About video editing software

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Hi,

It looks like I need video editing software. I made my homework and browsed Internet pretty thouroughly and as a result I am confused: there are so many good programs around.

What I need software for? Mostly it will be DVD and AVI editing (trimming; transitions and so on) and (very important for me!) fixing various audio problems including those arising after conversion of PAL DVD and avi files to NTSC DVD. Ability to edit HD would be nice too.

I do realize my goals are very moderate but one day they can become more demanding. I am thinking about buying a HD camcoder.

Anyway since it is going to be an investment I would appreciate your, guys, opinion. I am sure it will be usefull for other members of the community.

Based on my homework I am considering Avid Xpress Pro; Ulead VideoStudio; MPEG Video Wizard DVD by Womble. Your advices would be appreciated.

Thank you!

[thecoalman]

Not sure how you came up with that list but those 3 applications are in 3 separate categories, Avid is a pro application and probably best left as choice once you become familiar with video considering the price tag, BTW there's a free version if you want to try it out: http://www.avid.com/freedv/ I'm not familiar with either the pay for or free version so I don't know what the limitations are on the free version.

As to the other two IMO Video Studio is a perfect solution for someone starting out, it's categorized as a all-in-one which is frequently looked down upon in this forum but that particular one excels in many areas and offers many features other all-in-ones don't such as custom settings for MPEG. There's lots of room to grow with that product, the editor is probably it's best feature and for all intents and purposes is all you really need for editing unless you really need some very advanced features. For example the pro editors will allow you to work with an unlimited amount of video tracks, I think VS is limited to 6. Most consumers barely use 2. The biggest downside is the authoring features which are pretty limited, however most people use standalone applications for authoring so you can always look into a authoring application in the future.

Womble is a MPEG editor, from the posts of others I gather it excels at editing MPEG. I'm not even sure if it allows you to import other types of videos like AVI's, check the literature or maybe someone else will know. FYI, VS is works well with MPEG too....

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Thank you! It is really helpful.