Computer Requirements

[braindeadsoftwareguy]

My forum threads have all dried up. One of the last entries I made wasn't answered yet. My question is, what would be a minimum reqirement for a computer's specs to do the functions of Essentials 10.

Maybe break it down into different catagories, such as to comfortably do basic tasks, and for doing the Full Monty type of thing. I don't expect to be doing anything professional as I'm only interested in home movies, and maybe a clip to YouTube sometimes. i need the power to do multitrack editing one day though , if I can figure it all out.

[Steve Grisetti]

Threads more often fray than dry up, BD. When you ask a direct question, you'll get direct answers. But, once other posters start jumping in and the topic strays from the original subject, it gets harder to track what's going on and even harder to respond to it.

That said, I think, when you ask about Essentials, you're asking about Premiere Elements and Photoshop Elements, right?

The main determiner of the amount of power you need is the source of the video. What model of camcorder is your video coming from and what format is it in? High-def video -- especially AVCHD -- takes considerably more power than standard DV.

Also, which operating system are you working on?

[Chuck Engels]

For version 10 I would say that the minimum requirements would be;
Quad Core CPU i3 or i5
4gb of RAM
1GB Video Card
Windows 7, 64bit would be good so you can eventually get more RAM.
To run version 10 and use standard definition or high definition files I would still recommend the same machine. If you are going to use primarily high definition then the i7 processor would be a better fit along with a video card that has more horsepower as well and maybe 6 or 8 GB of RAM.

Just my thoughts

[braindeadsoftwareguy]

Yes, I'm talking about PRE10. My better camera is a Lumix FZ100. it gives AVCHD movies, but I have no reason at this time to make an HD Disc. I just took clips of my granddaughter's Diving meet, and converted them to MPEG2 to edit for YouTube for the family. I'll still use Movie maker as I haven't received my book yet, and I don't have enough oomph anyway. I will always save the HD clips though for future reference.
Looking at the specs recommended, it is going to be a long while before I get this software off the ground, I reckon.

Does the computer have to be a U-Build type, or are off-the-rack store units ok?

[Steve Grisetti]

Off the rack computers are just fine. Though I'd stick with HP and Dell, since they tend to use higher quality hardware.

[Bob]

With the volume of posts here, it's easy to miss a post or forget to come back later and reply. Should a thread stall with an unanswered question, simply post back to that same thread to bring it back to our attention. Posting a new thread about it separates the answer from the question and makes it harder for other readers who come later to make the connection and put the pieces together.

The computer's processor speed and capability come into play in two ways. First, the processor has to be fast enough to enable you to position the current time indicator and play back your edits smoothly or you will be very frustrated. And, second, the processor has to be capable of encoding and exporting the edited video in a time frame that meets your needs.

When editing AVCHD, we do recommend a computer with a quad core processor. The reason for that is that AVCHD is very computationally intensive. Fewer cores will certainly process the video, but will take more time. Too little power and your editing will be adversely impacted. You really need a computer fast enough that you can edit the type of video you use reasonably smoothly. Exporting the movie is a separate issue. That can be done overnight while you are sleeping, so unless you do a lot of video or are on a tight time schedule, you could probably make do with a less powerful machine.

I believe your camera can also record in motion jpeg. Try recording a sample to see how well that edits. It may take less computer resources than the AVCHD. You can also convert the AVCHD to a less computationally intensive format and not edit the AVCHD directly.

[braindeadsoftwareguy]

"You can also convert the AVCHD to a less computationally intensive format and not edit the AVCHD directly."

Yes, as I said, I convert the HD to MPEG2 using the supplied sofware for the camera. I usually use Movie maker then, which ends up as wmv that is a pretty dumbed-down video. I do have an older Ulead program that came with a VCR converter device. That allows more format options than Movie Maker, however the Windows program is my kind of intuitive.

Well as I have said, I can't budget for a new computer at this time, so I'm stuck with what I have. If the hard drive in this one destructs, then we'll have to come to a decision...........This leads to another question. If it crashes, how do I satisfy Adobe, since I would not have de-activated the PRE10 for future use on my next computer?

[Chuck Engels]

It would take a simple phone call to Adobe and they will get you set up. I have done this on multiple occasions and they have always been very good about re-activating the products. Make sure that you register your products with Adobe, otherwise I cannot guarantee that they will be able to help you.

[Barb O]

Bob,

I believe your camera can also record in motion jpeg. Try recording a sample to see how well that edits. It may take less computer resources than the AVCHD. You can also convert the AVCHD to a less computationally intensive format and not edit the AVCHD directly.

Bob and software guy,

I have a different Panasonic still camera (don't have the model number handy now). My camera takes 720 video in either AVCHD Lite or Motion JPEG. My visual observation was that the quality of the motion jpeg was inferior to the AVCHD Lite.

Therefore, I would favor the approach of converting down from AVCHD (especially since there was software provided with the camera) to convert standard def MPEG. Then use Premiere Elements to edit that MPEG file instead of using Windows Movie Maker.

Of course -
-- a drawback is -- if in the future you wish to edit and output HD, you would need to redo all the work of video editing
-- this is a "your mileage may vary comment" especially since it is not the same camera