Maker 2012 decides to crash, you are going to lose every bit of your work; there is no recourse or recovery.

It’s almost unthinkable that an application like this, with the potential to have hours and hours of adjustments, changes, customizations and video clips, that it would not have some sort of auto save function.

I’ve seen the request, in be support forms on. Repeated basis, but Microsoft has failed, sadly, to address this issue with the application.

The only workaround it’s been presented so far is that users should save their work progressively, as they’re working on it. This also addresses the problem with the application where users were not able to save their projects at all. At least by saving your project incrementally, you don’t lose all of your work; only from the point where you last saved.

 

Lack Of Audio Anchors That Work

I think everyone was editing video for hours trying to get everything right, but then you see this one little spot that needs to be adjusted; you make the adjustment and then everything else on the storyboard is messed up— every single audio clip is messed up. It’s not in the place that you intended.

If you never used Windows Movie Maker, you understand what I’m talking about. The application does not have the formal ability to lock audio to specific parts of the storyboard/or video clips.

Users should have the ability to edit video without having the audio track affected, but because of the way Windows Movie Maker handles its storyboard, it is an audio track associated with a video clip, if you mess with the video clip, all the other audio clips on storyboard will be offset and placed in the wrong positions; over the entire storyboard.

This issue has been repeatedly reported to the Microsoft support forum and  Microsoft continues to ignore the issue completely.

If you'd like, you can leave feedback for the Windows Live Movie Maker 2011 team for suggestions/improvements:

Link:
     https://feedback.live.com/default.aspx?productkey=moviemaker

 

Narration As A Second Audio Track

In a previous version of Windows Movie Maker [LIVE], the application did not have the ability to do narration; Microsoft brought back the ability to do narration with version 2012.

But when Microsoft reintroduced the feature of being able to do narration, they did so as a second track of audio. So the application technically has two tracks of audio, but the secondary track is reserved for narration. The application is complicated by the fact that it’s labeled as narration; when in fact it’s just a secondary audio track— it’s stupid how it’s presented.

You can’t add two tracks of audio, but you can add music and narration; essentially, to tracks of audio— stupid. The good news in this process is that you can select any audio file that you want and put this into the application; is definitely better than what was in 2011.

 

No Export Video Clip

a function that is suspiciously missing from Windows Movie Maker is the ability to select a video clip or audio clip, right-click, and then choose the option to export. Its one of the basic functions of video editing; you can do everything in the application— you have to be able to cut out sections of video or audio and save those off to be used in other places.

A frustrating part of Windows Movie Maker is that you can’t do this very easily.

The application is going to make you load the same video each time, delete everything else, and then choose the option to export; it’s beyond time-consuming.

Unfortunately, there is no workaround. If you want to build export video clips that you created inside the application, this is what you’ll have to do. If you’re thinking that you could probably open to versions of Windows Movie Maker, you can’t; there’s only one instance allowed at a time. Having the ability to have two sessions open at once might be convenient, but it’s not allowed.

 

No Built-in DVD Burning

I would absolutely love to have someone explain to me the logic process of Microsoft where an application called Windows Movie Maker does not have the ability to export to a DVD.

This question is even more baffling to the customers who migrated to Windows 8, because Windows 8 doesn’t even have the ability to create a video DVD.

Microsoft wants users to go find their own DVD authoring software, and deal with them for tech support issues. Even with Windows Movie Maker 2011, the application did not have the ability to burn your movie to DVD. The application exported a WMV file to Windows DVD maker, for the file is converted into a VOB format, and then written to a DVD.

A lot of users that had used Windows Movie Maker in the past, had not realized that’s how the application works; best they also didn’t understand that when they were having problems with DVD playback, it was the cause that the Windows DVD maker was having problems with converting the WMV file.

Download WinX DVD - DVD Authoring software…
This is an alternative DVD authoring software package for converting your videos directly to VOB, to be placed on a DVD disc. It offers functions for Standard quality and HD quality, it has functions to control the DVD menu and chapter controls… and it's without charge of any kind.

Link:
     http://bit.ly/NoaTKp

 

Video Snapshot

This last issue is just complete laziness. It’s one of the most asinine things that I’ve seen in Windows Movie Maker.

In Windows Movie Maker 2012, you have the ability to do a snapshot of the preview window that you’re looking, and based on the size of the snapshot window, this determines the resolution of the output image file.

So, in order to get the highest resolution snapshot picture of the movie are currently working, you have to slide the preview window separator all the way to the right, maximize the application window and then choose the option to do a snapshot.

This could’ve been handled so much more intelligently; it would’ve been easy enough to give users the options for low, medium or high resolution, or give them the option to choose a maximum resolution of their own.

 

If you have more, I would love to hear them!

 

Xposted to LEHSYS.com