RANT:
Just felt the need to say that. I was planning on getting an IPod Classic 160G to hold all my music and my home videos. My home vids are in MPEG-2 format. I went to the Apple store today and asked what I needed to convert the vids to play on the IPod. I was told Quicktime Pro would do it. I buy it and nope. I then read I need the MPEG-2 utility here. Another $20 bucks.
The MPEG-2 site reads (pay close attention here kiddies):
"Transcoding video content
Your MPEG-2 video content can be imported into QuickTime and exported to other formats such as MPEG-4, the new international standard for Internet media, QuickTime Movie or DV Stream, to name a few. The QuickTime MPEG-2 Playback Component allows the transcode of MPEG-2 video from both multiplexed and elementary video streams(1). By converting your MPEG-2 video content into other formats, it can be used in new forums, such as on the web, on CD-ROM or on DV tape."
I convert the home video and... no audio. So I go to the online support and find this!:
"It is not possible to export the audio portion of a muxed MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 audio/video stream using QuickTime. For editing purposes, the entire MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 stream is treated as a single sample. You may create edit lists to display parts of the stream in the usual way, but if you flatten the movie data, the entire stream is saved, not just the parts displayed in the movie."
I'm sorry, but WTF is that?! Apparently there are no refunds either, so I'm out $54.43 for software I don't even need. Apple sucks. And for the record, every single report of problems with the site have been on the Mac.
RANT Over
So if you are considering doing the same, consider yourself warned. This software seems to work, and was recommended by the guys at Gizmodo, but it will cost me another $29.95 to automate the process.
BTW, if I'm reading the above wrong and it should actually work but I need to do something I'm missing let me know.
BTW, I'm pissed at MS to. Why the hell they released the Zune in only 30G capacity is beyond me.
Monday, September 10, 2007
49 comments:
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Hi Matrix,
ReplyDeleteThis is THE program everyone uses for video conversions. Highly rated.
http://www.techspansion.com/visualhub/
people are going to revert back to polaroid. i spent hours trying to figure out how to resize a jpeg on my mac. never happened and then it blew up. really, it blew up. i ended up doing it on my pc while i was waiting for my new mac. it's like i bought access to a simplest things sofware store but none of the little apps work. who needs photo cropping by the way? people apparently make livings on photo cropping which is useless.
ReplyDeletei think mac and ms decided we were all too comfortable. we had all found things that worked and could accomplish too much. so they pulled all backwards compatability out from under us.
Thats why I went from MS via Apple to Linux. Cant stand this ongoing you cant do this, you have to license that and so on. I am a software developer so buying software is ok with me and I have bought a lot. But the restrictions went to far, cant live with that anymore.
ReplyDeleteHi,
ReplyDeletethis is all very documented. blaming this on apple is ridiculous. there are plenty of apps that will do this for you and many for free and can be found in a matter of seconds on the net. the best I've found is ffmpegx:
http://homepage.mac.com/major4/
NEVER buy Software ! (ALWAYS use warez)
ReplyDeletevlc has a transcoding option.
ReplyDeletePerhaps it can convert your videos ?
www.videolan.org
vlc is free.
You can always try the Perian component for QuickTime (http://perian.org/).
ReplyDeleteIt allows you to play all sorts of stuff in every app that uses QT in OS X (iTunes, Front Row, etc), and allows you to export/transcode to iPod-friendly format.
Sorry, but it isn't apple's fault your old videos are in an ipod-unfriendly format, and yes, gasp, if you ask them, they'll try to sell you on an apple solution, not because they're evil, but just because they may not know any better. ("What? Yout need to transcode? Buy QuickTIme Pro. NEXT!")
ReplyDeleteAnyway, for a free transcoder: try ffmpegx. A bit fiddly to install as you need to track down the proper codecs, but it works.
Souds like you need an IFart device.
ReplyDeleteA bit quick to jump the gun and bash Apple, eh matrix? Seems like if you had done a quick search you would have found your solution quite easily.
ReplyDeleteDude, take a breath!
ReplyDeleteIf you just scrolled down and read the comments on the Apple store page where you purchased the "QuickTime MPEG-2 Playback" you would have seen your EXACT problem described.
MPEG is a crazy format war with liscensing fees, restrictions, etc. I'm surprised the codec only cost you $20.00
Two-
http://forum.videohelp.com/topic312253.html
or
http://www.isquint.org/
http://handbrake.m0k.org/
or
http://homepage.mac.com/major4/
That's what you're going to have to do.
In any event, Quicktime Pro and the codec are VERY useful, you'll find that out as you begin to use the software.
Third and most importantly. WTF is this doing on Matrixsynth!!!?? I DON'T CARE about your video woes. That's not why I visit this site.
Please just synth. Okay?
Another excellent program I have recently been using to convert all my video to PS3 (and iPod friendly) h264 is isquint. Find it at http://www.isquint.org It is the free version of the above mentioned Visual Hub.
ReplyDeleteIts funny. If it had been a rant against ms saying the exact same thing, all of the above that have been shaking their fingers would join in.
ReplyDeletei use this:
ReplyDeletehttp://versiontracker.com/dyn/moreinfo/macosx/15473
oh and btw, if you have a mac, use this:
http://versiontracker.com
search for anything you need, this site finds it!! great!
I have to agree with Anon 4:27 AM... I don't visit this site to read about your computer woes. I visit to read about synths, period. And yes... I'm a loyal (decade plus) Mac user who thinks your rant is way over the top.
ReplyDeleteIf Matrix wants to rant this is HIS blog. If you don't like it go elsewhere. He provides this blog to us free of cost so I don't mind a little rant from time to time.
ReplyDeleteI think we can tolerate one off-topic post per year :)
ReplyDeleteCrap like this is why I still use an Atari Falcon. Plus, it can record audio and do midi.
ReplyDeleteI use Square-5 (free) to convert & resize my MPEG-2 vids into YT- (and Mac-) friendly MP4's. It's pretty good and all, but thanks to everyone who posted all their faves... I'll shop dem bitches too since I'm still pretty noobish.
ReplyDeleteSquare-5's the company... Streamclip is the program.
ReplyDeleteYeah, Apple and software are hit or miss. You lost money on the software? I did too awhile back, the culprit was called Soundtrack Pro. In fact, it was so Pro, that as soon as it was set to 24bit 96k, it would crash. No refunds of course.
ReplyDeletewhy wouldn't you just use one of the many known free apps? you may have just taked to novice sales person at the apple store who didn't intend to mislead you... no?
ReplyDelete"And for the record, every single report of problems with the site have been on the Mac."
ReplyDeleteWhy not be specific about this too, so you can get more free advice?
The site freezes up on Mac because it can't handle the YouTube vids for whatever reason. It's come up numerous times.
ReplyDeleteAs for the software, if Quicktime Pro could have done what I needed I would go for it. I asked and they said it would. It didn't. It's as simple as that. If you look at the link the MPEG-2 page and the quote I provided you will see that it states you can covert MPEG-2. What they fail to do is tell you the audio won't come with it. That is misleading in my book.
BTW, thanks for all the suggestions, but I'm on the PC - work purposes.
ReplyDeleteAnon 4:27 here -maybe I'll get a google account-
ReplyDeleteMatrix-- If you're on a PC the options you have available to you to convert video streams ARE VAST. I can't count the free number of DVD rippers that Windows has available to it.
Check Quicktime Pro and see if you can extract the audio and the video seperately. If you can do that, just mix them back together when you convert them to an iPod format.
Either way, you're going to have to go through at least two steps. "The powers that be" make converting DVD streams" (MPEG-2) especially complex. I wonder why...
This post sucks. Synths only please. Anyway do you want to advertise to the whole world that you don't know how to use Google?
ReplyDeleteNo problems with the clips here, I've been visiting your blog for a long time, using mostly Safari.
ReplyDeleteNot sure what the people having trouble are doing, but it works fine in Safari, Firefox and Opera here.
Thanks. I actually found this: Videora for the PC. It's free for one file at a time, $29 for queuing up files. I tried it and it is FAST. It will work fine.
ReplyDeleteI love how the MAC cultists come out. : ) Hah. You don't see that with PC.
ReplyDeleteAs for Google, I did, that's how I found the MPEG-2 player page which clearly states it will convert MPEG-2. Read the post for the rest of the details.
Hopefully this post will save others time and money.
I completely agree that it's misleading. If they recommend a product, they should know what it can and can't do. Period.
ReplyDeleteI just managed to fix my ipod this weekend. Guess what I did to break it? I updated the firmware. Rubbish.
Matrix if you READ the entire description on the Apple page you referenced and followed the (1) to the accompanying footnote on THE SAME PAGE you wouldn't have spent a cent.
ReplyDelete"The QuickTime MPEG-2 Playback Component allows the transcode of MPEG-2 video from both multiplexed and elementary video streams(1)"
Footnote One says "(1) Note that the QuickTime MPEG-2 Playback Component will not demux audio and video, nor will it enable audio transcoding."
'Nuff said.
Ah, there it is. Seriously it should have been under the main "Transcoding video content" section and the Apple store shouldn't have given me misinformation.
ReplyDeleteWhen you are looking for an easy solution and
1) The official APPLE store tells you what to buy
2) you read the section on transcoding video, that it will convert MPEG-2
you don't think to read the grayed out footnote at the bottom of the page. Why the hell is it down there and not in the corresponding section?
I use ImToo MPEG Encoder
ReplyDeletehttp://www.imtoo.com/mpeg-encoder.html
my two cents: if you're on the PC platform you may try Super (http://www.erightsoft.net/SUPER.html) it can transcode between several video formats, it�s free and it's kinda easy to use. hope it helps
ReplyDelete;)
"I love how the MAC cultists come out. : ) Hah. You don't see that with PC."
ReplyDeleteIt really has nothing to do with "mac cultists" or whatever. I actually use a PC myself. It is about the fact that the solution was RIGHT ON THE SAME PAGE and instead of reading it and solving your own problem, you jumped into some crazy rant when the answer was right there the whole time.
Its cool though, I know you won't ever admit that you were wrong. I know it will still be Apples fault for not making it more obvious. (like giant bold letter at the top of the page or something) Oh, well.
Rules of thumb:
ReplyDelete1. never trust an apple store employee. (duh)
2. Apple & M$ both suck.
I prefer Apple. Their products are a bit more stable and user friendly and designed very well. there aren't 20 versions of their new OS floating around either.
I still use my PC though...Each one has a laundry list of shit that needs to be fixed. I like both but both suck from a consumer standpoint...this is the lamest debate in the history of man anyway.
the real question is...why the hell are the new ipod touch units only shipping with 8gb & 16gb...i wanted a 160gb itouch FUCKERS
Very easy solution. CloneDVDmobile. Allows you to rip DVD's direct to iPod Video format as well as other devices. www.slysoft.com
ReplyDelete"Its cool though, I know you won't ever admit that you were wrong."
ReplyDeleteWell, I usually don't unless I was wrong about something. Read the post fool. Apple still sucks.
Oh, and I still plan to get an iPod Classic 160G, so there you have it.
ReplyDelete: )
I'm not pissed off beyond redemption, just a bit annoyed is all. Seriously, it's just a rant, not world peace so to speak. No babies are going to die. I put it up because I was annoyed (still am) and because I wanted to save other people from experiencing the same. Who knows, maybe when someone else wants to do the same they'll remember the post and save themselves some time.
The things that really irked me, both of which are in the original post, are:
1. The guy at the Apple store told me that it would work. He said it in the way you say something that is too obvious; he had that smile, like why are you asking me such a dumb question, and I was a little embarrassed even asking because it seemed so obvious that it should work. In short, I was mislead into buying something by an Apple employee. BTW, I'm going to call the store manager and see what they say - not to complain, but to see how they handle the situation.
2. When I went to the Apple site and read you needed the MPEG-2 Player to convert video, I wasn't thinking "video only." I mean why bother at that point? It irks me that it does not call out audio will not be converted right there. It shouldn't be a disclaimer at the bottom of the page in light gray font. Sorry, but this is misleading and a bit sneaky in my book.
Ahhh, gotta love what matrixsynth is turning into these days. Infinite troll posts, rants about problems with easy solutions, far too many ebay links. This is why some of folks I know don't bother to come around here anymore.
ReplyDeleteYet you still come back. Numbers are up btw. About to hit 3 million. :)
ReplyDeleteI could be fuzzy on the details, but isn't there a trick where you can go behind the scenes and snag MPEG2 encoded video from an iDVD project? I believe iDVD is transcoding to MPEG2 when it makes your DVDs.
ReplyDeleteI agree that Apple is kind of unclear about this whole MPEG2 debacle. I wouldn't say that they SUCK exactly… but for sure this could be made more clear. I guess their idea is that if you are involved with video enough to want/need an MPEG en/decoder then you probably already know about its strict licensing and such. It might be a bad assumption, but I bet that's what they think.
Yeah, there are different levels of suck. I'm not losing any sleep over this one.
ReplyDeleteBTW, apologies to anyone that might have gotten worked up by this post. That wasn't my intent. I could word it differently next time, but then it kind of loses the moment. Form your own opinions and don't worry about what others think. There are far more important things in life.
ReplyDeleteMatrix-
ReplyDeleteThere are plenty of forums/blogs out there where this sort of posting will be much more in context, other than Matrixsynth.
Besides, why not complain, if you don't like a product, don't stand for it. There are more intelligent ways to handle this than throw it passive aggresively into cyberspace on a blog where it has no context, even if it is your own.
Go into the Applestore with a plan and simply get your money back or get compensated in some other way- such as store credit to go toward your 160GB Ipod Classic... Talk to the store manager, not angrily, but intelligently and collected. Use it to your advantage and know that Apple is a company that wants to take care of its customers. What's that saying- "don't let one bad Apple spoil the whole bunch." I think that really fits here ; )
I understand your frustrations, but posting a thread titled "OT: Apple Sucks" due to this little problem isn't really that fair of a statement. Give 'em a chance and I think you'll find a better resolution than anything this thread has to offer.
And please don't deal with that guy who was a turd to you the next time you go into that store. Turds stink, and why would anyone walk into a stinky situation.
ipods have crap DACS! don't buy one.. take it back, irivier, or iaudio only please! ipods suck.
ReplyDeletemacs are great, but they have some draw backs, but not nearly as many as pcs do...
Thanks anon. I will try talking to the manager and see what they say. I tried yesterday and the person I spoke to on the phone said he was out and would be in today. I just called today and the person I spoke to said he was out and would be in tomorrow afternoon.
ReplyDeleteAs recommended by another commenter, the free program MpegStreamclip is the one you want to use for demuxing. I also use iSquint for ipod compression.
ReplyDelete