I'm looking to get a firewire card and video editing software.

I see a lot of people recommend Pinnacle 8
I've also seen some cards selling bundled with
movie DV studio version 4 don't know much about it

how do they compare. I'm new to video editing, but want something reasonably easy to use and with a good selection of output formats

[TommyVecetti]

Pinnacle 8 is usually quite well recommended, I have in the past used VIDEOWAVE which I found to be very good. I currently use Premiere 6, which if you look around can be got cheaply bundled with other stuff.

[MarkE19]

Premier 6 is NOT recommended as a starting option. It is great programme with loads of features, but at a cost & its very hard to get to grips with.
Studio 8 tends to get the best reviews in the budget range. It has a lot of features and is easy to use.
A lot of the Studio 8 competitors are starting to catch up and might even overtake it soon.
Unless you are getting a good deal on another editing package, or it has features you require that are missing then I would recommend sticking to Studio 8. It has been out for a while and is well supported and has had the main bugs fixed. Some of the smaller software companies might not be able to offer the same support.

Just the opinion of another Premiere user still trying to learn the ins & outs.

Mark.

[TommyVecetti]

>>>>Just the opinion of another Premiere user still trying to learn the ins & outs.<<<<<<

It's quite hard to begin with, but the more you use it the more it becomes easier, until finally, the whole thing clicks and it seems as easy as riding a bike.

If you have XP download movie maker II which is free, and have a go on that, quite impressive for a starter editor.