VHS to DVD; DVD to Imac i movie??
 

I'm dubbing VHS tapes to DVD recorder (Panasonic DMR-EZ486)
RAM vs -R ?? What is best for long term keeping/future editing?

RAM DVD will not play on Imac....VRO files
-R files will play...neither will allow me to move into i movie for simple editing.

What do I need to download into i movie so I can edit? I only plan to do light editing with the i movie?

DVD-RAM is intended only for temporary storage. The phase change alloy that makes up the disc will break down in time -- sometimes in a matter of months, used or not.

On the other hand, dye-based media is intended for much longer shelf life, which includes DVD-R and DVD+R. A well-handled store-indoors DVD will last at least 25-50 years. Vetted tests by respected archival researchers have concluded at least 90% of discs will be readable in 40 years, if not longer. Those are all conservative numbers, too. You could have a higher % of discs stay good for much longer.

So "future" really depends on how long the future is. For something you plan to edit in a few days, use a DVD-RAM if you want. For something you may keep for a few years before coming back to it, then definitely go with a DVD-R.

Of course, you may want to abandon DVD-RAM altogether. As you have seen, it's not the most compatible format, being in the DVD-VR spec instead of the DVD-Video spec.

The videos are compressed in MPEG-2 format. iMovie doesn't natively support this. I've been (sadly) Mac-less for almost a whole year now, so I can't run any tests. (Know anybody that may want to donate, trade or sell an Mac mini, Powerbook or other hard cheap!?)

The Quicktime Pro codec may allow MPEG-2.
Per Apple, Quicktime Pro DOES NOT allow iMovie to import an MPEG2 video file. more on that from http://support.apple.com/kb/HT2657

It appears iMovie '08 may have some limited MPEG-2 support, so which version are you using? iMovie '9 may or may not allow MPEG-2. Because Apple is known to downgrade features in software/OS sometimes, it's hard to say without testing it out.

Apple purposely limits iMovie/iDVD -- they want you to spend $$$ on Final Cut Express, Final Cut Pro or Final Cut Studio.

Do let me know what you find out! :)

thanks, glad I asked before I spent time on the ram format. I'm using the latest i movie, 2009--8.0. I was told by apple support that I needed to convert vro to mpeg in order to edit. I will experiment and get back. thanks again!!

Apple gave you a stupid answer. So typical.

VRO is an MPEG file. There's nothing to convert. iMovie apparently just has a really limited extension list. Rename file.vro to file.mpg or file.mpeg.

Done. The file is "converted". :)

(NOTE: This is NOT the same as a VOB file. VOB files have extra data in them beyond MPEG video and a single audio stream. So renaming like this only works 100% on VRO files, made in DVD recorders or cameras using the DVD-VR recording format. VOB needs to be properly ripped/extracted. Just mentioning this for your DVD-R recordings, or any other DVDs you may look to edit in the future.)

To rip DVD to MPEG files on Mac, use this software and guide: http://www.digitalfaq.com/guides/video/edit-dvd-mac.htm