LiVES
Encyclopedia
LiVES (icon) is a free software
video editing software
and VJ
tool, released under the GNU General Public License
version 3 or later. There are binary versions available for most popular Linux distribution
s (including Ubuntu
, Gentoo
, Debian
, Fedora Core
, Suse, Slackware
, Arch Linux
and Mandriva
). There are also ports for BSD, and it will run under Solaris and IRIX
. It has been compiled under OSX Leopard, but not thoroughly tested on that platform
The project began in late 2002, and the 1.0.0 version was released in July 2009.
On the Freshmeat
site, LiVES is listed as the most popular non-linear video editing software.
LiVES was nominated for the category of Best Project for Multimedia in the Sourceforge
Community Choice Awards 2009.
The LiVES application allows the user to manipulate video in realtime and in non-realtime. The application also has features which go beyond traditional video editing applications - for example, it can be controlled and monitored remotely over a network, and it has facilities for streaming to and from another copy of LiVES. It is resolution
and frame rate
independent.
LiVES uses a system of plugins for effects, decoders, encoders and video playback. The APIs for these are now well defined, and the application can be easily extended.
The clip editor allows free playback at variable play rates, applying of multiple realtime effects and mixing of clips. This mode is mainly used by VJs. Video editors can also use this interface to prepare the clips before entering into multitrack mode.
In multitrack mode, the individual clips can be arranged in layers on the timeline. Further effects and transitions can be applied here, and the audio can be mixed down. The entire timeline can then be rendered
, creating a new clip.
Rendering previews are shown in real time.
Free software
Free software, software libre or libre software is software that can be used, studied, and modified without restriction, and which can be copied and redistributed in modified or unmodified form either without restriction, or with restrictions that only ensure that further recipients can also do...
video editing software
Video editing software
Video editing software, is application software which handles the post-production video editing of digital video sequences on a computer non-linear editing systems...
and VJ
VJ (video performance artist)
VJing is a broad designation for realtime visual performance. Characteristics of VJing are the creation or manipulation of imagery in realtime through technological mediation and for an audience, in synchronization to music. VJing often takes place at events such as concerts, nightclubs, music...
tool, released under the GNU General Public License
GNU General Public License
The GNU General Public License is the most widely used free software license, originally written by Richard Stallman for the GNU Project....
version 3 or later. There are binary versions available for most popular Linux distribution
Linux distribution
A Linux distribution is a member of the family of Unix-like operating systems built on top of the Linux kernel. Such distributions are operating systems including a large collection of software applications such as word processors, spreadsheets, media players, and database applications...
s (including Ubuntu
Ubuntu (operating system)
Ubuntu is a computer operating system based on the Debian Linux distribution and distributed as free and open source software. It is named after the Southern African philosophy of Ubuntu...
, Gentoo
Gentoo Linux
Gentoo Linux is a computer operating system built on top of the Linux kernel and based on the Portage package management system. It is distributed as free and open source software. Unlike a conventional software distribution, the user compiles the source code locally according to their chosen...
, Debian
Debian
Debian is a computer operating system composed of software packages released as free and open source software primarily under the GNU General Public License along with other free software licenses. Debian GNU/Linux, which includes the GNU OS tools and Linux kernel, is a popular and influential...
, Fedora Core
Fedora (operating system)
Fedora is a RPM-based, general purpose collection of software, including an operating system based on the Linux kernel, developed by the community-supported Fedora Project and sponsored by Red Hat...
, Suse, Slackware
Slackware
Slackware is a free and open source Linux-based operating system. It was one of the earliest operating systems to be built on top of the Linux kernel and is the oldest currently being maintained. Slackware was created by Patrick Volkerding of Slackware Linux, Inc. in 1993...
, Arch Linux
Arch Linux
Arch Linux is an independently developed, Linux-based operating system for i686 and x86-64 computers. It is composed predominantly of free and open source software, and supports community involvement....
and Mandriva
Mandriva
Mandriva S.A. is a publicly traded Linux and open source software company with its headquarters in Paris, France and development center in Curitiba, Brazil. Mandriva, S.A...
). There are also ports for BSD, and it will run under Solaris and IRIX
IRIX
IRIX is a computer operating system developed by Silicon Graphics, Inc. to run natively on their 32- and 64-bit MIPS architecture workstations and servers. It was based on UNIX System V with BSD extensions. IRIX was the first operating system to include the XFS file system.The last major version...
. It has been compiled under OSX Leopard, but not thoroughly tested on that platform
Development
The main developer of LiVES is Salsaman (Gabriel Finch), who is also a video artist and international VJ.The project began in late 2002, and the 1.0.0 version was released in July 2009.
On the Freshmeat
Freshmeat
Freecode, formerly Freshmeat, is a website owned by Geeknet that allows computer users to keep track of the latest software releases and updates as well as write/read reviews and articles, send or receive comments to or from the author, and many other features...
site, LiVES is listed as the most popular non-linear video editing software.
LiVES was nominated for the category of Best Project for Multimedia in the Sourceforge
SourceForge
SourceForge Enterprise Edition is a collaborative revision control and software development management system. It provides a front-end to a range of software development lifecycle services and integrates with a number of free software / open source software applications .While originally itself...
Community Choice Awards 2009.
The LiVES application allows the user to manipulate video in realtime and in non-realtime. The application also has features which go beyond traditional video editing applications - for example, it can be controlled and monitored remotely over a network, and it has facilities for streaming to and from another copy of LiVES. It is resolution
Display resolution
The display resolution of a digital television or display device is the number of distinct pixels in each dimension that can be displayed. It can be an ambiguous term especially as the displayed resolution is controlled by all different factors in cathode ray tube , flat panel or projection...
and frame rate
Frame rate
Frame rate is the frequency at which an imaging device produces unique consecutive images called frames. The term applies equally well to computer graphics, video cameras, film cameras, and motion capture systems...
independent.
LiVES uses a system of plugins for effects, decoders, encoders and video playback. The APIs for these are now well defined, and the application can be easily extended.
Interface
LiVES has two main interfaces: the clip editor, which serves as a repository of video and audio material, and the multitrack window, where multiple clips can be positioned on the timeline.The clip editor allows free playback at variable play rates, applying of multiple realtime effects and mixing of clips. This mode is mainly used by VJs. Video editors can also use this interface to prepare the clips before entering into multitrack mode.
In multitrack mode, the individual clips can be arranged in layers on the timeline. Further effects and transitions can be applied here, and the audio can be mixed down. The entire timeline can then be rendered
Rendering (computer graphics)
Rendering is the process of generating an image from a model , by means of computer programs. A scene file contains objects in a strictly defined language or data structure; it would contain geometry, viewpoint, texture, lighting, and shading information as a description of the virtual scene...
, creating a new clip.
Rendering previews are shown in real time.
Features
LiVES' features include:- Loading and editing of almost any video format (via mplayerMPlayerMPlayer is a free and open source media player. The program is available for all major operating systems, including Linux and other Unix-like systems, Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X. Versions for OS/2, Syllable, AmigaOS and MorphOS are also available. The Windows version works, with some minor...
decoder). - Some formats can be opened instantly using decoder plugins (e.g. flvFLVFlash Video is a container file format used to deliver video over the Internet using Adobe Flash Player versions 6–11. Flash Video content may also be embedded within SWF files. There are two different video file formats known as Flash Video: FLV and F4V. The audio and video data within FLV files...
, asfAdvanced Systems FormatAdvanced Systems Format is Microsoft's proprietary digital audio/digital video container format, especially meant for streaming media...
, dvDVDV is a format for the digital recording and playing back of digital video. The DV codec was launched in 1995 with joint efforts of leading producers of video camcorders....
and oggOggOgg is a free, open container format maintained by the Xiph.Org Foundation. The creators of the Ogg format state that it is unrestricted by software patents and is designed to provide for efficient streaming and manipulation of high quality digital multimedia.The Ogg container format can multiplex...
/theoraTheoraTheora is a free lossy video compression format. It is developed by the Xiph.Org Foundation and distributed without licensing fees alongside their other free and open media projects, including the Vorbis audio format and the Ogg container....
). - Smooth playback at variable frame rates, forward and in reverse. Display framerate can be controlled independently of playback framerate.
- Frame accurate cutting and pasting within and between clips.
- Saving/re-encoding of clips, selections, and individual frames.
- Lossless backup/restore.
- Streaming input and output.
- Real time blending of clips (various chroma and lumaLuma (video)In video, luma, sometimes called luminance, represents the brightness in an image . Luma is typically paired with chrominance. Luma represents the achromatic image without any color, while the chroma components represent the color information...
blends). - Can handle in/out streams in LiVES to LiVES or yuv4mpeg format. Streams can be piped from stdout into other applications.
- Support for live firewire and TV card inputs.
- Internal support for RGB24, RGBA32, YUVYUVYUV is a color space typically used as part of a color image pipeline. It encodes a color image or video taking human perception into account, allowing reduced bandwidth for chrominance components, thereby typically enabling transmission errors or compression artifacts to be more efficiently...
A, YUV, YUV422, YUV420 (jpeg and mpeg), YUYV, YUV411, and UYVY palettes; one step conversion with chroma super and subsamplingChroma subsamplingChroma subsampling is the practice of encoding images by implementing less resolution for chroma information than for luma information, taking advantage of the human visual system's lower acuity for color differences than for luminance....
is implemented. - Ability to edit many filetypes and sources including remotely located files (with mplayer/ffmpeg libraries), and directories of images (rotoscoping).
- Real time capture/recording of interactive (via mouseclicks) external windows.
- Encode to any of the 50+ output formats which are now supported (e.g. mjpegMJPEGIn multimedia, Motion JPEG is an informal name for a class of video formats where each video frame or interlaced field of a digital video sequence is separately compressed as a JPEG image...
, mpeg4, mpeg1/2, h264, VCDVCDVCD is a three-letter abbreviation with multiple meanings, as described below:* VCD Athletic, semi-professional football team* Video CD* Voice command device* Value change dump * Vocal cord dysfunction* Visual Communication and Design...
, SVCD, DVDDVDA DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
, x264/blu-ray, ogg/mp4 ogm, MatroskaMatroskaThe Matroska Multimedia Container is an open standard free container format, a file format that can hold an unlimited number of video, audio, picture or subtitle tracks in one file. It is intended to serve as a universal format for storing common multimedia content, like movies or TV shows...
mkv, dv, swfSWFSWF is an Adobe Flash file format used for multimedia, vector graphics and ActionScript. Originating with FutureWave Software, then transferred to Macromedia, and then coming under the control of Adobe, SWF files can contain animations or applets of varying degrees of interactivity and function.,...
, Ogg Theora, DiracDirac (codec)Dirac is an open and royalty-free video compression format, specification and system developed by BBC Research at the BBC. Schrödinger and dirac-research are open and royalty-free software implementations of Dirac...
, MNGMNGMultiple-image Network Graphics is a public graphics file format for animated images.MNG is closely related to the PNG image format. When PNG development started in early 1995, developers decided not to incorporate support for animation, not least because this feature of GIF was seldom used at the...
, Snow, xvidXviDXvid is a video codec library following the MPEG-4 standard, specifically MPEG-4 Part 2 Advanced Simple Profile . It uses ASP features such as b-frames, global and quarter pixel motion compensation, lumi masking, trellis quantization, and H.263, MPEG and custom quantization matrices.Xvid is a...
, Flash and even animated GIF and PDF) - Resampling of video (time stretching) to any frame rate (1 to 200 frame/s - accurate to 8 decimal places); option to auto-resample or speed up/slow down between clips.
- Rotation, resizing and trimming of video clips.
- DeinterlacingDeinterlacingDeinterlacing is the process of converting interlaced video, such as common analog television signals or 1080i format HDTV signals, into a non-interlaced form....
, subtitle removal. Auto deinterlacing for dv can be enabled. - Can load mp3MP3MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III, more commonly referred to as MP3, is a patented digital audio encoding format using a form of lossy data compression...
, vorbisVorbisVorbis is a free software / open source project headed by the Xiph.Org Foundation . The project produces an audio format specification and software implementation for lossy audio compression...
, modMOD (file format)MOD is a computer file format used primarily to represent music, and was the first module file format. MOD files use the “.MOD” file extension, except on the Amiga where the original trackers instead use a “mod.” prefix scheme, e.g. “mod.echoing”...
, itImpulse TrackerImpulse Tracker is a multi-track digital sound tracker . It was one of the last tracker programs for the DOS platform. It was authored by Jeffrey "Pulse" Lim, and example music was provided by Jeffrey Lim and Chris Jarvis...
, xmXM (file format)XM, standing for "extended module", is an audio file type introduced by Triton's Fast Tracker 2. XM introduced multisampling-capable instruments with volume and panning envelopes, and basic pattern compression...
and wavWAVWaveform Audio File Format , is a Microsoft and IBM audio file format standard for storing an audio bitstream on PCs...
audio files. - LiVES can also load audio tracks directly off CD to use with video.
- Sample accurate cutting and pasting of audio within and between clips.
- Resampling of audio (rate, channels, sample size, signedness and endianness); audio is auto-resampled between clips.
- Able to record from any external audio source.
- Fade in/fade out feature for clips.
- Audio speed and direction can be smoothly adjusted; both in real time and when rendering.
- Hundreds of effects, including random/targeted zoomingDigital zoomDigital zoom is a method of decreasing the apparent angle of view of a digital photographic or video image. Digital zoom is accomplished by cropping an image down to a centered area with the same aspect ratio as the original, and usually also interpolating the result back up to the pixel...
, panningPanning (camera)In photography, panning refers to the horizontal movement or rotation of a still or video camera, or the scanning of a subject horizontally on video or a display device...
of video, colour cycling and colorisation/colour filtering and colour correction. - Merging/compositingCompositingCompositing is the combining of visual elements from separate sources into single images, often to create the illusion that all those elements are parts of the same scene. Live-action shooting for compositing is variously called "chroma key", "blue screen", "green screen" and other names. Today,...
of frames is possible: e.g. frame-in-frame, fade in/out and transparency. - Real time previews as the effect is processing.
- Support for the Frei0rFrei0rfrei0r is a simple cross-platform framework for video effects. It provides filters, mixers and generators by means of minimalistic plugin API. The behaviour of the effects can be controlled from the host through simple parameters...
1.1 and 1.2 effect plugin architectures. - Multiple real time effects are possible during playback (VJ mode), these can also be rendered to frames.
- Multitrack window with drag and drop
- Intelligent screen organisation - shows you only the information which is relevant, no more and no less
- Support for an almost limitless number of tracks and effects
- Non-destructive editingNon-destructive editingNon-destructive editing is a form of editing signals where the original content is not modified in the course of editing—instead the edits themselves are edited by video editing software on a non-linear editing system ....
in the multitrack window, with multiple levels of undo/redo. - Full automation/interpolationInterpolationIn the mathematical field of numerical analysis, interpolation is a method of constructing new data points within the range of a discrete set of known data points....
of effect parameters. - Support for stereo backing audio track + stereo audio track per video track
- Automatic gain control
- Realtime mixingAudio mixing (film and television)Audio mixing for film and television is a process during the post-production stage of a moving image program by which a multitude of recorded sounds are combined into one or more channels...
/previewing of audio - Channel mixer volume control + fine grained, time variable per-channel volume and pan control.
- Auto-transitioning of audio with video.
- Auto-transitioning of video in multitrack mode (optional).
- Full crash recovery.
- Configurable multi-monitor screen placement.
- Simple and intuitive menu layout.
- Drag and drop interface.
- Remote monitoring and control (via Open Sound Control) of the application can be enabled
- VJ functions can be controlled via keyboard, joystick or MIDI controller
- I18N text support. Translations into at least French, Czech, German, Japanese, Dutch, Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, Russian, Turkish, Hungarian, Slovak, Simplified Chinese, Finnish, Ukrainian, Arabic, Estonian, Uzbek and Hebrew are included.
- Support for audio output through pulse audio.
- Support for audio output through jackJACK Audio Connection KitJACK is a professional sound server daemon that provides real-time, low latency connections for both audio and MIDI data between applications that implement its API...
. - Jack transport support (master or client)
- Support for .srt and .sub subtitle files
- Vloopback output for video (Linux only)
- Support for Unicap compatible devices.
- Full integration with upcoming videojack standard
- RFX builder allows rapid prototyping of new effects, transitions, generators, utilities and tools. Custom RFX scripts can be exported to share with others or downloaded and imported. Test scripts are run in a sandbox to allow safe testing of new plugins.
- MIDI sequence synchronisation (start/stop).
- Shuttle controls for firewire cameras/recorders. Can grab from DVDVDV is a format for the digital recording and playing back of digital video. The DV codec was launched in 1995 with joint efforts of leading producers of video camcorders....
and HDVHDVHDV is a format for recording of high-definition video on DV cassette tape. The format was originally developed by JVC and supported by Sony, Canon and Sharp...
formats.
Further reading
- The book "Video Wiedergabe, Bearbeitung und Streaming unter Linux", Open Source Press, contains a chapter on LiVES.
- Interview with the author for Linux BG magazine, original English version
- The LiVES Video Editor and VJ Tool Turns 1.0, Linux Journal, July 2009.
- Review of LiVES 1.0.0-pre1 for Linux Journal