I wonder if someone could tell me how to go about getting a home movie off a video onto DVD. Can I do this with a USB cable of do I need a Capture device that I have seen while searching the web? I can do a lot of things on computer but have never done this. I want to put film of my late husband onto DVD before something happens to the tape.
Thanks if you can help
Regards

Hi,
There are a few ways to do this, but each one will involve some type of capture device. Your first port of call should be to check your Graphics Card, to see if it is Vivo (Video-in, Video-Out), if it is, you just need the correct S-video cable , which you connect to your exterior device (camcorder, VHS,etc ..) From there you simply need to download some capture software to record it to your PC. A good free one would be VirtualDub.

If you are not sure if your GFX card supports Vivo, determine the make and model and post it here, and I should be able to tell you.

Another way is to connect your external device via firewire, if your system supports this, but it can be a bot more complex this way, and again you will nedd to use software once your hardware is connected to your PC, like Virtualdub, to record to your Harddrive.

Some devices can be connected to your PC via USB, but they are device dependant. A good one I would suggest that comes with its own software and all wires, etc is the Canopus ADVC-100, Advanced Digital Video Converter.

..........................................................................................................
To sum up .. You will need either a Video Capture card of some type (Vivo Graphics Card, TV Reciever card or A DV Card itself), or a Firewire card in your PC.

I hope that helps in some way. I have found a page that may explain the hardware requirements better than I can if you prefer --> http://www.dvd-burner.ca/DVD-Tutorials/Video-Hardware-Requirements.html

Good luck

:>

Russ
_________________
Take a chance .. it may be your only hope ..

5 years ago i tried doing this, i got all sorts of problems with audio out of sync and choppy capture quality. i must have spent about £200 on different capture devices to try and get it right. in the end i gave up, bought a dvd recorder, plugged my vhs player into the dvd recorder and got recordings in perfect quality everytime. dvd recorders are under £100 now and much less hassle in my opinion.

I have to agree with scottie though .. the easiest & cheapest way to do this, if you dont already have any of the required hardware is to invest in a DVD Recorder..

:>

Russ
_________________
Take a chance .. it may be your only hope ..

Hi resincake
Thanks for the help. I do have a DVD recorder but the format doesn't let you use the DVD anywhere else but on that machine . It was a cheap one a couple of years back. I also wanted to edit the films

Now to graphics card. In the Sound, video and Game controllers I have
Audio Codecs
Legacy Audio Drivers
Legacy Video Capture Devices
Media Control Devices
SoundMax Intergrated Digital Audeio
Standard Game Port
Video codecs

Can't see the video in/out and there aren't any ports in the back of computer ssoooooo?

Scottie, I am hoping it is easier than it was 5 years ago as things must have improved.. I have a friend that is converting them straight from VCR machine to DVD. I seem to be able to lots on a computer (except find a graphics card) so would love to do this with some help plus don't want to rely on others I should be able to edit the DVD when they are copied?

thanks again
Berenice

if its just a few tapes take em to a photo shop, most of em will but home vids onto dvd fairly cheaply (about a fiver i think) you can then use a good dvd ripper to extract the raw format, load it into your favourite editor and muck around to your hearts content.

If its lots of vids then either invest in some proper vhs to dvd conversion hardware or a good quality capture/graphics card.

Ifyou are in the market for a new machine, I recently picked up a new LG DVD/VCR combi. You can record from either and I got it to back up kids plays and special occasions. They are alot cheaper now, it cost me £150 and from catalogue too so if you are lucky and find some voucher codes, you should get one for less.