I typically use Adobe Premiere Elements to edit my digital video from my Sony Digital8 camcorder but recently have had a string of clips that needed some frames at the beginning and end clipped and wanted to try VirtualDub.

First I discovered that VirtualDub 1.5.10 requires a video for windows VFW decoder/driver (dvsd) so I installed the Sony Software DV Codec v2.23. After installation I used G-spot v2.21 to render the file and look at the codec information. It says that my Sony DV Codec is misconfigured and that a file is missing. Here is the information it reports:

SRC Property Value
- - ** Problem ** ** File Missing: Sony DV software CODEC
DSH 4CC DVSD
DSH Friendly Name Sony DV software CODEC
DSH Driver or Wrapper C:\WINDOWS\System32\qcap.dll
DSH DirectShow CLSID CLSID_AVICo {D76E2820-1563-11CF-AC98-00AA004C0FA9}
VFW Name DV CODEC
VFW Driver File Sony DV software CODEC
VFW Description Sony DV software CODEC

When I render in G-spot 2.21 it uses the microsoft directshow dv decoder.

I then tried G-spot v2.52b01 and it's proposed solution is to use the Sony DV Codec vfw and it renders fine. Under the G-spot v2.52b01 video codec list there is no error for the Sony DV Codec vfw, but an error (file is missing) shows up for something called DV Scenes. Here is the information for that entry:

SRC Property Value
- - ** Problem ** ** File Missing:
DSH DirectShow CLSID {13935B88-5853-4A58-B7CE-E1EC2A28096A}
DSH Friendly Name DV Scenes
- - Function Other
REG Merit 0x00200000
- - Type DSH


Can someone interpret the information reported by each g-spot version? Is a file really missing? VirtualDub now appears to function fine after installing the Sony DV Codec vfw.

Which is better to render with in media player? The Sony DV vfw Codec or the Microsoft DV directshow decoder? Do I even have a choice?

Thanks!