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Install & Activate

Getting from download to your first cut list takes a few minutes. CutDetectorPro is a standalone app for macOS, Windows and Linux, so there's no installer to run.

flowchart LR
    A[Download] --> B[Launch] --> C[Import a clip] --> D[Activate to export]

1. Download and launch

Download CutDetectorPro from the beta download folder and unpack it wherever you like. It runs right where it is, so there's nothing to install.

macOS: “the app bundle is corrupt” warning

On macOS you may see a warning about a corrupt app bundle the first time you open the app. This is macOS being cautious about an app that isn't yet notarised by Apple. This video shows how to get past it:

Once CutDetectorPro is out of beta I'll pay for Apple's certification, and this warning will go away.

2. Activate your license

You can try CutDetectorPro straight away. Without a license key it runs in demo mode: you can import clips, detect and fix cuts and extract text, but the export features are switched off (and so is the Apply button of the Hiero integration). An orange UNLICENSED bar in the status bar reminds you.

To unlock everything, activate a license key. The beta license is free, so join our Discord to get yours.

  1. Click the orange UNLICENSED bar, or choose Help → Activate License...
  2. Enter your license key in the Activate CutDetectorPro dialog and confirm.
  3. That's it. The key is now tied to this machine, and the exports are enabled.
Moving to a different computer?

Choose Help → Deactivate License... on the old machine to free up the activation, then activate on the new one.

Does it need an internet connection?

Only occasionally. CutDetectorPro re-checks your license online about once a week. If you're offline when that happens, it keeps working for up to 14 days and shows you how many are left.

3. Tesseract and ffmpeg

Two features rely on free third-party tools. Both come with CutDetectorPro on most systems, so you normally don't have to install anything:

Tool Used for Included with the app on
Tesseract (English) Text extraction (OCR) from burn-ins macOS (Apple Silicon, macOS 15 or later), Windows (64-bit), Linux (x86_64)
ffmpeg Exporting mp4 sub-clips per shot macOS (Apple Silicon and Intel), Windows (64-bit), Linux (x86_64 and ARM)

On any other system, install Tesseract and/or ffmpeg yourself. Without them, everything else still works: text extraction is unavailable and the clip export options are greyed out.

Which copy does the app use?

CutDetectorPro looks for each tool in this order, and uses the first one it finds:

  1. The path in the environment variable CDUI_TESSERACT_PATH or CDUI_FFMPEG_PATH
  2. The path you set in Preferences
  3. The copy that ships with the app
  4. One installed on your system (on your PATH, or in the usual install folders)

So if you'd rather use your own build, point Preferences at it and it takes priority over the bundled one. To see exactly which one is in use, open Help → About CutDetectorPro → Environment. It shows the path, how it was found and its version.

Tesseract (text extraction)

Tesseract is an open-source tool that reads text from images. You only need to install it yourself on systems where it isn't included, or to use your own copy.

  1. Download the installer from the UB Mannheim builds, the most widely used Windows distribution.
  2. Run it. The default install location is fine.
  3. Make sure Add to PATH is ticked.
  4. Check it worked by opening a Command Prompt and running:
tesseract --version

The easiest way is Homebrew:

brew install tesseract
tesseract --version

# Debian / Ubuntu
sudo apt update
sudo apt install tesseract-ocr

# Fedora / RHEL
sudo dnf install tesseract

tesseract --version
Which languages can it read?

Text extraction reads English. The Tesseract that ships with the app contains English language data only.

ffmpeg (clip export)

ffmpeg is the standard tool for converting and cutting video. CutDetectorPro uses it to write one mp4 sub-clip per shot. You only need to install it yourself on systems where it isn't included, or to use your own copy.

winget install Gyan.FFmpeg
ffmpeg -version

Prefer a manual install? Download a build from the ffmpeg download page and add its bin folder to your PATH.

brew install ffmpeg
ffmpeg -version

# Debian / Ubuntu
sudo apt update
sudo apt install ffmpeg

ffmpeg -version

On Fedora and RHEL, ffmpeg is available through RPM Fusion.

What's next?

  • Quick Start

    Import a clip and get your first cut list in five minutes.

    Quick start

  • What's new

    See what changed in the latest version.

    Release notes