Episode #179
Hi Leo, I recently had a service transfer our old family 8mm camcorder videos to a Mpeg4 file format. The files play fine on a PC using the Windows Media Player. We then purchased an imac so we could use the imovie program to edit the footage. Boy was I surprised when the Quicktime viewer on my mac would not read the files. The message that came up indicated that “this is not a movie file”. I’ve invested a lot of money in the conversion process and the imac to preserve these treasured family memories, now I’m stuck. Help!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I have a web cam on my computer but I’m not certain what a netcam. As a result I’m not certain if I can appear on your program.
Rick, London, ON
If you still can’t play the file download the VideoLAN Player - http://videolan.org - it can play many files QuickTime cannot.
Both programs are free.
Sean’s note: Unfortunately, MPEG video files come in a ton of different flavours, depending on the codec used to decode them. On the Mac, you can often fix up file format issues by downloading a codec package called Perian (aka "the Swiss Army Knife of codecs") — you can download it here: http://www.apple.com/downloads/macosx/video/perian.html
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Air Date: April 21, 2008
TranscriptCaller Questions
- Brian, Omemee, ON
- Kevin, Saskatoon, SK
- Rick, London, ON
- Jim, St. John’s, NL
Yewell's Jewels
- SyncToywindows
SyncToy helps you copy, move, rename, and delete files between folders and computers quickly and easily.
Sean's Shinies
- USB Mandala V2.0
$349
Sure, Rock Band is cool and all that — but ultimately you’re playing a game. Why not get a drum pad that you can actually make music with? The Mandala drum pad comes with a sensor under the drum skin that can be broken up into between one and seven “zones” laid out as concentric circles. Depending on where you hit the pad, you can trigger different sounds, and each of these sounds can change depending on how hard you hit the pad. It can be a bit tricky staying accurate when you’re using more than four zones, but if you’re a drummer by trade, you should be able to home in on the right places to hit the pad without too much trouble…for the rest of us, stick to four zones or less, and learn to practice! The pad comes with “Virtual Brain” software that you can use to change the sounds for each zone, built in effects racks, and other MIDI capabilities. Works with both Mac and PC!
Shiny
- trigger samples with drumsticks
- great sounds and effects
- up to seven concentric “zones”
- compatible with Mac and PC
Dull
- configuration can be painful
- hard to locate zones
- needs serious practiceUSB Mandala V2.0
Synesthesia
Kate’s Tips
- 30 minute clutter solution
By Good Housekeeping Magazine
First, choose the room you want to de-clutter. Then, highlight the part of the room in the second menu that appears, and click “submit.”