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From the minute you bring your footage into a computer, you've entered the realm of digital non-linear editing. Unlike traditional
editing, digital non-linear editing, or NLE, is done exclusively in a computer-based system where you can pick and choose pieces
of footage at random and link them together anyway you want.
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This "randomness" is the key defining element of NLE and it gives editors vast control over the editing process. Film can be arranged
in any order, regardless of the sequence, in any number of combinations. These edits are safely rendered in the computer and can be
viewed as many times as you want, and in as many possible configuration as you want, without corrupting or affecting the original footage
in any way. When the final edits are output, whether to tape, CD ROM or for broadcast over the internet, you create a clean copy
independent of the original source material. This flexibility is the main reason for the continual push towards NLE and away from
traditional editing.
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It is now a widely accepted fact that NLE will eventually replace turnkey systems altogether. The reasons for this are threefold:
- With computers getting faster, cheaper and more accessible everyday, more and more people already own the majority of the equipment necessary to edit video on their desktops.
- NLE offers consider advantages in areas such as creative freedom and ease of use. Special effects, image filters and transitions that were formerly an area of specialty unto themselves are now just a mouse click away. Combining this with fast learning curves and digital accuracy, the advantages are obvious.
- The rapid advancement of other digital video products. Digital video cameras now delivery higher quality video than traditional camcorders, and are rapidly becoming competitive price wise. Bigger, faster hard drives are being specifically developed to address digital video storage concerns. And perhaps the most important development in digital video technology is FireWire, allowing super high speed data transfers and straight digital source input, bypassing the analogue stage altogether. There is some talk in the industry now that FireWire ports will be standard on all computers in the future, promising a seamless integration of video with the PC in the future.
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