# Importing Video



## fccabs (Jul 31, 2006)

Is there anyway of importing Video onto a macbook pro without using Imovie??

I don't want to edit the video at the moment i just want to have it on my mac in an AVI form. I spent ages last night loading it up into imovie but when i tried to save it using the highest possible avi quality it only saved about 2 minutes of my 60 min video even though it said the file size was 16gb.  Also when i played it back the quality didn't look as good as video i edited on my old Sony Viao PC so i presume i doing something wrong somewhere. Can anyone help please as i'm 2 months into being a mac owner and im really not impressed at all so far.


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## MSM Hobbes (Apr 23, 2004)

I do not know the answer, but,,, if you are a new user, have patience - there are MANY things that take a bit of time to get a handle on w/ the Mac s/w. Esp. if one comes from the Windows side, where you do "x", and then you try "x" w/ your Mac, but it don't do the same thing!!! grrrrrrr...  Anyhow, have you tried using your lifeline w/ the Apple support? Don't forget that they are a wealth of info too.

Does the following have any help to you?
http://jeffcarlson.typepad.com/imovievqs/
http://www.aquafadas.com/idive-digital-video/import-quicktime-video.html
or the book:
http://www.amazon.com/iMovie-6-IDVD-Missing-Manual/dp/0596527268


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## VegasACF (May 27, 2005)

Yeah, I was tempted to respond to this, but after looking over the prefs settings for it and QuickTime I wasn't sure I could offer anything other than my best wishes. When you created this session (sorry--I'm using Pro Tools terminology, as that is my comfort zone--whatever iMove calls a new movie file) did you select the proper import settings (DV, likely, is the best selection, but it depends upon whatever hardware you have)?

This likely won't help you much, but I've had nothing but good luck with iMovie doing the quick and dirty imports and edits that I needed to do from my MiniDV cam, imported via FireWire (is that your method of importation?).

Another option, though with, in my experience, limited DV cam support, is Avid Free DV. It imports without problem, but exporting has proved problematic for me. But give it a try. Maybe it will prove useful to you.

Hope this helps.


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## fccabs (Jul 31, 2006)

Thanks for the replies and the links. I must admit one of the reasons i switched to a mac was the image promoted that it was easier to use then a PC. Unfortunately i'm not finding this to be true yet but that may be becuase i'm expecting too much. My other problem is that my internet connection at home is down at the moment so i can only access online support etc while in the office and not while i'm using the application. Anyway i'll persevere and see what happens. thanks


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## MSM Hobbes (Apr 23, 2004)

Again, I understand your frustration - the woman has been battling iPhoto for the past couple months, scanning and d/l'ing thousands of family photos for her folks' 50th anniversary. There are many really durn goofy quirks and unknowns and head-banging-against-wall moments when using this supposedly "so gosh darn user friendly that any blind monkey application"... books and 'net and forums and such have been utilized repeatedly. But, at the end of the day, we are learning a new methodology of using a 'think different' s/w. In any case, can you call Apple help from your house, while having the application running?


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## linskyjack (Aug 28, 2004)

First of all, when you capture the video, you are capturing video with an .avi extension. When you pull it into Imovie, you render it out to either a compressed format like .mov or an uncompressed format (.avi). If you chose to render out in .avi, you are making huge demands space wise on your hard drive although the quality is the best. Try rendering it out to a .mov and see if this works.

The other thing is that your video should be on a separate drive dedicated strictly to video files.


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## fccabs (Jul 31, 2006)

Thanks for all the responses.

According to the help function on imoviehd 

Applications that use QuickTime may not be able to export AVI format movies that are greater than about 1 GB in size.

Symptom

After exporting an AVI file larger than 1 GB, the file size appears correct, but the movie stops playing when it reaches the 1 GB point.

Products affected

QuickTime Player (QuickTime Pro)
Final Cut Pro
Final Cut Express
iMovie
Other programs that use QuickTime
QuickTime versions up to and including QuickTime 6.5.2 for Mac OS and Microsoft Windows

Solution
QuickTime can open large AVI files, but does not export AVI files larger than about 1 GB. Export the file using the MPEG-4 or QuickTime Movie formats instead.

This document will be updated when additional information is available. 


So it seems if i want to keep a file in AVI format thats bigger then 1gb I can't Fantastic. Wheres my PC when need it....


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## Magna Carta (Sep 27, 2006)

fccabs said:


> So it seems if i want to keep a file in AVI format thats bigger then 1gb I can't Fantastic. Wheres my PC when need it....


It's also found here at the Apple Support KB, and from what I see this is only affected on versions of QuickTime 6.5(.2) and lower. I believe you should be fine when exporting AVI files from iMovie if your version of QuickTime is higher than 6.5 (should be 7.1).


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