The good little witch is NOT a pirate but...

[glynndah]

I would like to transfer a stack of VHS tapes to DVDs. Any suggestions as to which device would be best for this?

I am not all that tech savvy but you've probably already deduced that upon reading any of my myriad threads.

For the most part, all these aforementioned VHS tapes will be of the "home movie" or "recorded off the television" type.

I have a PC, not a Mac; Windows7. I've used a couple of the pre-installed movie maker programs with fairly successful results.

Thank you for your help.

A from the good little witch.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

AMAZON offers several VHS to DVD machines. The prices vary.

 

[glynndah]

AMAZON offers several VHS to DVD machines. The prices vary.

Yes, I know, hence my request for opinions as to which one is best. I suppose I'll probably end up with one of those, but I was hoping for a review or two.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Yes, I know, hence my request for opinions as to which one is best. I suppose I'll probably end up with one of those, but I was hoping for a review or two.

None of the reviews are good.

I'd do this: If your school library has a tech who maintains your av stuff, ask them for a recommendation.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Try RaDIO SHACK.

 

[glynndah]

None of the reviews are good.

I'd do this: If your school library has a tech who maintains your av stuff, ask them for a recommendation.

He's a self-important ijit. I'd rather ask you guys.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

He's a self-important ijit. I'd rather ask you guys.

hahahahahahaha Then go to Radio Shack and ask for a demo before you buy (bring along a VHS tape to convert. Make sure you get decent cables and the right cables. And make them show you how to do it till you got it! It looks like a simple converter, just make sure the software works for you.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

He's a self-important ijit. I'd rather ask you guys.

I'll ask my son in law, he does lotsa AV stuff, and give you his opinion.

 

[glynndah]

hahahahahahaha Then go to Radio Shack and ask for a demo before you buy (bring along a VHS tape to convert. Make sure you get decent cables and the right cables. And make them show you how to do it till you got it! It looks like a simple converter, just make sure the software works for you.

Good idea. I hadn't thought of that.

I'll ask my son in law, he does lotsa AV stuff, and give you his opinion.

Thank you. I'd appreciate it.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Back when WEBTV came out I used a Radio Shack converter tween the WebTV and the tv, and it worked great. The devices aren't complicated but the software needs to work on your computer so you can record to DVD, not just watch the tape.

 

[litfan10]

Hey Witchy!

When I was a school librarian I often had to transfer parent made home movies of school events onto a DVD for school use. I found Roxio brand recording products to be great - simple yet gets the job done well. Good luck.

On another note, when I took over the library I found boxes and boxes and shelves upon shelves of illegally copies or recorded off TV videos. When State Library Systems personnel first visited my school after I became librarian her first comment without even seeing them was "You are getting rid of all her old illegal tapes, right?"

I have great respect and a for the good witch.

 

[glynndah]

Hey Witchy!

When I was a school librarian I often had to transfer parent made home movies of school events onto a DVD for school use. I found Roxio brand recording products to be great - simple yet gets the job done well. Good luck.

On another note, when I took over the library I found boxes and boxes and shelves upon shelves of illegally copies or recorded off TV videos. When State Library Systems personnel first visited my school after I became librarian her first comment without even seeing them was "You are getting rid of all her old illegal tapes, right?"

I have great respect and a for the good witch.

I am leaning towards Roxio. Pretty cheap and it looks like it'll do what I want.

As for the other, if the state inspectors ever do come to my house {note: any and all videos will be kept strictly in-house}, they're gonna have a lot more to contend with than a measly few illegally copied videos.

 

[TE999]

I would like to transfer a stack of VHS tapes to DVDs. Any suggestions as to which device would be best for this?

I am not all that tech savvy but you've probably already deduced that upon reading any of my myriad threads.

For the most part, all these aforementioned VHS tapes will be of the "home movie" or "recorded off the television" type.

I have a PC, not a Mac; Windows7. I've used a couple of the pre-installed movie maker programs with fairly successful results.

Thank you for your help.

A from the good little witch.

Hammacher Schlemmer has a very good converter for around $300.00. I have purchased several of their products (not this one, though) and they all perform flawlessly. It may not be the cheapest, but I can virtually guarantee it's the most reliable; plus they have an excellent return policy.

http://www.hammacher.com/Product/83219?promo=search

 

[Saxon_Hart]

I am leaning towards Roxio. Pretty cheap and it looks like it'll do what I want.

As for the other, if the state inspectors ever do come to my house {note: any and all videos will be kept strictly in-house}, they're gonna have a lot more to contend with than a measly few illegally copied videos.

Usually as long as you are not offering the bootlegs for sale they ignore you. I had the FBI search my machines once and I had 3GB of music. They didn't care.

 

[glynndah]

Hammacher Schlemmer has a very good converter for around $300.00. I have purchased several of their products (not this one, though) and they all perform flawlessly. It may not be the cheapest, but I can virtually guarantee it's the most reliable; plus they have an excellent return policy.

http://www.hammacher.com/Product/83219?promo=search

$300.00!?! The good little witch is a cheapskate. Knock off one of those zeroes and she might be interested.

 

[glynndah]

Usually as long as you are not offering the bootlegs for sale they ignore you. I had the FBI search my machines once and I had 3GB of music. They didn't care.

Yeah, but my copies of Emmett Otter's Jug Band Christmas and Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood are an entirely different matter.

 

[Saxon_Hart]

Yeah, but my copies of Emmett Otter's Jug Band Christmas and Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood are an entirely different matter.

I'm sure Emmiett is on his way to your bubble as we speak!!

 

[Handley_Page]

Glynndah, Dear,
I had a similar requirement. I bought a Toshiba twin recorder machine; it will record and play on both media, and it transferred nearly all of my tapes to DVD without much of a problem (my coordination ain't that clever).
Naturally, some commercial Tapes will not transfer (Booh - chiz; Fantasia being one of them), but programmes recorded off the TV should give you no grief at all.

 

[jomar]

There are companies that will do this for you. You might want to compare the price of them doing it and you buying a machine and spending time doing it yourself.

 

[TxRad]

There are companies that will do this for you. You might want to compare the price of them doing it and you buying a machine and spending time doing it yourself.

But do they do the plain brown wrapper type deals.

 

[jomar]

But do they do the plain brown wrapper type deals.

Oh, THOSE kind of home movies, duh. I am sure there are provisions to protect the good little witch's...adventuresome side.

 

[Weird Harold]

There are companies that will do this for you. You might want to compare the price of them doing it and you buying a machine and spending time doing it yourself.

There are also places like RAC (Rent-a-center) or Aaron Rents that rent home electronics. They're a bit more expensive than an outright (cash) purchase, but they include technical assistance in setting up the equipment you rent.

 

[glynndah]

I'm sure Emmiett is on his way to your bubble as we speak!!

I'll make extra mashed potatoes.

Glynndah, Dear,
I had a similar requirement. I bought a Toshiba twin recorder machine; it will record and play on both media, and it transferred nearly all of my tapes to DVD without much of a problem (my coordination ain't that clever).
Naturally, some commercial Tapes will not transfer (Booh - chiz; Fantasia being one of them), but programmes recorded off the TV should give you no grief at all.

I don't think I have any commercial tapes to transfer so I should be okay. I have enough grief from my other electronics. I'm due for a bit of good luck.

There are companies that will do this for you. You might want to compare the price of them doing it and you buying a machine and spending time doing it yourself.

The machine I'm probably going to buy is about $45. The nearest place to do this is about two hours away and it was fairly expensive. I have hours and hours and hours of video to transfer over and an entire summer to do it in.

But do they do the plain brown wrapper type deals.

I'm sure they do, but do I?

Oh, THOSE kind of home movies, duh. I am sure there are provisions to protect the good little witch's...adventuresome side.

I'm sure there are, too.

 

[glynndah]

There are also places like RAC (Rent-a-center) or Aaron Rents that rent home electronics. They're a bit more expensive than an outright (cash) purchase, but they include technical assistance in setting up the equipment you rent.

I hadn't thought of that. I may have to look into that, but I'll bet with the number I have to do and the cost of the rental, buying my own is probably going to be a better deal.

 

[slyc_willie]

If what you want to convert is -- or at least was, at some point -- commercially available, you could try searching for them on YouTube, downloading the clips via RealPlayer, and burning a DVD disc on your own computer. I've done this several times with shows I've found for Little One. You have to be careful about the quality, though; watch them first with your video player in full-screen mode.