Firmware to change MOD's to MPEG's

[Doctor2043]

Hi all,

I've read plenty about how to change Mod files to Mpeg's once there are on your PC.
I own a Panasonic SDR-S7 and I need to idiot proof it.
Is there a way (firmware update etc) to make the camera save the files on the SD card as Mpeg rather than mod???
I work in a school where the users don't have access to file name extensions
and thus cannot change the files once downloaded.

Any help would be appreciated.

[Cornucopia]

Boy, I sure hope that was a typo and that you actually meant ".MOV" and not ".MOD", 'cuz otherwise (unless I'm WAAYYYY off base), that's just plain silly, as ".MOD" files are basically MIDI files with specific synth tracker info (sorta like Roland GS patches for specific Midi instrument sounds).
...And that would have little-to-nothing to do with MPEG (except as possible rendering to WAV and thence to MP3, etc).

Now, if it is MOV, use QTPro, MPEGStreamClip, QTAlternative (along with a DirectShow converter app, Vdub for instance), etc. to convert to MPEG, DivX, AVI, etc.

re: filename extensions...
How hard is it to go to MyComputer | %Path%, and then press MENU "Tools" | Folder Options | View tab, and then uncheck the "Hide extensions for known file types" and click Apply and OK??? That works even when you aren't logged on as Administrator (I just checked). I'd be very surprised to see this basic capability prohibited by an over-reactive admin.

Also, it is EXTREMELY unlikely that your camera could be firmware-updated to change filesave format preferences, if not downright impossible. It's not just the firmware involved, it's the actual hardware chips used to do the compression/encoding on the file (as it obviously needs to be done in realtime). And most cameras aren't specifically made to be "user-hackable-friendly", if you see what I mean.

Now, a quick google of your model tells me that it ALREADY records MPEG2 format for video. So it saves that stream either in:

A. MPEG2 Program Stream
B. MPEG2 Transport Stream
C. MPEG2 DVD VOB Stream (variant of "A")
D. Quicktime MOV file
E. Windows AVI files

My guess is A or B.
And there are plenty of tools listed on this site that can open this kind of file and edit, or even just remux and/or reauthor to DVD-compliant VOB format. That is the high-quality way to go...
Scott

[guns1inger]

The .MOD container can usually be opened by anything that reads MPG files once the extension has been changed to MPG. The answer to your main question - can the firmware be changed to write with the mpg extension - is no, unless you want to try and write your own firmware for it.

What you need to find now is a simple way to change the extension when it isn't visible, or something that will read a MOD file and output an MPG file, hopefully without re-encoding.

[Doctor2043]

Thanks for the replies guys.

Cornucopia, I did actually mean .MOD and not .MOV. It seems to be a custom extension Panasonic put in to guide you to use the prepackaged software.

I know it sounds unlikely but we do actually make it so most users cannot access file extensions....they end up just stuffing it up. We don't use the pre-packaged software as we already have WMM and Premiere Pro.

Guns1inger has perhaps phrased my question better in that it seems I need to find and way to change the file extension when it isn't visible or something that reads .MOD but outputs >.MPG.........any thoughts?

[redwudz]

Have you unchecked 'Hide extensions from known file types' in 'Folder Options>View'? Otherwise you may not see the true file extensions. It's a dumb MS idea to have it checked by default.

[guns1inger]

@Redwudz - the problem is that the desktops have this ticked deliberately as part of the SOE (Standard Operating Environment) to stop users doing stupid things to the file names. The users are not allowed to see the extension by design. It is something we have toyed with from time to time because some users simply do not understand why, when they call a document fred instead of fred.doc, windows doesn't understand that it is a word document. Or worse, fred.doc.version1 and fred.doc.version2. If Windows didn't rely solely on the file extension for file associations, and instead used some other file system metadata then it would not be an issue.

[Soopafresh]

You could set up a batch file in the folder where the MOD files are saved on the PC


For %%a in ("*.mod") do ren "%%a" "mpeg_%%~na.mpg"

That would rename a file named 0001.mod (which would look like 0001 to the user) to MPEG_0001.MPG (or Mpeg_0001 to the user)

[guns1inger]

Or if you are uncomfortable with batch files, this might work

http://www.1-4a.com/rename/

Also handy because it doesn't require installation.

[oz_surfer]

Thanks for the replies guys.

Cornucopia, I did actually mean .MOD and not .MOV. It seems to be a custom extension Panasonic put in to guide you to use the prepackaged software.

I know it sounds unlikely but we do actually make it so most users cannot access file extensions....they end up just stuffing it up. We don't use the pre-packaged software as we already have WMM and Premiere Pro.

Guns1inger has perhaps phrased my question better in that it seems I need to find and way to change the file extension when it isn't visible or something that reads .MOD but outputs >.MPG.........any thoughts?

We had the same problem at our primary school. We have a JVC hard drive video camera.
We tried two things and they both worked.

Even though you can't see the file extension we renamed file by placing a fullstop, then mpg on end

Video1 - BECAME - Video1.mpg
It worked.

We used some software from Cyberlink called PowerDirector and or Power Director.
We purchased them as a pack for around $45 from OfficeWorks in Perth and Fremantle
They were still on sale there at the weekend.
One of those apps directly imports .mod FILES

[guns1inger]

If you can't see the extension, windows won't let you change it. Changing a file called fred.mod by adding .mpg with extensions hidden gives you a file called fred.mpg.mod