Hi everyone, I'm new to the forums here but I'm sure I'll be posting more often in the coming months. I've just spent the last few hours reading through many threads here. Way more info can be learned from other user's hands-on experience than a manufacturer's manual anyday. Thanks for the openness in these forums.

So, last month I bought an EX-1. Still haven't used it. Shame on me I know. I also bought a MBP because the media cards are still so expensive and this computer is mobile, so I sold my G5.
I'm now finally ready to set up my workflow and I'm a little confused on the difference between the Sony XDCAM Browser 2 and the XDCAM Transfer for Mac FCP on Sony's site;
http://www.sony.ca/xdcamex/software.htm Both are towards the bottom.

I will be using FCP, which is fully updated. I will be storing the footage at first on the MBP's internal HD, then backing up to one or more external drives depending on how paranoid I get. This is my first SxS experience after a decade of Mini DV.

So I record my footage onto the SxS card, slide it into the Expresscard slot on the MBP, and then.....? I read that I can just drag the whole folder onto my decktop. Whether or not I do this, how do the Transfer and Browser programs come into play? I know the files need to be converted to .mov before entering FCP. This is Transfer's job,yes? Is Browser just a way of viewing clips outside of any NLE program.

On the Sony site, I've downloaded the driver for my SxS card and that works fine. I'm just unsure whether I need to download BOTH the Transfer AND Browser packages.


I'm looking for the most streamlined, and field tested workflow you folks have found with the system.

I really appreciate any clarification and direction. Sorry for the long post, I just like to be thorough.

Thanks,
Chad

XDCAM Transfer is a plugin for FCP and works from the import menu to log and import footage directly.

The Browser is a stand alone application for media management.

Get the Sony NLE workflow guide for FCP here: Sony XDCAM HD & XDCAM EX Workflows (http://pro.sony.com/bbsc/ssr/micro-xdcam/resource.downloads.bbsccms-assets-micro-xdcam-downloads-XDCAMEXUserGuides.shtml?XID=E:XDCAMupdate_EXUserGuides:XDCAMEX)

George/

Clip Browser can be used to "manage" the SxS cards. Copy cards to hard drive. Split 16GB cards to fit on 8GB DL-DVD (oversimplified explanation). You should update to version 2.

XDCAM Transfer converts the .MP4 files to .MOV for Final Cut Pro use. It can work as a standalone (which is how I prefer to use it), not just as a plugin. It joins spanned clips so that they appear as one in FCP. It can also be used for logging and sub-clipping. You should update to version 2.7.

I would NOT recommend dragging whole folders onto the desktop. Each BPAV must reside in a parent folder. You can create those folders before you copy by hand or you can do it with ClipBrowser (which I think is the safer method especially since it now includes CRC checking).

Thanks to you both for the clarification.