All media as external files


https://forum.reallusion.com/Topic249035.aspx
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By rgbii - 9 Years Ago
It would be nice if there was an option available to tell CTA2 to not store media and objects in the project file. Most editing tools I've used simply reference media/objects in the project file, which keeps the project file small.
I know this can currently be done for video files, but it would be nice for images, actors, scenes and props as well.
It should be optional, of course, since I'm sure some like this.
By AverageJoe - 9 Years Ago
I like a self-contained all inclusive project file.  It makes backing it up easier, and copying it back and forth between machines easier. For just as many programs that keep just references (and look out if those references get screwed up or changed externally), there are just as many applications that bundle it all up together in a project file.  I could see this as a great option if you could edit those external files, and upon loading the project back up, the media and content would be automatically updated to using the new version.  But since there's no real editing of things in CTA2 to begin with, it probably wouldn't be nearly as useful as some actual editing capabilities in CTA...
By rgbii - 9 Years Ago
Agree it's not as needed as film editing or SFX, but would still be nice for those that like to manage their assets themselves.
My main reason is I tend to save a lot of versions as I go, so I regularly save the project as file_V01, file_V02, etc...
With a typical editor, this is no big deal since each file is very small (a few K to maybe a couple meg or so) with no assets in it, and while a CTA2 file isn't massive, it can add up quickly if you save a lot of versions/copies.
Since it could be optional, with the default the same behavior as it currently has, could be much for flexible.
Hopefully, since they already allow this for videos, maybe it would be an easy change to make.
By rgbii - 9 Years Ago
Another reason this might be useful - faster saves.  While my system isn't top of the line, it's decently fast, however, larger projects with a large scene and lots of props/actors can take a while to save (minute or two).  If it didn't have to write all the assets each time, it should save much faster.   When I'm working in Vegas with a large project, it always saves pretty quickly (a second or so) since the project files are small in comparison.