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Sorry about the confusion.
damhna: You are correct about not being able to access the file system directly. A program is needed (Premiere) to pull the movie off the camera and onto the computer.
The thing that makes miniDV, DV, and DVpro great is that the camera takes the digital signal coming from the CCD, and converts it into a digital video file with the DV format using encoding hardware in the camera. This file is a constant 3.5Mbits/sec. in bandwidth. This results in a digital video file recorded onto a video tape in much the same way as computer systems use tape drives, they can store a lot of information but must be accessed linearly. In this way a miniDV tape can hold about 13GB of data. This differs from traditional camcorders, which record an analog signal onto the tape.
Since the miniDV tape is in a digital format it allows for lossless data transfer to another camcorder, computer, etc. as long as a digital transfer method such as Firewire is used.
Although the video file on the tape is in digital format, it must still be accessed through a program such as premiere in order to transfer it to a computer. However, since the file is already digital the computer only has to write it to the hard drive as it comes in from the camera. This is why you must have a HD capable of sustained write speeds >3.5Mbits/sec.. A slower write speed will result in errors since the miniDV tape transfers data at a steady rate and can’t recover from lag in the same way as a HD. This process is referred to as capturing.
When you capture an analog video file the computer must use considerable CPU time to convert the analog signal into a digital file, as well as write to the HD at a constant speed. This can cause dropped frames, lower quality video, and a host of other problems.
damhna’s method of capture in Premiere is the standard way to do it. Settings located elsewhere in the program determine what format it expects the file to be in, although if your Firewire cable is hooked up and you’re seeing video then it’s a digital transfer.
In short, the media on a miniDV tape is a digital file, although it must be accessed through a proxy program such as Premiere in order to transfer it to the computer.
And miniDV with digital transfer is superior to analog in every way I’ve seen.
I hope I’ve cleared up any questions, I’ll post some links to a few guides on miniDV and DV editing when I get back to my apartment tonight.
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"Empirically observed covariation is a necessary but not sufficient condition for causality" - Edward Tufte
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