DIAT 3.0 (Build 3.0.1.1) - 2008.10.24
Mediateket is proud to announce the release of DIAT 3.0 - our unique, fast and powerful tool for video file conversion!

Changelog 3.0.1.1 (from 2.x)

This is a major release, where we have put a lot of effort to bring new important features, extend the existing workflow options and enhance the overall quality of both the application and the resulting video.
The list of features, improvements and bugs fixed is in no way not exhaustive, but highlights some of the more important changes in this release.

Major New features

• A completely rewritten DIAT-Player that has a number of new and important features, amongst them:
  • Powerful yet intuitive Aspect Ratio Conversion handles all the normal cases of going from 4:3 to 16:9 and back
  • Auto Channel routing - it is now possible to re-route the audio channels from the source to the destination file, making mono-mixes or removing audio
  • Audio Level meters (PPM) for all channels in the source-file
  • Proper scaling of the preview video window allows for proper viewing of 16:9 files
• A completely new skin has been developed - while keeping the familiar look and feel of the application
• A completely new license system is now used. Amongst many new important improvements it allows for easy activation (and re-activation) of licenses, removing the need to contact Mediateket directly upon purchase or re-install of DIAT.
• A powerful Aspect Ratio Conversion algorithm is implemented, handling conversion between different Aspect Ratios and Pixel Aspects. This allows operations like going to and from Letterbox, Pillarbox and Anamorph 16:9, all while handling both PAL/NTSC pixels and square pixels for computer playback.
• Powerful yet simple Metadata handling is now available. DIAT may read or embed metadata in files that supports it (QuickTime, Windows Media and MXF), or write it to separate files. The input form and output formatting is user configurable through template files.
• Support for DVCPRO HD in QuickTime and MXF-wrapper - including rewrap between the formats
• Support for VC1-profiles in Windows Media Files, provided the right Windows Media Player version is installed
• For some formats (QuickTime, Windows Media and MXF), DIAT now reads and embeds Timecode directly to the file as a separate track (not only burnt into the video, like in 2.x).

Improvements

• DIAT now writes the Aspect Ratio tag directly to the DV-stream
• The internal image scaling is greatly improved - both in quality and speed
• The common properties for the profiles are updated and structured to reflect the new Aspect Ratio features
• The Matrox DV Encoder can now write interleaved audio
• The "Player Drop Zone" is now a separate Play-Icon making this little known feature much easier to use
• If the Template is set to "Overwrite" when files already exists, DIAT may wait for the file to get freed before continuing, instead of failing the job
• It is not possible to turn the information and warning popups off
• The Metadata export templates now include a demo-template for creating HTML output of the metadata when writing to external file
• DIAT may now check for the availability of new versions online
• It is now possible to set the Framerate for all formats that supports it

Bug fixes

There are several hundred bug fixes in version 3.0, ranging from fixes of GUI abnormalities to crashes and failure to convert files. In addition nearly all libraries and codecs are replaced with new versions, removing several conversion problems caused by bugs in codecs and third party software.
Some of the

• In some situations the conversion would take a long time to start.
• The text in Timecode Burn-in was sometimes not scaled correctly
• The date/time used in the Pre/postfix-renaming of files are now the same for all files in a job
• When exporting and importing WMV or H264 profiles, the accompanying PRX and preset files are now copied together with the profile

Known Issues

• Even though Windows Media Player 9 is supported, Windows Media Player 11 may be needed in some configurations for proper conversion to and from Windows Media Video.
• When dropping a large number of files on a template icon (100+), DIAT may not queue them all properly, and may fail to convert some files.
• Conversion from one QuickTime format to another (including raw DV/DV-stream) may fail. This does not affect rewrap between QuickTime DV and DV (or back)

Availability

DIAT 3.0 is available at the online web shop - and as a trial on the download page. The trial version is fully functioning for 14 days, with only a logo embedded in the video as the only limitation.
A test version of the full software without logo is available on special request.

Upgrade from previous versions

While every release of DIAT is made to make an upgrade from previous versions as seamless as possible, you should never do an upgrade on a machine in a production environment without backing up your system first.

License Upgrade Even though your settings and Templates may be upgradeable, you still have to buy a new license to install DIAT 3.0. Previous licenses are not compatible with DIAT 3.0. Current licensees have received an upgrade offer enabling them to buy version 3 at a reduced price.

The format of the template files (.ds) has changed, but DIAT 3.0 is able to both import and export files compatible with previous versions of DIAT. You should always backup your templates before upgrading, and check the settings in all your profiles and destinations after the upgrade.

Important If upgrading from version 2.3, a special uninstall procedure is needed before installing 2.4. Please see the Knowledge base for instructions.

System requirements

DIAT runs on Microsoft Windows XP and Windows 2003, and requires administrator privilidges to install, but not to run. Windows Vista support is scheduled for release during Q1 2009.
Windows Media 9.0 and QuickTime 7.x is required, and may be installed if not present during installation.

Bug reports or feature requests?

If you experience problems with your licensed DIAT sofware, or you have suggestions as to how we may improve DIAT - please Contact Us.

Changelog - previous releases