From Here to Awesome Online Film Festivalby Emily Price
[via CinemaTech] Added on Jan 23, 2008 6:00 AM Comments () - Read More - Technorati - Trackbacks (20) Building a video computer work stationby Emily Price WebVideoReport has an article up covering how to build a video computer work station. In the article they go into how to " build a computer workstation that will import, process and export Web video." And talk about what software and equipment will work best for creating the ultimate video work system. Some of the topics discussed are what type of hard drive you should have in your computer, what type of RAM you need and then whether a laptop, desktop, or all-in-one might be best for your needs. Check out the full article on WebVideo Report here.[via WebVideoReport] Added on Jan 11, 2008 8:00 AM Comments () - Read More - Technorati - Trackbacks (20) Drobo: The little storage device that couldby Adam Nielson Tech blog Engadget recently featured a review of the Data Robotics Drobo. Any of you who haven't been following this little guy should be adequately wowed by the demo video. Drobo is a USB storage device, which holds four SATA drives, and offers the security of a RAID 5 setup without all the headaches.For one thing, users can fill Drobo up with drives of varied capacity, meaning you could throw that old 160 gig SATA you have lying around right in next to a brand new 500 GB hard drive. As you buy more drives to complete the quartet, you simply slide them in, and Drobo recognizes and formats them on the fly. The drives are hot swapable, so should a failure arise, all you have to do is slap a new one in there, and drobo will return everything to the way it was. The best part is, users can perform all this configuring,and reconfiguring without shutting Drobo down, or losing access to the data. For the video elite, however, there are some drawbacks. Drobo is a USB device, and because of it's architecture, Drobo provides somewhat modest throughput. DV editors could certainly use it as a storage device, but Drobo simply isn't fast enough for high end, high def editing. Still, as a backup device, Drobo offers unparalleled ease of use, and security, and would be a perfect solution for the Gigabites of stuff for which you just need a place. Added on Jun 13, 2007 6:25 PM Comments () - Read More - Technorati - Trackbacks (20) How much does 48TB really costby Randall Bennett Update: We actually got a little overzealous on the numbers, and updated them after the break. Read on once again.Yeah, we get a little excited when we start hearing about giant disk arrays, and this 48 TB monster is no exception. Winchester Systems, the company behind the madness, runs a RAID 6 array designed for huge server farms and the like, but we always like to imagine ourselves with 20TB of documentaries, 20TB of feature films and eight terabytes for bittorrent. How much does this array actually cost? We're not claiming this solution is for you, but if you work for any sort of semi-pro organization requiring huge storage demands (IE local television) you might want to think about some similar raid solution. These systems are fully customizable, but we opted for "fully tricked out" since anything less would be too little. We talked with Paul Munafo of the company to figure out how to trick out a system. Read on to find out how much moolah it takes to store 48TB. (48,000,000,000,000 bytes) Added on Jun 12, 2007 3:12 PM Comments () - Read More - Technorati - Trackbacks (20) Leopard is 64-bit, FCP-ers start your computers.by Randall Bennett So, just because we claim some sort of platform independence, that won't preclude us from showering you with all the latest Apple developments from WWDC as they pertain to creating digital video. First off, Apple says every version of Leopard shipped will be 64-bit / 32-bit, meaning any application coded to support 64-bit will take advantage from the core layers of Unix, all the way up to Cocoa apps (IE Final Cut Studio.)The benefits? Better performance, better performance, better performance. Double the throughput ability, and when thinking of large files, know that it'll basically save you a ton of time. [Via Engadget] More as it breaks... Added on Jun 11, 2007 1:00 PM Comments () - Read More - Technorati - Trackbacks (20) Broadcom introduces video accelerator for PCsby Adam Nielson Chip Manufacturer Broadcom announced this week, the release of a new HD video accelerator for personal computers. The new chip specializes in decoding video formats used on both Blu-ray and HD-DVD discs, and effectively offloads work from the CPU and graphics card. At around $40 the accelerator won't break the bank, and has the potential to bring HD playback to low-end systems currently in the market. Broadcom plans to offer the chip in a variety of PCI expansion forms, and will provide on-board accelerators to PC manufacturers. With a great price, and resource saving technology, it's a sure bet we'll see these accelerators integrated into the media PC market soon.Added on Jun 9, 2007 7:30 AM Comments () - Read More - Technorati - Trackbacks (20) An in-depth look at video codecsby Adam Nielson Atomic writer David Field's recent article, Everything you ever wanted to know about video codecs, offers a quality examination of all things related to video compression. In it, he talks candidly on color space, fawns over frame rate, and relents for resolution. Field gets right down into the nitty gritty of serious stuff like chroma subsampling, macroblocking, and temporal compression, all while explaining things in a way we editor types can understand.Field also chooses a handful of the most popular codecs, and puts them through the ringer. He pits X.264 against it's WMV counterpart, and throws open source standards DivX and XviD into the mix. In the end, no codec is clearly pronounced King of Compression, but each has it's strengths and weaknesses laid bare. While we would have liked Field to say which he personally preferred best, (see the picture for my favorite) his article is a fantastic introduction to the world of compression, and a great refresher course for those of us who may have forgotten things like the standard pixel size of a macroblock, or what the numbers 4:2:0 actually stand for. Added on Jun 9, 2007 5:30 AM Comments () - Read More - Technorati - Trackbacks (20) MacBook Pro gets an upgradeby Emily Price Have a need for speed? Apple has released new speedier versions of their MacBook series. The difference isn't really enough to make you put your older MacBook up on eBay, but they can be pretty enticing if you've been sitting on the fence deciding whether or not to buy. Some highlights from the upgrades are 2.2 or 2.4 GHz Core 2 Duo processors, NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT graphics with 128 or 256MB VRAM.[Via HD for Indies] Added on Jun 6, 2007 12:13 PM Comments () - Read More - Technorati - Trackbacks (20) 2TB Raid Array, $1,100by Randall Bennett OtherWorld Computing, purveyors of the only Mac tablet in existence, released their latest RAID array, the Mercury Elite triple interface 2TB array. Coming in at $1,100, it's definitely in the "budget" range for 2TB raid arrays, but with a 64MB cache and a triple interface (FW400, 800 and USB2) it certainly has the features we've come to expect out of external storage. Some external SATA love might have been a nice addition, but can't complain too much, especially with the g5/MacPro - esque cheese grater exterior.Added on May 16, 2007 8:45 AM Comments () - Read More - Technorati - Trackbacks (20) Roxio releases Roxio Crunchby Emily Price
You can download Roxio Crunch off of Roxios website for $39.99, a small price to pay to take your video everywhere you go. Added on May 10, 2007 9:03 AM Comments () - Read More - Technorati - Trackbacks (20) Pixel problems no more with your LCD displayby Brian Liloia Having issues with the pixels on your LCD screen? Experiencing odd burn-in or stuck pixels? If so, be sure to swing by JScreenFix, a web applet that you can easily use to alleviate LCD display problems by merely bringing up the JScreenFix web page in full screen mode. (Pretty amazing!) The self-explanatory website should help you to understand what some of these problems are that might be plaguing your display. There's nothing worse than trying to work with distracting pixels on-screen, so be sure to check out this site for a potential cure to your LCD woes.(via FresHDV) Added on May 7, 2007 11:12 AM Comments () - Read More - Technorati - Trackbacks (20) OS X Leopard delayedby Adam Nielson We figured before the big NAB announcement today, we'd better get this little piece of bad Apple news out of the way. The Macintosh Maker announced late last week the latest version of their operating system, OS X 10.5 Leopard, would be delayed until October. Apple says the delay was a result of reassigning programmers to work on the iPhone, a new all in one wireless phone/media player due out in June. This is definitely bad news for those of us without an extra $600 to spend on a freakin' phone, but ultimately won't have too drastic an effect on the editing world. Mike over at HD for Indies shares his thoughts on what if any impact the delay has on Final Cut Pro, and Apple's New Octo-Mac Pro.Added on Apr 15, 2007 10:17 AM Comments () - Read More - Technorati - Trackbacks (20) Apple Cinema Display prices reducedby Brian Liloia Along with the announcement of the brand new 8-core Mac Pro upgrade, Apple has kindly slashed the prices of their Cinema Display monitors today. The 20" and 23" displays have been reduced $100 to $599 and $899, respectively, while the hulking 30" LCD is now $1,799, after a $200 price drop. Every dollar counts!Added on Apr 4, 2007 7:07 PM Comments () - Read More - Technorati - Trackbacks (20) Apple unveils brand new 8-core Mac Pro upgradeby Brian Liloia Apple has just unleashed a brand new beast in the form of an 8-core Mac Pro setup, featuring a pair of 3.0GHz Quad Core "Clovertown" processors. Mac Pro system specs have not changed other than with this processor jump, but it is a big jump, indeed. Unfortunately, Apple's website does not give comprehensive benchmark test figures, but judging by the Maya 3D rendering figures, power users are in for a treat. This guy shouldn't have much of a problem tackling those HD video post-production projects. At $1,500, the 8-core upgrade option is an expensive venture, but that's to be expected. Also, keep in mind that NAB is just around the corner, and Apple might have some other new toys to go along with this newly unveiled powerhouse.Added on Apr 4, 2007 6:15 PM Comments () - Read More - Technorati - Trackbacks (20) Blue Microphones' Snowball Professional USB micby Brian Liloia If you're looking to record some voiceover work, and don't have the means to obtain satisfactory quality audio, Blue Microphones' Snowball mic might be for you. As we all know, using your camcorder to record narration is not always the best of options, especially if you don't have a proper mic. The Snowball is a funky sphere-shaped mic that promises to deliver quality results at a reasonable price, with the convenience of a simple USB connection. In a recent review for Ken Stone's site, Steve Douglas praises the mic for its excellent results at a low price point of only $139. With cardioid and omnidirectional settings, the Snowball is more robust that something you'd find in the typical selection of most desktop USB mics. Not bad.Added on Apr 2, 2007 2:13 PM Comments () - Read More - Technorati - Trackbacks (20) Apple Insider predicts CS3 launch infoby Adam Nielson Well Adobe users, we are just hours away from the launch of Creative Suite 3, and we are excited! The big announcement takes place tomorrow at 3:30 EST, but those of you who just can't wait anymore might want to check out what Apple Insider says we can expect. They claim to "have learned" of six distinct bundles aimed at various creative professions. The rumor site indicates Photoshop is pretty standard across all packages, except the WEB standard edition, which only comes with software previously owned by Macromedia. Of course, video professionals will want to check out the Production Bundle, or the Master collection to get the coveted After Effects CS3 professional. Apple insider's mysterious source was only able to give them pricing information in Euros. I Guess we yanks won't be able to write our checks until tomorrow. Adobe has been tight lipped about just what we can expect, but upgraded features, and tighter integration with recently acquired Macromedia apps seems to be what most people are hoping for. The Apple community is especially looking forward to the release of Photoshop CS3, and it's siblings (Illustrator, InDesign, and After Effects to name a few) who have been running a bit slow on newer macs. Adobe's CS3 launch will mark the end of the last major holdout to convert software to run natively on the new Intel based macs. Check back with us tomorrow for more details. Added on Mar 26, 2007 5:20 PM Comments () - Read More - Technorati - Trackbacks (20) Apple TV is upon usby Brian Liloia As you probably know, the Apple TV has finally been released all but a few days ago, and as is the norm with new Apple product releases, coverage has been big and wide. If you're still playing catch-up and want to know more about the Apple TV, perhaps more about the technical aspects or hardware design, or perhaps more about its potential impact upon online video, and what analysts are saying about its release, this set of links should cover all your Apple TV bases.
Added on Mar 23, 2007 3:13 PM Comments () - Read More - Technorati - Trackbacks (20) Pump up your Mac with 3GB of expansion RAM from OWCby Brian Liloia Good news for power-hungry Mac users: Other World Computing has just announced that it is the first company to offer 3GB of expansion memory for MacBook, MacBook Pro, and Intel-based iMac computer systems. Compare this to the 2GB maximum upgrade option via Apple, and this is a significant achievement, and welcome news for professionals who crave that extra horsepower, including video editors, compositors, animators, etc. This 3GB RAM expansion will set you back $340, but buyers are liable to receive a trade-in rebate of up to $55 per memory module on older OWC RAM. Check out the official OWC store for the complete details. (via Studio Daily) Added on Mar 21, 2007 7:48 AM Comments () - Read More - Technorati - Trackbacks (20) OWC announces internal and external Blu-Ray drive lineupby Brian Liloia Other World Computing has just announced a brand new lineup of internal and external Blu-Ray drives, featuring both read and write capabilities and compatible with both PC and Mac platforms. Priced at $559.99 and up, the internal drives require an IDE/ATAPI bay port, or for $649.99 and up, the external drives feature both FireWire and USB 2.0 connections. The complete range of OWC Blu-ray drives can read or write Blu-Ray, DVD, DVD-RAM, and CD media. With speeds up to 24X, all drives include the necessary cable hookups and two 25GB Blu-Ray discs, and are covered by a one year warranty. Mac users should note that Apple software does not currently support Blu-Ray drives, although you can burn Blu-Ray media through software such as Toast. Doesn't seem like such a bad deal if you're into the Blu-Ray thang.(via MacNN) Added on Mar 15, 2007 8:23 PM Comments () - Read More - Technorati - Trackbacks (20) VisualHub: Easy encoding at an affordable priceby Randall Bennett One of the questions lobbed at us frequently is, "What's the best way to encode for web video?" Rather than wait for the inevitable, we're going to give you a quick tip on some great software. We wrote earlier about the best way to encode for YouTube using compressor (maybe we'll even get to the point where we'll give you a compressor droplet scheme!) but if you need to roll-your-own web video, give VisualHub a look. Its simplistic interface and lightning fast encodes make it a real contender in the web-video market. Using its greatness, I can encode both an MP4 and an FLV for my daily videoblog, Tech Check Daily, in just a few minutes (essentially realtime, if not a little faster.) The interface is clean and easy to use, and at $23.32, it's a total steal.Behind the scenes, it's essentially FFMPEG, and it'll spit out iPod-ready files too if you're into that sort of thing. The only unfortunate part of VisualHub is it isn't cross-platform, sorry Windows users. If you've got an equivalent utility for Windows, leave it in the comments. We'd love to hear about it! Added on Mar 14, 2007 2:08 PM Comments () - Read More - Technorati - Trackbacks (20) |
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Three independent filmmakers: Lance Weiler, M dot Strange, and Arin Crumley have launched an online film festival designed to connect filmmakers with distribution opportunities for their films. The festival called “
Itching to put more video on your shiny new Apple TV? Roxio released