DV for Teachers

Helping someone who wanted to go from iMovie to Windows Media, I looked and found what source files work with Windows Media Encoder:

“The encoder can source from files that have the following file name extensions: .wav, .wma, .wmv, .asf, .avi, .mpg, .mp3, .bmp, and .jpg.”

So, no easy way to do it that I can see… unless capturing/exporting a full-size DV stream, changing the .dv extension to .avi, and importing to WinMovieMaker. I’ll test that now[2:20 pm]:

Later [2:41pm]: Just changing the file extension doesn’t work. I exported a .dv test file from iMovie, but Windows Movie Maker couldn’t do anything with it, even if I changed the file extension from .dv to .avi. I then exported the .dv test file from QuickTime Pro on the Windows machine with these settings:

Video:
Export:Movie to AVI
Compression: DV/DVCPRO – NTSC
Quality: Best
Frames per second: 29.97

Sound:
Format: Uncompressed
Sample rate: 48 kHz
Sample size: 16
Channels: 2 (stereo)

That imported into Wimdows Movie Maker. Next I exported from iMovie with the same settings. iMovie is QT Pro with a nice interface on it, isn’t it? =0)

In other words, the minimum processing necessary to get from the format that iMovie uses to the Windows-friendly .avi extension. The resulting file was just over 22 MB for 6 seconds, only a little more than the standard 3.6 MB a second for DV, and it imported right into Windows Movie Maker like it belonged there.

I also tried one with “None” as the compression, but it was over 120 MB and I didn’t even try to do any more with that – 20MB/second is a data rate I don’t want to fool with until it comes with HD quality.

So if you need to have an iMovie project end up in Windows Media format, this is one way to do it.

“Wanna be a filmmaker? Just grab your DV camera and start shooting, right? Well, if you want to produce something more professional than a glorified “home video,” it’s not that simple.

After a decade of marketing, producing corporate videos and commercials, I was ready to make the leap into narrative filmmaking. With today’s technology, all I had to do was grab a camera and go, right? Um, no.

If your end game, like mine, is to create a “calling card”-that is, a short film to introduce yourself to the film industry or impress investors-you’ll need something more professional.”

A pithy one-page story about what it takes to make a short film. Good for reminding us that it’s never as simple as it looks. From the always solid O’Reilly site.

Tim Carroll heaps praise on Sorenson’s Squeeze 4 for video compression, which exports in Real 10, Flash, and MPEG-4 (a.k.a. H.264, the latest hot codec): “When you take all this into account and a price of $499, the new Sorenson Squeeze 4 Compression Suite is a great value. To set up a comparable encoder with Cleaner, you would need to buy Cleaner 6 which is currently priced at $549 and Sorenson Video 3 Pro codec which is priced at $199, and you would still need to download the Real Media Export Component. Sorenson really did their homework on Squeeze 4, and it shows.”

I’m still using Discreet Cleaner 6, and we’ve been pretty happy with it. I’d like to try the Flash option offered by Squeeze, though.——-

An excellent post at Mac OS X Hints:

“A good, secure password has a number of key characteristics:

1. It will be relatively long (the more characters the better)
2. It will be relatively random (it should look like gobbledygook and it shouldn’t contain sequences of letters that can be found in a dictionary or list of names—in any language!)
3. It will contain both alphanumerics (letters and numbers) and non-alphanumerics
4. Most importantly of all: It should be memorable!

Read on for some advice on how to create passwords that meet all four criteria…”

We all need to be aware of security, and this is very good advice. Make them memorable but not guessable, and this hint helps tell how.——-

“When I say the Axis Line, I’m not talking about megalomaniacs uniting to take over the world. Instead, I’m referring to the line that can be used to create visual continuity between shots. You may be familiar with the Axis Line by one of its other names; The Action Line, The Line of Interest, or The 180-degree Rule. Regardless of the name, they all refer to the same thing.” From DMN’s reliable Stephen Schleicher.

Always a good reminder of the basics for “creating space” on screen, and keeping your viewer oriented. Good comments follow the article, explaining when and how to break these rules, if necessary, to overcome lost shots, poor planning, and other difficulties in making a coherent piece from less than ideal footage.——-

Doc Searls linked to Cory Bergman’s Lost Remote, and scanning the site I came across this post: “You can record up to 60 minutes of DVD-quality video on the internal hard drives of JVC’s new Everio line of camcorders. Rather nifty. ‘I think most consumer recording technology should move to hard drives as soon as possible,’ writes Gizmodo.”

It records in MPEG-2, which is a bear to edit, except with the latest and high-end systems. Tape is a good archiving format for most, and equipment capable of editing DV with minimal hassle is now approaching ubiquity. The capability of down-market computers (i.e. non-Apple, low-end PCs aimed at the education market) to edit MPEG-type Group-of-Picture video is still dubious. Hard-drive based recording is too new and video standards and formats still too much in play for schools to go after one of these new formats for some time. Inexpensive tape-based MiniDV cameras and editing systems are the way to go for the time being.

But keep an eye on things: H.264/MPEG-4 is coming down the pike, and hard drives keep getting smaller and less expensive.——-

At Wired via Macintouch: “A Silicon Valley startup claims to have cracked one of most elusive goals of the software industry: a near-universal emulator that allows software developed for one platform to run on any other, with almost no performance hit.

Transitive Corp. of Los Gatos, California, claims its QuickTransit software allows applications to run “transparently” on multiple hardware platforms, including Macs, PCs, and numerous servers and mainframes.”

My vaporware detectors pegged out on this one. But if it does what they say, and if it’s priced decently, and they’re not sued out of existence for patent or other infringement, and and and… it could be ve-r-r-r-y interesting. I’d love to install XP on a PowerBook for complete compatibility. Or OS X on a nice Sony Vaio. Oh, the mind boggles.——-

Oh, man, if this is what it claims to be:

From Macintouch: “Telestream announced Windows Media for the Mac, which will enable exporting or importing Microsoft Windows Media format files on Mac OS X from any QuickTime-based application, including Final Cut Pro, iMovie, and QuickTime Player. Scheduled for release in the fourth quarter of 2004 with prices starting “under $100,” the component will enable export in Windows Media 7, 8, or 9 Series formats, creation of files in standard and high definition using Windows Media in either stereo or 5.1, and import of those formats for playing or editing.”

——-

The UnOfficial iDVD 4.x FAQ seems a wealth of information for understanding how to get the best out of iDVD 4. It’s a great next step after reading the Tutorial in the iDVD Help. Highly recommended.——-

I finished the video about the GSU College of Education’s Induction program, to show how the college provides support for its beginning teacher graduates to help keep them in the profession. An important program and I’m glad to support it.

(Click on the image at left for a screenshot of the finished project in Final Cut Pro. Lots of keyframes.)