Summary of Versions of Windows Movie Maker

I recently made the switch from Windows Vista to Windows 7, but there are many who are still using Windows XP.  Each version of the Windows operating system has a version of Windows Movie Maker that Microsoft intends for you to use.

• For Windows XP, there is Movie Maker version 2.1.  If you're an XP user, you can download this version by clicking on this link.
• If your version of Windows Vista that is Home Premium or better, Windows Movie Maker version 6.0 came pre-installed.
• If your version of Windows Vista is less capable than Vista Home Premium, you can download Windows Movie Maker version 2.6 by clicking on this link.
• If you are a Vista user contemplating moving on to Windows 7, you should definitely consider bundling up Movie Maker version 6 (if you have it), because it will be uninstalled when you upgrade your operating system.  I wrote an article for FlipInFocus members about how to to that, which you can read by clicking on this link.
• If you have already moved on to Windows 7, Microsoft expects you to use Windows Live Movie Maker, available by clicking on this link.  The value of the  alternative of Movie Maker version 6, in the previous bullet, is that is more powerful, though the Live version is intended to be easier to use.

Clock Wipe Transition for Windows XP and Windows Movie Maker, Versions 2.1 and 2.6

In an earlier tip, I provided instructions for how to add a custom Clock Wipe transition to Movie Maker, version 6.  If you use version 2.1 or 2.6, here are revised instructions on adding the same transition.

If you don't find a program on your computer called "Movie Maker," you need to refer to the section above to get the application from Microsoft and install it.  To add the new transition:

1. Find and open the Notepad editor on your PC.

2. Copy the text between the  lines, below, by selecting the text and pressing Control+C:

<TransitionsAndEffects Version="1.0">
<Transitions>
<TransitionDLL guid="{DE75D012-7A65-11D2-8CEA-00A0C9441E20}" comment="SMPTE wipes">
<Transition name="wipe-radial-12" iconid="80" comment="Radial - start at 12:00">
<Param name="MaskNum" value="201" />
<Param name="BorderWidth" value="0" />
<Param name="BorderSoftness" value="0" />
</Transition>
</TransitionDLL>
</Transitions>
</TransitionsAndEffects>

Paste the code into Notepad by clicking on the Notepad and then pressing Control+V.

3.  On your computer, create the following directory, if it doesn't exist:

C:\Program Files\Movie Maker\Shared\AddOnTFX

4.  We are going to save the file as an ".xml" file. Select "Save" from the "File" menu. In the Save dialog, navigate to the directory we just created. Then click the "Save as type:" button, and select "All Files (*.*)".  Then type "Wipe, Clock.xml" (without the quotes) as the file name.   Finally, click the 'Save" button.

Adding More Custom Transitions and Effects

Many people have been involved over the past several years in creating a huge number of customized transitions and effects for Movie Maker 2.x and 6.0.  You can use the same basic method of  clipping the text and saving as an .xml file in the Programs/Movie Maker/Shared/AddOnTFX directory described here, for XP, and here, for Vista and Windows 7.

Here are some great sources for some of their work:

Transitions and Effects for Windows XP/Movie Maker 2.x
Transitions and Effects for Windows Vista/Movie Maker 6

At the time of this writing, there are efforts underway to understand the transition/effects architecture for Windows Live Movie Maker.  I would guess there will be custom transitions and effects for that application available in the not-too-distant future.

FlipInFocus members can ask and receive answers to any questions they might have by clicking "Add new comment" below.