[skalie]

I posted a thread with a few questions about iBook, iMovie and an external hard drive over at the video section, but in hindsight realised that it would have been better to post it here.

Apologies for cross threading, here's the original post....

I've found a site selling the Lacie firewire 160gig external hard drive cheaper than Lacie sells it.

Before I jump at it........

I'm used to using iMovie with my iBook (twin usb 600mhz) and a miniDV camera. Transfer footage to iBook, edit, firewire it back to the camera to store on tape. Easy peasy.

Would the operation be similar using the external hard drive?

Firstly, the iBook has only one firewire connection. Is it right to assume that I could connect the camera to the drive and then the drive to the iBook and be able to control the camera to get the footage on to the external drive using my iBook?

Secondly, would I then be able to edit movies on the external drive just I have been using the iBooks hard drive?

[swichd]

You can, but you need a firewire hub.

[Rev-O]

You should be able to archive and get footage off the external same as the internal. When you create a new project, just specify the external drive as the location for the new project. If iMovie stubbornly saves clips to your internal drive, at worst you'd have to drag 'n' drop them to the media folder inside the new project floder you created on the external drive. Easy peasy. But I suspect that iMovie will put the files on the external for you when you create the new project on the external. Might be slow, tho. Extracting off the digicam via fw to the computer and writing it to the external hd via fw. This is the only issue I could see iMovie having.

[skalie]

Originally posted by Rev-O:
Might be slow, tho. Extracting off the digicam via fw to the computer and writing it to the external hd via fw. This is the only issue I could see iMovie having.

Without a hub?

As in camera >>> external drive >>> iBook >>> external drive ???

( that would be the only way to connect the firewire cables )

And, er, the iBook only has 9 or so gigs of free space ( 15 gig model ), so first saving to the internal drive would be a major pain in the butter.

[Rev-O]

hub would be the only way to go...

Yah, and 9 gigs won't get you far with dv footage!

[skalie]

Originally posted by Rev-O:
hub would be the only way to go...

Something like this maybe?

[Rev-O]

Oh yes, the Firewire Dino is the ultimate firewire hub! IIRC, his eyes even light up! But he is a bit spendy for a firewire hub. Get one, and you'll be the envy of all your Mac savy friends!