so confused , what should I buy

[Ninip]

Hi everyone
I have WINXP--
Pentium4 530 (P) HT 3.0 GHz: 800 MHz Front side bus 512 MB (2 x 256) Hard
drive
a.. a.. 200 GB SATA
b.. 7200 rpm 16x DVD(+/-)R/RW DL LightScribe drive
a.. must use Double-Layer media discs in order to take advantage of the
DL technology Video graphics Integrated with up to 64 MB allocated video
memory
b.. I also have a stand alone DVD Player/Recorder Liteon Model
#LVW-5115GHC
c.. I am wanting to copy my old VHS home movies to a DVD
d.. So I copy them in my VCR to my DVD recorder and that is fine.
e.. But how to I get them in my computer to edit?
f.. Then what program do I buy for editing etc. I want something that
is easy to use, but has some good features, example --color correction or
should I say brightening up because allot of them are dark because made from
an analog camcorder.
g.. I have been surfing the net but one site reccomends this one another
site recommends that one....
h.. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
i.. Thanks in advance

 

[Graham Hughes]

I'd recommend external analogue to digital converters, either one of the
canopus advc range or one from Miglia. Capture from the analogue camcorder
direct.
Reasons;
High quality units.
Rarely have trouble reported from people using them.
Connect to pc using firewire.
File type captured is dv-avi.
Can use any editing app to capture/edit.
Virtually always has video and audio in sync.

What's the must use dual layer discs bit in your post. I have found them to
be poor in compatibility with dvd players and far more expensive than 2 S/L
discs.

--
Graham Hughes
MVP Digital Media
www.myvideoproblems.co.uk
www.dvds2treasure.com
www.simplydv.com

 

[Frank]

If you've already invested time placing your VCR recordings on DVDs,
and you want to work with the files that are now on the DVDs:
Look on the DVD for files with the .vob extension.
Copy those files to your hard drive (this could be time consuming if
they're big files).
Then check out the conversion tools at
http://www.videohelp.com/tools?convert=VOB to AVI
Those tools will convert .vob files to .avi files, which are the basic
files that a video editing program works with.
Since you're running Win XP, you can go to start/programs/accessories,
and try Windows Moviemaker for an editing tool.
You'll still need a DVD "authoring tool" to burn your movies to DVD
(assuming you want to do that). There are lots of these. Definitely
try before you buy. I have Nero 7, which is good but almost impossible
to understand.