Video Editing Software

[db83]

I'm not a fan of the books that come with the software. They can get pretty complicated and technical sometimes. I love the for dummies books. Whenever I want to learn something in terms that are easily understandable, that's where I turn.

[scubarobin]

I like the Pinnacle manual, it is very informative and easy to understand.

If the video is grainy, then you are saving it in the wrong format for the web, or you are posting it on a website that doesn't support that format and downgrades it. Some software does MPEG-4, some do MPEG-1 or MPEG-2, some do other formats like RealMedia. check that. Pinnacle pretty much lets you do any output format.

for posting on internet:
YouTube now has HD function.
Vimeo has HD function.

I save my videos as .wmv files, 1280/720p high quality HDV. Pinnacle gives you lots and lots of options. This is not the highest setting but it is the highest allowed on Vimeo, so that is what I use.

[Tekdivr]

Originally Posted by scubarobin

I like the Pinnacle manual, it is very informative and easy to understand.

If the video is grainy, then you are saving it in the wrong format for the web, or you are posting it on a website that doesn't support that format and downgrades it. Some software does MPEG-4, some do MPEG-1 or MPEG-2, some do other formats like RealMedia. check that. Pinnacle pretty much lets you do any output format.

for posting on internet:
YouTube now has HD function.
Vimeo has HD function.

I save my videos as .wmv files, 1280/720p high quality HDV. Pinnacle gives you lots and lots of options. This is not the highest setting but it is the highest allowed on Vimeo, so that is what I use.

Thanks for the additional info regarding the software I ended up purchasing.

[CompuDude]

Bah. Just get a mac. You'd be surprised at what you can do with a Mini.

[Tekdivr]

Originally Posted by CompuDude

Bah. Just get a mac. You'd be surprised at what you can do with a Mini.

I know, I know....Thanks for reminding me CD! I would have to have a Macbook Pro and just can't justify the huge price tag. Someday I'll make the switch.

[db83]

The huge price tag is justified by their higher quality parts, absolutely amazing touch-pad capabilities, and the fact that they indeed make your member considerably larger.

[Tekdivr]

Originally Posted by db83

The huge price tag is justified by their higher quality parts, absolutely amazing touch-pad capabilities, and the fact that they indeed make your member considerably larger.

Nice to know! I think one of their biggest draws would be the fact that there aren't too many people out there pissed off enough to write viruses that effect Apple. Not so sure about the part quality being so mucn better, but I don't claim to be an expert. A lot of friends have them and I probably would too if I had the extra cash!

[db83]

Well, I know that for their desktop Mac Pros, they use the nahalem xenon processors. You won't find that on any of the pc makers.

[bent]

Macs did have better parts, but about the only thing different now is the OS. Back in the day, Macs used fast SCSI drives that you normally saw in servers and had cell processors. Now Mac is based on Unix code like Linux which runs on the same hardware that can run windows.

I would have to agree that you would not see as many virus programs written for the mac, but they should bring the price down a bit for most families to afford them.