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Digital Video

Video Glossary

Audio Mixer: Device or software program for mixing sounds from several sources such as
mic, CD and sounds from camcorder.

AVI: Audio Video Interleaved, one of two main file formats for digital video - the other is Quick Time

Batch Capture: Start and end points foe each video clip is logged on the editing system, which then takes the job of controlling the camcorder and bringing in only the specified material.

Bit: The smallest element in digital systems. The more bits per pixel the greater number of colours.
There are eight bits in a byte.

BMP: The file extension given to Windows graphics files saved in an enhanced device independent
bitmap (DPI) format.

Brightness: The intensity of light emitted by your video.

Cashe: Memory to improve the speed of different computer components. Such as disk drives, graphics
cards/editing cards and CPU.

Cluster size: The smallest amount of disk space that a file can accupy. The larger the size of the hard disk
the larger the size of the cluster.

Codec: Compressor/Decompressor, Compresses and decrompresses image data.

Composite Video: Combination of chrominance and luminance signals, which are processed together in low
band (8mm, VHS-C VHS) Camcorders. Reducing the cost but also the quality of the signal.

Comprission: Reducing the size of the a file on disk or in memory. Comprission can be lossiess (ie compressed with any loss of information) or lossy in which data is discarded. On the assumption that the loss will not be niticable when the data is decompressed.

Compression Ratio: Is a number used to tell how an image is been compressed

Contrast: A term giving information on how far the whitest whites are from the blcakest blacks in video frame.

CPU: Central Processing Unit

Data Rate: Amount of data that a hard disk or CDROM saves/plays back per second. Or the amount of data in a video sequence.

Defragment: The process of rearranging files on a hard disk so that files larger than one cluster in size can be stored in adjacent clusters.

Digital Video: A video is "Digital" when the video signal is a series of 0 and 1. (when it is stored on your PC).

DMA: Direct Memory Access. Enables faster transfer of information, without passage through the Processor.

DPI: Dots Per Inch.

DV: (Digital Video) It is a video format like VHS or Hi8. But unlike the others, it is a native digital video
format. Which means that a DV tape has only a series of 0 and 1 on it. DV comprission is directly done by
the DV camcorder.

DVD-ROM: Same as a CD ROM drive (rROM = read only memory) But also reads DVDs.

Firewire: IEEE 1394 interface Firewire has a much faster transfer rate than USB. Fireware is how Digital Video Camcorders are connected to the PC.

Footage: Its a name given to your original video or film.

Frame: A film is made up of 25 frames per second (PAL/SECAM) 29 frames per second (NTSC). A frame is one of these 25 or 29 images.

High Band: Better quality analogue video formats (ie Hi8 S-VHS ) Chrominance (colour) and Luminance ( brightness) are processed for better resolution than in low-band.

iLink: Sony's name for ther IEEE 1394 interface. (Firewire)

Insert Editing: Replacing a section of video while leaving it's audio intact.

Megabyte: There are 1024 Megabytes in a Gigabyte.

MPEG: Motion Picture Expert Groupe. Standered for video compression

MPEG 1: The video standered used for Video CD

MPEG 2: Is a much higher quality than MPEG 1 and is the format used for Super Video CDs and DVD.

NTSC: Never Twice The Same Color. The video system used in the US and Japan which uses 29 frames per second.

PAL: Phase Alternating Line The standered used in Western Europe (Except France uses SECAM). It is also the standerd used in Australia, much of East Africa, India and China.

Partition: A hard drive can be Partitioned into tow or more logical hard drives.

Pixel: Picture Element. A single dot which is the smallest unit displayed on a computer monitor or in a digital image.

Real-Time: In a real time video you do not have top wait for transitions or special effects to be rendered.
Meaning that you can see the effect immadiately. Before you do all the rendering.

Scart: 21pin plug for connecting audio and video signals between VCRs and TVs.

Software: Programs used on a computer.

S-VHS: Super VHS is a high band version of VHS

VHS-C: C Stands for compact.

VCD: Video CD Up to one hour of MPEG 1 video can be stored on a standard CD. With picture quality equal to VHS.

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