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  1. Hi,
    I'm George Bazeley from West Wales, 66 years old, and not particularly computer savvy.
    Some four years ago, I bought my first ever video camera. Sony DCR-SR30. Guys in the store raved about it (Well they would wouldn't they?)

    One of the things they told me was brilliant, was the fact that it didn't have a disc or tape but a HARD DRIVE.

    Ok, so the camera holds 19 hours of video, but at some point I have to get it all onto my computer to do the editing, and that's where my problem lies.........the camera only has the facility to transfer via USB2 - NO firewire - so that rules out Windows Movie maker straight away it seems.

    The software that came with the camera 'Image Mixer for HDD Camcorder' doesn't work for me , nor does Studio (plus) v9 which I bought at vast expense!

    Is it possible that all these different bits of software fight against each other and stop any of them working?

    I have managed, with friends help, to download raw video onto recordable DVD's but I'm reaching exasparation in not being able to edit the stuff
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  2. Member hech54's Avatar
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    According to Google, that camera shoots straight MPEG2 video. Download GSpot, run one of the camera's video files through GSpot and post the results here....that way we will know what you/we are dealing with.
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  3. thanks for quick response - got to go out now, but will get on it later.
    thanks
    george
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  4. Member
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    Hi George. Greetings from GMT -8.

    Since we're short on details, here are some semi-educated guesses:

    Your camera records MPEG2 video and only has a USB port. You should be able to do a file transfer between your computer and camera. Your camera will become an external hard drive when connected to your computer via USB.

    If the camera isn't recognized by your OS (while connected via USB w/ camera power on), then you might need a driver for it.

    Once transferred, your MPEG2 video might be able to be edited in WMM, depending on OS and WMM version (unsure, I don't use it). You can also use MPEG Video Wizard or VideoReDo to edit, then render without quality loss. Both have free trials.

    Since you've managed to get your footage on DVD-R's, you can copy those files onto your HDD and edit from there.

    I don't think software conflicts are the source of your trouble - understanding and establishing a good workflow is your next step.

    Post your computer details and follow hech54's suggestion - it will help us help you.
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  5. thanks again - got home later than I thought (damn beer is just too good) Lots of good thoughts tho'

    I'll get on it tomorrow
    george
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  6. Thanks to both hech54 and dLee........sorry to be so pathetic, but how do I use Gspot to export some raw data from my camera? Have sucessfully got GSpot v2.70a on my machine. When I first joined VideoHelp, I posted all the deatails of my computer - do I need to do it again?
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  7. GSpot won't transfer data from your camcorder to the computer. It's a tool for examining video files to see what type of data is in them. When you plug your camcorder into the computer it probably appears as a drive letter in Windows. If that's the case all you have to do is open the drive with explorer and drag/drop the files to a suitable location on your computer. In this case GSpot can also report about files that are still on the camcorder.

    If the camcorder doesn't appear as a drive in Windows then it should have come with some software for transferring the files. You'll have to install that software.
    Last edited by jagabo; 13th Oct 2011 at 08:40.
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  8. Man of Steel freebird73717's Avatar
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    I use a sony camera very similar to that model. Just plug in the usb to the camera. Turn the camera on. Choose usb connect on touch screen. A usb drive will pop up on your screen. There will be two folders. One will be for pictures. The other will be for videos. Just copy the mpg files from the camera to your PC.
    Donadagohvi (Cherokee for "Until we meet again")
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  9. Thanks Freebird,

    Just off out, but will try that tomorrow - incidentally, other posters have said the camera shoots mpeg2, but all my thumbnails just say mpeg. I've also seen in the instruction book (camera) that if data doesn't transfer to computer, try switching to USB1.1 (???) My computer has USB2.
    george
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  10. Thanks Jagabo,
    That's cleared up what GSpot does - thanks, will try it tomorrow.
    geo
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  11. Member
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    Off to the pub again, no doubt.

    I wonder what a Welsh pub is like.
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  12. to dLee,
    Welsh pubs are great, and serve great beer - my favourite is called Reverend James!

    Last night was especially good as the pub was packed with people raising money for a little boy in the village with a rare sort of eye cancer, who, with his family, is coming over to the States for Proton treatment for two months.

    Sorry, this is not about video, but lots of things on at the moment...........next week I'm off on an adventure sailing the Atlantic on a tall ship - what is the effect on a forum like this if a member doesn't post anything for four weeks??

    George
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  13. Member JaxGuy's Avatar
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    USB 2.0 is the Hi-Speed format which is backward's compatible with USB 1.1 so should not be a problem transferring over to your computer, the camera should have a data cable for transfers and one end will probably be the mini usb male end to attach to your camera and the the other end should be the standard plug for your computer, I would not use the front usb on your computer but the rear usb as that one feeds direct off of the motherboard. Then once you get the Mpeg files transfered over you can use a program like DVDSanta which will allow you to burn to DVD and watch on your DVD player... Good luck!

    JaxGuy
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  14. Thanksfor that - I'll let you know how I get on.........george
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  15. First of all, a huge thank you to all posters who have been helping me!!

    I now have successfully moved all the contents of my camera (movie clips and stills), onto the hard drive of my computer - hooray; now I can delete all the stuff on the camcorder ready for my vacation next week
    Wouldn't be too sure which of all the dozens of things I have tried did the trick, but amongst them were:
    Downloaded DirectX
    Changed speed of transfer to USB1.1 from USB2, and plugged it into the rear sockets of the computer.
    Then just used Image Mixer to download to computer (Software that came with the camera).

    So Far So Good.......
    Just tried to import a few clips into Microsoft Movie Maker and got the message below; is this where GSpot comes in?



    The file C:\Documents and Settings\George\My Documents\GEORGE'S STUFF\HOME VIDEO'11\'11_10_14_01\M2U02312.MPG cannot be imported because the codec required to play the file is not installed on your computer. If you have already tried to download and install the codec, close and restart Windows Movie Maker, and then try to import the file again.
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  16. Member JaxGuy's Avatar
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    Sounds like you have Windows XP, and Windows Movie Maker does not support .mpeg video format so try the below solutions


    1.Convert .mpeg to different formant that movie maker recognizes
    a.Launch Windows Media Player
    b.click on your video image
    c.click on Manipulate
    d.click on Convert to WMV, save & follow the prompts.
    This conversion allows the codec & should allow you to open and play it in Windows movie maker.

    2.Movie maker does not have proper decoder to play the file
    Install a free decoder from here: http://sourceforge.net/projects/gplmpgdec/

    3.Then for good measure install the CCCP pack: http://cccp-project.net/

    Good Luck , now if I could just find that beer your were talkin about...
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  17. Hi JaxGuy,
    That all makes perfect sense - can't wait to try it out........
    George
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  18. Member
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    Originally Posted by JaxGuy View Post
    Sounds like you have Windows XP, and Windows Movie Maker does not support .mpeg video format so try the below solutions


    1.Convert .mpeg to different formant that movie maker recognizes
    a.Launch Windows Media Player
    b.click on your video image
    c.click on Manipulate
    d.click on Convert to WMV, save & follow the prompts.
    This conversion allows the codec & should allow you to open and play it in Windows movie maker.

    2.Movie maker does not have proper decoder to play the file
    Install a free decoder from here: http://sourceforge.net/projects/gplmpgdec/

    3.Then for good measure install the CCCP pack: http://cccp-project.net/

    Good Luck , now if I could just find that beer your were talkin about...
    Options 1 and 2 are good, option 3 - like any other 'codec pack' is bad news. You simply aren't prepared or experienced enough for them. I am prepared and experienced enough and I refuse to believe they do any good for anyone.

    If you don't know what they are, then they can be very harmful to your computer. If you DO know what they are, then you don't need them.

    I would recommend option 2 and install a good mpeg2 codec. It'll allow WMM to import your movies natively and avoid the extra step (optoin1) of converting your footage and losing quality. (I'd only recommend converting to another lossless codec like HuffyUV. Not sure if WMM will support any of them and be prepared for very very large file sizes.)
    Have a good one,

    neomaine

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