What is the worst workflow imaginable?
 

I know lots of people on this site ask about what the best workflow is, but this time I planned on doing an experiment. An experiment to see how much of a difference a proper workflow is compared to the absolute worst workflow. (Basically, a workflow so awful that not even Avisynth can save it.)

I know that most VCRs claim to be high quality because of the "amount of heads" they have and that certain capture cards claim to have "standards." (Despite most of average, generic capture cards being really awful. And I'm talking EasyCAP knockoff levels of awful.)

If I end up getting one of those awful generic cards, then what's the worst VHS capturing software I could use? Is it the stuff that comes with the knockoff capture cards, or is it one of the first results for "Capture VHS Tape for Free?"

How about videotaping a tv screen?

On a more serious note, if you want to make a comparison, maybe with the bundled software with default settings. It may not be the absolute worst if you deliberately mess it up, but it would be more like what someone not very savvy buying one of these random devices would do.

1) Connect VCR directly to your TV using a coaxial cable.
2) Play tape.
3) Record vertical footage of TV screen with smart phone camera.
4) Profit?

1980s VCR to MPEG1 320x240 capture card, a circa 2000 method. Bad then, worse now.

That seems like a pretty neat method, seeing as how it's quite akin to most VHS opening captures from the early days of YouTube. I might try that.

------------------EDIT------------------

So I looked for a capture card fitting that description, and the Matrox Mystique Rainbow Runner seems to fit that description pretty well, and HOLY HELL is it overpriced. $142 when I could just get an ATI 600 USB for $80 just on this website alone! This makes me feel bad for all the people who get those kinds of cards.

Got that beat. Circa 1998, Betamax to Video Spigot @ 320x240, 15fps. If I wanted 30fps, I had to go down to 160x120! :D

Note that this was Video Spigot for Windows, not Mac, so I think the Codec was VFW, not even MPEG. Later I got a Matrox Rainbow Runner and was able to capture in glorious 640x480, 30fps in MJPEG.

Edit: I just checked checked one of my RR captures from 2002 and it wasn't 640x480, it was 320x240, some at 25fps. Don't remember why.

I got confused because I could capture still images at 640x480 with my Snappy. http://www.vintagecomputing.com/inde...video-snapshot

Yep, I was living big back then! :congrats:

My grandad did some 320 by 240 captures on an old capture card as did I on my PC I got from the tip which was the best the capture card we had could do.... They look, like total poo. To be fair, a turd probably looks better than how those came out.

Despite only being a kid at the time, I insisted we keep the original tapes despite having them on 'video CD' when the consensus was to simply tape over them and reuse them.

Only two of them got taped over with new stuff that was not copied by me onto backup full-size tapes at the time, I insisted on keeping multiple tape sets, and would make 2 or 3 copies from the original camcorder tapes at the time as soon as I was old enough to put a tape in. It was also me that as a 7 year old, demanded everyone remove the record lockout tabs, go figure. You can see a video of me at the age of 8 with a stack of these 'backups' in my room.

We also do still have some of the original camcorder tapes that I squirrelled away. We have two items of footage in particular stuck in that 320x240 quality though, but 95% of it and we had a LOT, survived in best quality intact.

Best decision I ever came up with as a kid not to discard them, so again went back to the original tapes with a good quality JVC VCR and a decent capture card this time. Was able to squeeze every last drop of quality from the tapes.

And I still won't discard the original tapes. Just another backup, and they are nearly all still perfectly watchable with no tracking issues. I refused to have them stored in the loft you see, I insisted on storing them all at room temperature instead.

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And to add my input to this thread, a bad workflow is to discard the originals. Seriously, keep them. Its just another no-effort backup, tape lasts a reasonably long time if well stored regardless of the fear-mongering, and you may in the future be able to do it 'even better'.

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And in response to filming the TV screen and profiting, that is exactly what moon landing footage we got. A camera pointed at the screen in mission control that was beamed to everyone, the original SSTV tapes were lost long ago.

Probably not lost, just hidden away in some black market buyers vault with other valuable but "lost" art works, etc.

A "can-you-top-this" thread for poor video capture work flows. At a "personal best' (or worst), it is probably one of the first few anyone tried.

I remember that. I wasn't even thinking of going lower than 29.97, but that would do it.

My earliest exposure to digital video was MPEG-1 from SGI MediaBase on SGI workstations back in 1996/97. I remember when the new software came out, allowing you to intranet watch the MPEG files on the new Mac OS8, with SGI's proprietary software. But even then I think it was 29.97, not slower.

https://www.cnet.com/news/sgi-server...-for-intranets

I have a bunch of videos of a JPop group from the late 90's/early 2000's that are in .rm (remember RealMedia?) and 160x112? @ 15fps and some are at 14fps? I just browsed through some the oldest and found what is probably the winner, 160x120 @ 10fps! Oh, they're all at 16bit color too!

These aren't my captures, but from a 2 CD collection I received in trade for passing on my "HQ" 320x240 @ 15fps, 16bit color captures for inclusion in the collection as a special bonus 3rd CD.

Oh, I remember Real.
ASF and WMV wasn't much better.
Nor VCD.
Low quality seems to have (mostly) phased out with the end of Flash FLV in the late 00s.

Then, and still now, my stance is this: I refuse to insult my ears and eyes with that schlock. I'd just rather not watch it, as it's impossible to enjoy. Remember, in those days I was still pure hobby, and I saw way to much VCD/etc type garbage. VHS was better -- as long as it wasn't made on the stupidly-popular horrible-quality GoVideo decks.