Hi, I've been having some trouble exporting my files in mpeg4 format. The compressor opens but it fails to compress due to: Quicktime error -50. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Please, someone help me. I really need this to work.

Try exporting straight from QuickTime and bypass Compressor. What export settings are you using?

you might need to reinstall quicktime.. I read something about that fixing some issues that I believe were similar..

Wow, thanks, your advice is greatly appreciated. By the way, I'm trying to use cable streaming settings.

I tried reinstalling Quicktime and it didn't help. How do I compress it directly from quicktime with bypass compressor?

Open the file you want to compress in QuickTime. Choose "Export" from the "File" menu. There choose mp4 as the format. Configure your export settings (in your case choose the preset).

Is there a way to do that without paying for quicktime pro?

No. Now that you mention that, sounds like we solved the error. You need QuickTime Pro to export/compress video. What version of FCP are you using?

4.5 but the thing is when I use the compressor it sometimes successfuly compresses the CD and another large file size format. It's too big to post on the internet. I just can't get the compressor to compress in the right settings.

the thing is when I use the compressor it sometimes successfuly compresses the CD and another large file size format.

I don't know what to say about that. You have to upgrade to QT Pro to use FCP/Compressor, etc. That's definitely what causes the error. FCP 5 automatically updates QuickTime to Pro when installed. I don't remember about FCP 4.5. I remember earlier versions asked you to upgrade before you installed.

On the PC quite a few free compression utilities exist. If you don't want to get QT Pro, maybe try looking for something like that.

otherwise the upgrade is fairly cheap..

Yeah, thanks for all of your help. I just used the compresser and kept a different file size.