PCs vs. Macs-Which to Pick for Video Editing?

By Leonard A. Caplan

PC or Mac? This is a question I get most often from “newbie” video enthusiasts. There are a thousand opinions on both sides. This is my take on the subject. If you were a student in my video production class, I would definitely say “Mac” because the studio where I teach is Mac based. It’s a no-brainer that if you’re learning or working in a particular environment to go with that existing platform. If you’re working in a PC environment, it makes sense to get a PC.

But which is better? I’m not one of those people who is dogmatic about computers. I don’t go for the “war” between some PC and Mac users. That being said, let’s objectively compare the features of both. I see the value in both the PC and Mac systems. For the sheer number of applications, the PC is king of every program from car diagnostics to the latest computer video game. If a program for something exists, PCs have it.

Though there are less applications to choose from in Macs, it’s generally acknowledged that Mac based graphics applications are superior to those of PCs.

PCs have problems because of the sheer number of computer viruses out there. Because of this, I have dedicated one of my few studio PCs to being a character generator only machine with no internet connection allowed since it would inevitably slow down the machine in a very short amount of time.

Macs are the clear winner in terms of lack of viruses. Computer mischief makers have geared most viruses to PCs to affect the greatest number of users possible. And most computer users world wide have PCs.

PCs are generally cheaper than Macs and you can pretty much build them from scratch. Macs are customizable mainly when you order them directly from Apple so with the exception of specialty cards and RAM, you’re pretty much stuck with the same Mac you bought.

So which side do I come down on? My particular preference is for Macs, mainly because I am used to Final Cut Pro, available only on a Mac. I picked the Mac and Final Cut Pro for my studio after visiting several colleges and noting that this was the platform and program that they used. My choice was based on the fact that it would be good for high school students planning to enter the world of video to have a head start on editing with the same programs they will use in college.

In a future blog we we’ll talk about PC and Mac editing software. Until then, which do YOU prefer? Write to us and give your opinion!

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TV Exploiting Desperation; Is it Only TV or is it Business in General?

By Leonard Aaron Caplan

Video in all its forms reflects the best of us as well as the worst. One of the more disturbing trends in today’s video is what is known as the “teaser”. In the 1950s, the “teaser” was used sparingly and harmlessly, meaning sitcoms and fictional dramas would produce promos, giving hints as to what and who was on a show without giving away the plot or climax. Nothing wrong with that.

Today, the “teaser” has spread like a virus! You see it in weather promos. They show a massive snowstorm somewhere and a voiceover will say “what are WE in for tomorrow?” and when the actual weathercast comes on, in about 20 minutes you find that the video was from some distant part of the country and that the answer to “what are WE in for tomorrow” turns out to be NOTHING!

Even the news itself isn’t immune to this phenomenon. From the dawn of television and up until the 70s, the likes of Huntley/Brinkley and Walter Cronkite simply read the news and that was that. No nonsense. News was simply a public service, not a show! In the late seventies and into the eighties, teasers began creeping into the news. People noticed and comedians would often joke, “world ends, film at 11”. Today, it’s even worse with newscasters at the beginning of a newscast teasing that “the hours on your cell phone are doing SOMETHING to your head! Find out in a few minutes!” Those “few minutes” often turn into the viewer having to watch the entire newscast and very often the very item you’ve been waiting for (and nervous about because they scared the HELL out of you) turns out to have been cut for time constraints.

The scary thing is how today’s comedians don’t bother joking about it anymore, because we, as an audience seem to have simply accepted it. We’ve accepted that just as we’ve accepted Walgreens putting out Christmas displays in August, Valentine displays when the box containing the just dismantled Christmas decorations isn’t even sealed yet.

All this in the name of money, profit, business. Nothing, it seems is as important as the next sale to be made, of getting that customer to open his/her wallet. Public service, informing the public, consideration, politeness, respect for the consumer/viewer, all this is out the window when it comes to the all mighty dollar.

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