Installing VerseCut

VerseCut 3.0 for Windows 10 and 11 (64-bit) and macOS 12 Monterey or later. Setup takes about 10 minutes and needs the internet once. After that VerseCut works completely offline: it makes no network connection while you use it.

VerseCut 3.0 replaces 2.0. Projects from 1.2 and 2.0 open in 3.0 unchanged.

What you need

Windows

macOS

Nothing else is needed on a Mac: VerseCut brings its own Python, so you do not need Xcode, the Command Line Tools or Homebrew.

Install on Windows

1. Download VerseCut-3.0-Windows.zip.
2. Unzip it to C:\VerseCut. Right-click the ZIP › Extract All… › type C:\ as the destination. Avoid Downloads, Desktop and OneDrive folders — OneDrive would try to sync the engine, which is about 2 GB once installed.
3. Double-click Install-VerseCut.bat.
   • If Windows says "Windows protected your PC", click More info › Run anyway.
   • The window shows six clean steps: Python, speech engine, video engine, speech model, shortcuts, licence.
4. When it says "VerseCut 3.0 is installed", press any key to close the window.
5. A VerseCut icon appears on your desktop and in the Start menu. Open it from either.

Everything technical from setup is written to C:\VerseCut\runtime\install.log, so the window stays free of warnings. If a step fails, that file says why.

Windows "N" editions (sold in Europe and Korea) leave out Windows' media encoders, which VerseCut uses to make MP4 files. If setup says the media encoders did not respond, install the Media Feature Pack: Settings › Apps › Optional features › Add a feature › Media Feature Pack, then restart.

Install on macOS

1. Download VerseCut-3.0-macOS.zip and double-click it to unzip. You get a folder called VerseCut. It can stay in Downloads — setup copies everything it needs into your Applications folder.
2. Open the VerseCut folder and double-click Install VerseCut.command. A Terminal window opens and runs setup.
   • macOS 15 Sequoia or later: the first time, macOS says it cannot verify the file. Click Done, open System Settings › Privacy & Security, scroll down to Security, click Open Anyway next to "Install VerseCut.command" was blocked, confirm with your password or Touch ID, and click Open Anyway again.
   • macOS 12 to 14: right-click the file, choose Open, then click Open in the dialog.
   • If macOS asks whether Terminal may access files in your Downloads folder, click OK — that is how setup reads the VerseCut folder.
3. The window shows seven steps: this Mac, VerseCut, Python, speech engine, video engine, speech model, the app. It takes about 10 minutes the first time.
4. When it says "VerseCut 3.0 is installed", VerseCut opens by itself. Press Return to close the Terminal window.
5. From now on, open VerseCut like any other app: from Launchpad, from the Applications folder, or with Spotlight (⌘ Space, type VerseCut). To keep it in the Dock, right-click its Dock icon while it is open and choose Options › Keep in Dock.
6. You can delete the downloaded VerseCut folder and ZIP — the app no longer needs them.

The first time VerseCut opens a file in Documents, Downloads, the Desktop or an external drive, macOS asks whether VerseCut may access that folder. Click Allow.

If setup cannot finish, it stops with a red Setup stopped: line and a message on screen that says why. The full detail is in ~/Library/Logs/VerseCut/install.log (in Finder: Go › Go to Folder…, paste ~/Library/Logs/VerseCut).

What gets installed, and where

The preview cache holds thumbnails, waveforms and preview copies. It is safe to delete at any time; VerseCut rebuilds what it needs.

VerseCut listens only on your own computer (address 127.0.0.1), opens in a clean browser window, and never contacts the internet on its own.

Upgrading from 2.0, 1.2 or WordCut 1.0

Install 3.0 the normal way. Your projects, exports and licence folder are left where they are, and projects from 1.2 and 2.0 open in 3.0 unchanged.

• Windows: unzip 3.0 into the same C:\VerseCut folder and run Install-VerseCut.bat. It rebuilds the speech engine, replaces the video engine with the 3.0 one and reuses the speech model, so there is no second large download. WordCut 1.0 projects are copied from Documents › WordCut › Projects to Documents › VerseCut › Projects.
• Mac: run Install VerseCut.command from the 3.0 download. It moves the old VerseCut.app to the Bin. The 2.0 speech model lived inside the old VerseCut folder, so 3.0 downloads it once more (about 480 MB); after that, reinstalls keep it. You can delete the old 2.0 VerseCut folder when you are happy with 3.0.

One-time licences are per release line. A one-time licence bought for 2.0 keeps working in 2.0 for good; 3.0 needs a 3.0 licence or a subscription.

Entering your licence

VerseCut gives every new installation 14 days of the Creator plan. There is no account to make, no card to enter and nothing to cancel. When the trial ends VerseCut carries on as Free, and your projects stay where they are.

When you buy a plan you receive a licence file, and the same text in the email. To activate:

1. Open VerseCut and click Licence at the top.
2. Either paste the licence text (everything from -----BEGIN VERSECUT LICENCE----- to -----END VERSECUT LICENCE-----) or click Choose file… and pick the licence file.
3. Click Activate. The plan appears immediately.

VerseCut checks the licence's signature on this computer, against a key built into the application. There is no activation server, no account and no online check, so this works on a machine that has never been connected to the internet.

An annual licence keeps working for 14 days past its renewal date before features step down to Free, so a late renewal never interrupts a deadline. A one-time licence never expires and covers the 3.0 release line.

Finding the Machine ID

The Machine ID identifies this computer without saying anything about you or it. Open VerseCut, click Licence, and it is shown under This computer, in the form VC-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX. Click the copy button next to it to put it on the clipboard.

It is a one-way hash: it contains no name, serial number or address, and it stays on the computer unless you choose to send it to us — which you only need to do if you ask for a licence to be locked to specific machines.

Moving to a new computer

1. Install VerseCut on the new machine and run the installer as above.
2. Copy your projects across if you want them: the whole VerseCut folder from Documents on the old machine to Documents on the new one.
3. Open VerseCut, click Licence, and enter the same licence text or file.

A Creator licence covers 2 computers and a Studio licence covers one seat per person. If you have reached the limit because you are retiring a machine, email bjohn@gostateam.com and we will free the seat. If your licence has been locked to specific machines at your request, send us the new Machine ID and we will reissue it.

Removing VerseCut

Windows

1. Delete the C:\VerseCut folder and the VerseCut shortcuts from the desktop and the Start menu.
2. Optional: delete %LOCALAPPDATA%\VerseCut (cache and licence).

macOS

1. Drag VerseCut from the Applications folder to the Bin.
2. Optional: delete ~/Library/Application Support/VerseCut (speech model, cache and licence) and ~/Library/Logs/VerseCut.

On both platforms your projects and exports are kept unless you delete them yourself.

Troubleshooting

The installer window closes straight away. Something failed before the window could report it. On Windows, open a Command Prompt, type cd C:\VerseCut and then Install-VerseCut.bat, and read the error. On macOS, open Terminal, drag Install VerseCut.command onto the window and press Return. The full detail is in C:\VerseCut\runtime\install.log (Windows) or ~/Library/Logs/VerseCut/install.log (Mac).

"The video engine files are damaged." The video engine is included in the VerseCut download and checked before it is installed. This message means the download was corrupted or altered. Download VerseCut again from the VerseCut website, unzip it, and run the installer again.

The speech model download fails. Connect to the internet once and click Transcribe again, or run the installer again. The model is about 500 MB and only downloads once.

"Port in use" or VerseCut will not start. VerseCut uses port 8765 by default and moves to the next free port if it is taken. If it cannot start at all, close any other copy of VerseCut that is already running, then try again. On Windows you can find what is holding the port with netstat -ano | findstr 8765; on macOS, lsof -i :8765.

The browser window does not appear. The engine may be running without a window. On Windows, double-click C:\VerseCut\VerseCut.bat. On macOS, quit VerseCut from its Dock icon and open it again from Launchpad. If neither helps, open your browser and go to http://127.0.0.1:8765.

A clip shows MISSING. The file was moved or renamed. Import it again from its new location.

Log files. Setup: C:\VerseCut\runtime\install.log on Windows, ~/Library/Logs/VerseCut/install.log on macOS. Application: %LOCALAPPDATA%\VerseCut\versecut.log on Windows, ~/Library/Logs/VerseCut/versecut.log on macOS.

macOS: common questions

Mac: "Apple could not verify 'Install VerseCut.command' is free of malware." VerseCut's installer is not yet notarised by Apple. Click Done, then System Settings › Privacy & Security › Open Anyway (see step 2 above). This is needed once.

Mac: setup stopped with "Could not download Python" or "Installing the speech-to-text engine failed". Setup needs the internet once. Check the connection (and any firewall or content filter that blocks github.com, pypi.org or files.pythonhosted.org) and double-click Install VerseCut.command again. It skips what is already done.

Mac: I can't find VerseCut. Open Launchpad, or press ⌘ Space and type VerseCut. It is in the Applications folder. If your Mac account cannot write to Applications, setup puts it in the Applications folder inside your home folder instead (Finder › Go › Home › Applications) and says so.

Mac: "VerseCut could not start." VerseCut shows this instead of failing silently. Click Show log and send the file versecut.log to bjohn@gostateam.com. Running Install VerseCut.command again rebuilds the app without touching your projects.

Mac: VerseCut cannot open a file in Downloads, Desktop or Documents. Open System Settings › Privacy & Security › Files and Folders, find VerseCut, and switch on the folder.