Command Line Usage
PFClean has a powerful command line syntax which can be used to script the application to perform operations automatically and without any user interaction at the GUI. Coupling this scripting ability to a scanner controller program provides a means of automatically processing shots as they become available off the scanner.
Please note: Command line scripting internally works differently than working in the GUI. As such, projects created through scripting should be completed (from import to export) in one command line run.
An example of scripting would be to create a new project; import some footage; run degrain and dirt correction over it (specifying detection and fix parameters); and export the results overwriting the original footage. Another example would be to create a new project; import a reel of film into a named scene; run the scene cut detection over it; run a dirt correction pass over all resulting sub-clips using a defect map; and export all sub-clips to a named directory changing output format.
The command line usage of the application is powerful and flexible. This chapter simply describe the more commonly used features.
As with most things in life power and flexibility come at a cost, and in this case its complexity - command line usage is not for the novice user. To make full use of it requires a knowledge of shell scripting, XML, PFClean's effects and parameters, and a bit of understanding of how the application works internally helps. That said, command line usage can be made more accessible to novice users through the use of "high-level" wrappers around PFClean to automate common tasks and to simplify its use and hide some of the complexities by reducing the number of exposed parameters.
This chapter describes the command line interface to PFClean's effect and their parameters and as such little description is given as to what the effect and parameters actually do, only how to define them from the command line.