On Fri, 04 May 2001 20:31:52 GMT, no@way.com wrote:

>Hi Steve (& anyone else who is really knowledgeable about DV editing software
>only please).

Not SMcD, but...

>I have been searching a long time for a good DV camcorder & decided to pick up
>the Sony TRV730 camera. I love it! Except the DV recording aspect of it. I am
>sure it outputs great video but the software apps (Studio DV & Premiere 6)
>does not seem to get the most out of camcorder in my opinion.

???
On what is this based?

>I have tried the above apps with different codecs. I am getting dizzy with all
>the tips pages, codec evaluating, etc.

You can find an article on 10-generations of forced
rendering with Raptor on my web site, listed under
"I babble" - and a URL for tests of other codecs.
It appears that the Raptor is excellent for its card,
and another ($50) is similarly excellent for type I
FireWire cards.

>Steve, you are really knowledgeable. It seems from reading the news groups
>that you have years of experience in this topic. (You should start your own
>web page "like Tom's Hardwarwe" but for DV camcorders). Maybe you could even
>make money on it!

Several Mini-DV camcorders are reviewed (critically...)
on my web site - but it has made me (almost) no money...;-)

>Anyway, I would greatl appreciate if you could tell me exactly what
>DV software, codecs (especially during the capture phase), steps included
>in the DV editing process, and any more tips that you could relay to me on how
>you get the best DV into your computer.

The codec does not modify the video during import/export,
so all "codecs" will leave the video produced by the
camcorder unchanged unless filters/effect/transitions/etc.
are added when the video is in the computer - and only
that changed footage will show the ill effects of using
a poor codec... (this is assuming FireWire transfer...).

>I want to do this to keep a permanent record on CD's of my son growing up.

I would not use it for this, unless VERY brief clips
are OK - wait until cheap and reliable DVD-writers are
available. Meanwhile, carefully stored tapes will
last many years, with the original quality preserved...