Blog Archives

An explanation of what you need to consider, technically, when purchasing a RAID for a server or direct-attached storage. Written for the mostly non-techie.

An in-depth look at the Promise Technology Pegasus2 Thunderbolt RAID, from the perspective of video editing.

A detailed product review of the Drobo 5D Thunderbolt RAID.

Here’s the gear you need to build your own media archiving solution.

A hardware review of the RAIDAGE GAGE104U40 series 4-bay RAID, manufactured by iStarUSA.

A few days ago I wrote about my frustrations in finding archiving solutions. The next day, I had a long phone conversation with the executive team at Cache-A plus a long email from HP.

I’ve become increasingly concerned as I talk with producers, editors, and vendors that we are rapidly moving into a tapeless environment without any realistically priced options for long-term media archiving.

Jack Rickard sent me a very thoughtful analysis of why he is a fan of the Cloud that I want to share with you.

I am advocating LTO-5 tape drives for archive and backup of our Final Cut Pro media. However, I still have not gotten this unit to work on my MacPro.

Although there’s no universal answer for this question, in this article we look at what RAID system or otherwise, that I personally recommend using for various types of video editing.

Here’s a product review of the iStoragePro; a RAID with a rocket attached to it.

In successfully working with tapeless media, I’ve developed an easy-to-implement workflow that will help prevent problems in your own projects.

This article grew out of newsletter discussions over the last few months and features thoughts from experienced tape editors.

XDCAM is generating a lot of interest for its high-def quality and small size. This discussion began with a question about using it for archiving – which spawned a lot of additonal thoughts.

Recent versions of Western Digital Hard Drives have had interface issues with Mac systems. This reader-submitted article describes the problem and a solution.

What’s the best video format for archiving materials? This is an easy question to ask, but a hard question to answer. Also, what’s the best way to preserve 1″ and 2″ master video tapes — especially since those machines are increasingly hard to find? This article gets you started in the right direction.

As we move from the world of standard-definition to high-def video, understanding hard disk speeds and the data requirements of video formats can prevent a lot of problems. During my recent seminars, I spent a lot of time explaining hard drive speeds and video format requirements. This is a summary of what techniques I talked about.

It’s frustrating! You buy a hard disk only to discover you can’t move your data from one drive to the next. Here’s a personal case story, along with options on how to fix this problem.

As our industry moves quickly to tapeless media and acquisition, properly archiving your footage can make the difference between happiness and heart-ache. In this article, I outline what you need to know about archive formats.

Where to store files is always a question. This short tip helps you determine where to store your media and project files for DVD Studio Pro.

When you are working with tapeless media during production, and recording to cards, the basic workflow is to copy the card to your hard disk then ERASE THE CARD! (Sorry, I come from a tape background and that word “erase” is just plain scary…) So, it makes sense that when copying the card to your hard disk you take every precaution to do so safely. Here’s a review of a product that can help: Imagine Products’ Shotput Pro.

Editing is all about storage. Successful editing requires storage that is big enough and fast enough to keep up with your work. One company that specializes in meeting the needs of video editors is Dulce Systems. Here’s a look at the new RAID, the Pro Q.

Data Robotics makes a family of RAID products that can be very useful in a video capture and editing environment. This is a review of their latest unit – the Drobo S – which directly attaches to the computer via FireWire. I find these units to be especially useful on set when shooting tapeless media.

The Drobo line of storage products offers a lot for video and audio editors. Their newest product – the Drobo FS – doesn’t help editors, but it CAN help around the office, as this detailed review explains.

Data Robotics released a new storage unit: the Drobo Elite. In this detailed product review, we examine how it works, how well it works, how fast it works, and what its limitations are.

Drobo has been making a lot of noise in the market with its new storage hybrid – part RAID, part expandable hard drive. I’ve been using one for a couple of months now and in this review, I put it to work and discover that it can serve a very useful role in editing, but not in the place you would expect.

One of the terrifying facts of hard disk life is that a hard disk, unplugged and sitting on a shelf, will slowly have its magnetic data “evaporate.” While the time period varies, industry experts tell us its between one to three years! This article explains what you MUST do to safeguard your data. Best of all, its FREE!

RAIDs (Redundant Array of Independent Drives) are high-speed, big-storage products designed for video editing. However, they are often described using arcane terms like RAID 0, 1, 3, 5, and so on. This short article describes what those terms mean.

Addressing the problem of digital media “evaporating” when a hard drive is powered down and stored on a shelf, with additional advice from Bob Gobeille, who originally provided the terminal script to fix this problem.

Final Cut makes it easy to move files from one place to another — provided you have your files and system setup correctly. This article explains what you need to know.

Hard drives are essential to video editing. Which makes it really, REALLY aggravating when they stop working. Here are two techniques you can use to trouble-shoot hard drive problems: having too many disks attached, and not being able to boot from the system disk.

It is a long-known, but little-discussed secret that hard disks slowly lose their magnetic signal. If you archive your projects on hard disks, you need to read this article before all your carefully stored files… are gone!

As I was investigating how Final Cut Pro handles multiclip editing, it struck me that, after a certain point, the speed of your storage doesn’t really matter. Which means that we need to pay attention to more than just the raw speed of our storage systems.

Final Cut Server is out, but what does it really do? In this article, we take a look at the strengths and weaknesses of the product. Server has a lot of power, but it isn’t for everyone — this article helps you decide for yourself.

Here is a ten-step, tested technique to convert DVCProHD sequences into HDV. This would a good way to archive HD sequences if you don’t have a DVCProHD sequence to tape.

I am not a testing organization, but, recently, Jon Schilling over at CalDigit (www.caldigit.com) sent me a 500 GB SATA RAID to examine (Model #S2VR Duo).

As we move away from tape and into tapeless video, questions about how to best archive our projects take on a new importance. For many, the issue revolves around the hardware we use to archive. But there is a second question: what video format do we want to use to store our files for the long-term. In this dialog with Philip Hodgetts, we examine this very complex issue and provide some guidance.

The best way to archive your project is to organize it before you even start. This article provides a host of tips on getting organized, what to save and how to go about it.

With the camera industry’s head-long rush into tapeless image acquisition, having a soild backup and archiving strategy is critical because video tape masters no longer exist. In this commentary, I discuss the sad state of today’s options and provide suggestions to keep you out of trouble.

The good folks at AccuSys contacted me recently about reviewing their new A08S-PS. This is an 8-bay Tower RAID designed for media professionals. I told them I’d be delighted to look at it, so a few weeks ago, it showed up on my doorstop.

As part of my recent research for the Tapeless and DSLR Media webinar, I sent a note to a variety of editors asking for their thoughts on working with tapeless media. Specifically, I wanted to learn what problems they were running into. I was fascinated by the results.