How much computer?
 

What kind of laptop power does the 35mb/sec mpeg2 file require? dual core? ram? what would a basic system require?

Also, do people typically use an IC or are the files edited natively?

i used my G4-1.5GHZ PB for FCP editing.
It was slow but it did work.
Could not use the expresscard slot though.

What will kill you with an older laptop (or tower) is the final high quality render. A 3 hour piece will land you about 18 hours of render time on a relatively new desktop machine with a moderate to light amount of processing (transitions & color correction) without a 3rd party card to speed things up for your broadcast quality output. Editing, as Bob mentions, is different but you are generally up against the wall in terms of deadlines when it is time to render.

I'm out of touch. By "relatively new" do you mean quad core? Dual? Do they still make single core?

I assume this would be for a native mpeg2 edit? Not using something like cineform?

Power.
 

Right now I am getting away with editing 1080i on a early 2007 MBP with 2 GB or ram and a 2 core 2.33 processor. It's not fast, but it's okay. I'm using a Sonnet F2 eSATA portable raid system for the media files and this seems fine at the mo. Most of the effects I'm applying are simple transitions and some effects using FXFactory and Magic Bullet Looks. I think that FCP only uses up to 4GB of onboard ram at this time but this may (I hope) change in the not too distant future.

As I discovered, unless you have huge amounts of money to spend, it really helps to think in terms of workflows rather than monolithic systems. Be prepared to sell/add to/chop and change depending on project requirements. I fully expect to have to re-invest in a MP system soon for a couple of upcoming projects and am building the cost of the system partially into the costs of the project. I'm biding my time since new systems will be announced in early 2009 and I'm waiting for those. I will be customising the system with some great ideas from websites I probably can't mention but essentially lots of cores, lots of ram and stuff as many drives in the box as poss.

Jus.

Current desktop Macs are 8 core the ones a year or so ago were 4 core machines. That is what I was referencing. New processors on the roadmap for the new year. Something like a Kona 3 card or a Blackmagic HD Extreme is going to speed things up as well, if you are planning to go that route.