Errata

Some minor problems inevitably crop up once a book is printed. We'll post any important stuff below. Here are a couple of general issues first:

There has been a problem with readers accidentally cracking their CDs or DVDs by leaving them in the sleeve in the back of the book - this is another reason why we encourage you to copy its contents to your computer's hard drive and/or make a backup copy. If you have a blank CD or DVD jewelcase, you might want to move the CD or DVD out of the book to a safer place.

If you need a replacement disc for any reason, please see our Contact page for details on who to contact at our current publisher. Be sure to include a descriptive subject line (such as "Need Replacement Book DVD") to avoid falling into the ol' spam filter! (If you don't get a prompt response, please also CC one of us and we will follow up.)

After Effects Apprentice – 2nd Edition

A few small typos & settings:

How to Use This Book:
page x – second column, third paragraph: Edit > Save As should be File > Save As (we have a habit of mixing up the File and Edit menus since we always use the shortcuts!)

Lesson 1 – Basic Animation:
page 21 - line 1: “blue” head should be “yellow” head.

page 30 – step 36: New > Layer > Solid should read Layer > New > Solid.

page 33 - line 7 of body copy: “snowflake layer” should read “snowstorm layer”

Lesson 2 – Advanced Animation:
page 38 - Step 1, line 8: shortcut should be Control on Windows (not Alt).

page 52 - Step 1, comp [05a*Butterfly Flight*starter] was saved in an incorrect state, where the Butterfly 2.tif layer is already set to automatically rotate along its path. Before you start, select Layer 1 and go Layer > Transform > Auto-Orient. In the Auto-orientation dialog that opens, turn Auto-Orient > Off (you’ll enable this option on page 54). Now the butterfly you animate will match the figures.

Lesson 8 – 3D Space:
page 196: Multiplaning numbering should be from 1 through 6. (Step 3 appears to be missing, but it's just a numbering issue; there is no missing text.)

Lesson 9 – Track and Key:
page 220: Getting Started noted that Keylight is not included in the Trial version of After Effects. Fortunately this policy was later changed, so if you are using a trial version later than CS4 you should have all the third-party plug-ins. More on Adobe's Blog here.

Lesson 10 – Paint & Puppet:
page 249, line 5 in sidebar: Change “CyberMotion” folder to “Crish Design” folder.

Note for CS5 users/instructors: If you are using Apprentice 2nd Edition and have updated to CS5, you should find the differences extremely minor. To help avoid any confusion, we have prepared a PDF of changes that apply for CS5 users. If you need coverage of the new features in CS5, CS5.5 and CS6, you might want to check out our online training at lynda.com.

After Effects Apprentice – 1st Edition

In the first edition, we made use of an Adobe Project Template called Bright Idea in Chapter 2. Unfortunately, these templates were not installed with the trial version. If you are missing this file, you can download it here: BrightIdea_folder.zip

Lesson 8 – 3D Space:
page 186: Multiplaning numbering should be from 1 through 6. (Step 3 appears to be missing, but it's just a numbering issue; there is no missing text.)

Further Tech Support:

If you have problems not being able to read the CD or DVD that came with a new book, or if the CD/DVD was missing, you should work with the vendor you bought the book from to make good on your purchase. If you later encounter problems reading from a CD or DVD, and you're sure it's not your drive, again, you can get a replacement (see above). There may be a small shipping and handling charge. Be sure to include a descriptive subject line.

Obviously, we are not in a position to provide technical support for After Effects itself. If you are having problems with the applications used by or included on the CD, such as any Adobe product, or your operating system such as Apple MacOS or Microsoft Windows, please contact those manufacturers directly.