So what do You have in the treat bag?

There were a number of free Poser props and 2D elements this year. I could not resist playing a bit. I probably could have spent a little more time on this but decorating for the holiday took a lot more time than I thought it would. Next year I will not stress so much about where to put the severed hand and feet or how many spiders should go on the web. Happy Halloween.

Tholie, the amazing singing cat

This was a special request from my Mom. She wanted her chat room friends to see what an amazing cat her little Tholie is and what she can do.

If it weren't for bad luck....

I had planned on bringing home the footage for the Commercial Project and using it with Livetype to spiff up my commercial. Before I left class, I loaded the files on my flash drive or at least I thought I did. After we figured out why my project did not appear in the drop box I should have gone back in and loaded the completed file. All That was on the drive was a file of an incomplete project with no clips. That would not have been a problem if I had opened once I got home but I did not do that. I waited to check it on Thursday after the lab hours were over. So I will just have to see if I can make it out to the Lab on Tuesday after work. Of course there is no guarantee I would finish the edit before class. Oh, just a thought, maybe I can run out and get the footage and call in sick on Wednesday. I would have the whole day to work on the project. I am not going to do that of course but it was the only bright spot to my weekend so far.

I did find the DV connection for the camcorder I borrowed from mom. I went to circuit city and bought a firewire. Not the right one of course but I at least am getting closer to retrieving the video of the Homecoming parade. While I was there I looked for a camcorder for myself. Yep, I found a really nice pricey one that the sales clerk assured me was firewire capable and that was the one I needed. When I got it home it was not equipped with a DV, IEEE 1394 or firewire port. I returned to CircuitCity and argued for a while found a cheaper one (open box) was able use a firewire connection. I got on line and discovered I needed a 4 to 6 pin firewire to connect to the MAC and it will ship in 24 hours ( actually that will most likely be 48 hours as this is Saturday).

I took a bunch of stills, some Livetype and a soundtrack I made in GarageBand and imported it to Final cut Express. Not great but I am learning a lot.

The Video Gods Hate Me

I borrowed Mom’s camcorder to use at ISU’s Homecoming Parade today. After a few minutes of playing with the controls I felt I could be successful in shooting enough video to make a short 2 or 3 minute presentation. All went well at the parade. I got clips of the BRMM, Reggie, the Alumni Band and even did a mock interview with my Mom. I ran back the tape and it looked pretty good. There were a few crucial elements to the project I had not planned for.
Mom and I got home about 11:30 and I wanted to get started on editing the video. The camera had a USB input to the computer so I could not use a fire wire to import the footage into Final Cut Express. I just had to think about the problem for a while. I think best while shopping. I went to the fabric store and to Michael's and found some really cute things for the holidays. Okay I am now ready to tackle that video. I looked around the Internet but did not see a solution for my problem. It was getting late anyway so I decided to shelve the problem until tomorrow.
Credit for the next idea I am giving to my cat. About 2am I must have rolled over on her and she sunk her back claws into my leg. I was wide awake and my first thought was, “Hey, I can load that video to iMovie , create a folder and open it in Final Cut”. Sunday morning, right after 2 cups of coffee and a pop tart, that is what I tried. Okay that did not work either so I made some toast hoping I would think better on a full stomach.
I decided to see if I could load the video my PC. First I had to locate the set-up disk that came with the camera. Since the camcorder was purchased in 2002, I knew I had a long search ahead of me. After 5 years there was no telling how far away that disk could have rolled. I know what you are thinking…why not just load to mom’s computer and the transfer it to my computer. The disk was never loaded on her system. Mom was sure that it did not come with a disk because it was so old. I went to SharpUSA.com to see if I could download the drivers. It is now Sunday afternoon. I downloaded what I thought were the drivers but were actually a readme file and a PDF on how to connect the USB to the computer. I was instructed to install the drivers from that elusive disk.
I got out the manual. Maybe there was something I missed or info I could use to get that video on to a computer. The camcorder can be hooked up to a TV. All I have to do is find some AV cables and I’m set. I can record the video to the VCR, use the Dazzle digital video creator 150 to transfer the footage to the computer and I am good to go, right? I really think this might have worked had if had not loaned the Dazzle to a friend sometime back and if could have found a store that sold blank Beta tapes (all my tapes are full of 9 seasons of Doctor Who and 2 seasons of Twin Peaks).
It is now 4:08 on Sunday. I lost the first round with the Video Gods but the battle is not over. After I finish this bit for the blog, I am heading start to Kodak.com and look for a semi-pro EasyShare digital camcorder. If they don’t make one then I guess I will be sending an email to find out how soon I can expect one.

Christmas Wish List

This is at the top of my Christmas list

Phone Wars coming soon

I found an article at Engadget that I found interesting. It demonstrates how quickly the industry can respond to new tech and consumer demand.

Cool New Phones

A squishy post

Okay, I just had to skip ahead to animation. I promise I'll go back and read what was in between. Just one bounce. I did not render it, I used playblast instead.