What is the best video format for a Mac?

I use my MacBook Pro (Mountain Lion) to project videos to my class. If I'm converting them, what is the best format to use?

An unwritten standard is MP4,... avi files are questionably a close second.

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HT3290 what is the best video format for iMovie?

I'm a basic newbe on imac compiuters. Although I like it the transition is a bit painful.
I download stuff from my (cheep) video cameras BUT after closing the oniginal window I can't find the vids OR pictures I just downloaded from the devices.
I am hsving a difficult time figuring out what is the BEST video promat to record in that can be used in imovie AND final cut pro.
I'd appreciate any assoistance at this point.
All tips appreciated,
:-) Cheers

iMovie is friendly with .mp4, .mov, .m4v etc video formats. Here this article about iMovie supported video formats may help you.

What is the best video format for importing into After Effects CS5

Please look at this video, work in progress.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=49_wbdKALQk
The opening, featuring a ribbon of videos, was created in After Effects, using Digieffects Freeform.
The issue is the poor quality of the videos that are featured in the opening -- compared to the higher quality of videos from the original Premiere project., which you can see at the end of the clip.
To create the After Effects project, I exported a series of video clips from Premiere to mp4.
Then I imported them into AfterEffects.
The bottom line, and the purpose of this question, is I am thinking that MP4 was not the best choice for the Adobe Premiere export.
What is the best format to export video from in Premiere Pro CS5 to import into after effects, or to import into any other editing program, incuding importing right back into Adobe Premiere, if that is eever needed.
AVI?
MOV
MP4
And any other settings that will result with the highest qualiity videos for importing.
Thanks

To follow on with Wade's suggestion...
There are lots of ways to get movies and projects and other things back and forth between After Effects and Premiere Pro. This page outlines them:
"Working with Premiere Pro and After Effects"
If you must render and export a movie out of one application to bring it into another, there is a very basic piece of video workflow advice that you need to keep in mind (which applies to _all_ video software, not just After Effects and Premiere Pro):
If you're creating a movie to be used in the next step of a post-production pipeline, you _never_ want to use a format that does lossy compression. You either use no compression or (preferable) lossless compression. Examples of codecs that provide lossless compression are the Animation codec and PNG codec at the highest quality settings; these can be used in a QuickTime container, for example. Never compress a movie with lossy compression except at the very end of your pipeline, when you're creating the final movie for distribution.
MP4 (MPEG-4) is a lossy codec. The quality loss is acceptable for the last stage in the pipeline, but it's not acceptable for an intermediate file.
It seems that you would benefit from reading this and and working your way through this.

What is the best video format for logic X

It used to be that .DV was the way to go. Although the files were huge, it was a much smaller load on the processor because there wasn't any encoding and decoding going on.
Now LogicX / Mavericks doesn't support .DV anymore. What is the best format. dvcpro?
Best,
W

Don't know if it's the best, but until now I do not have issues with QT H.264 format.
Cheers!

What is the best video format for 50+ year movie storage?

Objective: In what video format should I store my family movies on an external drive? I want these family movies to be viewable by future generations in 50 - 70 years, so what video format / type is recommended?
Background: I have an iMac, OS X 10.7.5. I use IMovie '11, version 9.0.8. My iMac has an internal DVD player and burner and iDVD is installed.
I have dozens of family movies (total 80+ hours) dating back nearly 70 years. All these films have been digitized and I have imported many of them into iMove as events, then I edit them with title pages, transitions, music, etc. When a "project" is completed (Between 1.5 - 2.0 hours or less) I share the project to iDVD where I burn it to a DVD. Within iMovie I save each of these projects (on the internal Mac HD, which consumes very little space) and on an external drive I save for each project:
- a disc image (DVD.img) whose size is about 4.5 GB
- a copy of the iMovie project, whose size is about 60 MB (the original project is in iMovie, in the Mac internal drive)
- the original digitized raw movies imported into iMovie as events and are formatted as .mov (these are large size at 8 GB - 20 GB each)
- the finalized and fully edited iDVD which is formatted as DVD.dvdproj (these are very large size at 20 - 24 GB each)
As you can see with all these disc images, projects, events and DVD projects stored on my external drive I am at nearly 1 TB of storage, on my way to 1.75 before I comple editing all movies.
While I manage pretty well the editing my movies within iMovie, and how to create an iDVD project and then burn a DVD, I have no understanding of the technical aspects of the multitude of different movie formats in the market nor of Quick Time and its format.
I am told that DVDs will only last 10 - 15 years and then begin to deteriorate. And iMovie '11 won't be arond 50 years from now. Nor will the current / recent versions of iDVD. Thus, for posterity:
1. In what format should I store my family movies on an external drive so they can be viewed by family members 50 - 70 years from now? (best chance for viewing, since we don't know what formats they will have then)
2. How do I convert from what I have (disc image, iMovie project, DVD project) to your recommended format?
Thank you,
HDP

There is no such format for movies or even Photographs. Frankly we can't guarantee the persistence of any format past the next 10 years, not to mind 50 - 70.
Codecs are being improved and created all the time, and this process will continue. In 50 years time we may still have .mov and .avi files, but the codecs that create the movies within will have changed.
One thing is reasonably sure: DVD will be as deader than floppy disks are now. Ditto Blue Ray. They're on the way out now, and in 10 years they'll be curiosities.
So, what's the solution:
Best I can suggest is to keep your movies on volatile media like Hard Disks (with back ups on other disks, or course). Progress will be evolutionary - as new formats come along there will be the option to migrate older data to these newer formats, and that's the trick. As always, when it comes to migration, the more data available the better the likely result, so keeping your movies in the least compressed versions possible seems a good approach.
That and a dollar will get you a cup of coffee someplaces, but nowhere fashionable.
Regards
TD

What's the best video format for DVD burning?

I need a recomendation; I've been turning some video files into mpeg4's for burning onto DVD. The files look fairly decent, but I'm wondering if AVI or DV or something else would look better. Any suggestions?

Hi Severian,
iM works internally (as the camcorder) with dv as compressor; that is highest quality possible with iM.
that can directly exported to iDVD (which will convert that directly into mpeg2)
any "in between" conversion, esp, into lossy formats as any mpeg-codec (which comes in many flavors as 1/2/4/h263/h264/...) means a dramatic loss of quality! the mp4 looks nice on your Mac, after second convcersion into a lossy format it will ... nogood on TV.
don't do that, don't fumble the workflow, let the apps do their jobs.... just hit "iDVD" in iM... Boom!Done....

What is the best video format for streaming video in Captivate 6 for html5 output?

I'm guessing it's h.264 mp4, but I haven't been able to get it to stream. Can you stream mp4s from Amazon S3?

Hi Rod,
That link is from the Captivate help file:
You could also find this documented in the help file link:
http://helpx.adobe.com/pdf/captivate_reference.pdf
Look under the topic "Unsupported objects in HTML5 output".
Thanks!

For iPhone and Android, what is the best file format for watching videos?

For iPhone and Android, what is the best file format for watching videos?

You can try these setting. They are from CS5.5 but should work in CS4.
Make sure you check Use Max. Render Quality.

What is the best video format/codec?

Greeting Video Producers
Please tell me what is the best video format/codec overall? And please list them from best to worse.
MPEG 4
MPEG 2
AVI
DVI
QUICKTIME MOV
WMV
THANK YOU

DVI isn't a format or codec; it is a digital signal protocol used for video display. DVI = Digital Video Interface.
Please define what "best" means in your context ... "best" for what?
WMV is one of the best in terms of viewer compatibility for web video, but it is not any good for DVD delivery.
MPEG-2 is one of the best for broadcast server-based playback and is required for DVD-Video delivery, but it is one of the worst for editing.
MPEG-4 is a more efficient codec than MPEG-2, but isn't as compatible for web delivery as WMV or Flash.
AVI is a container.
MOV is a container.
-DH

What is the best video converter for DVD to iMovie? Either free or to purchase.

What is the best video converter for DVD to iMovie? Either free or to purchase. And one that is 'fool-proof' and very easy to use. Many thanks, anyone who can advise.

You want to 'reverse engineer' the compressed mpeg2 DVD file back to something iMovie can use?
You need to convert the VOB files in the TS-Folder of the DVD back to DV which iMovie is designed to handle. For that you need mpegStreamclip:
http://www.squared5.com/svideo/mpeg-streamclip-mac.html
which is free, but you must also have the Apple mpeg2 plugin :
http://www.apple.com/quicktime/mpeg2/
(unless you are running Lion in which case see below))
which is a mere $20.
Another possibility is to use DVDxDV:
http://www.dvdxdv.com/NewFolderLookSite/Products/DVDxDV.overview.htm
which costs $25.
For the benefit of others who may read this thread:
Obviously the foregoing only applies to DVDs you have made yourself, or other home-made DVDs that have been given to you. It will NOT work on copy-protected commercial DVDs, which in any case would be illegal.
And from the TOU of these forums:
Keep within the Law
No material may be submitted that is intended to promote or commit an illegal act.
Do not submit software or descriptions of processes that break or otherwise ‘work around’ digital rights management software or hardware. This includes conversations about ‘ripping’ DVDs or working around FairPlay software used on the iTunes Store.
If you are running Lion:
From the MPEG Streamclip homepage
The installer of the MPEG-2 Playback Component may refuse to install the component in Lion. Apple states the component is unnecessary in Lion, however MPEG Streamclip still needs it.
To install the component in Lion, please download MPEG Streamclip 1.9.3b7 beta above; inside the disk image you will find the Utility MPEG2 Component Lion: use it to install the MPEG-2 Playback Component in Lion. The original installer's disk image (QuickTimeMPEG2.dmg) is required.
The current versions of MPEG Streamclip cannot take advantage of the built-in MPEG-2 functionality of Lion. For MPEG-2 files you still need to install the QuickTime MPEG-2 Playback Component, which is not preinstalled in Lion. You don't have to install QuickTime 7.

What is the best video converter for high quality MPEG-4 for Apple TV?

What is the best video converter for high quality MPEG-4 for Apple TV?

Handbrake won't convert AVI files, But there are many more than those mentioned that will
The choice of conversion software is a personal choice, I have around a dozen applications that will tackle AVI's, however VisualHub is not one of them, not because there is anything wrong with it but rather I have enough such applications in my arsenal already.
I would use mpegstreamclip in most scenarios for what you are wanting to do but maybe not always. It is a good idea to have a few applications to choose from as not all do the same thing. mpegstreamclip has a few more options than some bog standard applications without becoming overburdening with choices.
You might want to try a few applications yourself before deciding on the software for you. isquint is a free limited version of visualhub, you might want to give that a whirl to get a feeling for visualhub.
Be aware though that quality conversions do not happen quickly, claims of being faster than other applications may well be correct, but are usually a trade off against quality. Again you need to choose your software to reflect your preferred balance between speed and quality.
Here's how I use mpegstreamclip, http://web.me.com/gartside1104/z008/Mpegstreamclip.html but your AVI's may well be low quality, you shouldn't set the bitrate any higher than your source file and likely lower, you shouldn't increase the frame size either.
Message was edited by: Winston Churchill

What is the best video converter for iPhone?

My last question was deleted I guess because I was not specific enough. I have a Sony DCR-DVD108 DVD Handycam® Camcorder which writes everything onto mini DVDs. I am looking for a good video converter to convert my home movies with. I am using Roxio Crunch, but it doesn't do as good of a job as I had hoped. What is the best video converter to use?
P.S. Please don't delete my question again Apple.

It was probably deleted because you said that it was in violation of the TOU, which I have read. I own all rights to DVDs which I myself have created, and I give myself permission to copy said DVDs for whatever reasons I wish. I am in no way violating the TOU: "Do not submit software or descriptions of processes that break or otherwise ‘work around’ digital rights management software or hardware. This includes conversations about ‘ripping’ DVDs or working around FairPlay software used on the iTunes Store" because I am in no way trying to "work around" any sort of DRM, and I created the home movies and in no way was the iTunes Store involved; that is unless somehow a movie of my nephew's birthday is now available on iTunes. And I don't own an iPod video, I own an iPhone, which is why the question says "What is the best video converter FOR IPHONE?" and is why I am in an iPhone forum.
Message was edited by: supermanguy87
Message was edited by: supermanguy87

What is the best video card for 3D?

I'm getting a 2008 Mac Pro, will equip it with 10GB of RAM. What is the best video card for 3D rendering? I've read that the stock ATI 2600 card is woefully inadequate. I've also read that the NVIDIA 8800 card is better for gaming, and has caused some problems anyway. I can't spring for the top-end Quadra card that Apple offers. Are there good, cost-effective options for 3D work? Can I even get a video card on the open market that is not flashed by Apple?

Basically there are only three options available:
1. ATI 2600
2. ATI 1900
3. NVidia 8800
The latter is the best of the three. See benchmark results at Bare Feats.
You cannot use a video card not provided by Apple because they will not work with OS X or the hardware.

What is the best virus protection for a Mac?

What is the best virus protection for a Mac?

1. This comment applies to malicious software ("malware") that's installed unwittingly by the victim of a network attack. It does not apply to software, such as keystroke loggers, that may be installed deliberately by an intruder who has hands-on access to the victim's computer. That threat is in a different category, and there's no easy way to defend against it. If you have reason to suspect that you're the target of such an attack, you need expert help.
OS X now implements three layers of built-in protection specifically against malware, not counting runtime protections such as execute disable, sandboxing, system library randomization, and address space layout randomization that may also guard against other kinds of exploits.
2. All versions of OS X since 10.6.7 have been able to detect known Mac malware in downloaded files, and to block insecure web plugins. This feature is transparent to the user, but internally Apple calls it "XProtect." The malware recognition database is automatically checked for updates once a day; however, you shouldn't rely on it, because the attackers are always at least a day ahead of the defenders.
The following caveats apply to XProtect:
It can be bypassed by some third-party networking software, such as BitTorrent clients and Java applets.
It only applies to software downloaded from the network. Software installed from a CD or other media is not checked.
3. Starting with OS X 10.7.5, there has been a second layer of built-in malware protection, designated "Gatekeeper" by Apple. By default, applications and Installer packages downloaded from the network will only run if they're digitally signed by a developer with a certificate issued by Apple. Software certified in this way hasn't actually been tested by Apple (unless it comes from the Mac App Store), but you can be reasonably sure that it hasn't been modified by anyone other than the developer. His identity is known to Apple, so he could be held legally responsible if he distributed malware. For most practical purposes, applications recognized by Gatekeeper as signed can be considered safe.
Gatekeeper doesn't depend on a database of known malware. It has, however, the same limitations as XProtect, and in addition the following:
It can easily be disabled or overridden by the user.
A malware attacker could get control of a code-signing certificate under false pretenses, or could find some other way to evade Apple's controls.
4. Starting with OS X 10.8.3, a third layer of protection has been added: a "Malware Removal Tool" (MRT). MRT runs automatically in the background when you update the OS. It checks for, and removes, malware that may have evaded the other protections via a Java exploit (see below.) MRT also runs when you install or update the Apple-supplied Java runtime (but not the Oracle runtime.) Like XProtect, MRT is presumably effective against known attacks, but maybe not against unknown attacks. It notifies you if it finds malware, but otherwise there's no user interface to MRT.
5. Beyond XProtect, Gatekeeper, and MRT, there’s no evidence of any benefit from other automated protection against malware. The first and best line of defense is always your own intelligence. With the possible exception of Java exploits, all known malware circulating on the Internet that affects a fully-updated installation of OS X 10.6 or later takes the form of so-called "trojan horses," which can only have an effect if the victim is duped into running them. The threat therefore amounts to a battle of wits between you and the malware attacker. If you're smarter than he thinks you are, you'll win.
That means, in practice, that you never use software that comes from an untrustworthy source. How do you know whether a source is trustworthy?
Any website that prompts you to install a “codec,” “plug-in,” "player," "extractor," or “certificate” that comes from that same site, or an unknown one, is untrustworthy.
A web operator who tells you that you have a “virus,” or that anything else is wrong with your computer, or that you have won a prize in a contest you never entered, is trying to commit a crime with you as the victim. (Some reputable websites did legitimately warn visitors who were infected with the "DNSChanger" malware. That exception to this rule no longer applies.)
Pirated copies or "cracks" of commercial software, no matter where they come from, are unsafe.
Software of any kind downloaded from a BitTorrent or from a Usenet binary newsgroup is unsafe.
Software with a corporate brand, such as Adobe Flash Player, must be downloaded directly from the developer’s website. If it comes from any other source, it's unsafe.
6. Java on the Web (not to be confused with JavaScript, to which it's not related, despite the similarity of the names) is a weak point in the security of any system. Java is, among other things, a platform for running complex applications in a web page, on the client. That was always a bad idea, and Java's developers have proven themselves incapable of implementing it without also creating a portal for malware to enter. Past Java exploits are the closest thing there has ever been to a Windows-style "virus" affecting OS X. Merely loading a page with malicious Java content could be harmful. Fortunately, Java on the Web is mostly extinct. Only a few outmoded sites still use it. Try to hasten the process of extinction by avoiding those sites, if you have a choice. Forget about playing games or other non-essential uses of Java.
Java is not included in OS X 10.7 and later. Discrete Java installers are distributed by Apple and by Oracle (the developer of Java.) Don't use either one unless you need it. Most people don't. If Java is installed, disable it — not JavaScript — in your browsers. In Safari, this is done by unchecking the box marked Enable Java in the Security tab of the preferences dialog.
Regardless of version, experience has shown that Java on the Web can't be trusted. If you must use a Java applet for a specific task, enable Java only when needed for the task and disable it immediately when done. Close all other browser windows and tabs, and don't visit any other sites while Java is active. Never enable Java on a public web page that carries third-party advertising. Use it, when necessary, only on well-known, login-protected, secure websites without ads. In Safari 6 or later, you'll see a lock icon in the address bar with the abbreviation "https" when visiting a secure site.
Follow the above guidelines, and you’ll be as safe from malware as you can practically be. The rest of this comment concerns what you should not do to protect yourself from malware.
7. Never install any commercial "anti-virus" or "Internet security" products for the Mac, as they all do more harm than good, if they do any good at all. If you need to be able to detect Windows malware in your files, use the free software ClamXav — nothing else.
Why shouldn't you use commercial "anti-virus" products?
Their design is predicated on the nonexistent threat that malware may be injected at any time, anywhere in the file system. Malware is downloaded from the network; it doesn't materialize from nowhere.
In order to meet that nonexistent threat, the software modifies or duplicates low-level functions of the operating system, which is a waste of resources and a common cause of instability, bugs, and poor performance.
By modifying the operating system, the software itself may create weaknesses that could be exploited by malware attackers.
8. ClamXav doesn't have these drawbacks. That doesn't mean it's entirely safe. It may report email messages that have "phishing" links in the body, or Windows malware in attachments, as infected files, and offer to delete or move them. Doing so will corrupt the Mail database. The messages should be deleted from within the Mail application.
ClamXav is not needed, and should not be relied upon, for protection against OS X malware. It's useful only for detecting Windows malware. Windows malware can't harm you directly (unless, of course, you use Windows.) Just don't pass it on to anyone else.
A Windows malware attachment in email is usually easy to recognize. The file name will often be targeted at people who aren't very bright; for example:
♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥!!!!!!!H0TBABEZ4U!!!!!!!.AVI♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥.exe
ClamXav may be able to tell you which particular virus or trojan it is, but do you care? In practice, there's seldom a reason to use ClamXav unless a network administrator requires you to run an anti-virus application.
9. The greatest harm done by security software, in my opinion, is in its effect on human behavior. It does little or nothing to protect people from emerging threats, but they get a false sense of security from it, and then they may behave in ways that expose them to higher risk. Nothing can lessen the need for safe computing practices.
10. It seems to be a common belief that the built-in Application Firewall acts as a barrier to infection, or prevents malware from functioning. It does neither. It blocks inbound connections to certain network services you're running, such as file sharing. It's disabled by default and you should leave it that way if you're behind a router on a private home or office network. Activate it only when you're on an untrusted network, for instance a public Wi-Fi hotspot, where you don't want to provide services. Disable any services you don't use in the Sharing preference pane. All are disabled by default.

What is the best DVD Creator for a Mac Book Pro to replace iDVD?

What is the Best DVD Creator for a Mac Book Pro to replace iDVD? Have Maverick OS.

I have already looked at other threads in this forum, so 'I venture forth' to ask my question here:
I have a 44 minute carefully edited iMovie with several chapter markers. I dimly recollect that when you 'dump' the entire movie into iDVD (my version is 7.1) it should detect the markers and create buttons to link to specific scenes. Well, the 'dumping' process obviously doesn't work.
How do you get iDVD to recognize the markers and ceate buttons to link?
I can create with iDVD a DVD that will play the movie in its entirety. This is not suitable for my purposes. I need access via a menu to specific scenes.
Thank you,
Klaus

What is the best video format for a Mac?

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