Press Release
June 1, 2000
iMovie: The Missing Manual Found for Spielberg Wannabees
Sebastopol, CA-- Editing camcorder footage on a PC is nothing new. For $5,000
in circuit boards and high-end editing software, anyone can be a
home-office Spielberg. But in 1999, Apple Computer made digital video
editing almost as easy as using a word processor-and even less expensive.
Built into each of Apple's wildly popular iMac DV computers is the
circuitry needed to record pro-quality video from a digital camcorder, and
then send the edited movies back to TV or tape with zero picture-quality
loss. The crown jewel is the pre-installed editing software: iMovie.
"iMovie thrilled Apple iMac owners with its ability to turn camcorder
footage into broadcast-quality video without a rocket-science degree," says
David Pogue, author of the just-released
iMovie: The Missing
Manual. "So
when Apple recently made iMovie a free download for all, I wasn't the only
one bouncing off the walls with happiness. This is the kind of thing that
makes Hollywood studios really nervous--and excited." Apple recently
announced that in the first week of making iMovie free from their site,
over 150,000 customers downloaded the software.
With iMovie, you can transfer DV footage from camcorder to hard drive;
trim and rearrange scenes; and add crossfades, credits, and multiple
sound tracks. In fact, iMovie includes almost everything you need to
produce pro-quality video--except a manual.
iMovie:The Missing
Manual takes you through every step of iMovie
video production, from choosing a camcorder to burning finished films
onto CDs. The book's philosophy: giving someone iMovie without teaching
basic film technique is like giving a map to a teenager without
teaching him to drive.
Far deeper and more detailed than the meager set of online help screens
included with iMovie, Pogue's new book helps iMovie users realize the
software's potential as a breakthrough in reducing the cost,
complexity, and difficulty of desktop video production. The book
explains, for example, how to run iMovie on any recent Mac model (not
just the iMac DV); uncovers the two secret clip-editing techniques that
Apple's online help doesn't even mention; and provides a powerful
workaround for iMovie's weak soundtrack-editing feature. As a bonus, a
special appendix covers the equally under-documented Apple DVD Player,
the built-in program that plays DVD movies on any DVD-equipped
Macintosh.
About the Missing Manual series:
Microsoft does it. Apple does it. Adobe, Netscape, and FileMaker do
it. Almost every major software company, in fact, sells increasingly
sophisticated software without a printed manual. To cut costs and save
production time, today's software companies don't offer physical
instruction manuals at all. Instead, you're expected to learn these
complex programs by reading electronic help screens. One technical
writer finally became inspired enough to do something about the
problem. David Pogue, bestselling Mac author, has teamed with O'Reilly
to launch a new imprint, Pogue Press, dedicated to producing
beautifully written manuals for popular consumer software and hardware
products. O'Reilly/Pogue
Press is pleased to introduce its new line:
the Missing Manual series.
Online Resources:
iMovie:
The Missing Manual
By David Pogue
1st Edition May 2000
1-56592-859-8, 388 pages, $19.95 (US$)
order@oreilly.com
1-800-998-9938
About O'Reilly
O'Reilly Media spreads the knowledge of innovators through its books, online services, magazines, and conferences. Since 1978, O'Reilly Media has been a chronicler and catalyst of cutting-edge development, homing in on the technology trends that really matter and spurring their adoption by amplifying "faint signals" from the alpha geeks who are creating the future. An active participant in the technology community, the company has a long history of advocacy, meme-making, and evangelism.
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