Well i am a complete noob at this. so here goes
i want text to appear on my video but i cant seem to make the text appear it either doesnt show up or it has a black background i want it so text and video appear
Create a new track (commonly called an overlay track) placing it above your main video track. Click on the Media Generations tab, select TEXT, then use the Default Text selection. Your text will "float" over your main video. The text effects can be altered by clicking on the top (generated Media) icon in any event.
Satish has developed several FREE plug-ins that add 3D effects. You may wish to check that out as well.