^{Setting general options}

The General tab lets you set the default options for general settings and options in Windows Movie Maker. By using this dialog box, you can customize and configure some settings in Windows Movie Maker to fit your own needs.

In this tab of the Options dialog box, the following options appear.

Default author

Specifies the default name of the person who created the movie. The name is displayed by default when you save a project as a movie; the author’s name appears when the movie is played in some media players, such as Windows Media Player. Therefore, do not enter any personal information that you do not want others to see. For more information about privacy, see the Windows Movie Maker privacy statement at the Microsoft Web site.

Temporary storage

Specifies the temporary storage location for captured audio, as well as saved movies. When you are capturing an audio narration, the temporary buffer file is stored in this location, and then removed when the final captured audio file is saved.

When saving a movie that you are going to send in an e-mail message or to a video hosting provider on the Web, a copy of the movie file is stored in this location until the movie is sent successfully. When sending a movie to a tape in a DV camera, the temporary movie file that is created is stored in this location until the movie is recorded to the tape.

Click Browse to find the location you want to specify as your temporary storage location on your computer. You may want to change your temporary storage location to specify a location that has more available disk space. For example, if your hard disk has two partitions, you may want to choose the drive that has more available disk space when capturing video or saving a movie that you want to record to a tape in a DV camera.

Open last project on startup

Specifies whether the last saved project is opened automatically when Windows Movie Maker is started. If this check box is cleared, a new blank project is started when Windows Movie Maker is started.

Save AutoRecover info every

Specifies that you want a project and your collections file to be saved automatically after the specified amount of time, in minutes. When this check box is selected, the project and collections file is automatically saved, along with any changes in your project and collections during the specified amount of time. This lets you recover your work if a power failure or similar problem should occur.

Download codecs automatically

Specifies that Windows Movie Maker attempts to download codecs automatically when you choose to import a video or audio file that uses a codec that is not installed on your computer. You must be connected to the Internet for this option to work. If the appropriate codec is found on a Microsoft Web site, the codec is then downloaded and installed silently without any user intervention.

If you do not want codecs to be installed automatically on your computer, clear this check box. To install codecs, you must have the appropriate Administrator permissions.

Reset Warning Dialogs

Click this button to reset the different warning dialog boxes that appear in Windows Movie Maker. If you selected the Do not show this dialog again in one of the different warning dialog boxes, these warning dialog boxes will appear again after you click this button.

Clear All Passwords and User Names

Click this button to reset all user names and passwords that have been entered and stored in Windows Movie Maker. In Windows Movie Maker, user names and passwords are stored on a per-user basis. You could click this button to clear the user name and password so that the appropriate user name and password must be re-entered when you send a movie to the Web if you selected the Save my password check box when saving a movie to a video hosting provider on the Web. This helps to add another layer of security, so that others cannot send a movie to a video hosting provider using your account information.

Restore All Defaults

Click this button to return Windows Movie Maker to the default settings for options and settings displayed on the General tab. For example, if you selected a new temporary storage location and changed the default author name, and later decided that you wanted to change these setting back to the default, along with other options displayed on the General tab, you can click this button to return to the default settings.

Related topics

• To specify the default author
• To specify the temporary storage location
• To automatically open the last project when Windows Movie Maker starts
• To change the save interval time for automatic file recovery
• To automatically download uninstalled codecs
• To reset warning dialog boxes
• To clear all passwords and user names
• To restore default general settings
• Configuring options