The Evolution of Non-Linear Acquisition - One Perspective

Since the advent of electronic news gathering some 40 years ago, outside acquisition has changed little when compared to the revolution caused by full resolution non-linear editing. The pervasiveness of computer technology and products, both hardware and software, has extended PC-based video to every level and for almost every application. Having experienced NLE for production, users could easily imagine the benefits of non-linear acquisition, and some “early-adopters” and creative manufacturers have used hard drives with limited acceptance. When recordable DVDs appeared it was thought to be a solution, but many issues precluded its adoption. Nevertheless, the idea of an optical disk camcorder was definitely appealing, as was the entire notion of non-linear acquisition. — Last year 2 major manufacturers introduced two very different solutions for non-linear field acquisition - one optical disk based, and one solid-state memory based. This paper describes the background and rationale for the selection of memory for acquisition, the trade-offs and benefits, and a brief overview of the components that comprise the system. Central to the system and to the presentation are the use of Information Technology (IT) elements to transform the workflow, especially for newsgathering, and the derivation of the memory elements from the ever-increasing use of storage elements now found in consumer devices like cell phones, PDAs and still cameras. The central theme of the concept is to use the most appropriate storage element for each phase of the process, and there is a role for memory cards, hard disk drives, and optical disks wherein each plays on its own strengths.

Published

2004-02

Content type

Original Research

DOI

10.5594/M001012

ISBN

978-1-60423-807-5