Blue screen software + hardware?

[Jason Dunn]

I hate to follow up an off-topic post with yet another one, but I need your help with something. Late last year, I read a news article, and found the web site, for a company that was releasing a combination of software and hardware (a blue screen matte) for home users to do blue screen (chroma key) effects on a budget. I think it may have even included a web cam. I need to find this product for my book, but 30 minutes of scouring through Google has produced nothing. Does anyone remember seeing this product? Any help would be most appreciated - you don't realize how truly BIG the Web is until you need to find something. <img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/forums/images/smiles/icon_wink.gif" />

[Mike Wagstaff]

A hardware/software combination that can easily produce blue screen effects?

Why, I believe that just about any old PC running any version of Windows prior to 2000 should suit your needs nicely. ;)

[rapster]

Visual Communicator Plus from www.seriousmagic.com.

You're welcome. :lol:

==
Randy

[karen]

I hate to follow up an off-topic post with yet another one, but I need your help with something. Late last year, I read a news article, and found the web site, for a company that was releasing a combination of software and hardware (a blue screen matte) for home users to do blue screen (chroma key) effects on a budget. I think it may have even included a web cam. I need to find this product for my book, but 30 minutes of scouring through Google has produced nothing. Does anyone remember seeing this product? Any help would be most appreciated - you don't realize how truly BIG the Web is until you need to find something. http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/forums/images/smiles/icon_wink.gif

Is it this www.seriousmagic.com ?

[heyday]

I remember reading about it in PC Magazine and seeing the ads. I think John C Dvorak wrote about it in one of his Fast Track columns so I bet you could go to the PC Mag website and find the article.

heyday

[sundown]

Not sure how much help this is but also try searching on http://www.alltheweb.com, the FAST system. I usually Google most of the time and it's usually the most conclusive but when Google doesn't find something for me, often I can locate it using FAST.

[Jason Dunn]

Visual Communicator Plus from www.seriousmagic.com.

THANK YOU! You don't know how frustrated I was that I couldn't find this...! :D :D

[nishka]

I saw this product in action at PC Expo a few weeks ago. For anyone who has ever had to render chroma key using Adobe Premiere, you can appreciate the amazing technology at work here. It really works as advertised! Having taken a number of television production courses in college, I learned quickly that chroma key is a very difficult lighting exercise. The software is very forgiving in that department.

It also does a number of 'newscast-like' effects, includes stock video, and even has a built in teleprompter. Great stuff.

The only problem for me as an amateur video guy is that it doesn't yet output 720*480 video. They say that's coming in the form of a patch shortly.

-Nishka

[Jason Dunn]

Just got off the phone with someone from Serious Magic, and damn, what a cool product! Their back-end engine is completely resolution independent, so future versions will have DV support.

http://www.seriousmagic.com./SeriousMagic_Demo.wmv

Check out that video - very impressive stuff considering it's all real-time in software!

[rocuf]

Check out Tigerdirect.com, they have something like what you want. Also I remeber seeing a article on TechTV.com about what you want
:lol:

[JonnoB]

Jason,
Are you going to cover any of the Video Toaster (Newtek) type solutions?

[Jason Dunn]

Are you going to cover any of the Video Toaster (Newtek) type solutions?

No, strictly consumer/prosumer type of stuff. No discussion of Real Time hardware (too expensive) or dedicated external video units. I simply don't have the experience to write about solutions like that.

[normaldude]

My Windows machine has excellent blue screen capability.

[DrtyBlvd]

Suggested search software for you - I've not used anything else for years:

http://www.copernic.com/desktop/index.html

[JayFyve]

I actually saw a review of a product like this, or maybe it was the same one on The Screensavers (TechTV Channel). They probably have a copy of the review on thier website.

Jonathan

Processing..... Processing....

Aha...

http://www.techtv.com/screensavers/shownotes/story/0,24330,3337383,00.html

Review: Serious Magic Visual Communicator