At the beginning of the summer I promised a good comparison between what I think the two front running video flash memory cameras for education are. Almost exactly two months ago, I shared some general thoughts about the Flip line and Kodak’s Zi6. Nothing’s changed in that time; I still like them both. While you can import both camera’s video files easily into Mac programs, MovieMaker will only take the Flip’s files without conversion. However, the only higher level PC video editing software I use, Adobe Premiere Elements, accepts the Kodak’s files effortlessly, but needs the Flip’s converted first. Go figure!
In a completely unscientific comparison test this summer, we used both cameras on our trip with the grandbabies to Disney World. I preferred the Zi6 but my Flip Ultra isn’t an HD model so that’s apples and oranges. Still, both cameras’ videos turned out just fine on the DVD I put together. Now here’s the newest wrinkle. On Tony Vincent’s blog today I see that Kodak’s next generation, the Zi8, will have the ability to take an external microphone and still come in under $200 (but you’ll need an SDHC card). Now that’s a dealmaker!
John Hughes and I were very close. He never knew that and I didn’t find that out until half way through our lives. We were born in the same year, he went to high school in the district next to the one I taught in (he even used our then recently closed campus as a set for “Sixteen Candles”), and we were both fascinated with the teenage years and their growing pains. Until I started reading his obituaries, I hadn’t known that he started out as an ad copywriter. That’s another thing we shared - an appreciation for a well written (usually humorous) advertisement. A good TV commercial, even a print ad, can be a wonderful vehicle for a quick story. And commercials are just the right length for school projects.
I’m headed back to his alma mater, Glenbrook North H.S., next week to see Tony Wagner speak. And though John and I wouldn’t have known each other if we were in line at the local Starbucks or if I bumped into him while he was scouting the Chicago area for locations, I’ll be thinking of him and all the fun we had together vicariously reliving our teenage years and family vacations through his characters.
P.S. And here are some classic John Hughes’ character movie quotes & clips thanks to the New York Times.
Picture is from en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Hughes_(director)
Some of you Mac users may find yourself FireWireless this fall when your new computers arrive. And some may find themselves with the “wrong” connectors. While I can’t do anything to help if your new computer has no FireWire at all, I can offer a couple of solutions if all you have to do is switch from the newer Firewire 800 to the “classic” FireWire 400. One of my favorite vendors offers a variety of reasonably priced cable solutions at MacSales.com.
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