Apple Final Cut Pro 7 - Manual (Page 345)

Automatically Naming Your Clips
The names given to files by the camcorder are often difficult to distinguish. When you
transfer media and create clips in your projects, you can have Final Cut Pro use a
clip-naming convention, called a preset, that you choose or create. For example, you can
use a name format that includes a clip name that you specify, plus the reel, shot or take,
scene, and any date information that you want. You can also select from any of the clip’s
metadata listed in the Name Preset dialog.
Final Cut Pro provides a number of preset name formats, and you can also create your
own naming conventions. You choose the preset name format you want applied before
you transfer clips to the Transfer Queue. That name format is then used for all clips you
place in the Transfer Queue. The same clip name is applied to the media file transferred
to your scratch disk as to the clip in the project. A sample of the clip name appears in the
Logging area. To give other clips a different style of clip name, choose or create a different
name preset before placing the clips in the Transfer Queue. A list of the available name
presets appears in the Name Preset pop-up menu.
Final Cut Pro provides the following preset name formats:
Example Preset name format
Clipname 2008-01-01 at 01_45_12 Current Name and Clip
Date/Time
Clipname 001 Partial Span Current Name with Counter
2008-01-01 at 01_45_12 Partial Span Clip Date/Time
Custom clipname 001 Partial Span Custom Name with Counter
To choose a preset name format
µ
In the Logging area of the Log and Transport window, choose a name format from the
Name Preset pop-up menu.
Applying Valid Filenames
Proper filenaming is one of the most critical aspects of media and project management.
The following sections present several issues to consider when naming clips and their
media files, and describe how to create custom name formats.
Avoiding Special Characters
The most conservative filenaming conventions provide the most cross-platform
compatibility. This means that your filenames will work in different operating systems,
such as Mac OS X and other UNIX-based operating systems, Mac OS 9, and Windows. You
also need to consider filenaming when you transfer files via the Internet, where you can
never be certain what computer platform your files may be stored on, even if temporarily.
345 Chapter 23 Logging File-Based Media