New Media Center

Even though it is summer time, we have not forgot about the starving students taking those summer classes. So in celebration of summer time and summer food we bring to you some digital media recipes.

Over at digitalmediacookbook.com you’ll find all sorts of helpful “recipes” to indulge in and perhaps you’ll even hold on to a couple of those recipes for future use. Every recipe comes with a video demo (screencast), ingredients, and directions. The creator of the cookbook, UMW’s New Media Specialist Andy Rush, has made it very easy to follow the recipes, even you digital media novices out there have nothing to fear.

Andy Rush is always working hard to find and create new recipes for this cookbook. So if you like what he has to offer make sure you send some comment or link love to let him know you want more recipes. Just as any good chef likes to recieve compliments, our new media specialist needs some lovin’ too.

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Here is a Glog that I created for the Spring 2009 Orientation session. Our “technology showcase” featured a service called Glogster.com where you can create online posters that include many different types of media. Here is the example that I used in the presentation:

The full resolution version is available at http://rushaw.glogster.com/new-media/

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The word firewire is actually a term that Apple coined for the technical standard known as the IEEE1394 interface. Firewire, IEEE1394, and Sony’s iLink all refer to the same high-speed interface that connects data devices together. It is similar to USB 2.0, but it is more appropriate for the transfer of video "data" from a digital camcorder because firewire is able to maintain a consistent high rate of transfer. Transferring video to a computer in this manner is commonly referred to as digital video capture. Another advantage of firewire is that the transfer of digital data from DV tape can be controlled by the computer.  The capture software can communicate with the camcorder, so you can press record in the software and the camcorder receives a signal to start playing automatically.

While firewire connections generally only come on cameras that use the mini-DV tape format, there is another advantage of having a camera with firewire. You can record live video directly to the hard drive of a computer, or use the camera as a high quality web cam by using the firewire connection.

Firewire ports are standard on all Macintosh computers, but they may not come as standard on a PC. Inexpensive cards (less than $30) can be purchased if your PC does not have firewire ports. Below is a photo of a typical PC firewire card.

You will also need a firewire cable (as illustrated in the top photo) to connect your camcorder to the computer. Typically a camcorder has what is known as a 4-pin firewire port. The end of the cable that goes in that port will look like a small square with a dent in it. The other end of the cable has a 6-pin connector. It has one rounded end and can only be inserted in the firewire port of a computer one way.

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Image via Wikipedia

Shopping for a camcorder has never been an easy experience, but there has been constant improvement in the quality of video that can be obtained. Before you buy a camera, know what your final destination for your video is. Is it YouTube? Then you won’t need the highest quality camera because this is low resolution video. UPDATE: YouTube recently started offering HD quality video on their site, so high resolution video is now an option. Will you be making a DVD? Then you’ll want to get a high quality camera. Will you just re-watch it on your TV? Make sure you’ve got the right cables to make the connection. If you’ve got an HDTV, you might want to consider and HD camera. If you’re ready to shop you can start with Cnet’s camcorder finder. Otherwise, here’s what to look for in a video camera (also known as camcorders):

• HD – Determine if you want to do HD video or not. The advantages are that you have the high resolution to output to an HDTV. The disadvantage is that HD is a new format with somewhat limited support, and it’s more time consuming to edit.
• Automation – Decide whether you want a camera that you just set on automatic and it does everything for you, or if you want to control exposure, focus, audio, etc. It is strongly recommended that you get a camera that at least gives you manual focus control. Auto-focus is nice, but there will be times when the camcorder won’t know what you are trying to focus on. You can fix bad exposure in a video editing program. You can’t fix focus after the fact.
• Media Types – The ways in which you can store video are constantly evolving. DV Tape, mini-DVD, hard disk, and SD memory cards are all used to store your recorded video. So which one should you choose? Whichever format you decide to go with, make sure you know what you need to transfer your video from the camera to the computer. The new AVCHD format is somewhat problematic because there is still limited support for editing it. Also, you need a very fast machine to edit AVCHD in real-time. Here’s a video round-up of AVCHD editors.
• Audio – Most people don’t think about audio when they look for video cameras, but it is at least equally important. Imagine these two scenarios. Scenario one, you recorded a lecture, but you forgot to take off the lens cap and you only got the audio. Well, that’s a big problem, but you can at least post the audio somewhere and people can listen. Scenario two, you get great video images from your camcorder, but you were far enough away from the speaker that the audio is inaudible. Unless you were going for the silent movie effect, your video is pretty useless. That’s why good audio is so important to good video. Bad audio is very noticeable. Good audio isn’t noticed at all. Look for a camera that has an external microphone input, so you have the option to add a quality microphone. Also look for a camera that has a headphone jack so you can monitor the audio that is being recorded. There’s a good reason why you see professional videographers wearing a set of headphones. They don’t want the surprise of unwanted sounds being captured. A good directional, lapel, or handheld microphone will do better than a camera’s on-board microphone almost every time.
• Image Quality – How important is video image quality to you? Cameras with multiple video sensors will give a better image (generally) than single sensor cameras, but they cost more.
• Photos – Do you want your camcorder to have the ability to take photos too? Keep in mind that you won’t get the resolution (generally) that you get from your digital still camera.
• Image stabilization – There are also cameras with image stabilizers that reduce the shakiness of handheld video, so you may want one with that feature. They’re handy if you are zooming way into the action and you need a steadier shot. They have a limit to how steady the video will appear. Tripods are better tools to use to get steady video.
• Firewire – While firewire connections generally only come on cameras that use the DV format, there is another advantage of having a camera with firewire. You can record live video directly to the hard drive of a computer, or use the camera as a high quality web cam by using the firewire connection.

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When you need a technology gadget for your computer, or for creating digital media, where do you start? Well, we in Teaching and Learning Technologies recommend you start at Cnet reviews. Cnet is a technology website and they do accept advertising, but they are very independent when it comes to their reviews. If the readers at Cnet don’t agree, there is a user review section that will provide some possibly alternate viewpoints. The best thing about Cnet is the one stop shopping resource. You look for the category of device that you want, like digital cameras. Then we recommend you start with the editors picks (ex. Editor’s Top Digital Cameras). You can then drill down into types of devices within the category (Best Compact Cameras). Once you have a few candidates to choose from you can read the individual reviews. From there you can also see how the aforementioned users feel about the device. Cnet will also provide links to vendors who carry the product so you can purchase it right away. How much easier could it be? Well, it’s true you need to know what to look for and whether features are worth the money, but Cnet’s reviews generally spell this out for you. They also provide a “buying guide” for many types of products that will help you sort out the terms (ex. Digital Camera Buying Guide). Cnet’s review site is a great place to start your electronic shopping spree.

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