From VHS to DVD
Q : I have a lot of old home video I want to transfer to DVD . What software or ironware do I need , and how do I get the process up and running?—Jerry Nichols
A : Usually , the first footmark in burn your videos to DVD is to transfer them to your Mac . There are a few ways to do that . If you have a MiniDV camcorder , it likely has a pass - through mode , in which the photographic camera will take charge of the conversion for you . Plug your VCR ’s output into the camcorder ’s inputs , draw a FireWire cable system between the camcorder and your Mac , start the camera ’s pass - through mode , and capture your motion-picture show in Apple ’s iMovie . mention that your solution may be less than staring — some cameras perform better than others ( and some , I ’m told , do n’t work at all ) .
Alternatively , you could purchase an analog - to - DV convertor box such as Datavideo ’s $ 185DAC-200or Canopus ’s $ 229ADVC55 ( ) . Plug the VCR ’s outputs into the analog input signal diddlyshit on one of these boxes , draw a FireWire cable between it and your Mac , and then capture your video recording in iMovie .
And if you have a Mac that swallow - ports USB 2.0 , you’re able to use an EyeTV - compatible video - seizure machine such as Elgato ’s $ 200EyeTV 250 ( ) , which has an MPEG-2 hardware encoder . If you want to make only minimal edits — simple cuts to discerp out extraneous material , for example — the included EyeTV 2 software will do the job , but it does n’t let you add together transitions or personal effects .
Once you ’ve captured the video ( by any of these methods ) and opened it in iMovie , you’re able to cut it and then export it to Apple ’s iDVD to burn it to disc .
If you ’re simply looking for a way to archive your video on a more durable medium and do n’t require to get at with all those steps , you could jump your computer wholly . A bit of manufacturers , including Panasonic , Toshiba , and Philips , sell VHS - DVD decks for under $ 200 — your local electronics store is sure to have at least one of these units on the shelf ( Amazon.com is another good author ) . These decks can dub tapes to writable videodisc ( and vice versa)—and as a fillip , they run like traditional VCRs .
after , if you determine you want to edit the video you ’ve burned to DVD , you may always extract it from the phonograph recording with a tool such as the freeHandBrake . Then pull it into iMovie and edit to your inwardness ’s subject .
Create the endless DVD
Q : How can I combust a QuickTime motion picture in iDVD that loop but does n’t have a menu?—Jane Williams
A : I assume that you demand this setup for utilisation in a kiosk . No sweat . plunge iDVD ( /Applications ) and open a new project ( File : New ) . snap on the DVD Map push button ( the one just to the right of the frolic button at the bottom of the window ) . At the top of the leave pane is a boxful that read , “ Drag content here to automatically diddle when the magnetic disk is inserted . ” Do as it intimate : drag your QuickTime movie into this corner . Then select the box to select it , and choose Advanced : Loop Movie .
preserve your project and fire it . When you squeeze the disc into your DVD player and press play ( or tuck the disc into your Mac ’s media drive , which is configured by default to mechanically act DVDs ) , the moving picture you dragged into the automatic - drama area will play , and play , and make for .
Too much of a good thing?
Q : Does having too many applications slow up down a Mac ? System Profiler lists 375 on my G5 iMac . I could remove ton of them with Austin Sarner ’s and Brian Ball’sAppZapper , but would that speed up my system?—Stephen Good
A : It depends on a few constituent : how much hard - private road space those applications consume , the amount of processing power their component use , and the resourcefulness your candid political platform are sucking when they ’re supposed to be doing nothing .
If your Mac is so crammed with software ( and other kind of data ) that you have very footling elbow room allow for on the hard drive , system performance will stomach . OS X uses complimentary hard - drive space for its practical computer memory scheme . At the very least , I try out to leave 10 pct of my startup - campaign space free so the OS has way for those practical memory job ( seeReclaim Your Hard Drive ) .
When an program run a background job that ’s placing demands on your Mac ’s processor , the mere presence of that program could slow down operation . In Activity Monitor ( /Applications / Utilities ) , see which background signal processes appear at the top of the list when you sort by % CPU . If you may do without any of the top ones , getting free of those programs may ameliorate performance .
If an coating demand a login item — if you have a backup programme that command a scheduling element to monitor your Mac behind the scenes , for instance — your Mac may take longer to boot up . Again , getting rid of a programme you do n’t demand ( and its go with login item ) may bring you to the desktop a little bit faster when you first start up your Mac .
And do n’t block that open diligence can suck up on the CPU as well . For instance , I often have Microsoft Word undecided while I ’m working with another software . Word ’s doing absolutely nothing , as far as I can tell , yet Activity Monitor tells me that it ’s using between 3 and 4 percent of the CPU ( see “ Stop Processor Hogs ” ) . I ’ve found that if I leave a web web browser unfastened for twenty-four hours on last , this has an impact on functioning as well .
So try quitting applications when you ’re really and truly done with them . If you find that one of your programs is sucking more of your information processing system ’s dynamism than you give care for , await for a less processor - hungry alternative .
Finally , have you looked at your Dashboard widget latterly ? Third - party thingmabob can perturb your processor , too . See what they ’re doing in Activity Monitor . Clear out any processor hogs that you installed out of peculiarity but never use .
Shift audio pitch and speed
Q : I am a dance teacher and need some recommendations for Mac - compatible euphony - editing programs . The software must be extremely user - well-disposed ( I ’m a non - eccentric ) and allow me to slow down the tempo of a track without changing its pitch . I also require to delete a track ’s length and insert vocal narration between track . Any prompting would be welcome — the simpler , the better!—Lorelei Coutts Luxton
A : If you need the effective wakeless quality in an easy - to - use package , I suggest Roni Music’sAmazing Slow Downer($45 ) . This Universal app ’s name nicely discover what it does . Feed the political program an audio CD or an audio file , and then conform the delivery or fastness ( see “ Change Tempo , Not Pitch ” ) .
When you adjust only the upper slider , the runway ’s pace changes without the pitch changing . Likewise , you may adjust only the Pitch slider to exchange the pitching without changing the tempo . you’re able to also adjust both , set the starting line and stop points of your track , and even curl your track .
Once you ’ve modified the music to your liking , save the track and export it as an AIFF , MP3 , QuickTime , or AAC file . you may import tracks into Apple ’s GarageBand ( which you belike have in your Applications folder ) ; there , you may array them in a sequence and record narration between them .
You might also try HairerSoft ’s $ 40Amadeus Pro . This is a full - feature sound - redaction program that include a Change Pitch And Speed control in its Effects menu . This command ’s results are n’t as polished as those of Amazing Slow Downer — audio artifact are far more evident . But you’re able to do everything you desire to within Amadeus Pro without changing over to GarageBand . The diligence can change the tar and velocity of your tracks , as well as sequence them and add story between them .
Toss out unnecessary languages
Q : I understand that I can recover hard - disk space by remove foreign languages from OS X. The problem is that I need alien - spoken language supporting insomeapplications but not others . Is there a way to selectively remove language supporting from applications?—Lane Weiss
A : There is , but if you have a lot of applications , you ’ll find the process tedious . pick out an software and press 1 - I to bestow up the Info windowpane . select the triangle next to the Languages entry to reveal a list of languages that the practical program supports ( some program hold only one ) . sustain down the 1 key and select the languages you do n’t want . Then cluck on the Remove button . You ’ll be warned that the program may not function properly if you proceed — so it ’s a undecomposed idea to have a backup , just in case something goes awry .
When you snap on hunky-dory in the warn dialog box to proceed , the associated .lproj linguistic process folders will be moved to the Trash . To permanently slim your software , empty the Trash .
TiVo transfers
I adore the marvelous digital picture recorder TiVo , but I ’ve also been frustrated by the trouble of moving programs from my Series 2 TiVo box to my Mac and iPod . Thankfully , the following tool have made the process a mint comfortable . ( alas , none of them puzzle out with Series 1 or Series 3 TiVos . )
goner 8 TitaniumTiVo ’s long - promised Mac translation of the TiVo2Go software program is available only as a part of Roxio ’s $ 100Toast 8 Titaniumand has been rename TiVo Transfer . It work as advertised , easily finding your Series 2 TiVo recordings via Bonjour networking and download them to your Mac .
There , you’re able to view them with Roxio ’s Video Player . you could also convey these recording into Toast to cauterise them to platter or export them to your iPod . The only hitch is that you ca n’t edit these protected videos to cut out commercial message or any superfluous material at a programme ’s commencement or end . To do that , you necessitate an extra tool .
TiVo DecoderNik Friedman TeBockhorst ’s liberal TiVo Decoder strips out the tribute imposed by TiVo Transfer . Drag a program onto the TiVo Decoder AppleScript icon , and it ’s converted into an MPEG-2 data file . In my experience , these filing cabinet wo n’t wager or export properly with QuickTime Player . But they will represent perfectly with VideoLAN ’s freeVLC Media Player .
Once you ’ve used TiVo Decoder , bring the converted files back into TiVo Transfer by moving them to the TiVo Recordings folder inyour user booklet / Documents . Select one of these files within the TiVo Recordings sphere of the TiVo Transfer window , and tap the Toast It button . The television curriculum will seem in the DVD - Video country of Toast Titanium 8 . In Toast , select it and tap Export . you could now export the recording in a data formatting compatible with the iPod , as well as in a variety of other television format . Then you may edit out out the ads in QuickTime Pro Player or iMovie .
TiVoDecode ManagerIf that sounds like too much trouble , test David Benesch ’s freeTiVoDecode Manager . It can expose and transfer transcription from networked Series 2 TiVos via Bonjour , and convert those recording into MPEG-2 or MPEG-4 television files . you could edit that formatting in QuickTime Player Pro or iMovie .
Bugs & fixes
FIX : Target Disk Mode FreezeIf you have a 15 - column inch MacBook Pro or iMac from early 2006 , you may find that it freezes in Target Disk Mode . Disconnect the target Mac and resume it to get everything working . To foreclose the job , add the latestfirmware updatefor your Mac .
BUG : Streaming Music Drop - offsHas your local AirPort Express meshwork become unusually slow ? Does AirTunes ’ streaming music periodically stop and start ? If so , spread the web penchant pane , select AirPort from the Show pop - up menu , and tap the TCP / IP tab . From here , select the Configure IPv6 release at the bottom of the window . Select Off from the Configure IPv6 down - up computer menu . Do n’t worry , most users do n’t need this choice . Of of course , if you are one of the few who do , this workaround wo n’t work out . You ’ll just have to expect for Apple to squash the germ .
FIX : Pro app CrashesSeveral of Apple ’s pro app , includingAperture 1.5 ( ) andLogic Pro 7.01 ( ) , may “ by chance renounce ” as soon as you set up them . If so , you probably set up either Pro app Support 3.0 or 3.1 , or both , before you updated to Tiger ( OS X 10.4 ) . The locating is to erase two items : a filing cabinet call ProRuntime.pkg , in /Library / Receipts/ , and a Indian file anticipate PrivateFrameworks / professional - Kit.framework , in /System / Library / PrivateFrameworks/. Then reinstallPro program Support 3.1 for Tiger .
BUG : Photoshop Files Do n’t OpenHave you retrieve that when you double - tap an Adobe Photoshop file ( made in the CS or CS2 version ) , the program launching but the file does n’t open up ? If so , taste opening the file via the undefendable command in Photoshop ’s File menu . To deposit the problem , search your Previous Systems folder for a file called Adobe Unit Types . If you happen it , copy it to the fighting /Library / ScriptingAdditions folder . If you do n’t see the Indian file , create a fresh pamphlet address ScriptingAdditions in the /Library booklet and then slay and reinstall Photoshop .
[ Senior Contributor Ted Landau is the founder ofMacFixIt , a Web site pay to report Mac problems and solutions . get an consequence to report ? E-mailbugs@macworld.comor post it in Macworld.com ’s Mac 911 forum . ]
