I'm going to buy Video Factory, but... (some questions)

jtuffen wrote on 11/26/2002, 5:19 AM
I've been looking for a simple video-editing program, and VF looks like it's the one (nice intuitive interface for one thing, just like the other SoFo products I own - Acid 4.0, Vegas 2.0 LE, SoundForge 5.0, Batch Converter 5.0). I've played with the demo and it all seems to work very nicely...

First off: I'm in the UK, and I can't find anywhere that sells the boxed VF product! I can always mail-order it from SoFo, but I baulk at the $30 (or whatever) shipping charge... (I'd like to get the extra content CDs too you see).

Secondly: the other SoFo products I own have all been download-products, but seeing as I'm new to video, I'd like to get the extra content CDs - Are they worth it?? (obviously impacts question 1 !!) I have plenty of audio content (after all, I'm going to use VF to produce video tracks to go with my music)...

Thirdly: I notice that the 2.0c update was released in January this year - is there a 3.0 version in the pipeline? I'd like to know that I'm not buying 'old' software ;-)

Thanks,

john..

http://www.namke.com/

Comments

Chienworks wrote on 11/26/2002, 5:47 AM
To be quite frank with you, i popped the content CD in the day i got the package, looked at the stuff, said "oh cool!", and then have never taken the CD out of it's envelope since then. It's not worth the extra expense in my opinion.
IanG wrote on 11/26/2002, 7:08 AM
I'm in the UK too, and had exactly the same concerns. You can buy the boxed set over here, but it's around £100!! I ended up going for the download option and haven't regretted it.

Ian G.
JohnnyRoy wrote on 11/26/2002, 7:21 AM
Did you try Amazon.co.uk? They seem to have it listed on their site although I don't see a price. I don't think they'd charge you $30 shipping. I found the extra CD of content to be useful. They had a few video transitions (with alpha channel) that I've used. It depends on what kind of videos you’re making. They seem to be geared to the home hobbyist.

~jr
Jimco wrote on 11/26/2002, 7:47 AM
Another huge benefit of purchasing VF is that you can upgrade to Vegas for only $199 which means you get a $500 package for around $250.

Jim
jtuffen wrote on 11/26/2002, 7:48 AM
Amazon's pages (both .co.uk and .com) say:

"we are currently unable to offer this item. It may be out of stock with our suppliers. If you would like to purchase this item, we recommend that you occasionally check this page to see if it has become available."

Which is a shame.... I did find it at Red Submarine (www.sub.co.uk) but it's more expensive than getting it shipped over to the UK from SoFo themselves...

Looks like I'll get the download version then; pity, as I wanted something to open on Christmas day :-(

cheers,

john..
soundguy63 wrote on 11/26/2002, 8:33 AM
Another option to consider, depending on how the economics work out is upgrading to Sound Forge 6.0 and getting Vegas Video LE for free. I upgraded to 6.0 at home during the special promotion, and needed a limited version of Vegas at home, so that was the ticket for me. VV LE is similar to VF in video track limitations, but has some additional audio controls that were important to me. I'm not certain about limitations in mpeg1 or mpeg2 encoding, because I have always been going back to tape, so that hasnt come up for me. My 2 cents worth...
jtuffen wrote on 11/26/2002, 8:55 AM
Hmmmm, thanks - a bit more expensize tham VF on it's own... I'm now wishing that I upgraded SoundForge for $99 when I had the chance :-(

john..
IanG wrote on 11/26/2002, 4:57 PM
I recently bought a CD from SoFo by having them ship it to an address in the US, from where a friend collected it and brought it back to the UK (she was going there anyway - she's a good friend, but not that good!). Might that be an option?

Ian G.
Stiffler wrote on 11/27/2002, 2:47 AM
If there is something you really want off the content disk, I could possibly e-mail it to you if you know what you want. (A broadband connection would be a big help for you, though).

The whole disk is 640 mb (a little big to download), but for an example, the 'Human' sound effects folder (65 files) is a little over 4 mb, and that could be e-mailed.



Let me know if there is something that you need from the disk.

Jon





jtuffen wrote on 11/27/2002, 4:39 AM
Thanks Jon,
I guess that I won't know what I want until I see it :-) The content I'd really be after would be video clips etc., since my main reason for getting VF would be to produce visuals for my music...

I think that, after all the comments here (thanks guys!), I'll go for the download version of VF... mainly because it's cheaper, but I'm also getting the feeling that I wouldn't use the video clips much anyway - I'll just have to shoot it myself (see if I can blag my sister's DV cam!!)...


Thanks once again to all of you who responded!

john..

http://www.namke.com/