Compressing captured video files

Question

I can capture a video from my analog camcorder to my hard drive where it is stored in a 'My Video' folder. However, I cannot find a way to compress captured videos so that they will fit on a 4.7GB DVD ! For example, I captured a 28 minute video of our Grandson's football game and when I burned it to a DVD it used approximately 2.4 GB's ! Most videos I capture are about one to two hours long and will not fit. I am now using Nero-6 to try and burn my videos but cannot find a way to compress the files ! I tried Roxio Movie Creator and Windows Movie Maker with no luck. Can someone please help ? My operating sys. is Windows-XP with Serv. Pack-2. My burner is a Sony, DRU-710A.

CTskydiver · Answer

Better luck asking in the Special Interests: Photo & Video Editing forum.

john f morgan j · Answer

Thanks, I'll try anything to get an answer.

sleeplesman · Answer

I found that I needed to change the format of the file. I think they came off the camera as AVI and I needed to change them to mpeg. I think I opened them with media player and went to file save as and specified the file format.

john f morgan j · Answer

Thanks sleepesman for your response, however, I still do not understand how to change the file format from AVI to mpeg, especially in Media Player which I don't use. I don't have enough knowledge to know what file format to use. Can you or someone else be of further assistance/ Thanks.

sleeplesman · Answer

see the following link for easy to use converting software.

http://www.mp3-converter.com/mp3_converter_freeware.htm

install the software after download. follow the steps. it takes a short time to learn. converting to mpeg makes the files less than half the size of avi. or just open media player. go to open file. open the video. go to save as and give the file a new name. this should shrink the file a lot.

Message Edited by sleeplesman on 01-31-2006 08:22 AM

john f morgan j · Answer

At this point I feel like the dumbest person ever to understand computer language. When I went to the mp-3 converter site, I opened several of their mp-3 encoder programs and all they talked about was CD's and no mention of DVD's ! At this point, I think I'll give up on using my computer to create DVD's and buy a DVD burner, they appear much easier to understand and use, for a non Geek.

john f morgan j · Answer

Thank you very much for your assistance, I'll try your suggestion and let you know how I made out.

sleeplesman · Answer

Good Luck Jack.

Storage, Drives & Media

Compressing captured video files

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