Date / Time code from DV

Jeremy

Newbie Joined: Sep 30, 2007 17:11 Messages: 10 Offline

Solved by

Oct 02, 2007 04:55

As much as this is a non-issue for many, its important to me.

One feature that I think PowerDirector could use improvement on is the way the date and time code are placed on the videos. Correct me if I am wrong (and I’d be happy to hear that I’m wrong), but there is only one way to put the date and/or time code from a DV into my video. That is to choose to do so in preferences and it will burn into the clip when captured from the DV.

This is driving me nuts. Why doesn’t PowerDirector read and remember the date/time without burning it into the video and when I am editing, allow me to decide exactly where in my final movie to display the date/time code/stamp? Why must it be burned in the video when capturing? I’d like to have the option of turning on and off the date/time stamp/display during editing. I don’t want the date & time in every scene or clip and I may only want it in just a small part of another clip. There are also times when I just want the date and not the time or vice versa.

My DV (camera) allows me the option of turning on and off the date and time display. The date/time code is somehow embedded in the tape or video without actually burning it into the video. I also know that PowerDirector knows how to read this code because of the way they capture it. I would think that Cyberlink could come up with a better way to do this.

Again, correct me if I’m wrong (and I’d be happy to hear that I am), but as it stands now, when I capture video from a DV, regardless of how many scenes I have or how I want each scene date/time stamped, I must do it all the same when capturing if I just capture an entire DV tape at once. Right now I am capturing my DV twice. Once with and once without the date/time stamp/code. I am going through 30 home videos. I’d like to hear if there’s a better way.

Jeremy

Newbie Joined: Sep 30, 2007 17:11 Messages: 10 Offline

Oct 02, 2007 05:16

One more note about this.

I also may want the font/color/size and location of the date and time to be
different for each scene. That does not appear possible right now. And I’d
also like to be able to choose different font/color/size and locations
for the date and different styles for the time and the remark as well. For
example, I might want a larger date in blue / Arial in the lower left and in
the lower right I might want a smaller red time, font Verdana. In the next
scene I might want the date and time to both be in the upper right.

This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at Oct 02. 2007 13:03

Dafydd B

Senior Contributor Joined: Aug 26, 2006 08:20 Messages: 11973 Offline

Oct 02, 2007 13:15

Jeremy,

I'm at a loss to be able to answer you.... perhaps you could add some additional information.

DV avi files are recorded with the timecode - it's the information used by PD and other editing programs to scene identify (using the digital timecode on the tape) during the capture process. I don't see a problem with that.

The timecode is used to record/convert video to mpeg during capture - scene recognised as it comes in.

The embedded digital timecode in a DV tape is NOT viewable in a displayed video - So what date and time are you referring to?

So what are you concerned about? How about attaching an image to show everyone what you mean.

Dafydd

This message was edited 2 times. Last update was at Oct 02. 2007 13:16

Jeremy

Newbie Joined: Sep 30, 2007 17:11 Messages: 10 Offline

Oct 03, 2007 06:53

I don't have an really have an image to show. The bottom line is this: What if I captured the video but when I did so, under the capture options I did not choose to have the date/time diplayed in the video. Is the date/time code still embedded somewhere in that video? Can I still have the date / time displayed after I capture it if I didn't have burn it to the video while capturing it?

I'd love to know how.

Dafydd B

Senior Contributor Joined: Aug 26, 2006 08:20 Messages: 11973 Offline

Oct 03, 2007 10:09

What date and time displayed?

The embedded date and time isn't displayed - so what are you looking at?

It doesn't effect the editing of the video and is not viewable in a screen so I don't see the problem.

Dafydd

Jeremy

Newbie Joined: Sep 30, 2007 17:11 Messages: 10 Offline

Oct 03, 2007 17:53

I am not sure how else I can explain it

Jeremy

Newbie Joined: Sep 30, 2007 17:11 Messages: 10 Offline

Oct 03, 2007 18:21

Is there someplace after I capture the video that I can choose whether or not to display the date on only a portion of the captured video? Is there an alternative to the all or none option of displaying the date that I must choose before capturing?

For example, can I edit the video to place the embedded date and time in just the first 5 seconds of each chapter or scene?

Knut

Newbie Location: Germany Joined: Oct 03, 2007 12:16 Messages: 9 Offline

Oct 04, 2007 14:58

Hi Jeremy,

I know, what you mean.

But no, in PowerDirector there is no way to choose only a short time for displaying the recording dates.
You have to decide: Date is embedded all the time or never.

And I think, if you capture your video in DV-AVI, you won't have any option to make the recording date visible.

Sorry, that's what I find out.

In Pinnacle Studio, for example, the original recording date (not capturing date!) of any clip captured as DV-AVI ist displayed in the preferences of the file. So you are able to create a short title with theese informations.

In Magix VideoDeluxe you can import the date as an title automatically.

In PowerDirector (I use version 5) you act like this:

Capture the movie as DV-AVI.
Install the small programm "DV-Date" (look at google) and import the captured file.
There you can create an textfile automatically which shows the recording date and the timestamp of the camera.
Print this file and create titles in PowerDirector manually by reading it.
In DV-Date additionaly you can burn the dates into the file after capturing.

I hope I could help you.
Sorry for my bad english,

Greetings, Knut

Dafydd B

Senior Contributor Joined: Aug 26, 2006 08:20 Messages: 11973 Offline

Oct 04, 2007 15:38

If you right click on a video file and select Properties you'll see amongst the information is the time when the file was created.

There isn't anything special about that info.

Dafydd

Knut

Newbie Location: Germany Joined: Oct 03, 2007 12:16 Messages: 9 Offline

Oct 05, 2007 10:58

You are right. But I don't mean the time, when the file was created on the computer by capturing. The information I'm looking for is the date and time, when the video was filmed by the camera.
For example: I shot some videoscenes of my daughter on september, 24th. This date is embedded in the video on your dv-tape, additionally to the timestamp (minute, second of the tape). This is the date that's interesting for me.
The date you can see among the information in PowerDirector is just the time, when I capture the video on computer, for example: september, 30th and time.

So, if I want to show my daughter's best scenes of the last three years, so it's really interessting for me, to show the real recording-time/date in the film after producing it on DVD, not the date of capturing on PC.

In PowerDirector 5 it is the only possibility to capture the tape in mpeg (DVD-file) and activate the option to embedding these information into the file. That's good. But now, the time / date is visible all the time (that's not good)

Knut

Dafydd B

Senior Contributor Joined: Aug 26, 2006 08:20 Messages: 11973 Offline

Oct 05, 2007 11:13

I've a specialist DVavi capture software that displays the time-code data on each segment as the avi is captured. Date and time to the second and then the .avi extension. I no longer have need to use the software. Is that the sort of info you want displayed?

Or are you after a timecode displayed on the preview screen of the video with an option in PD to include into the video - which I can see a use for?

PD5 will capture to a DVavi format.

Dafydd

Knut

Newbie Location: Germany Joined: Oct 03, 2007 12:16 Messages: 9 Offline

Oct 06, 2007 06:05

Thank you for your reply,

Yes, I, an I think Jeremy too, would like to have an option to display this timecode / recordingdate on the preview screen with an option to include it into the video and to edit it (fade in/out, textcolours.....)
But I don't see any possibility in PowerDirector as capturing the video as DVD-mpeg and activate the function zu burn theese dates into the file without any option to edit it after capturing.

If you capture the video as DV-AVI you don't have this feature. You can't activate the checkbox.

So,it's the only option to use such DVavi capture software which Dafydd means or you can use DV-Date to create a textfile after capturing.
In both solutions you can include the date into video by using the title-editor (writing by yourself)

Knut

EEK

Newbie Joined: Feb 11, 2008 12:27 Messages: 1 Offline

Feb 11, 2008 13:08

I've a specialist DVavi capture software that displays the time-code data on each segment as the avi is captured. Date and time to the second and then the .avi extension. I no longer have need to use the software. Is that the sort of info you want displayed?

Or are you after a timecode displayed on the preview screen of the video with an option in PD to include into the video - which I can see a use for?

PD5 will capture to a DVavi format.

Ok, so if I want to right click on a clip/frame in the video editing panel and see exactly what day and time that clip/frame was shot (not copied to the local editing HDD) I have to capture in AVI and not mpeg-2?

I used Pinnacle Studio to do this previously where I manually added date captions (during edit) just to give the viewer a frame of time reference for home movies. I believe I ingested that footage in .avi by default. I think PD 5 defaults to mpeg-2 by default. That was also in my VHS-C days where now I use the miniDV format.

Thanks,

EEK