I'm going to be investing in some video software for my computer, as soon as I have some video hardware installed first that is. I own two dv camcorders, both of which utilize firewire in/out ports. What I plan to do is load my footage into my computer, and then edit it from there. My question is, (and I know
nothing about video software yet) is it possible with certain software to take one section of video and fade or overlap into another section of video, in other words like you see all the time on tv or in a movie where on segment will dissolve into another?
Will any video software be able to do this or just certain ones? I would really like to know before I invest any money so I can make the right choice the first time.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks, Tunes Man.

I think most, if not all, software allows you to do this - I know Pinnacle does (as that's what I use) - some of the fades (or transitions) are pretty impressive....

[mij]

If you use Windows XP it has Windows Movie maker which can do this, download the latest free updates.

mij

[MarkE19]

Most of the firewire cards are available with some basic software that will do several different styles of transitions. These only cost from around £30.
Microsoft Movie Maker as mentioned by mij is part of Windows XP, but is too basic in current form. The update to MM2 is a free download from MS web site and is really simple to use (used it for the first time yestureday) and you will be getting good results really quickly (unlike with Adobe Premiere which took me weeks to learn even the basics!).
Going up to around £70 you can get Pinnacle Studio 8. This is a very popular and easy to learn programme and has far more effects etc than MM2. It is a good starting point and will probably do everything you want both now and in the future.
Another well known company that make good editing programmes/hardware are Dazzle.
All the above are available from the likes of www.dabs.com or www.ebuyer.co.uk and many others.

Welcome to the world of video editing. From now on there just wont be enough hours in the day (like there was anyway ). Enjoy it!

Mark.

Thanks everybody for your replys. Every reply that was posted has been very helpfull. I do have Windows XP in my computer, but I've yet to install the hardware needed to record digital video onto my computer hardrive. My computer has a 70 gig hardrive, so I should have plenty of room for editing. I don't think I'll be buying the Adobe Premiere though, since everybody says it's very difficult to learn, but I'll do some checking around.
Thanks again for all the replys. Tunes Man.

[MarkE19]

A couple of things to consider regarding your PC:

DV footage takes around 1Gb of space for every 4 minutes.
IDE hard disks are working close to full speed when capturing DV footage, therefore a second hard disk will make life easier on your PC (and you ).
The PC will also be working VERY hard when capturing, therefore stop ALL background programmes. A good prog to do this is a free download called EndItAll. Do a search for it.

Mark.

I'm continuing to get replys to my question. Thanks again. There are evidently numerous softwares for editing video, so my next question is what would be the best hardware to buy in order to download my video onto the computer? I've been quoted about $200 for a firewire package that will enable me to download my video onto my computer, then when I'm done editing, play the finished edited video back out of the computer onto my camcorder
so that I can archive it onto my dvd recorder for permanent storage on a dvd-r disc. This is what I'd like to do. At one time I thought about installing a dvd recorder onto my computer, but since I already own a dvd recorder deck I decided to do it the way I described.
So what would be the best hardware to buy for me to be able to do this, and could I find one that would be cheaper than was quoted to me?
Thanks in advance for any replys. Tunes Man.

[MarkE19]

For basic editing all you need to buy is the firewire card for your PC, about £20.
MS Movie Maker 2 will do all the capture/editing.
$200 is a lot for a basic starting point. You do NOT need to spend that much.
As long as you can get the video back onto your camcorder (DV-in is enabled) then this is all you need to do/buy.

Mark.

MarkE19, I need to make sure specifically what hardware you mean. You're saying that MS Movie Maker 2 is the hardware package I need for what I'm talking about wanting to do? I'm talking about playing the raw video into a firewire port from my camcorder onto the computer's hardrive, then editing it and then playing the edited video back out through the same firewire port back into my camcorder. If the package you're talking about will allow me to do this, and if it's a lot cheaper, then I want it!
I'll try looking for it on the net and see what kind of price I can find for it, because it might be different in price here than it is where you're at. Thanks a bunch for the info. Tunes Man.

Tunes Man here again. I feel kind of silly. It turns out that I do have the Movie Maker program because it's already part of my Windows XP programs. What I need is a firewire card of some kind to download my digital video into my computer. I wasn't aware that my computer already had this program because I haven't been using my computer for this purpose, so I stilll need some information on how to obtain a firewire input for my computer. Please help! Thanks, Tunes Man.

Okay I did some checking on firewire cards and came up with one on the net. What I found is a 1394 Firewire PCI Card which is selling for anywhere from $24 on up, but that's pretty cheap. My question is,(and they didn't specify on the web site that I found this on), will I be able to take video in or out of my PC if I install this card?
Thanks again for any help. Tunes Man.

[MarkE19]

Yes, a firewire card is very cheap and will transfer video/audio into & out of your PC with little/no loss of quality from your origional.
Firewire is know as firewire/ieee1394/DVport/OHCI etc and all are exactly the same thing (well USB is also OHCI, but can be refered to by these letters).

Thanks MarkE19, you've been very helpful, and also to everybody who replied to my original question. I'm getting ready to order my firewire pci card.
One last question; is this card pretty easy to install? I've heard that you just open up your computer and it's supposed to just plug into a slot toward the back.
Thanks again, Tunes Man.

[MarkE19]

As you said, open the case, remove a plate beside spare PCI slot, push the card gently into a spare slot on the MoBo, screw onto case (use screw from removed plate) to hold card securely, Put case back together and plug all the leads back in.

When you power the PC on Windows will detect the card and then all you need to do is connect your camcorder.

Mark.