Format to import into I-DVD?
mil...@beanfield.com
I have a G4 I-mac FP.
I found a company in Mass. that will convert my old home movies (16mm) to
DVD's . I'd like to be able to extract the files they put on the DVD and
work with them in I-DVD; creating my own menus, soundtracks, etc...
Does anyone know what format I need to tell them to save it in, or will the
"default" format the files come in work for my needs? When I import captured
video from i-movie into i-dvd, the format just says "DV". Is DV a real
format or is it just a mac thing?
Then I have a question about extracting. Will I have any problems extracting
these files. I know you can't extract movie files from commercial DVD disks
but I assume this is because of anti-copy software that's installed along on
the DVD or does the DVD format have built-in security?
Thanks for any input.
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Jim Glidewell
> I have a G4 I-mac FP.
> I found a company in Mass. that will convert my old home movies (16mm) to
> DVD's . I'd like to be able to extract the files they put on the DVD and
> work with them in I-DVD; creating my own menus, soundtracks, etc...
> Does anyone know what format I need to tell them to save it in, or will the
> "default" format the files come in work for my needs? When I import captured
> video from i-movie into i-dvd, the format just says "DV". Is DV a real
> format or is it just a mac thing?
DV is a real format. The vast majority of $500 to $1500 camcorders sold
today use DV as their data format.
> Then I have a question about extracting. Will I have any problems extracting
> these files. I know you can't extract movie files from commercial DVD disks
> but I assume this is because of anti-copy software that's installed along on
> the DVD or does the DVD format have built-in security?
DVDs can be recorded without encryption. The ones you get from this service
will almost certainly NOT be encrypted.
If you want to work with iMovie and iDVD, you'll need DV.
There are a couple of ways to get there:
1) Have the service create the DVDs, then either:
a) Buy Quicktime Pro *plus* the MPEG-2 reader plugin ($30 each)
With this combo, you should be able to convert MPEG-2 on the DVD
directly to DV using the Quicktime Player "Export..." menu item.
b) Find a friend with a DV camcorder
Connect the DVD video-out to the camcorder analog in, and the
camcorder DV out to your Mac's firewire port. Press play on
the DVD, hit "import" on iMovie and be prepared to fiddle
about a bit (you might need to tape on the camcorder as
an intermediate step).
Or
2) ask if the service can export DV to a firewire drive.
If so, buy a FW drive for them to put the DV on (~13GB per hour),
use that DV data to create your own DVDs, then reuse the
drive for backups, etc. They might be able to write DV
to data DVD-Rs, but you're gonna need the disk space
anyway... :-)
My glances at the Super-8 to DVD dubbing services offered at the
local drugstore from Kodak suggests that the resulting DVD
has basic chapter indexing and a printed directory insert in
the case. You may find that the DVD is fine as-is for the
few times you really want to watch it.
I'd go with option 1, then follow up with 1a or 1b if you get
motivated. If you are tempted to go with option 2, I'd suggest
doing some serious practicing with both iMovie and iDVD before
I committed, since you won't have anything to share with others
until you do the burn.
Putting a nice DVD of old family memories, with soundtracks and
such, is a great project for someone with time and motivation.
Consider integrating photos in as well.
But if you want to get it right the first time, it is well worth
doing some reading - Pogue's "iMovie: the Missing Manual" has a
lot of good advice on general movie-editing issues, as well as
nuts and bolts how-to of the program. Reading a decent book before
getting in too deep will make the process a lot less frustrating,
and will result in a better product...
Have fun!
--
Jim Glidewell
My opinions only