Digital Video Editing: "Too Many Choices: Paralysis by Analysis"

[Jason Dunn]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www.digitalvideoediting.com/2004/02_feb/editorials/cw_editorial96.htm' target='_blank'>http://www.digitalvideoediting.com/2004/02_feb/editorials/cw_editorial96.htm</a><br /><br /></div>"There’s an intriguing notion floating around intellectual circles these days, asserting that there are too many choices in our society. Think of all the decisions you must make every day, and you’ll quickly see why some people are reaching a state of cognitive overload. That’s getting more evident here at Digital Media Net, where the most frequent question we get here at Digital Video Editing is, “What kind of nonlinear editing system should I buy?” Well, there are a lot of choices, and the best one for you won’t be the best one for me. Let’s look at the issue of the “too many choices” that we constantly face both in and out of the edit suite, and figure out some ways to avoid the dreaded 'paralysis by analysis.' "<br /><br />I really like reading Charlie White's articles, because when you get right down to it, I'm still a learning a lot in the digital video world, and I find I benefit from Charlie's straight-forward approach to video. This article is a good resource for someone who's trying to make a decision about what sort of video editing system to go with - worth a read.

[Suhit Gupta]

Good article, I was not familiar with him. I will have to look out for his stuff.

Suhit

[Crocuta]

Experienced people always forget about Pinacle Studio for beginners. That's because they forget that making choices isn't the only reason people throw up their hands and walk away. When I bought my first camcorder (analog, many years ago), I got a capture card and Premiere. I wasn't an aspiring pro or even a serious amateur; I just wanted to bring in my video and cut out the parts I didn't like. After a few weeks of struggling with the manual and a third-party book, I just gave up and walked away. I still shot my video, but like so many, I just played it back raw. It was just too much trouble.

Then when I got my first DV camcorder, I picked up Pinnacle Studio (DV). I opened the box, installed it and was editing my video within an hour. It's largely my success with Studio that sucked me far enough into the hobby so that I eventually revisited Premiere and then was willing to spend the time to learn it. And that's as it should be. I took the time to learn a more complicated system only when I outgrew the abilities of my beginner's system. In the meantime, I had a blast with Studio.

Listen, when recommending editing systems for new people, you have got to recognize that they need some instant success in order to get enthused about the hobby and Studio is a great way that people can do that while still having lots of tools at their disposal to grow with. I know the guy said his site is not about beginners, but he did mention Windows Moviemaker, so it seems a fair criticism. Where he puts Windows Moviemaker, I say substitute Studio.