digital camcorder

[Joey]

my dad got my mom this samsung mini dv SCD103 for mothers day, and i think its a piece of crap. when i transfer video from a tape to the computer through usb, the video on the computer lags and skips and is wicked slow. i think its because we should be copying it with a memory card rather than the tape. but then it creates the video as a .asf file. i cant open this file with windows movie maker 2. this is so gay. the only converter i found needs to be registered or else it says its gay product name in the video. do all cameras create their movies to .asf on the computer? im going to see if my dad will buy a different one instead.

[DennisCGc]

when i transfer video from a tape to the computer through usb, the video on the computer lags and skips and is wicked slow.

What USB standard does your computer and the camera use ?

[Joey]

im not sure what you mean. all i know is it uses a usb port and cable that was included with the camera. how can i speed up the copying of the video to get rid of the lag? is there a different program or something that i could use to copy it that might work faster and that would allow me to save the file as something other than a .asf?

[Joey]

in the manual it says "Since the video is recorded at 5fps, the movement of the recorded video might be unnatural." is there anyway i can get the video to not be "unnatural" when i copy it to the computer? i think if i had a memory stick, since i wouldnt have to record it to the computer, it would go faster. but i dont know.

[Eero Ränik]

First, if it is recording 5 fps, it's a piece of crap. However, I think it's doing it unless you set it so. First, make sure you're using USB 2.0, since the first is slower, and might be the cause of the lags. Then, when you don't want to use the software that came with the camera, use "Capture from video device" function in your Movie Maker 2. And it (Movie Maker 2) opens asf files successfully on my computer, maybe it's saved on the memory stick using a different format?

[Joey]

yeah i didnt even notice that eigen. i found that out yesterday and the video looks much better, but it still isnt perfect. how do i get usb 2.0?

[Eero Ränik]

First, I'm Eero... ::)
Second, if you don't have USB 2.0 ports on your motherboard, then walk into your local computer shop and buy an USB 2.0 adapter for PCI bus for 10 bucks.

[Joey]

hahaha sorry. i saw the e in your name so i thought it was eigen. im not sure, this might have usb 2.0. how can i find out. device drivers?

[Eero Ränik]

Almost all motherboards made after the middle of 2002 should have USB 2.0. Check your motherboards manual, then check whether the drivers are installed (Device Manager - Universal Serial Bus controllers).

[Joey]

this is a new computer. i checked in device manager, and clicked the plus on the universal serial bus, and i dont see any of those named usb 2.0 or anything.

[Eero Ränik]

Check the motherboard manual, then check whether its driver CD has any USB 2.0 drivers.