ISight flickering black square

Hello,
Recently I have been having problems when recording videos through my isight camera directly in imovie HD.
I noticed both large and small black squares flickering on the screen when recording a video. It only appears whilst recording and not during playback of what I've just recorded.
I shut down imovie the first time it happend thinking it was a one off occurance and then it has happend numerous other times.
Has this happend to anyone else?
I thought it may have been due to me playing music in the background through itunes whilst recording the video, which may have caused the problem (and picked up through the isight), but it happens without playing music.
Please help, I might have to take my macbook up to the store if there is no solution as I use imovie all the time to make youtube videos!
Thanks in advance
Michelle
Macbook 13" Mac OS X (10.4.8)

Hello, Michelle
The condition you note is a feature of the software in view of the considerable processor power required for capturing and recording digital video.
When your Mac's processor is working near maximum capacity, OS X and apps like iMovie make decisions of which process should be given priority. When necessary, iMovie sacrifices video monitoring quality to keep record quality high. This seems better to me than keeping the monitor screen sharp but missing frames in the recorded video.
Does your MacBook have the maximum amount of RAM installed. If not, add as much as possible to maximize performance. Additionally, make sure your Mac OS X Maintenance is up-to-date, disconnect all peripherals, quit all other applications before launching iMovie for recording, and make your iMovie window as small as possible. These suggestions will maximize your MacBook's efficiency and minimize processor power requirements while recording.
If the condition persists even when you follow these suggestions, and if you cannot accept the pixilation in the monitor window pane, you can consider capturing your clips with a camcorder or a different movie or video clip application for later import and editing with iMovie.
If none of the above meet your needs, the only remaining suggestion I can offer is that you use a computer with more processor power. For instance, my Dual-Processor G5 Tower Mac is not bothered by pixilation when running iMovie only, but though my old iBook is.
Cheers,
Jim
Mac OS X (10.4.10) G5 DP 1.8 External iSight

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