Please help me get started with MM

  • Thread starter Thread starter Awelch
  • Start date Start date
A

Awelch

I bought a DEll 300 with DVD writer and IEE1363? connector. But, the
operating system is Win XP Home Edition. I don't see Windows Movie
Maker here. Can I install it with this system?

Another issue- My old camcorder has no output connections other than the
yellow/white audio/video TV connector. I think I'd like a new camera
that uses the IEEE stuff. Would a Hi8 be OK or would the digital disc
type be required? I want to get good results while keeping costs down.
Help!
 
Hi Awelch...just a quick answer, i have to leave shortly....
Windows Movie Maker is not a separate program, but in the 'accessories'...
go to 'start' 'all programs' then 'accessories' and you will find it in
the group somewhere. The latest version is in the Service Pack 2 download,
but you may
already have it if you just bought your computer.

As far as the new 'camcorders', do a google search for 'how to buy
camcorder', and
read some of the recommendations that PCWorld has there.

Mini DV's are the best thing going right now, and I don't think the DVD
recorders are completely proven yet. I have a HC40 Sony (mini DV) and I
like it a lot, but now of course, I wish I had gotten a higher end
one....since I always like the newer stuff.
I found it to be very easy to import my movies into my computer using Movie
Maker and the firewire cable. Others can answer your question better, but I
think some of the '8mm' stuff says 'digital' 8......I don't think the
'analog' cuts it anymore.

My eyes are bigger than my wallet, but I'm drooling over the $3,700, (worlds
first high definition 1080i) consumer camera that Sony has!! Man, that
would be hot, but out of the price range. Good mini-DV's are probably
around $600 and up now i think.
Good luck!
 
For your current camcorder you would need an analog capture card to get your
movies into MM. What type of analog camcorder is it? VHS-C or 8mm? I bought a
Sony Handycam TRV-460 about a year or so ago. It is Digital 8 but backwards
compatible with 8mm. The Dig 8 quality is probably a little lower than DV
camcorders. I bought it for the price (<$400) and the 8mm compatability.
Picture on DVD is fine by me. I was able to recapture my old tapes at a
higher quality than previously captured with a Dazzle Digital Video Creator,
although for the old stuff the final DVD is only as good as the original,
which wasn't top of the line to start with. Once you make your choice, use
firewire to import and DV-AVI as the file format when saving if you plan to
go to DVD.

Good Luck!

Steve
 
Steve said:
For your current camcorder you would need an analog capture card to get
your
movies into MM. What type of analog camcorder is it? VHS-C or 8mm? I
bought a
Sony Handycam TRV-460 about a year or so ago. It is Digital 8 but
backwards
compatible with 8mm. The Dig 8 quality is probably a little lower than DV
camcorders. I bought it for the price (<$400) and the 8mm compatability.
Picture on DVD is fine by me. I was able to recapture my old tapes at a
higher quality than previously captured with a Dazzle Digital Video
Creator,
although for the old stuff the final DVD is only as good as the original,
which wasn't top of the line to start with. Once you make your choice, use
firewire to import and DV-AVI as the file format when saving if you plan
to
go to DVD.

Good Luck!
Click to expand...

I have the same camera (sony trv-460)and I like it very much. It also works
as a analog converter for other cameras or Vhs recorders too.
Firewire is not hard to do install if you have room for the card and most do
these days. I use WinDV to capture my video from my camera and have never
had any problems yet (no dropped frames). I use MM to edit but have tried
ulead movie factory 2 which came with my dvd burner it has some hicups so
far so I use MM instead for now. Then I burn with ulead movie factory 2.

jim
 
jd,

I've read here all about dropped frames, but to tell you the truth, I don't
notice it at all when I watch my DVDs created from MM editing. The only
hiccups sometimes occur between movies. I use MyDVD version 4.5 so I make
small movies and import separately (pseudo chapters). Sometimes there is a
blip between movies but I haven't noticed anything within a movie.
 
Well, I was surprised to find Movie Maker lying in the program files.
It was not listed under accessories as it was supposed to be.

My thanks to those who've offered advice here1
 
Steve, you should find that Digital 8 and Mini dv shown on the same tv via
the camcorders gives the same results as they both save to the tape as a dv
file in exactly the same manner. Differences will come into play when
captured to pc and then with the way different apps handle the file and what
settings/file types are used, but if these are identical, then there should
again be no difference.

Graham

--
Graham Hughes
MVP Digital Media
www.myvideoproblems.co.uk
www.dvds2treasure.com
www.simplydv.com
 
As has been suggested by Steve an option is to buy a digital 8 cam which
will play your old Hi 8/Video 8 tapes. Beware though as they don't all do
so.
Another option is to get a minidv cam, which will keep you up to date a
little more, D8 is slowly dying off, but buy a cam which has ANALOGUE IN,
then you can use the cam as a pass through device, connect the old cam to
the new one and the new one to the pc.
You could also as suggested buy an analogue capture card, or an external
analogue to digital convertor, cheap ones like the dazzle sometimes have
sync problems, better ones like canopus or miglia have chips which hold the
video and audio together, but obviously cost much more!!
Don't buy a dvd cam unless you just want to record and watch the dvds. It is
very hard to edit the movies from these cam s at present.

Graham

--
Graham Hughes
MVP Digital Media
www.myvideoproblems.co.uk
www.dvds2treasure.com
www.simplydv.com
 
Maybe mini-dv is capable of higher resolution. However, the average joe
out here still uses a crt television. We have come to accept less than
perfect clarity in TV over the years. Also, sharpness is limited by the
quality of the lens and lighting conditions. Therefore, for my needs I
think the digital8 Sony suggested would best meet my needs. I do have
some older 8 mm stuff i'd like to edit into a movie also.
Has anyone odered from CAMERAFORLESS.COM?
 
The resolution of the recorded picture is 720x576 PAL and is the same for
all cameras (exc HD). You will of course get a difference between a camera
costing £0,000's and one costing £000's in the Optics and ccd quality etc
but at the end of the day the movie on both D8 and minidv tapes is a dv
file.

--
Graham Hughes
MVP Digital Media
www.myvideoproblems.co.uk
www.dvds2treasure.com
www.simplydv.com
 
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