When Apple rolled out a 64-bit version of Final Cut Pro last week, the company promised its latest video-editing software release would revolutionize video editing. However, the revolution under way is hardly what Apple had in mind.
Video editors are up in arms because Final Cut Pro X offers little or no support for a number of capabilities that were in earlier releases. Some have demanded and reportedly received refunds, while others have loudly complained about the new product in user forums.
In response, Apple has launched a new FAQ page for Final Cut Pro X that attempts to pacify disgruntled customers. Still, a new online petition is demanding that Apple restore its discontinued releases of Final Cut Pro or sell the software's source code to a third party.
"Many have invested hundreds of thousands -- some even millions -- of dollars in creating Final Cut Pro-based companies," the petition reads. "These are now threatened by a 'prosumer-grade' product upgrade of Final Cut Pro 7 titled 'Final Cut Pro X,' and will likely put several of these companies out of business."
Unfair To Workers
Apple admitted the 64-bit architecture in Final Cut Pro X -- which is structured around a trackless timeline and connected clips -- is unable to "translate" old projects without changing or losing data. Moreover, the new product's redesigned audio effects, video effects, and color-grading tools are incompatible with previous releases of Final Cut Pro.
"But if you're already working with Final Cut Pro 7, you can continue to do so after installing Final Cut Pro X, and Final Cut Pro 7 will work with Mac OS X Lion," Apple's FAQ page says. "You can also import your media files from previous versions into Final Cut Pro X."
Many users are wondering why they were enticed to pay $249 for a new product in the first place, only to be forced to revert to using the software they already had. Many capabilities important to professional video editors are missing -- the full range of tape-capture and output features built into Final Cut Pro 7, for example -- and plug-ins from camera manufacturers are not yet available for the program's 64-bit architecture.
"This is unfair to workers who rely on Final Cut Pro as a business tool and will devastate the Final Cut Pro community," according to the online petition, which has already attracted nearly 5,600 signatures.
Missing In Action
Apple's FAQ acknowledges that Final Cut Pro X is missing the multi-cam editing and XML export support available in earlier releases and promises to "provide great multi-cam support" in the next major release. Apple also intends to "release a set of APIs in the next few weeks so that third-party developers can access the next-generation XML in Final Cut Pro X."
Once the new APIs for XML export become available, third-party developers can create tools to support OMF, AAF, EDL and other exchange formats. Meanwhile, Apple hopes Final Cut Pro editors will get hooked on the speed advantage they obtain from Final Cut Pro X.
For example, the program's new trackless approach to editing gives users the ability to add and arrange clips wherever they want, with other clips instantly sliding out of the way. Moreover, a new content auto-analysis feature scans and tags media on import and then dynamically organizes clips into smart collections, which makes it easier for editors to locate specific content.
