Transferring edited software to another computer

Peter wrote on 10/2/2009, 4:59 AM

I have just bought a new computer and have reloaded my sony software onto it. How would i transfer computer to computer the already edited files. I have a firewire connection between computers but am unsure how to exploit this beyond connecting them up.

Now I have the avi files that I can load up from disc onto the new computer but still don't know how to transfer the edited programmes so they and the footage would connect. I'm just starting to do this so any help would be appreciated.

I hope all of this makes sense.

Comments

musicvid10 wrote on 10/2/2009, 7:05 AM

You have a number of options.

You can put the files on an external drive and bring them to your new machine.
You can temporarily connect your old drive to your new computer and copy the files.
You can create a network connection between the two computers.
You can use Easy Transfer if you have Vista.
You can copy the files to CD or DVD data discs.

There are many basic Windows tutorials on the internet to lead you through this task. Do a Google.

Peter wrote on 10/3/2009, 1:00 AM

Thanks for the info. How good is the windows easy transfer for video files? I was checking on the connection needed, which was usb. I've always stuck with firewire as USB I always found to be very weak for images.

Chienworks wrote on 10/3/2009, 3:36 AM

If you have a firewire connection between the two computers then Windows should already have set up a network between them. Go to Explorer / network neighborhood and view entire network. You should see the other computer listed there.

On the old computer share the directory that contains all the video files. Ignore the warnings about "do you really know what you're doing" and just enable it. Give it a meaningful name like "video". Now refresh the explorer screen on the new computer and you should see that directory listed. You can open that directory on the new computer and drag the files over to the new computer's hard drive. This is way faster and easier than any other transfer method.

If your Windows installations didn't create a network over firewire then it's easy to do with ethernet, and probably something you should do anyway. If you've already got a router for internet access then plug both computers into it and they should become aware of each other. If you don't have a router then get one. They can be had as cheaply as $40 and they're a wonderful addition for a home network, as well as adding a very good firewall layer between your computers and the outside world.

If you absolutely refuse to connect your computers to the outside world then you can simply disconnect the internet from the router while you're transferring files. Alternatively if you don't want to get a router then you can ask the local computer store to make a "crossover" ethernet patch cable for you (should cost under $15) and use it to connect the two computer's ethernet ports directly to each other.