I am a complete noob to this stuff. I have no camera experience or editing experience. I got this camera as a gift. I love it and am excited to use it, but I can't figure out how to get the footage into my computer so I can edit it.

Can someone please tell me what I need for this to work?

Panasonic DVCPROHD AG-HVX200P
I have the 16g P2 card,
17" Mac Power Book G4 running OSX 10.4.11
Quicktime 7.4
iMovie 4.0.1

I went and bought Final Cut Express HD and tried to open the files with that, but it doesn't work either.

I also downloaded the P2CMS viewer from Panasonics website, and it will play the audio, but no video.

I have installed the P2 driver, and when I insert the P2 card into my mac, I can see all the folders and files, but I can't get them to open.

Am I doing something wrong? Do I not have the proper software?

HELP!

I think the real question here is whether or not a G4 laptop has enough horsepower to display HD video clips.

Kenny,

Welcome to the forum.

There are a couple things you need to be aware of about FC Express:

First, it's not setup to handle any of the pro-video codecs, such as DVCPRO, HDCAM, XDCAM etc. If you read the release notes and the documentation that came with the software, it's designed only for Mini-DV, HDV and AVCHD which are all consumer formats.

If you're shooting any flavor of HD or even DVCPRO 50 then you won't be able to see or edit those files with the software you're currently using. However, if you shoot Mini-DV (DV25) on the HVX200 then you will be able to see and edit your footage.

I'd highly suggest picking up the HVX Book from Barry Green; it's sort-of the "missing manual" for the HVX200.

About your G4 laptop; it's got plenty of horsepower to handle HD footage from the HVX200. About 2 years ago I posted a huge article here on this forum on how to ingest and edit footage on a G4 Powerbook; read that and it will give you all the in's and out's you need to know about editing on that platform.

Well, should I get a new MAC? I already have footage on the P2 card that I want to use... And if so, will I have to buy Final Cut Pro for this to work on the new MAC?

Where can I get the HVX book?

I'm currently searching the forums for your write up on using the HVX200 with a G4.

Thanks for your help so far!

Here's that old thread about using the G4 Powerbook with the HVX; you will need to upgrade to Final Cut Pro to fully take advantage of what the HVX is capable of.

http://dvinfo.net/conf/showthread.php?t=59680

Many thanks Robert for clarifying that the issue here is *not* his computer but rather the software he's using (Final Cut Express vs. Final Cut Pro). Much appreciated,

Kenny,

Read this post for info on the HVX Book -

http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthread.php?t=73215

I think the real question here is whether or not a G4 laptop has enough horsepower to display HD video clips.

The fact is that regardless of horsepower, you need at least FCP 5.0.4. to work with p2 cards.

And that version is no longer available, so FCS2 is your only option short of an online auction.

Thanks guys, I'm looking into solutions right now. I'll let you know what I come up with.