Apple may be slow to respond to controversy, but when they do, it usually does a good job of quelling the storm. After a solid week of uproar over the new Final Cut Pro X from video professionals, Cupertino has finally come forward with a new question and answer page on their website they hope to address user concerns.
Apple is making an effort to address the recent controversy over the retooled Final Cut Pro X with a new “frequently asked questions” page of its website. While most of the information has already been noted elsewhere, the company no doubt hopes to quell the furor of video professionals and other users who have come back to Apple screaming for Mac App Store refunds for the week old $299.99 product.
“Final Cut Pro X is a breakthrough in nonlinear video editing,” Apple extolls on the FAQ page. “The application has impressed many pro editors, and it has also generated a lot of discussion in the pro video community. We know people have questions about the new features in Final Cut Pro X and how it compares with previous versions of Final Cut Pro. Here are the answers to the most common questions we’ve heard.”
Right up front, Apple tackles the most widespread concern: “Can I import projects from Final Cut Pro 7 into Final Cut Pro X?” Despite rumors this week that Apple already has XML import included in the app (albeit disabled for now), the official answer still appears to be “No, you can’t” -- or more accurately, “There is no way to ‘translate’ or bring in old projects without changing or losing data.”
As unfortunate as that may be, Apple is quick to remind users that Final Cut Pro 7 can coexist nicely with Final Cut Pro X, and notes that the elder version “will work with Mac OS X Lion,” which should allay some of users’ fears for now.
While it sounds like Apple doesn’t plan to add back support for tape capture and output, they claim that third-party companies like AJA and Blackmagic will “offer free deck control software that allows you to capture from tape and output to tape,” and AJA has already posted beta drivers for its popular Kona card for external monitor support from the app.
The best news of the FAQ is that a number of features are on the way. Among them are changes for assigning audio tracks for export in an update this summer, and the company is also working hard to provide APIs for exporting XML, OMF, AAF and EDL files, although it sounds like these may come from third party developers. Last but not least, multicam support is promised for “the next major release,” although no timetable is given as to when that may be.
While Apple is making it clear that changes are on the way, that may not be enough for industry professionals who fear change in their workflow -- the company may have a long road ahead of them to win back the hearts and minds of such users without addressing their concerns as quickly as possible.
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