Step 1. When you connect the Flip to your computer for the first time, it will automatically install the FlipShare software.

Step 2. Use FlipShare to copy the source video files to your computer.

Step 3. If the Flip tries to charge itself while also copying a big file, especially in hot weather, it may complain of overheating and shut down. If this happens, disconnect the camera, remove the battery, and try again.

II. Merging Multiple Camera Files into One

Step 1. If you try to merge the source files with FlipShare, it will insist on adding a dissolve between each one. So instead, download a program called MPEG Streamclip.

Step 2. In MPEG Streamclip, choose File / Open Files and select all the source files you want to merge.

Step 3. Choose File / Save As, and MPEG Streamclip will merge the source files into one clip.

Step 4. If you intend to copy the file back to the camera, make sure the merged clip’s running time is under half an hour. The Flip camera may refuse to play a longer file. If your video is too long, consider dividing it into parts.

III. Editing in Final Cut

Step 1. Import your footage files into Final Cut.

Step 2. Create a new sequence: 1280 x 720, 30fps, 44KHz audio, using the ProRes codec.

Step 3. Export your final master using the ProRes codec. It will be pretty big—estimate at least 1GB per minute, and probably more. That’s OK; just make sure you have enough space.

Step 4. If you intend to copy the file back to the camera, make sure your final master’s running time is under half an hour. When exporting from Final Cut, the file size (GB) is not important. Only the running time matters. The Flip camera may refuse to play a longer file. If your video is too long, consider dividing it into parts.

IV. Copying Computer Files to the Camera

Step 1. Make sure your file is 1280 x 720, 30fps, 44KHz audio. If you are using clips straight from the camera or merged in MPEG StreamClip, there will be little chance of this being changed. If you’re not getting the correct results out of Final Cut, double-check your sequence settings.

Step 2. In FlipShare, choose File / Import to copy your computer files into FlipShare’s media folder on your hard drive. This is an annoying, but necessary step–just copying them to the camera directly won’t work. On the bright side, FlipShare will automatically take care of any format conversion that needs to be done. Be prepared; it takes a long time.

Step 3. FlipShare’s Import command will convert your files into 1280 x 720, 30fps, 44KHz MP4s. At this point all files must be under 2GB—that’s half an hour of running time in this video format—or the Flip will not be able to play them reliably. (The Flip is supposed to be able to handle files up to 4GB, or one hour, but I found those would occasionally freeze or otherwise misbehave. In fact, I would aim for no more than 1.8GB to be absolutely safe.) Once again, if your files are over the limit, consider dividing them into parts.

Step 4. The imported files should now be visible in FlipShare’s media browser. Sometimes they arrive named “Untitled,” unfortunately. If this happens, right-click on the thumbnail and choose Rename to give the file a useful name again.

Step 5. Make sure you have enough free space on the camera; you can use FlipShare to move more camera files to your computer and delete them from the camera if necessary. When you’re ready, select your files and choose File / Save to Camcorder to copy them back.

Step 6. If the Flip tries to charge itself while also copying a big file, especially in hot weather, it may complain of overheating and shut down. If this happens, disconnect the camera, remove the battery, and try again.

V. Finishing Up

Step 1. Eject the Flip, replace the battery if necessary, and play any files you copied to it to test that they work.

Step 2. Burn a DVD or make some other reliable backup of the original source files before deleting them from your hard drive.

Step 1: Lower the display resolution from full to half. This is especially important with HD.

Step 2: Turn on low quality for layers that have lots of effects applied.

Step 3: If you’re working with animation, go to Composition Settings…

Step 4: …and try reducing the frame rate by half. (This isn’t as useful if you’re working with live action or prefer a smoother look.)

Step 5: Go to the Memory & Cache preferences…

Step 6: …and reduce the percentage of RAM that After Effects is allowed to use. You’ll have less space available for RAM previews, but things might run faster overall.

Here’s a video tutorial on using color channels in Photoshop to speed up the process of making masks. When selecting layers, remember:

1. Cmd-click on a regular layer makes a selection along the outer edge.

2. Cmd-click on a mask selects everything in the white parts of the grayscale image.

The phone scales everything to fit when playing video, so it’ll letterbox a 16:9 movie, which will be pretty gentle.

For further reading, see here and here.

Here’s a basic video tutorial for noise reduction using the free audio editor Audacity. You can also do higher-quality work with Adobe Audition (don’t confuse the very similar name).

Here’s a very basic video tutorial for the Zoom H2 audio recorder. It walks you through the process of copying a file over to your computer and performing a simple cut on it using the free audio editor Audacity.

Low End Mac explains the various issues involved in detail. They also sell RAM, video cards, and other parts for older Macs. A summary:

1. OS X 10.5 Leopard on a G4
It should install without trouble on machines 867MHz and over. Otherwise, you’ll need a utility called LeopardAssist to force an install. If LeopardAssist also fails, you might have to use an earlier version of OS X.

2. OS X 10.4 Tiger on a G4
It should install without trouble.

3. OS X 10.3 Panther and earlier on a G3
G3s can manage at least OS X 10.2 Jaguar, and some can run Panther; it varies depending on the model. (The newer G3s in blue cases will do better than the older ones in beige.) To install, use a utility called XPostFacto.

4. OS X on a pre-G3 Mac
You can consult this compatibility list for installing OS X on pre-G3 systems…but that might be more trouble than it’s worth.

Remember that, in all cases, you may need to get ahold of an external DVD drive if your older Mac can’t read DVDs. And if your install disc was bundled with an Intel Mac, you can’t use it to install on a PPC Mac.

Finally, if you don’t know what kind of OS 9 Mac you’ve got, use the System Profiler:

( Create )
F7: make a new empty frame.
F6: duplicate the current frame.
F5: extend the current frame.

( Preserve )
F8: convert the current selection into a Symbol.
Command – F8 (Mac) or Control – F8 (PC): make a new empty Symbol.

( Destroy )
Shift – F5: delete the current frame, and close the gap on the timeline.
Shift – F6: delete the current frame, and leave the rest of the timeline in place.

2. Use version numbers.
Save a new copy of your file each time you make a major change to it, adding a version number to the end of its name. This is called “versioning.” Not only can you find the most recent version at a glance this way, but you also create a simple timeline of the file’s evolution, with every major change available for inspection. (For more complex projects, you could come up with more elaborate naming schemes, or turn to automated version control software like Version Cue.)

3. Avoid duplicate filenames.
If you replace a file with a new file that has the same name, nobody but you may be aware that it’s been changed. Duplicate filenames may sometimes be necessary, but there’s always some potential for confusion. Even though you fixed a given problem with an old version, for example, someone else might be operating on the assumption that it’s still there.

4. Don’t delete old files.
Space permitting, you should archive every version of your file. Even after the project’s done, keeping old versions around can be a great help in case something goes wrong in the future. You can comb back through your files in reverse order and pinpoint where the problem first occurred.