6.0d project --> 8.1 = lockup. Any ideas why?
 

I migrated a project (veg file and all media) from my PC running 6.0d to my new PC running 8.1 on Vista64. Opening the old veg file prompted me to specify new locations of the media. No problem. Once that was finished, 8.1 would hang at various stages of opening the project.

Most of the time, for instance, it stops at 50-51% of creating peaks, etc. One time I actually got it open all the way, only to discover that it would not preview the video, just the audio. At this point, I saved the project, and Vegas warned me that doing so would make it impossible for older versions of Vegas to open the project. I said OK, since it was just a local copy of the veg file. Yet, subsequent attempts to open just stood still at 50% or less, as stated above, or hang at earlier points. It seems pretty random, making troubleshooting impossible for me. I have to force a quit from Task Manager each time.

Are these details symptomatic of some incompatibility between older versions of Vegas and 8.1? Anyone experiencing the same, or just the opposite? I have no idea what is going on.

Thanks,
Steve

What type of files are your source files? Perhaps you don't have a 64bit codec for that type of file.

Hmm, didn't think of that, Edward. They are .avi files -- just plain ol' DV. How could I tell if I had a correct codec?

More information: when I open a *new* project in 8.1, I can place the avi clips on the timeline, scrub forward and backward, and preview with no apparent problems. It's working with my *old* project (using the converted veg file) that I run into the erratic behavior.

Since a *new* project in 8.1 seems to work, my next attempt will be to open a second instance of 8.1, and then copy portions of my old project into the new project. Seems a little draconian, I know, but there are so many potential variables for error I don't know what else to try.

Steve

Yeah, DV files should work just fine. Are there possibly some effects in the 6 project that 8 doesn't have? What happens if you load it in 8.0(a, b, or c) instead of 8.1? What if you load it in 8.0, save it under a new name, and then load it in 8.1?

Thanks for your suggestions. Yes, I stripped all effects (e.g., Magic Bullet Looks) from the 6.0 project before I transferred it to 8.1. Didn't try loading in 8.0c yet. I might do that, but as I explain below, I could get something workable in 8.1.

In working with the project in 8.1 this afternoon, I discovered that I could edit, scrub, preview, etc. MOST clips with no problem. Other clips, however, would appear completely black until I deleted and replaced them with a copy of themselves, or else expanded the timeline. I know, this sounds strange. but it worked. Then, I would see brief black frames in only those clips, which otherwise previewed and rendered normally. Very strange, but totally reproducible. This leads me to believe that whatever gremlin I have is probably highly specific to my setup and therefore not likely to be diagnosed in a public forum. For now, therefore, I can get my 6.0 project to work, albeit with some effort.

I transferred all of the DV files over my home wireless network from my old to new PC at a very slow speed. I wonder if something caused the clips (or some of them) to get corrupted in doing so. On my new PC, and in 8.1, I captured and could edit, by contrast, a wealth of m2t clips from my XHA1 flawlessly. <sigh> This is my last SD project, then its on with my XHA1 footage at last...

Steve