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Back to School: Bargain laptops for under $750 - Full Featured
There's no doubt about it: The computer is now an essential part of the learning process, especially at the college level. If money is tight (it is for most of us), just remember, you don't have to break the bank to get a laptop with decent performance. I've rounded up these 5 laptops that are all good performers and have even better prices.
Dell, HP, Acer.
Prices and comparisons. There's no doubt about it: The computer is now an essential part of the learning process, especially at the college level. If mon... more -
Final Cut Server 1.1
Apple's long-awaited Final Cut Server 1.1 is a complex and powerful tool for Final Cut Pro users who have advanced requirements for organizing large amounts of footage, working with multiple editors and/or artists, or needing to automate certain production steps.
Final Cut Server is a client-server-based workflow tool that can potentially help you in three ways: in cataloging and searching assets, especially video-based assets; with version control through check-in and check-out capabilities and approval; and with automation capabilities to convert, copy, and execute scripts.
Interface
You can run the server side of Final Cut Server with a variety of hardware, from a high-end Xserve to a Mac Pro. From the main interface, you can see thumbnails, double-click to see small H.264 previews, see all the shot metadata, and drag a shot or group of shots directly into Final Cut Pro--very slick. The interface is intuitive and most features are pretty obvious and user-friendly. The software never crashed during my testing, and the documentation is up to Apple's usual high standards. I was not able to evaluate setup and installation because Apple provided a system that was preconfigured and had the software installed.
Catalog and search
Final Cut Server has powerful, flexible, and easy-to-use catalog and searching capabilities. This is useful when you have hundreds or thousands of clips for multiple projects that pull video from the same collection of footage, or one massive project for which you need better searching capabilities than those in Final Cut Pro.
The way Final Cut Server catalogs files, and the ease with which you can create detailed, customized, savable searches are major selling points. These will be the most readily usable features for most users.
Unlike other asset-management systems I've used that were aimed at Web or print production, Final Cut Server does not copy your footage or other assets and store them in a separate catalog file or database. Instead, it updates a catalog when new files are placed in folders it has been told to "watch" (more on that later). This allows you to organize your assets in exactly the way they are already working for you.
When assets are added to the catalog, either manually or via the folder-watching feature, the program will generate still and video thumbnails of the clips, and gather metadata (information about your assets) such as the shot name and any logging notes you made, all of which you can search later--even if the source files are in separate storage drives not connected to Final Cut Server. This is handy for shops that have lots of FireWire drives filled with footage...
...You can also create scripts for complex operations, like publishing content to a custom Web page and having a client provide feedback via the Web back to Final Cut Server. The catch is, many of the advanced capabilities are contingent on custom scripting. You can use Ruby scripts, Automator scripts, and others, but it is up to you to provide or build them. That is a huge barrier for most users, and significantly limits the usefulness of the product for nonscripters if the application doesn't already do what you want it to do.
Final Cut Server is great for consultants and developers--the package is inexpensive for enterprise-level software, but to really get the most out of it, you could easily spend more on the custom integration work than on the software will. Apple's long-awaited Final Cut Server 1.1 is a complex and powerful tool for Final Cut Pro users who have advanced requirements f... more -
Hey! Old Batman Trailer Look Like New Batman Trailer!
"I saw this a couple days ago and wasn't going to post it, but since a few people have sent it in now, here it is: a side-by-side comparison of the last trailer to The Dark Knight and the eerily similar 1989 trailer to Tim Burton's Batman. Lazy editing? Supernatural coincidence? Conspiracy? Or simply evidence of another mysterious someone who has the time and energy to completely re-edit a trailer to make it seem like something else, keeping the collective internet mildly entertained for another two minutes? You decide." "I saw this a couple days ago and wasn't going to post it, but since a few people have sent it in now, here it is: a side-by... more
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Cinnafilm Unveils Breakthrough Graphics Technology with Cinnafilm HD1 Real-Time Fi...
Albuquerque-based Cinnafilm, Inc. announced the unveiling of their advanced Cinnafilm™ HD1 real-time film look system which transforms HD digital video to pristine cinematic quality in real-time. This solution offers professional filmmakers and editors an edge in achieving a high quality film appearance with digital video in real time. Albuquerque-based Cinnafilm, Inc. announced the unveiling of their advanced Cinnafilm™ HD1 real-time film look system which transforms... more
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Obama Race Speech Distorted by Polling Company Video
After watching the full video of the Obama speech on "a more perfect union", i saw the Rasmussen report video "Can Obama recover from the Pastor Problem?".
RasmussenReport's Website states that "during both Election 2004 and Election 2006, RasmussenReports.com was the top-ranked public opinion research site on the web." They "had twice as many visitors as our nearest competitor and nearly as many as all competitors combined."
I think this Video by RasmussenReports may be biased which would present a big problem to the Polling Company's general credibility, even though it claims that it was "the nation's most accurate polling firm during the 2004 Presidential election and the only one to project both Bush and Kerry's vote total within half a percentage point of the actual outcome."
(See "About Us" Section of their Website: http://rasmussenreports.com/public_content/about_us
The video may be biased in its choice of footage used from the full Speech:
Besides the fact, that Rasmussen apparently uses footage from Fox (as can be seen from the inserts), which might itself have been an an unfavorable edit of the speech, the Polling institute presents rather extended excerpts of Pastor Wrights Sermon, as well as a short version of the Obama speech. Rasmussen edits this speech into the following (a complete text version of the speech can be read at http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/03/18/obama-race-spe...
See the full Speech at http://current.com/items/88871445_youtube_barack_obama_....
"And I confess that if all that I knew of Reverend Wright were the snippets of those sermons that have run in an endless loop on the television and You Tube, or if Trinity United Church of Christ conformed to the caricatures being peddled by some commentators, there is no doubt that I would react in much the same way"
Cut to: "Anger over welfare and affirmative action helped forge the Reagan Coalition. Politicians routinely exploited fears of crime for their own electoral ends."
Cut to: "But I have asserted a firm conviction - a conviction rooted in my faith in God and my faith in the American people - that working together we can move beyond some of our old racial wounds, and that in fact we have no choice is we are to continue on the path of a more perfect union." After watching the full video of the Obama speech on "a more perfect union", i saw the Rasmussen report video "Can Oba... more -
Dr. King Remixed to Rocky
Joe Sabia put together this great video featuring Dr. King giving his inspiring "Mountaintop" speech on April 3, 1968, the night before his assassination. It features Dr. King, Rocky, and footage from the top of Mount Everest.
I mixed King's speech with a great Remix to the Rocky Song arranged by the very talented Ronald Jenkees. The full text to King's phenomenal speech to striking sanitation workers at Mason Temple in Memphis, Tennessee can be found at http://www.afscme.org/about/1549.cfm Joe Sabia put together this great video featuring Dr. King giving his inspiring "Mountaintop" speech on April 3, 1968, the n... more -
Is It Drool-Proof?
Video editors, graphics types, and gamers who pick one of these up will probably want a splash guard to keep their friends and co-workers from slobbering on it. From what I've been reading, the Upravlator has got 12 customizable five-way keys that let you do everything from change fonts to select weapons during gameplay with a single push of a button. Video editors, graphics types, and gamers who pick one of these up will probably want a splash guard to keep their friends and co-work... more
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How to edit video
For those of you that learned to edit on Final Cut Pro, iMovie, Avid Express and such, be thankful you were born when you were. This is quite possibly the most tedious editing process ever. For those of you that learned to edit on Final Cut Pro, iMovie, Avid Express and such, be thankful you were born when you were. This ... more
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Amazing Los Angeles filmmakers resource
SmogTV is an online video project supported by HD Pictures and Post, a media and technology firm located in Santa Monica, Ca. SmogTV loans professional level resources to filmmakers in the LA area to shoot Internet video content of their choosing. SmogTV in partnership with DVWI, a division of Band Pro Film and Digital, supplies filmmakers with a Sony 1080i HDV camera, tape stock, professional sound (Sennheiser microphones, lavaliers, boom mics), and lighting gear, as well as access to a 2-story state-of-the-art post-production facility. Because of DVWI's support, SmogTV does not charge filmmakers for using these resources.
All content shot by SmogTV's filmmakers is posted on its main site, SmogTV.com. To keep the goals of the site consistent, our filmmakers retain the copyright to all content shot via SmogTV. We also believe in ubiquity and encourage our filmmakers to post their content on other sites as well (YouTube, MySpace, their personal web pages, etc.).
SmogTV's purpose is to create a community of filmmakers who can express themselves freely and to encourage new ideas and views that may connect with people around the world. SmogTV is an online video project supported by HD Pictures and Post, a media and technology firm located in Santa Monica, Ca. SmogTV l... more -
HDV, AVCHD, Blu Ray HD DVD, Video Post Production: THE MONEY and TIME INVESTMENT
Love this line from the site.....
Every revolution begins with it's first act of defiance.
For me that is what HD has always been about. I refused to believe it should cost millions to make great movies. So far I feel like I have been dead A## Wrong.
No one told me it was going to take a lifetime to see real positive change via the PEACE, LOVE and ROCK and ROLL path. I guess it is just one of those live and learn deals.
Any yet somehow, I STILL BELIEVE.
If you take time to read profiles you will see a current projects section. My current project is setting up a home/studio for POST, however I must sadly say this has been my current project for some time. WHY the DELAYS you might ask? Well let me just say my research brings up more questions than answers and this doesn't make for wise investing in my view.
The question becomes why buy anything if it doesn't give you the finished product you desire?
I want film quality with an HD Cine playback aspect and a line producer cost advantage.
My FAV Directors have always wanted to shoot in FILM, but I have been saying for 13 years HD was the answer and boy have I been wrong. Only now are we getting to the point we may see a universal compression format that might work across the post line without spending major bucks for HD CINE camera and lens gear.
I find myself here because I like the concept of TV shorts with the alternative and sustainable slant, but I also want image and edit quality, and do not wish to present anything that is half done.
My guess is CURRENT will have an HD channel in the future and if not I will focus on my own HD DVD productions.
If HDV, AVCHD, Blu Ray and rendering speeds all come together it might be possible to see
a good finished product on HD channels. If not HD Cine will be the only way for me to go.
SONY and a few of the others in the consumer market might be bringing this all together soon.
If so the POST HOUSE will come together quick. If not I will wait for HD Cine and save up to make that old dream seem possible some day for this silly dreamer who would not listen regarding FILM and all of the old ways of doing things. Love this line from the site..... Every revolution begins with it's first act of defiance. ... more -
A Short Intro to Adobe Premiere and Pinnacle Studio
A perhaps lame, but hopefully helpful, basic intro to video editing for short films for complete novices, despite the monotonous flat voice. (Made for my 2nd Film Making class project -- see my first short, "Winding River", that the sample footage was based on in my profile) A perhaps lame, but hopefully helpful, basic intro to video editing for short films for complete novices, despite the monotonous flat ... more
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Discover HD at SFCutters
"Brian Rutz of AJA: will be giving his famous talk on HD formats - how we got here, where we are at and where we might end up. This talk is a must see Foundation and a Primer. Brian will straighten you out on this endless and yet imperative topic." "Brian Rutz of AJA: will be giving his famous talk on HD formats - how we got here, where we are at and where we might end up. Th... more
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YouTube launches remixing video functionality
This iMovie-like interface on YouTube lets you remix videos you've already uploaded to YouTube-- the video preview looks amazing but when I tried it didn't work. Is it working for anyone else? This iMovie-like interface on YouTube lets you remix videos you've already uploaded to YouTube-- the video preview looks amazing ... more
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YouTube Remixer
Sometimes, instant gratification video is just the thing you need.If you've ever uploaded from your cell phone, wished for an easy way to add titles and transitions, or just wanted to remix your own videos, Remixer is a great place to play. It lets you assemble your new video in an easy drag-and-drop timeline, and then publish it right back to YouTube. Your original videos will stay exactly the same. Sometimes, instant gratification video is just the thing you need.If you've ever uploaded from your cell phone, wished for an eas... more
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Code Monkey make me happy.
I think I know a few people like this. Try not to fall out of your office chair laughing at this one.
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Check out this online resource for video editors and content creators
Online tutorials, product reviews, forums and a podcast are just some of what is here.
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Apple - Final Cut Studio 2
Final Cut Studio 2 has lots of neato upgrades like better color correction, resolution independent time lines and a better encoding and compression. It also should benefit from Final Cut Server, the soon-to-be-released digital asset management system from Apple. Final Cut Studio 2 has lots of neato upgrades like better color correction, resolution independent time lines and a better encoding an... more
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