my favorite cheat was 20 keystrokes that did nothing back in the linear days.
The most important thing for a linear editor to know was how to say no without saying that word. I'd make changing the mind of the producer their idea. Sometimes that wasn't possible. And sometimes the client's client would pop in on a friday after a week of editing with a 10 frame timing change in minute one of a one hour show. This is where the keystrokes that did nothing came in. I rustle off 30 seconds of buttun pushing, hit preview and offer a "like that?" to the back of the room. Get the nod and rock on having not done a thing... at least not starting an autoassemble of a rippled EDL that took a week to create. My ausio editor had a pod on his console that was disconnected. Man, we'd all hop in there and entertain ourselves as a producer would close his eyes and tweek that dummy knob till that sound was juuuust perfect. Sometimes we'd appload and offer mad props to the new artist of audio.
Today I do little of this. I sometimes have to capture with compression due to lack of drive space and I don't bring it up but with multiple undos, thats as far as the deception goes. It aint how it use to be when somone asked for a page turn.
"hmmm so your saying not neccesarily a cheezy page turn... just not a cut or dissolve... like maybe a custom matte with a little glow? man thats a great idea. Thats why your the man."
lol
if it's their idea, it's a pretty easy sale.
