VisioForge Video Edit SDK .Net — Cheat Sheet¶

Video Edit SDK assembles timelines, applies transitions/effects/overlays, and exports to MP4/MKV/WebM. VideoEditCoreX is the cross-platform engine (GStreamer); VideoEditCore is the Windows-only DirectShow legacy engine. Choose VideoEditCoreX for new projects.

Platform support¶

• VideoEditCoreX (cross-platform, GStreamer): Windows, macOS (Intel + Apple Silicon), Linux (Ubuntu/Debian/CentOS), Android (via MAUI), iOS (via MAUI).
• VideoEditCore (legacy, DirectShow): Windows x64 only.
• UI frameworks: WinForms, WPF, MAUI, Avalonia, Uno, Console.
• Full engine × platform × UI matrix: platform-matrix.md.

NuGet packages¶

Cross-platform engine (recommended for new projects):

<PackageReference Include="VisioForge.DotNet.Core" Version="*" />
<PackageReference Include="VisioForge.DotNet.VideoEditX" Version="*" />

Legacy Windows-only engine:

<PackageReference Include="VisioForge.DotNet.Core" Version="*" />
<PackageReference Include="VisioForge.DotNet.VideoEdit" Version="*" />

UI integration (pick the framework you target):

<PackageReference Include="VisioForge.DotNet.Core.UI.MAUI" Version="*" />
<PackageReference Include="VisioForge.DotNet.Core.UI.Avalonia" Version="*" />
<PackageReference Include="VisioForge.DotNet.Core.UI.WinUI" Version="*" />
<PackageReference Include="VisioForge.DotNet.Core.UI.Uno" Version="*" />

Platform-specific native redistributables follow the same pattern as other VisioForge SDKs (per-OS redist packages pull in the GStreamer natives). See the installation guide for the full list.

Primary API classes¶

Canonical minimum example¶

Two-clip timeline merge, H.264 MP4 output, cross-platform VideoEditCoreX:

using VisioForge.Core;
using VisioForge.Core.Types;
using VisioForge.Core.Types.X.Output;
using VisioForge.Core.Types.X.VideoEdit;
using VisioForge.Core.VideoEditX;

// 1. Initialize SDK (cross-platform engines require this).
await VisioForgeX.InitSDKAsync();

// 2. Create editor. Pass an IVideoView for preview, or null for headless/console.
var editor = new VideoEditCoreX(videoView as IVideoView);

// 3. Wire up events.
editor.OnError    += (s, e) => Console.WriteLine($"Error: {e.Message}");
editor.OnProgress += (s, e) => Console.WriteLine($"Progress: {e.Progress}%");
editor.OnStop     += (s, e) => Console.WriteLine("Editing completed");

// 4. Set timeline output parameters BEFORE adding sources.
editor.Output_VideoSize      = new Size(1920, 1080);
editor.Output_VideoFrameRate = new VideoFrameRate(30);

// 5. Add sources to the timeline (audio + video in one call).
editor.Input_AddAudioVideoFile("/abs/path/intro.mp4", null, null, null);
editor.Input_AddAudioVideoFile("/abs/path/main.mp4",  null, null, null);

// 6. Configure MP4 output.
editor.Output_Format = new MP4Output("/abs/path/output.mp4");

// 7. Start processing. OnStop fires when rendering finishes.
editor.Start();

// ... inside your OnStop handler, or after awaiting a completion signal:
editor.Stop();
editor.Dispose();
VisioForgeX.DestroySDK(); // sync only — no async variant

For trimming, use Input_AddVideoFile with a VideoFileSource(filename, startTime, stopTime, streamNumber, rate) instead — the startTime/stopTime clip the input range.

Typical workflow¶

1. Init SDK: await VisioForgeX.InitSDKAsync() (cross-platform engine only — VideoEditCore legacy skips this).
2. Instantiate VideoEditCoreX (or VideoEditCore for Windows-legacy), passing an IVideoView or null for headless.
3. Set output resolution, framerate, encoder (Output_VideoSize, Output_VideoFrameRate).
4. Add input sources (files, segments, images, audio) — before Start.
5. Set output file via MP4Output (or MKVOutput / WebMOutput / GIFOutput for animated GIF) on Output_Format.
6. Start() (CoreX) or await StartAsync() (legacy) → wait for OnStop → Dispose() + DestroySDK().

Common pitfalls¶

• Set timeline output resolution / framerate before adding sources. Changing Output_VideoSize or Output_VideoFrameRate after Input_Add* can silently reconfigure the pipeline or drift sync.
• Don't mix engine APIs. VideoEditCore uses VideoSource + Input_AddVideoFileAsync; VideoEditCoreX uses VideoFileSource + Input_AddVideoFile (synchronous). The type namespaces also differ (Types.VideoEdit vs Types.X.VideoEdit).
• Init only applies to the X engine. VideoEditCoreX requires VisioForgeX.InitSDKAsync() / DestroySDK(). VideoEditCore (legacy) does not — calling InitSDK for legacy-only apps is unnecessary.
• Use absolute file paths. Relative paths resolve against the process CWD and behave inconsistently across platforms (especially MAUI/iOS/Android where CWD is not your project folder).
• Start is non-blocking; wait on OnStop. Don't assume rendering is complete when Start() returns. Use OnStop (or await-wrap it) to trigger post-processing, then Dispose() and DestroySDK().

See also¶

• Getting started
  • Getting Started Guide — full walkthrough for both engines.
  • Code Samples index — overlays, transitions, audio, composition.
• Specific tasks
  • Merge / concatenate clips → output-file-from-multiple-sources.md
  • Trim / multi-segment from one file → several-segments.md
  • Transitions between clips → transition-video.md, transitions reference
  • Text overlay → add-text-overlay.md
  • Image / logo overlay → add-image-overlay.md
  • Picture-in-picture → picture-in-picture.md
  • Slideshow from images → video-images-console.md
  • Audio mixing / volume envelope → audio-envelope.md, volume-for-track.md
  • iOS editor app → ios-video-editor.md
• Deployment — Windows / macOS / Ubuntu / Android / iOS
• Install & matrix — Installation guide · Platform matrix

FAQ¶

VideoEditCoreX vs VideoEditCore — which do I use?¶

Use VideoEditCoreX for new projects. It runs on Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, and iOS on a GStreamer backend. Use VideoEditCore only to keep existing Windows DirectShow apps running.

Can I add transitions between clips?¶

Yes. VideoEditCoreX supports 100+ SMPTE wipe transitions between consecutive segments — see transition-video.md and the transitions reference.

Does it run on macOS / Linux?¶

Yes — VideoEditCoreX runs on macOS (Intel + Apple Silicon) and Linux (Ubuntu/Debian/CentOS) via the bundled GStreamer natives. VideoEditCore is Windows-only.

How do I trim a file without re-adding it multiple times?¶

Pass a FileSegment[] array to the VideoFileSource constructor — each segment becomes a clipped range from the same source on the output timeline.